>>Commonwealth Games Controversy PG 51 September 2010
Volume 006
Door to Region, Window on World
Africa's Credit
Recognising Continent's Contribution
Achim Steiner UNON Executive Director
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•DIPLOMATIC LICENCE
Keep UNEP, UN-Habitat in Nairobi
T
he United Nations Office in Nairobi is with- the vibrancy of Kenya’s media and the solidarity of Afout doubt an important facility, not only rican nations that plans for the relocation of UNEP and because it serves as the global headquarters its human settlements counterpart have been foiled in for the flagship environmental agencies of the past. UNEP and UN-Habitat, but also because it It is against this background that Kenya’s Ministry of is the headquarters of UN agencies in most of Africa. Foreign Affairs deserves plaudits for lobbying hard for For this reason, UNON and its Gigiri Complex stand the upgrading of UNON to class B status. If there is anyas a living testimony to the involvement of Africans in thing that affirms the commitment of the international the most important government of the world, the United community to the continued stay of the UN regional Nations. More often than not, many Africans do not ap- office for Africa headquarters in Nairobi, then it is this preciate the fact that they are part of the UN family by recent boost in its status. right. However, our inquisitions into the matter indicate Indeed, some of the UN interventions on the conti- that the new status does not let Nairobi’s Gigiri, veritably nent are executed in a manner likely to suggest that they the most important diplomatic district in the region, off are philanthropic interventions. Indeed, the Kenyan the hook. Some sources indicate that plans are afoot to government must be praised for the foresight that led retain UNON in Gigiri but relocate UNEP and UN-Habfounding President Kenyatta to donate the pristine and itat for various above-board and subterranean reasons. ever-green land on which the UNON stands today. One reason advanced for this move is that Nairobi From time to time and especially is prone to hyper rates of crime. That since the last decade, insinuation to accusation falls flat given recent efthe effect that UNEP and UN-Habiforts that have brought urban crime tat could be moved from Nairobi to under control. Another point of view some other part of the continent or is that many of the relevant envieven out of the continent breaks to ronmental think tanks and research the surface. outfits are based either in Europe or Fortunately, such intimations North America and that one of these have always been met with firm locations should be the logical home rebuttals from the UN hierarchy of UNEP and UN-Habitat. We need including from the UNON Execubelabour the flimsiness of this Beyond considerations not tive Directors. Indeed, incumbent line of thought. Dr Achim Steiner, the subject of such as equity and Beyond considerations such as our cover story this month, has also equality of nations, equity and equality of nations, the weighed in on this matter. UN’s presence in Nairobi has served Still, it would not be farfetched the UN’s presence in as a magnate for diplomacy in the to treat the supposed salivations for Nairobi has served as a African region. Since Africa is sadUNON and Gigiri with a wary eye. dled with internecine wars and other For one, when Kenyatta, in his mag- magnate for diplomacy depravations, the UN Gigiri office nanimity donated the hundreds of in the African region serves the important role of propacres of land to the UN in the early ping up peace building and conflict 1970s, matters environmental were not given as serious resolution mechanisms on the continent. treatment as is the case in this Millennium. In any case, the international community must never It is therefore not wholly implausible for nations, in- lose sight of the fact that African countries are equally terests and lobbies with major stakes in hot issues such paying members of the UN. It is exactly for the reason as climate change, global warming, carbon credits and that African nations feel like they are playing second other emerging environmental –isms to plot to take fiddle to their wealthy counterparts of the North that the UNEP and UN-Habitat away from Nairobi. AU has been, for example, lobbying for two permanent Indeed, those who have followed the saga of the and five non-permanent seats on the UN Security Counsurreptitious relocation of the headquarters of the two cil. In the final analysis, an attempt to move the UN reagencies have specifically mentioned France and South Africa as would-be beneficiaries. Those in the know gional headquarters from Nairobi will be a major diphave also pointed out that it is specifically because of lomatic blunder, one that must be avoided at all costs
September 2010
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•DIPLOSPEAK Have Your Say
Turkana Envoy’s Journey Epic PRESIDENT LULA’S VISIT TO AFRICA I read with interest the story of Brazil's President Lula Da Silva regarding his task of improving relations among countries as a focal point of his foreign policy. Being the first Latin American president to visit many countries on the continent should serve as an example to not just other Latin American presidents and countries but also a development that other presidents should emulate and practice. Brazil’s signing of multi billion commercial deals with African countries is indeed a step towards establishing new trading partnerships. Africa and Latin America should cooperate more as the two continents share the negative image of living under the shadow of Europe and North America. The other continent that should forge closer ties with Africa is Asia which is also home to many poor societies. It is through the efforts of leaders like Da Silva that poor parts of the world can come together to challenge the existing geopolitical order that is in favour of the North. PAINE ULALIA, Dar es Salaam
KENYA DID US PROUD East Africa and particularly Kenya has made us proud in matters sports. Not only did it emerge with sterling performances but also the preparations and coordination the officials in charge of the African Senior Athletics Championship was exemplary. It is my view however that the writer focused too much on the success of organising the event and forgot to inform us about what exactly the results were. I would have been pleased for example to see a scoreboard of the medals that each country won compared to the previous events held in Addis Ababa in 2008. An analysis of factors that led either to the
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RANT/RAVE
>>Athletics Nairobi 2010 PG 52 August 2010
Volume 005
I would like to congratulate your magazine for coming
Door to Region, Window on World
up with the directory section to assist readers who wish to contact diplomatic missions for one or another reason.
decline or good performances among the countries and what should be done in order to gain good performances at a global level would also have been good. MISATI WASHINGTON, Mombasa
DIRECTORY A HELPFUL RESOURCE I would like to congratulate your magazine for coming up with the directory section to assist readers who wish to contact diplomatic missions for one or another reason. As they say, information is power. Knowing the details of diplomatic missions is important particularly in this globalising world where people travel a lot and need consular services from time to time. I hope you will also develop and publish contact details of other international organisations such as the UN and AU. Also, you should expand your directory catchment to countries such as Ethiopia and Sudan. PORTUS MUTANDA, Nairobi
September 2010
Somalia Imbroglio g Africa Takes Aim at al-Shabaab AU Chairman, Jean Ping
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WE'D LOVE TO HEAR FROM YOU: Send your letters to, letters@ diplomateastafrica.com. Submission of a letter constitutes permission to publish it in any form or medium. Letters may be edited for reasons of space and clarity.
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TURKANA ENVOY’S JOURNEY WAS EPIC I got a chance to read a copy of your magazine two days after I landed in Kenya and I must say I was impressed. The narration of the journey up north by Ambassador Margit Helwig of Germany and her Husband Gerd Josef Boette was particularly uplifting. Indeed the story had an exploration aura to it as it read like the forays that were made into the African hinterland by the pioneering Europeans and Americans. But even more touching was the fact that so many diplomats could make their way to Loyangalani to mingle with locals and appreciate culture at its most original. The journey through the rough terrain was rendered in such a way as to be literally an epic tale. How often do diplomats endure such journeys in the course of their duties? It was equally edifying that other diplomats and the whole community congregated to make the cultural event a meeting of cultures. As the modern world has come to acknowledge, culture is an important diplomatic tool, perhaps far better in its own subtle way, than such frontal diplomatic approaches as formal negotiations. The piece was beautifully and descriptively written and gave me the perfect location to visit during my stay in Kenya. I look forward to reading about the exploits of diplomats across the width and breadth of the expansive eastern Africa region. While many Africans might lament the rough terrain as a drawback to development, most of us Europeans crave this un-spoilt, utterly primordial way of life and geographical endowment. I hope that future developments will not spoil this gift from mother nature. CHARLES RYRIE, German citizen visiting Kenya
Volume No 006 • September 2010
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CONTENTS Table of
EDITORIAL Editorial Director: Kwendo Opanga Managing Editor: Bob Job Wekesa Consulting Editor: Matt K Gathigira Culture Editor: Ngari Gituku Staff Writers: Wycliffe Muga, Patrick Wachira, Jane Mwangi, Baron Khamadi, Christopher Mburu, Kiishweko Orton, Carol Gachiengo, Rita Njoroge, Gathoni Muraya, Mercy Njung'e
MARKETING & SALES Marketing Director: Simon Mugo
BUSINESS MANAGER Kristine Oloo
PG 18
SALES TEAM LEADER
PG 37
James Ombima
BUSINESS EXECUTIVES Joseph Ngina, Chris Nyaoro Derrick Wanjawa, Eunice Kiarie Paul Mucheru
DIPLOMATIC LICENSE
CULTURE
DESIGN TEAM
Keep UNEP, UN-Habitat in Nairobi…………………… 1
Coffee and Diplomacy………………..............………36-37 The Red Cross Museum of Geneva………………….38-39
Daniel Kihara Raphael Mokora
PHOTOGRAPHY
IMMUNITIES & IMPUNITIES….….……..2
Yahya Mohamed, George Birya
CONTRIBUTORS Biko Jackson, Nairobi Godwin Muhwezi, Arusha Edward Githae, Kigali Silvia Rugina, Kigali Godfrey Musila, Johannesburg John Gachie, Juba John Mulaa, Washington DC Julius Mbaluto, London Manoah Esipisu, London Kennedy Abwao, Addis Ababa Mishaeli Ondieki, Los Angeles Rodney Muhumuza, Kampala Peter Mwaura, Nairobi Robert Mugo, Alberta, Canada Wangari Maathai, Nairobi
THE REGION Kikwete goes for Second Term……...….……………6-7
HEALTH Stop Rush to Take Own Lives ….............…………....… 40
ODYSSEYS From Beijing with a Tale………............................…41-42
DNA Crediting Africa…………………....…………………..8-12 UN Upgrades Nairobi Office…………….....……..13-14 Somalia: Boosting AMISOM Troops……….......................…..17 Why the World Should Help Somalia…………..18-19 Politics in Somalia Piracy……………...…………..20-21 Interview: Uganda’s Interests in Asia…….......................….22-23
PERSPECTIVES Moses Wetang’ula: Constitution and Rebirth……...............................…….43
DEA HOTELS Crowne Plaza Hotel……………....................………..46-47
CIRCULATION & SUBSCRIPTION Stephen Otieno
ADMINISTRATION Josephine Wambui, Charles Kimakwa
PRINTER Ramco Printing Works
DISCLAIMER: Diplomat East Africa may not be copied and or transmitted or stored in any way or form, electronically or otherwise, without the prior and written consent of the publisher. Diplomat East Africa is published at Vision Plaza, Ground Floor, Suite 19, Mombasa Road, by Global Village Publishers (EA) Limited, Box 23399 – 0625, and Telephone 020-2525253/4/5. Registered at the GPO as a newspaper.
GREEN AGENDA Extinction Alert for Fauna and Flora…….……..24-25 Painting the Environment…………………….……….26 UN Decade on Desertification………...……………..27
ECONOMY Africa’s Economic Growth……………………..….30-31 Infrastructure and Trade……………………………………………………….32
GLOBAL STAGE Pakistani Flooding Disaster…………........………………48 Obama: Big Brother Watching…….......…………….49-50
ENVOYS OF SPORT New Delhi Commonwealth Games Controversy……......................................….51-52
TRAVEL Magical Kenya Beckons…………............………………..54
September 2010
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•THE REGION Eastern Africa Beat
TANZANIA ELECTIONS
Kikwete Prepares For Second Term His Chama cha Mapinduzi (CCM) has ruled in various guises since the country was founded in 1964 after mainland Tanganyika merged with the island of Zanzibar By JUMA KWAYERA
C
ast as an oasis of peace in politically turbulent region, Tanzania goes to the polls next month in what is expected to be a walk in the park for incumbent President Jakaya Kikwete. Kikwete, however, will have to contend with dipping support. Two recent polls – one by the
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COMMANDER-IN-CHIEF:
President Jakaya Kikwete inspects a guard of honour
September 2010
University of Dar-es-Salaam and the other by Synovate — show the man who coasted to victory with an imperious 81 per cent of the vote had lost 12 percentage points by June. His Chama cha Mapinduzi (CCM) has ruled in various guises since the country was founded in 1964 after mainland Tanganyika merged with the island of Zanzibar to form Tanzania.
However, CCM, one of the richest political organisations on the continent, has not changed much to accommodate competition despite Tanzania’s adoption of pluralism in 1992. It is hostage to a small reformminded cabal that harks back to old-style liberation rhetoric that has ensured opposition parties do not blossom. Kikwete’s main rival, former World Bank economic advisor Prof Ibrahim Lipumba, will be gunning for the top seat on a Civic United Front (CUF) ticket for the third time. The opposition’s bid to make an impact has been weakened further after the Chama cha Democracia (Chadema) presidential candidate in 2005, Mr Freeman Mbowe, opted to run for a parliamentary seat. Presidential candidates in Tanzania are barred from vying for parliamentary seats.
•THE REGION Eastern Africa Beat
Tanzania Labour Party’s Augustine Lyatonga Mrema, who in the 1995 polls nearly floored CCM’s Benjamin Mkapa, will also be running for a parliamentary seat and the Democratic Party’s John Cheyo, as was the case in 2005, is not expected to give Kikwete any trouble. SOCIALISM
Having completed his first term without injecting pace into his country’s economy, Kikwete faces the challenge of matching up the growth in the East African Community, where he has been hesitant to embrace a common market, customs union and a possible political federation. The World Bank ranks Tanzania a lacklustre 131 in the world out of 178 countries with favourable investment environments compared with Uganda’s 112th, Kenya’s 95th and Rwanda’s 13th positions. According to a recent edition of The Economist, “a local brand of socialism first promoted by Tanzania’s founding President Julius Nyerere, helped give Tanzania’s 44 million people a sense of unity but failed to equip them for the 21st Century. The country still feels elephantine, its infrastructure is rickety, its electricity patchy, most of its roads unpaved and potholed.” Analysts aver that Kikwete’s triumph will further slow down the economic integration of the East African Community, which still faces stiff resistance from Tanzania, the territorially largest of the five-member regional grouping. Dar es Salaam has erected non-tariff barriers to lock out of its territory skilled labour from other EAC members, a strategy that is not expected to change in
Kikwete’s second term. Even with the coming into operation this month of the EAC Common Market, national identification remains a major source of security and intraregional trade concerns in East Africa following recent terrorist attacks in Kampala, not to mention the expected flux in the labour market. Analysts of Tanzania’s political situation since he came to power say Kikwete’s re-election, believed at home to be a foregone conclusion, is expected to entrench further the country’s apathy to the regional bloc through deliberate procrastination of procurement of ID tenders. Two opinion polls released between April and July show that Kikwete would beat opposition candidates by a comfortable margin. The University of Dares-Salaam in an opinion poll conducted in April gave him a 77.2 per cent preference over the other candidates.
Kenya's Rebirth
DEVELOPMENT
Synovate put him ahead in poll conducted in July with a 69 per cent from 73 per cent lead, reflecting some criticism on how he handled threats by labour unions for a nationwide workers’ strike over pay and conditions. At his endorsement to defend his seat, Kikwete vowed to make economic development the main agenda of his second and final term. He said he would focus more on boosting agriculture, livestock development, infrastructure, health and education. “We will put more effort in improving those sectors of the economy that can have a tangible impact on the betterment of people’s lives such as agriculture,” he said
The World Bank ranks Tanzania
a lacklustre 131 in the world out of 178 countries with favourable investment environments compared with Uganda’s 112th, Kenya’s 95th and Rwanda’s 13th positions
For sheer majesty and pomp, nothing in 46 years had come close to the ceremony to promulgate Kenya’s new constitution, billed as the harbinger of the country’s Second Republic. As we went to Press, rehearsals for a glittering military parade had reached fever pitch and locals got a chance to view weaponry and hardware in all its varied forms, from tanks to helicopters and fighter jets. It was easy to see, as one watched the rehearsals, the origin of the terminology “military precision” for, nothing was left to chance and no detail was too minor to ignore. Preparations took care of everything, from the seating arrangements to the march past, to the entry and exit manoeuvres as well as crowd control and security: there was a frenzy of expectation that mirrored the general mood in the country. Rightly so. The ceremony was easily the most colourful and dramatic event since Independence Day celebrations in 1964 and to join Kenyans in the fete were 8 African heads of state including those of Tanzania, Morocco, Comoros, Rwanda, Southern Sudan and Somalia. Poignantly, former UN Chief, Kofi Annan and his team of Eminent African Personalities were also expected. It made sense: it is they who brokered a deal that culminated in power sharing between President Mwai Kibaki and Prime Minister Raila Odinga following the disputed 2007 polls. And the order of taking the oath was an exemplification of the term “first among equals” - the President was to lead, then his PM, Vice President Kalonzo Musyoka and House Speaker, Kenneth Marende.
September 2010
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PHOTO: DEA LIBRARY
September 2010
•DNA Diplomacy•News•Analysis
UNITED NATIONS: Green economy agenda
‘Africa is Doing More Than its Getting Credit for’ By JANE MWANGI
D
IPLOMAT EAST AFRICA: During the G-20 summit in Toronto in June, you stressed on the need for the First World economies to take a leadership role in support of developing economies’ aspirations. Why should its leaders reaffirm their commitment to embed sustainability in the global economic recovery? ACHIM STEINER: The recent and some might say on-going global financial and economic crisis came in the wake of food and fuel crises. We also have a looming crisis in terms of climate change and a whole raft of other
issues including an emerging natural resource scarcity challenge. These are issues that challenge not only environmental sustainability, but the fundamental sustainability of economies rich and poor, developed and developing. Yet they also represent an enormous opportunity to re-think and re-shape development and prosperity in the 21st Century. The G20 group of nations can, through more intelligent investments and policy measures, unleash the markets to invest in environmental infrastructure - from ecological assets such as forests and freshwaters to clean tech and
September 2010
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•DNA Diplomacy•News•Analysis
renewable energies. And in doing so deal with multiple challenges from climate change and resource constraints to triggering new kinds of green jobs urgently needed in a world where 1.3 billion people are under employed or unemployed. In 2008 we estimated that $750 billion of the around $3 trillionworth of stimulus investments could assist towards triggering a transformation to a low carbon, resource efficient Green Economy—currently there is a shortfall of around $250 billion which developed economies could address as part of their leadership role. Q: The Green Economy Initiative campaign has been deemed to have the power to create a fundamentally different development path for all countries. How so? A: The economic models inherited from the 20th and 19th Centuries based on over exploitation and what one might call the ‘mining’ of natural resources rather than sustainable management of these assets, are unlikely to serve society well on a planet of 6 billion moving to over 9 billion people by 2050. The Green Economy is aimed at re-framing the sustainable development debate in a way that reflects the differing economies and economic starting points we find in the world. It is also a way of bringing the economic value of natural assets from the invisible into the visible spectrum. Take Kenya for example. Over recent decades there has been accelerating degradation of the Mau Forest. In collaboration with the government and many partners, UNEP has assisted in putting the
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multi-million - if not billion dollar - value of the ecosystem services the Mau provides firmly onto the country’s economic radar. These are services from hydropower and drinking water supplies up to flows to tourism infrastructure such as the Maasai Mara and Lake Nakuru as well as moisture for the tea industry and carbon storage for countering climate change. It has changed the debate and catalysed action to start restoring this vast nature-based asset which may prove one of the most far sighted and cost effective investments this—or any government of Kenya—has ever made. Q: Your illustrious career has seen you working at the highest levels of international policy-making as much as at the grass-roots levels, in what direction would you like
September 2010
YOUR VIEWS, SIR: Our writer Jane Mwangi confers with Steiner
to steer UNEP’s involvement with civil society in general, and at the grass-roots level in particular? A: If the world is to rise to the challenges but also the opportunities of the 21st Century, all sectors of society need to be on board. Civil society has a central role to play from holding governments accountable in terms of their promises and pledges up to mobilising public support in areas ranging from cleaning up communities to supporting certification schemes for sustainable goods and services. The list is as important as it is long. UNEP never forgets that in many ways it was NGOs and grass roots organisations that spearheaded the birth of this institution in 1972. We also recognise that these partnerships strengthen the intergovernmental work of UNEP and we are striving to widen and deepen these relationships.
•DNA Diplomacy•News•Analysis
Q: As a global leader on the environment do you feel that UNEP should play a more proactive role? A: UNEP is playing a far more pro-active role across the vast range of issues that underpin sustainability crucially through the Green Economy Initiative and by illuminating that societies have far more choices than many might imagine. Breaking the false dichotomy between development and the environment as if they are antagonistic is part of that pro-active policy. The future engagement of UNEP will rest in part on its own determination to be part of the change so urgently needed and the determination of its member states to fit it for the task. Q: How do you see the relationship between markets, global economics and the environment given that you are a Development Economics specialist by training? A: In the past, market forces have been viewed as almost God-given. But they are in the end human constructs. The current narrow definition of GDP is one of the challenges as it often externalises the costs whether it be in respect to greenhouse gas emissions or degradation of natural assets. With the right government policies in place, ones that send the right price signals, markets will follow. This is one of the foundations of the Green Economy Initiative. Take fisheries for example currently global fish stocks are in decline in far too many parts of the world. At the moment, governments are subsidising fishing to the tune of around $27 billion annually. The world is thus investing in the means of capture
rather than in the stock itself. UNEP estimates that if $8 billion was instead invested in, for example, Marine Protected Areas; tradable fish quotas; retiring overcapacity and re-training fisher folk, not only would profits rise but stocks would recover and the protein supply for over 1 billion people could be secured.
