May 18, 2012

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The most read posts on Africa on the blog

September 19, 2011 By
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I really love being part of this team and take every opportunity to shout out about how great  we are. Today I would like to share with you our readers the posts that you read the most.

 

  1. Experience the Kenyan Lift Valley- written by Minda this post has attracted 5046 readers- the post takes us through some stunning views of the Eastern African Rift Valley as well as the key attractions that are to be found here.
  2. Lentil Botie Recipe from South Africa written by Andrea Court this post has attracted 2357 readers- it is about an African recipe that has it’s origins in the 17th Century, although originally made as meat dish Andrea provides a vegetarian version and if you love food or cooking for that matter you ought to try this
  3. Is Black History month becoming a rhetoric?written By Grace this post has been read by 1834 readers- Do you know what Black History month is all about or the point of it? In this post Grace explains it all the comments on the post are equally interesting.
  4. What being an African means to me Written by Sadia this post has attracted 1495 readers- Sadia tells us what being an African woman means to her. This post is interesting for its content but also for the unsaid, should Africans have to justify their existence?
  5. What is in African Name? Written by Minda this post has attracted1294 readers- Most of us Africans have names that folk in the Western world struggle to pronounce  and perhaps never give second thought too. But our names are steeped in cultural meaning and are taken seriously in the African context as Minda explains in this post. But the post raises a  tough question are we as Africans proud of our African names?
Can you see a common theme in these posts?
The posts bring to life the beauty that is Africa through the eyes of Africans, African Food, African culture and the experience of Africans in the diaspora. They also present a challenge for us the contributors- writing more posts that cover these aspects of our lives as Africans because the readers are interested!
Whatever your reasons are for reading our blog we appreciate you and please do leave a comment and tell us what you would like us to write about in the future
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Filed Under: Ida Horner, Latest, Out of Africa Tagged With: , , , ,

Gaddafi- will the headmaster be rolling up his tent soon?

July 29, 2011 By
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Muammar_al-Gaddafi_12th_AU_Summit- Image via Wikipedia

Back in January I had a rare opportunity of being part of a delegation that got to meet Gaddafi in his compound. The reason – Gaddafi had called a Historic conference to discuss African immigration into Europe. One of the questions he sought to answer was whether we the Africans in the diaspora are afforded a decent life in Europe and if not are we better off retuning to Africa.

The outcome of this conference was the establishment of an African Union in the Diaspora with representatives on each continent with the headmaster as it honorary president.
You can read about the rest of the conference here

At the time of writing that post things were just kicking off in Libya and it almost felt like the headmaster term was about to come to end. Five months on and it really doesn’t look like the headmaster is about to role his tent away.

The West appears confused as to what should happen to the Headmaster. This week we heard William Hague the British Foreign secretary say that it realy didn’t matter whether Gaddafi left Libya or not so long as he held no real power within Libay! Or Really Mr Hauge?

In addition the Libyan diplomats to London were expelled, it was announced to that cease assets would now be handed over to the rebels whom Britain recognised as the legitimate government of Libya. The recognition of the rebels as the legitimate government has left some in the United Nations nervous.

Despite all of this Gaddafi stays

Why is this?

I sincerely do not know but here are my suspicions for what it’s worth

The man himself

Having met the man this uprising is something that he would take personally, a personal hurt/injury if you like, one he would not take lying down. One of the key things that Gaddafi was keen to emphasize during the meeting was that he is a revolutionary and is not keen on governments and doesn’t hold any power as such he would not understand why the people of Libya would want him gone. In his view the people of Libya have a good life and if you have caught some of his TV addresses you will have heard him say

You have complained that the foreigners come in and take your jobs, now that they are all gone as a result of this uprising you can go and fill those jobs

I have no position to resign from

The African Mercenaries
One of the issues that was raised early on in this uprising was the fact that black African mercenaries had been drafted in by Gaddafi to silence his people. This was soon disputed and we heard from black Africans that live in Libya on BBC Radio 4 as they told stories of being given guns by the rebels, being forced to pose for photographs and these photos were circulated around the world. But more reports of black African soldiers from Mali fighting alongside Gaddafi have continued to surface.

Why would soldiers from Mali chose to die in a war that has nothing to do with them?

