Restoring Sanity to the Roads?

From 2005-2008 I saw the matutu (public service vehicles) industry gradually disregard the "Michuku Rules".

The Michuki rules, introduced in 2004, demanded that "all Public Service Vehicle be fitted with speed governors, which limits legal cruise speed at 80 km/h and safety belts. The PSVs are also required to have a yellow band for easy identification. The driver and his conductor must also display their photos and wear specific uniforms."

Traveling by matatu in Kenya is Dangerous and is becoming more so. At present, "nearly 300 people are killed in road accidents across Kenya monthly", the Daily Nation reports.

"Each year, the country records more than 13,000 accidents, 85 per cent of which are due to human error, the rest are due to poor roads and vehicles," an editorial in The Standard reports. "In the region, only Uganda and Ethiopia have worse records for fatalities compared with vehicle population. A British study ranked Kenya fifth globally in fatality rates. The carnage claims 2,000 to 3,000 people: It was 2,264 in 2004, a low attributed in part to the introduction of the ‘Michuki Rules’. It fell further to 1,670 in 2006, following the launch of an international ‘Think Before You Drive’ campaign, before it rose steadily, hitting 2,530 in 2007 and a high of 2,893, last year. We seem to be on course to cross the 3,000 mark with the spate of new accidents, some attributed to speeding on the newly repaired highways."

New Police Commissioner Mathew Iteere announced a new plan to crackdown on matatus, enforcing the 'Michuki Rules', and indeed the crackdown has begun in Nairobi, where many matatus were impounded.

These types of crackdowns were also common in 2007, though they had little effect on improving conditions. Instead, many matatu operators would pull their un-compliant vehicles from the roadways, waiting for the police operation to end. What this did is make traveling difficult, since fewer vehicles would be transporting people.

The crackdown must not only take place in Nairobi. Many routes, such as Meru-Isiolo, are well paved and downhill, making them extremely dangerous. The drivers on the many of these routes, especiallyMeru-Isiolo, also chew lots of miraa, a leafy stimulant, that makes them prone to take additional risks.

If the police want to make this work they will have to continue this 'crackdown' for an extended period of time, all over Kenya, and addressing the issue of miraa! Meanwhile they must weather complaints from citizens who rely on matatus for their transportation needs. It would be nice if matatu owners would comply with the rules for the good of everyone, but if the politicians won't, why should anyone?

Read the articles:
Police Launch Crackdown to Enforce 'Michuki Rules'

Focus Road Safety on Human Error

IYAP's New Blog

IYAP (Isiolo Youth Against Aids and Poverty) has started a new blog with the assistance of Simon Collery (who runs the blog HIV in Kenya and blogs about his visit with IYAP).

Here's their first posting:

IYAP has 12 active members who run the programme of the organization voluntarily. We are working to prevent the spread of HIV/Aids and to alleviate poverty among the youth of Isiolo and society as a whole. We are working to develop a sustainable community free from HIV/Aids and poverty.

IYAP strives to be an outstanding organization in addressing the problems relating to HIV/Aids through prevention as well as care and support for people living with HIV/Aids. The organization engages in lobbying and advocacy, networking and resource mobilization so as to address the problems that contribute to high poverty incidence, while targeting the orphaned and vulnerable children, youth and women's groups. The organization has 5 trained counselors and is headed by site coordinator. The primary targets for IYAP’s interventions are youths (in and out of school), women, orphans, vulnerable groups and the community at large.

This blog will be about our day to day work and our plans for the future, along with news and photos of some of our activities.

Visit their website: http://iyapkenya.blogspot.com/

There are many community based organizations working in Isiolo, though few do as good of work as IYAP (and some exist only on paper as a way to try and solicit funding). In the past IYAP has not only provided testing and counselling for HIV, but has also provided ARV drugs, food and care packages and small monetary assistance to people living with HIV (as funding allowed). They have also been very active in the community (especially reaching villages far from town that other CBOs and NGOs are not) teaching about public health, providing civics lessons (prior to the 2007 presidential election) and advocating for the rights of women.

Recently Liverpool VCT, the largest organisation in Kenya for training counselors and providing VCT services (including services for the deaf and blind), decided to provide IYAP with funding for their VCT services. Receiving funding from Liverpool is confirmation of the good work that IYAP is doing.

