[kictanet] A good piece by Dr. Bitange Ndemo

Tue Nov 19 15:25:52 EAT 2013

The Thika Highway is a supermess.

At Pangani from Ngara, the intersection there is a bit confusing, even the
footbridge is a total mess. And places where the footbridge ought to be,
there is none. Instead pedestrians cross where they think it's safe....

On 19 November 2013 15:15, Kivuva <Kivuva at transworldafrica.com> wrote:

> Interesting revelations coming through. Nice observation Conrad.
>
> There are these very good widen roads that have been build in Nairobi,
> Thika road, University Way, Ngara ring road, Pangani road, e.t.c. with
> pedestrian walks and cyclists ways. Just like what we see in developed
> countries. Very impressive.
>
> Interestingly, the Chinese guys installing CCTVs on the highways have seen
> it fit to fix the CCTV poles in the center of these cyclists and pedestrian
> walks as shown in these pictures. Total crap they are doing. I wonder if
> that can be accepted where they come from, or they consider us
> standard-less and shoddy.
>
> I had nowhere to rant but the CCTV is an ICT issue, and the process should
> be done correctly. I hope somebody somewhere in authority is listening.
>
> [image: Inline images 3][image: Inline images 4][image: Inline images 2][image:
> Inline images 1]
>
> ______________________
> Mwendwa Kivuva
> twitter.com/lordmwesh
> google ID | Skype ID: lordmwesh
>
>
> On 19 November 2013 09:54, Rad! <conradakunga at gmail.com> wrote:
>
>> That would explain the ludicrous design of a single lane that is also a
>> bus stage
>>
>>
>> On Tue, Nov 19, 2013 at 12:08 PM, Dennis Kioko <dmbuvi at gmail.com> wrote:
>>
>>> We also have a Kenyan company doing flyovers and bridges for China Wu Yi
>>> (Lot 1) as a sub contractor and hired by the Japanese funder to do Yaya -
>>> Westlands Link (Motorways Construction Group)
>>>
>>> Then we also have the Kenyan firms behind Upperhill roads(if there is
>>> such a thing) (Mattan contractors) and re-carpeting of Waiyaki Way (SS
>>> Mehta).
>>>
>>> The quality of the works is a matter of why you know and who is funding
>>> the project. It is easier to spend taxes :-)
>>>
>>>
>>> On Tuesday, 19 November 2013, Mark Mwangi wrote:
>>>
>>>> We have Kenyan companies building Highways in Botswana. They are led by
>>>> Njoroges and Kamaus and Ochiengs. It is not a matter of local capacity but
>>>> complacency and impunity. A contractor is paid according to milestones
>>>> right? No delivered product no payment. Why would a contractor waste  years
>>>> if he is not getting paid? Best incentive in my opinion.
>>>>
>>>>
>>>> On Tue, Nov 19, 2013 at 9:38 AM, Emmanuel Khisa <
>>>> oloo.khisa at googlemail.com> wrote:
>>>>
>>>>> @ Mark, I do think that we would *ever* have heard roads done if ever
>>>>>
>>>>> we used Kenyan Contractors...sorry to say this but look how far we got
>>>>> during the pre Kibaki era with contractors that did a 10km of a road
>>>>> for 5 years and still never completed them...I think one credit I
>>>>> would give the China Bridge and Co and H Young and Straberg is that
>>>>> they actually did up the game...
>>>>>
>>>>> I otherwise agree with you on the rest of the points raised above.
>>>>>
>>>>>
>>>>> On Tue, Nov 19, 2013 at 9:35 AM, Emmanuel Khisa <
>>>>> oloo.khisa at googlemail.com> wrote:
>>>>>
>>>>>> @ Mark, I do think that we would never have heard roads done if ever
>>>>>> we used Kenyan Contractors...sorry to say this but look how far we got
>>>>>> during the pre Kibaki era with contractors that did a 10km of a road
>>>>>> for 5 years and still never completed them...I think one credit I
>>>>>> would give the China Bridge and Co and H Young and Straberg is that
>>>>>> they actually did up the game...
>>>>>>
>>>>>> I otherwise agree with you on the rest of the points raised above.
>>>>>>
>>>>>> On Tue, Nov 19, 2013 at 9:12 AM, Mark Mwangi <mwangy at gmail.com>
>>>>>> wrote:
>>>>>> > I agree with Adam albeit partly. Running to make everything under
>>>>>> the sun is
>>>>>> > no a smart move. However building horizontal industries where
>>>>>> products from
>>>>>> > one industry feed another and by products are the base of another
>>>>>> shoulfd be
>>>>>> > encouraged. Building spare parts for local cars is an example.
>>>>>> >
>>>>>> > A knowledge economy is a good foundation but we still need to build
>>>>>> and make
>>>>>> > stuff. e.g Swiss chocolate, german cars, American Missiles, Chinese
>>>>>> iPhones
>>>>>> > etc. Am yet to see a stable economy that doesn't manufacture and
>>>>>> export
>>>>>> > physical goods.
>>>>>> >
>>>>>> >
>>>>>> > On Mon, Nov 18, 2013 at 10:03 PM, Adam Nelson <adam at varud.com>
>>>>>> wrote:
>>>>>> >>
>>>>>> >> The first sentence does not lead to the second and third:
>>>>>> >>
>>>>>> >> "We cannot have high unemployment, and at the same time import
>>>>>> clothes
>>>>>> >> from Sri Lanka or mitumba, when we can grow cotton and make our
>>>>>> clothes.  We
>>>>>> >> must defy economic explanations on what works and what does not
>>>>>> work.  If we
>>>>>> >> deployed thousands of youth digitizing land records, we would
>>>>>> reduce
>>>>>> >> caseloads in courts, become more efficient, and create more wealth
>>>>>> to grow
>>>>>> >> our economy."
>>>>>> >>
>>>>>> >> Kenya should go towards counter-cyclical employment of youth doing
>>>>>> >> productive infrastructure work: being teachers, building railroads,
>>>>>> >> digitizing land records, etc...
>>>>>> >>
>>>>>> >> However, you can't forget Adam Smith who talked extensively of
>>>>>> Comparative
>>>>>> >> Advantage (https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Comparative_advantage).
>>>>>>  Sri Lanka
>>>>>> >> (or really Bangladesh) has a far more economical solution for
>>>>>> producing
>>>>>> >> cotton clothing than Kenya has.  This mostly has to do with the
>>>>>> port of
>>>>>> >> Mombassa being a stranglehold and the fact that a 40M person
>>>>>> economy (Kenya)
>>>>>> >> doesn't have the same economy of scale as a billion person economy
>>>>>> (a guess
>>>>>> >> at the number of people a Bangladeshi factory can export to
>>>>>> easily).
>>>>>> >>
>>>>>> >> Kenya is a small country and a small economy and if it wants to
>>>>>> bring in
>>>>>> >> more money and reduce unemployment, the solution is around
>>>>>> creating an
>>>>>> >> amazingly well-educated population and doing more knowledge work -
>>>>>> not
>>>>>> >> producing more clothing.
>>>>>> >>
>>>>>> >> --
>>>>>> >> Kili.io - OpenStack for Africa: kili.io
>>>>>> >> Musings: twitter.com/varud
>>>>>> >> About Adam: www.linkedin.com/in/adamcnelson
>>>>>> >>
>>>>>> >>
>>>>>> >> On Mon, Nov 18, 2013 at 9:21 PM, Kivuva <
>>>>>> Kivuva at transworldafrica.com>
>>>>>> >> wrote:
>>>>>> >>>
>>>>>> >>> Dr. Ndemo has struck a cord that has been played in this list
>>>>>> >>> countless times before. I  remember him saying in another thread
>>>>>> "you
>>>>>> >>> cannot have unemployed youth yet we have countless garbage lining
>>>>>> our
>>>>>> >>> streets and estates!"
>>>>>> >>>
>>>>>> >>> His argument on us importing cloths yet we can do it here is basic
>>>>>> >>> economic that any country can master. India went that way through
>>>>>> the
>>>>>> >>> leadership of Mahatma.
>>>>>> >>>
>>>>>> >>> But Dr. Ndemo, in the previous administration that you served so
>>>>>> >>> ardently, the government shipped billions worth of capital on
>>>>>> works
>>>>>> >>> that could be done by Kenyans. I'm talking about the massive
>>>>>> >>> infrastructure development that took place in the last 10years.
>>>>>> That
>>>>>> >>> capital could have done our unemployed generation justice if it
>>>>>> was
>>>>>> >>> utilized here home. I believe Kenyans can build decent roads,
>>>>>> brides,
>>>>>> >>> buildings and ports. What happened to national pride? It's the
>>>>>> same
>>>>>> >>> argument of importing cloths or planting cotton and producing our
>>>>>> own
>>>>>> >>> garments.
>>>>>> >>>
>>>>>> >>> We're still not out of the woods yet, remember the Korean firm
>>>>>> >>> implementing the PKI?
>>>>>> >>>
>>>>>> >>> My cent-less
>>>>>> >>>
>>>>>> >>> On 18/11/2013, Dorcas Muthoni <dmuthoni at gmail.com> wrote:
>>>>>> >>> > A good piece by Dr. Bitange Ndemo
>>>>>> >
>>>>>> https://lists.kictanet.or.ke/mailman/options/kictanet/oloo.khisa%40gmail.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.
>>>>>>
>>>>>>
>>>>>>
>>>>>> --
>>>>>> "Service to Mankind is the greatest form of service"...
>>>>>>
>>>>>>
>>>>>>
>>>>>> Oloo Khisa
>>>>>> P.O. Box 24324-00100
>>>>>> Nairobi
>>>>>> 0721321086/0731849128
>>>>>> http://ke.linkedin.com/in/olookhisa
>>>>>>
>>>>>
>>>>>
>>>>>
>>>>> --
>>>>> "Service to Mankind is the greatest form of service"...
>>>>>
>>>>>
>>>>>
>>>>>
>>>>>
>>>>> *Oloo KhisaP.O. Box 24324-00100Nairobi0721321086
>>>>> <0721321086>/0731849128 <0731849128>http://ke.linkedin.com/in/olookhisa
>>>>> <http://ke.linkedin.com/in/olookhisa>*
>>>>>
>>>>
>>>>
>>>>
>>>> --
>>>> Regards,
>>>>
>>>> Mark Mwangi
>>>>
>>>> markmwangi.me.ke
>>>>
>>>>
>>>>
>>>>
>>>>
>>>
>>> --
>>> with Regards:
>>>
>>> blog.denniskioko.com <http://www.denniskioko.com/>
>>>
>>>
>>>
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>>>
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>>
>>
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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.
>>
>
>
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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.
>
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