Whilst in Tripoli in January I learned from one of the black Africans that live in Tripoli that Gaddafi’s mother was from Mali and that because of this he would not tolerate anyone who mistreated black Africans and that he didn’t know that black Africans were being mistreated by the Arabs. If this is indeed true I do wonder therefore if Mali sees Gaddafi as one their own and as such willing to defend him whatever it takes.

Everyone has someone that loves them
This might sound frivolous a point but one of the observation that we made during our stay in Tripoli was that on the face of it Gaddafi has a lot of support amongst his people and that some genuinely love him. I strongly suspect that this is one of the reasons why he has not fallen yet. In Egypt we saw the army simply refuse to fire on its own people that was it for Mubarak. Why hasn’t the army in Libya done the same?
In addition we learned that Gaddafi had personally secured an apology from the Italians for the time they had colonized Libya and this seemed to mean an awful lot to the people that we met. They saw their leader as someone with a great deal of courage and as such a great leader. I suspect that whatever we might think of the man some in his country buy into his ideology (contained a green a book) and will do whatever it takes to protect it.

Out in the cold
Whilst in Tripoli we observed that a huge regeneration scheme was underway, new buildings were going up everywhere including housing for the poor. Someone in our group said something that has stayed with me to date and I think it may have some bearing on why this uprising is likely to be protracted.
He said

‘For so long Libya was left in the cold by the developed world so she was forced to look within for solutions to her problems especially development type problems”

I can’t help but wonder that this has meant that Libya developed a sophisticated army with equipment to match and that these are as good as any you can find in the developed world and the irony of this is that it is likely some of the people who helped develop and build these systems are now at the receiving end of its might.

Those are some of the reasons I think this war in going to be drawn out.As things stand the moment the opposition has rejected a ceasefire as negotiated by the African Union and the coalition had not had any impact per SE so it really doesn’t look like the headmaster is about to role his tent away.

What do you think?

A version of  this  article has previously appeared on BIRDS ON THE BLOG

 

 

 

 

 

 

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Filed Under: Africa Matters, African Politics, Ida Horner, Latest Tagged With: , , , , , , , , ,

What’s God to do with African development

July 3, 2011 By
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This  Thursday I attended a networking event at the Houses of  Parliament here in the UK organised by The All Africa Parliamentary Group and chaired by Kenyan born Kensington and Chelsea councillor Marianne Alapini

The event theme was

Communities of Faith, Agents of Change: How Diaspora faith networks can transform Africa’s Development

The meeting sought to show how Faith communities of all religions have worked tirelessly to combat poverty and improve the lives of millions of Africans and focused on the role of faith organisations in development –particularly how faith communities in the Diaspora can engage with job and wealth creation and support enterprise and entrepreneurship in Africa.

The meeting was part of a series of meetings under the AFRICA↔UK initiative which is part of the Common Ground Initiative funded by Comic Relief in association with the Royal African Society and AFFORD (African Foundation for Development).

 

 

 

 

The speakers were

Bishop Joe Aldred, Church of God of Prophecy

Imam Idris Ben Doku

Ms. Shallin Chikoto, International Programme Officer, World Vision UK

Mr. Attallah Fitzgibbon, Policy and Strategy Manager, Islamic Relief Worldwide

If I were to sum up the meeting  I would say it presented more questions than answers and I will pose some of those questions here for us to discuss

  1. How can diaspora churches help African development
  2. Do African churches have a role to play in African development and if so what is it
  3. what is the meaning of African churches?
  4. how much do diaspora churches know in terms of what is right for the people back home
  5. Are African diaspora churches fixed on the right goals? or is it simply a case of a happy clappy congregation
  6. What about competition between West Indian and African churches? Are churches  busy competing with each other and self serving instead being the salt and the light of the world
  7. Are churches over commercialised? What about transforming the communities in which we live?
  8. Jamaica has more churches per sq mile than any other country in the world but is overwhelmed by gangs who appear to be running the county- what are churches doing to promote peace and love for thy neighbour?

Bishop Aldred had some interesting and thought provoking words for us he said,

a challenge for us in the diaspora is this- do we know what is best for the people we left behind or are were merely caught up in a benevolence that stunts the growth of those we left behind? we give them a left money and expect too much from them- a little England perhaps? Are  we secretly longing for things to stand still. We need to respect people back home and stop orchestrating how they should behave or lead their lives

Hmmm, You could hear a pin drop with those words!

The Imam had this to say

before you do anything ensure that you have cleaned your house. they are enough mosques to pray but not enough business to help each other out of poverty. Why is that? Education is important and this means taking what is good out of the UK culture/way of life and applying that for the benefit of our people.