The G20 group of nations can, through more
intelligent investments and policy measures, unleash the markets to invest in environmental infrastructure
Q: The World is facing a massive threat of climate change. How do you define UNEP’s role in this regards? A: UNEP, through its co-hosting of the Intergovernmental Panel on Climate Change (IPCC) with the World Meteorological Organisation, assists governments and the world to compile and understand the peer-reviewed science. We are also working to assist developing countries including those in Africa identify ways of adapting to climate change while assisting them to participate in the international negotiations under the UN Climate Convention meetings. Overcoming perhaps blinkered views and shining a light on transformational opportunities are also key. It was once thought that
the rural poor could not afford solar power. Working with partners such as the UN Foundation, we bought down the cost of solar loans in India and within a few years over 100,000 people had access to the technology. In East Africa we have assisted the energy sector with new drilling techniques in order to bring down the costs of geothermal exploration which is playing its part in the current growth in this renewable energy technology up the Rift Valley. UNEP is part of UN-REDD (Reduced Emissions from Deforestation and forest Degradation). Here we are working with governments including the Democratic Republic of Congo, Tanzania and Vietnam to ready them for a new, climate-linked fund. The Carbon Benefits Project, with funding from the Global Environment Facility, is assessing how different farming and land management methods can not only boost crops but store carbon in vegetation and soils. The project, which is working in Kenya, Niger, Nigeria and China, aims to produce a standard so that investors in, say, London can invest in developing country farmers for the amount of carbon they take out of the atmosphere. Q: You are the fifth Executive Director of the United Nations Environment Programme(UNEP). What unique attributes set you apart and what can the world expect in terms of policy-making? A: I share, with my predecessors, a commitment to build UNEP— the first UN organisation headquartered in a developing country—into a global centre of excellence. Equally the vision
September 2010
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•DNA Diplomacy•News•Analysis that UNEP must not only identify environmental challenges but opportunities for a more sustainable development path. All this must be rooted in sound scientific understanding of environmental change but also the imperative to enhance livelihoods, in particular those of the poor. These issues have collectively become even more central now in terms of UNEP’s evolution than at any time in the past three and-ahalf decades. In terms of UNEP as an institution and as part of UNwide reforms, we are striving to streamline and improve the efficiency, relevance and focus of UNEP in order to demonstrate that notwithstanding the challenges of multilateralism, UNEP can deliver real results and meet the expectations of peoples and nations towards the UN. Clearly the the link between economy and environment has been a major focus during my tenure alongside re-engaging on one of UNEP’s principle raison d’êtres: integrating the environment within and across the UN system. Making sense of the multilateral environmental landscape is also a key theme of my term. Currently we have a wide-ranging series of environmental agreements— from the Convention on the International Trade in Endangered Species (CITES) to the Stockholm Convention on Persistent Organic Pollutants. Many have their own governing bodies and meetings which can be a real and inflationary challenge in terms of time and man and woman-power for many developing economies. It can also lead to duplication and fragmentation of efforts: so bringing sense to this diverse landscape of instruments, born in a different time where perhaps the world saw environmental challenges Joe Biden in boxes rather than
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July 2010
as an interconnected system, is another area of focus under the theme of International Environment Governance. Q: You were born in Brazil of German parents. Was this a major catalyst towards igniting your passion for environmental politics and development economics? A: Yes. I later moved back to Germany and then England to complete my studies. My career then took me to Asia and later Africa.. These experiences have certainly been formative and shaped my understanding of the poverty, development and environmental nexus. But also that no one country has the answer to the challenges we collectively face and that the UN has an essential role in underlining the overwhelming interests that can unite nations - rather than the smaller, narrower interests that all too often divide them.
September 2010
MY TAKE: Steiner addresses a UNEP gathering
Q: Do you feel that Africa has, or is doing enough in safeguarding the environment. More so, its leaders or is the weight solely placed on the developed world? A: Africa is doing far more than many may give this continent credit for. Africa has witnessed some of the biggest growth in protected areas and national parks networks which have been vital for biodiversity conservation. Many countries in Africa are pioneering environmental sustainability in parts of their economies from Uganda, which is among the world leaders in sustainable and organic agriculture, to environmental restoration projects such as Lake Faguibine in Mali. There is no country and no continent in the world that as yet has put sustainability at the centre of its economy - but it is happening everywhere, including in Africa. The challenge now is to embed this transformation and scale it up everywhere. My hope is that Africa will increasingly pioneer a new economy built on its natural wealth and ecological infrastructure as a sound basis for technological and industrial progress—the livelihoods of one billion Africans will depend on the success of such a path
ACHIM STEINER, 49, is the United Nations Under-Secretary General and fifth Executive Director of the United Nations Environment Programme (UNEP), a position he has held since June 2006. His love and oneness with this unique position shine through as he juggles the demanding duties entrusted to him. The German expert in environmental issues has an endless stream of achievements; yet all the while being warm, authentic and so normal. Such is the assertive mien of Ban Ki-Moon’s man in Nairobi. In an in-depth and exclusive interview with DEA, Steiner talks passionately about his pet passions; environmental politics and development economics, the role of UNEP as well in respect to the massive and global threat of climate change.
•DNA Diplomacy•News•Analysis
UN Upgrades Nairobi Office Capital upgraded to category stretching its presence and importance on the global stage, writes JANE MWANGI
D
ubbed “The Green City in the Sun”, Nairobi evokes considerable envy in many a metropolis and for the right reasons. It enjoys pride of place as one of the most prominent cities in Africa, rapidly expanding into a regional development hub. Politically and financially, it eschews opulent quarters and is home to many organisations. At the centre of its prominence on the global stage is the fact that it houses the UN Office in Africa, recently upgraded to Category B by the International Civil Service Commission (ICSC). That effectively positions Nairobi fourth in the UN hierarchy after New York, Geneva and Vienna respectively. The upshot is that Nairobi has been effectively upgraded from average to good status in terms of living conditions and security, which will see the region benefit in more ways than one as investors are expected
to flock in following the gleaming value addition. For all the bona fide arguments that set Nairobi apart, playing host to the UN remains the lock, stock and barrel. The United Nations Office at Nairobi (UNON) is one of the four major UN office sites where several different UN agencies have joint presence. The 140acre office complex serves as the global headquarters of the United Nations Environment Programme (UNEP) and UN-Habitat. HUB
Today, the UN Gigiri Complex rests as a compelling picture of the United Nations’ commitment to equitable social and economic development, and to breaking the horrible chains of paucity on the world’s poorest continent. Since its establishment in 1996, UNON continues to serve as an efficient and pro-active administrative hub creating a smoother enabling environment for the programmes and projects of some
The 140acre office complex serves as the global headquarters of the United Nations Environment Programme (UNEP) and UN-Habitat
30 UN agency country offices. It provides UNEP and UN-Habitat with comprehensive budget and financial management support, informed human resources and procurement services, and vital safety and security coordination. In addition, it provides an array of cultural and sporting facilities. Being Kenya’s single largest source of foreign exchange, a contribution estimated to be in excess of $400 million, annually the United Nations is, indeed, a fundamental nucleus in the country. This figure is fast burgeoning as the UN commits greater resources and workforce to mounting growth arenas in Somalia, Sudan and the greater East African region, an operation looked upon by neighboring African states as a vantage point towards fiscal advancement and better positioning on the world scene. UNON’s spacious foyers and halls show off a rich collection of plaques including the World Charter for Nature, 100th Nobel Peace
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Prize; not to mention the ‘index finger’ from Chile, the Pope’s gift in the library and exquisite paintings from China. Studded with office blocks, it also plays host to a recreational centre, cafeterias and a nature trail with a vast diversity of Kenya’s famous wildlife and indigenous trees. UNON is headed by a DirectorGeneral at Under-Secretary-General level, who is the senior-most UN official in Nairobi and reports directly to the Secretary-General, Ban Ki-Moon on all political, procedural and security-related matters. Dr Achim Steiner, the Director-General is the man at the zenith and acts as a direct connection between the UN, the Kenya Government and the wider diplomatic community in Nairobi. REPRESENTATIVES
This world renowned organisation is famous for its worldclass conference services which provide state-of-the-art facilities from remote transmission to video conferencing and meeting facilities in the leafy and magnificent surrounds of forest-fringed Gigiri. The division of conferences became a fully-fledged UN international conference provider under the Department of General Assembly Affairs and Conference Management in New York in 2000. It helps to straighten the progress of the key gatherings of UNEP, UN-Habitat and their Governing Councils, without overlooking the Committees of Permanent Representatives, ministerial commissions and global conventions. Proceedings of some of the world’s most significant environmental and urban planning forums, from the Vienna Convention on the Protection of the Ozone Layer to the World Urban Forum are concurrently interpreted and documented in the six official UN languages (Arabic, Chinese, Eng-
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lish, French, Russian and Spanish). UNON is also responsible for staff related services, security, buildings and grounds management and contracts and procurement. The Contracts & Procurement Section (UNON/PTSS) is responsible for all procurement of goods; services and works of UNEP, UNHabitat and UNON. Contractual services with institutions, corporate bodies including feasibility studies, expert services, consultancy, research, as well as travel, shipping, insurance and packing, maintenance services and other consulting services relevant to the work programme are retained wherever such know-how is not available in-house. Against the backdrop of all that pertains to the UN Africa office is the bigger United Nations whose inception dates back eons. The signing of the United Nations Charter by 51 countries in 1945 culminated in what we now know as the UN. It was founded by the victorious allied powers with the hope that it would act to thwart and intervene in conflicts between nations making would-be wars impossible or limited. Its six principal organs are the General Assembly, the Security Council, the Economic and Social Council, the Secretariat, the International Court of Justice and the United Nations Trusteeship Council (which is currently inactive). The five permanent members of the UN Security Council, each of which has veto power on any UN resolution, include the People’s Republic of China, France, Russia, the United Kingdom, and the United States. The global UN family is closely-knit, albeit oceans apart with the New York, Geneva and Vienna headquarters holding their own rather deftly. The UN at the heart of Europe happens to be UNOG (United Nations office at Geneva) piloted by
September 2010
For all the bona fide arguments that set Nairobi apart, playing
host to the UN remains the lock, stock and barrel
Mr Sergei Ordzhonikidze as Director-General. Housed at the Palais des Nations, the United Nations Office at Geneva (UNOG) serves as the representative office of the Secretary-General. A focal point for multilateral diplomacy, UNOG services more than 8,000 meetings every year, making it one of the busiest conference centres in the world. With more than 1,600 staff, it is the biggest duty station outside of United Nations headquarters in New York. The third United Nations Headquarters after New York and Geneva and before Nairobi is the United Nations Office at Vienna (UNOV) established in 1980. UNOV above all else manages and implements the United Nations programme on the peaceful uses of outer space for the organizations located at the Vienna International Centre. Mr. Antonio Maria Costa an Italian is the Director-General of UNOV as well as being the Executive Director of UNODC (United Nations Office on Drugs and Crime). MANHATTAN
STATS &FACTS The signing of the United Nations Charter by 51 countries
in 1945 culminated in what we now know to be the UN
The headquarters of the UN in New York is an architectural eye candy - after all it was developed by an international team of architects. The main building, the Secretariat, was one of the city’s first towers erected in international style. In 1946, the United Nations were looking for a location for their new headquarters in New York. The original arrangement was to use the grounds of the 1939 World Fair in Flushing Meadow Park in Queens. However the X-City project on Manhattan’s eastern border failed to materialise, prompting John D Rockefeller Jr. to purchase the 18 acre plot which he later donated to United Nations. The whole area was then converted into international territory and officially does not belong to the United States
•DNA Diplomacy•News•Analysis
SPORTS & HEALTH
Fight Against HIV/AIDS Faces Cash Crunch Over the course of a 90-minute football match, nearly 80 babies become newly infected with HIV/AIDS, reports RITA NJOROGE
M
other-to-child infections contribute significantly to the spread of HIV/ AIDS and compromise future generations, according to African Synergy, an initiative of Africa’s First Ladies on the pandemic. Each year, an estimated 430, 000 babies are born with HIV globally, the large majority in Africa. Over the course of a 90-minute football match, nearly 80 babies become newly infected
with HIV and in many parts of Africa AIDS-related illness is the leading cause of death among infants and young children. Football remains the world’s most popular sport and its is why a new global initiative by UNAIDS and FIFA aims to use football to stop the spread of HIV/AIDS through mother to child infections. The leading lights of the campaign include UNAIDS Executive Director Michel Sidibé, Goodwill Ambassador and producer of the
FIFA 2010 World Cup opening ceremony, Lebo M, UNAIDS National Goodwill Ambassador, Jimmie Earl Perry, and Kirsten Nematandani, President of the South African Football Association . Theirs is called “the red campaign” to use the power and outreach of football to unite the world around a common cause— preventing the transmission of HIV from mother to child. It was launched in South Africa to ensure an HIV-free generation by 2014. Through the campaign— backed by international football stars and UNAIDS Goodwill Ambassadors Michael Ballack of Germany and Emmanuel Adebayo of Togo - 19 captains have signed on. “By the next Football World Cup we can virtually eliminate HIV transmission to babies,” said Sidibé who attended the launch in South Africa. “Let us give AIDS the red card permanently.” An estimated 33.4 million people are living with HIV worldwide. Since 2001, there has been a 17 per cent reduction in new infections globally. However, for every two people who access anti-retroviral (ARV) treatment, five more become newly infected. As it stands now, international donor funding for anti-retroviral treatment in developing countries is proving to be erratic and unsecured, in the long term, owing to the current global ‘credit crunch’ and changing political fortunes in western donor countries such as the United States . In Uganda, the Government’s effort to prevent mother-to-child transmission is not yielding much success because of inadequate access to treatment, according to a study conducted last year by the Coalition for Health Promotion and Social Development. Out of an estimated 1.2 million Ugandan women who become
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pregnant annually, about 78,000 are HIV positive. This translates to about 27,000 HIV infections among newborns, at the rate of 75 infections per day. Although all pregnant women going for antenatal care for the first time should access counseling and testing, only about half of the health facilities offer such services, according to the report. And 20 per cent of pregnant women who test positive do not receive any ARV prophylaxis during pregnancy, the report says, adding that over half of the babies born to HIV positive mothers do not get ARVs. UGANDA
Dr Godfrey Esiru of the Ministry of Health in Uganda says the government plans to acquire a loan, instead of depending on donors, to address the challenge of making the medicines available. The Uganda AIDS Commission in its March 2010 ‘UNGASS Country Progress Report’ on anti retroviral treatment in the country says that 200, 213 people are currently enrolled on anti- retroviral treatment which is about 51 per cent of those in need. However 100,000 new patients are added to those in need of ARV in Uganda each year, suggesting that the problem will only escalate. Uganda’s recent budget allocated about $30 million to the purchase of anti-retroviral and anti-malaria medication, and gave the Uganda AIDS Commission about $3 million, while $500,000 was earmarked for prevention programmes. Prevalence in Uganda is 6.4 per cent in adults and 0.7 per cent in children according to the Uganda AIDS Commission. Approximately 1.1 million people
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in Uganda are living with HIV. Sexual transmission continues to contribute 76 per cent of new infections while mother to child transmission contributes 22 per cent. An estimated 110,694 new infections occur countrywide of which 60,648 are women. In Tanzania, the 2009 National Aids Control Programme report indicates that 129 children are infected everyday through mother-to-child transmission, up from 118 daily infections during the previous year. While an HIVinfected adult stands a chance to prolong his/her life by up to 20 years-plus through the use of anti-retroviral drugs (ARVs), the same cannot be said of a child born with the virus. According to an HIV/Aids specialist at the Muhimbili National Hospital, of the 43,300 who were infected by their mothers in 2008, a total of 21,500 died before their second birthday, while few live to attain the age of five! This year, the US President’s Emergency Plan for Aids Relief (PEPFAR)-the biggest funder of Aids programmes in Tanzania has reduced its budget for purchase of ARVs in 2009 and 2010, and also introduced a freeze on its overall HIV/Aids budget in the rest of Africa. In Kenya, mother-to-child transmission has become a major area of concern and action, where at least 50,000-60,000 infants become infected each year due to mother-to-child or vertical transmission. Kenya’s national budget sees a near doubling of past allocations for HIV treatment, earmarking Ksh. 900 million (US$ 11.25 million) for antiretroviral treatment. Earlier this year Sidibé jointly launched the country’s National AIDS Strategic Plan (2010- 2013)
September 2010
with the Prime Minister, Mr Raila Odinga. Mr Sidibé and the Kenyan Government then signed a Memorandum of Understanding committing the two parties to joint actions in several key areas including sustainable financing to support the national HIV response. In addition, a high-level steering committee has been established by the government to explore sustainable financing. A concept paper on alternative domestic financing scenarios has been developed detailing critical building blocks required to be put in place. The culmination of these efforts will be the development of a cabinet paper which will substantially reduce the country’s dependence on external financing for HIV programmes. BURUNDI
STATS &FACTS Prevalence in Uganda is 6.4
per cent in adults and 0.7 per cent in children according to the Uganda AIDS Commission
The National AIDS Control Council of Burundi said that in 2008, the government experienced an $11 million shortfall in the $28 million budget needed to address HIV/AIDS. In addition, there was an $83 million shortage in funding needed to fulfill the nations AIDS strategic plan from 2007 to 2011. According to Jean Rirangira, Interim Executive Secretary of NACC, the Global Fund To Fight AIDS, Tuberculosis and Malaria’s Technical Review Panel has recommended that the government’s request for a five-year, $150 million grant to fight HIV/AIDS be approved. In Rwanda, 27,000 children are HIV positive, 90% of the children living with HIV contracted the virus during pregnancy, childbirth or breastfeeding. Almost all of these cases could have been prevented if the mother had access to proper medical treatment
•DNA Diplomacy•News•Analysis
ECONOMIC DIPLOMACY
Driving Uganda’s Interests in South East Asia DEA’S BOB WEKESA spoke to NIMISHA JAYANT MADHAVANI,
Uganda’s Ambassador to India and much of South East Asia, on the sidelines of the AU conference in Kampala in July and learned that her country’s diplomatic strategy in the region hinges on commercial interests
D
iplomat East Africa: Share with us the role of the Uganda mission in South East Asia? Nimisha J Madhavani: The Uganda mission in South East Asia is basically a representation of Uganda and to some extent the East African community. The mission is based in New Delhi, India, but undertakes all matters of diplomatic representation with Malaysia, Singapore, Sri Lanka, Thailand, Maldives, Indonesia and Myanmar (former Vietnam). However, beyond the roll of the mill issues such as provision of consular services and being the official representative of the Ugandan government in this expansive region, we have been increasingly focusing on economic diplomacy in this region. Trade and investments are indeed quite critical to our relations with South East Asia. Top on our agenda is to get investors
ALL SMILES: Amb Madhavani reacts to a presentation at the AU Summit
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from South East Asia to come and invest in all sectors of the Ugandan economy and the Eastern Africa region. Q: With your diplomacy tilted towards matters economy, what are the opportunities for trade and investments between Uganda and South East Asia? A: Opportunities are many and cut across literally all sectors. I can mention infrastructure development and tourism as the two sectors where South East Asians have shown great interest in investing. Most South East Asian businesses are greatly interested in Africa because the continent is still virgin territory in more respects than one in addition to a good investment environment. In Uganda, for instance, an investor is assured of a 30 per cent return on his or her investment which is not possible in other parts of the world. Generally, our liberal economic envi-
•DNA Diplomacy•News•Analysis
ronment is a great opportunity for businesses in Asia looking to grow through foreign investments. Q: Has Uganda really shed its dark visage of a country prone to instability so as to attract investments from your economic diplomacy agenda? A: Uganda is, as Winston Churchill rightly put it, the pearl of Africa. After many years of turmoil, the uninterrupted period of peace and stability under President Yoweri Museveni are beginning to bear fruit. Uganda’s true colours are coming out and the South East Asians are noticing. Our cooperation is founded on the need for a stable Uganda where Asian businesses can invest without fear of losing their investments in war or violent situations. Commercial diplomacy must be integrated with security because for investments to go to any part of the world, one needs to have physical and economic security. An important thing to consider is that Uganda, like many other African countries, is already beyond the negative effects of the global financial crisis. The fact that we have already moved on in this respect is a boon for investors from South East Asia. Q: Investing in diplomatic endeavours in a region as huge and diverse as South East Asia is quite economically draining. Is this really worthwhile for Uganda? A: Oh yes, without a shadow of doubt. The Tiger economies of Asia have to work with the Lion and Lioness economies of Africa. The point is that we should not re-invent the wheel but seek to learn and domesticate here what has succeeded elsewhere. This way we can fast track economic take-off and avoid the mistakes that were made by our prede-
cessors in both regions. India and parts of the South East Asia have historical relations and other similarities with Uganda such as sharing the English language, the colonial experience and membership of the Commonwealth. Labour from the Indian sub-continent was for instance instrumental in the building of the railway. The peoples have a common heritage in more ways than one. It is only natural that we should forge closer ties. Africa is basically an agrarian society and one needs energy, water and all the things that enable agricultural production. India and other parts of Asia have experience in these areas and we can learn from them. This is an important driver of Uganda’s diplomacy on the Asian continent. Q: You are passionate about the meeting points of diplomacy, the private sector, governments and supra national bodies, such as AU. What is the significance of the launch of the private sector wing of the AU? A: I am happy that the Africa Union Private Sector Forum is now part of the AU as a veritable meeting of the marketplace and governments. This is perhaps the best example of public private partnership on a continental scale. This was also bound to happen, given that regional blocs have already factored the private sector in their planning and architecture. The involvement of the private sector in AU, EAC and in individual government’s plans is important because as businesses, private sector players are the drivers of negotiations and have a stake in the policies, often pushing for strategies that enhance economic returns. This new approach is equivalent to the integration of the public mind with the private mind, where actual
experience complements bureaucracy. Q: So how do you go about advancing this economic diplomacy? A: We employ various approaches key among them being trade and investments delegations and fairs. For instance, Uganda was very actively involved in the recent meeting of Indo-Africa Business Forum in New Delhi, the first of its kind in many years. Underpinning the importance of such avenues for economic diplomacy, we often invite senior officials of Government to be present, for instance our Minister for Agriculture and Fisheries Ms Hope Mwesigye was in attendance at the just concluded Indo-Africa Business Forum. We plan even larger events to attract more investors into Uganda. Instead of these promotional events happening outside the country, I believe we are going towards launching big business forums in Uganda where high ranking officials will be in attendance. South East Asians have great potential as investors in virtually all sectors and it is up to us to show them the said opportunities. For instance, the civil aviation industry in Uganda is beckoning for investors who can set up a major airline and convert the country into an intra-African airlines’ network and hub. We also have a lot to benefit from South Asia in terms of the region’s pioneering and global leadership in IT
BIO DATA Scion of East Africa’s pioneering industrialist Jayant Madhavani, she was first secretary in Uganda’s mission in Washington from 1993, rising to deputy ambassador until 2008. Educated in England for high school and the USA’s Brynmwr College in Pennsylvania for university.
