After Africa

Free delivery kits to all pregnant women in Tanzania

'IN a move to reduce reproductive and maternal deaths, the government will effective next financial year, provide all pregnant women with delivery kits. The move was announced in Dar es Salaam on Monday by President Jakaya Kikwete when launching a Campaign on Accelerated Reduction of Maternal and Newborns Mortality.'

So, the Tanzanian Daily News reports in an article on June 6.

In july 2009 I visited Itulahumba Hospital near Njombe in the Southern Highlands in Tanzania (photo). The hospital had the basic buildings in place, but little equipment apart from some outdated and samples of beds that had recently arrived in a container from Denmark. During my brief visit I was told that women would give birth on mats on the cement floor if the few beds were taken.

When I lived in West Nile in northen Uganda from 2005-2007 I knew exactly where the bigger hospitals were situated along my work route: Adjumani, Moyo, Koboko, Yumbe, Maracha, Arua, Kuluwa and eventually Mulago. I also knew where pregnant women would prefer to go if they could afford it.

Being pregnant in a first world country and with all the comfort and security it offers, makes it hard to imagine the conditions many African women must suffer when pregnant. Priviledged myself, having had a car and a health insurance when I worked in Africa, I could only observe the strenght of these women - and give lifts to the nearest hospital.

Reading the article I am therefore also wondering what exactly is a delivery kit? And how a kit can improve a pregnant woman's chances of surviving giving birth? Obviously a hospital bed, clean water and a qualified doctor would be preferable to a kit, isn't it?

However, the positive thing is in fact that President Kikwete is standing up tall, talking on women's behalf:

'President Kikwete pointed out some of the challenges in the government programmes to reduce these deaths as lack of support from the community members, especially husbands of the pregnant women and thus leading to many women delivering at home.'

It strikes me how concise Kikwete is with numbers all the way down to the 421 motorcycle ambulances ordered. (About two weeks ago the development of the fibre optic cable were given specific numbers.) It seems like a free gift to monitors and others with a passion for accountability? Maybe to check The Guardian's article 'Mobile healths offers hope to patients in Africa' for inspiration?

Good news for Tanzania (and its democracy-loving donors)

Last year in February Uwazi made a report 'Do they work for us? 17 formal Tanzanian parliamentary sessions surveyed'.

Today Uwazi launched another report concluding that the more active an MP is, the greater chance of being reelected and returning to parliament. Find the report here.

The report says:

One measure voters may use when assessing an MP is how actively he or she participated in the business of Parliament. Does it matter to voters how many basic and supplementary questions an MP asked or how many contributions he or she made while in Parliament?

The brief also shows that elected ordinary MPs who returned were more active than those who did not return. It also shows that the political parties with more active MPs in Parliament gained seats in the elections of October 2010, while the party with less active MPs lost seats. In combination, these facts suggest that the performance of MPs in the Bunge does matter to voters.

So, the more active the MP is, the greater chance he/she stands to keep his/her seat in parliament, and therefore the report concludes that if your political party has the ambition to get more seats, the way forward is to perform, and make interventions.

Good news for Tanzania, and its democracy-loving donors, isn't it?! It all boils down to hard work, and getting off your feet.

Is it really this simple?!

As I said: 'I have no illusions' when it comes to my role on making change in Africa

Two weeks ago I won KLM's Club Flying Blue photo competition, where I in return had to give an interview here.

The Facebook page Jadili Africa (Discuss Africa) picked up a quote from my interview (and later invited me to become one of the administrators) of a Facebook page with over 7000 members aiming at discussing issues related to Africa. Here is how people commented:

My point is, KLM's Club Flying Blue communicates to one target group, Jadili Africa to another. Both communicate to people who relate to Africa, but in very different ways.

Obviously, it is an honour to win KLM's competition for the principle of winning and for the 5000 air miles, and to be given the change of expressing my viewpoints for a large target group. It is also encouraging when my friends voted for my photo, and click like on the article. (In fact, I've been amazed by the stable response here.)

However, that was the easy part, so to speak.