On the other hand Zimbabwean Ms. Shallin Chikoto felt that churches are not taking up their rightful role in lobbying government for the right kind of policies because in her mind

churches as too small and fragmented, are not talking to each

She called on churches to influence policy and change the view of Africa in the West’s mind through coordinated activity, capacity building of African communities.  For the diaspora in general- she told us that we are creating dependency through our $45 billion that we remit each year with only 6% of that being towards investment- “Stop and think about the impact of that on Africa” Ouch!

Mr. Attallah Fitzgibbon, didn’t make the meeting but his representative had something to say that I am still mulling over in my mind as it had never occurred to me as a fact  at least as far as I am concerned- that is as an African. I am minded to agree with Prof Ali Mazrui who argued in his Reith Lectures on Africa that Africa is divided/united along ethnic lines and not religious ones

As Africans we define ourselves through our faith and religion

and in view of the above

those who seek to work/develop Africa should not bring development programmes to Africa that contradict our faith/religion. They should instead seek to work with faith based organisations but not parallel to them. Religious organisations for their part should seek to end conflict and promote good neighbour relations

 

An interesting evening indeed!

One of the audience questions that interested me the most was

It is all very well looking out for people that we left back home what about the plight of African children in this country?

In answer to that question a panelist called on African mothers to cut back on the cleaning jobs and spend some of that time with their children! Make of that what you will but it sends out a message of stereo typing at its worst.
My worry about “diaspora churches” is their impact on the ground. Church is big business in Africa on ym recent trip I saw some very expensive cars on the Streets of Kampala , 4×4 Porsche, SUVs etc with private number plates of biblical origin and when I asked who drives such vehicles each every one of them was a Pastor. These cars aren’t cheap and you probably would not get much change out of £80,000. How do these Pastors justify such extravagances in a country where 68% of the people do not “touch” money in any given year and 2.5million children are malnourished. If you wondering where the connection is, these churches are new in Africa and have been exported by the diaspora!

If you are really interested in know more about how rich these pastors can be head to Nigeria. I am not implying that the pastors should walk around in rags but merely calling on to them to invest some of this income into the communities they work in after all the money is actually coming from these communities.

 

So there you have it folk- What does God to do with African Development?

 

 

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Filed Under: African Development, AFRICAN DIASPORA, Ida Horner, Latest Tagged With: , , , , , , , , , ,

A passionate exchange or a spat amongst Ugandans on Twitter?

July 2, 2011 By
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President Paul Kagame of Rwanda

Image via Wikipedia

This afternoon I stumbled upon an interesting conversation on twitter amongst some of my fellow Ugandans. I have their permission to share their exchange with you with a view to opening a debate on some of the issues that they raise.I  started the “watching” the conversation rather late and as far as I can work out it started with this tweet from Alan-

Alan Kasujjakasujja Alan Kasujja-Please join me in congratulating H.E @paulkagame who is currently in London to receive The Chello Foundation Humanitarian Award

