Wicked Karibu

Obama on Africa

2009-07-11T19:17:00.002+03:00

“No country is going to create wealth if its leaders exploit the economy to enrich themselves, or police can be bought off by drug traffickers. No business wants to invest in a place where the government skims 20 percent off the top, or the head of the port authority is corrupt. No person wants to live in a society where the rule of law gives way to the rule of brutality and bribery. That is not democracy, that is tyranny, and now is the time for it to end.”

From the New York Times story on Obama's visit to Ghana. Clearly, sub-Saharan Africa is a low-priority for the administration, and Africans know that. But many will pay attention when he says things like this and, combined with the simple fact that he provides an example of a leader people can get excited about, it may go some way toward encouraging voters in African countries to get behind more inspiring candidates.

tutaonana

2009-07-06T00:52:00.003+03:00

So after two and a half good years in Nairobi, I left on Thursday and will now be back in the USA for at least the next couple of years. In the coming weeks I'll be reevaluating the utility of the blog - at the least, the picture and theme and maybe the name will need some adjusting. I doubt you do, but if anyone has input/suggestions feel free to let me know. In the meantime, I'll keep posting some intermittent links to riveting must-sees on the Internet, like a 13-year old reviewing the Walkman (BBC). If you're starving for Africa dispatches, my friend Rob is doing some summertime Liberia blogging. And I've gotten myself set up on Twitter, though I'm not promising much in the way of updates at this point.

Finally, it's arrived in Kenya

2009-06-29T14:57:00.001+03:00

Not broadband. Swine flu.

Rafsanjani on female beauty

2009-06-26T20:45:00.002+03:00

"Can anyone tell me where it says in the Holy Koran that women have to make themselves look ugly?"

That's former Iranian president Ali Akbar Rafsanjani, the man the media call the best hope for challenging Khameinei's hold on power, speaking in the mid-1980s, in reference to hard-right female journalists decked out in black. From a dispatch by John Simpson, who was in Tehran with the BBC until he was recently kicked out.

East Africa roundup

2009-06-18T11:14:00.003+03:00

Somalia's internal security minister has been killed in suicide bombing (Bloomberg)

Lions are on the loose in Nairobi! From the Nation:
The animals were seen crossing Magadi Road outside Multimedia University (formerly KCCT Mbagathi) in Nairobi..."We would like to assure the public that they have no reason to worry: KWS is in control, and the lions should be back in the park soonest." KWS said in a statement

Meanwhile, a British woman has been killed by a zebra in Kenya (Sun):
"There are different suggestions as to how that occurred. Clearly a zebra collided with her and there were problems."

East Africa roundup

2009-06-17T11:00:00.002+03:00

The UN 'runs out of food aid' in Ethiopia (BBC)

Zain is being sold (Nation)

The police chief of Mogadishu was killed as the fighting there keeps on going (BBC)

I hope everyone had a pleasant Day of the African Child yesterday (Relief Web)

Uganda has the world's second-highest rate of road accidents, according to the Uganda Red Cross (New Vision)

East Africa roundup

2009-06-16T11:07:00.003+03:00

A new Obama book. From DPA:
US President Barack Obama's half-brother, George Obama, is working on a book to be published by Simon & Schuster, the US publishing giant said in a statement Monday. George Obama, 27, is the youngest of the seven children born to Obama's father in Kenya and was recently arrested there for marijuana possession. The two Obamas have different mothers and never met until Obama visited Kenya in 1987.

From the Daily Mail, the perils of Kenyan beaches:
An hour later, the head of department arrived. By this time, I'd had to turn the light out in the room as I was in so much pain. I'd had no sleep for three days and was in no state to meet the most devastatingly handsome doctor I had ever seen, but there he was. I was swooning with pain, but I swooned some more.

Maybe I'm getting jaded, but this strikes me as an example of 'couldn't we think of something better to send?'. From the Wausau Daily Herald in Wisconsin:
A Wausau West High School teacher this summer wants to make graduation a little more special for students on the other side of the globe. Choral director Phil Buch has asked local graduates to donate their commencement gowns so that students in Ethiopia may wear them. Buch has collected 30 gowns since June 1, with a goal of 75.

Or maybe I'm just concerned that this kind of behavior would cut down on the stock of second-hand gowns in local thrift stores, making it harder for people like me to construct a 'zombie William Rehnquist' Halloween costume.

East Africa roundup

2009-06-11T11:30:00.003+03:00

The hand grenade: weapon of choice in Burundi? Esdras Ndikumana for AFP:
In post-conflict Burundi, hand grenades go for around one dollar (about R10) on the black market and have become the weapon of choice for everybody, from petty criminals to disgruntled lovers.

The khat menace in D.C. From Phillip Smith at Alternet:
Last fall, at the urging of DC US Attorney Jeffrey Taylor, Mayor Adrian Fenty (D) introduced a proposal to criminalize fresh khat as a Schedule I drug, as it is under federal law. The DC City council is currently considering the proposal as part of its 2009 Omnibus Crime Bill and is likely to act on the measure before its session ends July 15. "It's sad that they want to put the resources of crime fighting against individuals from a different culture who don't have anybody except their community and try to punish them for doing what they have always done," said Abdul Aziz Kamus of the DC-based African Resource Center. "It seems like DC wants to punish hard-working immigrant taxi drivers who are law-abiding citizens."

East Africa roundup

2009-06-10T11:24:00.003+03:00

Some of the international aid groups expelled from northern Sudan following the International Criminal Court's approval of a warrant for Sudan's president, including Mercy Corps, CARE, and Save the Children, are in discussions about returning (Reuters)

Sudan might delay its elections - currently set for February - again. Shocking. Reuters:
The deputy chairperson of the National Elections Commission, Abdullah Ahmed Abdulla, told Reuters the commission was behind schedule because of delays in announcing results of a vital census and in setting up election committees in states. "We are considering a modification, an adjustment of our old timeframe to accommodate the delays that have taken place," Abdulla said on Tuesday, adding it would "not be very much of a delay".

For francophones, a dispatch from Mogadishu by Matthias Bruggmann in Paris Match:
"La démocratie, c’est quand un homme peut forniquer dans la rue. Il peut se balader nu et forniquer avec d’autres hommes. » Ahmed est sûr de son fait. Avant, dans une autre vie, ce père de famille était enseignant dans une madrasa, une école coranique. Puis il a rejoint Al-Chabab, mouvement islamiste radical somalien, placé par les Etats-Unis dans la liste des groupes soutenant le terrorisme. Aujourd’hui, les combattants fondamentalistes contrôlent presque tout Mogadiscio, après trois semaines d’offensive sans précédent contre le gouvernement. A 34 ans, Ahmed se retrouve émir et commande à une dizaine d’hommes.

That first quote, from an Islamist insurgent, is worth translating: "Democracy is when a man can fornicate in the street. He can walk around naked and fornicate with other men." What's the problem?

Another confirmation that pirates are a sure-fire crowd-pleaser. Broadcast:
The hour-long show Ross Kemp in Search of Pirates, which saw the former EastEnders actor investigate the boom in piracy off the coast of east Africa, was up by 29% on the channel’s slot average for the year so far of 487,000 (2.2%). The channel’s performance this year at the time has improved significantly compared with 2008 when it managed 276,000 (1.3%) at the time.
Last night’s show improved on Kemp’s previous investigation Ross Kemp: A Kenya Special which attracted 532,000 (2.9%) on 22 September last year.

Paul Collier on African elections (Wall Street Journal):
In Africa, presidential elections have become the fashionable norm, like state airlines used to be. This year there will be 15 of them. But like those airlines, in the absence of supporting institutions elections have proved to be more decorative than functional, a veneer beneath which the autocratic rule of the pre-1991 era continues little abated. Autocracy in Africa was ruinous: Narrow ethnically based elites plundered the country for their own short-term benefit. America and the other Western countries that encouraged democracies were right to think that what Africa needed was accountability of government to citizen, but wrong to think that this could be achieved simply by elections.

Swedish expats' dreams of opening a hotel and living out their days in a Kenyan paradise are rudely shattered, along with their innocence. From the Independent:
But yet again our success was not tolerated. When we refused to pay the customary bribes to the chief, the water was cut off. Nobody had told us that our paradise was corrupt. No water – no hotel – no mushrooms.

The Council on Foreign Relations interviews Kenya's prime minister. On an ethnic interpretation of Kenyan politics:
I don't agree. It's a very simplistic view of Kenyan politics. Kenyan politics are much more complicated than that, and they are fairly ideological. ODM party [Odinga's party] is more of a social democracy [party]. PNU [Kibaki's party] is a more conservative political party. But ideology has even died in America. What is the difference between Republicans and the Democrats? Go to Britain. Labor and the Tories. It is not just only Africa. That is a very simplistic view of what's happening here.Our politics are not ethnic. Look at elections last time. My party won seats in all the eight provinces in the country. Look at the presidential elections. I won the vote in six of the eight provinces. I did not win in [President Kibaki's province], but I also got some votes there. I did not win in Eastern Province, but I also got some votes there.

Rwandan Hutu rebels, targeted by a joint DRC-Rwanda military operation earlier this year in Congo's North Kivu province, are causing trouble again, now in South Kivu (mediacongo)

East Africa roundup

2009-06-09T17:12:00.002+03:00

-A campaign to distribute Michaela Wrong's new book on Kenyan corruption more widely in the country (Nation):

Fear of libel cases has prevented Kenyan booksellers from stocking the book. The new plan is to break the bookseller boycott by distributing over 5,100 copies, for free or at discount prices.
“The plan is to get the book to those Kenyans who cannot afford to travel themselves and don’t have credit cards — to access it,” the author says in an email over the new move.

