[kictanet] Bitange for President? Driving Knowledge Economy? Online Interview with PS Ndemo

Sun Aug 7 20:45:26 EAT 2011

I totally agree with you on this Dr. Ndemo, greed should be declared a
national disaster, in moments like this we need benevolent
dictatorship, well done for hitting the nail on the head, the truth
will set us free.

On 8/7/11, bitange at jambo.co.ke <bitange at jambo.co.ke> wrote:
> Listers,
> Allow me to say a few things about unemployment:
>
> From basic economics, we know how to reduce unemployment – spend money on
> public investments – that is roads, rail, energy, telecommunications,
> urban development etc and other non government investments such as the new
> Aga Khan Hospital expansion, Delta Property investments in Kenya, National
> Oil Refinery expansion, Kenya Breweries expansion, investment in value
> added services etc.  Creating jobs in a developing country should be what
> Americans call a no brainer.  In developing countries lies many
> opportunities but the scale of greed far exceeds national interests.
>
> Some three months ago, I met with top officials of Fedex, a worldwide
> logistics company.  They expressed interest in creating Kenya a regional
> hub that would serve both Middle East, parts of Asia and Africa.  They
> needed several acres of land within an Airport.  I also got wind that
> Boeng were considering Kenya as a regional hub for Repair and Maintenance.
>  I liaised with IFC top officials and one VP came to see me over this
> lucrative investment.  He concurred with me that we needed a Greenfield
> airport.  I contacted my counterpart in Transport we started a search for
> an ideal location with the help of the Directorate of Civil Aviation.  The
> result was land adjacent to Konza.  Quickly I called the leaders from the
> area including the Ranch cooperative leaders.  They control more than
> 100,000 hectares of empty land.  We needed only 20,000 acres for an
> Aerotropolis which will have encompassed Konza.
>
> IFC did not want an outright purchase of Land considering the kind of
> publicity we went through in acquiring Konza.  They offered equity in the
> project and promised to source for the initial $1 billion to start the
> project.  They needed to start the legal process while at the same time
> doing the feasibility study.  When the feasibility study team came from
> Washington, there was nobody to meet on the ground.  We were told the
> Chairman was consulting with the Ministry of Cooperative.  I followed up
> the matter with the Ministry and I got to know that they had no problem.
> The team was played around and they never got to start the feasibility.  I
> went back to the area leadership and was told all was well.  Later I got
> to learn that some rich people wanted to buy out the poor farmers then
> negotiate with IFC.  The farmers hit the roof and called an AGM.  I sent
> my senior officers to the AGM to explain this directly.  Unfortunately,
> when they got there they were threatened and asked to sit silent.  The
> resolution on the ground was to sub divide the land into two acre pieces
> and if anyone wanted the 20,000 acres they are to deal with individual
> owners.
>
> In the meantime we have shelved a project that would have 1) created
> thousands of sustainable jobs, 2) increased the value of the remaining
> land and 3) brought good infrastructure.  Leave alone the pull effect on
> agriculture it would have created to the poor people around the airport.
> Now a Member of Parliament has asked a question to be answered in due
> course “what the Ministry has done in securing land adjacent to Konza
> Technology for any further Development”.  We cannot compulsorily acquire
> this land since these leaders would use the same poor people to create
> trouble.  I have been warned by various leaders that such a move will
> fail.  You cannot blame the Government when the local leadership cannot
> see opportunity or tapper their greed to allow greater good for the
> greater number of people.
>
> The causes of unemployment are not what you see in text books.  It is not
> poverty as many academicians would tell you.  It is greed, it is lack of
> trust among those who represent people’s interest, it is lack of vision,
> it is the minimalist mentality that we have come to embrace.  We must move
> from this hopeless state to greater and collective thinking.  If the poor
> people became shareholders of such a mega project, you change their lives
> forever, you improve your own security as each one of your neighbor would
> have the basic needs and more.  Allow me to deal with other causes of
> unemployment then propose some solutions.
>
> The rate of our population growth is worrisome.  It will both impact not
> only on food security but our future employability.  The recent study on
> education published in the East African showed while you can get good
> education in Kenya, it is not everybody who can access that good
> education.  Good education comes with better chances of being employed
> anywhere on the planet and you need to pay.  Even if Free Education were
> to be improved significantly, you need fewer numbers of children that you
> can afford to give sufficient love.  You cannot pay attention to 12 kids
> let alone understanding the psychological problems they are going through.
>  Parenting is a greater component in the success of any child and the way
> you are brought up increases your chances of employability.  This where
> issues such as values come in.
>
> In recent years, we have messed our Education system.  Like in Germany we
> must retain tertiary institutions.  This is where you get the technicians
> to do Kazi ya Mkono.  Earlier I talked of investments like Aga Khan.  I
> was deliberate because a number of jobs created by the expansion will not
> be taken up by Kenyans.  When an X-ray machine breaks down, we call for
> technicians to come from Germany yet we have thousands of trainable youth
> who can be able to undertake the job at cheaper costs.  The cost of
> bringing in a foreign technician is passed on to the consumer.  This is
> how India has become a cheaper destination for mundane medical issues such
> as diagnostics.