And the exchange that followed covered all manner of topics about the state of affairs in Africa- brand Africa, human rights, rights and responsibilities of African journalists, freedom of African press, the accountability of those in power etc- the exchange had no hashtag- so it has been hard to piece it together. I  do hope you can follow it and add your voice-
Patrick Mugumya@mugumya Patrick Mugumya@kasujja Am sure Alan if you asked Kagame if he seem something he can improve in RW he would reel off a list? @timkalyegira @primagaba
@kasujja Am sure Alan if you asked Kagame if he seem something he can improve in RW he would reel off a list? @timkalyegira @primagaba
Timothy KalyegiraTimKalyegira Timothy Kalyegira -@kasujja @mugumya @primagaba The real story of Rwanda is Africa has sunk so low that a city with street lights is praised so highly!
TMS Rugetmsruge TMS Ruge @TimKalyegira @kasujja @mugumya @primagaba Why shouldn’t that be praised. It’s naive to think one doesn’t recognize flaws. Govs have flaws.
Patrick Mugumya @@mugumyaPatrick Mugumya
@tmsruge Alan doesnt see anything wrong, its all perfect in Rwanda under Kagame. Incredible @timkalyegira @kasujja @primagaba
replies ↓
andy kristianandykristian andy kristian @@mugumya While Allan doesn’t see any flaws @timkalyegira just sees Street Lights in Rwanda? C’mon! @kasujja @primagaba @tmsruge
Alan Kasujjakasujja Alan Kasujja @mugumya @tmsruge @timkalyegira @primagaba Patrick!! Come on man. I am interested in criticising Rwanda when my expectations are surpassed
TMS Rugetmsruge TMS Ruge @TimKalyegira @kasujja @mugumya @primagaba we are so intoxicated w ONLY criticizing it’s become norm de jour. Praise is other side of coin
in reply to ↑
TMS Rugetmsruge TMS Ruge @TimKalyegira @kasujja @mugumya @primagaba If ur going that route then ur no better than Western media drunk on ‘Africa a basketcase’ lead
in reply to ↑
Patrick Mugumya @mugumyaPatrick Mugumya-@tmsruge but we are a basketcase, someone need to tell us we are fake for us to wake up and get involved @timkalyegira @kasujja @primagaba
replies ↓
»
TMS Rugetmsruge TMS Ruge That may be in some cases, but that doesn’t mean blatantly ignore progressive systemic change @mugumya @timkalyegira @kasujja @primagaba
Patrick Mugumyamugumya Patrick Mugumya @mugumya @tmsruge @timkalyegira @kasujjaone reason why Africa is backward is the population doesn’t engage, they just take whatever
@tmsruge That may be in some cases, but that doesn’t mean blatantly ignore progressive systemic change @mugumya @timkalyegira @kasujja @primagaba

@mugumya Patrick Mugumya‘@tmsruge @timkalyegira @kasujja until recently, we all thought AID was our saviour, now more and more people think it’ll be our death

Patrick Mugumya-@tmsruge @timkalyegira @kasujja until recently, we all thought AID was our saviour, now more and more people think it’ll be our death
@tmsruge TMS Ruge @TimKalyegira @kasujja @mugumya @primagaba If ur going that route then ur no better than Western media drunk on ‘Africa a basketcase’ lead
in reply to ↑
TMS Ruge @tmsrugeTMS Ruge If @kasujja chooses 2b the one looking at positives when no one else is, leave him b, someone has 2do it @timkalyegira @primagaba @mugumya
replies ↓
@mugumya Patrick Mugumya @tmsruge do you agree with me that African regimes arent questioned at all, they rarely get criticised @kasujja @timkalyegira @primagaba
Alan Kasujja@kasujja Alan Kasujja @mugumya @timkalyegira @primagabaAmazingly, you guys said nothing when I said that I thought Deng was better for China than Mao
@tmsruge TMS Ruge @kasujja @mugumya @timkalyegira @primagaba Doubt they can contextualize any of that in relation to what it means for Uganda
@mugumyaPatrick Mugumya@tmsruge do you agree with me that African regimes arent questioned at all, they rarely get criticised @kasujja @timkalyegira@primagaba
tmsruge TMS Ruge But don’t waste the criticism on people who point out valid progress. Criticize by asking for more of that @mugumya @timkalyegira @kasujja
@mugumya Patrick Mugumya-
@tmsruge if Africa is make strides, there must be debate on what road to take not listen to one group @timkalyegira @kasujja

@tmruge:No I don’t agree. They criticize, but it has no weight. Gov isn’t accountable 2 ppl however loud they scream @mugumya @timkalyegira-

@kasujja:

Amazingly, you
guys said nothing when I said that I thought Deng was better for China than Mao

@mugumya Patrick Mugumya @tmsruge we are in a debate, its not that we are blaming those who point out positives, we need to understand @timkalyegira @kasujja

@mugumya Patrick Mugumya@tmsruge have you forgotten where Africa is from. a few years ago we’d be in jail for saying UG is dysfunctional @timkalyegira @kasujja
@tmsruge TMS Ruge @kasujja @mugumya @timkalyegira @primagaba Doubt they can contextualize any of that in relation to what it means for Uganda
@kasujja Alan Kasujja This is @wmutunga Kenya’s Chief Justice. @tmsruge @mugumya @timkalyegira http://twitpic.com/5jk0og
@mugumya Patrick Mugumya @tmsruge Africa is backward because questioning the policy of the govt was a criminalized, remember that @timkalyegira @kasujja
the rest of the conversation is at http://twitter.com/#!/Ethnicsupplies/african-3
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Filed Under: African Development, Ida Horner, Latest Tagged With: , , , , , , ,

Africa on the blog reaches 300 posts

June 15, 2011 By
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Phew! How did that happen? Nearly a year ago now I was invited to speak at an African Diaspora conference in London. I was asked to speak about the lives of African mothers in the diaspora. I telephoned a few African women I know and got them to share their  experiences with me

 

Having listened to several conversations and the experiences of my friends, it occurred to me that these women need a space to discuss these issues. A quick call to blogging Supremo Sarah and Africa On The Blog was born. Although the original idea was a space for African women in the Diaspora specifically here in the UK, the idea evolved swiftly to include men but also Africans worldwide.  I think that was a great decision.