The interesting part, and the real challenge to me, the mzungu, is to be invited into the forum of Jadili Africa, and to face comments which fit my own personal kali view so much better on whatever I could be up to in Africa 

This is also one of the reasons why I have digged deep into the African pool of social media, because it offers me alternative views which are much more challenging than passing on a stereotype phrase targeting a European reader group where many seem to think that making change in Africa is something you just do.

You don't - and alternative views are hereby brought on.

Potentials and opportunities

I went through these photos and thought of what a Tanzanian friend recently told me:

'I haven't yet reached my full potential'.

His statement still stays with me. Powerful it is, and confident.

Like when my nephew Baltasar (photo above) called me last week from Iceland to tell me he had been rated a top-performing super-pupil.

Important, especially these days where youth in Northern Africa and in the Middle East is taking to the streets - well - basically because they've got potential which has to be used.

It is not a thing I hear very often in Denmark. That you consider your potential, and that you cannot waste opportunities not to use it.

First, we are brought up to believe that we're all equal, that we must blend in and not brag. Secondly, I feel that the Danes take too many things for granted. As if we're expecting that opportunities will always be there, and that opportunities are only there for us.

Not that we have to do something extraordinarily ourselves to reach it.

I think we have to, though.

Life is simply more interesting that way.

(I'm obviously not Kenyan), but curious to see what happens at #Kenya28Feb

We are extremely proud to be Kenyan!
We are proud of our beautiful country!
We are proud of our diversity cultures and traditions!
We are proud of our heroes!
We are proud of our high achievers!
We are proud of being hustlers!
We are proud of our hoods!
We are proud of our tribes and twengs!
We are proud of our kanges and our mats!
We are proud of our artists and musicians!
We are proud of our industries and farms!
We are proud of our sports teams!

On the 28th of February 2011 at 1pm EAT, wherever you are, at work, in the supermarket, in traffic, in school, on campus, in hospitals, in churches, in mosques, in temples, in synagogues, on sports pitches, in court, on your farm, at police stations, at armed forces barracks, in matatus, in buses, on the beach, in the game parks, at the airport, in parliament, in State House, in your homes …
On the 28th of February 2011 at 1pm, we stand
On the 28th of February 2011 at 1pm, we unite
On the 28th of February 2011 at 1pm, we shall speak in one voice.
On the 28th of February 2011 at 1pm, let’s sing our beautiful and powerful National Anthem, all three verses.
On the 28th February 2011 the world will watch as Kenyans stand UNITED;
1pm, 1 nation, 1 people, 1 anthem, united in 1 prayer for 1 Kenya
We are Kenya!

Website: 28Feb.co.ke
Email: unite@28feb.co.ke
Twitter: @Kenya28Feb
Facebook Page: 28FebKenya
Bloggers: We need your help!

I don't know where I will be, but God knows...

Notes from a workshop.

This one from a session working with the Southern Sudanese in northern Uganda back in 2006, where the question was something in the direction of 'Let's imagine the future!'

I learnt a lot from that.

Refugees and returnees think totally differently than, let's say, my parents who never spent more than maximum three days away from each other, still live in the place they were born, grew up, met, got engaged, married, took over my great-grandfather's farm in a rural outpost, had me, my brother and sister, sent us to school, and taught me that complaining over bicycling long-distance would take me nowhere...

Having gathered something close to 80.000 photos in the past 10 years, I still come across images of times and concepts, I wouldn't be able to remember so clearly if not photographed (and blogged). 

Minister about the Tanzanians' use of mobile phones: 'most of the conversations and messages were on sexual relationships'

The deputy minister for Industry, Trade and Marketing, Mr Lazaro Nyalandu, said recently (according to The Citizen):

'Tanzanians spent a total of Sh2 billion for talking through mobile phones in 2010.

However, it is amazing that most of the conversations and messages were on sexual relationships, the deputy minister for Industry, Trade and Marketing, Mr Lazaro Nyalandu, said recently.'

and

'Unlike our colleagues from Kenya, Rwanda and Uganda who have been using blogs and their mobile phones to learn basic things like the state of markets for different products, we have spent much time making non-profit contacts; many Tanzanians’ blogs are full of gossip,” said Mr Nyalandu.'

Did the minister make the assumption based on experience or statistics?

If the latter, I really wish he'd share it.

Protests, signwriters and media...