-From Reuters, a look at the arms business in Somalia. This fellow seems rather blunt:

Sitting on a mat at home between taking orders for arms on his two mobile phones, Osman Bare gives thanks for the riches flowing from Somalia's war.
"I have only been in the weapon business five years, but I have erected three villas. I have also opened shops for my two wives," said the 40-year-old, one of about 400 Somali men operating in Mogadishu's main weapons market.

"Peace means bankruptcy for us."

-A Tanzanian, Ahmed Ghailani, is the first Guantanamo detainee to be transferred to the United States (Washington Post)

Ghailani faces multiple charges and, if convicted, could face the death penalty for his role in the bombing of U.S. embassies in Tanzania and Kenya, which killed 224 people, including 12 Americans.

-Somalia, already greatly under-reported, is about to become more so. From Inside Somalia:

Nearly thirty journalists in Mogadishu have agreed to cease reporting events following the killing of two staff members of Radio Shabelle on Sunday.
...
The journalist have gathered in Mogadishu and announced that the risk to their lives does not warrant reporting unless warring sides respect rights of journalists and freedom of reporting.

-And Gabon's president is, indeed, dead. (RFI)

East Africa roundup

2009-06-08T17:47:00.002+03:00

--Another journalist killed in Somalia (NYT):

Two gunmen opened fire on two Somali broadcast journalists in the capital’s busy Bakara market on Sunday, killing one and wounding the other, witnesses reported. The dead journalist was identified by the witnesses as Muktar Mohamed Hirabe, director of Shabelle Media Network, a local radio and television station, and the wounded journalist as Ahmed Omar, a Shabelle reporter.

He's the fifth Somali journalist killed this year, and the 14th since 2007, making Somalia the deadliest country in Africa for journalists, according to Reporters Without Borders.

--Global military spending hasn't suffered much in the recent economic climate (BBC):

Global military spending rose 4% in 2008 to a record $1,464bn (£914bn) - up 45% since 1999, according to the Stockholm-based peace institute Sipri.In contrast with civilian aerospace and airlines, the defence industry remains healthy.
...
Peace-keeping operations - which also benefit defence firms - rose 11%.
Missions were launched in trouble spots such as Darfur and the Democratic Republic of the Congo.

--Northern Ugandan bamboo bicycles, coming soon to California (New Vision):

A NEW project in northern Uganda will soon start exporting bicycles made out of bamboo to California.
The African Ellipsi Project, a church based organisation, is finalising plans to build a factory in Gulu town to make the bicycles known as Bamboosero.

--Maybe this is why the U.S. doesn't want flights from Kenya. From the Washington Post:

A stowaway who apparently hid aboard a flight from Ethiopia to Washington was found in the plane's baggage hold by workers at Dulles International Airport, authorities said last night.

As baggage handlers unloaded the Ethiopian Airlines flight Saturday morning, they spotted an arm protruding from between luggage pallets, officials said.

--In interesting news elsewhere on the continent, Gabon's president may have died, but he might not have. Interestingly, all the news reports refer to Omar Bongo as Africa's longest serving-leader, but unless I'm mistaken, he's the longest-serving head of state anywhere, now that Fidel's out, having been in power since 1967. Either way, seems like it's about time for a fresh face. From AFP:

The Gabon government on Monday summoned France's ambassador to protest over reports that President Omar Bongo Ondimba, Africa's longest serving leader, had died in a Spanish clinic.
"Omar Bongo Ondimba is alive and well," Prime Minister Jean Eyeghe Ndong said in Barcelona after he and several Gabonese cabinet ministers and family members visited the president on Monday.

East Africa roundup

2009-06-07T10:31:00.002+03:00

The downside of laptops, from the Monitor:

The “One Laptop per Child” scheme, which has sent over a million US$100 laptops to children in the developing world, has been criticised by researchers who found that, unless they are introduced with care, they become little more than distracting toys in the classroom.

Watch out, Gavin Newsom. From the Nation:

Hoping to duplicate Barack Obama’s rapid ascent in US politics, a Kenyan-American preacher is running for governor of California.
...
Dr Symmon, a Bible-believing Christian, plans to present himself to voters as “a moral voice” who can lead California out of the worst budget crisis in its history.
...
To run a credible race in the primary election, a candidate would have to raise more than $10 million (Sh780 million). Additional millions will be needed to wage an effective campaign for the November general election.
In an interview with the Sunday Nation, Dr Symmon declined to say how much money he has raised to date.
Having never held elected office, Dr Symmon acknowledges that he lacks name recognition in a state with roughly as many residents as Kenya.

East Africa Roundup

2009-06-06T12:33:00.002+03:00

-- Now doesn't this just warm the heart? From Reuters:

Some refugees in Sudan's war-torn Darfur region have named their children "Okambo" as a tribute to the International Criminal Court's chief prosecutor Luis Moreno-Ocampo, actress Mia Farrow said on Friday.
"I've met at least 100 babies named Ocampo," Farrow, a U.N. goodwill ambassador, told reporters following a U.N. Security Council meeting on Darfur. "They spell it Okambo. ... So the name has been Africanized."

-- More fighting, and more displacement, in Somalia. From Reuters:

Rival Islamist groups battled for a central Somali town on Friday, leaving at least 56 militants dead, while the number of new refugees from a month of fighting in the capital, Mogadishu, approached 100,000.

-- And for those who make it across the border to Kenya, the situation isn't great either. From Human Rights Watch:

The United Nations High Commissioner for Refugees (UNHCR) announced four months ago that Prime Minister Raila Odinga of Kenya had made a commitment to provide land to help relieve congestion in three chronically overcrowded camps near Dadaab in northeastern Kenya. But the Kenyan government has yet to make any land available. This has left tens of thousands of refugees fleeing Somalia's ongoing armed conflict with no option but to squeeze into the bursting camps - built for 90,000 refugees but now sheltering 275,000 - on other refugees' tiny plots of land.

--But maybe this will help. Ross Kemp is hosting a special on Somali pirates on British TV. From the Times:

On board HMS Northumberland, hours of waiting are punctuated by a spate of distress calls. It is Kemp’s best performance to date.

Kemp, of course is the "bloke-ish actor who has carved out a career playing himself", mostly in things I've never seen or heard of, with one important exception.

Security in southern Sudan

2009-06-05T17:54:00.002+03:00

The UN noted this week that more people have died in tribal violence in southern Sudan this year than in the conflict in Darfur. With national elections scheduled for early next year, and a referendum on southern secession to follow in 2011, the chance of more violence, especially around the disputed north-south border regions, is only going to increase. And if the south does actually manage to secede, the new country is going to face significant challenges in avoiding its own internal strife. The Small Arms Survey and Safer World have a worthwhile issue brief looking at several aspects of security in southern Sudan.

Worth reading

2009-06-05T17:44:00.002+03:00

The outcome of India's elections (Economist)

The problem with democracy-promotion in Egypt (Newsweek)

What Bill Clinton's up to (New York Times)

What makes us happy (Atlantic)

An examination of South Africa's new president (Atlantic)

The situation in Pakistan (New York Review of Books)

Some ways to improve the prison system (New York Review of Books)

How much of a racist was Abe Lincoln? (New York Review of Books)

Why Delta Airlines isn't flying to Nairobi (McClatchy)

Why some parts of the country spend so much more on health care than others (New Yorker)

East Africa roundup

2009-05-29T17:59:00.003+03:00

1. Another football-related tragedy strikes Africa, this time in Nigeria (DPA):

A Nigerian fan of Manchester United killed four people and injured ten others when he drove a minibus into a crowd of Barcelona supporters, Nigerian police said Thursday.

2. Rating Ugandan lawmakers (Monitor):

Ministers John Nasasira (Works), Janet Museveni (Karamoja Affairs) and James Nsaba Buturo (Ethics) emerged among the worst performing MPs from western Uganda, details of the Parliamentary Scorecard indicate.
The scorecard is an assessment of MPs performance in Parliament and in the constituency.

3. A pirate movie, obviously (BBC)

4. More Kenyan food, this time in Orange County (OC Weekly):

Perhaps the most complex meal is the samosas, some of the best in Orange County. A legacy of Indian migration to Kenya, these aren’t fried nightmares, but instead contain ground beef spiced with cinnamon and chile powder to create something so delicious my friend called them Kenyan tacos—and if you think this uncouth, then explain why every table seems to feature a bottle of orange Jarritos and why the kachumbari is described on the menu as “East African salsa” and is really nothing more than extra-yummy pico de gallo?

Worth a look

2009-05-28T15:34:00.002+03:00

Guardian columnist Jonathan Freedland reviews David Vine's Island of Shame: The Secret History of the US Military Base on Diego Garcia (New York Review of Books):

This is the story laid bare in Island of Shame, a meticulously researched, coldly furious book that details precisely how London and Washington colluded in a scheme of population removal more redolent of the eighteenth or nineteenth century than the closing decades of the twentieth. It reconstructs, memo by memo, how the deed was plotted, how it was done, and how it was denied through lies told to both politicians and public. Above all, it serves as a case study for the way contemporary empire operates, exploding the myth that the United States differs from its British, Spanish, and Roman predecessors by eschewing both the brute conquest of land and the dispossession of those unfortunate enough to get in the way.