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UNDER SIEGE
UN in Extinction Alert For Animals and Plants “Many species, one planet, one future ” is adopted as rallying call for new global biodiversity approach to stem the tide By PATRICK WACHIRA
“I
appeal to everyone – from Kigali to Canberra, from Kuala Lumpur to Quito – to help us sound the alarm. Get involved, speak out. Learn and teach others. Show leadership and help clean up. Reconnect with nature, our life force. Together, we can develop a new vision for biodiversity,” says UN Secretary General Ban Ki-Moon. It’s is now official. Animal and plant species are becoming extinct at the fastest rate ever recorded, putting biodiversity into virtual peril. And Ki-Moon says as a result of human activities that pollute and deplete water resources, degrading habitats and a changed global climate, thousands of species, from frogs to gorillas, from huge plants to tiny insects, are in jeopardy. He expressed the urgent need to stop what he termed as mass extinction and raise awareness about the vital importance of the millions of species that inhabit the planet’s soils, forests, oceans, coral reefs and mountains. “Our health, well-being and sustainable future depend on this intricate web of ecosystem and life”, said he. Ki-Moon underscored the theme of this year’s World Environment Day, “Many Species, One Planet, One Future”, saying it echoed the call of the International Year of Biodiversity to halt the pro-
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thousand hills” is upbeat in its bid to reforest, adopt renewable energies, practise sustainable agriculture and develop a green vision for the future.
cess. For instance, a third of all mangrove forests in the world have been lost since 1980, according to studies. The global host of the 2010 World Environment Day, celebrated in June, was Rwanda, which is quickly earning a reputation as a green pioneer. Hosting some 52 threatened species, including the rare mountain gorilla, Rwanda has blazed the trail on environmental sustainability and how this can be enmeshed into the fabric of a country’s economic growth. Despite myriad challenges ranging from poverty and widespread land degradation, the “land of a
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COMMISSION The Director General of the Rwanda Environment Management Authority, Rose Mukankomeje, says UNDP supports the government in its bid to ensure that “we manage the environment sustainably and fight poverty at the same time”. That is done through a set mechanism in which policy-makers see to it that such management is mainstreamed into economic development and a poverty reduction strategy. The issues that complicate continental endeavours to promote and sustain life are varied, and range from diseases to poverty and underdevelopment, to human rights abuses and armed conflicts. Top on the list of diseases are malaria and HIV/AIDS, both of which have wreaked havoc especially in sub-Saharan Africa where the number of hungry and those who cannot access anti-retroviral drugs (ARVs) are inordinately high, despite achievements in recent years. It was in the light of such issues that a commission was launched in
•GREEN AGENDA Planet Earth
June to spearhead the development of responses to problems arising from HIV/AIDS. It is charged with developing evidence-informed recommendations for effective HIV/AIDS responses which respect the human rights of people living with the virus and those most vulnerable to it. The Commission will focus on some of the most challenging legal issues in the context of HIV, including the criminalisation of HIV/AIDS transmission, and of behaviours and practices such as drug use, sex work, and same-sex sexual relations. The Commission, comprised of eminent leaders from public life around the globe, is expected to meet three times between October 2010 and December 2011. UNDP A Technical Advisory Group to the Commissioners has been established and comprises leading experts on HIV/AIDS, public health, human rights, and the law. It will advise on how to generate and build consensus around the evidence base. The Technical Advisory Group is co-chaired by Hon. Michael Kirby (Australia) and Mr Allehone Mulugeta Abebe of Ethiopia. Regional hearings in Africa, Asia, the Caribbean, and Eastern Europe will ensure that the Commission hears from affected communities and policy-makers. UNDP administrator Helen Clark says: “Our world has lived with HIV/AIDS for several decades now. To combat it more effectively, we will have to target our interventions and make wise use of limited resources. Preventing and controlling HIV/AIDS is in the interests of us all. It is a disease which knows no geographical boundaries, nor those of class or gender, or ethnicity or sexual orientation. To halt and
reverse its spread, we need rational responses which shrug off the yoke of prejudice and stigma.” UNDP says that while Africa remains the developing region with the highest extreme poverty rate, poverty rates on the continent have dropped rapidly since the late 1990s, at least until 2008, when the global food and economic crises hit the region. During that that decade Africa, having experienced several years of economic and social stagnation, made important social and economic gains. According to the 2009 UN Millennium Development Goals (MDGs) report, in 1990, the baseline year for the MDGs, 57 per cent of the population of Africa was living in extreme poverty, earning less than $1.25 a day in purchasing power parities and 2005 prices. By 2005, the poverty rate had dropped to 51 per cent. Projections suggest that the extreme poverty rate in Africa dropped to about 46 per cent in 2008. In spite of these developments, major challenges remain. Projections also suggest that there has been little or no progress in reducing the poverty rate in Africa throughout 2009. There has been little advancement in improving maternal mortality. Maternal deaths (per 100,000 live births) stood at 920 in 1990, dropping only slightly to 900 in 2005. On hunger, progress had been slow, with a slight decrease in the proportion of undernourished from 32 percent of the population in 1990-92 to 29 per cent in 2008. Achieving environmental targets will also continue to remain a challenge. Deforestation, for instance, continues unabated with a forest loss in 2000-2005, equivalent to 4.1 per cent.
African states will also face a strenuous task in providing access to safe drinking water and sanitation. Sub-Saharan Africa may be the lowest emitter of carbon dioxide, but stands to be the region most affected by climate change. To address these and other problems, UNDP has been working on 10 countries cases to develop a set of credible plans to scale up development assistance in Africa. These plans have become known as ‘Gleneagles Scenarios’ because they demonstrate in practical terms how the commitment the G8 made in 2005 to double aid to Africa could be implemented at the country level.
STATS &FACTS According to the 2009 UN Millennium Development Goals (MDGs) report, in 1990, the baseline year for the
MDGs, 57 per cent of the population of Africa was living in extreme poverty
ENVIRONMENT UNDP’s assistance to the Africa region includes support in planning poverty reduction strategies and budgets around the MDGs, monitoring and reporting on progress toward achievement of the MDGs and help in building the capacities of African countries to scale up implementation of the goals. For instance, in responding to Botswana’s urgent call to introduce alternative fuels and reduce carbon emissions, UNDP and the Global Environment Facility (GEF) have partnered with the government and local communities to bring an eco-friendly and creative solution to a problem that causes damage to both the environment and health through the introduction of solar power. The initiative is jointly funded by the Government and GEF and implemented by UNDP. Over the past six months, the programme has been steadily rolling out solar home systems, rechargeable lanterns, community solar recharge stations and wood-saving cooking appliances
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UNEP: Tunza Programme
Painting the Environment Young ambassadors of the environment recognised for capturing on canvas the effects of climate change By DEA REPORTER
E
very year since 1991 the United Nations Environment Programme (UNEP) together with the Japanbased Foundation for Global Peace and Environment (FGPE), Bayer and Nikon has been organising a children’s painting competition. In that time it has received well over 3 million entries from children in more than 100 countries. The theme of this year’s competition was Biodiversity: Connecting with Nature and the young artists – all between 6 and 14 years old showcased an exemplary collection of winning paintings. 14-year old Coco Tin Chi Ting from Hong Kong, China was announced the global winner of the 19th UNEP International Children’s Painting Competition, with an image warning about pollution and its effect on animals. As the overall winner, she receives US$ 2,000 in prize money and an all-expenses-paid trip to the Tunza International Children’s Conference in Nagoya, Japan from October 20-26 where she will formally receive her award. The second global winner was 11-year-old Katherine Liu from the USA, who received US$ 1,000 along with six other regional winners. UNEP
Each UNEP Regional Office that has its presence in Bahrain, Bangkok, Geneva, Panama City, Washington DC, and Nairobi chose their own regional winners and submitted 1,629
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ing the roles the young artists have played by being ambassadors of the environment. “The paintings are extraordinary, brave and profound”, Achim observed. The visit by the Chinese delegation, which also comprised teachers and parents, he said, has become a highlight of UNEP. “Maybe amongst you is the future Minister for Environment or UNEP executive director”. FLOODS
paintings to the final selection stage of the competition. This is under an elaborate initiative dubbed the ‘Tunza programme’. UNEP’s Tunza programme is a venture aimed at increasing young people’s involvement in environmental issues through activities, workshops and conferences. The UNEP headquarters in Nairobi held an award ceremony during which young Chinese artists were honored on August 9. UNEP Executive Director, Dr. Achim Steiner and Luo Hong of the Luo Hong foundation graced the event. Some 20 young and promising artists were identified as winners from China and awarded. They also got a chance to visit Lake Nakuru and the Maasai Mara Game Reserve. Speaking during the event Achim said, “We support this initiative by Luo Hong and his foundation as it builds awareness on the importance of conserving our environment”. The event was aimed at celebrat-
AESTHETIC: One of the winning artworks
14-year old
Coco Tin Chi Ting from Hong Kong, China was announced the global winner of the 19th UNEP International Children’s Painting Competition
China, currently suffering the horrid effects of flooding, was lauded as being heavily endowed with promise. As Achim went on to say, “Nature can sometimes be cruel especially now in your own country that is experiencing its vagaries. The response to the floods and landslides for many people is to blame and accuse it of misbehaving but as humans we have to accept and understand the biological laws of nature”. UNEP, he added, was one of the expressions of all the people of the world in protecting the environment. “That is the role we play here in Nairobi and we would not have succeeded in our work without allies. We need to believe in a world that is less destructible in the decades to come”. On his part, the UNEP climate hero Luo Hong said, “In China more and more children are participating in this competition and it is receiving awareness from the society”. The theme of next year’s painting competition will be ‘Life in the Forests’ and will coincide with UN’s International Year of Forests
•GREEN AGENDA Planet Earth
LAND IS LIFE
UN Launches Decade for Desertification About 40 per cent of the world’s population or 2.1 billion people live in the world s deserts and drylands, 90 per cent of them in developing countries, reports JANE MWANGI
T
he UN launched the Decade for Deserts and the Fight against Desertification (2010-2020) on August 16 largely to steer action towards protection and management of the world’s drylands, now posing a massive threat to the environment. The Decade’s message is simple: Land is life. It is also focused on sensitising the world on the threat of desertification and ways of alleviating it. “As we begin the Decade on Deserts and the Fight against Desertification, let us pledge to intensify our efforts to nurture the land we need for achieving the Millennium Development Goals and guaranteeing human well-being,” said UN Secretary General Ban Ki-Moon. He made the statement at the launch in Fortaleza, Brazil during the Second International Conference whose theme is Climate, Sustainability and Development in Semi-arid Regions. The move comes against the backdrop of sobering statistics indicating that on a global scale, desertification threatens the livelihoods of more than 1 billion people in some 100 countries. The regional launch for Africa was held in Nairobi, at the headquarters of the United Nations Environment Programme (UNEP) and in partnership with the United Nations Development Programme (UNDP).
Notably, other regional launches are scheduled to take place in New York, in September, for the North American Region, in the Republic of Korea in October, for the Asian Region, and in November for the European region. Speaking during the Nairobi launch, UNEP Deputy Executive Director Angela Cropper said that many of the activities undertaken involve assessing the status of drylands and interpreting those in terms of resource management. She further added that countries especially in Africa have to change the pathways to economic development by greening economies. This can only be done through recognising that dry lands form an integral part of the ecosystem. DESERTS
UNDP Resident Representative Aenas Chuma stressed that the agency recognises that there is a real challenge to ensure that policy and legislation favour people in the drylands. UNDP, he said, has developed an Integrated Drylands Development Programme (IDDP) that is aimed at helping communities benefit from improved local governance, management and natural resources. IDDP is being implemented in 10 Sub-Saharan and 8 Arab countries to ensure sustainable environmental management and poverty reduction. It is underway in Tanzania, Uganda,
MY POINT: Angela Cropper expresses herself during the event
Ethiopia, Mozambique, Mali and Niger, Tunisia, Morocco, Lebanon and Yemen. On the other hand, the National Environmental Management Agency (NEMA) Director General, Mr Ayub Macharia voiced his fears that Kenya’s semi-deserts are gradually turning into deserts. “The Ministry of Environment set up a task force for catchment conservation and to investigate the scale of desertification in the country to ascertain the levels. In tandem with this, NEMA has launched a campaign to plant 7 billion trees across the country,” he said. ACTION
The genesis of this plan of action began in 2007 when member states of the UN adopted a resolution to dedicate the next decade to combat desertification and improve the protection and management of the world’s drylands. The intended result is to improve livelihoods of affected populations and conditions of affected ecosystems as well as mobilizing resources for implementation through partnerships. Collective action towards sustainability is key towards combating the effects of severe droughts and flooding. The vision for the Decade, therefore, lies in forging a global partnership to reverse and prevent desertification and land degradation in order to support poverty reduction and environmental sustainability
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•PICTORIAL Lights•Camera•Action
Pakistani, India National Day 1. LADIES AND GENTLEMEN: Pakistani High Commissioner to Kenya Masroor Junejo adressing the gathering as Dr Manzoor Chaudhry looks on 2. IN GOOD VOICE: The Pakistan boys Scouts team singing the national anthem. 3. INVITED: A section of the guests 4. CEREMONIAL: Srikant Kesnur with Deputy High Commissioner to India, Tanmay Lall 5. SPEAKING: Sibabrata Tripathi, Indian High Commissioner to Kenya addressing the gathering
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September 2010
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•PICTORIAL lights•camera•action
Kenya Constitution Party Hosted by the PM 1. SAY CHEESE: Sigei Sisters Alison Sigei, Lynne Sigei, Mama Ida Odinga, Chizi Ambala, Florence Akinyi and June Sigei 2. CONSULTING: Attorney General Amos Wako Deputy PM Uhuru Kenyatta and PM Raila Odinga. 3. MY POINT: Cecily Mbarire with Foreign Affairs Minister Moses Wetangula. 4. CHEERS: Assistant minister Oburu Odinga with National Cohesion and Integration Commission Vice-chair Mary Onyango 5. SMILE: Mama Ida Odinga Winnie Odinga and Connie Sigei 6. FEEL AT HOME: Prime Minister Raila Odinga adresses guests at his Karen residence during the Yes Victory party. 7. HEALTHY: Beth Mugo, the Minister for Public Health and Sanitation 8. TOGETHER: Florence Akinyi, Finance Minister Uhuru Kenyatta, Fidel Odinga and Millicent Okatch.
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•ECONOMY Investment•Technology•Prosperity
PROSPERITY
Why Africa Must Grow at 7 Per Cent Per Year DEA’s Dar-es-Salaam-based correspondent ORTON KIISHWEKO interviewed Mr CHIMERE DIOP, the Director, Projects, Monitoring & Evaluation at the Investment Climate Facility for Africa (ICF). He talks about the role of ICF as the only pan-African organisation explicitly and exclusively focused on improving the continent’s investment profile. Excerpts:
D
EA: What does ICF‘s support of a new project to modernise customs administration in the port of Dares-Salaam mean to the private sector and the investment environment in Tanzania? CHIMERE DIOP: The ICF-funded project to modernise customs administration in the port of Dares-Salaam will introduce integrated custom administration software to streamline procedures in the port, a key business hub for the region, and the private sector constitutes the main operator. The new project has a clear objective to simplify procedures by implementing a new IT system, significantly reducing the time it takes to clear goods. The benefits from the project include: Database consolidation (from eight to two); Harmonisation of TRA and TBS processes to ensure smooth cargo clearance; TRA being the single entity responsible for the customs release of goods (January 2011); Fast track system for compliant custom brokers and truck owners with a target time of 10 days and eight procedures; and, Bank transfers to be reduced from seven to a maximum of two days.
