[kictanet] Korea

Thu Nov 10 20:22:20 EAT 2011

Daktari,

nice update. sounds like u had a trip into the future. 

ironically, these very Koreans had their trip into the future in the late 1960s - when am told they visited Nairobi to see the then efficient transport service run by non other than Kenya Bus Service...apparently Kenya even donated food because of the prevailing hunger in Korea!  But now, 40yrs later, we seem to have taken a massive leap backwards....

But maybe the generation X, Y and Z can bail us out through ICTs.

walu.

--- On Thu, 11/10/11, bitange at jambo.co.ke <bitange at jambo.co.ke> wrote:

From: bitange at jambo.co.ke <bitange at jambo.co.ke>
Subject: Re: [kictanet] Korea
To: jwalu at yahoo.com
Cc: "KICTAnet ICT Policy Discussions" <kictanet at lists.kictanet.or.ke>
Date: Thursday, November 10, 2011, 7:10 PM

Edith,
Today we spent some time in Daejeon, the Silicon Valley of Korea.  The
city is about 200 Km north of Seoul or a two and half hour drive.  By rail
it took us 45 minutes to cover the distance in their 350 Kph super train. 
It was faster than driving from South B to City Centre at peak hour in
Nairobi.  Korea is a country of hills but the highways and rail tunnels
run straight since they blast through these hills making driving
pleasurable.

Even at the breath taking speed, we had a glimpse of their farm lands and
rural life.  The rice fields are dry and clear scattered with hay. Here
nothing goes to waste as this is what improves on their productivity.  Kim
who sat next to me tells me much of hay will be animal fodder,
particularly for grazing livestock such as cattle
 and some will be used to make bloakboards thus increasing retuns to
farmers.  For a few minutes I reflected on the waste from our wheat and
corn fields that would easily feed the dying livestock in Northern Kenya
or safe our trees by making bloakbords.

At intervals of about 50 Km there is a city with high rises.  The average
size of an appartment is 90 sq m and with two to three bedrooms.  They
don't need more than that Kim said.  The average family size here is 3. 
Fertility rate is 1.1 per woman going by 2010 statistics.  Fertility rate
in Kenya from the same statistics stands at 5 children per woman with
Central and Nyanza averaging  3 and 6 respectively (the variance between
Central and Nyanza is largely due to education of women and not Kumi Kumi
as Hon. Shitanda may think).

I ask Kim what percentage of their population is urban.  he quickly pulls
his Galaxy handset and googles my question.  This is common here.  Nobody
seems to know anything.  Google has the answer.  Eighty one percent he
says.  We arrive in Daejeon and what strikes you is the amount of rail
infrastructure.  The high speed, the slow speed (cheaper with maximum
speed of 180 kmh on standard gauge.  Note that whenever our train moves at
more than 60 kph, it rolls as we are on narrow gauge) and the goods train.

There are 60 research centers but our trip takes us to their National Data
Center.  It is a seven floor building measuring 40,000 sq m.  It consumes
240 MW of power and has 1,000 employees on a three shift rotation.  They
keep their sensitive data here with a back up facility in another city 70
Kms further north.  They are planning on a third facility that would
mainly focus on business continuity.  The head of the facility receives
us.  He does not speak a single word of English but a woman seated next to
him translates about 70% of what is said.  More important he tells us the
benefits of automation including the efficiencies that government has
created to its citizens and the reduction of corruption in Korea.  He
admits that Korea at one time was as corrupt as any of those countries
struggling in the TI list.

I am foever optimistic that automation will see Kenya eradicate
corruption.  Preliminary results are encouraging.  Pre-digitization at
Lands Ministry has seen revenue jump from Ksh. 3 billion to Ksh. 7
billion.  Once we finish it is estimated that GoK will collect as much as
Ksh. 30 billion.  A similar amount will be recovered if we automated our
procurement.  The Company registry's revenue are up three times. 
Judiciary we have not finished yet butthere are positive signs.

We left Daejeon at 2 pm for a 3.30 pm meeting with the Minister in Public
Service.  There are certainly areas that Korea needs to improve.  In all
the meeting I attended, there was not a single senior woman.