East Africa roundup

2009-05-28T13:36:00.002+03:00

1. How U.S. investors look at Africa (Foreign Policy):

The survey suggests that African countries tend to fall into three categories: strong countries that are seriously considered as investment destinations; weak countries that would not even be considered by most of the respondents; and average countries where a mix of good and bad news calls for caution. South Africa, Nigeria and Kenya are rated highest for their economic development, while Ghana, South Africa and Tunisia take top honors for their investment climate. South Africa got the highest marks for government attitude, with Ghana, Morocco, Kenya and Nigeria tied in the next highest position. Nigeria, Morocco, Egypt and South Africa saw the highest perceived return on investment. These traditionally high performers are followed by an interesting group of emerging countries that are catching investors' attention. Libya, Senegal, Mozambique and Rwanda are viewed increasingly positively in government attitude, investment return, and progress with economic development.

2. Nothing against teddy bears but...Teddy Bears of Hope? (Amherstburg Echo)

Dowhan, 18, is Miss Teen Amherstburg and will be a delegate in this summer's Miss Teen Canada International Pageant in Toronto. The goal of their Teddy Bears of Hope is to raise 2,000 teddy bears per participant with the teddy bears going to needy children in Uganda, Africa. The twonies help cover shipping expenses.

3. Kenyan food in DC...probably not the first place I'll seek out, but good to know (Standard):

The restaurant remains the only place that serves Kenyan food in a metropolitan area that has several Indian, Ethiopian, Chinese and Italian restaurants. The menu at Safari DC includes nyama and mbuzi choma, chicken, tilapia, chapati, samosa, ugali and, of course, Tusker. A corner of the restaurant is dedicated to Barack Obama, the US President

4. Don't have sex with old people (New Times)

Who is the real loser here?

2009-05-28T13:31:00.002+03:00

From Uganda's New Vision:

Kampala — KENYAN men moved a notch higher yesterday with the announcement that they had started a 30-day sex boycott to protest against abuse of their rights by women.
...
Wambasi said the move was in protest against the recent action by the G-10 women's movement that forced women to go on a one-week sex boycott owing to the slow pace of reforms by the coalition government and rampant corruption in the country.

Listing of the day

2009-05-22T13:10:00.002+03:00

From the "Catch the action" guide to weekend events in today's Nation newspaper...

"BIKINI SHOW
Friday, May 22. Mtwapa's Club Lambada tonight presents the Bikini Ladies show at the Poolside. The Lambada Cabaret Dancers will perform alongside VJ Delph will also entertain you. On Sunday it is a family funday at the same spot. "

The rain down in Somalia....

2009-05-22T11:40:00.003+03:00

Just what Mogadishu needs. On top of the worst fighting in months, now there are floods. Although this may actually be a good thing, considering that Somalia has also been dealing with its worst drought in a decade. I would say something about locusts here, except that wouldn't be funny.

Worth a look

2009-05-21T18:05:00.003+03:00

From the past week...

Verlyn Klinkenborg describes the merits of reading aloud (New York Times)

Sue Halpern reviews a new biography of Warren Buffett alongside Malcolm Gladwell's new book (New York Review of Book s)

Robert Draper lets Donald Rumsfeld's former colleagues trash him anonymously (GQ)

Alex de Waal reviews the new book on the "Responsibility to Protect" (R2P) doctrine by Interational Crisis Group president Gareth Evans (Social Science Research Council)

Mapscroll inserts individual U.S. states into the Human Development Index of the world's countries.

Kenya's press

2009-05-17T09:33:00.002+03:00

The cover story in today's Nation (Kenya's leading daily) is a pretty fine example of the strengths and weaknesses of Kenya's press. The papers are more than willing to make accusations of wrongdoing on the part of the country's leaders. The headline splashed across the front page is "Bribery in Kenya's Parliament."

Kenya’s Parliament is increasingly becoming a haven of corruption as more and more MPs fall into traps set by unscrupulous but influential political and financial kingpins, the Sunday Nation can reveal.

Multiple interviews with sitting and former House members found a growing trend where wealthy and influential politicians who find themselves on the receiving end generously offer handouts as they lobby MPs to vote in their favour.

But then comes a key paragraph:

A string of wealthy politicians and business magnates, who cannot be named for legal reasons, have perfected the art of bribing a section of MPs in the guise of lobbying them to debate or vote in a way that favours their interests

The papers will openly decry the presence of corruption, incompetence, ethnic baiting, etc, more openly than you'll get from the mainstream press in many of the other countries in the region. But unless a name comes up on the record in parliamentary debate, or in a speech by a politician, specific names are avoided. So the article is filled with attributed quotes from members of parliament expressing disappointment at the corrupt dealings going on among unnamed colleagues. But the chances of anyone being held accountable for the behavior described seem pretty slim.

Good time for a training

2009-05-14T16:14:00.002+03:00

I suppose if I were a member of Somalia's parliament, now - with Islamist insurgents continuing their week-long assault on the government - would seem like a pretty good time to go attend a training in Nairobi. From Garowe :

International organizations are expected to host the training in Nairobi, where members of the Somali Parliament, which includes some 275 new lawmakers, will be taught about parliamentary conduct, activities and good governance.

The timing of the lawmakers' trip to Kenya comes as Islamist rebels, led by Al Shabaab and Hizbul Islam, have intensified the armed campaign against the interim Somali government of President Sheikh Sharif Ahmed, former leader of the Islamic Courts movement.
...
A parliament source confidentially told Garowe Online that the trip to Kenya was scheduled, but noted that the date of the trip was "sped up due to security concerns."

To be fair, this is the most presence a Somali parliament has had in Mogadishu for quite some time. The "Transitional Federal Parliament" was created in Nairobi in 2004. It moved to the central town of Baidoa in 2006, but Baidoa has since been taken over by the hard-line Al-Shabab militia. Then, for a while, most of the parliament was hanging out in Djibouti. When the current president took over at the end of January, many of the lawmakers moved back to Mogadishu, though 160 or so have been staying in Nairobi (the fashionable coffee houses near my office downtown are favorite haunts for well-to-do Somalis).

What brings America and Iran together?

2009-05-14T14:39:00.004+03:00

Somali pirates. From Iran's Press TV

Iranian warships will join an international armada fighting piracy in the in waters off the coast of Somalia and the Gulf of Aden.
...
In line with the international efforts Tehran will deploy two warships in the troubled region, Iran's ambassador to the UN, Mohammad Khazaei, said in a letter to the UN Secretary General Ban Ki-moon on Wednesday.
...
Naval ships from the European Union, NATO and other US-led coalitions have been stationed in the region to prevent hijackings and to capture the ominous pirates.

Sentence of the day

2009-05-12T15:09:00.002+03:00

I spend a good portion of many days reading news stories from East African media outlets, which means I come across some interesting English syntax. My favorites tend to be from the English-language write-ups on Somali news websites, which I find have a certain poetry to them. Today, for example, from Radio Shabelle, comes this gem:

Sheik Yusuf Inda’ade told Shabelle Media that he totally handed over his entire weapons to one of his brothers declining to name the man he handed over to his weapons.

Even if they do sometimes just consist of the same statement being repeated several times, each more garbled than the last, I appreciate the articles. The websites manage to get updated news, even in English, posted impressively quickly. If a warlord or an official calls a press conference, you'll be able to read about it, and at least get the gist of it, much faster than you would from most other countries in the region. And until I can do a better job reading this...

Indha cadde ayaa waxaa uu ka gaabsaday in walaalka uu hubkiisa ku wareejiyay uu ka mid yahay dhinacyada dagaalamaya iyo in kale.

...I can't really complain.

Football-related domestic tragedy

2009-05-06T15:22:00.003+03:00

I didn't enjoy watching Arsenal's drubbing at the hands of Man U yesterday. But as the Nation reports, some took it worse:

A man ended his life in Nairobi after his favourite English Premiership team lost a season-defining match against their fiercest rivals on Tuesday.
Mr Suleiman Alfonso Omondi, 29, who was known to his friends as a staunch supporter of the London-based Arsenal football club, was found dangling from a rope at his house in the city’s Pipeline estate on Wednesday morning.
Though thousands of miles away, English football teams have a fanatical, at times near religious following in Kenya.

The AFP write-up ends with this cryptic generalization:

Football-related domestic tragedies are frequent in the region, where English clubs enjoy passionate following and European games draw more attention than national and continental games.

Though, according to the Nation...

It is the first time that Kenyans’ fanatical following of the English Premier League has ended in such tragedy.

Democracy in Uganda

2009-05-05T17:19:00.004+03:00

Afrobarometer has released its latest findings on Uganda (from Jul-Oct 2008). Most of the media coverage in Uganda has focused on the figure of 41 percent saying they would vote to reelect Yoweri Museveni. Yes, this is less than the 50 percent threshold needed to win, but he's still 20 points ahead of his closest challenger, Kizza Besigye, whose score here is also much lower than his showing in the 2006 election.

More interesting, I think, is the general negative trend in public satisfaction with the government's performance, particularly confidence in democratic institutions. Support for democracy is at its highest level since surveys started in 2000, as is rejection of one-party rule. But opinion of the quality of elections has "plumetted" and there have been steep drops in how well Ugandans feel they are represented in parliament and how well they feel they can remove bad leaders through polls.

Of course, all this was before Museveni announced his intention to send an African to the moon.

Evidence of Obama's unamericanness

2009-04-21T10:27:00.002+03:00

From Africa Is A Country:

Though maybe his form can vouch for his patriotism:

The US President gets some pointers from Brian Lara, the West Indian cricket legend. Unfortunately, with that stance Obama will be scoring ducks every time.