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INVESTMENT PROFILE:
Diop during the interview in Dar-es-Salaam Q: There is an argument for poverty reduction as opposed to mere statistics of economic growth experienced in the region today. What role can ICF play along these lines where impacts of investments are being called to have a trickle down effect to the local masses? A: If Africa is to reach the core Millennium Development Goal of halving the number of people living on less than $1 a day by 2015, it must achieve a sustained economic growth rate of seven per cent each year. A favourable investment climate is vital for this level of economic growth, which will in turn lead to job creation, poverty alleviation and greater prosperity. Q: What is ICF’s role in highlighting the importance of investment climates in the region? A: ICF is the only pan-African organisation explicitly and
September 2010
exclusively focused on improving Africa’s investment climate. Each ICF project is designed to deliver high impact, sustainable improvements to the respective country or region’s business environment by addressing real business needs. A better investment climate is essential for encouraging domestic and foreign investment. It creates greater confidence in a country’s institutions such as the judiciary, tax and business registration systems. Adequate and reliable infrastructures are fundamental for ensuring greater productivity and competitiveness. Q: What role do you see the recently effected East Africa Common Market Protocol playing in the trend of investments to the region? A: The protocol will have a huge impact on the region’s investment climate. From a Tanzanian perspective, it grants producers free access to a huge and growing market in which to do business. It also provides benefits in terms of a greater number of products to import. Being part of a common market means that you are in the same territory and share the same rules and regulations, which means you can make better forecasts in production and sales. A common market also creates greater levels of competition, which ultimately reduces prices for
•ECONOMY Investment•Technology•Prosperity
the end user, benefiting the poorest people in the society. Q: In the four areas of business registration and licensing, anti-counterfeiting and piracy, commercial justice, taxation and customs, where is ICF putting immediate significant focus and why? A: ICF support to these areas is: (1) Property rights and contract enforcement (36.6 per cent); (2) Customs and tax administration (28.9 per cent); (3) Business registration and licensing (18.2 per cent); (4) Infrastructure facilitation (14.8 per cent). However, ICF doesn’t just focus on these particulars areas. In fact, ICF has eight priority areas: of which the other four include labour markets, competition, financial markets and corruption and crime. ICF responds to the demands expressed by applicants. Therefore the fact that 99 per cent of our support is concentrated with these four areas means that the governments and private sector organisations that have approached us for support face business barriers in these areas. Q: In how many countries do you have projects and what are the recent tangible improvements to business environments you can point out at as a result of those projects? A: ICF supports 36 projects in 13 countries across sub-Saharan Africa. ICF is also supporting the East African Community (EAC) - with projects in anti-counterfeiting and the harmonisation of commercial laws. In total, ICF’s projects provide benefits to 31 African countries. Q: Infrastructural development is important in attracting investments, yet all countries in
the region are finding it a huge challenge. How do you think the EAC region can address this? A: Well, I come from West Africa where we have the West African Economic and Monetary Union (WAEMU) comprised of eight French-speaking countries. I was the Co-Leader of the team that developed the WAEMU’s Regional Economic Programme - the main focus of which was infrastructure development within the sub-region. The programme was designed to provide all types of infrastructure and link the countries with other ECOWAS markets. Building infrastructure requires a huge amount of money and works best across large geographies where multiple countries benefit. Most ICF donors and private sector are keen to support regional programmes rather than simply providing individual support to one country. We talked about the EAC common market earlier. How can you make the market place dynamic when goods and even people have crossing borders difficulties or if services cannot be delivered from one country to another? The cable sea of the East African coast is one example of cooperation in the area of infrastructure. That is best practice. Q: Do you view ‘red taping’ as still being a challenge to attracting investments to the region? What is EAC’s challenge in the desire to play a significant role in the global economy? A: Yes of course. Red tape is always a challenge when it comes to attracting investment. But the situation differs from one country to another. Rwanda for example, is doing great work to remove red tape. I would urge EAC-member countries to continue their efforts
to fight red tape - especially now that they are all part of the same market. It takes a long time to change the mentality of those who propagate red tape. More often than not, this can be due to corruption. ICF is helping in this area. Automating procedures in the central administration systems helps. Q: With regard to the struggle to achieve further economic growth, is the region according investment the priority it deserves? A: I think so. When I listen to the leaders of the region, it is obvious that investment climate reform is a high priority for all of them. A healthy investment climate can be considered as a good when a market’s demand is higher than the offer. Therefore, its price is high and those who want it have to compete in improving it and make it attractive. The price is not just a monetary value: it is the environment in general, clear leadership, political stability, infrastructure, education, etc. You can measure a government’s commitment by the efforts made to reform. Q: Tanzania has in the last two years been ranked poorly in the ‘Doing Business Report’. What has the government done to turn this around? A: The Government of Tanzania is addressing its recent performance in the World Bank’s Doing Business Report by increasing its efforts to improve the country’s business environment. This latest project in partnership with ICF is the third project the government has implemented with support from ICF. The first ICFfunded project will strengthen and modernise the Judiciary by providing improved technology and training to ensure it can deliver justice promptly, efficiently and transparently
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•ECONOMY Investment•Technology•Prosperity
STREAMLINING COMMERCE
Port Delays, Poor Roads Hamper Regional Trade By JOHN NDIEMA
P
ort delays and poor infrastructure across East African countries remain the biggest challenge to trade expansion in the region. In fact, it is due to the poor state of roads that East Africa has failed to attract significant foreign investment in recent years. The ports of Dar-esSalaam and Mombasa, the critical entry and exit points for bulky goods have been dogged by delays in clearance of cargo because of what analysts term lack of modern technology. Critics say delays in off loading, clearing and border crossing, coupled with poor infrastructure of the Northern Corridor are reasons Dar is playing second fiddle to the port of Mombasa in Kenya. The Northern Corridor Mombasa to Kampala - is still seen as the most viable route to the sea by many traders, given its moderately developed rail and road network as opposed to the central corridor Dar-es-salaam to Kampala - which is longer with poor infrastructure. Statistics show that the Northern Corridor contributes almost 90 per cent of Uganda’s imports and exports, with only one per cent coming in through Dar. The Kenya Ports Authority says it has helped Mombasa to remain the regional hub and the gateway status to the East African region by undertaking huge investments to improve cargo handling efficiency. Container vessels turnaround
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time made a record improvement to three days in the third quarter of 2009, the best in the region, from five days recorded in the same period in 2008. The average container dwell time is now 6.4 days against 13.1 days in 2008, reflecting an improvement of 51.1 per cent. This is attributed to enhanced efficiency in port operations. Since 2001, KPA, which was recently ISO 9001-2008 certified, embarked on an automation programme, seen as pivotal in addressing congestion. RESOURCES
“In 2002, Enterprise Resource Planning System went live and since then, a lot has been achieved in information technology. In 2005, KPA contracted a Southern Korean firmTotal Soft Bank- which developed Kilindini waterfront operating system which has now automated all cargo handling operations,” KPA says. Business leaders say the Kenyan route is the shortest way to the Indian Ocean for both Eastern and Central Africa and turnaround time for a train from Kampala to Mombasa is four days as opposed to 19 days from Dar-es-salaam to Kampala. Cargo dwell time at Dar is about 13 days because of delays in cargo processing. Only last year, Kenya’s President Kibaki called on East African countries to invest more resources in development and maintenance of the region’s infrastructure in order to
September 2010
The longer the time we take
negotiating for projects the more expensive it becomes,”
facilitate trade. While the port of Mombasa is doing relatively better than Dar, EAC Secretary General Juma Mwapachu says there is need to fast track the planned expansion of berths and construction of the second container terminal. If implemented, the plan will see conversion of berths 11 to 14 into container handling berths to increase capacity. The construction of the second terminal by Japan will cost Sh46 billion and will increase the port’s container handling capacity from the current 600,000 to 2.5 million. “The challenge concerning road and rail network development has been the tendency to spend long periods in negotiating projects rather than implementing them. The longer the time we take negotiating for projects the more expensive it becomes,” Comesa Secretary General Sindiso Ngwenya says. Kenya and Uganda have been engaged in a tussle with Rift Valley Railways over a 25-year concession on the development of a reliable rail network between the port of Mombasa and Kampala. But in March, the region set out a12-point set of recommendations including the proposal for an EAC Railways Regulatory Authority to coordinate the sector. Tanzania’s minister for InfrastructureDevelopmentShukuru Kawambwa says the country was implementing a Transport Sector Investment Programme, which will target projects that facilitate regional integration. One of the multinational projects undertaken in cooperation with Rwanda and Burundi is the upgrading and construction of Dares-Salaam – Isaka – Kigali/Keza – Gitega – Musongati railway line
•INDUSTRY NEWS Products & Services
DESTINATION ANGOLA
Kenya Airways Commences Flights to Luanda
L
eading African airline Kenya Airways commenced the much awaited flights to Luanda in August, the Angolan capital city - giving regional and international travelers from all over the world, direct access to the oil-rich nation. Kenya Airways will operate the route on a code share agreement with Angolan Airlines (TAAG) twice a week every Tuesday and Friday. To celebrate the launch of the new destination, Kenya Airways has priced the inaugural flight at USD 50, a special fare incentive that has generated excitement in the aviation marketplace. As a developing country, Angola’s economy is being driven largely by its nascent oil and tourism industries and has been referred to as the Brazil of Africa? The commencement of flights by Kenya Airways to Angola also marks the milestone addition of the Kenya national carrier’s 50th destination globally and 41st in Africa, further expanding the airline’s route network which has been growing over the years as part of the
company’s strategic initiative to link up major African cities with the rest of the world. According Dr Titus Naikuni, the Group Managing Director and Chief Executive Officer, Angola is an important destination for the airline because of its rising economic importance as a trading partner for several African and European countries. JKIA
Naikuni added that Kenya Airways will use the new route to serve business and leisure travelers within Africa and from outside the continent desirous of shorter connection time to rest of Africa, the Middle East, Europe and the Far East through its hub at the JKIA in Nairobi. Apart from its economic potential, Naikuni noted that Angola had proved itself as one of Africa’s foremost promoters of Sport by successfully hosting the African Cup of Nations early this year. He reiterated that Kenya Airways would relentlessly pursue its growth objective this year by adding new routes to its network and improving it’s efficiency on existing ones. “We are doing this by adding new aeroplanes and establishing addi-
STATS &FACTS Kenya Airways has priced the inaugural flight at USD 50, a
special fare incentive that has generated excitement in the aviation marketplace
tional frequencies on the high traffic routes to ensure we offer more alternative flights to our customers. We expect that by the end of the year, we will have taken delivery of two longrange Embraer 190LRs to serve our regional routes”, he explained. Naikuni added that the airline was helping passengers with processing Visas to Angola in view of the fact that Kenya does not have an Angolan embassy. He expressed confidence that the two countries would set up missions to enhance diplomatic ties by establishing representation in their respective capitals to promote bilateral relations
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•WITH A LIGHT TOUCH Seriously Lighthearted
HUMOUR
Drama With Libyan Security in Uganda By BALOZI DIPLOMACIA
T
he Air UG Flight BA 256 from Nairobi to Entebbe was without incident save for a moment when the aeroplane was cruising over Lake Victoria. Keen to pick out Migingo Island from the sky, I kept my eyes fixated on the navy-coloured, rather ruffled waters of what my ancestors called Lake Sango. I was certain the first island I saw was Migingo and nudged my immediate neighbour with my left hand while pointing out ‘Migingo’ with the index finger of my right hand. “Whaat?” the shrill voice of the fellow Nairobi-Entebbe traveller startled me. I was jolted out of my reverie, jutting a wary eye in the direction of the fair lady whom I had apparently dug into with my hand in the name of alerting her about what President M7 has called a piece of rocks. Seeing her countenance clearly unamused, I mumbled an apology and quickly darted my eyes back to the window to observe this freshwater marvel in the heart of Africa. Hardly had my eyes made contact with the lake waters than I lurched back to the fair lady hanging onto her arm with mortal fear. For just at the moment my eyes made contact with
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the lake, the aeroplane swerved sharply at an angle as it headed for landing and for those familiar with the location of Entebbe Airport, this meant the aeroplane nosing into the waters. For that fraction of second, I thought the aeroplane had become faulty and we were crashing into the lake below. Goose pimples broke out all over my body and a thin sweat trickled out of my pores at this near death experience. Apparently the glamorous lady with whom I was sharing a seat figured out my fears and let out a hearty chuckle which strangely had the effect of calming me down. At the VIP lounge at Entebbe, we were met by dignitaries some of who happened to be fellow protocol officers from the foreign and alien affairs department. “Msaja Ssebo. How are you today? How are preparations for the Africa Union Summit going?” I greeted Besigye, my equivalent in Uganda with inquisitions. “I am too busy for your greetings and questions today. Just proceed on”, was the curt response from my friend. Just then, I saw a huge delegation of Libyans with flowing garments make their way into the airport building. Towering above the 100-plus men and
women was, unmistakably, Colonel Muammar al-Gaddafi. Tradition was quickly broken as an announcement was made on an amplifier announcing his arrival. “Ladies and gentlemen, we announce the eminent and imminent arrival of Colonel Muammar Gaddafi, the Guide to the first of September Great Revolution of the Socialist People’s Libyan Arab Jamahiriya. Kindly give way to the Brotherly Leader and Guide of the Revolution, the announcement went on and on extolling the virtues of the great leader. I quickly saw an opportunity to make my long sought acquaintance with a leader whose chutzpah I admire so much. As the delegation made its way into the foyer, I made a beeline for leader avoiding direct eye contact with his security detail. Just as I extended my hand to lock my palm with his, some inexplicable force lifted me high into the air as I was whisked away by his armed bodyguard. It was while I was being whisked away that I realised that the flowing garments the Libyan security men were wearing actually concealed deadly weapons. I was flung into a nondescript room and fell into a heap as the Libyans hovered over me, searching everywhere and everything. Fortunately, it appeared that there was another scuffle between Uganda security and the Libyans outside. I heard the Libyans mumble some agitated words in Arabic in quick succession and then flee the room. I dusted myself and left the room.
In the corridors I heard the head of the Uganda security saying the Libyans would not be allowed into the country with their guns. “Protocol only allows your security to have 2 AK 47 guns, a G3 riffle and 4 pistols no more. You are not coming for war to carry all these weapons, you are coming for the AU summit”, a tall dark, Amin-lookalike-soldier was saying. Apparently the ‘Great Guide’ had heard the conversation and budged in threatening to walk back to his official jet and return to his Bedouin roots. Much as I had already had a run in with the Libyan security, I was keen to help resolve the impasse between the Ugandans and the Libyans. This was no time to feign diplomatic sickness. After all, I reckoned, my diplomatic calling behoved me to resolve conflicts. I therefore summoned all my courage driven by my patriotism for Mashariki mwa Africa. “Please take your guns to your presidential jet”, I told the Libyans, while at the same time urging the Ugandans not to confiscate the Libyan arsenal of weaponry. For my trouble, I got a sharp blow of a slap from the Guide, a happening that so incensed the Ugandans that a new round of scuffles emerged. However in the long run, the Libyans had no choice but to go with my suggestion. Later, at the venue of the AU Summit, the Guide sent an emissary to seek me out for a cup of tea besides the flowerbeds of Victoria Hall at Munyonyo. I now have a standing invitation to visit him in that Benghazi land that flows with the riches of oil
Cameron Gets a 101 on Etiquette Prime Minister David Cameron has discovered a sure remedy for the ‘sticking his foot in his mouth syndrome,’ that has brought about many a cold sweat on his brow lately. Downing Street revealed that he has been having one-on-one sessions with the ‘cultured’ Prince Philip, the Duke of Edinburgh on how to talk about foreigners. This comes in the wake of out of favor remarks by HE the Prime Minister leveled against Pakistan and Iran. Perhaps as an assertion of power or just upbeat about his newly acquired ‘head of state status’, Cameron is on record referring to Iran as being ‘like mordor full of mosques and kebab shops’. And if you thought that was as uncouth as it
gets, Pakistan was also on the receiving end dubbed as a ‘nation of exploding shopkeepers’. He has displayed a loose mouth plus uncanny public displays as he was also photographed pulling at the corners of his eyes during a formal lunch with the prime minster of Japan. A Downing Street spokesman said: “Shortly after taking office, the Prime Minister was briefed on the four basic, untrustworthy foreign types Dagoes, golliwogs, slitty-eyed devils and what His Royal Highness called the ‘Olive-Skinned Fez Brigade’. Certainly, if a royal tutorial won’t do it for dear ‘Cam’ then perhaps the world needs to make room for his antics
Minister Beds Mswati Wife When you have 14 wives and you are that age when life begins, something is bound to give even if you have or can have everything money can buy or power command. Just ask King Mswati II of Swaziland. When overseas last month one of his young wives lavished royal favours on the King’s childhood friend and investment advisor who is also the kingdom’s Minister for Justice, in a hotel bed. Oops! Just as the world is trying to forget the unsettling spectre of South Africa’s President Jacob Zuma’s escapades, which have become legendary, attention is once again riveted down south. In case you have forgotten, Zuma when he not only slept with a woman who had confessed
to being HIV-positive and took a quick shower in the belief that that would shield him from possible infection. Before that drama died down, he was in the news again, having made the daughter of a friend pregnant. Yes, as he would say, you should not leave an aroused woman “just like that”. The last episode in this real life drama was when one of his wives, identified as Dube, was reportedly impregnated by one of Zuma’s bodyguards. She has since given birth and noone is talking of DNA tests, but we digress... Mswati has become the latest victim if this affliction of polygamous marriages. In Swaziland, the opposition remains banned since 1973 through a royal decree but some things such as lust or love or cuckoldry, cannot be banned
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•CULTURE
Reviews•Raves•Revues•Repasts
SMELL IT
Coffee is Lost Axis in East Africa’s Diplomacy By NGARI GITUKU
N
owhere in the array of myths and legends has it been disputed that, coffee, the world’s most popular beverage—whose, daily intake in the United States of America alone, tops 400 million cups—is aboriginal to eastern Africa. And by the way, don’t forget the population of the US is about 310 million and that outside Puerto Rico and Hawaii nowhere else is coffee grown in the whole of the United States of America. Ranked top five in global per capita coffee consumption index are Finland, Norway, Iceland, Denmark and Netherlands. The next set of five comprises Sweden, Switzerland, Belgium, Luxembourg and Aruba. Apparently, Africa is not a coffee consumer. Not even in East Africa, where the plant first grew, is coffee popularly drunk. All, however, is not lost, yet. That coffee is eastern Africa’s ‘heritage’ can mean a lot for the region with regard to diplomacy only if a little creativity was injected into our envoys’ approach to branding in the wider context of foreign relations. The fact that the global popularity of coffee, by far, precedes the knowledge of its place of origin is itself a worthy starting line for
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engagement between the people of the East African region and the rest of the world. The story of the origins of coffee is an interesting one. In fact, it sounds like stuff from an African folktale. Coffee got to be known as a beverage courtesy of a goat. A story is told of a goatherd, apparently known as Kaldi, who, back in the 9th Century in Ethiopia, noticed that his goat became excitable after eating red berries from some shrub. Curious, the goatherd took the goat’s cue and tasted the berries himself. After a while, he too, just like his animal experienced some unprecedented ‘uplifting’. Kaldi shared his marvel with a monk from a nearby monastery who happened to be passing by and as they say, the rest is now history. A significant part of coffee’s earlier history is riddled with riveting diplomatic overtures. The monk became the first coffee envoy ever. Because of him, coffee, by then considered “a divine gift brought by an angel from heaven to the faithful” quickly spread from monastery to monastery. This essentially Eurocentric account of coffee was captured by Antoine Faustus Nairon, a Rome-based professor of Eastern Languages way back in 1671.
Apparently, Africa is not a coffee consumer. Not
even in East Africa, where the plant first grew, is coffee popularly drunk
The first ever coffee shop opened in Venice in 1683. The most famous and oldest yet still standing coffee shop is Caffe Florian in Piazza San Marco which opened its doors in 1720. In subsequent years, coffee shops multiplied throughout Europe prompting the composition of “Coffee Cantata” ( *Kaffe-Kantate*) by the pre-eminent Lutheran composer Johann Sebastian Bach. In Japan, October 1 is officially “Coffee Day”. Across the globe, 65 countries grow coffee with Brazil alone producing 40 per cent of the world’s coffee. On the other hand, as far as coffee consumption is concerned China is a largely untapped market and perhaps the most promising in the foreseeable future. Coffee grown in the East African region is prized for its superiority and is usually used to blend other coffees from elsewhere in the world. Now add to that all the intriguing tales about coffee! With such a rich history, branding the eastern African region diplomatically around the coffee story would keep many partakers and would-be admirers alert. What a wasted resource for diplomacy and foreign relations!
•CULTURE Reviews•Raves•Revues•Repasts
September 2010
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•CULTURE Reviews•Raves•Revues•Repasts
ANTIQUES
Red Cross’ Museum of Hope Beckons
Geneva’s house of art captures 20th Century conflict history vividly and shares themes with the East Africa region By WANJOHI KABUKURU
O
pposite the Palais de Nations in Geneva is an imposing yet quaint building. Nestled atop a hill, it is rather nondescript and easy to overlook for more interesting sites. A second and keener look will reveal this to be the headquarters of the International Committee of the Red Cross and Red Crescent (ICRC). This world-renowned symbolic organisation, which signifies hope in times of war and calamity, is what begs a second look. Entrance is highly restricted, but not so the Musee International de la Croix et du Croissant Rouge, Geneve (French for Museum of the International Red Cross and Red Crescent), which is, incidentally, at the rear of the building. Whenever in Geneva for a visit, a well deserved rendezvous in your itinerary beckons in the form of the Musee. Being a lover of art and a historical buff, I seized the opportunity and made a beeline for it. After all, museums, libraries and archives are second homes to journalists. I was taken aback that the popular themes of environment, human rights and political gamesmanship, loved by journalists, strike a familiar chord with this museum, reputed to be one of the best in the world. Though in Geneva, it oozes East African issues such as human rights violations, fragile political structures and natural calamities.
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EXQUISITE: One of the fantastic collections
STATS &FACTS Whenever in Geneva for a visit, a well deserved rendezvous in your itinerary beckons in the form of the Musee
September 2010
The captive moments begin from the entrance: you use a trench from the UN side. As you enter the enclosed glass walls, you are “greeted” by stone figurines of prisoners of war, bound and blindfolded, with a reflection of yourself in their midst: a stark reminder of the horror that human rights violations can be. This marks the beginning of an unforgettable experience of the ugly face of war. My guide today is an auto-gizmo which takes me through the entire museum starting from the time the Red Cross was conceptualised by Swiss businessman Henry Dunant after he witnessed the gross
atrocities of war in Italy during the Battle of Solferino. Interactive technology makes the experience a near perfect travel in time. Video displays, slide shows and the audio-guide I am carrying take me through the entire episode of 20th Century conflict history. The story of how Dunant struggled for years to set up the Red Cross and also make the major powers sign a pact of rules to be observed during combat is remarkably well told. Indeed, at the heart of Geneva and the entire history of Switzerland, Dunant has a special place, other than the setting up of the Red Cross: he
•CULTURE Reviews•Raves•Revues•Repasts
LIFE SIZE: ELEGANT: The Museum
The Museum mimics human existence
bulding block in Geneva
contributed in making Switzerland, well known for its neutrality, especially with the signing of the first ever Geneva Convention of 1864, which set the rules for the conduct of war. Dunant’s busts and his selfless devotion to humanitarian assistance and human rights are Geneva’s pride and a common feature at the museum. It is positioned strikingly at the entrance of Geneva’s “old Town”, sculpted by Genevese artist Luc Jaggi. The records cards of the World War I bear a record seven million, with information on prisoners’ personal details and their histories so as to be able to trace them and reconnect them with their families. All these are part and parcel of Red Cross work, which involves the nerve-wrenching work of tracing relatives, comforting the wounded, and reaching out to the captured and lost in dire times. The museum is a repository recognised by UNESCO as an archive of the International Prisoners of War Register. Still, the sobering truth of humanity’s dark side are not over until one
reaches the Reconstructed Cell, a 3 by 2 metre room reported to have housed some 17 inmates at some point in time. Here, there are 34 footprints to help one conjure the disturbing images of incarceration and empathise with the work of humanitarian workers. The “Wall of Time”, which chronicles wars and natural disasters which have continued to plague and devastate mankind ever since the Red Cross came into being, is a sombre and sober reminder of the tasks that come with responsibility. As I complete my tour, I contemplate how intertwined the work of humanitarian assistance is with human rights. I also gather that the museum is soon to undergo renovations to become a “Museum of Hope” with three themes: “Defending human dignity”, “Reconstructing the family link” and “Refusing fatality”. At the ticket office, I am confronted by Fyodor Dostoevsky’s words “Everyone is responsible to everyone else for everything.” I agree: tolerance is vital
REFIT FOR REPOSE SITE FOR BAGANDA KINGS UNESCO Director General Irina Bokova has expressed relief at the news that the reconstruction of the tombs of Buganda kings at Kasubi is feasible, following its near destruction by fire. The tombs were inscribed on the UNESCO World Heritage list as a “masterpiece of human creativity bearing eloquent witness to the living cultural traditions of the Baganda people”. The site has been an important centre of religious activity for the Baganda. This month’s activities will feature the second edition of the world forum on culture, focusing on digital cultures and the opening of the General Assembly special event organized in collaboration with the UN. The events were held as the UN declared 2010 the International Year for the Rapprochement of Cultures. “The International Year for the Rapprochement of Culture is an important initiative. During the year, we will be celebrating cultural diversity showing how intercultural dialogue and understanding are essential for a more peaceful world. We will also be highlighting the crucial role of culture in development. Let us work together to make the year a resounding success”, said UN Secretary General Mr Ban Ki- Moon
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•HEALTH M Mind•Body•Soul B S
WORLD SUICIDE DAY
Stop Rush to Take Own Lives By MERCY NJUNGE
T
hree thousand people commit suicide everyday and about 1 million die by suicide every year. But, says the World Health Organisation (WHO), suicide is preventable and this is part of the message and activities to mark World Suicide Prevention Day on September 10. This year’s theme is “Many Places, Many Faces: Suicide prevention across the world.” Globally, activities will be driven by the International Association for Suicide Prevention (IASP) and World Health Organisation (WHO) as co-sponsors. World Suicide Prevention Day aims to raise awareness that suicide is preventable, improve education about suicide and decrease stigmatisation regarding suicide. On this day organisations, government agencies and individuals are given a chance to promote awareness about mental illness associated with suicide as well as suicide prevention. Organisations such as IASP and WHO play a key role in suicide prevention during this UN day set aside to focus on what is probably worst form of mental and psychological illness. This year, activities will include, the launch of new government initiative to prevent suicide, media programmes promoting suicide awareness and prevention, training courses about suicide and depression awareness, launches of publications about suicide and depression awareness. The main issue engaging minds on suicide is that while euthanasia has been legalised in some countries
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September 2010
in the West, it is still considered unethical in most African countries. Closely related to suicide - euthanasia, the active assistance in dying or mercy killing - is a practice of ending life in a manner that relieves pain and suffering. The only four countries in the world that openly and legally authorise active assistance in dying are: Oregon in the US which permits physician-assisted suicide only, Switzerland which permits physician and non-physician assisted suicide only, Belgium which permits euthanasia but does not define the method and the Netherlands which allows voluntary euthanasia and physician-assisted suicide. TERMINAL
It is only Switzerland that does not bar foreigners from seeking euthanasia services, a development that has attracted suicide seekers in what has been called suicide tourism. When this willingness to accept other nationals to go to Switzerland to die was published in Swiss newspapers, it attracted sick people from all over the world who needed hastened death. This in turn led to increased criticism of suicide tourism and forced the government to impose greater restrictions regarding the cases Swiss doctors can approve for suicide and virtually limiting these to people in the late stages of terminal illnesses and who feel their lives have become unbearable. Some of the issues that will be confronted on September 10 include the mystery and traditions surrounding suicide. In many African communities, suicide is a taboo and comes
with traditional practices now considered outdated. A body found hanging from a tree, for example, is whipped with a cane from a special tree and the body is verbally dressed down with accusations of cowardice. The tree where the suicide occurred is usually uprooted and set ablaze. Bodies of people who commit suicide are buried in the dead of night with no burial ceremonies. An even bigger challenge for those battling suicide is the rising incidence of suicide bombings, acts that are wired to Islamic beliefs of a radical nature. Whether this kind of suicide should be dealt with alongside the more conventional mentally inclined suicide is a question that remains to be tackled. In the recent past, suicide has been appreciated as a mental illness requiring medical attention and psychological-cum-psychiatric organisations such as Alcoholics Anonymous, Befrienders Worldwide, Amani Counselling Centre, Samaritans, and others have set up base in the eastern Africa region to medically treat suicidal cases. By far the most suicide-prone society is Japan where Seppuku or “stomach cutting” is considered an honourable way of ending ones’ life after failing in one or another area of life. In many oriental societies, suicide is not a matter for ordinary mortals alone as a number of high profile personalities including captains of industry, ministers and even former presidents have taken their lives as the ultimate decision to end their woes. Will September 10 change this?