Students of Dar es Salaam University clashed with police Thursday. One message from the demonstration  was:

'Mr President: Respect higher learning institutions Sh5,000 is not enough” and “MPs and ministers salaries and posh cars should be reduced to compensate students.'

Read the full article from The Citizen here.

Swahili Street has an excellent post here linking between watanzania in Kigamboni and the (new?) debate on constitution for Tanzania. Here referring to two signwriters' (wonderfully sharp) interpretation of Tanzania 2011:

'Education is going backwards, health services are a mess, Kilimo Kwanza* is too little too late, Dowans is a disgrace. We need a new constitution to suit the times. The current one lets our leaders do what they want. There are no means of keeping a check on them. The Chief Justice is appointed by the President and then is sworn in by the same President. Others are appointed to multiple positions. What’s all that about?'

Do also read The Mikocheni Report's 'Egypt and Other Problems' here, where Elsie notes:

'Was following a brief conversation on Twitter recently when one Twitterer...Tweep (?) asked whether what was happening in Egypt could happen in Tanzania, and the other Tweep said "no." I'm inclined to agree- I can't imagine an incumbent here surviving such a prolonged moral siege. Our system isn't geared quite that way. What do y'all think? I have to mention though, that as a method of regime change this new wave of protests is a wonderful step up from the more traditional assassinations/military coups/"liberation" movements/fillial successions of yore.'

Let me admit, that I asked that question on my blog, and debated it briefly via Twitter, last week.

What I did learn, subsequently, is that firstly, Sub-Saharan Africa is not one country, secondly, people do not necessarily have the exact same reasons as the Egyptians, and finally, that wishful rethorics on social media doesn't (necessarily) make the masses protest in the streets.

Or?

Back to another article in The Citizen:

'Tanzania, like any other African nation, may also experience the copycat anti-government street protests that have engulfed the Arab nations, political analysts say'

Let me copy Elsie's question to be on the safe side: What do y'all think?

Vote for my photo of Esther at KLM's Top 11 'Flying Blue Miles'. PLEASE!

This photo, of Esther from Kanaani Village in Njombe in Southern Tanzania, now made it to the best 11 photos in the competition '5000 Flying Blue Miles'.

The top 11 best rated pictures are now featured on Facebook here, and I REALLY wanna win the 5000 Flying Blue Miles, so PLEASE help me, and go vote by clicking on the ‘Like’-button of my picture. Note that it only works, if you 'like' the '5000 Flying Blue Miles' first.

(KLM will be giving away an additional 5000 Flying Blue Miles amongst the likes!)

The story of the photo comes here.

Thanx!

Africans redefine Africa (without my help)

While a selection of Denmark's largest development NGOs together with Denmark's Broadcasting Corporation (DR) and private companies enter a collective coma on Saturday (in Danish), nationally fundraising for what they dubbed 'The New Africa', Africa is redefining itself.

Every day, in all ways, by its own drive, creativity, history and energy.

If you want to know what's rocking Africa, circle Twitter, blogs and Facebook for inspiration and updates. Or, if in Africa, attend the events included on the list below, check out the products produced, or ask people out and discuss what's going on between reality and cyberspace.

Activism, intellect, ideas and creative skills are here combined via social media, which provides options for exchanging and learning. It is interesting because it is relatively new, it is inviting to engage and share, but it is also rather unfiltrated.

The list below isn't prioritised in any ways, but impulsively compiled based on my specific interest in art, culture, music, social media, photography, design, fashion, politics, activism - and East Africa. 

• This Is Africa… How Music and Social Media Are Re-defining A Continent
• Doreen Mashika
• Society hae - Change the World, Create Something!
• TedxDar
• A new breed of techno-savvy politicians in Africa?
• Afri-Love
• Swahili Fashion Week
• Kate Bomdiggity
• PEN & MIC 1
• Alfredmutua
• iHub, Nairobi
• Ladies' Mapping Party
• The Mikocheni Report
• Vijana FM
• Pecha Kucha, Dar es Salaam
• Sanaa Republic
• Kina Klothing
• Global Voices Tanzania
• Sauti za Busara
• MaKuYa Festival in Mtwara
• Swahili Street
• White African
• Mzungu Kichaa
• Pop Africana

And the list doesn't end here, please let me know what I've missed...