[kictanet] Failed States Index 2012 - Kenya #16, Somalia #1, Libya #50 (???),

Thu Jun 21 14:42:03 EAT 2012

Yes, and another amusing indicator is that they say that Ghana is
borderline. The last time that I checked, Ghana is one of the most stable
and successful of all African countries, with a thriving democracy.

On Thu, Jun 21, 2012 at 1:19 PM, Francis Hook <francis.hook at gmail.com>wrote:

> Interestingly Ethiopia is ranked 16th (somehow its missing on the
> wikipedia link but is on the other link) - one better than Kenya.
>
> Recently they banned VoiP and attached a prison sentence to anyone
> caught using a VoIP app.   There IT indicators are among the lowest in
> Africa ergo access to information , implicit freedom to
> "associate/assemble" electronically, ICT for development,  share
> ideas, ability to politick online, etc are severely constrained - at
> least in so far as social and political environments go.   Anyone who
> has tried to open shop in Ethiopia will tell you its not plain
> sailing.  Dissent is not allowed. etc etc.
>
> And they are one better than Kenya?
>
>
> On 21 June 2012 14:03, Francis Hook <francis.hook at gmail.com> wrote:
> > Thanks Kivuva,
> > On that note about NGOs (and perception), its sad to note that these
> > have increasingly become a form of creating self-employment - both by
> > foreigners and Kenyans alike.   Pick a cause, shed light on how bad
> > things are (even if they are not really that bad) and start passing
> > around the cup.
> >
> > I recall there was a time the govt sought to regulate (audit?) NGOs
> > and their activities - (and avoid duplicated efforts, wastage of
> > resources, etc). I think at the time were some rumblings about why the
> > govt should do this - if I am not mistaken it was mainly because
> > certain NGOs "addressing" democracy, civic education, human rights,
> > etc were drawing fire (or the govt's wrath) for whatever reasons and I
> > think part of the political class that that time, who perhaps had
> > vested interests, supported such NGOs activities and the whole move
> > amounted to nought.
> >
> > I'd like to think that since 2003 the democracy has grown, healthcare
> > more widely available, women's/Children's/human rights are better,
> > malaria/AIDs on the decline, agricultural practices better, etc.   Of
> > course I do not have a yardstick but just by living in our society I
> > have seen changes. Most certainly things are better than 10 years ago.
> > Thus such NGOs should have whittled down to a handful and perceptions
> > of Kenya should be different already. Ironically this ranking must
> > mean the NGOs work has amounted to nothing :-)
> >
> > Having said that I admit there are indeed NGOs doing sterling jobs in
> > Kenya and we need to support them.  But for the most part, and I make
> > no apology about this, many of them are simply busy bodies that muddy
> > the waters, distort the facts (or focus on the negative ones), stir
> > controversy (in NGO-ese: "foster open dialogue") etc and strive to
> > remain relevant in order to secure funding.  In so doing they must
> > continue to paint a negative picture of Kenya.
> >
> >
> > On 21 June 2012 13:16, Kivuva <Kivuva at transworldafrica.com> wrote:
> >> Francis,
> >>
> >> Thank you for bringing this up. I think the ratings are more to do with
> >> perception than reality. Most of the negative that make us rank so
> poorly is
> >> our own creation. What about thousands of NGOs taking pictures of slums,
> >> drought and starving children then run to western donors begging for
> cash to
> >> "HELP" the poor they "REPRESENT"! This has ruined the developing world's
> >> image beyond measure. Our own PRESS is also a major problem. I don't see
> >> western country publish widely sensationalizing  their homeless, street
> >> gangs, mafia, and grand grand corruption, as we do ours.
> >>
> >> In recent times, I have seen our leaders, including PS Ndemo insist on
> >> positive reporting from our media. That is the direction we should
> seek. If
> >> we instill cockiness in the direction of  narcissism, then the west will
> >> stop taking us for granted.
> >>
> >> Self Love
> >>
> >> On 21 June 2012 10:47, Francis Hook <francis.hook at gmail.com> wrote:
> >>>
> >>> Apologies this is not mainstream ICT but at the periphery some ICT
> >>> aspects need to be considered as well...(open access to information,