For more on the subject of cricket and America, I thoroughly recommend Netherland.

Kenyan curling

2009-04-16T11:06:00.002+03:00

Apparently, Kenya competed in the World Cup of curling last year (Standard):

It can also be played on asphalt, especially in summer, meaning it can be played all year round in Kenya

New report on Eritrea

2009-04-16T10:53:00.002+03:00

Human Rights Watch has a new report out on Eritrea:

Based on more than 50 interviews with Eritrean victims and eyewitnesses of abuses in three countries, the report describes how the Eritrean government uses a vast apparatus of official and secret detention facilities to incarcerate thousands of Eritreans without charge or trial. Many of the prisoners are detained for their political or religious beliefs, others because they tried to evade the indefinite national service or flee the country.

Information on the country can be hard to come by, so this is welcome.

Kenyan rock

2009-03-27T10:21:00.003+03:00

From the Nation:

You’d think it was something off a vampire movie set in the middle ages. The black apparel, appalling facial make up, silver chains, crosses, studs and rings, spiked gauntlets (arm guards) and wrist bands; the ultimate signs of a rocker.
Though slow, there is certainly a revolution. Kenyan Rock is today what European and American Rock were in the 70s; unacceptable, deplorable, evil, a bad influence even.

I know the guy in the top left picture a little, and probably wouldn't consider him 'evil.' But maybe the ones in the studded collars.

Kagame speaks

2009-03-26T15:03:00.002+03:00

Jeune Afrique's interview with Rwandan president Paul Kagame, reprinted in the New Times, is an interesting read for those who follow the region. On Congolese Tutsi rebel leader Laurent Nkunda, a supposed Rwandan proxy now in detention in Rwanda:

Wasn’t he a member of the Rwandese Patriotic Army, your army, from 1991 to 1996?

Absolutely not. I even read somewhere that he may have helped us to liberate Kigali in July 1994. It is all rubbish.
...
I don’t know Laurent Nkunda. I have never met him, I have never seen him anywhere apart from the television, and I have never spoken to him on telephone. I hope that is clear.

No more Coke

2009-03-24T14:56:00.002+03:00

Now this is serious. The BBC is reporting that Addis Ababa is out of Coke:

The BBC's Elizabeth Blunt in the city says she has known African countries to run out of petrol, soap, sugar, batteries or tyres - but never Coke.
The East Africa Bottling Share Company, which produces the soft drink in the region, last week temporarily shut its bottling operation in Ethiopia.
...
Our correspondent says it sounds almost as if the Coca-Cola shortage is being treated as a national emergency.
When she visited a local bar she found it had run out of Coca-Cola, Pepsi, Sprite and Fanta. Mirinda was the only soft drink on offer.

Wow. More than a few times, I've heard people say how they wish governments or aid agencies could be as effective at distributing their services as Coca-Cola, whose product is seemingly always available, anywhere, no matter how remote. Maybe that needs to be revised. At least they have plenty of coffee in Addis.

Cartoon

2009-03-23T15:38:00.003+03:00

Gado on Bin Laden's latest statement:

Again with the ballots and bullets

2009-03-23T13:13:00.002+03:00

Ken Roth of Human Rights Watch reviews Paul Collier's new book, Wars, Guns, and Votes in the NYT:

Collier’s primary conclusion: democracy, in the superficial, election-focused form that tends to prevail in these countries, “has increased political violence instead of reducing it.” Without rules, traditions, and checks and balances to protect minorities, distribute resources fairly and subject officials to the law, these governments lack the accountability and legitimacy to discourage rebellion. The quest for power becomes a “life-and-death struggle” in which “the contestants are driven to extremes.”

Sounds like a valuable addition to the democracy promotion debate.

On a minor note, though (and as I've said before), can we try to resist the temptation to use the title "Ballots and Bullets", as nice as it sounds, for any article discussing the intersection of voting and violence?

Good links

2009-03-17T10:57:00.002+03:00

Christian Bale vs. Kermit the Frog (ohnotheydidnt)

Fareed Zakaria interviews Chas Freeman on CNN (you, tube)

So is Raila Kate or Leo?

2009-03-17T10:49:00.001+03:00

Kenya's coalition government as Titanic (You Missed This):

In the movie version a budding romance between two characters from very different worlds (played by Leonardo Di Caprio and Kate Winselet) takes place within the ship. The unlikely romance is held together despite everything by true love which is proved in the end. (The “romance” between PNU and ODM is held together by greed and corruption as VP Kalonzo Musyoka confirmed yesterday.)
...
The coalition government is hurtling full speed towards 2012 with ,members stealing and grabbing like there was no tomorrow, but like just as the Titanic never reached new York…EVER, the coalition government will never see 2012. The ship sunk on 15th April (1912) and in my vioew the coalition government will collapse a few weeks after that same date this year.

Fake rebels?

2009-03-08T14:55:00.003+03:00

Back in January, media started reporting that one of the deputy leaders in the Lord's Resistance Army, a Ugandan rebel group based now in eastern Congo, was about to turn himself in. Okot Odhiambo was said to be in discussions with the Ugandan government and the International Organization on Migration on how to surrender. As with most things concerning the LRA, details were sketchy. So far Odhiambo hasn't turned up, and now Uganda's New Vision is reporting that it might be a hoax. According to Walter Ochora, a district commissioner in northern Uganda:

“I highly doubted it was Odhiambo. You can’t pick a phone and say ‘I am Odhiambo’, when still under the command of Joseph Kony. That would be madness, Odhiambo could not make that mistake,” said Ochora.

And...

The first indication of the defection being a hoax appeared when it was revealed that Odhiambo, the laidback, but vicious LRA commander spoke English, when he called both the organisation and AFP news agency. Odhiambo, however, speaks only Luo and Kiswahili. It is also being questioned as to how he accessed telephone contacts and got to know about the IOM organisation.

Two points: 1) "Laidback but vicious" is a great descriptor, the kind of thing that would look great on the "about me" section of Odhiambo's Facebook profile. 2) This again raises the question of what level of credentials someone needs to show, beyond having a satellite phone and a marginal command of English, when they present themselves to organizations, or journalists, as a rebel commander in Darfur or a pirate in Somalia, or a member of the LRA.

On fighting pirates

2009-03-08T12:47:00.002+03:00

William Langewiesche tells the story of the capture of the French cruise ship Le Ponant by Somali pirates, and the mostly-ineffective, but highly-touted, French military intervention that followed (Vanity Fair):

If you added up the assets already available, or soon to be, the display of French power was impressive indeed. And it was arrayed against what? A band of barefoot natives, Fuzzy Wuzzies in rags, hip-firing their Kalashnikovs with poor aim, and worshipping some filthy G.P.S. as if it had fallen from the sky. They should have surrendered days before, even to the Canadians. But they hadn’t, and that was the problem. They were not particularly bellicose or arrogant, but they refused to be impressed when they should have been. A warship coming at you is supposed to present an intimidating sight. But it was as if the pirates inhabited a different dimension from that of the governments confronting them. With nothing but a group of French nationals as a shield, they were enjoying meals, going back and forth between ship and shore, and negotiating directly with the Saadés in Marseille, as if the French Navy did not even exist. The pattern was unusually frustrating to French authorities, as more recent piracy cases have been to American, Russian, and Chinese authorities. It raised disturbing questions about the relevance of governments and the exercise of power. More specifically, a suspicion crept in that these pirates knew exactly what they were doing, and that they understood the forces at play with more sophistication than had been assumed. Fuzzy Wuzzies they were, but until Paris decided it could accept casualties among the Ponant’s crew, they had stymied the French national will.

Langewiesche mostly tells a good story, facilitated by the fact that ship's captain recently published an account in France on the same. But he also makes some good points about the global shipping industry which, much like Somalia's pirates, profits from an absence of regulation. In fact, he says, the extra security fees for shipping imposed in recent months, have actually increased profits for the shipping companies...Worth a read.

Sudan and the ICC

2009-03-07T14:38:00.002+03:00

Julie Flint makes the humanitarian case against the ICC warrant for Sudan's president.

Mungiki and Oscar

2009-03-07T14:18:00.002+03:00

On Thursday evening, two human rights activists were shot and killed while in traffic in central Nairobi. The men had been vocal critics of extrajudicial killings by the police, particularly those targeting suspected members of the Mungiki, a criminal gang that commits grizzly crimes and runs extortion rackets, most prominently for the network of minibuses in Nairobi and central Kenya. The government spokesman called the activists a front for the Mungiki. A UN human rights investigator who visited the country last month to probe police killings called for an international investigation, seconded by Kenya's prime minister. The episode has set off a lot of debate. If you're interested, check out the comments on this post from the Kenyan blog You Missed This, split pretty evenly between those calling the activists Mungiki sympathizers or compatriots, and those saying they were merely defending people's rights, not unlike the big-time lawyers defending corrupt politicians.

The ICC's waltz with Bashir

2009-03-05T16:30:00.005+03:00

It's official, Sudan's president is wanted by the International Criminal Court for murder and crimes against humanity (though not genocide). Government-orchestrated protests have been going on in Khartoum the past two days, though these aren't a reliable gauge of public sentiment. More worrying, ten international aid agencies have been kicked out of Darfur, including Oxfam, Save the Children, International Rescue Committee and there are reports that more may follow. There's no shortage of reaction pieces to sift through. For a sampling, the International Crisis Group and Human Rights Watch have positive reactions.