>
> Further we say we need Nuclear plants but we have not even started to
> build capacity.  If we did start the project today, virtually all the
> experts will be foreign.  We lack a comprehensive skills inventory.  This
> will become a guide on what training we need and when we need it in order
> to increase the number of employable youth.  The Government can for
> example provide incentives to students who study in areas that are
> strategic to our economic development.  This skills inventory thing has
> been going on for the past four years.  Although I am a member of the task
> I am not able to impact its fast tracking and my proposal of doing it via
> ICT did not work.  Per diem requirements seems to dictate the pace.  We
> must have the skills inventory in order to address the labour
> demand-supply mismatch that ails our economy.
>
> You cannot talk about unemployment in this country without talking about
> Trade Unions.  It is a sad picture out there.  The Union leadership have
> adopted a psychological warfare that has nothing to do with employment.
> They are harsh and can destroy your reputation in a split second.  Media
> loves this and to some extent fear disclosing the rot in the movement.
> Our labour leaders are some of the richest in this country.  If Lumumba
> were to mount a street protest on account of their life style audit, I
> will join him.    This closed club protects firms and non performing
> employees in equal measure.  We need to be more productive to increase
> opportunities for more jobs.  The unions have not understood this simple
> theory of labour economics.  Had they allowed modern equipment to pick tea
> in Kericho, Tea estates will be more productive and most of those jobs
> would have shifted into value added services and manufacturing.  Just like
> the introduction of IT has increased jobs better than we thought in early
> 80’s when computers were banned.
>
> We therefore need to quickly deal with our educational system, begin to
> plan for future employment opportunities now, remove information
> asymmetries that deny the poor employment opportunities, deal with labour
> regulation and regulatory efficiencies including trade unions, as for
> greed we need to pray to God since sometimes you are not able to
> understand how it attacks.  In the day you have the support of all the
> leadership while at night they undermine every move you make.  Overall we
> can deal with this menace.  Get a better “Candidate” come next year.  One
> Kenya.
>
> Regards
>
>
> Ndemo.
>
>
>
>
>
>
>
>
>> Bwana Ps,
>>
>> First and foremost our condolences, for the loss....
>>
>> Secondly, I'd really wish to commend the moderator who set this thread
>> off.
>> For once we have a lively healthy debate,
>> modelled alongside the live presidential hopeful debates often times held
>> elsewhere in more mature democracies.This
>> is the way to go and it heralds exciting times ahead. I suppose this forum
>> is so well poised to play a leading role in the
>> National discourse aimed at building a better Kenya. So let's keep this
>> up,
>> and perhaps rope in the other "contenders".
>>
>> But 3rdly, this "Sumptuous" debate is also turning out to be highly
>> educative and hugely informational for most of our silent
>> listeners on the list, who are furiously "taking notes". Dr.Ndemo,many of
>> us
>> are just realizing to our utter amazement how
>> much level of knowledge you possess and are willing to share, and your
>> amount of energy is so infectious, that somehow I
>> in my opinion feel we need not limit you to this forum,but find ways in
>> which we can have you engage an even wider and
>> more larger audience out here especially those from the generation Y
>> segment. Listers any ideas...?  Would Townhall style
>> lectures suffice...? Just thinking..
>>
>> I couldn't help noticing an earlier debate touching on infrastructure and
>> feeding our nation, and in the same vein I have also
>> taken a hard look at the events taking place across our country right
>> now,and the greater horn of Africa,and it would be an
>> understatement when I say it's really infuriating to say the least. It
>> defeats any imagination why after independence, 51 yrs
>> down the line we are not self sufficient in food production, with several
>> corners of the nation marginalized such that even
>> humanitarian aid donated by other well meaning Kenyans can not reach those
>> who need it most because there is no
>> infrastructure such as roads and communication to even talk about in the
>> first place... It's maddening..
>>
>> How do you plan to balance infrastructural development across the land, to
>> avoid over-concentration in specific zones at
>> the expense of the rest...?
>>
>> At the same time, what kind/quality of advisers would you be looking for
>> to
>> help you shape policy/decision making.
>> A presidency or leadership is just as good or bad as the quality of the
>> courtiers that gather around.
>>
>> Harry
>>
>>   _____
>>
>> From: kictanet-bounces+harry=comtelsys.co.ke at lists.kictanet.or.ke
>> [mailto:kictanet-bounces+harry=comtelsys.co.ke at lists.kictanet.or.ke] On
>> Behalf Of bitange at jambo.co.ke
>> Sent: Saturday, August 06, 2011 9:01 PM
>> To: harry at comtelsys.co.ke
>> Cc: KICTAnet ICT Policy Discussions
>> Subject: Re: [kictanet] Bitange for President?
>> DrivingKnowledgeEconomy?OnlineInterviewwith PS Ndemo
>>
>>
>> Aki,
>> We are meeting Konza Technology City possible underwriters (local Banks)
>> on
>> Monday morning 7am at Serena. Please come. Many of the quesions you ask
>> will
>> be answered then you can make a summary for the listers.
>>
>> Regards
>>
>>
>> Ndemo.