•ODYSSEYS People & P P Places
WOWED CHINESE IN SHOCKING CHINA
From Beijing with a Tale Nineteen year-old Kenyan student JUDIE OMBUOR travelled to China to compete in a global Chinese language competition. Compete she did, but perhaps more interestingly, she was confronted by culture shock. She shares her experiences with DEA
A
fter a long haul flight from Nairobi lasting 12 hours with a stop over in Bangkok, Thailand, I stepped on the Chinese soil for the first time in my life at Guangzou, already late for my connecting flight to Beijing. And what a hitch awaited me! Unsure of what to do in a land where everybody spoke a language I could hardly comprehend (I had learnt Chinese for barely five months at Confucius Institute, University of Nairobi) I felt like the earth would, open up and swallow me at any moment. For the first time in my life, I felt so alone and desolate. Worse still, everyone around was staring at me as though I was an extra terrestrial of sorts. Gone was all that excitement about visiting China. When I asked in my desolation to make a call to my sponsors in Beijing, the request was bluntly turned down. How I wished I were in Kenya where I could explain my predicament without complications. Besides, everything seemed strange. It was hot, yet the fog hung in the air, something I had not witnessed before. Visibility was terribly poor to the extent that the tops of some tall buildings were completely out of view. Later I learnt that it had all to do with extreme pollution in China. And the summer temperature was sizzling at 41 degrees Celsius.
I had never experienced such heat that, coupled with humidity, was simply unbearable. I was burning in my trousers and appreciated why women were dressed in brief skirts (minis) that back home in Kenya would invite name-calling and worse. As fate would have it, I ran into an airport officer with a smattering knowledge of English who helped me book accommodation as my new connecting flight was to be the following morning. The hotel was really posh, but exhaustion and the stress I had gone through bogged me down. I went to bed early and slept like I was dead! The following day was stress-free as we boarded a wide-bodied local flight for a three-hour flight to Beijing. I was amazed that a local flight could be bigger and more sophis-
TOURING:
Judie Ombuor on her maiden foray in China
ticated than the KQ flight that had ferried us from Nairobi. I and a colleague from Kenya were the only black people on the plane. The medium of instruction was Chinese, spoken very fast and translated into broken English. I could hardly follow. Truly, I was in a strange world, a world so different from the land of my birth. My first real contact with Chinese food was breakfast on the plane. Only strange looking, strange tasting Chinese snacks were available and I could not eat them even as I was very hungry. I had already missing Kenyan food. In Beijing, I joined other contestants from all over the world at Hotel New Nikko, Beijing, a 32-storied five star facility. Nairobi’s Kenyatta International Conference Centre (28 storeys) and Times Tower are both shorter. I had heard of chopsticks, and here they were - live. The food in front of me comprised rice, green vegetables (strange looking) and red meat that I was jittery to eat given the stories I had heard. I was assured that it was pork. Using the sticks for the first time was such a struggle, I managed to push only half the food down my throat. Much of it spilt on the table. Times were when I had muscle pulls on my fingers while struggling to coordinate the sticks as I ate. But I overcame the problems with time until I could eat almost everything,
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•ODYSSEYS People & Places
including hot spicy noodles burning with chili using the sticks, the toughest test in this mode of eating. Most of the food was outlandish, but I must admit that I enjoyed the exquisitely tasty Chinese roasted duck known in Beijing as kaoya. In China, kaoya is as popular as nyama choma in Kenya. Pork is the most common red meat. Yes, Chinese eat all manner of meat, some of them sweetened with sugar. I once learnt that I had eaten donkey meat and found it futile to force it out. With time, I got used to eating whatever tasted good without asking exactly what it was. But when a full-blown caterpillar appeared in a colleague’s bowl filled with delicious looking rice and soup one day, we exploded at the waitress who coolly explained that it was a delicacy added as an appetizer. The caterpillar was therefore a delicacy and they were many in the meal. We were staggered! But fruits were superb and they served well to fill the holes left by unpalatable foods. And every meal was accompanied by green, Chinese tea to which no sugar is added, making it look and taste like some herbal potion.
CHUMMY: Judie (right) with Chinese friends outside one of Beijing's tourism landmarks
WONDER
For one not used to advanced technology, using a single card to open the door to my room, switch on electricity and access the lift was quite mesmerising. Beijing outdid Nairobi in almost all facets, from the smooth roads that ran above, beneath and across one another in an amazing pattern that ruled out traffic jams to urban transport that made the matatus, Citi Hoppa and KBS contraptions back home in Nairobi look primitive. I was transfixed with wonder! The degree of discipline exhibited by the general public was astounding for one used to the unruly aura in Nairobi. I was surprised to enter a public commuter bus to find nobody
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Yes, Chinese eat
all manner of meat, some of them sweetened with sugar. I once learnt that I had eaten donkey meat and found it futile to force it out
September 2010
collecting fare, which was deposited at a slot next to the driver. No inspector came around to check if some people had not paid. And unlike the situation back home where fares can be unaffordable, an equivalent of Kshs20 (two kuai) is enough to take you anywhere in Beijing. Fares are fixed, come rain, shine or storm. Exploitation is unknown. I noticed that everybody who entered the bus paid religiously and wondered what would happen back home. While commuters in Kenya insist on seats in public transport, it is the opposite in China where most people stand as sitting allowance is limited and reserved for the frail - the elderly, the disabled, pregnant women and the sick. It is the same in the fast subway trains. Wherever I went, I was amused and pleasantly miffed to see people take pictures of me and even take pains to have a closer look at “this black being” as though I was some strange animal.
Others went to the extent of touching my hair amid endless unintelligible questions. Absurd comments such as “Africans have big teeth” left me flabbergasted. Some could abandon whatever they were doing just to have an eyeful of me. I was dumfounded one day while walking on the street when an elderly man seated outside his shop-cumhouse came running a few metres ahead of me and shouted to his wife and children to ‘come out and see this black person’. In buses, fellow passengers would whip out their mobile phones to take snaps of a few black colleagues and me. Others would turn around and follow us for minutes on end, as though they had nothing else to do. Many were the times I was stopped by strangers in the streets so that they could take photographs with me. Oh! I had never seen a people so insular, so closed. I was proud to learn that exposure is one area where we in Kenya and most of Africa are ahead of most
•PERSPECTIVES VIEWS ON NEWS SECOND REPUBLIC
Constitution Triggers Diplomatic Rebirth By MOSES WETANG’ULA
W
hile analyses of the anticipated sea change in Kenya’s political and legal architecture in the post referendum period has been thrashed out in the media and in the public domain, focus on Kenya’s relations on the international arena has not been that exhaustive. Yet, one of the reasons the new constitution has received accolades from the international community is that it draws quite liberally from international norms and standards. Quite apart from the very progressive and liberal bill of rights, one of the most current and outgoing in the world today, the new constitution also addresses long standing citizenship issues in a way that should unleash our international potential. Dual citizenship is of course a boon, one that has been put to very good use by liberal countries such as the US (the Green Card Scheme) and Canada. Indeed, Diaspora is one of the pillars of our diplomatic practice that will be propped up by the new constitution. We consider the Diaspora as an important extension of our diplomacy with Diaspora members as literally Kenya’s ambassadors in their own right. One thing is for sure. By lending a new lease of life to the country, the new constitution will re-engineer Kenya’s diplomacy, what with the rounds of applause springing from the conducting of a free and fair plebiscite! Kenya’s diplomats can now add to their portfolio the peaceful referendum as a major attribute
and a break with the unfortunate events of late 2007 and early 2008. Indeed, the so-called post election violence that engendered the raft of legal and political reforms now puts Kenya head and shoulders above other young nations experimenting with democracy. Kenya has always been a major contributor to the peace dividend in the region and our diplomatic policy has peace as a major plank and pillar. Our new stature will clearly see the country contribute even more on a continent plagued by wars. DIASPORA Kenya’s current foreign policy will no doubt require far reaching amendments to align it with external relations statutes in the new laws. The euphoria that has greeted the passing of the constitution is comparable to the National Rainbow Coalition (NARC) victory over Kanu in 2003. Then as now, the momentous development attracted the 2 millionplus Diaspora riding on the wave of optimism. Kenya will then reap the attendant socio economic benefits from this, of critical importance being, capital inflows. The prestige that comes with having a new constitutional order is bound to spur the country along the lines of her pillars of diplomacy, namely; peace, economic, environmental and cultural and Diaspora. But beyond the feel good factor, the new constitution will make major demands on the structure of international relations. Indeed, in chapter one, the constitution expressly anticipates that “the general rules
Kenya has always
been a major contributor to the peace dividend in the region and our diplomatic policy has peace as a major plank and pillar
of international law shall form part of the law of Kenya”. In other words, the newly minted constitution commits the country to many, if not all of international treaties and conventions. Clearly then, the relationship between Kenya and independent states as well as supranational organisations, key among them being the UN, is certain to change going forward. The upshot of this is that in the event that future governments go slow on implementation of the letter and spirit of ratified treaties and conventions, citizens and the international community will point to the letter and spirit of our new constitution. More important on this score though, is the fact that Kenya will have to sign international treaties and conventions that it has not yet signed to align itself to international law. In view of the need to align with international statutes need will arise for going through all international legislation with a tooth comb with a view to bringing the new constitution up to speed with international law. Indeed one of the areas of contention in the recent past has been about the MoUs entered into by Kenya and other countries in the fight against piracy in the Kenyan and international waters of the Indian Ocean. Criticism has been levelled at the Government for signing the MoUs ostensibly because they put the country at risk. Despite other demerits of this point of view, the new constitution anticipates Kenya’s adherence to the UN’s Convention on the Law of the Sea and the International Maritime Organisation’s statutes, both of which specifically call upon Kenya, as a responsible member of the community of nations, to play her role in combating crime, whether on land or at sea The author is Kenya’s Minister for Foreign Affairs
September 2010
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•PICTORIAL Lights•Camera•Action
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INTERNATIONAL DAY FOR THE WORLD'S INDIGENOUS PEOPLE, AUGUST 9 1. ALL SMILES: EU delegation head of social and environment Daniel Plas 2. UNVEILING: Eric van der Linden Head of EU delegation 3. NOURISHMENT: Bush lunch was served 4. SPECIAL MOMENT: Eric van der Linden Head of EU delegation aims his camera for what could have been the money shot 5. NATURE FRIENDLY: Il Ngwesi Eco friendly lodge 6. ADORNING: VSO's funding advisor Rebecca Davidson is assisted by Winnie Msonga to put on her new cultural bead jewellery 7. VOLUNTEER SERVICE OVERSEAS: VSO's program manager Pauline Kamau
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September 2010
•PICTORIAL lights•camera•action
Malaysian Education Exhibition 1. DETAILS: Mr Vincent Naidu, Managing Director of Education Malaysia in Kenya, (standing) and Mr Sajadhussein Mohamed Kazim Manji, Malaysia Regional Representative Africa (right) listen to one of the students who visited the exhibitions at the Laico Regency in Nairobi 2. EDUCATION KEY: Ms Koo Mhong Ying from Malaysia Sunway University College explains enrollment details to attendants 3. COME TO MALYSIA: Mr Sajadhussein Mohamed Kazim Manji, explains apoint to interested Kenyan student who visited the exhibition 4 VALUE PROPOSITION: Mr Shashikumar Nadason from Malaysia Mahsa University College makes a presentation 5 DIPLOMATIC LEEWAY: The Malaysian High Commissioner to Kenya, Mr Zainol Rahim Zainuddin (left) chats with Ms Lim Shui Chin, Director – International Marketing International Student Office Malaysia Sunway University College centre 6. PARTNERSHIP: Mr Rahim Zainuddin (right) in discussions with Ms Koo Mhong Ying, and Ms Lim Shui Chin, (left) while Mr Vincent Naidu
September 2010
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•DEA HOTELS Lifestyles & Hospitality
CROWN IN THE JEWEL
Elegance, Novelty of Crowne Plaza Hotel By RITA NJOROGE
O
ne is greeted with sheer novelty in the length and breadth of Nairobi’s latest hospitality sensation. Everything is evidently spanking new and sparkling as well. Even the courteous and curtseying staff portrays the sort of pristinely aura not evident in the more established facilities in the city. Crowne Plaza Hotel and Resort is a modern and elegant five star hotel in Nairobi and, not surprisingly, is located in the fast emerging financial district of Upper Hill. It is surrounded by most prestigious office blocks for multinational companies, hospitals, banks and embassies. The hotel
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blends and merges pithily with the equally new buildings that have been coming up all over Upper Hill. With only six months into operations, Crowne Plaza Hotel and Resort has hosted dignitaries and diplomats from around the world including Kenya’s President Kibaki and Prime Minister Raila Odinga. “The hotel’s design was inspired by the beauty of the surrounding Upper Hill environment,” says Juan Uribe the General Manager. The hotel claims its close affiliation to the famous Intercontinental Hotel chain which allows it to be at the same standards with other major and leading hotels of the world.