Kenya’s Vision 2030: RESORT IN ISIOLO

This information is taken from an East African Standard article from 2007 and posted at Isiolo.com, a website started by individuals in Isiolo town that is updated infrequently.

As part of Kenya’s Vision 2030, the Government is planning to develop three resort cities by 2012 in a project aimed at making Kenya among the top tourist destinations in the world. Vision 2030 is Kenya’s national development plan promoting long-term growth that aims at transforming Kenya into a globally competitive and prosperous nation on par with such Asian countries as Malaysia, Singapore and South Korea.

"Tourism will be the leading sector in achieving the goals of the vision where it is aimed that the country will be among the 10 long haul tourist destination in the world, offering a high-end, diverse and distinctive visitor experience that few of her competitors can offer.’’ In Vision 2030, the Government plans to focus on three specific areas to achieve the goals for 2012: to quadruple tourism’s GDP contribution to over Ksh80 billion; to raise international visitors from 1.8 million in 2006 to three million in 2012 while raising average spend per visitor from the current Sh40,000 to at least Sh70,000 and; to increase hotel beds from 40,000 to about 65,000, combined with an emphasis on high quality service.

The establishment of the three resort cities—two at the Coast and the other in Isiolo--is classified as tourism’s flagship projects. One resort will be located at the North Coast while the second one will be at the South Coast. The third in Isiolo District will be located just on the outskirts of Isiolo town. The Government has already opened discussions on the project with the Isiolo County Council. About 1, 000 hectares needs to be allocated for the resort project. Developed on the model of South Africa’s Sun City, each of the resort cities in Kenya will be allocated enough hectares of land to enable the facilities have casinos, golf courses, restaurants and discotheques among other features. Isiolo, as part of Kenya’s safari destination, was picked because of the fame acquired by Shaba Game Reserve that had attracted filmmakers from across the globe.

‘’It is Joy and George Adamson who made Shaba famous. As a result, many major films have been shot here. We have a scenery that rivals Hollywood right here.’’ The Adamsons reared lions starting with lioness Elsa and later released them into the wild. Joy died at Shaba, while her husband was killed at neighbouring Kora National Reserve. Movies shot at Shaba over the last two decades include Born Free, Out Of Africa, To Walk with Lions and CBS TV blockbuster series, Survivor Africa.

My Question: A Pipedream or a Bold Vision?
With the myriad problems that plague Isiolo, turning it into a high end resort town sounds more like a dream than reality. One would imagine that re-occurring drought, clashes, high incidence of sickness and poverty all would have to be solved or at least reduced for Vision 2030 to be implemented. However, if you’ve ever visited the resorts located in the National Parks surrounding Isiolo (Samburu/Shabaa/Buffalo Springs/Il’Engwesi) then you will know that very lush environments can be created that cater successfully to high end tourists.

One of the problems with these resorts is that they are often very resource intensive, using large amounts of water (swimming pools/fountains, etc.) and electricity. It could be easy to foresee extremely high end areas, cordoned off and well protected by the police and military, set next to the mud huts of the Turkana and Somali. Most of the goods for the resorts would most likely be imported from abroad or shipped from Nairobi. The management would most likely be hired from the highly educated class in Nairobi or from overseas, leaving local workers to be employed in bottom rung jobs. This is, is one sense, a helpful thing as any job that removes people from being idle and providing something for their families is beneficial, however the impact on the overall economic health of the community would be limited.

My hope is that in some simplified form (NO Isiolo does not need a golf course!), Vision 2030 will be implemented and Isiolo will receive its much deserved attention as a beautiful and historically and culturally important place to visit. The question is how the project will be implemented…will it be a resource drain to the local community, or will it add to the local economy. Too many questions right now to know…though if I was to hazard a guess I’d say that with the Isiolo County Council identified as one of the most corrupt in the country a few years ago (though there is a grassroots movement to get more youth elected), turning Isiolo into a resort town would probably be a boon for those at the top, and a bane for everyone else.