If we had not widened the criteria we would have missed out on

  1. some of the amazing African wildlife photography from Naomi,
  2. the story of people being forced from their homes by Andrea
  3. the story of the great rift valley in Kenya by Minda, not to mention her amazing African recipes
  4. news from the African fashion Week in New York by Saran
  5. the great work by Engineers without borders from Rhea
  6. the little known phenomena that is the Harmattan by Christopher
  7. the good news at the Nigerian high commission in London by Kriss Akabusi
  8. why the MDGS will not be met by Tony
  9. the forgotten but democratic  Somali land from Jimmy
  10. why February 28th was an important day in  Kenya by Mark
  11. the state of ICT in Africa by Edward
  12. the migration of Zimbabweans to South Africa by Nqaba
  13. the state of Zimbabwean politics from Andrew
  14. Uganda’s cry for democracy by Lynn
  15. the goings on in a South African trial by Ntabozuko
  16. as well as Nigel’s journey back to his homeland after years as part of the diaspora

We have heard from those UK based mothers too

 

  1. Sadia has shared what it is like for a mother to answer tough questions children ask
  2. Grace  told us about what Black History month means to her
  3. Emang asked us a a tough question- who is African
  4. Tola has brought Nigerian cuisine to our attention
  5. Whilst Eliza shared the truth about those bio fuels

The platform has grown beyond our wildest dreams, contributors have come and gone but incredibly the core group that was here from the word go have stayed put.  We have built up a firm following with an average of 10,000 readers each month.

Some of contributors such as Jimmy, Eliza and Teddy (guest blogger) also contribute to the Guardian’s Poverty blog, whilst Tony’s post on MDG’s is often cited on Global voices and Nigel has contributed to the Africa Good news blog.

 

There are a variety of topics here and as such something for everyone-I can’t imagine what this is like for Babs the Blog Mistress who sorts out  all of our techy stuff, she never complains.

 

Personally speaking I have made some superb friends along the way thus far. It is also very humbling that a group of people agreed to come on board to share in this idea and continue to do so. It is an achievement for which I am proud. I don’t enjoy athletics much but used to watch Kriss Akabusi running with real pride- can you imagine what it felt like when he agreed to join Africa on the Blog! Thank you Suze for the introduction

I am grateful to Sarah for the continued support Ces- who is responsible for our makeover, to the whole team for showing up month after month with new and interesting blog posts. A big thanks too, to our guest bloggers who drop by and share their views of Africa.

To you our readers we value you but here is a challenge for you

  1. Join us
  2. Send in your guest posts
  3. be sure to use our Events page to list your African event
  4. Tell us what you would like to write about in the next 300 posts

 

 

 

 

 

 

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Filed Under: African Development, Ida Horner, Latest, Out of Africa Tagged With: , , , , , ,

Introducing Uganda Manufacturers Association

May 17, 2011 By
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In November 2010, the day before I hit the road to Uganda I received an email inviting me to a business luncheon organised by the Uganda Manufacturer’s Association (UMA). I had never heard of them and the lunch was the day after my arrival, so I was a little apprehensive about going but the person who sent me the email  insisted that I go. the Reason- as you are thinking about coming back to Uganda to live, it is best you get an insight as to how society is organised and this is the best place to start

I couldn’t argue with that, I fought back the jet lag and joined the good folk at UMA and must say I was impressed and glad that I had gone.

 

The highlight for me was the presentation from the Deputy Prime Minister Eriya Kategaya on the East African Integration and the opportunities that presents for both consumers and provider of services and goods.

At the  event I didn’t get a chance to speak to any of the organisers to get a clear understanding of  UMA so I recently emailed them some questions to enable me to do just that and here is that conversation

 

What is UMA and what role does it play in Ugandan business

Uganda Manufacturers Association is an umbrella body for all industrialists and manufacturers in Uganda. It represents the interests of manufacturers and lobbies Government for policies that favor a conducive business environment. UMA also offers other services to industrialists and members i.e. marketing opportunities through organizing International trade fairs, regional trade fairs and trade missions, business information through publications, training, amongst others.