September 2010
The conference room is top-notch with space to
cater for up to 500 people classroomstyle but with breakout rooms to cater for as few as six people
“We are all over the world; from the Middle East to Asia and Europe with over four million subscribers; we are the fastest growing company around the world. In Kenya, for example, we have penetrated the market well and have enjoyed a good reception within a short period of time,” Uribe enthuses. There is no doubt that the hotel offers a choice of truly stylish ambience imbued with a unique personality as well as combining a comfortable environment with a high level of professional yet discreet service. With a capacity of 162 rooms complimented with a life walking gallery of artefacts on every floor, the hotel also boasts state-of-the art meeting rooms, ideal for facilitating creative thinking. It is helpful that clients can purchase some of the artefacts at the hotel, a value adding convenience tailor made to suit collectors who are too busy or too wary of the other art galleries in the city centre and elsewhere. This latest addition to Nairobi’s hospitality covers the whole of five floors featuring five beautiful and spacious executive suites all of which
PHOTOS: CROWNE PLAZA HOTEL
were occupied by dignitaries at the time DEA sampled what is on offer. Variety is the catchword here as there are superior, junior and standard rooms, a menu from which clients can choose to fit their pockets and tastes. The hotels fifth floor is entirely dedicated to a club, clearly meant to attract not only visitors but also business executives working in Upper Hill district. All rooms are equipped with latest state of the art technology, high speed complimentary and latest internet, WI-FI, mini-bars, in-room safe, tea and coffee facilities. For those in need of personalised service, a 24 hour room service is at hand. The conference room is top-notch with space to cater for up to 500 people classroom-style but with breakout rooms to cater for as few as six people. Uribe says the hotel is home to the biggest boardroom in Nairobi, available for international visitors as well as corporates looking for the right setting. The meeting place provides a range of delegate-experiences that draw on unrivalled local knowledge and culture to create truly engaging
personalised meetings and events. Crowne Plaza Hotel and Resort boasts two dynamic restaurants: Baraza (Kiswahili for meeting) and Sikia (Kiswahili for hear) that offer fine dining - a testament to its sumptuous international cuisine complimented by the Alabaster Coffee Lounge, a casual interactive venue and the Babalous Lounge, a double deck bar. Sikia has become famous due to the jazz band that performs here every Saturday. There is a gift shop, a stylish unisex hair salon and a luxurious health club offering round-theclock service with the latest state of the art equipment and an outdoor swimming pool for those looking to satisfy aquatic interests. The hotel has reward and loyalty programmes to assist in attraction and maintenance of clients. This includes the priority club reward which gives guests the
INVITING: Images of novelty from Crowne Plaza Hotel
opportunity to earn points for free hotel stays, free airline miles plus much more in Crowne Plaza hotels and resorts around the world and affiliated world class hotels. The Travel Arranger programme, for example, allows priority club reward members to book travel for co-workers, family and friends. For any organisation to be successful it must have an effective and dedicated staff and the hotel is proud to have a dedicated team comprising a 99.9 percentage Kenyan. Crowne Plaza Hotel and Resort takes care of the spiritual needs of its clients too. During the Muslim holy month of Ramadhan, Crowne Plaza lined up an array of carefully selected dishes for Muslims throughout the entire holy month. Yes, Crowne Plaza Hotel and Resort has emerged as the jewel in the crown of Nairobi’s fastgrowing Upper Hill district
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•GLOBAL STAGE Window on World
UNPRECEDENTED
Unprecedented Flooding Cripples Pakistan The worst humanitarian crisis in the world today gets a helping hand from a cross-section of donors By JANE MWANGI
U
N Secretary General Ban Ki-Moon has seen many disasters, but none, he says, compares to what is happening in Pakistan. Ki-Moon has compared the flooding in Pakistan to a slow-motion tsunami. With only rooftops and treetops visible from the air and afar and the rest a huge lake where previously there were towns and villages, Pakistan continues to suffer the crippling effects of flooding where unusually high rainfall virtually submerged a fifth of the country, an area the size of Italy. The overarching issue now for the country’s leadership is the onerous task of rebuilding the infrastructure, giving people back their livelihoods, fighting off the dangers of multiple outbreaks of disease yet Pakistan is hugely indebted. But, of course, the immediate task remains that of feeding, clothing and sheltering millions of displaced people. The result has been an outpouring of individual aid donations that continue to trickle in despite the fact that most cannot reach the victims because, thanks to the flooding they are inaccessible. Thousands have lost their lives and 8 million are now reliant on aid for their very survival while an estimated 4 million are homeless.Aid flow has been termed as ‘slow’ with some blaming “donor fatigue,” in
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July 2010
CRISES: Thousands of Pakistanis under siege
September 2010
which traditional donors now find themselves insolvent after giving so much to Haiti and other causes. Timing is blamed too as has been politics - the lingering ill feelings a cross-section of the West has towards Pakistan because of the war on terror. The catastrophe has battered Pakistan’s economy and destabilised its political steadiness. It had to cancel the August 14 celebrations marking its creation and independence from Britain in 1947. President Asif Ali Zardari met with flood victims in the northwest and Ki-moon visited affected regions as the UN appealed for an initial $460 million to provide relief. In a hastily convened General Assembly, Ki-Moon made a call to governments to generously give more to the Pakistan disaster than witnessed during the 2004 tsunami and the re-
cent Haiti earthquake terming this as a bigger ‘global disaster’. Prior to the crucial meeting, donors had fallen short, giving only half the sum the UN had appealed for in efforts to cater for up to 8 million flood victims over the next three months. The United States led a team of new aid pledges, promising a further $60 million. US Secretary of State Hillary Clinton told the UN General Assembly that the United States will be contributing more than $150 million toward emergency flood relief. Acknowledging the tough economic conditions plaguing world economies, Hillary said that they must work to answer the Pakistani request for help irrespective of the grim realities. “I want the people of Pakistan to know, the United States will be with you through this crisis”, she said. Pakistan is a critical ally for the United States in the war against Taliban and al Qaeda fighters. Other countries have followed the US’ lead in pledging more funds. London was doubling its contribution to nearly $100 million while the European Union promised a further 30 million Euros ($38.5 million) on top of 110 million Euros already committed. India, traditionally at variance with Pakistan, has also made donations which have been accepted by the latter. Indeed, it is feared that the floods might soon affect parts of India
•GLOBAL STAGE Window on World
BIG BROTHER
Obama Demands Access to Internet Records, in Secret, and Without Court Review By TOM BURGHARDT
Despite these loose standards, congressional
investigators, journalists and civil liberties watchdogs found that the FBI violated the rules of the road
T
he Obama administration is seeking authority from Congress that would compel internet service providers (ISPs) to turn over records of an individual’s internet activity for use in secretive FBI probes. In another instance where Americans are urged to trust their political minders, The Washington Post reported last month that “the administration wants to add just four words - ‘electronic communication transactional records’ - to a list of items that the law says the FBI may demand without a judge’s approval.” Under cover of coughing-up information deemed relevant to espionage or terrorism investigations, proposed changes to the Electronic Communications Privacy Act (ECPA) would greatly expand the
volume of private records that can be seized through National Security Letters (NSLs). Constitution-shredding letters de cachet, NSLs are administrative subpoenas that can be executed by agencies such as the FBI, CIA or Defense Department, solely on the say so of supervisory agents. The noxious warrants are not subject to court review, nor can a recipient even disclose they have received one. Because of their secretive nature, they are extremely difficult to challenge. Issued by unaccountable Executive Branch agents hiding behind a façade of top secret classifications and much-ballyhooed “sources and methods,” NSLs clearly violate our constitutional rights. The fourth amendment unambiguously states: “The right of the people to be secure in their persons,
houses, papers, and effects, against unreasonable searches and seizures, shall not be violated, and no warrants shall be issued, but upon probable cause, supported by Oath or affirmation, and particularly describing the place to be searched, and the persons or things to be seized.” However, in “new normal” America constitutional guarantees and civil rights are mere technicalities, cynical propaganda exercises jettisoned under the flimsiest of pretexts: the endless “War on Terror” where the corporate state’s praetorian guards work the “dark side.” Once served, firms such as telecommunication providers, banks, credit card companies, airlines, health insurers, video rental services, even booksellers and libraries, are compelled to turn over what the secret state deem relevant records on targets of FBI fishing expeditions. If burdensome NSL restrictions are breeched for any reason, that person can be fined or even jailed if gag orders built into the draconian USA Patriot Act are violated. However, even the Patriot Act’s
September 2010
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•GLOBAL STAGE Window on World
abysmally lowered threshold for seizing private records specify that NSLs cannot be issued “solely on the basis of activities protected by the first amendment of the Constitution of the United States.” Despite these loose standards, congressional investigators, journalists and civil liberties watchdogs found that the FBI violated the rules of the road, such as they are, thousands of times. Between 2003-2006, the Bureau issued 192,499 NSLs, according to current estimates, the FBI continues to hand out tens of thousands more each year. According to a May 2009 Justice Department letter sent to the House and Senate Judiciary Committees, “in 2007, the FBI made 16,804 NSL requests” and followed-up the next year by issuing some “24,744 NSL requests ... to 7,225 United States persons.” The Justice Department’s Office of the Inspector General (OIG) issued a 2007 report which concluded that the Bureau had systematically abused the process and exceeded their authority. A follow-up report published by the OIG in January found that serious civil liberties breeches continue under President Obama. This is hardly surprising given the track record of the Obama administration.“Reform,” ObamaStyle The latest White House proposal would hand the secret state unprecedented access to the personal communications of every American. What Bushist war criminals did secretly, Obama intends to do openly and with the blessings of a supine Congress. As constitutional scholar Glenn Greenwald points out, “not only has Obama ... blocked any reforms, he has taken multiple steps to further expand unaccountable and unchecked surveillance power.” Nowhere is this more apparent than by administration moves to
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“reform” ECPA. While the Justice Department claims their newly sought authority does not include “’content’ of email or other Internet communications,” this is so much eyewash to deceive the public. In fact, the addition of so-called transactional records to the volume of files that the state can arbitrarily seize, would hand the government access to a limitless cache of email addresses, dates and times they were sent and received, and a literal snap-shot on demand of what any user looks at or searches when they log onto the internet. As I have pointed out before, most recently last month when I described the National Security Agency’s PERFECT CITIZEN program, the roll-out of privacy-killing deeppacket inspection software developed by NSA already has the ability to read and catalogue the content of email messages flowing across private telecommunications networks. Former Bushist Homeland Security official, Stewart A. Baker, applauded the proposal and told the Post, “it’ll be faster and easier to get the data.” Baker touts the rule change as a splendid way for ISPs to hand over “a lot more information to the FBI in response to an NSL.” INTERNET While the Post claims “many internet service providers” have “resisted the government’s demands to turn over electronic records,” this is a rank mendacity. A “senior administration official,” speaking anonymously of course, told the Post that “most” ISPs already “turn over such data.” Of course they do, and at a premium price! Internet security analyst Christopher Soghoian has documented that just one firm, Sprint Nextel, routinely turned over their customer’s geolocation data to law enforcement agencies and even built them a secure web portal to
September 2010
STATS &FACTS “in 2007, the FBI made
16,804 NSL requests” and followed-up the next year by issuing some
“24,744 NSL requests ... to 7,225 United States persons”
do so, eight million times in a single year! Soghoian wrote last year that “government agents routinely obtain customer records from these firms, detailing the telephone numbers dialed, text messages, emails and instant messages sent, web pages browsed, the queries submitted to search engines, and of course, huge amounts of geolocation data, detailing exactly where an individual was located at a particular date and time.” As a public service, the secrecyshredding web site Cryptomehas published dozens of so-called compliance guides for law enforcement issued by a plethora of telecoms and ISPs. Readers are urged to peruse Yahoo’s manual for a taste of what these grifters hand over. While the administration argues that “electronic communication transactional records” are the “same as” phone records that the Bureau can obtain with an NSL, seizing such records reveal far more about a person’s life, and political views, than a list of disaggregated phone numbers.This is precisely why the FBI wants unlimited access to this data. Along with racial and religious profiling, the Bureau would be handed the means to build a political profile on anyone they deem an “extremist.” That “senior administration official” cited by the Post claims that access to a citizen’s web history “allows us to intercede in plots earlier than we would if our hands were tied and we were unable to get this data in a way that was quick and efficient.” Perhaps our “change” administration has forgotten a simple historical fact: police states are efficient. The value of privacy in a republic, including whom one communicates with or where one’s interests lie, form the core values of a democratic order; principles sorely lacking in our “new normal” Orwellian order!
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•ENVOYS OF SPORT INDIA HERE WE COME
Scandals Plague Lead Up To Commonwealth Games By KWENDO OPANGA and XINHUA NEWS AGENCY
W
hen Indian Prime Minister Manmohan Singh and the President of the Congress Party Mrs Sonia Gandhi jointly addressed a burning issue last month, it was not about the economy, the violence in Kashmir or the so-called super bug. And when the government – through the Games Ministry - set up an eight-person committee to oversee preparations for an upcoming international event, again it was not about the economy, the new protests in Kashmir or the so-called super bug which it is accused of spawning. The Prime Minister, Congress President and government tackled a sporting matter and it was not cricket, the national pastime. In the words of Gandhi, the pride of the nation is riding on the games and the prestige of India’s involved with the games. Premier and governing party boss are concerned about the 2010 Commonwealth Games. India is a large country with a huge population and an equally big economy, but apart from cricket it is not known for sporting prowess. But India, as a former British colony is a member of the Commonwealth and was rightly chosen to host this year’s Commonwealth Games. Scheduled to be held between October 3 and Octo-
ber 13, the games should serve to introduce India to hosting of huge international events and also as a launching pad or preparation for a bid to host the Olympics. OLYMPICS
South Africa is still basking in the glory of successfully hosting the 2010 FIFA World Cup and is thought to be considering a bid for the Olympics. China’s success in hosting the last (2008) Olympics and the on-going World Expo have established it firmly as an organiser and host of international events. It is India’s turn to showcase itself and draw the attention of the world to its varied cultures,
hospitality, industry, tourism and, of course, organization having last hosted the Asian Games in 1982. With a total of 71 nations set to participate, with the Queen expected to put in an appearance, thousands of visitors expected and the bill standing at a staggering $2 billion, Delhi expects clockwork precision and all round excellence. But the pre-games publicity is certainly not what the government, people or the Indian Olympic Association (IOA), the organisers of the games, would have wanted to have. The publicity has revolved around allegations that facilities
September 2010
CRISES MANAGEMENT:
Prime Minister Manmohan Singh and leader of Congress Party Sonia Gandhi
July 2010
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•ENVOYS OF SPORT
will not be ready on time, alleged corruption in construction of the facilities for the games and fraudulent transfer of funds to a littleknown UK-based film-making company. Even more troubling is the allegation that the budget for the games has risen more than 17 times. IOA boss Suresh Kalmadi had his wings clipped when the Games Ministry stepped in and gave most of his duties to the eight-person committee called in a last ditch effort to save the games. But that was after the External Ministry and the Indian High Commission in the UK had thrown egg all over his face when they denied his claims that the two had cleared IOA to do business with the little-known AM Films. And the Sports Ministry is also on record as asking Kalmadi to sack his close associate T S Dabari from the organising committee. This followed revelations that he has links with AM Films. The UK-based firm was paid thousands of dollars allegedly for its services in organising the Commonwealth Games’ London leg of the Queen’s Baton Relay. Early last month, both Houses of the Indian Parliament were at one time adjourned when Opposition MPs disrupted proceedings over the alleged diversion of Commonwealth Games funds. Before what the Indian media have called the UK money scam, reports surfaced that many fake or suspect construction certificates had been issued for various construction projects for the games to pass sub-standard work. These revelations, no doubt stung the governing party, Prime Minister and Games Ministry into action, which explains their ac-
52
tions last month as well as the decision by the government to turn down the IOA’s plea to bid to host the 2019 Asian Games. The interventions by the Games Ministry, Manmohan and Gandhi and the latter’s promise that the guilty will be punished will help focus attention on, and closing of ranks over, the need for a smooth and successful hosting of the games. MARATHON
