Jamhuri Day Robbery

Everyone has their best time of the day; mine occurs just before sunset and prior to nightfall. This time has some sense of lull mood. This is profound in the therapeutic calmness of the waves observable on the lake or ocean shores. A cascade of seamless transition from the rapid daytime commotion to a blissful and fairy like scenario. I revere this time which rejuvenates a meditative feeling. It works on the mind and soul as the body's homeostasis calibrates to the plummeting daytime temperatures allowing the eyes to absorb the picturesque scene associated with the dimming sunset light and the silencing sounds of the day's commotion. I have found this time to be ideal for a good brisk walk, a jog or a conversation with friends over a drink.

My wife; Sylvia, and I are accustomed to taking an evening jog or a brisk walk, a routine we have maintained since 2017 when Sylvia sought to shade 'baby-weight'. We enjoyed the exercise especially on weekends whenever we had the time and oomph. We had mapped an 8 kilometer circuit of majorly flat and gently sloping or elevated terrain on the Southern bypass - Kikuyu road that links Kiambu County and Nairobi County. As a reward, we would pass by the abattoir at Ndonyo market to purchase fresh beef, fruits and veggies. 

On December 12, 2019; Kenya's Independence Day, we left our rental apartments on Springs road - off Kikuyu road at around 5 p.m. and took a walk along the sidewalks of the Southern bypass from Kiambu County towards Nairobi County. Arlene, our 2-year old daughter didn't want to be left in the house. She cried asking her mum and I to wait until her aunt; Mercy, had bathed her so that she could accompany us. Arlene loved outdoor activities, especially if it involved going to the playground to have fun on bouncing castles, riding the miniature plastic horses on a merry-go-round or rowing toy boats on makeshift knee-deep water pool and enjoying the dummy train rides. The timing, weather and distance of the walk couldn't allow us to involve Arlene on this occasion. Moreover, the evening walks nurtured a clarity in our diffuse minds that sparked constructive intimate conversation between Sylvia and I. The talks mainly focused on our relationship, a kind of couple's introspection that somehow did not require the disruptive behaviors of a curious 2-year old. I must admit, I had a blissful time with Sylvia. A rather unstructured dialogue that reminisced on how far we had come, and our aspirations as a couple. It felt like an evaluation of the past and reliving the best of our younger days and charting the way forward in line with our dreams. We approached Thogoto - Gikambura interchange at about 6.22 p.m. by my phone's clock and had covered approximately 3.3 km according to the Health App on the phone. We contemplated taking the left junction to Thogoto rather than continuing with the usual 8 km circuit. On second thought, we opted to literally walk-the-talk by completing the distance.

"It might rain before we reach Ndonyo." I intimated to Sylvia, drawing her attention to dark clouds forming and intermittently blocking the warm rays of the evening sun and what seemed like rainfall in the distant horizon of Nairobi city skies.

"We'll enjoy the rains." She responded with a smile.

As we approached the edge of Dagoreti forest, the Southern bypass street lamps lit up giving a beautiful sight that resembled unstrung giant beads organized on the traffic island of the highway bends. It was 6.30 p.m., we had about 500 meters to cover before the left turn from the highway towards Ndonyo. I had an eerie feeling when I noticed a gang of shabbily dressed young men seemingly in their 20s or early 30s, slowly emerging from the shrubs close to the edge of the forest about 150 meters ahead. They pretentiously appeared to be crossing the road. I alerted Sylvia of my heightened instincts. The sun had set but it was not yet nightfall. There were few pedestrians on the sidewalks behind us but none on the stretch in front of us. Motorists sped off as usual on both lanes of the highway with their vehicle fog lights switched on and some had dimmed headlamps. The gang seemed to have wanted to cross the road. They had spread themselves such that the first and second gang members intercepted us on the sidewalk, the third and fourth observed in a safe distance and the other two positioned themselves at the edge of the thickets with one leaning on a concrete electric pole. One of the gang members who had used a baseball cap to cover his face, pounced on me, drawing a machete with a 2 feet-long blade sharpened on both ends and had a blunt tip which he had kept concealed in his baggy trousers. The second one drew a dagger and pointed the sharp tip of the weapon on Sylvia's face and lowered it to her tummy level. They aggressively demanded for our phones, wallet and grabbed Sylvia's clutch bag. We didn't resist but allowed them to rob us. It was my first time witnessing Sylvia so petrified and confused. It's like we had been living in a bubble that was burst by the encounter. Personally, the reality of the instincts that I had ignored earlier had hit hard but I was prepared for our next plan of action. As the perpetrators retreated to the shrubs towards the forest, I pleaded with them if they could return to us our National Identity cards and documents which they obviously did not require. The thieves hurled back my wallet having emptied a little cash in it but disappeared into the forest with Sylvia's clutch bag which had her phone and a purse that had her National ID, health insurance cards, and other personal possessions. We consoled each other, picked up my ripped wallet and returned in the direction that we had come. 

