[kictanet] [Skunkworks] SAP and Kenya ICT Board Partner on Skills Develeopment
Ali Hussein
ali at hussein.me.ke
Fri Sep 21 16:25:59 EAT 2012
@Barrack
It's the nature of the Beast (read marketplace). Out of this cacophony can we as a Nation emerge Stronger? If we think that all these companies (local & multinational alike) are in this game to just do 'good' then we need to be admitted to Mathare Mental Hospital to have our heads examined!
I like what Evans has done with the FOSS Movement in Kenya. We need more of those and I challenge the KICT Board to give as much (if it doesn't already) 'airtime' to this as it does the SAPs of this world. What we MUST however strive to do deliberately is move the conversation away from a winner take all mentality that we seem to be in and to a discussion of execution, standards and service excellence. If we do that then this debate between FOSS and Proprietary Software will be mute because in this brave new world we live in both have a place on the table and both have to talk to each other. All you need to do to understand and prosper in this world is look at Big Blue and see why they managed to turn around a company which everyone thought was road kill. IBM Global Services. For a peep of that please visit:-
http://www-935.ibm.com/services/us/igs/index.html
Can we create a homegrown company of this stature? (if not size?)
My good people, me thinks we are asking the wrong questions...or dwelling on the wrong issues.
My Pesa Nane..
Ali Hussein
+254 773/713 601113
Sent from my iPad
On Sep 21, 2012, at 1:29 PM, Barrack Otieno <otieno.barrack at gmail.com> wrote:
> @ Ali, the problem is that we have seen and participated in this kind
> of initiatives sponsored by multinationals before but it seems we are
> not making headway there is always a new one coming up, at the end the
> multinationals make strides by getting Marketing and Publicity but
> where does the country remain? we should read between the lines.
>
> On Fri, Sep 21, 2012 at 1:22 PM, Ali Hussein <ali at hussein.me.ke> wrote:
>> :) Noted Evans. I shall try to loosen up abit :)
>>
>>
>> Ali Hussein
>>
>> +254 773/713 601113
>>
>> Sent from my iPad
>>
>> On Sep 21, 2012, at 1:13 PM, Evans Ikua <ikua.evans at gmail.com> wrote:
>>
>> Ali you need a sense of humour.. That was with a light touch.
>>
>>
>> On Fri, Sep 21, 2012 at 1:03 PM, Ali Hussein <ali at hussein.me.ke> wrote:
>>>
>>> Evans
>>>
>>> That's below the belt.
>>>
>>> I think there's room for open and proprietary software. And besides these
>>> services fees that will go to integration etc will be shared by both Germans
>>> & Kenyans....
>>>
>>> Can we agree that there's room for both schools of thought in this space?
>>>
>>> One thing for sure though. Whether you provide open or proprietary
>>> software if you suck at providing services then it won't matter...
>>>
>>> So can we focus on service excellence since we know that both open and
>>> proprietary software will have a role to play in our lives?
>>>
>>> Ali Hussein
>>>
>>> +254 773/713 601113
>>>
>>> Sent from my iPhone®
>>>
>>> On Sep 21, 2012, at 12:58 PM, Evans Ikua <ikua.evans at gmail.com> wrote:
>>>
>>> Well, if I was German and SAP was German and the money would end up in
>>> Germany, I would think the same way.
>>>
>>> On Fri, Sep 21, 2012 at 12:43 PM, Andrea Bohnstedt
>>> <andrea.bohnstedt at ratio-magazine.com> wrote:
>>>>
>>>> Honestly, guys - maybe it's because it's Friday and I'm a bit
>>>> undersugared, but what's the issue here? SAP will train 100 underprivileged
>>>> students in what I can see are marketable technical skills that will give
>>>> them a good foundation for a career. Boo!
>>>>
>>>> 100 out of, what - tens of thousands of kids? Hundreds of thousands of
>>>> kids? *Of course* this will not fix either youth employment or the state of
>>>> Kenya's ICT industry over night. It also won't fix the fact that Rhapta Road
>>>> seems to be crumbling, but then again, it doesn't have to. Doesn't stop
>>>> anyone from pursuing any other initiatives in the areas everyone put
>>>> forward. Well done, SAP, I think!
>>>>
>>>> On 21 September 2012 12:37, Evans Ikua <ikua.evans at gmail.com> wrote:
>>>>>
>>>>> Mwendwa, this is where we have a disconnect. To build onto what you have
>>>>> pointed out, the Government would do good to actively support the
>>>>> development of the capacity of local developers who can be able to extend
>>>>> and develop local or open source ERPs, and any other systems. My big
>>>>> question here to Paul is, how much money do we lose in forex buying SAP and
>>>>> all the other software licenses annually, as a country? Can we get figures
>>>>> of how much a standard SAP implementation costs? How many are there in the
>>>>> country? How much of that money stays in the country and how much goes to
>>>>> Germany? Aren't we better off investing in our own developer skills so that
>>>>> we can keep some of this money within the country (and maybe pay teachers
>>>>> better)?
