Nairobi will Remain the Main Hub in Kenya for a while

I have very often listened to many politicians in Kenya, who always talk about the need to diversify and decentralise the business, administrative and political activities from the Kenyan capital, Nairobi to other parts of the country. Political reforms that took place last year, and that led to the formation of rather devolved governments (the litmus test for this will be after the general elections scheduled for next year, 2012), have yielded some benefit in exposing other regions’ (like Kitui) potential to contribute to the growth and development of the country. The only concern that one would have is that the services that are available in Nairobi may not be accessible in any other parts of the country.

The best brains in the country are all centralized in Nairobi and those that are tired of Nairobi are based in the Diaspora. Why? Because they are paid better in Nairobi, the road and technology infrastructure is better in Nairobi, housing, health, banking and general administrative services are also better in the capital. Basically, there are no incentives for doctors, nurses, lawyers and other professionals to want to live outside Nairobi. This situation as resulted in an influx of highly qualified people in Nairobi, hiring of the best brains in the capital, and a shortage in capacities of other areas in the country to offer basic services to the most vulnerable in Kenya (who live in rural areas).

It is of no use if a government decides to build good hospitals in areas where roads are impassable because doctors won’t want to work there let alone patients being able to acess the facilities as and when they need to. Of course, I have been raving about the expanding road network in Kenya and that’s a good thing but it will need to be supported by other services (telecommunications, water and electricity access etc).

Last night, I was very surprised that the communications network, powered by Safaricom, was off and on while I was at home (in Kitui) and as a result I was unable to access my Twitter account (this is not the biggest issue in the world). But if the network is unstable, how can small businesses harness the power of ICT’s to develop their businesses, how can Vision 2030 become a reality? Obviously, the network is back on now (otherwise I would not be able to post on the blog). I suppose were are lucky in some way to be able to have access in rural Kenya as I am sure there are other areas in this continent where the power of the ICT’s has never been felt.

But should we accept mediocrity in the provision of services?

Electricity and water rationing policies are the order of the day in much of Kenya, including Nairobi itself. It’s not because there is no water to provide hydroelectricity, manpower, or the technology capacity. A lack of proper planning (the dams are all full at the moment but no one has projected how to harness the water to ensure electricity access is ensured for all) is clearly apparent as well as corrupt council officials that have to always be bribed to provide access to certain areas. The interesting thing about access (especially in Nairobi) is that if a politician lives in the same neighborhood as you, you are guaranteed that there will always be access.

But how many Kenyans can afford to live in those multimillion homes that Kenya’s politicians live in?

What is also fascinating (and relevant to other African countries as well) is that our lawmakers are so out of touch with what is happening on the ground.

How can they be in touch when they have solar powered homes, electricity generators, individual boreholes within their compounds, chauffer driven vehicles in relatively good roads- within their neighbourhoods and the areas they tend to visit most?

So what can people begin to do to help the situation? Surely it is and can never be the responsibility of the citizenry to provide common goods. Much lobbying and noise needs to be done and made for governments to hear its people. Governments are there to ensure the necessary conditions thrive for the private sector and civil society to conduct their business, and there is a need for us to remind our governments of this reality.

People must start to vote using their intellect instead of once-off promises made by politicians (but in the case of Kenya, we recycle politicians so much even when were are aware they will do nothing to make lives better), and in cases where there is no suitable candidate, does one abstain from voting (and what are the implications of that), or vote for the next best person (knowing that their needs will not be met). That is a situation that each one of us needs to ponder.

I think we have to mobilize as a citizenry to build a strong civil society that will begin to hold our governments accountable.

We must also stand in solidarity with public servants and other groups of people that are demanding better wages and benefits to show our governments that we deserve more and better.