It began to rain on us. There was nothing enjoyable about the rain. It didn't even cross Sylvia's mind to cover her hair despite my several reminders - it didn't matter to her. We thought of shielding ourselves in the verandas of the roadside residential flats facing the highway but the flashback of the robbery scene could not allow us to remain in the vicinity. Our adrenaline levels had been hyped and we were thinking in a rush. In addition, we wanted to report the matter to the Kikuyu Police Station, replace our carrier lines and change the passwords for our emails and social media accounts as soon as possible. We briskly walked and jogged until we reached Thogoto where we waited for the rain to subside into drizzles. We didn't have any cash on us, so we had to walk back home, this time through a ‘shortcut’ via PCEA University, Kikuyu road and back to Spring road. We arrived home few minutes past 7 p.m.

Self Motivation

What motivates people? (i) Danger (ii) Authority & (iii) Self

Factors for self motivation include Authenticity, Relationship, & Training; abbreviated ART.

1. Authenticity; 

How do we express our genuineness? 

⚠️ Caution from over promising and under delivering! Congruently, under promise but over deliver.

What are you bringing on the table? You are the only thing that you bring to the table.

Value, Uniqueness, Authenticity.

Mind you, there are people who can do your job.

2. Relationship; 

Relate well with people, #PeopleSkills, be kind, engage emotional intelligence.

Apply the four-way test in your relationship; (i) Is it the truth? (ii) Is it fair to all concerned? (iii) Will it build good will and better relationships? (iv) Will it be beneficial to all concerned?

• The power of synergy
• Choose kind first then be right later
• Should you look down upon somebody, let it be in admiration of their shoes.
• Create experience for your customers.
• Endeavor to exceed your targets.

3. Training; 

Keep building up your capacity, wake up better than you slept, train your way of thinking, train your emotions (manage emotional flare utilize emotional intelligence), train your communication

When challenges arise, we fall to the level of our ART.

Seek fast to understand, then to be understood.

Seeking first to understand others, then to be understood is a principle fostered by Stephen Covey as habit 5 in his book titled 7 Habits of Highly Effective People. It is important to work on one's own competencies such that regardless of the prevailing circumstance, you are able to deliver.

I have learnt a couple of lessons from observing people’s behaviors while commuting to work other than reading eBooks. It has been a couple of months that I got Sylvia’s buy-in for us to use the booked fixed rate bus rides run by Swvl. Every morning, we share the same pick-up location a few miles from the flat we live, thereafter, each of us takes a different route and bus to our respective workplaces.

Having ridden the same bus chauffeured by the same driver, Stan, the regular passengers, grew fond of him. Personally, I made arrangements with Stan that he picks Sylvia and I every morning along the Southern bypass, an undesignated pick-up location (based on Swvl app). Stan agreed perhaps because it did not have any cost implication given that each morning the bus had to use the same route on its way from Karen. More so, I thought, our acquaintance may have obliged Stan to accept my request. A fortnight early, he had asked me to lend him money to purchase diesel for the Toyota coaster having unsuccessfully attempted to reach his boss over the phone. I didn’t mind to lend him given that the amount he was requesting was commensurate to my round trip bus fare for the subsequent 2 days. I could book my rides with him in advance. Today, I called Stan at about 6.00am which was our agreed time for pick up along bypass. It was Enock who answered the call, explaining that he would be our designated driver and that he had already arrived at the designated 6.15am pick up location which was few miles ahead. It then occurred to us that Stan had mentioned the previous day that he was bereaved. However, he had not given any indication that a new driver would be assigned to take care of his job. We made alternative arrangements to catch the bus at the designated pick up location.