>>
>>
>>
>> Sent from my BlackBerryR
>>
>>   _____
>>
>> From: aki <aki275 at gmail.com>
>> Date: Sat, 6 Aug 2011 19:45:44 +0300
>> To: KICTAnet ICT Policy Discussions<kictanet at lists.kictanet.or.ke>
>> Cc: <bitange at jambo.co.ke>
>> Subject: Re: [kictanet] Bitange for President? Driving
>> KnowledgeEconomy?OnlineInterview with PS Ndemo
>>
>>
>> Dr Ndemo,
>>
>> While we look forward to a comprehensive response on the High Tech Sector/
>> Malili as soon as you have some time, I believe that you mentioned that
>> completion is about 3 years away. That seems is not a lot of time to get
>> e.g
>> at least 50 companies who have significant turnovers coming close to about
>> Kshs 500 million with a % on exports. I think there may be a need for a
>> review. I already read that IBM super-team is in the country and done some
>> indepth research and assessment into e-Govt, it maybe a good time to ask
>> them to re-access the current trends. Mobile, Web and Social technologiy
>> development platforms trends may only produce slim domestic interest with
>> extremely small turnovers and virtually impossible that either can later
>> contribute to significant economic growth.
>>
>> There could an alternative which would be to look at Comesa/Igad or other
>> markets within our region, create Govt/Private ICT or other sector
>> development action groups to be based at Malili which would also provide
>> Venture Capitalists/Investors an avenue for serious interests. I've had a
>> look at very basic Comesa data, seems Agricultural engineering would do
>> well
>> here. I think JUKAT has the foundations of producing such engineers.
>> However, there is not enough data to full research what Agricultural
>> Engineering and ICT development can do.
>>
>> Also the topic of electricity generation has raised a manufacturing
>> interest. Is any Kenyan company manufacturing the High Voltage Lines
>> insulators ( ceramic/glass based in many cases ) or are we importing
>> these?
>> Each High/Low Power line on every mounted pole needs these isolators.
>> http://knol.google.com/k/overhead-line-insulators
>>
>>
>> Thank you.
>>
>> Rgds.
>>
>>
>>
>> On Fri, Aug 5, 2011 at 10:54 AM, aki <aki275 at gmail.com> wrote:
>>
>>
>> Thank you Dr Ndemo, and will await to read the comprehensive response. :-)
>>
>>
>>
>> On Fri, Aug 5, 2011 at 9:45 AM, <bitange at jambo.co.ke> wrote:
>>
>>
>> Aki,
>> Whereas by chance one of the aaplications developed here may become a
>> global
>> brand, we do not want to leave to chance. That is why we are developing
>> centers of excellency, standards and incubators to make sure we part of
>> global standards. There is much learning that we must go through. The
>> reason
>> we should seek to collaborate while guarding our inventions.
>>
>> As I write, we are working on a digital economy policy. We shall come up
>> with a specific legislation in this emerging sector. Create special
>> incentives that would propel it to greater levels.
>>
>> We also must deal with Universities inorder to create the triple helix
>> that
>> has worked in many parts of the world. Strathmore is leading in the right
>> direction. We want to fully their patnership with Sumsang and Safaricom.
>> Through such arrangement we create capacities that lead to new other
>> enterprises.
>>
>> This is an area I have the greatest interest and would want to explore. I
>> am
>> using the annoying Blackberry so please allow me to respond more
>> comprehensively when I get to a real keyboard.
>>
>>
>>
>> Ndemo.
>>
>>
>>
>>
>>
>> Sent from my BlackBerryR
>>
>>   _____
>>
>> From: aki <aki275 at gmail.com>
>> Date: Fri, 5 Aug 2011 09:13:11 +0300
>> To: KICTAnet ICT Policy Discussions<kictanet at lists.kictanet.or.ke>
>> Cc: <bitange at jambo.co.ke>
>> Subject: Re: [kictanet] Bitange for President? Driving Knowledge
>> Economy?OnlineInterview with PS Ndemo
>>
>> Dr Ndemo,
>>
>> I have a final question on regarding the creation of the High Tech Sector
>> in
>> preparation for Malili. While cheaper rent or infrastructure facilities
>> maybe an additional advantage, I think we are still to find a way to push
>> private sector and govt incentives/policies on creating the High Tech
>> Sector. I believe we are no where at the moment, neither the mobile or web
>> development sectors even come close to becoming the next billion shilling
>> industry sectors. These two sectors are in a transition mode where the
>> demand is for more localised settings.
>>
>> What will the govt do to ensure that kenyan companies start looking at
>> holding patents and developing the needs of external markets based on
>> technology trends. I think the last thing we would want to see is a
>> scenario
>> where kenyans in ICT become more of daily wage labourers on contract
>> basis.
>> While this may seem an ideal employment creation scenario, the results
>> will
>> be negative in the long term.
>>
>> What steps and incentives will create the High Tech Sector companies and
>> will opening up the development of critical govt sectors offer an
>> incentive
>> to create broad based technologies?
>>
>> Thank you.
>>
>> Rgds.
>>
>>
>>
>>
>>
>>
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