 

How is it structured?

UMA has an Advisory council of 6 members which is Headed by Mr. Abid Alam. Under the council there is a Board of 18 Directors, below which is the secretariat with 6 departments. The Secretariat is headed by an Executive Director Mr. Sebaggala M. Kigozi. UMA also has Sub committees that focus on specific areas namely: Marketing, Education and Skills, Membership and Networking and Economic Sub committees.

When and how did it get started?

UMA was originally formed in the 60’s but due to political unrest in Uganda, it was not sustainable. It was later revived in 1988 by Dr. James Mulwana.

 

Who can join and why.

Any industrialists, manufacturer, service provider can join UMA. UMA offers a wide range of benefits to her members including a very good platform for networking. For this reason, any business entity can benefit from UMA membership.

 

What are the benefits of being a member?

UMA mainly does advocacy for a conducive business environment and every members benefits from this. UMA members can also obtain tax waivers from a range of raw materials and industrial machinery.

Why should the man on the street be interested in UMA

Anyone can become a manufacturer! Many potential manufacturers come to UMA to find out about business, manufacturing and some eventually become manufacturers. It is not out of place for a man on the street to be interested in UMA.

 

What about young manufacturer’s? Can they join too? Is there a programme to mentor them to become successful manufacturer’s?

Young Manufacturers can definitely become UMA members at Small Scale level. Anyone who joins the field of manufacturing realizes that manufacturing has challenges and some cannot be tackled on an individual company basis. They need to come together and form a stronger voice that is audible to Government. UMA provides a range of training courses to enhance the skills of her members.

 

What advice would you give them (young manufacturers)?

Young manufactures need to embrace best management practices right from the start. They also need to know that they are better off united for a stronger voice rather than tackle their problems by themselves.

 

What are your views about cheap imports from China?

They are a challenge to us to improve our efficiency and innovate ways to lower cost of production while producing good quality.

 

How do you protect the Textile producer’s interests against the second hand clothing market and cheap imports from china.

Uganda is a liberalized economy and any one from without can compete.

 

What advice would you give to Ugandan diaspora wanting to return home?

There are still many investment opportunities in Uganda that they can take advantage of.

 

Something that I find interesting about this and perhaps a question for African in general

Do you buy African products or are African Manufacturers wasting their time?

I  didn’t get the sense that anyone was overly concerned about the Chinese dumping products in Uganda and the impact of this on the members of UMA.

What is the situation in other African countries?

Should producers and or the likes of UMA fight back or  are cheap Chinese goods  good for Africa?

 

 

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Filed Under: Africa Trade, African Development, Ida Horner, Latest Tagged With: , , , , , ,

The Politics of Coltan

May 4, 2011 By
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Piece of tantalum, 1 cm in size.

Piece of tantalum, 1 cm in size-Image via Wikipedia

A few weeks ago I received an email from Sarah asking if I would be happy to review a book called COLTAN  for Africa on the blog.  I didn’t ask questions but simply provided an address where the book could be sent.  When the book arrived I could not put it down- the subject matter challenged my ethics in ways I had never imagined possible/could never have anticipated

 

So what is COLTAN and why should its politics concern you/us? This extract from the book might help answer this question

 

 

COLTAN is an abbreviation of COLUMBITE TANTALITE a mixture of two mineral ores and is the common name for these ores in Eastern Congo. Whilst TANTALUM is the name of the metal extracted from TANTALITE bearing ores including COLTAN  after processing

The author Michael Nest takes us on a journey of how this once unknown mineral  came to be discussed at UN summits, in the media, activists websites, lecture rooms as well as how it is linked to the worst atrocities in modern history.In the politics of COLTAN Nest unravels the roles of China and its economic might, the rebel militia, transnational corporations, Hollywood celebrities and the activists in the production, trade and sale of this once obscure mineral

Nest provides a list of things that are derived from  COLTAN  and as you can see COLTAN is widely used in our day to day lives. It  is the uses to which COLTAN is put that challenged my ethics