The morning was drizzling cold, the red volcanic dirt road that connects to the bypass was soaked with intermittent overnight rain and it was muddy. On arrival, we found out that Enock had lied. I sheltered from the drizzles and chilly, moist blows of the wind by standing under the canopy of a nearby building as Sylvia hopped across shallow pools of water on the potholes, zigzagging her way to the waiting bus that would take her route. A couple of minutes later, the bus I was waiting for pulled over, Enock was just on time. A middle-aged woman dressed in dira and I quickly boarded the bus. Enock fumbled with the phone barely managing to check us in as he called out Grace’s name and my name from the mobile app as he received instruction from another handset cradled between his ear and shoulder. He was new on the job, he apologized. Grace indirectly asked for the new driver’s name arguing that Stan did not indicate we would have a new driver.

The sense of her entitlement for information on the change of a PSV driver she was used to was palpable in her statement. 

The new driver introduced himself and requested for help in identifying subsequent pick-up locations in case the app failed to guide him appropriately. I offered to navigate him pro bono and took the co-driver’s seat. 

A few miles down the highway, the bus pulled over to pick a disgruntled passenger. According to her, she expected the bus to have picked her up by half past six and not seven o’clock. 

The driver checked her in and apologized for the delay. I felt like she needed to cut the new driver some slack, it’s not easy driving, receiving/making calls and checking-in passengers for the first time. We were all running late as traffic snarl-up caught up with us a few road diversions towards Kangemi and at the usual traffic bottleneck on the junctions of Westlands Redhill road link, Waiyaki way, and James Gichuru road. Enock expected to pick some passengers along the way. Unfortunately, some had opted to catch another bus to avoid running late, this was understandable.

Understanding someone doesn’t necessarily mean agreeing with them!