>>>>>
>>>>> The reason why rich countries stay rich is because they have positive
>>>>> balances of payments. A poor country like Kenya has a negative balance of
>>>>> payments. This basically tells us that we need to import as little as
>>>>> possible, and export as much as possible. Then vision 2030 becomes easier to
>>>>> achieve.
>>>>>
>>>>> Countries like Malaysia, Brazil, UK and Germany have come to this
>>>>> realization. They know what is in their best business interest and so they
>>>>> actively support local developer capacities, as opposed to having software
>>>>> engineers whose work is just to install packaged software from shiny discs.
>>>>>
>>>>> Brain drain? When we have a situation like I have just mentioned above,
>>>>> the really good developers will never have an incentive to stay in a country
>>>>> where all they do is install software. They will soon emigrate to Germany
>>>>> (or Silicon Valley) where they can be employed by SAP to get involved in the
>>>>> exciting world where they can actually do the development. With open source,
>>>>> they would stay in Kenya and still get to develop exciting applications
>>>>>
>>>>> On Fri, Sep 21, 2012 at 11:50 AM, lordmwesh <lordmwesh at gmail.com> wrote:
>>>>>>
>>>>>> This is a great debate, but we should not trivialize what the ICT
>>>>>> board is trying to do in helping build local SAP developers. Any
>>>>>> movement forward is welcomed.
>>>>>>
>>>>>> Although Great developers don't need any baby sitting, they will move
>>>>>> and work with any platform may it be proprietary closed or Free open
>>>>>> source.
>>>>>>
>>>>>> The debate of what software an enterprise should use should be decided
>>>>>> by the investors, after analysing all risks involved.
>>>>>>
>>>>>> SAP has seen an opportunity to develop local talent, great.
>>>>>>
>>>>>> Anybody who feels like me that local developers should also be taught
>>>>>> to integrate Open source ERPs should sponsor them too. A lot of talk
>>>>>> and no walk will not help anybody.
>>>>>>
>>>>>> Kudos KICTB, Any movement forward is welcomed.
>>>>>> ______________________
>>>>>> Mwendwa Kivuva
>>>>>> For
>>>>>> Business Development
>>>>>> Transworld Computer Channels
>>>>>> Cel: 0722402248
>>>>>> twitter.com/lordmwesh
>>>>>> transworldAfrica.com | Fluent in computing
>>>>>> kenya.or.ke | The Kenya we know
>>>>>>
>>>>>> _______________________________________________
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>>>>>
>>>>>
>>>>>
>>>>>
>>>>> --
>>>>> ----------------------------------------------------
>>>>> Kind Regards,
>>>>> Evans Ikua,
>>>>> lanetconsulting.com,
>>>>> lpi-eastafrica.org,
>>>>> ict-innovation.fossfa.net,
>>>>> Skype: @ikuae
>>>>> Cell: +254-722-955831
>>>>>
>>>>>
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>>>>>
>>>>>
>>>>> The Kenya ICT Action Network (KICTANet) is a multi-stakeholder platform
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>>>>
>>>>
>>>>
>>>>
>>>> --
>>>> Andrea Bohnstedt
>>>> Publisher
>>>> +254 720 960 322
>>>>
>>>> www.ratio-magazine.com
>>>> Find/post East Africa careers
>>>> Find/post conferences, workshops, trainings, other business events
>>>>
>>>>
>>>>
>>>>
>>>
>>>
>>>
>>> --
>>> ----------------------------------------------------
>>> Kind Regards,
>>> Evans Ikua,
>>> lanetconsulting.com,
>>> lpi-eastafrica.org,
>>> ict-innovation.fossfa.net,
>>> Skype: @ikuae
>>> Cell: +254-722-955831
>>>
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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.
>>
>>
>>
>>
>> --
>> ----------------------------------------------------
>> Kind Regards,
>> Evans Ikua,
>> lanetconsulting.com,
>> lpi-eastafrica.org,
>> ict-innovation.fossfa.net,
>> Skype: @ikuae
>> Cell: +254-722-955831
>>
>> _______________________________________________
>> kictanet mailing list
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>>
>> Unsubscribe or change your options at
>> https://lists.kictanet.or.ke/mailman/options/kictanet/info%40alyhussein.com
>>
>> 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.
>>
>>
>> _______________________________________________
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>> Unsubscribe or change your options at
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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.
>
>
>
> --
> Barrack O. Otieno
> +254721325277
> +254-20-2498789
> Skype: barrack.otieno
> http://www.otienobarrack.me.ke/
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