  • Mobile phones
  • Laptops
  • Ipads
  • Ipods
  • Gaming Platforms
  • Memory chips
  • Igniter chips for car airbags
  • Jet engines/turbines
  • Space Vehicles
  • Cutting tools and drill bits
  • silicon wafers
  • Optical devices
  • Chemical equipment
  • Camera lenses
  • Military and Recreation ammunition
  • Inket jet printers
  • X-ray film
  • Surgical instruments
  • Hip replacements

 

The book is divided into 5 key chapters

  1. The Facts, figures and Myths surrounding
  2. The Organization of  production and markets
  3. The relationship between  COLTAN and the conflict in Congo
  4. The evolution of advocacy campaigns and initiatives
  5. The future of COLTAN

I found chapter 3 especially gripping- it deals with the conflict in Congo, the impact of the genocide in Rwanda on Congo and COLTAN per SE the role of the Rwandese and Uganda armies  in the Congo conflict  as well as the role of the armed groups in the production/extraction of  COLTAN.

In this chapter we learn that  COLTAN  is a source of finance for the armed groups in Eastern Congo, that  forced labour is used  in the extraction of  COLTAN,  we learn about the extent of sexual violence mostly against women, extra judicial killings  in addition to the recruitment of and use of child soldiers.

The role of Non government organizations and Hollywood celebrities is explored in chapter 4. These are the activists that seek to bring  issues such as the  sexual violence against women in the Congo amongst other things to light. These activists believe that there is  that there is a causal  link between COLTAN according to Nest and the ongoing conflict and as such the associated violence against women in Congo and  they  aim to make corporations more socially responsible in their sourcing habits  and one these include the banning of  Nest further discusses the various initiatives that have been attempted including one   that called for  NO BLOOD ON MY MOBILE PHONE .

 

A question that arises here is how easy is it to tell which COLTAN  is from the  war zones of Congo and if the West will not buy such  COLTAN due to consumer pressure will China have the same reservations?

This point is taken up in the final chapter, specifically that whilst the consumers in the West may force Corporations to reconsider how they source their COLTAN or  scrutinize their supply chains, folk in the developing world are unlikely to worry about such things and in fact that the fastest growing mobile phone usage is  in Africa with at least 14 million of those located in Congo as 2008.

 

The final chapter leaves us with an interesting question and perhaps one that we ought to discuss here

 WHAT CAN/SHOULD A CONCERNED PERSON DO TO END THE RELATIONSHIP BETWEEN COLTAN AND THE WAR IN EASTERN CONGO?

This is a must read book for anyone with an interest in ethics, the relationship between armed conflict and natural resources in Africa, the impact of various initiatives aimed at cleaning up the Extractive Industry and the rise of China as an investor in Africa. COLTAN  is published by http://www.politybooks.com/book.asp?ref=9780745649313

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Filed Under: African Development, Ida Horner, Latest, Out of Africa Tagged With: , , , , , , , ,

Why Malaria is a good thing for Africa

April 25, 2011 By
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Countries which have regions where malaria is ...

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It is Malaria Day and we wouldn’t want want this day to pass without a word about it. After all malaria is one thing we Africans know a things or two about.

I often write about this topic over at Ethnic Supplies blog and this is a collection of posts I wrote last year. And the heading? well before you write me off let me explain. I am interested in how people find my blog and I have a cute little plugin that helps do that. Someone found a blog post I wrote about Cheryl Cole’s battle with malaria using that statement and another equally bizarre statement that had  me in a rant over at BIRDS ON THE BLOG was WHY AFRICANS DON’T GET MALARIA - now this was really a curious thing to say as the footballer Didier Drogba had just been diagnosed with malaria- so that statement didn’t make sense. In the spirit of fairness I don’t think that folk here in the UK know much about malaria and probably have no reason to.

 

Back to Cheryl Cole- poor girl had a tough time- there was a media frenzy over her having contracted malaria so much so that someone sent a tweet that said I’m sick of  hearing about Cheryl fecking Cole . I don’t know if she would have wanted the media to report about her illness the way they did but one thing for sure that type of reporting concentrate people’s minds- malaria is not just a poor man’s or an African disease

But in this day and age of cheap travel the world is getting smaller and destinations with malaria are that much closer.  So if you are reading this and are thinking that only Africans catch malaria you are wrong and please go get yourself educated on the facts of malaria esepcially if you intend to travel to sub-Saharan Africa and other tropical countries.