The Matatu Conversation

Matatus are the mainstay of public transportation in Kenya. The characteristic reckless driving, know-it-all touts with attitude, graffiti laden body works, blasting stereophonic sounds of trending music and whistling of their muzzled exhaust pipes remains the unmistakable hallmark of Matatus. It is a thriving indispensable mode of public transport or that is how most Kenyans have been brainwashed to believe. They are the untouchable empire of corrupt cartels.
Swvl, Little Shuttle, Uber bus are new premium public transport service providers. These new competitors are anticipated to revolutionalize public transport industry leveraging on the potential of technology. In January 2019, these companies began piloting their services on various routes in Nairobi. Matatus have successfully remained in business mainly because of either charging competitively low prices or providing service with higher frequency in comparison to alternative modes of transport or emerging competitors in the industry. Moreover, political bigwigs have a large stake in the business. Word has it that, train transport in the country was sabotaged to enable Matatu business to thrive. This is the core of most challenges facing developing countries like Kenya. The problem stems from poor leadership as a consequence of poor choice of leaders. The government of Kenya failed Kenyans by absconding the role of providing reliable and affordable public transport and masquerading to regulate the Matatu cartels. However, Kenyans are optimistic of the Bus Rapid Transport(BRT) system that has hit multiple false starts in the implementation phase.
We cannot purport to have a quick fix to the public transport system in Nairobi because of the complexity of the challenge. However, it is evident that the solution to moving masses in a populous city such as Nairobi is a reliable, intermittent and affordable commuter train system.
A few days ago, I boarded a 33-seater Matatu plying route 105, on my way home after a tedious day. I chose to sit beside a casually dressed old bird seemingly in his 60's with a hoary head. He was patiently seated waiting for the remaining Matatu seats to be sold out. As usual, the overzealous touts kept calling out earnestly for potential clients to hurry and occupy the remaining 'four' seats. In my estimation, twelve seats remained unoccupied. It was about quarter to five, outbound traffic was rapidly building up and fares were almost at peak. Despite the building’s shield against the scorching sun, the sweltering heat trapped in the concrete jungle remained unbearable at this time of the day. Global warming you may say!
I live in a satellite town approximately nineteen kilometers from the Nairobi's CBD. I spend about two hours each day commuting to and from the CBD. Notwithstanding being seated side by side, rarely do I converse with other passengers in a PSV, a habit you effortlessly acquire given all the tell tell signs and warnings of being conned should you mistakenly ignore your guard. However, it is acceptable in PSVs to occasionally draw the attention of other passengers to complain, complement or observe an unusual occurrence that warrants distracting them from reading a newspaper/book, fumbling with their smartphones, taking a nap or just gazing and being lost in own thoughts. I prefer reading in the quiescence and lull of vehicle motion. Today, I chose to catch up with Barack Obama’s encounters in Indonesia with his step-father Lolo, on iBooks app. A reader lives a thousand lives you know.
A lad in his mid-twenties hopped into the PSV and took a window-seat three rows in front of where we were seated. The lad’s lack of phone etiquette must’ve driven the old man to spontaneously lecture me about people of my generation. Of course, the old man irately expressing displeasure on the generation’s lack of decorum in how young people nowadays handle themselves in public. I could tell he was definitely irked. I bookmarked the page I was reading and shifted my attention to the whippersnapper's phone conversation; who by now was blabbing to the person at the other end of the phone call about the recent terror attack that occurred in Nairobi, with a seemingly Samsung Galaxy Note 9. The old man pointed out our lack of privacy and aimless boast of IT-savvy character. He argued that the young man’s phone call was ‘pointless’ but sheer attention seeking behavior towards his seemingly expensive phone. Flossing, millennials would call it, I thought. I smiled, observing the Mzee roll his eyeballs 🙄 whereas innocently comparing the size of the iPad in my palms with the young man’s phone. He rhetorically questioned why the young man couldn't silently operate his phone just like others with similar-sized devices who kept quiet. He recommended that that the young man would have respectfully chosen to return the call as soon as he alights. Don’t misjudge me, I like the listening role in a conversation. In fact, only when I feel a response is truly justifiable do I spit it out. I scanned through the bookmarked page to indulge on a conversation worlds apart as the old man’s voice waned in my mind. He grudgingly digressed into times when a powerful politician (now deceased) in Moi’s government, with similar sense of pride would have changed into more than three vehicles, for security reasons, just to move from one point to another within Nairobi. It then occurred to me that the old man’s conversational persistence and calculated change of topic seemed a strategy to get me talking or perhaps listen to him instead of reading. If you understand talkative persons who can’t just be simply shrugged off with mere silence of their listener.

We were approaching Kangemi, everyone felt like the sweltering heat roasted us from inside out in the stuffy Matatu, stuck in a traffic snarl up. Women fanned their make-up clogged faces, scratched and massaged their scalp, men eased their ties, others unbuttoned their shirts to the chest level, and windows were drawn to let in even the most subtle breeze from outside. Caught in the predicament, children wailed wildly. The uneasiness in the PSV was palpable. The ice cream hawker made a kill. We had reached at a traffic gridlock due to narrowing of two lanes into a winding single lane diversion to facilitate the ongoing roadwork 🚧 by Chinese contractors. The undesignated bus stop, worsened the situation. The traffic police helplessly observed motorists exchange traffic rage, throwing arms out of rolled down vehicle windows and shouting at the top of their voices. Men trapped in their machines.
The old man began relating the happenings to the vicious cycle of corruption in Kenya. He was chiding the political class and the learned individuals for taking advantage of mwanainchi but was interrupted by a brief scuffle. In a blink of an eye, the young man's phone had been snatched by a thief who approached from the rear outside of the vehicle, and scampered off with the gadget into the encroaching makeshift traders' stalls. "Thief, thief, my phone," the young man yelled helplessly as he fidgeted on his seat almost jumping out of the vehicle, pointing in the direction the thief had disappeared to like mist . The old man beside me wore a 'I-told-you-so' kind of face. There wasn't much we could do but pity the dismayed young man and either pocket our devices or tightly hold on to them with hawk-eyed observation of possible intruders. Traffic began to ease, we hit the road. The old man sat quietly as though contemplating what had occurred until he alighted at the next bus stop about a kilometer ahead.