Harvard's Alex De Waal provide's the enlightened skeptic's take. I remain vigorously undecided as to whether this was a good idea or not. Yes, it's nice to see someone sticking it to Bashir and his crew, and Sudan didn't seem to be headed on a great path before the warrant. But it is problematic that the African Union, the Arab League, China, and Russia have all lined up against it. And it's not clear that if someone were to replace Bashir that they would be any better.

So I'm not as down on the warrant as is De Waal, but as usual he has some wise words :

As of yesterday, everything that any commentator or expert thinks he or she knew with confidence about Sudan becomes moot. Wishful thinking took the place of analysis. Nick Kristof wrote a few days ago that fears of aid agency expulsion were ‘overblown.’ He got it wrong.

Good links

2009-03-01T13:31:00.002+03:00

Keyboard beats

"Human Rights Record of the United States in 2008" (from the government of China)

"If Someone Tried To Burn My Village, I'd Be Like, 'Fuck You' (Onion)

Those are some pretty impressive reasons for using cocaine...

2009-02-24T13:16:00.001+03:00

And eight more fantastic PSAs.... (Huffington Post, via metafilter)

India and Slumdog

2009-02-23T16:39:00.002+03:00

Somini Sengupta's description (NYT) of the joyous reaction in India to Slumdog's victory confirms my earlier skepticism about the reports of anti-Slumdog sentiment in the country. I'm certainly no expert, but during my three weeks in India last year, there must have been stories of at least three different movies being boycotted (sometimes along with protests, riots, etc), for this reason or that. As far as I can tell, if your film doesn't attract protests, it just means it's pretty bland.

Celebrity sightings: George Clooney in Chad!

2009-02-19T10:02:00.003+03:00

Nicholas Kristof in the NYT:

So I’ll tell you what. You read my columns about Darfur from this trip, and I’ll give you the scoop on every one of Mr. Clooney’s wild romances and motorcycle accidents in this remote nook of Africa. You’ll read it here way before The National Enquirer has it, but only if you wade through paragraphs of genocide.

Maybe some people fell for this ploy, and if so, that's great. Me, I was ready to read about Darfur, but got turned off when the first 200 words of an 800 word column were about Mr. Clooney. Then I did what any true Clooney follower would do, and skipped to the end. And as I suspected, it was a trick!:

Oh, and now for the juicy truth about all of Mr. Clooney’s wild romances and motorcycle accidents. Darn — out of space. Wait for my next column from this trip on Sunday...

I'm going to make a prediction. There was no romance. Maybe an aid worker tried to flirt with him. And there was no motorcycle accident, we'd have heard about that, right? Maybe he took a short ride and the engine failed.

UPDATE: Ireland's Independent has the scoop already, from a peacekeeper, not an aid worker:

"As soon as I heard the rumour, I legged it out of the orderly room to find out if it was true and there was George Clooney with a group of United Nations officials," she told the Irish Independent last night.
"But now the rest of the women aren't talking to me. Some of them were out on a patrol while the others were in different places around the camp and didn't know about George.

Eating

2009-02-18T11:41:00.002+03:00

Michela Wrong offers the heart of her new book's argument in a column for the Times:

Wambui (not her real name) pays up to five bribes a week. The anti- corruption group Transparency International reports that kitu kidogo (a “little something”) features in 54per cent of the average Kenyan's dealings with institutions. Six years after President Moi made way for an Administration sworn to clean government, Kenya is suffocating in sleaze. “The only difference in Moi's time,” Wambui says, “was that no one tried to hide it. Now people feel ashamed, but do it anyway.”

Our turn to eat

2009-02-17T11:35:00.002+03:00

Michela Wrong, author of I Didn't Do It for You (on Eritrea) and In the Footsteps of Mr. Kurtz (DRC), has a new book out this week on Kenya, It's Our Turn to Eat (though it looks the U.S. has to wait until June). The book tells the story of Kenyan anti-corruption whistle-blower John Githongo, who fled the country after exposing a corruption scandal in 2005. He's since returned to Kenya, and the Independent has a profile. The book seems well-timed, at least for a Kenyan audience, with allegations of corruption scandals in grain and oil and hotels dominating the headlines again. I'm also hoping the book might fill the current vacum of a readable overview of contemporary Kenyan political history, a gap that exists for too many African countries (and which Wrong did a pretty good job filling for Eritrea with her last book).

What to do with the pirates

2009-02-17T11:24:00.002+03:00

The Wall Street Journal looks at American efforts to try Somali pirates in Kenya. I'm not sure about this line:

Still, Kenya enjoys a good relationship with the U.S. and the U.K., and has a strong court system.

The first part yes. But this is the place where the UN's special rapporteur on extrajudicial killings just came to town to investigate, and where lawmakers are trying to bring in the International Criminal Court because they don't trust the Kenyan legal system. But compared with Somalia, I suppose you'd call the system strong. My colleague Alisha offers the more cynical take.

The most dangerous place in the world?

2009-02-17T10:17:00.003+03:00

The NYT's Jeffrey Gettleman provides a readable overview of the mess that is Somalia, and of how the United States hasn't helped things (Foreign Policy)

Western powers should do whatever they can to bring moderate Islamists into the transitional government while the transitional government still exists. Whether people like it or not, many Somalis see Islamic law as the answer. Maybe they’re not fond of the harsh form imposed by the Shabab, who have, on at least one occasion, stoned to death a teenage girl who had been raped (an Islamic court found her guilty of adultery). Still, there is an appetite for a certain degree of Islamic governance. That desire should not be confused with support for terrorism.

Tribes

2009-02-13T11:21:00.002+03:00

Something struck me as odd when I was reading this article in Kenya's Nation newspaper, by Bernard Namunane and Macharia Gaitho, on the politics behind the rejection of a law to create a tribunal for trying post-election violence suspects. And then I realized...they're actually referring to tribal political divisions directly, rather than employing the usual euphamistic "certain communities":

There was also a strange convergence of interests. On the surface, the pushing and shoving over the proposed trials pitted the Kalenjin group led by Agriculture minister William Ruto against the President’s Kikuyu group fronted by personalities such as Deputy Prime Minister Uhuru Kenyatta, Justice Minister Martha Karua and Internal Security minister George Saitoti.

I see in the comments to the article, that there's already some grumbling about stirring up tribal divisions. But this stuff's no secret, I don't think it hurts to put it out in the open.

ICC v. Sudan: Game on

2009-02-12T10:27:00.002+03:00

So, not official yet, but it sounds like the International Criminal Court has approved an arrest warrant for Sudan's president, Omar al-Bashir (NYT). Some initial reactions...

Abdalmahmood Abdalhaleem, Sudan's ambassador to the UN :

It will mean nothing to us and doesn't deserve ink with which it is written. We will never be shaken by this criminal attempt to pollute our political life and sabotage our efforts for development and peace. (Reuters)....We can't predict the public outrage of the people. We cannot predict or control that. (WP)

Mark Malloch Brown, Britain's Africa minister (Reuters):

We will face a very difficult situation after this indictment, and I just hope people of goodwill will go on trying to find ways forward.

Mark Goldberg (UN Dispatch):

If handled with the proper diplomatic touch, this warrant will make peace in Darfur and Sudan more, not less, likely. Others disagree. They argue that the ICC is an impediment to peace because it gives Bashir little incentive to work with the international community. The problem with that line of reasoning, though, is that it ignores the fact that Bashir was never a credible partner for peace. This is because from the start of the conflict until today, Bashir never faced external political pressure sufficient to budge him from an unrelenting hostility toward international efforts for peace in Sudan.

Celebrity sightings

2009-02-12T10:24:00.001+03:00

Ben Affleck in Eastern DRC! (Time). Leonardo Di Caprio in Meru, Kenya! (Youtube)

Breaking news: Kenyan students look at porn online

2009-02-09T14:27:00.001+03:00

From the Standard:

Alfred, another student, attests to this devil-may-care attitude. "A friend once left a phone in my room and when I looked, I met by the sight of a naked woman," he recalls.
Alfred got curious and this led him to search the Internet for similar pictures. The search led him on a journey of tantalising pornographic sites.
The Internet is playing a great part in feeding this appetite for porn among students. A cursory survey on campuses suggests that rather than surf the Net for the educational and other beneficial material, many students are obsessed with obscene sites.

East Africa links

2009-02-09T13:30:00.006+03:00

Colum Lynch on Sudan's posture toward a possible ICC warrant for President Omar al-Bashir (Washington Post):

Indeed, Sudan's diplomatic standing has hardly been diminished by the allegations. Last month, an influential bloc of developing nations known as the Group of 77 and China selected Sudan as its chairman for 2009. That post will make Khartoum the developing world's champion in negotiations with the West on a broad variety of issues, including climate change, the U.N. budget and the global financial crisis.

Rob Crilly on the justice vs. peace, humanitarianism vs. advocacy debate over the ICC indictment (Huffington Post):

So for me, this is not about picking sides, it's about trying to reconcile the differences between people who should be on the same team. For now, the more time I spend in Africa, the more attractive I find the messy, contradictory, imperfect solutions that stop the fighting. They may not tackle the deep-seated injustices and may just be storing up problems for the future. They might not resolve the big issues, but it stops people dying. Just ask the 130,000 people displaced by the LRA.

Padraig Carmody reviews Dambisa Moyo's new book Dead Aid, on the harm foreign aid does to Africa (Irish Times)

Moyo reviews the history of western aid and then details what she sees to be its destructive effects: the creation of a dependency culture; enhanced opportunities for political corruption; and distortionary macro-economic effects. Developmental failure then increases the need for more aid.

