October 3, 2011

Older people in Africa demand for their rights

As the world prepares to mark the UN International Day for the Older People, the aged in six African countries will take action in seeking the right to better social protection policies, health care and for an opportunity to engage in development of their respective countries.
Older people remain amongst one of the poorest and most vulnerable groups in society, with 100 million older people living on less than $USD1 a day. According to HelpAge International, of the current total world population of over 6.9 billion, 793 million people are aged 60 and over. By 2050, the over-60 population is predicted to be just over 2 billion. Every month, one million people in the world turn 60. By about 2015, the number of people over 60 will have overtaken the number of children (0 to14).
Age Demands Action (ADA), the worldwide grassroots campaign jointly organised by HelpAge International and older people, for older people, will also be marking the international celebrations. ADA has spent five years making positive changes for older people who are often marginalised from society. “We older people have been removed from a very dark pit and put on the surface where there is light,” says Ms. Rhoda Ngima, 75, an ADA activist from Kenya.
ADA activists are this year calling on all governments and international donors to put older people higher up on development priority lists. Age Demands Action is the first global campaign of its kind, launched in 2007 by HelpAge International, the global network fighting for the rights of older people. Visit http://www.helpage.org/get-involved/campaigns/age-demands-action/
The campaign is supported by figures such as Archbishop Desmond Tutu; the Archbishop of Canterbury, Dr. Rowan Williams; Dr. Sarah Obama, the step-grandmother of President Barack Obama; and Professor Miriam Were, the Hideyo Noguchi Africa prize laureate.
People can say no to age discrimination and support the Age Demands Action campaign by signing an open petition at http://www.helpage.org/get-involved/campaigns/age-demands-action/sign-the-ada-petition/

July 25, 2011

Somali refugees need your help now!

Tens of thousands have fled their homes, walked for weeks in search of food. Many young children have died along the way. And all of the Somali refugees arriving in Kenya and Ethiopia are exhausted. Between 40 per cent and 50 per cent of the children are acutely malnourished.
Please give whatever you can afford. You will save lives; give protection. And you will offer hope to people who are in an extremely desperate situation.
UNHCR is already scaling up work on the ground.
For more information visit: www.unhcr.org/emergency/somalia/global_landing.html

January 25, 2011

New Report on Police Reforms to be launched

A new report of a Simplified Version of the Report of the National Task Force on Police Reforms (Ransley Report) will be launched tomorrow January 26, 2011 at 8:30am at Hilton Hotel in Nairobi.
The launch is part of a series of activities towards sustaining the demand for a comprehensive and meaningful reform of the police force that will include eight regional forums and road shows.
According to Kenya National Commission on Human Rights (KNCHR), since the promulgation of the new Constitution, there is little to show that accounts for a meaningful cultural shift by the police or even a broad acknowledgement of the new domain of rights as enshrined in the new constitution.
The KNCHR is calling for swift response and all Kenyans to be more involved in the reforms of the police.
 “The violation of Kenyans is still common place with casual and/or audacious illegalities that informs an unweathering culture of impunity within the Police Force. This is in part evidenced by the Rendition of Kenyans to Uganda and the continued spat of extrajudicial killings,” says KNCHR.
“Sadly, the police “play” on public fear, attempt to manipulate public opinion in a bid to win public sympathy and support for heinous acts of murder and/or extrajudicial killings and the numerous other violations of human rights. How can any decent, civilized nation excite fear and sympathy to win support for any killings under the circumstances.”
The rights organisation is calling on Kenyans to stop this heinous act. “We have a responsibility to empower every Kenyan to appreciate the veracity and illegality of these crimes not matter the magnitude of the challenges,” says KNCHR.
The organisation says that there is a need to discourse and build a national understanding that extrajudicial killing and the commission of crimes by the Police and public officer is unacceptable and must be punished. 

Body Concerned with Recent Spate of Violence by Police

The Usalama Reforms Forum is alarmed by the increasing spate of violence involving uniformed
officers and civilians. Recent shocking actions involving assault of police officers by civilians
and extra-judicial killings by the police are particularly concerning.
The execution of three people by police officers last week has shown the world what Kenyans
know is still happening all too often in their country – that impunity still reigns particularly
among the law enforcement agencies. It has shown that the arrival of the new Constitution and
the moves made so far toward police reform are not nearly enough to put a stop to extra-judicial
killings and the system that allows police to act outside the law. It has shown that, even since the
call from the UN’s Philip Alston and the Ransley Commission in 2009 for moves to bring an end
to these kinds of actions by security forces in Kenya, not much has changed on the ground.
Certainly not enough to make sure that police do not behave like this, and that if they do,
certainly not enough to make sure that there are swift and definite processes and consequences.
The results are all evident. When police officers are increasingly conducting their affairs outside
of the law, demand bribes and block the public’s quest for fair administrative action, restiveness
and violent reaction by citizens towards the police become the norm rather than the exception.
The Usalama Reform Forum condemns all acts of unlawful violence and extrajudicial killings by
police officers in this country the same way it condemns violence by citizens directed at officers
on duty.
Usalama supports the actions of the police service and the government in ensuring that the
officers in question in this incident were immediately identified and suspended from duty. This is
however not sufficient. Usalama demands that an immediate and open inquiry be launched and
these officers be immediately arrested pending further investigations.
Usalama will be watching this case and urges the government to follow through on its promises
to properly an promptly investigate this slaying and prosecute those responsible.
Further, Usalama calls on the government to immediately and urgently work with the Police
Reform Implementation Commission and Parliament to ensure that the Independent Policing
Oversight Authority is brought into being.