 

Whilst here- African politicians/authorities that misuse money given for the treatment of malaria will not escape  my wrath. Why do drugs donated to treat those that can ill afford health care go missing and what can be done about this? OK, silly question really, and I suppose the answer is the the same reason AID  doesn’t get to those that need most.

So folk on this world malaria day, if you have a relative of a friend in sub-Saharan Africa the best present you can  send them is a good quality mosquito net and if you intend to travel to a mosquito infested area the best tip I can give you is to avoid being beaten by disease causing mosquitoes

 

Ida

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Filed Under: Ida Horner, Latest, Out of Africa Tagged With: , , , , , , ,

Nike Davies Okundaye- African textile designer

April 18, 2011 By
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I am a keen follower of CNN’s programme African Voices that showcase Africans making a difference on the continent. Every now and again they throw up someone extra ordinary such as Nike Davies Okundaye. Nike is a Nigerian textile designer working to preserve traditional African textiles by passing these on to other women which in turn enables them to earn an income for themselves.

As you will see from the CNN video clips she had a tough life but has succeeded against the odds and for this I felt compelled to share her story here.

 

 

I found her story moving for several reasons. I love African textile and fabrics and wherever possible that is what I will wear. But the art of designing the textile as depicted in the documentary is dying out and I don’t doubt that this has to do with us as Africans opting for textile made elsewhere such as Dutch Wax, Austrian and French lace for which were only happy to pay a fortune. My tailor in SE London sells french lace at £300 and clearly there is a market for it and on my recent visit the textile as made by Nike was no where to be seen in his shop.

The other aspect of Nike story that moved me was the struggles she had to go through as a woman to get where she is, and the sad reality that this is still true for most African women today, being caught up in polygamous marriages and unable to for instance negotiate safe sex nor a way out of such marriages mostly due to lack of financial Independence.

Watch her story and be inspired but above all join the discussion

What can we as Africans do to improve things for women in Africa?

 

 

 

 

 

 

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Filed Under: African Development, Ida Horner, Latest Tagged With: , , , , , , , , ,

First ever Ugandan Diaspora Convention UK (Europe) 2011

April 7, 2011 By
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Ugandans in the UK (Europe) have finally called their first ever convention under the theme

Rita

“Unleashing the potential of every Ugandan living in the Diaspora to help develop Uganda”

I caught up with Rita Lutalo the Marketing director  for the convention via email and this  is what she told me

We would like to take this opportunity to introduce you to the 1st Uganda Convention UK and the greater European region. The association will hold their first Annual Ugandan convention on 27th August 2011 at the luxurious Troxy, London.

The convention’s objectives include:

  • Inspire and encourage networking and unity among Ugandans in Europe for social, educational, cultural, economic and benevolent activities, and sustained image building for their nation.
  • Link the Ugandan Diasporas with European and Ugandan private and public organizations
  • Promote an entrepreneurial culture through exchange of information, discussion and research; and encourage business relationships and interaction.
  • Utilize the intellectual and financial capital of the Diaspora by identifying and engaging in significant, long-term and sustainable project initiatives, for the purpose of improving the livelihood of all Ugandans, in the Diaspora and in Uganda.
  • Seek and develop opportunities for investment and philanthropy in Uganda, the United Kingdom and the rest of Europe
  • Lobby and influence Uganda government to harness the “vast expertise” of Ugandan professionals in Europe thereby providing extra skilled capacity needed by Uganda to hasten its socio-economic development.

It is estimated that more than 210,000 Ugandans live in Europe. There is a shared desire among Ugandans in the Diaspora to inspire and encourage their collaboration and contribution to promote and advance social, cultural, economic and benevolent activities in Uganda. A small percentage of Ugandans have taken interest in the Real Estate Development, Hotel and Accommodation, Sports, Textile and Investments in the Uganda Securities Exchange sectors. It is one of our core missions to strive to convince even more Ugandans to venture into investment back home.

Please visit http://ugandanconventionuk.org/programme/ for our provisional programme to give you an insight of the topics and panellists on the day.

For more information, please visit and for General Enquiries please contact: info@ugandanconventionuk.org

 

I am really excited about this event for several reasons but mostly because we as Africans have a great opportunity to leverage our skills and financial muscle to impact development. But all of this starts with coming together to identify what the key challenges are and how we can go about getting involved.

Enhanced by ZemantaI hope too that this is the beginning of things to come
Filed Under: AFRICAN DIASPORA, Ida Horner, Latest, Out of Africa Tagged With: , ,
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