According to Russia's news agency, the recently-freed Ukrainian crew of the MV Faina will have the cost of the phone calls they made while being held by Somali pirates deducted from their salaries.

The Nation reports that the new office building for the Kenyan prime minister - a job created as part of a power-sharing agreement last year after post-election violence - will cost around 1 billion shillings ($12.5 million). Nobody said peace was cheap.

Kenya says Delta will be flying to Nairobi (via Dakar) starting in June (Standard). Though I've heard this one before.

East Africa links

2009-02-09T12:08:00.003+03:00

David Bowie's Somali supermodel wife joins the piracy debate: “Paying their ransom sends the wrong message. The Somalis do not lack audacity. Unfortunately, they haven’t put it to good use - like putting a government together." (Contact Music)

Henry Oruor looks at the African Union's new chairman, Muammar Gaddafi (Nation)

Stephen Kinzer on 1960s Kenyan politician Tom Mboya, "a visionary African politician without whom Obama might never have been born, much less won the presidency." (Guardian)

Whose tanks?

2009-02-09T11:53:00.002+03:00

Last week Somali pirates released a Ukrainian ship carrying 33 tanks, after what Ukraine's president called "a very difficult operation carried out by the Ukrainian special services", but which seems to have consisted primarily of dropping $3 million onto the ship. Now comes the interesting part, with the ship expected to dock in the Kenyan port of Mombasa this afternoon. The Kenyan government has said the tanks are theirs. But most watchers believe the tanks are intended for South Sudan, which like the northern Sudanese government is rearming as that peace agreement falters. It won't be easy to move these tanks without people noticing, so we'll see what happens.

East Africa roundup

2009-02-05T08:48:00.003+03:00

The Daily Show's Jon Oliver interviews Kenya's ambassador to the UN.

Nairobi gets Google Local

Johannesburg hosts Africa's first sex-worker conference (Mercury)

Police may charge workers at the Nakumatt supermarket with manslaughter for locking in customers when a fire broke out (Nation). See Somewhere in Africa for more commentary

Will a power-sharing agreement in Zimbabwe allow the extradition of former dictator Mengistu to Ethiopia, where he's been sentenced to death? (Times)

Somalia's new president is already bringing people together - at least his hard-line opponents (Garowe)

The director of one of Somalia's main radio stations has been assassinated (DPA)

Ethiopian music featured on PRI's The World

A new book accuses French Foreign Minister Bernard Kouchner of dirty dealings in Africa (Independent)

Kenya and the ICC

2009-02-02T14:27:00.002+03:00

While everyone's watching to see whether the International Criminal Court will go after Sudan's president, the steady murmuring about asking the ICC to investigate the violence that followed Kenya's elections in December 2007 got a little bit louder this past week. A commission was set up last year to investigate the politically- and ethnically-motivated clashes that killed over 1,000 people, and in October the commission recommended setting up a tribunal to try the main suspects. If parliament didn't establish the body by the end of January, the suspects' names could be forwarded to the ICC.

Well, it's February and nothing has been passed. The government did introduce a bill on Friday, but it was blocked by a group of lawmakers. Not by ones who don't want to see an investigation, though they exist too, but by the ones who think the tribunal, as it stands now wouldn't do enough to ensure an investigation free of coercion. The man responsible for the roadblock, Gitobu Imanyara, is a human rights lawyer-turned-politician whose main previous claim to fame was getting slapped by President Mwai Kibaki's wife. For an idea of the complaints with the tribunal as currently proposed, you can check out this piece by civil society activists Ndung'u Wainaina and Haron Ndubi.

For now the ICC still seems to be more of a threat than an immediate option. It would be a lengthy process and the ICC's prosecutor may not even decide to take it up - though he did mention that his team is following the situation. Wainaina says he hopes Kofi Annan, who mediated last year's power-sharing agreement, will press Kenya's government to introduce an improved piece of legislation.

Where's Raila Odinga?

2009-02-02T10:13:00.001+03:00

Kenyan Prime Minister Raila Odinga, writing in the Standard:

Of late, I have heard these questions: Where is the Raila Odinga we used to know? Where is the Raila Odinga who promised us change? Where is the Raila Odinga who spoke passionately against the Government when it failed the people? Where is the Raila Odinga who was an implacable foe of corruption?
My message is that that Raila Odinga is alive and well. It is the same Raila Odinga who speaks to you today. Raila Odinga has not changed. What has changed are some of the circumstances in which Raila Odinga finds himself. And let no one imagine that navigation of those circumstances is by any means easy.

Kenya burning

2009-02-01T13:04:00.004+03:00

Last night, over 110 people died in a fire near the town of Molo, northwest of Nairobi. A truck carrying fuel had overturned on the highway, and hundreds of people had gathered to collect free gasoline, when something - either a dropped cigarette or an intentional spark - ignited the blaze. This comes a few days after the downtown Nairobi branch of Kenya's main supermarket chain burned down. The first thing to say is that these are regrettable tragedies. But it's also clear that the capacity to respond to fires here, as in other parts of Africa I'm sure, is low, to say the least.

Anyone who's worked downtown in an American city knows that the wail of fire engine or ambulance sirens is a regular feature of the soundscape. In Nairobi, not so much. And when I do see a fire engine, it doesn't exactly inspire confidence. Especially considering how much time I've spent stuck in traffic right outside the fire station. It was a bit painful to watch the firemen and onlookers struggle to direct what hoses they had at the supermarket fire - one at least, sprung a leak.

I know that fire-response capacity is at least on the radar in terms of foreign assistance. But it seems like this might be an area that could use some more attention.

Kenya's election

2009-02-01T08:49:00.002+03:00

Interesting article in yesterday's New York Times about the exit poll conducted by the International Republican Institute (the Republican counterpart to my old employer NDI), and commissioned by USAID, for Kenya's December 2007 elections. The piece asks whether the US government pressed IRI to withhold the poll results because they showed opposition leader Raila Odinga winning. The funny thing about Kenya's election is that the US government has been accused of being in the tank for both President Mwai Kibaki - by prematurely congratulating his reelection - and for Odinga, by pushing Kibaki's side to accept a power sharing agreement once things started getting ugly. This latest would suggest more the former. Though if Odinga bears any grudges, he hasn't shown them. Worth a look, or check out my friend Aaron's assessment at Africa Matters, which makes several points I agree with, including that the power-sharing agreement is not a sustainable model for African democracy.

Bill Easterly's got a blog

2009-01-27T09:34:00.001+03:00

Aid watch. Should be a nice and provocative contribution.

'Most-read' fodder watch: Robber goats

2009-01-26T14:55:00.002+03:00

Following the case of the magical penis thieves, Nigeria now confronts 'robber goats' (BBC):

Police in Nigeria are holding a goat handed to them by a vigilante group, which said it was a car thief who had used witchcraft to change shape.
A police spokesman in Kwara State has been quoted as saying that the "armed robbery suspect" would remain in custody until investigations were over.

To be fair the rest of the article isn't quite so rough on the cops:

But another police spokesman told the BBC the goat was being held in case its owner claimed it
...
Nigeria's Vanguard newspaper has a picture of the goat and reports that police paraded it in front of journalists in the Kwara state capital Ilorin on Thursday.
But this was denied by national police spokesman Emmanuel Ojukwu.
"The vigilante group arrested the goat and took it to the police, then they told the media."
The next morning journalists turned up demanding to see the goat, he said.
"But of course goats can't commit crime."

Nkunda's capture

2009-01-24T13:36:00.003+03:00

The most significant part of the capture of Congolese rebel leader Laurent Nkunda appears to be the improvement in relations between Congo and Rwanda. As recently as December, Rwanda was charged with backing Nkunda's activities in eastern Congo. But it appears that Rwanda - whose troops captured him - has dropped its support in exchange for permission for Rwandan troops to hunt down Hutu militia members inside Congo. The tension between the two countries has been a major factor in the continued instability in eastern Congo - where the 1998-2003 civil war never really ended and some million people remain displaced - and an improvement in those relations can only help the security situation there. But it is a little concerning that Congo is relying on Rwandan troops to provide security in the country (or Ugandan troops, who are hunting down their own rebels inside Congo at the moment). The role of neighboring countries inside DRC hasn't been so great in the past decade. Most analysts seem to think the latest turn of events signals the potential for a large change in the dynamics of the situation in eastern Congo, but for now it's wait-and-see. As Jason Stearns puts it: "Nkunda’s arrest is part of a larger, radical realignment. There are, however, many unknowns and risks".

New Africa site

2009-01-22T11:47:00.003+03:00

Alex De Waal, of the Social Science Research Council, and Richard Dowden, of the Royal African Society, have a new website, African Arguments, which they say will be "the site of the most vigorous debates on Africa available on the web." The first topics all deal with what President Obama means for Africans and U.S. Africa policy.

Worth reading

2009-01-22T11:42:00.002+03:00

Atul Gawande on how universal health care systems evolve (New Yorker).

Taibbi on Friedman

2009-01-22T11:39:00.001+03:00

If you haven't yet, do check out the latest installment of Matt Taibbi's war on Tom Friedman. Too many gems for an excerpt (New York Press).

Obama vs. Pandas

2009-01-21T12:16:00.002+03:00

I think it's true, Obama is the new pandas. I know this past campaign is the first time I've followed a DC saga with more enthusiasm than Butterstick in 2006. I wonder if they're jealous of all the affection. From James Fallows:

Obama on democracy promotion

2009-01-19T11:15:00.002+03:00

From the Washington Post:

Elections aren't democracy, as we understand it. They are one facet of a liberal order, as we understand it. And so in a lot of countries, you know, the first question is, if you go back to Roosevelt's four freedoms, the first question is freedom from want and freedom from fear.