Best of Kenya Analysis

In my opinion, these three videos, speeches, etc., are must sees if you want to learn more about current events in Kenya. None of them are short, but they are worth watching! Thanks to Kenyan Pundit (www.kenyanpundit.com) for posting the first two:

1) This eye opening series (eight parts-around one hour total) from Sky1 in Britain, highlights the conflict with mungiki, a secret Kikuyu organization that is part deadly gang and part social benefactor. These videos can be difficult to watch at times due to graphic images and videos. Gut wrenching to watch, this series captures the arrogance of the Kenyan gov't, the intelligence of the Kenyan Civil Society, the complex landscape of the slums vs. the wealthy, and the complicated (and sometimes confusing) relationships that mungiki creates with local communities. There is one scene, a slight digression from the main mungiki theme, highlighting the glue kids of Eldoret, including shots of young mothers high on glue handing their young babies the glue bottles to suck on. Utterly heartbreaking. Let me end by asking where the American media is? I've asked people, "Who in America would make this video? And then air it on TV?" The answer: NOBODY. The mainstream media landscape in America is endlessly dissapointing. It's seems weird to say, but perhaps our best hope for creating a new media landscape comes from HBO. So for now enjoy this in-depth and evocative piece by a British journalist.
Sky1: Mungiki Series

2) A new book by author Michela Wrong highlights the level of corruption in Kenya. Here are her comments at a forum held by the CATO Institute. It highlights the high level of arrogance and impunity that the Kenyan gov't displays day after day. She's got a good sense of humor so things don't get too dry.
It's Our Turn to Eat: The Story of a Kenyan Whistleblower

3) This is an insightful speech by Jonny Carson, Assistant Secretary of State for Africa, presented at the conference: Kenya on the Brink: Democratic Renewal or Deepening Conflict, hosted by National Endowment for Democracy. Mr. Carson was formerly the Ambassador to Kenya until 2003 and has a good grasp of Kenyan society. I feel that he has the ability to encourage (and push if necessary) the Kenyan gov't and wananchi in a way that is productive and is in the interests of both countries. As he says, Kenyans have a long, proud history. But Kenyans also have a long, corrupt history as well. Kenyans need to identify the best parts of their history and society, removing corruption (especially) and moving forward. He's a policy wonk so it can be a bit dry at times, but it is chock full of information!
Kenya on the Brink: Democratic Renewal or Deepening Conflict

Drought Blamed in Elephant Deaths

Highlights from an article in the Daily Nation
Kenya: Puzzle of 40 Elephant Deaths as Kenyan Wildlife Service (KWS) Blames Drought

The drought currently ravaging the country has not spared wildlife especially in Northern Kenya. In the past two months, over 40 elephants have died in Laikipia, Isiolo and Samburu districts in what was initially thought to be a disease outbreak. KWS officials fear that if it does not rain soon, more may die due to malnutrition.

The affliction is mostly affecting elephants aged between two and eight years, leading to conclusions that they are unable to get enough feed. "Young elephants are unable to keep up the pace with their mothers while grazing. They are also not able to browse tall trees which are the only source of food left." An adult elephant consumes about 300kg (661 pounds) of food daily.

Laikipia has the largest number of wildlife outside national parks in the country. The animals roam freely in the plateau and compete for fodder with livestock. According to a census done by KWS last year, there are slightly over 7,000 elephants in the Laikipia, Samburu and Isiolo ecosystems. In the past few months, however, the ground has been left bare by domestic animals that have been driven into the region by pastoralists migrating from Samburu and Isiolo in search of pasture. The herdsmen with over 100,000 animals are now grazing in Mt Kenya.

IYAP (Isiolo Youth Against Aids and Poverty)

My friends at IYAP, who run an HIV/AIDS VCT (Voluntary Counseling and Testing) Center as well as many community programs, are highlighted in two posts in the blog: HIV In Kenya.

You can read the posts about Isiolo and the services that IYAP are providing, including an all night testing service that highlights testing for sex workers and those out and about at night, here:
Moonlighting in Isiolo

Christiane Amanpour in Isiolo: Pepo La Tumaini

Pepo La Tumaini Jangwani (Wind of Hope in the Desert) is a CBO in Isiolo serving the needs of those infected and affected by HIV. They've been serving the Isiolo community for more than a decade, one of the first CBO's to begin addressing HIV and its root causes.