> >>> ICT enabling democracy/choice/transparency, ICT in corruption, etc) .
> >>>
> >>> This index is by the US group Fund for Peace.   I wonder what metrics
> >>> they are using or how they are weighting the values of the 13 indices
> >>> they use.
> >>>
> >>> Kenya is ranked 16th...that's just 15 steps away from Somalia (???),
> >>> 14 from DRC and shares the "teens" positions with Pakistan, Nigeria,
> >>> Niger among others. The lower the  score, the more "failed" a state
> >>> is.
> >>>
> >>> Anyway....the links:
> >>>
> >>> 1 -
> http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/List_of_countries_by_Failed_States_Index
> >>> (updated with 2012 Index)
> >>>
> >>> 2 - http://www.foreignpolicy.com/failed_states_index_2012_interactive
> >>>
> >>>
> >>> Personally I don't think Kenya should rate that poorly out of a 177 or
> >>> so countries...I suspect some of the 13 indices are weighted more
> >>> heavy than others (corruption, criminality, political situation etc) -
> >>> and if such were removed from the index, just for the sake of seeing
> >>> how it shifts the rankings, I'd like to think some EU countries would
> >>> be in the top 50 at least....social unrest, steep economic decline,
> >>> slum creation (US - housing/mortgage crisis has seen more people
> >>> living in the streets in the last couple of years than in the last
> >>> half a century), Wall Street demos, etc, ...."Suspension or arbitrary
> >>> application of law" (Guantano Bay still open for business, The
> >>> Patriots Act).
> >>>
> >>> And "Intervention of external political agents" - I think in Africa's
> >>> case these "political agents" are usually from (or supported/fronted)
> >>> by some developing countries that would want to nurture certain
> >>> regimes in order to reap some economic gain...but that's an argument
> >>> for another day.
> >>>
> >>> I'm also surprised the use of the adjective "primitive" by Korean
> >>> Airlines, to describe Kenyans, elicited more reactions than this lowly
> >>> ranking...should we get all hot and bothered about what is likely an
> >>> issue of translation or summon our national pride and repudiate this
> >>> "failed" states index?
> >>>
> >>> Rgds
> >>>
> >>>
> >>> --
> >>> Francis Hook
> >>> +254 733 504561
> >>>
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> >>>
> >>>
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> >>
> >>
> >>
> >>
> >> --
> >> ______________________
> >> Mwendwa Kivuva
> >> For
> >> Business Development
> >> Transworld Computer Channels
> >> Cel: 0722402248
> >> twitter.com/lordmwesh
> >> www.transworldAfrica.com  | Fluent in computing
> >> kenya.or.ke | The Kenya we know
> >>
> >>
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> >>
> >> The Kenya ICT Action Network (KICTANet) is a multi-stakeholder platform
> for
> >> people and institutions interested and involved in ICT policy and
> >> regulation. The network aims to act as a catalyst for reform in the ICT
> >> sector in support of the national aim of ICT enabled growth and
> development.
> >>
> >> KICTANetiquette : Adhere to the same standards of acceptable behaviors
> >> online that you follow in real life: respect people's times and
> bandwidth,
> >> share knowledge, don't flame or abuse or personalize, respect privacy,
> do
> >> not spam, do not market your wares or qualifications.
> >
> >
> >
> > --
> > Francis Hook
> > +254 733 504561
>
>
>
> --
> Francis Hook
> +254 733 504561
>
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>
> The Kenya ICT Action Network (KICTANet) is a multi-stakeholder platform
> for people and institutions interested and involved in ICT policy and
> regulation. The network aims to act as a catalyst for reform in the ICT
> sector in support of the national aim of ICT enabled growth and development.
>
> KICTANetiquette : Adhere to the same standards of acceptable behaviors
> online that you follow in real life: respect people's times and bandwidth,
> share knowledge, don't flame or abuse or personalize, respect privacy, do
> not spam, do not market your wares or qualifications.
>

-- 
Dr. Warigia Bowman
Assistant Professor
Clinton School of Public Service
University of Arkansas
1200 President Clinton Ave.
Sturgis Hall
Little Rock, AR 72201
501-683-5227
wbowman at clintonschool.uasys.edu
http://democratizingegypt.blogspot.com
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