If people aren't secure, if people are starving, then elections may or may not address those issues, but they are not a perfect overlay.

And, you know, issues like arbitrary arrest or corruption may or may not be addressed by an election. So I think what we need to be thinking about is, in various countries, and I use my father's home country of Kenya as an example, what we should be spending more time thinking about is, how can we provide them tools so that somebody doesn't get stopped on the street by a police officer and shaken down, or how do we create a system in which you don't have to pay a large bribe in order to get a job or get a phone installed?

And if we ignore those things, then oftentimes an election can just backfire or at least won't deliver for the people the kinds of -- it may raise expectations but not deliver what they're looking for. And, you know, so we will be working with -- you know, one of the things that I have pledged to do in foreign policy is to ramp up our State Department and restore some balance between the civilian and the military side, to -- and right now we have already begun conducting a thorough review of our various aid programs, our democracy programs, how do these all fit together and how do we view it through a lens that it is actually delivering a better life for people on the ground and less obsessed with form, more concerned with substance.

Gado on Bush

2009-01-19T10:06:00.003+03:00

From Kenya's Daily Nation

Somali caves

2009-01-16T10:29:00.003+03:00

Colin Freeman on his 40 days as a hostage of Somali bandits (Telegraph).

Yes we can

2009-01-13T14:44:00.002+03:00

From Travel Daily News:

The election of Barack Obama as America’s first African-American president sparked an 8 per cent increase in bookings to Kenya in December for independent Africa-specialist, Somak Holidays. To celebrate his inauguration on 20 January 2009, Somak Holidays has added three exclusive upgrades to suites fit-for-a-president in Kenya, Tanzania and Zanzibar to its five ‘Obama’s roots’ tours in Kenya.
...
‘Lamu Villa’, Msambweni, Mombasa, Kenya
For an extra special experience this beautiful hotel on the south coast of Mombasa offers two ‘Lamu Villas’ each with its own sea-facing infinity pool and Jacuzzi. Guests can also enjoy the services of a private chef and waiter. Guests booking with Somak can upgrade from £60.00 per person, per night. Somak’s five ‘Obama’s roots’ packages depart throughout 2009 for a day trip to Kogelo, the birthplace of Obama’s father. This includes lunch and a tour of the local area.

Worth reading

2009-01-13T10:27:00.002+03:00

Samantha Power probes rule-of-law concerns in the developing world (including Kenya) via a profile of the head of the International Justice Mission, a Christian NGO (New Yorker - but subscription required)

Jacob Weisberg collects the top 25 Bushisms of all-time (Slate)

Jack Shafer ponders the online future of newspapers (Slate)

Jonah Lehrer describes the threat to your brain from cities (Boston Globe)

Could be a tough year for Sudan (Meskel Square)

Ben Greenman's Holocaust Memoir (New Yorker)

Worth reading

2009-01-10T01:14:00.002+03:00

Michael Hirschorn on what a viable business model for the New York Times might mean. (Atlantic)

2008 music

2009-01-04T03:59:00.002+03:00

I mostly used 2008 to catch up on music from 2007. But not counting Panda Bear or the Field, the new TV on the Radio probably got my most listens this year. And Fleet Foxes, but mostly just track #2. There's plenty of time for the rest in 2009. The NYT's Ben Sisario has a more worthwhile 2008 wrap-up. Lil Wayne.

Bad Americans

2009-01-02T01:59:00.000+03:00

Here's a nice year-end list. Michael Tomasky's top 19 worst Americans of 2008 (Guardian).

Used books

2008-12-31T00:55:00.003+03:00

David Streitfeld examines the ethics of buying used books on the Internet (NYT). The main problem being that bookstores, used and otherwise, are going out of business. Which is unfortunate, bookstores are one of my favorite stops in whatever city of the world I visit. But, I'm currently back on my annual trip to the Western world and, like Streitfeld, preferring to spend two dollars than 20 for a book, I'm doing my shopping online. Though I did pay the new-release-premium for a fresh copy of 2666.

Worth reading

2008-12-30T01:01:00.002+03:00

Kelefa Sanneh on Will Oldham in the New Yorker.

Mental health breaks

2008-12-23T19:06:00.001+03:00

The Daily Dish's nominees for mental health break of the year. It's a tough one, but maybe the Take on Me video...

'Everything fine here?'

2008-12-17T10:34:00.000+03:00

Clifford Levy, in the NYT, on post-Soviet elections:

The Kremlin under Vladimir V. Putin has sought to bolster authoritarian governments in the region that remain loyal, and these election monitoring teams — 400 strong in Belarus alone — are one of its newer innovations. They demonstrate the lengths to which the Kremlin will go to create the illusion of political freedom in Russia and other former Soviet republics, even though their structures of democracy have been hollowed out.

Rwanda and Congo

2008-12-16T12:34:00.002+03:00

Hank Cohen, George Bush I's Assistant Secretary of State for Africa, has an op-ed in today's NYT looking at the Rwandan role in the conflict in Eastern Congo, and suggesting increased regional trade integration as a way out:

After his inauguration, Barack Obama should appoint a special negotiator who would propose a framework for an economic common market encompassing Congo, Rwanda, Burundi, Kenya, Tanzania and Uganda. This agreement would allow the free movement of people and trade. It would give Rwandan businesses continued access to Congolese minerals and forests. The products made from those raw materials would continue to be exported through Rwanda. The big change would be the payment of royalties and taxes to the Congolese government. For most Rwandan businesses, those payments would be offset by increased revenues.

That would probably be helpful. Of course, the current East African Community has enough difficulty agreeing on increased integration as it is, without bringing DRC into the mix.

Somalia

2008-11-23T10:35:00.003+03:00

Jonathan Stevenson, of the US Naval War College, says Bam should make a soft-power initiative in Somalia a foreign policy priority (New Republic)

Soft rather than hard power should be the United States' instrument of choice on the continent, and in Somalia. So what about an audacious diplomatic American approach to Somalia? The fraught 1992-93 U.S.-led humanitarian intervention, U.S. backing for Ethiopia, and civilian casualties caused by recent American counterterrorism strikes have eroded Somali respect for the United States. But Obama's singular status as the first African American president substantially renews American diplomatic credibility with all Africans, including Somalis.

Expending political capital on such a knotty problem--over a dozen transitional governments have tried and failed over the past 17 years--might seem imprudent at first blush. But the Somalis' very recalcitrance has yielded such low expectations that very little would actually be at risk. Moreover, an earnest attempt at conflict-resolution in Somalia would enable Mr. Obama to showcase the differences between him and his predecessor.

Most important, he says the US needs to engage the Islamist militias, rather than the labeling them terrorists, lobbing missiles at them, and sending unwelcome Ethiopian troops after them. Worth a try. Not to mention that piracy off Somalia's coast reached a low point during the few months in 2006 when the Islamic Courts Union was in control of the country.

What do I miss about America?

2008-11-23T09:50:00.000+03:00

Extreme beer (New Yorker)

Obama's circle

2008-11-07T12:30:00.001+03:00

The New Republic rounds up 30 folks expected to have Obama's ear.

Happy Obama Day

2008-11-06T11:25:00.002+03:00

After a heavy rain last night, which I interpreted as adding to the feeling of catharsis, the skies are blue today in Kenya for the public holiday declared to celebrate Obama's victory. I've also heard southern Sudan has jumped on the bandwagon and declared a holiday as well, though no confirmation on that yet. You can hear my wrap of yesterday's Kenyan response here.

One of the things that came up in multiple conversations with Kenyans yesterday was the hope that Obama could serve as a lesson for Kenyan politics, encouraging people to vote on the basis of ideas (or at least whatever category 'change' and 'hope' fall into), rather than on ethnic background. There also seems to be a hope that it could help open the path for a younger generation of politicians. Optimistic views certainly, but probably more likely than the preferential diplomatic treatment or flood of green cards that some have hoped for.

Badilisho we can believe in

2008-11-04T15:35:00.005+03:00

Kenya seems to have gotten in a shipment of Obama buttons in time for the elections. They've been selling them at the local shopping mall for a couple of weeks now (see below), and I've seen several people sporting them today.

East Africans for Obama

2008-10-24T18:04:00.003+03:00

Not surprisingly, Kenya is the bluest of nations, according to Gallup and Foreign Policy's poll of presidential preferences from around the world. Kenyans pick Obama 89 percent to 3 percent. Apparently, the top four Obama-nations are all in East Africa - Uganda, Ethiopia, and Tanzania. No results for Sudan or Somalia.

Also, according to an item in Le Figaro, only 1 percent of the French go for McCain, as opposed 4 percent in the FP survey.

Prunier on Bashir

2008-10-17T12:48:00.002+03:00

Gérard Prunier of the University of Paris, takes up the debate over issuing an ICC arrest warrant for Sudan's president (Open Democracy):

All this leaves an obvious question: when the "realist" camp uses the "Darfur peace process" as an argument against Omar al-Bashir's indictment, what exactly is being referred to? For such a process, active or even latent, does not exist.

Report on Kenya's post-election violence

2008-10-15T15:40:00.002+03:00

The commission set up to investigate the January-February post-election violence in Kenya has released its report. If you're interested, here's everything you ever wanted to know. Except names. Those are not being made available yet.

What success in Iraq?