It's a controversial CBO in Isiolo Town, with plenty of people claiming that Khadija Rama, who runs the CBO, is pocketing all of the funding, though mostly it seems this is pure jealousy (since as can be seen below in the CNN video, Khadija does gain international attention) or dislike of the woman herself and the work that she is doing (the rumors often eminate from men).

There was one young boy at the deaf school who was found to be infected with HIV (this was close to when I was returning to America). The teachers at the school approached Pepo La Tumaini about the boy living there so he could receive care as he was falling ill quite often (while allowing the boy to still attend classes at the deaf school when possible--to continue learning sign language). Pepo La Tumaini said they would be wiling to accept the boy. I had asked around town if there were other opportunities for the boy to receive treatment and care, but no other CBO had funding for this, so to hear that Pepo La Tumaini was going to accept him made all of us at the school very happy. Unfortunately the story had a sad ending as the father refused to allow him to move to Pepo La Tumaini, but instead removed him from school and returned with him to the village a few hours outside of Isiolo town. This was, in effect, a death sentence.

So although every story doesn't have a happy ending, indeed most of the families Pepo La Tumaini work with don't have happy endings (how can you when dealing with HIV/AIDS?), but have, instead, small triumphs and successes, the work they do is necessary and important.

To find out more:
The homepage from Denmark: Wind of Hope
An article from IPS news: A Wind of Hope in Kenya's Desert
An article from Hope for African Children: Pepo La Tumaini Community AIDS Project
You can view some photos here: Fotosearch
View the CNN report:

Video from KTN About Isiolo Clashes (In Kiswahili)

Local Politicians Fueling Clashes in Isiolo?

An article in the Daily Nation reports that a local politician has been questioned in relation to the recent clashes in Gombela and Isiolo town.

Top Politician Linked to Isiolo Violence
"On Monday, local leaders and the provincial administration linked a fresh outbreak of violence in the area to politics. District Commissioner James Kamau said politicians were taking sides in the conflict and the government was investigating their activities."

The question becomes: What happens now? If politicians are removed from the equation (and one must question the involvement of MP Kuti in this) it does not alone solve the whole problem. Yes it is an important step removing the politics, but the tribes are still well equipped with guns, and land and water problems are increasing.

One can only wonder: Will Kenya one day face the challenge of what to do with pastoralists?

Conflicts Around Kenya Influencing Isiolo: Pokot

Conflicts within Kenya have existed for as long as Kenya has been a country, but the current rash of conflicts and problems across the country seems to hint at a government that is struggling to cope with disillusioned wananchi (citizens), fed up with bad governance, endless corruption, and policies that delay solving problems that have been hanging around since Independence and those new ones that are arising.

Here's a review of one of the current problems and how it affect the Isiolo area:
The Turkana-Pokot-Samburu conflicts in Turkana District and Western Laikipia.

Kenyan Pundit writes:
The Samburu return to Western Lakipia was slow and steady and remarkably peaceful but by the mid 1990s there were a number of Government led initiatives to burn Samburu houses and bomas and force them to go back North and East. None of these efforts to move the Samburu was very effective.

In the mid 1990’s large numbers of Pokot and their cattle also moved onto western Laikipia where for several years they coexisted peacefully as, Latia, neighbors, with only minor exchanges of small stock theft. But at that time the Pokot were carrying out increasingly effective cattle raids against the Turkana in South Turkana district... At that time guns and ammunitions were being sold to both sides to speed up the incentive for both Turkana and Pokot to step up their cattle raiding to both steal and recover from raids on both sides.

It took nearly twenty years but the Pokots with greater access to political protection and power vastly reduced the herds held by the Turkana. The bulk of the Turkana poulation was driven into towns. The raids of the Samburu by Pokot were initiated in the very late 1990s as Turkana was destocked and attention shifted from raiding Turkana to raiding Western Samburu.

The Pokot boasted that they would “urbanize the Samburu” the same way they drove the Turkana off their range lands. The past 3-4 years have been devastating to Samburu cattle herds with at least 11,000 herd being driven off by Pokot raiders without significant recovery or compensation. The raids are often described as reciprocal, mutual and traditional but in fact these days successful large scale cattle raiders require partnering with individuals who can support the raids with State Power.