Forceful Education to Eradicate Cattle Rustling.

When all the stereotypes and hullabaloo have settled;

When you are ready to question the hogwash bloating the fourth estate and

When the hate-mongers are done telling you their stage-managed stories;

Then you can read these hard truths about the acrimonious perception of the Pokots.

In the recent past, blatant cold blood murders have been experienced along the Kerio Valley in Kenya. These killings have greatly been linked with the vicious circle of banditry and cattle rustling between the Pokots and fellow pastoralist neighbours. Undoubtedly, the conflicts among these warring communities bordering each other have escalated unabated. As if this is not enough, Pokots continue to bear the brunt of assassinations of  top brass of their political leaders. Gory videos and images evidence of the operationalization of the shoot-to-kill order flood the press. What happened to human rights? Where is justice for the people?

It should be crystal clear that banditry and cattle rustling are perpetrated by criminals. It is unacceptable to sentence an entire community to suffer because of the lawlessness of few uneducated culprits in possession of illegal firearms. According to the post 'Amin, Soviet link to Pokots arms race' by Kamau  John, the Daily Nation writer articulates the complexity of illegal firearms purportedly owned by Pokots. The Jubilee government, just like its predecessors use a reactive approach instead of using proactive strategies. Hence, the Deputy President's order that the Kenya Defense Forces should shoot to kill bandits and/or cattle rustlers is null and void. 

Allow me to briefly share the story of my father's education as a simple analogy of the need to advocate for forceful education to eradicate cattle rustling. Some members of my extended family still reside in this ancestral land, along Kerio Valley. I must admit a few of them have never had the luxury of being formally educated. The world is unforgiving for the uneducated. Long'arkemer was born and bred on the western escarpment of the Kerio Valley the now West Pokot County (WPC). Few people defy their parents’ advice and eventually succeed in their defiance. However, Long'arkemer’s testimony is unique in the sense that he absconded his shepherding responsibilities to pursue limited education opportunities at his disposal. To my grandfather, this registered as an act of disobedience. Grandpa wanted him to conventionally define his wealth through ownership of large herds of livestock. This is a repetitive cliché among some of the prominent Pokots. His bravado against the archaic community traditions cushioned subsequent generations against uncivilized customs.

According to UNESCO, education is critical for exercising of other human rights. It is the responsibility of a country's government to provide basic education as a fundamental human right. The  post-independence decision by the government of Kenya to advocate for forceful education of Pokot children of school going age came as a reprieve to Long'arkemer. In order to enforce this initiative, Chiefs were instructed to arrest any parent who assigned children of school going age - herding responsibilities instead of enrolling these children in school. To date, Long'arkemer holds education close to his heart. He has continued to mentor young minds from the community to pursue education against all odds. He is credited with establishment of  a best performing private boarding academy - a center of excellence in primary school education in WPC.

Combating banditry and cattle rustling using military operations is null and void. This is because it subjects innocent citizens residing in these conflict zones to inhumane military force. Military operations result to extrajudicial executions, looting , destruction of property and internal displacement of populations.

Devolution - the county system of governance in Kenya, a citizen's point of view.

Kenya promulgated its current constitution in 2010. Chapter 11 of the document clearly outlines the founding framework of the county system of governance. There are now forty seven (47) counties. Each county is overseen by leaders voted in by duly registered voters in the county. A county is cumulatively governed by a Governor, the Members of County Assembly (MCAs), Member(s) of Parliament (MPs), a Women Representative and a Senator. In this new system of governance, governors serve as 'minuscule presidents' and are the Chief Executive Officers(CEOs) of the county. All the Governors form the Council of Governors and converge annually for Devolution Conference to evaluate their strides towards devolution. The politically elected members of the County Assembly, the Governor and the MCAs are the point of focus in this article.
This system of governance is indeed an opportunity for redress of the marginalization faced by inhabitants of the Arid and Semi Arid Lands (ASALs) in Kenya. Devolution as envisioned by the Kenya Constitution 2010 serves to enhance equity among Kenyans. The National government budgets a percentage of the country's revenue for allocation to the county governments through a predetermined formula. The county government redistributes this funding based on its priority areas for development.The first batch of the county governments leadership has achieved commendable milestones. These leaders have managed to steer devolution towards enhancing equity in sharing of the national resources. Moreover, counties have realized improved access to education, health services and infrastructural improvements.