China's Gateway Into Africa

Following 13 years of diplomatic ties, it is becoming more evident that trade between China and South Africa is gaining momentum and for those companies who may have ignored this growing trade relationship in the past, are now forced to recognize the potential for doing business with China. Not only is there room for growth in trade between South Africa and China, but China is viewing the well-developed infrastructure South Africa provides as the key to unlocking the gateway into the rest of Africa.
In 2009, China surpassed the United States, to become South Africa’s largest export destination. This emanated from major exports in raw materials to fuel the booming Chinese economy. Trade between China and South Africa reached USD 16 billion in 2009 and is expected to grow year on year, with the signing of various cooperation deals in August 2010, by President Zuma during his State visit to China. These deals focus on the mineral resources sector, railway development, construction industry as well as the mining sector and finally power transmission and nuclear power.

Scope for trade with the rest of Africa is also being given added impetus by the Asian country’s capacity to innovate as well as currently China enjoys an enviable fiscal situation and has the demand to invest in infrastructure. As China is moving up the development ladder it is prudent that other emerging economies explore and develop trade relations with this country, currently listed at the top of the list of 28 developing economies globally.

Kobus van der Wath, Founder and Group Managing Director of The Beijing Axis, with offices in Johannesburg and Beijing, stressed the importance of understanding this developing market for the benefit of trade for both South Africa and Africa, “To ignore China would be a fundamental mistake for any business seeking growth in a world limited with expansion opportunities as a result of the economic meltdown in recent years in developed markets. China provides the platform to harness increased trade, develop new markets as well as given China’s growing household and industrial consumption, the demand for exports from South Africa and Africa is rising rapidly. Business has the opportunity to grow by developing partnerships with China.” concluded van der Wath.

Being located in Beijing, van der Wath has realized the importance of understanding how to do business with the Chinese. He has subsequently supported Siyenza’s founding of the first China Inc meets SA Inc Business Forum, which will be taking place in South Africa at the Sandton Convention Centre on the 16th February 2011, aimed at assisting South African and African business to evolve to expand trade relations with China.

“Our desire is to help business understand the culture of the Chinese business market and to fully embrace this immense trading partner available to our companies. The Chinese have the capacity to invest in major infrastructure projects on this continent, to provide finance for developments and are keen to source raw materials and products to service their growing needs.” stated van der Wath.

The China Inc meets SA Inc Business Forum will address key trade issues amongst others, including the following:

• The Game in Africa: Key Players and Strategic Interests;

• Formulating a China Strategy: Planning and Implementation Issues during Corporate Engagement;

• Unlocking Opportunities in the Resource Sector;

• Strategic Considerations and Business Dynamics in Asia;

• Does Culture Matter?; and

• As well as - Panel Discussion: Strategy, Implementation and South Africa Inc Cases

Can South Africa and Africa take the risk and ignore the Chinese? “Any business doing so, would be doing so at their peril.” said van der Wath who encouraged business to attend this forum to gain valuable insight into how to do business with China.



December 14, 2010

"I CARE" Campaign

RNW is launching a campaign themed on HIV and Children, dubbed ‘I care’. The campaign, with a strong focus on new media and social media will kick off with a blog competition that will involve the media, journalism students, and bloggers, who will write stories and post them on a mini-website for an international audience. Visitors to the website can react and vote for the best written stories that make the biggest impression on them. The competition will attract prizes to the tune of 1600 euro.
The objective of the competition will be to create awareness on HIV/AIDS and children through blogs. It also aims at partnerships with the Kenyan media as the central point to disseminate information to the masses.
The campaign will be officially launched on Wednesday 15th 2010, at the Intercontinental hotel, from 08:30 AM – 10:00 AM.
In attendance to launch this campaign will be Radio Netherlands Worldwide’s Africa Desk Manager, Herman Van Gelderen.

November 13, 2008

Guys are going Down!

I will be the happiest Kenyan if the Waki report is implemented and the perpetratorts of the post-election violence punished.
There is a Kiswahili saying that goes, malipo ni hapa hapa tu duiniani.()The perpetrators are cornered. There is no way out for these guys. Many Kenyans suffered and are still suffering because of some ruthless hungry power idiots who thought they would escape the hand of law.
Those politicians and business elites had their laugh and now the families of those who lost their loved ones and the displaced are having theirs now. He who laughs first laughs last!
I wish i would speed up the implementation myself and ..

Can you believe it!

Our members of parliament have armtwisted the acting finance minister John Michuki to throw away the proposal asking them to pay taxes according to news reports.
Kenyans these are the leaders you voted for. Are you willing to vote them back to the office?
Are these mps being fare to Kenyans who put them in those offices?
Our mps are the best well paid in the world, drawing a monthly salary and allowances of about KSHs 850,000. Only a basic salary of 200,000 attacts tax amounting to 53,000.
So in 2012 think twice before you vote.
Who is supposed to pay taxes anyway the poor who live from hand to mouth or the rich. If you ask me let the mps be the first to pay taxes and the rest to follow.
Kenyans must stand up to these people and demand that they pay taxes or else no Kenyan should be taxed.

November 12, 2008