Read the full article at: Historical context of Isiolo/Samburu raids/violence

Pokot raiders and cattle rustlers have had a very negative impact on the Samburu in Western Laikipia and Samburu District. Loss of their herds forces them (in traditional ideaology where having large herds is of upmost importance) to become increasingly involved in cattle raids of their own to rebuild their herds. This is detrimental to the security in Western Laikipia and Isiolo District. However, it is the fact that the Pokot are State Sponsored that is most troubling!

More recently, the Boran in Isiolo District, with the blessing of MP Kuti and President Kibaki, were given nearly 300 automatic guns to serve as "home gaurds" to protect the Boran herds, though they have since been accused of using the guns in raids on Samburu and Turkana herds.

With the Samburu trapped in-between two State Sponsored tribes, the Pokot and the Boran, what do you expect their reaction to be?

The fact that the Turkana near Isiolo (who have mostly small herds and do not control large swaths of land) have become involved and siding with the Samburu tells me that Boran and Somali aggression in Isiolo District has become intolerable and a threat to their land and life.

Clashes In Isiolo Town and Gombela

I just talked with a few friends in Isiolo who verified the following information about the clashes in Isiolo.

There were two people killed in Isiolo town after receiving news of the Gombela village killings. The two people were killed in Chechelesi estate, located near the Isiolo District Hospital at the edge of Isiolo town heading towards Gombela.

This followed the deaths of six Borans in Gombela village by Turkana raiders on Friday. Friday afternoon Isiolo town was, "in chaos". People were throwing rocks and clashing with police. Since then things have "cooled down". "Vita imestop." There are GSU and Administrative police patrolling town. "Security is beefed up seriously." There are also many police in Archers Post.

Most of the schools surrounding Isiolo town have been closed, including: Daaba, Ahremet, Gombela, Kisimaa, Rhamadani, Kampi ya Juu, and Kilimani (there may be others). Ngare Mara school is still open as well as all of the schools in Isiolo town including the School for the Deaf at the outskirts of town.

Here are three articles about the clashes in Isiolo Town and Gombela.

This article from AllAfrica.com is well written and well informed.
Kenya: Resource Battle Kills 20 in North

This article is from the Daily Nation
Two More Die in Pasture Row

Here's another article, not quite as accurate, from The Standard.
Ten feared dead, others flee as Isiolo skirmishes escalate

Cholera Increasing in Isiolo and Surrounding Areas

As if Isiolo and surrounding areas don't have enough problems, it is estimated that the number of cases of cholera will continue to rise as the drought continues. This, coupled with food shortages and the destabilizing effect of guns and violence, looks to forecast a very dreary next six months (if not longer if the short rains fail!) for residents. It is also, as one NGO told me, again moving the community away from development and into crisis managment!

An article by IRIN (humanitarian news and analysis):
Water Shortage Increases Cholera Toll

An article dated 17/06/09 in The Standard.
Three more die of cholera as Isiolo toll hits 23

About Isiolo, Kenya

Isiolo is a small but cosmopolitan town located in Isiolo District, just north of Mt. Kenya, in a semi-arid landscape. It is competitively located nearly halfway between Meru town and Nanyuki, connecting the formerly British titled NFD (Norther Frontier District), now the upper-reaches of Eastern and North Eastern Provinces, with the more modernized/westernized Central and Eastern provinces. As some Kenyans say, "Once you've reached Isiolo you've finally entered Kenya." From Isiolo it is only a short four hour bus ride to Nairobi City Centre.

Isiolo hosts a mix of tribes including: Boran, Somali, Turkana, Samburu and Rendille (all traditional pastoralists) and the Meru (agro-business), with a number of other tribes from all over Kenya also being present (due to military bases located in the vicinity). The town is nearly half Christian and half Muslim.

Isiolo is surrounded by three National Parks: Samburu, Shaba and Buffalo Springs, as well as Lewa Downs Conservancy and Il Ngwesi and is known for its natural beauty and abundance of wildlife. It has been targeted in Kenya's Vision 2030 plan as a high-end tourist resort city complete with an international airport, casinos, and an increased number of safari lodges.

Isiolo has a long history of conflict usually due to traditional battles over grazing lands and water rights, though all too often inflamed or encouraged by local politicians, including the tribal clashes of 2002.