However, it is disheartening to observe rampant corruption in the counties. I will delve on this issue and the importance of a prudent choice of county leaders.
Corruption, this heinous crime perpetuated by the very leaders who are entrusted with county resources certainly cripples devolution - the very foundation of the county system of governance. It is critical that regular independent audits be conducted and each individual found culpable be prosecuted as provided for by the law. It is time the Central govt declares corruption a capital crime! Financial in-appropriation is unacceptable especially for a developing nation burdened with external debts, impacts of climate change, illiteracy and health problems associated with fatal yet curable infectious diseases such as Malaria and Tuberculosis.
Despite, being the agents to spur the county's development agendas with the support of fellow Kenyans, these political leaders jeopardize this important mandate. Is the law very permissive on the eligibility to run for these elective seats to the extent that egocentric persons manage to masquerade as leaders and are voted in? Do not misunderstand this to imply that county leadership positions should be a negotiated democracy as fronted by clans in some parts of Kenya! In my opinion, individuals seeking for positions such as that of the Governor ought to undergo more stringent vetting prior to being presented for the ballot. Counties need a leader with adept and strategic management skills. There is a dire need for persons competent in financial management/stewardship. A pragmatic leader with strategic reasoning in the sense that he/she should be capable of anticipating, planning and budgeting for such eventuality that might derail or threaten achievement of devolution. For this purpose, the gubernatorial position should be regarded, to a large extent, as a technical position rather than solely being based on political popularity or rather sycophancy.

County governments ought to agitate for increased exploration and exploitation of natural resources within their jurisdiction. Should county government negotiate for increased allocation of revenues from the Central government or nurture financial autonomy? Well, to envision for autonomy or rather continual reduction in revenue allocation from the exchequer might seem far fetched, however, the apex of devolution is to realize improved livelihoods for the citizenry.
In summary, the birth of devolution still faces a complex interplay of teething challenges associated with the previous centralized form of governance. Due to the increased number of employees, there is need to reduce benefits attributed to the elective positions. Subsequently, this will reduce the number of persons vying for such positions but driven by monetary gains. Raising the bar on academic competence of the aspirants for the elective positions will presumably elevate the performance standards of incoming batch of county leaders. The county government accounts should also be subjected to regular financial audits as well as employee job evaluation and appraisals.

Challenges facing Early Career Researchers in Africa.

The primary focus of this article is to express the challenges that hinder African scholars in their transition from academics into pursuing research careers. It is imperative that these challenges are not only rooted at the beginning of the research profession and recur with time, but are also embedded in the academic system from which these scholars graduate from.

Africa is the least industrialized continent (Alemayehu, 2000). Research is the nucleus of innovations which spurs industrial development. Therefore, African nations should be at the forefront in investing on their own researchers in articulating for the solutions to expedite industrialization.

Early career African researchers face multifaceted challenges that requires all stakeholders to expedite reforms for sustainable redress.

Governance issues; These problems cascade from the policies governing research to the actual monetary support for research by the governments and corporate institutions. In July 2015, Kenya hosted the Global Entrepreneurship Summit (GES) steered by the President of the United States and Kenya's President. The forum featured some innovations from across the globe.

There is need for setting up incubation hubs for innovative ideas and establishment of centres of excellence in research.

Access of funds from the parent institution: the challenge of administrative bureaucracy to access of grant after allocation and disbursement by the funding institutions is a recurrent challenge that requires meticulous review of policies. It is commendable that platforms such as the Consortium for Advanced Research Training in Africa (CARTA) are positively influencing this agenda.

Lack of supporting systems for early career researchers. The current education system in most African countries emphasizes on rote learning reinforced by the high weight credited to the theory examination. This produces scholars whose minds are programmed to engage the taught concepts superficially to succeed in their examination. However, the practical application of the knowledge and the consideration of the big-picture in the principles is lost.