But the Prime Minister, Gandhi, Games Ministry and the people of India will be hoping that the controversy has not already caused irreparable damage and that some of the world’s greatest athletes will be headed to Delhi. However, the Times of India reported in July that Jamaica’s Usain Bolt, who was beaten for the first time last month in the 100 metresprint after a two-year reign as the world’s fastest man, may not participate in the games. At the time of the report by the Times, Bolt was nursing an Achil-
September 2010
ON THE BEAT: Will preparations be streamlined in time?
les tendon injury, a condition which was blamed for his first loss since 2008. Australia’s swimming sensation and triple Olympic gold medalist Stephanie Rice will not be competing in the Delhi games because of a shoulder injury. She said it was disappointing she could not compete, but it was the right thing to do. Some of Kenya’s famed marathoners will also not be at the games. These include Boston Marathon champion Robert Kiprono Cheruiyot, Rotterdam marathon winner Patrick Makau and Olympic champion Samuel Wanjiru and Geoffrey Mutai. Uganda will for the first time take an eight-person Bridge team to the Delhi games that will be part of an 88-strong delegation of sportsmen and women and officials. Kenya’s sportsmen and women for the games go into camp this month and it is expected that a 150-strong contingent will leave Nairobi for Delhi and represent the country in a total of 14 disciplines. Kenya’s Rugby Sevens Coach Benjamin Ayimba has set his sights firmly on a top three finish for his famous squad at the Delhi games. But he will have to reckon with defending champions Samoa in his team’s opener. The country’s boxing team, popularly known as the Hit Squad, also hopes that the Delhi Games will mark its revival and return to the big time. Nigeria is expected to send a large contingent as Africans seek to make an impression on the Club Games. But India and the rest of the Commonwealth will be hoping that everything will come together straight from the opening ceremony till the end
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•TRAVEL
ADVENTURE & DISCOVERY
Let’s Go Visit Magical Kenya Kenya has been positioned as an adventurer s paradise and fashioned as a historical ‘magnum opus’ unaltered by the passage of time, reports JANE MWANGI
K
enya is a land with a vast allure of endless splendour, a rimless cornucopia of wonders and contrasts - a country rich with possibilities for adventure and discovery. From the snow-capped peaks of Mt Kenya to the desert plains of the north; from the pink panorama of flamingos on the shores of Lake Nakuru to the sandy beaches of Lamu, the country is as broad as it is richly endowed. There is an expansive scope of destinations just waiting to be explored. It is this unique variety that has led travel companies and organisations to go all out in marketing Kenya as a one-stop tourist destination. The Kenya Tourism Board has just launched Magical Kenya - an initiative aimed at proudly displaying this unique jewel in the crown of sub-Saharan Africa. The global advertising campaign with the catchy slogan “Welcome to Kenya, Discover the magic of Africa’’ captures the exact disposition of Kenya; abundant wildlife and exotic creatures, scenic landscape, sprinkled with exotic birds along with a supporting cast of world renowned game parks and reserves. The campaign hopes to rebuild the image of Kenya as a premier tourist destination. It also has special domestic packages dubbed, ‘Twende tujionee’ which encompasses affordable road, self-drive and flying packages to the top rated tourist destination spots in Kenya.
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Kenya has long been termed as the most unique colony in the British Empire; and rightfully so
September 2010
Kenya has long been termed as the most unique colony in the British Empire; and rightfully so. Right back when the first explorers embarked on a flight of fancy to discover what mysteries lay beneath. Their quest led to the unveiling of a stark and delightful truth that this was a melting point of cultures, and an eclectic mix of the most beautiful and spectacular sights for those in pursuit of adventure. Kenya has 59 National Parks and Game Reserves, 42 different cultures, 480 kilometres of coastline, Kenya is the ultimate safari country. The various safari styles available for sampling include wildlife, beach, adventure, sport, cultural and business travel. The choices are endless and the memories are guaranteed to last forever. If you are looking to enjoy the tawny grasslands of Kenya’s national parks or desire to sink your toes into the white shell-adorned sands of Kenya’s scenic beaches- the choice is yours. Either way the scenery is stunning in its scale and sheer diversity. The “Big Five” animals of Africa can be found in Kenya: these include the lion, elephant, leopard, buffalo and rhinoceros. The boundless Kenyan wilderness and big game has attracted tourists from all over the globe. The top rated tourist destinations in Kenya according to the magical Kenya web page are Maasai Mara and Amboseli national reserves, Mt Kenya, Chyulu Hills, Hell’s Gate,
Sibilio, Central Highlands and Tsavo national parks. Others include Lamu, Malindi, Gede ruins Watamu, Lakes Nakuru and Turkana and Nairobi’s Karen Blixen. There is easy access by the national carrier, Kenya Airways and international airlines such as Emirates, Gulf Air, Virgin Atlantic, British Airways, Qatar Airways, Air Arabia and Turkish airlines. Access to the national parks and reserves by domestic airlines connected through airstrips within the country is also a real possibility. Kenya also boasts of having a tropical climate which is quite conducive for travel and tourism. It is hot and humid at the coast, dry in the northeast parts and temperate inland. The country experiences long rains between March and May and short rains in October and November. The temperature remains high throughout these months but there is a great deal of sunshine all year long. Each year, Lamu comes alive during the highly acclaimed annual Lamu Cultural Festival. The week long festival attracts people from all walks of life to witness the showcase of preserved cultural heritage. There are competitions and races which include among others traditional Swahili poetry, Henna painting and the famous Bao competition. Bao is in all probability the oldest known game in human history, with archaeological evidence suggesting that it has been played throughout Africa and the Middle East for thousands of years
•DIRECTORY BURUNDI AMERICAN EMBASSY B.P. 1720 Avenue Des Etats-Unis Bujumbura Phone: (257) 22-34-54/ (257) 21-48-53 Fax: (257) 22-29-26 Web Site: http://bujumbura. usembassy.gov/ CYPRIOT CONSULATE IN BUJUMBURA, BURUNDI 1660 Phone: (00257) 22 242630, (00257) 77735325 (Mob.) Fax: (00257) 22 223917 Email: cyprusconsulate.bjm@gmail.com EMBASSY OF BELGIUM B.P. 1920 Bujumbura Phone: + (257) (22) 22.32.66 + (257) (22) 22.61.76 Fax: + (257) (22) 22.31.71 http://www.diplomatie.be/ Email: Bujumbura@diplobel.fed.be CANADIAN CONSULATE 4708, Boulevard de l’uprona, Bujumbura Phone: 257 22 24-58-98 Fax: 257 22 24-58-99 Email: bujumbura@canadaconsulate.ca CHINESE EMBASSY B.P. 2550 Bujumbura Phone: +257-224307 +257-216856 Fax: +257-213735 +257-224082 Email: chinaemb_bi@mfa.gov.cn
COMORAN CONSULATE IN BURUNDI Phone: (257) 93-93-10-27 Fax: (257) 929-728-09 DANISH CONSULATE 6, rue Nyabagare, B.P. 2880 Bujumbura Phone: 226099 Fax: 227786, 216697 Email: andersen@cbinf.com EGYPTIAN EMBASSY Kinindo, Avenue Nzero, NO. 12 Bujumbura Phone: (+257)22223161 Fax: (+257)22222918 FRENCH EMBASSY 60 avenue de l’Uprona Phone: [257] 22 20 30 00 Fax: [257] 22 20 30 10 Email cad.bujumbura-amba@d iplomatie.gouv.fr GERMAN EMBASSY Hotel Source de Nil, Suite Nr. 301, Avenue de Stade, Bujumbura. Phone: (00 257) 22 64 12 / (00 257)22 64 16 GREEK CONSULATE IN BUJUMBURA P O BOX 1660, Bujumbura, Burundi Phone: (00257224) 242532
KENYAN EMBASSY PTA Bank Building 2nd floor, West Wing Chaussee du Prince Louise Rwagasore, Bujumbura B.P. 5138 Phone: +257-22-258160/62/ 63/67 Fax: +257 22-258161 Email: information@kenyaembassy.bi DUTCH CONSULATE IN BURUNDI Consulate Honoraire du Royaume de Paya Bas Avenue de Grece no. 5 1 etag Phone: 00-257-222082 / 223614 Fax: 00-257-2-22615 Email: conspaysbas@mapatro.com RUSSIAN EMBASSY Phone: +257 22-60-98 Fax: +257 22-42-37 Email: ustas@cbinf.com RWANDAN EMBASSY Boite Postale 400 24 Avenue de la République City: Bujumbura Phone: (+257) 223255, 226865 Fax: (+257) 223255 Email: arbuja@cni.cbinf.com. ambabujumbura@minaffet.gov. rw
SOUTH AFRICAN EMBASSY Hotel Novotel, Chaussee du Peuple Murundi, Room 215 and 217, Bujumbura PO Box 185 Phone: +257-244650/ +257-248219 Fax: +257-244650 / +257-248219 Email: saebujfin@usan-bu.net SWISS CONSULATE Rwanda,Uganada,Somalia, Seychelles Rue du Commerance 11 City: Bujumbura Phone: (+257) 968471 Email: bruno_vincenti@heineken.nl BRITISH EMBASSY British Embassy Liaison Office, Building Old East, Parcelle No1/2, Place de l’Independance, City: Burundi Phone: (257) 22 246 478 Fax: (257) 22 246 479 Email: belo@cni.cbinf.com
SENEGALESE CONSULATE BP 382 Bujumbura Phone: (+257) 223771 / (+257) 222147
Calling on all Missions... Update your contacts
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+254 20 2525253/4/5 September 2010
55 55
•DIRECTORY TANZANIA
AMBASSY OF ALGERIA 34 Ali Hassan Mwinyi Road P.O. Box 2963 Dar es Salaam Telephone No:2117619 Fax No: 2117620 e-mail: algemb@twiga.com EMBASSY OF THE PEOPLE’S REPUBLIC OF ANGOLA Plot No. 78 Lugalo Road P.O. Box 20793 Dar es Salaam Telephone No: 2117674, 2139235 Telex No: 41251 EMBANG TZ Fax No: 2132349 E-mail: ngola@cats-net.com EMBASSY OF BELGIUM Black lines House , 5 Ocean Road P.O. Box 9210 Dar Es Salaam Telephone No:2114025,2112688, 2112503 Fax No. 2117621, 2125675 Telex No: 41094 AMBELG E-mail: ambabel.dsm@cats-net.com BRITISH HIGH COMMISSION Social Security House Azikie Street/Samora Machel Avenue P.O. Box 9200 Dar es Salaam Telephone No: 211765964, 2113501/2 Fax: 2112952/2668436 Fax: 2116703 EMBASSY OF THE REPUBLIC OF BURUNDI Lugalo Road House No. 1007, Upanga P.O. Box 2752 Dar es Salaam Fax 2121499 E- Mail: burundemb@raha.com
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CANADIAN HIGH COMMISSION 38 Mirambo/Garden Avenue 2112837, 2112863, P.O. Box 1022 Dar es Salaam Telephone No: 21128656, 2112831/5 Fax No: 2116896 Fax No: (Dev. Section) 2116897 Facsimile: 2116897, 2116896 E-mail: dslam@dfait-maeci.gc.ca EMBASSY OF THE PEOPLE’S REPUBLIC OF CHINA Chancery: 2 Kajificheni Close P.O. Box 1649 ,Dar es Salaam Telephone No: 2667586, 2667694 Fax No: 2666353 EMBASSY OF THE REPUBLIC OF CUBA Chancery: Lugalo Road Plot No. 313Upanga , Dar es Salaam Telephone No: 211592 Fax No: 2115927 8 E-mail: embacuba.tz@raha.com ROYAL DANISH EMBASSY Chancery: Ghana Avenue P.O. Box 9171 ,Dar es Salaam Telephone No: 2113887/91, 2117510 Direct Line: 2111325 Telegraphic Address: AMBADANE Telex No: 41057 Fax No: 2116433 E-mail: daramb@um.dk EMBASSY OF THE ARAB REPUBLIC OF EGYPT Chancery: 24 Garden Avenue P.O. Box 1668,Dar es Salaam Telephone No: 2113591/2117622/ 2111716 Telex No: 41173 Fax No: 2112543 E-mail: egypt.emb.tz@intafrica.com
September 2010
EMBASSY OF FINLAND Corner of Mirambo/ Garden Avenue P.O. Box 2455,Dar es Salaam Telephone No: 2119170 Fax No:2119173 e-mail: finemb @twiga.com EMBASSY OF FRANCE Chancery: Ali Hassan Mwinyi Road/Kinondoni Road P.O. Box 2349 ,Dar es Salaam Telephone No: 2666021/3 Fax No: 2668435 E-mail: ambfrance@africaaonline. co.tz EMBASSY OF THE FEDERAL REPUBLIC OF GERMANY Chancery: NIC Building , 10th Floor,Samora Avenue P.O. Box 9541,Dar es Salaam Telephone No: 2117409 - 15 Fax No: 2112944 e-mail: german.emb.dar@raha.com HIGH COMMISSION OF THE REPUBLIC OF GUYANA Chancery: Design House , 2 Dar es Salaam Place P.O. Box 34889 ,Lusaka Telephone No: 73035/7 Telex No: 42960 UYCOMZA HIGH COMMISSION OF INDIA Chancery: NIC Investment House 7th & 8th Floor Wing ‘’A’’Samora Avenue P.O. Box 2684 ,Dar es Salaam Telephone No: 2117175/6 2116551 Fax. 2118761 Telex. 41335 HICIND TZ E-mail. Hcitz@cats.net.com
EMBASSY OF THE REPUBLIC OF INDONESIA Chancery: 299 Ali Hassan Mwinyi Road P.O. Box 572,Dar es Salaam Telephone No: 2119119,2118133, 2115841 Fax No: 2115849 Telex No: 41575 INDON TZ Telegraphic Address: INDONESIADAR ES SALAAM E-mail: kbridsm@raha.com EMBASSY OF THE ISLAMIC REPUBLIC OF IRAN Chancery: Plot 31 Upanga Road P.O. Box 5802 ,Dar es Salaam Telephone No:2112255/2117623 Fax No: 2118804/5 Jihad Sazandegi: 2150505 Cultural Center: 2130475 EMBASSY OF ITALY Chancery: Lugalo Road 316 P.O. Box 2106 ,Dar es Salaam Telephone No: 2115935/36, 2123010/11 Ambassador’s: 2113741 Fax No: 2115938 e-mail: italdipl@raha.com EMBASSY OF JAPAN Chancery: Plot No. 1018 Ali Hassan Mwinyi Road P.O. Box 2577 ,Dar es Salaam Telephone No: 2117384, 115827/9, 2117384, 2117383 Fax No: 2115830 Telex No: 41065 TAISHI Telegraphic Address: TAISHI HIGH COMMISSION OF THE REPUBLIC OF KENYA Chancery: P.O. Box 5231 NIC Investment House 14th Floor Samora Avenue ,Dar es Salaam Telephone No: 2112955/6, Fax No: 2113098 E-mail khc@raha.com
•DIRECTORY TANZANIA
EMBASSY OF THE REPUBLIC OF KOREA Chancery: Plot 8/1 Tumbawe Rd ,Oyster bay P.O. Box 1154 ,Dar es Salaam Telephone No: 2600496/2600499/2602000 Fax No: 2600559 E-mail rok@intafrica.com
ROYAL NORWEGIAN EMBASSY Chancery: Plot 160, Mirambo Street P.O. Box 2646 ,Dar es Salaam Telephone No: 2113666 Fax No: 2116564 Telex No: 41221 NORAMB Telegraphic Address: NORAMB E-mail: ambassade-dar@norad.no
BUREAU OF THE SOCIALIST PEOPLE’S LIBYAN Arab JAMAHIRIYA Mr.Ahmed Abdulasalaam Chancery: Mtitu Street No. 386 P.O. Box 9413 ,Dar es Salaam Telegraphic Address: ASHABI Telephone No: 2150166/ 2150188 Fax No: 2150068 Telex No: 4117
EMBASSY OF THE STATE OF PALESTINE Chancery: 612 United Nations Road P.O. Box 20307,Dar es Salaam Telephone No: 2150636/2150643 Dir. 2153257 Fax No: 2153257
HIGH COMMISSION OF THE REPUBLIC OF MOZAMBIQUE Chancery: 25 Garden Avenue P.O. Box 9370 ,Dar es Salaam Chancery: 25 Garden Avenue P.O. Box 9370 ,Dar es Salaam
EMBASSY OF THE REPUBLIC OF POLAND Chancery: 1/9 Chisiza Close P.O. Box 2188 Oyster bay, Dar es Salaam Telephone No: 2667501 Fax No: 2668309 E-mail: polamb@twigas.com
ROYAL NETHERLANDS EMBASSY Chancery: ATC Town House Terminal Blg Ohio Street , 2nd Floor P.O. Box 9534 ,Dar es Salaam Telephone No: 2118566/8 2130428 Telefax No: 2112828 Fax No: 112828 HIGH COMMISSION OF THE FEDERAL REPUBLIC OF NIGERIA Chancery: 83 Haile Selassie Road, Oyster bay P.O. Box 9214 , Dar es Salaam Tel No: 2667620/2666000/ 2666834/2666843 Telefax No: 2668947 Telex No: 41240 E-mail: nhc-dsm@raha.com
EMBASSY OF THE REPUBLIC OF RWANDA Chancery:Plot No. 32 Ali Hassan Mwinyi Rd P.O. Box 2918 ,Dar es Salaam Telephone No: 2115889, 2117631 Fax No: 115888 Telex No: 41292 Telegraphic Address: AMBARW TZ EMBASSY OF THE RUSSIAN FEDERATION Chancery: Plot 73 Ali Hassan Mwinyi Road P.O. Box 1905 ,Dar es Salaam Telephone No: 2666005/6 Fax No: 2666818 E-mail: embruss@intafrica.com
SOUTH AFRICAN HIGH COMMISSION Chancery: Plot 1338/9 Mwaya Road ,Masaki P.O. Box 10723 ,Dar es Salaam Telephone No: 2601800 Fax No: 2600684 EMBASSY OF SPAIN Chancery: Plot No. 99B ,Kinondoni Road P.O. Box 842, Dar es Salaam Telephone No: 2666018/9 Ambassador’s: 2666936 Fax No: 2666938 E-mail: embesptz@mail.mae.es
EMBASSY OF THE UNITED STATES OF AMERICA Chancery: 140 Msese Road P.O. Box 9123 , Dar es Salaam Telephone No: 2666010 Telex No: 41519 Fax No: 2666701 EMBASSY OF THE FEDERATION REPUBLIC OF YUGOSLAVIA Chancery: Plot No. 35/36 Upanga Road P.O. Box 2838 ,Dar es Salaam Telephone No: 2115891 - 2 Fax No: 2115893 E-mail: ambyudar@raha.com
EMBASSY OF THE REPUBLIC OF SUDAN Chancery: 64 Upanga P.O. Box 2266 Ali Hassan Mwinyi Road, Dar es Salaam Telephone No: 2117641 Tel:/Fax No: 2115811 E. mail - sudan.emb.dar@raha.com EMBASSY OF SWEDEN Chancery: Mirambo Street/Garden Avenue P.O. Box 9303 ,Dar es Salaam Telephone No: 2111235 Fax: 2113420 E-mail.www.swedemb-dar.com
HIGH COMMISSION OF THE REPUBLIC OF ZAMBIA Chancery: Plot No. 5 & 6 ,Junction of Ohio/ Sokoine Drive P.O. Box 2525 ,Dar es Salaam Telephone No: Fax/Phone: 2112977 E-mail:zhcd@raha.com HIGH COMMISSION OF THE REPUBLIC OF ZIMBABWE Chancery: Plot 2097 East Upanga Off Ali Hassan Mwinyi Road P.O. Box 20762 ,Dar es Salaam Telephone No: 2116789 Fax No: 2112913 T Telex No: 41386 E-mail: zimdares@cats-net.com
EMBASSY OF SWITZERLAND Chancery: 79 Kinondoni Road / Mafinga Street HIGH COMMISSION OF THE REPUBLIC OF UGANDA Chancery: Plot No. 25, Msasani Rd , Oyster bay P.O. Box 6237 ,Dar es Salaam Telephone No:2667391/2667009 Fax: 2667224 E-mail: ugadar@intafrica.com
September 2010
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•DIRECTORY Uganda EMBASSY OF ALGERIA H. E Aziria ABEDELKADER P.O. Box 4025, Kampala Tel. No. 256-312-265212/3 Fax: 256-312-265214 Telex 61184, Jazaira E-mail: ambalgka@imul.com Ambassador's Line: 256- 41-232689
CHINA Plot 37 Malcolm X Avenue Kololo P.O. Box 4106, Kampala Tel. 256-41-231095/259881/234058 Fax: 256-41-235087/341463 E-mail: chinemb@infocom.co.ug EMBASSY OF THE DEMOCRATIC REPUBLIC OF CONGO 20 Philip Road, Kololo P.O. Box 4972 Kampala Tel. 256-41-250099/232021 /230610 Fax: 256-41-340140 Email: amba_rdc_kla@yahoo.fr
APOSTOLIC NUNCIATURE (VATICAN EMBASSY) Chwa II Road, Mbuya Hill P.O. Box 7177, Kampala Tel. 256-41-505619 Fax: 256-41-221774 E:mail: nuntius@utlonline.co.ug EMBASSY OF AUSTRIA Regional Office for Development Co-operation of the Austrian Embassy in Kampala Crusader House, Annex 3rd Floor 3 Portal Avenue P.O. Box 7457, Kampala. Tel. 256-41-235103/179 Fax: 256-41-235160 Email: franz.breitweiser@ada.gv.at ROYAL BELGIAN EMBASSY, KAMPALA Email: jan.debruyne@diplobel.org 3rd Floor Ruwenzori House Lumumba Avenue Plot 1 P.O. Box 7043, Kampala. Tel. 256-41-349559/569/570 Emergency No. 256-772-704400 Fax. 256-41-347212 E-mail: kampala@diplobel.org , coop. kla@diplobel.org (development cooperation) Website : www.diplomatie.be/kampala. EMBASSY OF THE REPUBLIC OF BURUNDI Plot No.14 Hannington Road SM Chambers Building, 1st Floor P.O.Box 29214. Kampala Tel: 256-41-235850 Fax: 256-41-235845 Email: ambabukpl@utlonline.co.ug
58
EMBASSY OF THE REPUBLIC OF CUBA KAR Drive Plot 10 Lower Kololo Terrace P.O. Box. 9226, Kampala Tel. 256-41-233742 Fax. 256-41-233320/236438 E-mail: ecuba@africaonline.co.ug ROYAL DANISH EMBASSY Plot. 3 Lumumba Avenue P.O. Box. 11243 Kampala Tel. 256-312-263211 Emergency Mobile: 256-772-221470 Fax. 256-312-264624 Telex: 61560 AMBADANE E-mail: kmtamb@um.dk Website: www.ambkampala.um.dk EMBASSY OF THE ARAB REPUBLIC OF EGYPT E-mail: stibar@um.dk 33 Kololo Hill Drive P.O. Box 4280 Kampala Tel. 256-41-254525/245152 Telex No. 61122 EGYPT UGA Fax. 256-41-232103 Email: egyembug@utlonline.co.ug EMBASSY OF THE FEDERAL DEMOCRATIC REPUBLIC OF ETHIOPIA Plot No. 3L, Off Kira Road, Kit ante Close. P.O. Box 7745, Kampala Tel. No. 256-41-348340/ 256-41-341881 Fax. No. 256-41-341885
September 2010
E-mail: ethiokam@utlonline.co.ug
T HE FRENCH EMBASSY IN UGANDA Plot 16 Lumumba Avenue, Nakasero P O Box 7212, Kampala Tel. 256-41-342120 / 342176/342344/5 Fax: 256-41-341252 E-mail:: ambafrance.kampala@diplo matie.gouv.fr Emergency Tel: 256-77-777717 EMBASSY OF THE FEDERAL REPUBLIC OF GERMANY H.E. Alexander MÜHLEN Plot 15 Philip Road, Kololo P.O. Box 7016 Kampala Tel. nn256-41-501111 Fax. 256-41-501115 Telefax: 343136 Emergency no.256-77-763 000 E-mail: germemb@africaonline.co.ug EMBASSY OF ICELAND East African Development Bank Building , 4 Nile Avenue KAMPALA, Uganda Tel: 041 230984/92 Fax: 041 341079 THE HIGH COMMISSION OF INDIA 11 Kyaddondo Road, Nakasero P.O. Box 7040 Kampala Tel. 256-41-259398/344631/342994 Telex. 61161 Fax. 256-41-254943 Gram: HICOMIND, KAMPALA E-mail: hc@hicomindkampala.org hoc@hicomindkampala.org attache@hicomindkampala.org/ EMBASSY OF IRELAND Plot No. 25, Yusuf Lule Road Nakasero P.O. Box 7791 Kampala Tel. No. 256-41-344 348, 256-312-63104/5 Fax: 256-41-344353 E-mail: ireland@ireland.co.ug
EMBASSY OF THE REPUBLIC OF ITALY 11 Lourdel Road, Nakasero P.O. Box 4646 Kampala Tel. 256-41-250442/250450/341786 Fax: 256-41-250448/349526 Emergency; 256-75-750448 E-mail: ambkamp@imul.com Website: www.imul.com/embitaly EMBASSY OF JAPAN East African Development Bank Building, Nile Avenue, Kampala. P.O. Box 23553 Kampala Tel. 256-41-349542/3/4/5 Fax. 256-41-349547 E-mail: jembassy@jembassy.or.ug THE HIGH COMMISSION OF THE REPUBLIC OF KENYA Plot 41, Nakasero Road P.O. Box 5220, Kampala Tel. 256-41-258232/5/6 Fax. 256-41-258239 E-mail: kenhicom@africaonline.co.ug EMBASSY OF THE DEMOCRATIC PEOPLE 'S REPUBLIC OF KOREA 10, Prince Charles Drive, Kololo P.O. Box. 5885 Kampala Tel. 256-41-254603/343424 Telex: 61144 DPRK UG Fax. 256-41-250-224 THE GREAT SOCIALIST PEOPLE'S LIBYAN ARAB Jamahiriya People's Bureau, Kampala Plot 26, Kololo Hill Drive P.O. Box 6079, Kampala Tel. 256-41-344-924-27 256-312-344100 Telex. 61090 Allibya Fax. 256-41-344969, 256312-344237 E-mail: l.a.p.b. @ utlonline.co.ug ROYAL NETHERLANDS EMBASSY 4th Floor, Kisozi Complex, Nakasero Lane P.O. Box. 7728 Kampala Tel. 256-41-346000 Fax. 256-41-231861 E.mail: KAM@minbuza.nl