2008-10-15T10:14:00.002+03:00

In the New York Review of Books, Peter Galbraith provides the most compelling take-down I've come across of McCain's contention - frequently echoed as the conventional wisdom - that things are going swimmingly in Iraq post-surge:

We hear again and again from Washington that we have turned a corner in Iraq and are on the path to victory. If so, it is a strange victory. Shiite religious parties that are Iran's closest allies in the Middle East control Iraq's central government and the country's oil-rich south. A Sunni militia, known as the Awakening, dominates Iraq's Sunni center. It is led by Baathists, the very people we invaded Iraq in 2003 to remove from power. While the US sees the Awakening as key to defeating al-Qaeda in Iraq, Iraq's Shiite government views it as a mortal enemy and has issued arrest warrants for many of its members. Meanwhile the Shiite-Kurdish alliance that brought stability to parts of Iraq is crumbling. The two sides confronted each other militarily after the Iraqi army entered the Kurdish-administered town of Khanaqin in early September.

New Kenyan beer

2008-10-13T19:09:00.003+03:00

Reuters' Duncan Miriri looks at Summit, the new Kenyan beer set to challenge Tusker. No word on whether it will actually taste any different.

Ethiopian supermodels for Obama

2008-10-13T18:09:00.002+03:00

This just might be the endorsement that seals it for Obama:

According to information obtained from presidential fundraising disclosures, Ethiopian Supermodel Liya Kebede has contributed $2,300 to Senator Barack Obama's during the Primary election.

Designer Amsale Aberra of Ethiopia contributed $1,000 to Barack Obama's presidential election. No record was found for model Gelila Bekele, but her boyfriend Tyler Perry is a strong backer of Barack Obama, who contributed $4,600 to his campaign.

Based on campaign contribution data, Ethiopians are overwhelmingly in support of Barack Obama, we were hard pressed to find donors to Republican John McCain, although we found some. From Hotel workers to Physicians, Ethiopians and Ethiopian-Americans are opening their wallet to Barack Obama's presidential campaign.

The case for Kagame

2008-10-13T15:05:00.003+03:00

Rwanda's president is much praised and much maligned. Ugandan columnist Andrew Mwenda makes the pro-Kagame case:

As the corruption drive gained momentum, Kagame turned to reducing the cost of patronage on his country. He cut down the number of districts from 103 to 36 and the number of regions from 12 to 5. He trimmed the size of cabinet down to 23. He withdrew official vehicles from government officials and cut down their mobile phone allowances. Kagame then turned to create the most innovative healthcare delivery system in Africa and beyond, and pushed money into mass primary education and scholarships for university education. Then he began a general beautification of the city that now makes Kigali one of the cleanest cities in the world.

And in response to critics of Kagame's authoritarianism...

If we analyse (and not moralise) Rwanda’s situation, we realise that Kagame’s actions are more a product than a cause of Rwanda’s democratic deficit. Rwanda does not have sufficient infrastructure for democratic politics as compared to Uganda and Kenya. Given its social structure (a large peasant population and a small percentage of educated urban middleclass) and its history of genocide (which decimated its already limited intellectual class by death or participation in genocide); Rwanda does not have the intellectual resources to effectively challenge Kagame. To his credit, Kagame has taken effective advantage of this to push through far reaching reforms in Rwanda.

Kenya takes on right-wing smear machine

2008-10-07T15:49:00.002+03:00

From today's Nation newspaper:

Kenyan immigration authorities are holding American author Jerome Corsi, scuttling plans to launch his 'The Obama Nation' book critical of US Democratic presidential candidate Barack Obama.
Witnesses say the author was seized by immigration agents and sources have told the Daily Nation is is being held at Nyayo House, Nairobi, the headquarters of the Ministry of Immigration.
A senior immigration official in charge of investigations, Carlos Maluta was quoted by the Associated Press as saying: "We still haven't decided what to do with him."
Dr Jerome Corsi, the author of The Obama Nation: Leftist Politics and the Cult of Personality was set to launch the book at the Laico Hotel, Nairobi.
The book questions Obama’s character and his fitness to run for the White House. It also explores links between the Illinois Senator and Kenya Prime Minister Raila Odinga.
The book is largely seen as a smear campaign meant to undermine the Democratic candidate with charges that his criticism of Mr Obama is anchored on inaccuracies.
A Press invite to Tuesday’s launch read in part: “Dr Corsi will also expose details of deep secret ties between US Democratic presidential candidate Barrack Obama and a section of Kenya Government leaders, their connection to certain sectoral groups in Kenya and subsequent plot to be executed in Kenya should Senator Obama win the American presidency.”
Meanwhile, the management of the hotel that Dr Corsi was scheduled to launch his book has distanced itself from a press conference the American was to address.
In a press release, the hotel said: “We would like to assure our business partners and the public at large that Laico Regency Hotel is a law abiding institution and does not condone any smear campaigns. The management cannot allow such activities to take place.”
It revealed that the booking for the news conference had been made by Peter Mbae, the editor-in-chief of the Eagle Christian magazine.

Corsi has now, it appears, been escorted back to the airport and a flight back to London. This follows the ill-fated visit by Dick Morris ahead of last year's presidential elections.

Sarah Palin's syntax

2008-10-06T19:11:00.002+03:00

George Packer, in the New Yorker:

Don’t try to scan Sarah Palin’s syntax; don’t even bother making fun of it. By now we all know that she can’t think and talk at the same time on the national stage. What interests me more is what her particular kind of incoherence reveals about her as a political figure. Palin’s sentences quickly clot up with nouns, but you can wait a long time before you’ll hear a verb. Sometimes most of a paragraph can go by without one.

I caught a rebroadcast of the debate from a small beach lodge south of Mombasa the following morning. Kenyan broadcaster KTN - the only channel they get there - was replaying the CNN coverage. All the local staff were watching, not as enthusiastically as for the Obama debate I imagine, but fairly closely. I don't think they know much about either Biden or Palin, but one guy I was talking to had gotten the message: "I hear the the governor is supposed to be a regular person." Still, he'd be voting for Biden if he could, and said he thought Obama would win, "if there's no rigging like we had here."

Worth reading

2008-10-06T14:51:00.003+03:00

Tim Dickinson on John McCain (Rolling Stone):

"In its broad strokes, McCain's life story is oddly similar to that of the current occupant of the White House. John Sidney McCain III and George Walker Bush both represent the third generation of American dynasties. Both were born into positions of privilege against which they rebelled into mediocrity. Both developed an uncanny social intelligence that allowed them to skate by with a minimum of mental exertion. Both struggled with booze and loutish behavior. At each step, with the aid of their fathers' powerful friends, both failed upward. And both shed their skins as Episcopalian members of the Washington elite to build political careers as self-styled, ranch-inhabiting Westerners who pray to Jesus in their wives' evangelical churches.

"In one vital respect, however, the comparison is deeply unfair to the current president: George W. Bush was a much better pilot."

Joshua Kurlantzick on the global trends for democracy and authoritarianism (New Republic)

"In its latest report on global democracy, Freedom House glumly admitted, "2007 was marked by a notable setback for global freedom ... a profoundly disturbing deterioration." For the second year in a row, the number of countries sliding backward in Freedom House's analysis was vastly greater than those making progress toward democracy. And many nations that had previously achieved the ranking of "Partly Free" in the organization's index have failed to progress toward democratic consolidation. At the same time, the most undemocratic states on earth, places like Burma and North Korea, made no progress toward reform last year.
"Some of this is the fault of the Bush administration, whose halfhearted support for democracy around the world has given democratization a bad name. At the same time, new democracies have not figured out how to secure their new political systems beyond their first elections. And the corruption and instability resulting from these half-successes have undermined public confidence and given succor to new authoritarian leaders. After years of confidence, some advocates of democratization now are wondering: Has democracy reached its global limits?"

George Packer on the struggle to get white working class votes for Obama (New Yorker):

"Obama has had particular trouble with the prized demographic group that once delivered the Presidency to Roosevelt and his successors. Anecdotally, and in polls, unusually large numbers of working-class voters seem to remain undecided or determined to sit the election out, as if they couldn’t bring themselves to vote Republican this year but couldn’t fathom taking a chance on Obama. Roger Catt, a retired farmer and warehouse worker, who lives in a small town near Eau Claire, Wisconsin, characterized the choice this way: “McCain is more of the same, and Obama is the end of life as we know it.”"

Flight of the diplomats

2008-10-01T12:11:00.001+03:00

Carnegie's Josh Kurlantzick, in Mother Jones:

The State Department, by its own projections, will lose 14 percent of its veteran diplomats every year from 2007 to 2011—an entire generation in a few years' time. The talent pool is shrinking, too; the number of people taking the foreign-service exam fell more than 40 percent between 2002 and 2006. Under Colin Powell, State had hoped to hire more than 1,000 officers, but the department's latest budget sought fewer than 300. And because Rice didn't push hard enough for that funding, the department may actually lose jobs this year. The dire situation has officials counting paper clips. "Everyone must reduce expenses whenever and wherever possible," warned a March memo instructing supervisors to cut positions and defer staff training requests. State employees, it further admonished, would have to "reduce their use of supplies."

New Africa project at Brookings

2008-10-01T12:03:00.001+03:00

The Africa Growth Initiative:

Under the new Distinguished Ministerial Fellows program, Brookings will recruit former African ministers and individuals of similar experience for a research tenure at the institution. These Distinguished Fellows will publish research and policy recommendations, and also collaborate with Washington-based experts on a range of analytical projects. Similarly, as part of a new Emerging Talent Fellows program, Brookings will host promising African post-doctoral scholars, and engage them in cross-disciplinary and policy-focused research on Africa’s most pressing development issues.