Dynamism of Research; Research is currently taking a multidisciplinary approach. In the recent past, the global scientific community has embarked on extensive collaborative approach to research. It is imperative therefore that the African researchers adapt this changes. Embracing technological advancement is key in adopting the dynamism in research.

Training gap in Learning institutions; Most institutions lack the systematic review of curriculum to streamline their course contents towards the current trends in the field of interest. This system restricts the learners primarily to theoretical as opposed to practical/ hands-on pedagogy; this is attributed to untimely curricula review, broad-based degree programmes as opposed to specialised training. Curriculum review streamlines trainees thinking towards the current global developments with a focus on practical applications locally. This is important for strategic pursuit of the continent's interest rather than blindly supporting the interest of others. This should not be misunderstood that the manpower developed is only suited for Africa but to enhance the global competitiveness of the continent.

Corruption
It is without doubt that corruption increases the cost of transacting business. The impact of corruption in conducting research in Africa is tremendous and continues to siphon billions from the public coffers. There is hope in few African nations whose leadership is committed to fight corruption.

Brain-drain
Due to the prevalent challenges that hinders nurturing of research career development in Africa; majority of African scholars who pursue their Doctoral studies in other continents seek to further their career prospects in the host countries initially as post doctoral fellows. This denies Africa the much needed manpower to add value to its vast natural resources which are exported and exploited by 1st World nations. This remains as a lost chance for the African continent. This continues to be a dire situation for African nations as most of its budding scholars always prefer to pursue their higher education in institutions for higher learning  in other continents.

Conclusion and Recommendations
All these challenges inhibit the vibrant culture of research regardless of the field of study. Advocates for research-driven development require to achieve a buy-in from the government and institutions supporting research. It is the onus of African scholars to nurture sustainable solutions to the challenges facing fellow African scholars and unpacking the potential of their continent thorugh reforming their mindset, the education, governance and leadership systems.


References
Alemayehu, Makonnen, 2000, Industrializing Africa: Development Options and Challenges for the 21st Century, Trenton, NJ & Asmara, Africa World Press.

NGOs; a Blessing or a Curse?

There are numerous NGO's currently operating in Kenya, especially in the regions that are considered marginalized. West Pokot County is demarcated as an Arid & Semi Arid Land (ASAL) and has been tagged marginalized. It is with this interest that NGO's such as World Vision, Action Aid, RedCross, International Organization on Migration (IOM), Action Against Hunger (ACF) and Acted among others have pitched camp in this county to 'aid' much of the population which lives with earnings less than a dollar a day. These organizations work independently but also collaborate with other stakeholders such as the World Bank, United Nations, European Union and even the respective ministries in the government of Kenya.

My concern is that these NGO's present themselves with an array of programmes that basically suits the donors perception without having a customized approach to the situation on the ground. I want to be clear that i do not wish to antagonize the operations of the NGOs; i appreciate for the WASH, conflict resolution programs undertaken by these NGOs. From previous experience on the challenges of managing a communally-owned resource, i suggest the NGOs to embrace capacity building among the community members to avoid over reliance hence enable effective transition of projects from the donors through the NGO to the beneficiary community.

Being born and raised as a Pokot, i do not pledge being the know-it-all of the problems facing my tribesmen; but am using them as a point of reference of the sorry state of the outcomes of the heaven promised by survey objectives conducted by NGOs.

The disturbing question, having worked as a research assistant in previous SMART surveys in West Pokot, Thika and Gatundu north; is what happens to the research data?

If indeed as the respondents of the numerous piles of questionnaires that gather dust in NGOs offices are the direct beneficiary; what positive changes have these organizations made in the mapped out areas?

Furthermore, i believe in teaching a man to fish rather than giving him a fish. In my independent opinion, to defend the human rights or for any humanitarian organization that does not nurture the human resource in the community, then the institution has taken a nose dive into failure in its entirety!

In conclusion, what measures are undertaken to evaluate the performance of an organization in a community? Given that participation in surveys by respondents is entirely voluntary; are the interviewees entitled to a feedback? Finally, how often are financial audits established in these organization?