•DIRECTORY Uganda www.netherlandsembassyu ganda.org ROYAL NORWEGIAN EMBASSY Plot 8a, John Babiiha Avenue P.O. Box. 22770 Kampala Tel. 256-41-343621/ 346733/340848 Fax. 256-41-343936 Mob: 256-75-703107 (Emergency) E-mail: emb.kampala@mfa.no Website: www.norway.go.ug Email: bsl@mfa.no THE HIGH COMMISSION OF THE FEDERAL REPUBLIC OF NIGERIA 33 Nakasero Road, Kampala P.O. Box 4338, Kampala Tel.256-41-233691/2 Fax. 256-41-232543 Telex 61011 Telegraphic address: "NIGERIAN, KAMPALA" Email: nighicom-sgu@africaonline.co.ug EMBASSY OF THE RUSSIAN FEDERATION 28 Malcolm X Avenue, Kololo P.O. Box 7022, Kampala Tel:256-41-345-698 Telegraphic address: "SOVPOSOL" Telex 61518 SOVPOS UG Fax 345-798 E-mail: russemb@imul.com
EMBASSY OF THE REPUBLIC OF RWANDA Ambassador Extraordinary and Plenipotentiary: H.E Kamali Karegesa IGNACE Plot No. 2, Nakaima Road Next to Uganda National Museum P.O. Box. 2468 Kampala Tel. 256-41-344045/333541 Fax. 256-41-258547 ROYAL EMBASSY OF SAUDI ARABIA Plot 3 Okurut Close, Kololo P.O. Box 22558, Kampala Tel. 256-41-340614/340616 Tel: 256-41-231248 (Ambassador's Direct) Fax: 254017 E-mail: resakla@utlonline.co.ug EMBASSY OF THE REPUBLIC OF SUDAN Plot 21 Nakasero Road P O Box 3200 Kampala Tel: 256-41-230001/346583, 256-312-261358/261082 Fax: 256-41-346573 E-mail: sudanikampala@utlonline. co.ug
HIGH COMMISSION OF THE REPUBLIC OF SOUTH AFRICAN Plot No. 2B Nakasero Hill Lane P.O. Box 22667 Kampala Tel: 256-41-343543/44/46/60 or 256-312-220006/9 Fax: 256-41-438216 EMBASSY OF SWEDEN Plot no. 24 Lumumba Avenue, Nakasero P.O. Box 22669 Kampala Tel: 256-41-340970 Fax: 256-41-340979 Emergency Tel: 256-77-740970 Email: ambassaden.kampala@sida.se HIGH COMMISSION OF THE UNITED REPUBLIC OF TANZANIA 6, Kagera Road, Nakasero P O Box 5750, Kampala Tel: 256-41-256272 Fax: 256-41-343973 Emergency Number after Closure: 256-41-348139 Telegramme: TANZANREP KAMPALA E-mail: tzrepkla@imul.com
Main switchboard: (256) (31) 2312000 Telephone: (256) (31) 2312000 Fax: (256) (41) 4257304 General Enquiries (256) (31) 2312281 Consular/Visa Sections (256) (31) 2312267 Political Section Email: bhcinfo@starcom.co.ug Email Kampala.Visasection@fco.gov.uk Email Consular.kampala@fco.gov.uk Website http://ukinuganda.fco. gov.uk/en/:: EMBASSY OF THE UNITED STATES OF AMERICA Plot 1577 Ggaba Road P.O. Box 7007 Kampala Tel. 256-41-259791/5 , 234142, 233231 Fax: 256-41-259794 DELEGATION OF THE EUROPEAN COMMISSION IN UGANDA EUROPEAN UNION 15th floor, Crested Towers Building Plot 17-23 Hannington Road P.O. Box 5244, Kampala Tel: 256-41-233303/4, & 256-41-250049, 343516 Emergency Tel: 256-41-257907 Fax: 256-41-233-708 E-mail: delegation-uganda@.cec.eu.int
HIGH COMMISSION OF THE UNITED KINGDOM OF GREAT BRITAIN AND NORTHERN IRELAND British High Commission 4 Windsor Loop P. O. Box 7070 Kampala
Calling on all Missions... Update your contacts
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+254 20 2525253/4/5 September 2010
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•DIRECTORY RWANDA EMBASSY OF SOUTH AFRICA P.o Box 6563 Kigali Tel: +250(0) 252583185-89 Fax: +250(0) 252511760 Email: saemkgl@rwanda1.com www.saembassy-kigali.org.rw GERMAN EMBASSY P.o Box 225 Kigali Tel: +250(0) 252 575222 www.konsulate.de/rwanda_e.php BELGIAN EMBASSY P.o Box 81 Kigali Tel: +250(0) 252 575551 Fax: +250(0) 252 575551 www.diplomatie.be/Kigali/default
BURUNDIAN EMBASSY P.o Box 714 Kigali Tel: +250(0) 252 515512 CANADIAN EMBASSY P.o Box 1177 Kigali Tel: +250(0) 252 573210 www.dfait-maeci.gc.ca/africa/ rwanda-contact-en.asp CHINESE EMBASSY P.o Box 1345 Kigali Tel: +250(0) 252 575415 Fax: +250(0) 252 576420
KENYAN EMBASSY P.o Box 6159 Kigali Tel: +250(0) 252 583336 Fax: +250(0) 252 51091
NUNCIATURE EMBASSY P.o Box 261 Kigali Tel: +250(0) 252 575293 Fax: +250(0) 252 575181
BRITISH EMBASSY P.o Box 576 Kigali Tel: +250(0) 252 584940 Fax: +250(0) 252 510588 www.britishembassykigali.org.rw
SWEDISH EMBASSY P.o Box 547 Kigali Tel: +250(0) 252 5753534 Fax: +250(0) 252 586808
RUSSIAN EMBASSY P.o Box 40 Kigali Tel: +250(0) 252 575286 Fax: +250(0) 252 503322 www.russianembassy.biz/rwan da-kigali
EGYPT ARAB REPUBLIC EMBASSY Tel: +250(0) 252 587510 Fax: +250(0) 252 576420
TANZANIAN EMBASSY P.o Box 3973 Kigali Tel: +250(0) 252 505400 Fax: +250(0) 252 505403 USA EMBASSY P.o Box 28 Kigali Tel: +250(0) 252 505601 Fax: +250(0) 252 572128 http://www.usembkigali.net
•DIRECTORY Kenya
ALGERIAN EMBASSY IN NAIROBI, KENYA Muthaiga Road 37 PO BOX 64140 Mobile Plaza 00620 Nairobi Phone: 254 20 31 04 30, 254 20 31 04 40 Fax: 254 20 31 04 50 Email: Algerianembassy@wananchi.com ARGENTINIAN EMBASSY Kitisuru Km. 3.3e P.O. Box 30283 Nairobi GPO 00100 Kenya Phone: (+254) 20 418 3119 (254) 2 - 254 20 41 8 0161 Fax: (+254) 20 418 3054 Email: ekeny@bidii.com
AUSTRIAN CONSULATE 3rd floor, Ralli House Nyerere Avenue P.O.B. 84045 Mombasa, Kenya Phone: (+254) (41) 31 33 86 Fax: (+254) (41) 31 33 86 Email: tibor@tgaalarchitects.co.ke
AUSTRALIAN CONSULATE Riverside Drive (400 mtrs off Chiromo Road) (Postal Add: PO Box 39341) Nairobi, Kenya Phone: 254 20 444 5034-9 Fax: 254 20 444 4718 Web Site: http://www.kenya.embassy. gov.au/
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AUSTRIAN EMBASSY 2nd floor, City House Corner Wabera Street/Standard Street P.O.B. 30560 00100 Nairobi, Kenya Phone: (+254/20) 31 90 76 to 78 Fax: (+254/20) 34 22 90 Web Site: http://www.aussenministerium.at/nairobi Email: nairobi-ob@bmeia.gv.at
BANGLADESHI CONSULATE Ole Odume Str. P.O. Box 41645 City: Nairobi Phone: +254 2 562 815 Fax: 562 817
September 2010
BELGIAN EMBASSY IN NAIROBI, KENYA Limuru Road Muthaiga Nairobi Phone: + (254) (20) 71.22.011/71.22.166/ 71.23.093/71.22.181 Fax: + (254) (20) 71.23.050 Web Site: http://www.diplomatie.be/ nairobi Email: Nairobi@diplobel.fed.be BELGIAN CONSULATE P.O. Box 91276 - 80103 Mombasa (Kenya) Fax: + (254) (41) 474.236 Email: consulbel@mombasa.be BOTSWANA CONSULATE P.O. Box 754 00606 Sarit Centre Nairobi, Kenya Phone: (2542) 447735 (2542) 448726 Fax: (2542) 449782 CANADIAN CONSULATE Limuru Road, Gigiri Nairobi, Kenya Phone: (011 254 20) 366 3000 Fax: (011 254 20) 366 3900 Web Site: http://www.kenya.gc.ca Email: nrobi@international.gc.ca
CANADIAN CONSULATE The Permanent Mission of Canada to the United Nations Environment Programs, Nairobi Limuru Road, Cigiri Nairobi, Kenya Phone: (011 254 20) 366 3000 Fax: (011 254 20) 366 3900 Email: nrobi@international.gc.ca CANADIAN CONSULATE The Permanent Mission of Canada to the United Nations Centre for Human Settlements (HABITAT), Nairob Limuru Road, Gigiri Nairobi, Kenya Phone: (011 254 20) 366 3000 Fax: (011 254 20) 366 3900 Email: nrobi@international.gc.ca CHILEAN EMBASSY Riverside Drive N 66 Riverside P.O.Box 45554 00100 Nairobi City: Nairobi Phone: 254(20) 4452950 254(20) 4452951 Fax: 254(20) 4443209 Email: echile@echile.co.ke
•DIRECTORY Kenya CHINESE EMBASSY Woodlands Road Nairobi, Kenya Phone: 00254-2726851 00254-2722559 Fax: 00254-2726402 00254-2711540 Web Site: http://ke.china-embassy.org Email: chinaemb_ke@mfa.gov.cn COLOMBIAN EMBASSY I N NAIROBI, KENYA International House 6th Floor Mama Ngina Street P.O. Box 48494-00100, NAIROBI Phone: 009 254 2 246770/1 Fax: 009 254 2 246772 Email: emkenia@colombia.or.ke CONGOLESE EMBASSY IN NAIROBI, KENYA Embassy of Congo in Nairobi, Kenya Botschaft , 2nd floor, City House, Corner Wabera Street/ Standard Street Nairobi, Kenya Phone: (+254 / 2) 24 73 65 Fax: (+254 / 2) 33 17 92 Email: austria@africaonline.co.ke COSTA RICAN CONSULATE IN NAIROBI, KENYA No. 982-Code 00621 Village Market Nairobi Kenya Phone: 00 (254) 20 -71-20330 Fax: 00 (254) 20 -71 22255 Email: aranibarmkt@iconnect.co.ke CUBAN EMBASSY IN NAIROBI, KENYA 5th Floor, International Live House Mama Ngina Street P.O. Box 198, Sarit Centre Nairobi, Kenya. Phone: (254) 202 41003y 204 1005 Fax: (254)) 202 410 23 Email: embacuba@swiftkenya.com CYPRIOT CONSULATE IN NAIROBI, KENYA International House, 6th Floor P.O.Box 30739 00100 Nairobi, Kenya Phone: + 254 20 2220881 Fax: + 254 20 312202 Email: cyphc@nbnet.co.ke CZECH EMBASSY IN NAIROBI, KENYA Jumuia Place, Lenana Road P.O.Box 48785 00100 Nairobi Republic of Kenya Phone: 0025420/2731010
0025420/2731011 0025420/2731012 Fax: 0025420-2731013 Web Site: http://www.mzv.cz/nairobi Email: nairobi@embassy.mzv.cz,zamini. cz@africaonline.co.ke
Greenway Rd off Westlands Rd Phone: +254-(0)20-3750721-4 Fax: +254-(0)20-3750714 Web Site: http://www.finland.or.ke Email: sanomat.nai@formin.fi
P.O. Box 40412 Nairobi Phone: +00 254 20 445 1460-3 Fax: +00 254 20 445 1474 Web Site: http://www.ambnairobi.um.dk Email: nboamb@um.dk
DANISH EMBASSY 13 Runda Drive, Runda P.O. Box 40412-00100 GPO Nairobi, Kenya Phone: 254 20 7122848-51 Fax: 254 20 7120638 Web Site: http://www.ambnairobi.um.dk Email: nboamb@um.dk
FINNISH CONSULATE Mikanjuni Road Liwatoni Bay c/o Shipmarc Ltd. Postal address: Honorary Consulate of Finland P.O. Box 99543 City: Mombasa Phone: (254-41) 229 241/-2/-3 Fax: (254-41) 221390 Email: jhn@africaonline.co.ke
HONDURAN EMBASSY Kabarsiran Avenue (off James Gichuru Road) Lavington, P.O.Box: 61146-00200 Phone: 00 - 254 - 20 444-2612 Fax: 00 - 254 444-2101 Web Site: http://www.mfa.gov.hu/emb/ nairobi Email: mission.nai@kum.hu
FRENCH EMBASSY Barclay's Plaza, 9th Floor, Loita street P.O. Box 41784 00100 Nairobi Phone: [254] (20) 277 80 00 Fax: [254] (20) 277 81 80 Web Site: http://www.ambafrance-ke.org/ Email: ambafrance.nairobi@diplomatie. gouv.fr
HONDURAN CONSULATE Kabarsiran Avenue (off James Gichuru Road) Lavington, P.O.Box: 61146-00200 Phone: 00 - 254 - 20 444-2612 Fax: 00 - 254 444-2101 Web Site: http://www.mfa.gov.hu/emb/ nairobi Email: mission.nai@kum.hu
DANISH CONSULATE Mikanjuni Road, Liwatoni Bay P.O. Box 99543 Mombasa, Kenya Phone: +254 41 229241/2/3 Fax: +254 41 221390 Email: jhn@africaonline.co.ke ECUADORIAN CONSULATE P.O.Box 76626, Nairobi, Kenya Phone: 254 2 722382 Fax: 254 2 720936 Email: alfaroma@net200ke.com EGYPTIAN EMBASSY 24 Othaya road off Gitanga road, Kileleshwa P.O.BOX: 30285 GPO 00100 Nairobi, Kenya Phone: (25420) 3870298-38702783870360 Fax: (25420) 3870383 Web Site: http://www.mfa.gov.eg/Missions/kenya/nairobi/embassy/en-GB Email: eg.emb_nairobi@mfa.gov.eg ERITREAN EMBASSY PO Box 38651 2nd Floor, New Rehema House Raphta Road, Westlands Phone: +254-2-443164 Fax: +254-2-443165 ETHIOPIAN EMBASSY State House Avenue P.O. Box: 45198 GPO Nairobi, Kenya Phone: 00254-2-2732057 Fax: 254-2-2732054 Email: executive@ethiopianembassy. or.ke FINNISH EMBASSY Eden Square, Block 3, 6th floor
GERMAN EMBASSY Williamson House 4th Ngong Avenue Nairobi Phone: (00254 20) 426 21 00 Fax: (00254 20) 426 21 29 Web Site: http://www.nairobi.diplo.de Email: info@nairobi.diplo.de GERMAN CONSULATE Bank of India Building 2. Stock, Nkrumah Road, Mombasa P.O Box 86779, Mombasa, Kenia Phone: (00254 41) 222 87 81 Fax: (00254 41) 231 45 04 Email: mombasa@germanconsul.com GREEK EMBASSY Nation Tower, 7th Floor Kimathi Str. P.O.Box 30543 00100 Nairobi Phone: (00254 20) 340722 or 340744 Fax: (00254 20) 2216044 Email: gremb.nai@mfa.gr
HUNGARIAN EMBASSY Kabarsiran Avenue (off James Gichuru Road) Lavington, Nairobi, Kenya P.O.Box: 61146-00200 Phone: 444-2499 Fax: 444-2101 Web Site: http://www.mfa.gov.hu/emb/ nairobi Email: mission.nai@kum.hu HUNGARIAN CONSULATE Mombasa Kastan Center NR Nyali Bridge, P.O.Box 90653, Mombasa/Kenya Phone: 475-074, 474-947, 0733-608-767 (mobile) Fax: 471-257, 473-533 Email: mike@southerncrosssafaris.com INDIAN CONSULATE Bank of India Building Nkrumah Road PO Box 90164 Mombasa Phone: +254 41 2224 433/2311 051 Fax: +254 41 2316 740 Web Site: http://www.hcinairobi.co.ke/ Pages/AHC_mombasa.html Email: cimsa@swiftmombasa.com
GREEK CONSULATE P.O. Box 90194, Mombasa, Kenya Phone: (002541) 1228286 Fax: (002541) 1314642 GREENLANDIC EMBASSY Royal Danish Embassy in Kenya Cassia House Westlands Office Park off Waiyaki Way
INDIAN CONSULATE Jeevan Bharati Building
September 2010
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•DIRECTORY Kenya Harambee Avenue PO Box 30074-00100 Nairobi Phone: +254 - 20 222 566 / 2225 104 / 2224 500 Fax: +254 - 20 316 242 Web Site: http://www.hcinairobi.co.ke/ Email: hcindia@kenyaweb.com
University way, Ann. Towers 15th Floor. P.O.Box30455-100 Nairobi, Kenya. Tel: 222000, 2218888 Fax: 2217772, 312317 web: ken@mosat.go.ke email: emb-ke@mosat.go.kr
INDONESIAN EMBASSY Menengai Road, Upper Hill P.O. Box 48868-00100 Nairobi, Kenya Phone: (254-20) 271-4196 to 98 Fax: (254-20) 271-3475 Web Site: http://www.indonesia.or.ke Email: indonbi@indonesia.or.ke
KUWAITI EMBASSY Matayja Road P.O.Box 42353 960, 6763275, 6761614 Fax: (+254-20) 6767053
IRISH CONSULATE Dante Diesel Workshop Building Masai Road Off Mombasa Road P.O. Box 30659 00100 Phone: 00 254 20 556647 Fax: 00 254 2 556647 Email: irconsul@swiftkenya.com ISRAELI EMBASSY Embassy of Israel in Nairobi, Kenya send edits Bishop Road(Opp. Fairview Hotel) P.o.Box 30354 - 00100 Nairobi,Kenya Phone: 254 20 2722182 / 3 Fax: 254 20 2715966 Web Site: http://nairobi.mfa.gov.il Email: info@nairobi.mfa.gov.il ITALIAN EMBASSY Mama Ngina St. International House, 9th floor P.O. Box 30107 Phone: (2542) 337356 Fax: (2542) 337056 Web Site: http://www.ambnairobi. esteri.it Email: ambasciata.nairobi@esteri.it JAPANESE EMBASSY Ground Floor, ICEA Bldg, Kenyatta Avenue P.O. Box 60202 Kenya Phone: +254-20-341244 Fax: +254-20-252007 Web Site: http://www.ke.emb-japan. go.jp/ Email: jinfocul@eojkenya.org EMBASSY OF REP OF KOREA HisExc. Lee Han-Gon
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MALAWIAN EMBASSY Westlands, off Waiyaki Way P.O. Box 30453 Phone: +(254) 2 440 569 Fax: +(254) 2 440 568 MALAYSIAN CONSULATE No. 58, Red Hill Road Gigiri P.O. Box 42286, 00200 Nairobi, Kenya Phone: +254 20 7123373/74/75 Fax: +254 20 7123371/67 Web Site: http://www.kln.gov.my/ perwakilan/nairobi Email: malnairobi@kln.gov.my MOROCCAN EMBASSY United Nations Street, Gigiri P.O. Box 617 00621 Nairobi City: Nairobi Phone: (+254) (20) 7120 765 / 795 Fax: (+254) (20) 7120 817 Email: sifmanbi@clubinternetk.com MOZAMBICAN EMBASSY Embassy of Mozambique P.O.Box 66923 Bruo House, 3rd Floor Standard Street Nairobi Kenya Phone: (+254-20) 221979, 214191 Fax: (+254-20) 222446 Email: mozambiq@africaonline.co.ke NEPALESE CONSULATE Nairobi, Kenya Gateway Place, Milimani Road, Phone: 254-2-2713131-7 / 254-204348149, Fax: 254-20- 2713138 Email: gkaruri@gateway-insurance.co.ke DUTCH EMBASSY Riverside Lane P.O. Box 41537 00100 Nairobi, Kenya Phone: +254 20 42 88 000 Fax: +254 20 44 47 416
September 2010
Web Site: http://www.netherlandsembassy.or.ke/ Email: nlgovnai@africaonline.co.ke
Phone: (2542) 720-854 Fax: (2542)722-253 Email: salahmousa@yahoo.com
KIWI CONSULATE Diju Investments, Mirage Plaza, Room 2C Second Floor, Argwings Kodhek Road PO Box 52224, 00200 Phone: +254 20 601074 Fax: (+254) 20 272 1990, +254 20 601076 or (+254) 20 27 Email: dijuinvest@inds.co.ke
SWEDISH EMBASSY Lion Place, 3rd floor Waiyaki Way, Westlands Nairobi Kenya Phone: +254 (20) 423 40 00/+254 (0)734 600 851 Fax: +254-20-445 2008/09 Web Site: http://www.swedenabroad. com/nairobi Email: ambassaden.nairobi@sida.se
NORWEGIAN EMBASSY Lion Place, Waiyaki Way P.O.Box 4636300100, Westlands, Nairobi Phone: (020) 4451510-6 Fax: (020) 4451517 Web Site: http://www.norway.or.ke/ Email: emb.nairobi@mfa.no PAKISTANI EMBASSY St. Michael's Road, Off Church Road, Off Waiyaki Way, Westlands, P.O. Box 30045, 00100, Nairobi Phone: (+254-20) 4443911 & 4443912 Fax: (+254-20) 4446507 & 4443803 Email: parepnairobi@iwayafrica.com PHILIPPINE EMBASSY State House Road (next to Hillcrest College) P.O. Box 47941 00100 Phone: (25420) 272-5310 Fax: (25420) 272-5316 Email: nairobipe@philembassy.or.ke / nairobipe@dfa.gov.ph ROMANIAN EMBASSY Gardenia Road-Gigiri or P.O. Box 63240 Nairobi 00619 Phone: (00) (254) (20) 7123109 or 7120607 Fax: (00) (254) (20) 7122061 Email: secretariat@romanianembassy.co.ke RUSSIAN EMBASSY SPANISH EMBASSY CBA Building 2nd Floor Upper Hill PO Box 45503 00100 Nairobi Phone: (+254-20) 2720222/6 / 0733631144 Fax: +254-20-27202226 Email: emb.nairobi@maec.es SUDANESE EMBASSY Kabarnet Road, off Ngong Road 48784 Nairobi, Kenya.
TANZANIAN EMBASSY Taifa Road Re-insurance Plaza, 9th Floor Phone: (+254-2)-331056 / 331057 / 331104 Fax: +254-2-218269 Email: tanzania@user.africaonline.co.ke THAI EMBASSY Rose Avenue, Off Denis Pritt Rd, P.O. Box 58349 P.O. Box 58349 Phone: (254-2) 715243, 715800, 715796, 714276 Fax: (254-2) 715801, 715802 Web Site: http://www.thaiembassy. org/nairobi Email: thainbi@thainbi.or.ke TURKISH EMBASSY P.O. Box 64748 00620 Phone: +254-20-7126929 / +254-207126930 Fax: +254-20-7126931 Web Site: http://www.nairobi.emb.mfa. gov.tr Email: tcbenair@accesskenya.co.ke UGANDAN CONSULATE Uganda House Kenyatta Avenue P.O.Box 60853 Nairobi, Kenya Phone: (+254-20) 2330801, 2330814, 2330834 Fax: (+254-20) 2330970 Email: asiimwe@africaonline.co.ke UGANDAN EMBASSY Riverside Paddock Off Riverside Drive Phone: (+254-20) 4445420/4449096 Fax: (+254-20) 4443772 Email: ugacomnrb@todays.co.ke, ugahicom@todaysonline.com
•DIRECTORY Kenya
BRITISH CONSULATE Upper Hill Road PO Box 30465-00100 GPO Phone: 254 20 2844 000 Fax: 254 20 2844077 254 20 2844239 Web Site: http://www.britishhighcommission.gov.uk/kenya Email: bhcinfo@jambo.co.ke AMERICAN EMBASSY P. O. Box 606 Village Market 00621 Nairobi, Kenya Phone: 363-6000, Fax: 363-3410 Web Site: http://nairobi.usembassy.gov/ VENEZUELAN EMBASSY Mama Ngina Street International House, 3rd floor Nairobi, Kenya Phone: (+254-20)-340 178 / 340 167 / 2340 178 Fax: +254-20-337 487 / +254-20-2337 487 Email: embavene@africaonline.co.ke YEMENI EMBASSY Corner Ngong and Karbarnet Roads P.O. Box 44642 Kenya Phone: (+254) (20) 56 4379 / 57 4646 or (+254) (20) 386 4379 / 387 4646 Fax: (+254-20) 3874680, 3861071 ZAMBIAN EMBASSY Nyerere Road Nyerere Road City: Nairobi Phone: (+254-20) 72476,724799,724850 Email: zambiacom@swiftkenya.com
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ZAMBIAN CONSULATE P.O.Box 48741 Nairobi Kenya Phone: (+254-20) 2724850, 2724796, 2724799 Fax: (+254-20) 2718494 Email: zambiacom@swiftkenya.com ZIMBABWEAN CONSULATE High Commission of Zimbabwe in Nairobi, Kenya 6th Floor Minnet ICDC Building, Mamlanka Rd, PO 30806 Nairobi, Kenya Phone: (+254-2) 721071 Fax: (+254-2) 726503 Email: zimna@africaonline.co.ke
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•DIARY Looking Forward SEPTEMBER NATIONAL DAYS Date 1 6 6 6 7 10 12 12 15 15 17 20 24 27 30
Country Libya Canada Swaziland USA Brazil Guinea Bissau USA Guinea Bissau Costa Rica Guatemala Angola Mali South Africa USA Botswana
Occasion National Day Labour Day National day Labour Day Independence Day Independence Day National Grandparents Day National Day Independence Day Independence Day Day of mourning of president Neto National Day National Heritage Day National Family Day National Day
OCTOBER NATIONAL DAYS 1 Nigeria Republic Day 2 Guinea Independence Day 4 Lesotho Indepence Day 6 Egypt National Day 9 Uganda Independence Day 10 Kenya National Day 12 Sudan Republic day 14 Republic Democratic of Congo Youth day 14 Tanzania Mwalimu Julius k. Nyerere Day 20 Kenya National Day 21 Somalia National Day 22 Zimbabwe Republic Day
•DEA CLASSIFIEDS
UN INTERNATIONAL DAYS 1 International Day For The Older Person 2 International Day Of Non –Violence 3 World Habitat Day 4-10 World Space Week 5 World Teacher Day 9 World Post Day 10 World Mental Health Day 13 International Day For Natural Disaster Reduction 15 International Day Of Rural Women 16 World Foods Day 17 International Day For Eradication Of Poverty 24 United Nation Day 25 World Development International Day 1-30 Disarmament Week
ELECTION CALENDER Country Moldova Tuvalu Guinea Sweden Venezuela
Election Referendum Parliamentary Presidential second round Parliamentary Legislative
UN INTERNATIONAL DAYS 10 World Suicide Prevention Day 11 Talk Like A Pirate Day 21 International Day of Peace
Date September 5th September 16th September 19th September 19th September 26th
GM Congratulates the Kenyan People on the Rebirth of the Nation
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