In this all expense paid visit to Korea, I made one serious arror but a
good lesson.  I invited four of the senior people to a dinner sponsored by
Kenya (a diplomatic lingua franca).  My bill came to Kuan. 1.2 million or
$1,000.  Seoul is EXPENSIVE.

Regards.

Ndemo.

> Bwana Ndemo,
>
> Wow! what a transformation! how long has this journey taken? what were the
> key success factors?.
>
> For sure, what we need in Kenya is this "feeling of shame"....that would
> be halfway to eradicating corruption!
>
> Edith
> ________________
> Edith Ofwona Adera
> Senior Program Specialist
> Climate Change & Water Program
> International Development Research Centre | Centre de recherches pour le
> développement international
> Regional Office for Eastern and Southern Africa
> Tel: +254202713160 | Fax/Téléc: +254202711063 | Skype: edithadera
> eadera at idrc.or.ke | www.idrc.ca | www.crdi.ca
> ________________________________________
> From: kictanet-bounces+eadera=idrc.or.ke at lists.kictanet.or.ke
> [kictanet-bounces+eadera=idrc.or.ke at lists.kictanet.or.ke] On Behalf Of
> bitange at jambo.co.ke [bitange at jambo.co.ke]
> Sent: 08 November 2011 17:19
> To: Edith Adera
> Cc: KICTAnet ICT Policy Discussions
> Subject: Re: [kictanet] Korea
>
> I arrived in Korea yesterday for a Global e-Government conference.  ITU
> ranks Korea as number one in ICT diffusion.  From the airport you see
> people walk through with an e-passport using biometrics.  The New Incheon
> airport is 70 Kms west of Seoul, the capital and largest city of South
> Korea with some 11 million inhabitants. It is one of the largest and
> busiest airports in the world actually the world's fourth busiest airport
> by cargo traffic, and the world's eighth busiest airport in terms of
> international passengers in 2010.
>
> Korea is about 99,000 sq Kms or one half of the Rift Valley Province of
> Kenya with a population of 50 million and a GDP of $1 trillion (Kenya's
> GDP is about $35 billion).  In the 60's it was largely a donor recipient
> country with a GDP less than that of Kenya and more than 60% of its
> population below poverty.  They have turned tables to be a member of the
> OECD and a donor country over a short period.
>
> For many years it mostly depended on the USA as its largest trade partner
> but over a time they focused their energies on the Asian Markets.  Its
> trade with China, USA and Japan in 2010 figures stands at %190, $98 and
> $90 billion respectively.  They import a great deal of food and the reason
> why we should not lease our land but use it to improve on our economic
> growth.  A Kg of meat here is $100 imported from Canada and Brazil.
>
> I asked our Ambassador why we cannot sell our meat here.  He says we do
> not meat their standards.  This should not be a problem since we have
> broadband in most parts of the country that we can keep pace with the rest
> of the world in keeping the records especially those required by various
> standrds organization.
>
> Back to Korea.  ICTs are also deployed along the highways making it easier
> to go through the toll stations and collecting all the revenues.  You can
> get data from government at every hour.  You can for example know the
> number of children born in a day throughtout the country.  There is CCTV
> practically everywhere.  Crime is approaching zero.
>
> There is an over supply of affordable public transport via the rail and
> bus system all clean and on time.  If you choose to drive on your own, you
> are taxed at every new turn you make.  The tax from the polluters who
> cannot use public transport is used to subsidize the energy efficient
> public tranportation.
>
> Every child after high school has to go through the Military thus
> instilling the discipline required in this competitive world.  Because of
> such discipline, they do everything very fast.  We were literaly running
> behind our hosts to catch up with them.  In the Newspapers there is a Bank
> executive who has committed suicide because he gave questionable loans to
> friends.  He killed himself for shaming his family and that he may not
> have any friends.
>
> My experience here confirms much of what we have been saying in this
> forum.  The problem is how to inculcate such high levels of ethical
> standards as well as feeling of shame.
>
>
> Regards
>
>
> Ndemo.
>
>
>
>
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