Rob Macaire

UK and Kenya: McDonald Mariga

Thank you Rob Jillo for your query: as always I encourage you and others to participate in our blog conversations.    You ask about the current status on McDonald Mariga.  The situation was that he didn't meet the criteria established for sponsorship by the Football Association, which is the governing body of English football.   However an appeal was made on his behalf to a panel made up of the FA and independent football experts, set up to ensure that players whose national teams which fall outside the top 70 rankings have a chance.   In the end this was not successful and the transfer window closed.   But I can confirm that there was subsequently extensive contact between senior people in both governments (including Prime Minister Odinga) and the FA, and the Chairman of the FA.  The FA have confirmed strongly that Kenyan footballers are not excluded from playing in England or the Premier League and would be a welcome and positive addition.  It would be good to see Kenyan players coming to the UK in the next transfer window.   It is of course a case by case decision for the Football Authorities at the time, as per the guidelines agreed with the Home Office.
Can I add personally that I, just like a lot of Kenyans , was excited  by the prospect of the first Kenyan playing in the  Premier  League and hope to see McDonald or other Kenyan footballers in the  Premier  League in the near future.

Posted at 13:25 05 February 2010 by Rob Macaire  |  Comments[0]

UK and Kenya Partnership

I am just back from a very interesting three-day trip around Rift Valley.  It is always worthwhile getting out of Nairobi to meet politicians, businesses and ordinary people in their home areas.  I learned a lot, but one particular thing that struck me is how much deeper the links go between our two countries than 'official' links.   I was impressed yet again with how far the DFID programme in Kenya reaches into the lives of people who need support.  In this case we visited two grass-roots organisations providing support and messaging on HIV/AIDS, one in Eldoret and one in Kericho, both supported by the UK through AMREF's Maanisha programme.  And we met a whole range of organisations working on reconciliation and peace-building between communities at local level, supported through the UK's Conflict Prevention Pool fund.   But government-backed support aside, links with the UK kept cropping up on the visit.  Take the major tea estates of Kericho, for example.  They are impressive companies, providing power, water, health and education to their employees.  But on top of that, they are selling into the Fair Trade scheme  which among other things provides a proportion of revenue back into a social premium to benefit the workforce and community.   So socially-aware consumers in the UK (and elsewhere) are contributing serious inputs to the lives of ordinary Kenyans.   The money flowing back into Kenya from sales of tea and other Fair Trade commodities has run into millions of pounds. 
 
Then in Nakuru we visited a couple of schools.  One, which we were shown by the local MP Lee Kinyanjui, had an integrated programme for teaching visually impaired children as part of the mainstream school.   Quite by coincidence that programme had been started up by Sightsavers, a UK charity.  Then at another school (Ronda primary in a very poor area of Nakuru), I was able to see the benefit of money raised through my old school in the UK, who have helped build classrooms and provided other assistance.  These links were created through a charity set up by a Kenyan former pupil at my old school (Cranleigh School).  Of course, the benefits are two-way, with British students who come to Kenya because of such links benefiting enormously in terms of their understanding and engagement with the wider world.
 
And of course we met a cross section of British nationals living in these areas, all of whom have links back to the UK,even if they have lived in Kenya all their lives, which enrich the contact between the countries.  
 
So even on such a short trip, I was reminded of how deep the so-called 'people-to-people' links are between the UK and Kenya.  A symptom of that is the frustration a lot of people felt when the news broke yesterday that MacDonald Mariga was not going after all to Manchester City - he would have been the first Kenyan to play in the English Premier League.   This would have been wonderful for UK-Kenya sporting relations.  Sadly he fell outside the well-publicised criteria the FA has for which players they will sponsor to play in the English football leagues.  I hope that in time we will see Kenyans playing in the Premier League.

Posted at 11:17 03 February 2010 by Rob Macaire  |  Comments[1]

Kenya, the UK and corruption

As regular readers of this blog or of our website know, helping to fight corruption in Kenya is a big target for us - both for our political work and the DFID programme. Last month we launched a new booklet on fighting corruption in Kenya. If you didn't see news coverage of it, you can read about and get the brochure.

The launch coincided with our decision, in the company of other donors, to suspend payments to the Kenya Education Sector Support Programme (KESSP) because of  a report from the Ministry of Finance documenting that money had been stolen from the programme. What has happened since then?
 
First, I believe that despite the enormously important political developments over the constitution, and other reform initiatives (a subject for a separate blog, I think), Kenyans have kept the issue of corruption and governance in their sights. Both Kenyans and international partners of Kenya continue to demand action to attack the twin curses of corruption and impunity. It's not just in Kenya that people are concerned:  I was encouraged to see that a recent debate hosted by the Royal African Society in London, at which Maina Kiai and Michaela Wrong were speakers, ('Kenya - Still on the Brink'), was packed out.  There is a blog report of it.
 
Second, the UK has stepped up even further its efforts to fight corruption globally.

Last week, Jack Straw (the UK's anti-corruption champion as well as Minister of Justice) launched a new anti-bribery strategy. He talks not only about the horrendous impact of corruption on economies and communities around the world, but also about the enormous changes in the world over recent years to give teeth to international efforts to fight bribery (particularly under the OECD's Convention). He describes the UK's investment in resources to investigate overseas bribery, and the real results that have come from investigations into UK companies. The UK's new Bribery Bill simplifies the law which already outlawed offering or giving bribes; it increases the penalties and it widens the range of acts that are illegal.
 
Meanwhile here in Kenya, Baroness Kinnock, our Minister for Africa, who visited last week, raised some of these issues with Kenyan leaders, MPs and civil society. She was able to re-emphasise to the Government that the UK, along with other international partners, is unwavering in its determination to help Kenyans fight corruption and impunity. That includes strengthening institutions inside and outside Government that impose accountability, and cooperation on law enforcement. We are working closely with Government to see what the outcome of the audits into the Ministry of Education show. We will keep a high standard in judging both the action to hold the perpetrators to account, and  really robust improvements to Government systems  to prevent it happening again.

Without serious steps in these areas, it  will be difficult to resume support to this crucial programme. Of course, the main victims of this fraud are not foreign donors, but Kenyans - both as taxpayers and as consumers of the service that has been damaged by the theft of funds.

Posted at 16:11 25 January 2010 by Rob Macaire  |  Comments[0]

Somalia - Independent Journalism

Over the last week a group of journalists from  South Central have been here in Nairobi for a conference.   As always, it is sad that the situation in Somalia makes it necessary to have such events here.   The participants all know that Somalia is just about the most dangerous country in the world in which to be a journalist.  They talked movingly of the colleagues who had been killed, the pressure they come under from the insurgents, and indeed the lack of commitment to press freedom that they experience from the authorities, be it in Mogadishu, Somaliland or Puntland.   They told us that they felt under pressure from all sides.  The conference was organised by a Dutch NGO 'Press Now'  alongside the National Union of Somali Journalists (NUSOJ), with the laudable aim of encouraging courageous and independent journalism in Somalia, and mobilising international support.
 
Press freedoms are important everywhere.  But Somalia is an extreme case.  There, intimidation and violence against journalists can prevent even the basic facts being reported freely.  And if people cannot hear independent news, let alone comment, the path out of conflict and disorder will be even slower.   What was impressive about this event was that there are still so many dedicated journalists in Somalia, who want to make a contribution to the improvement of governance in their country.  For their sake and Somalia's, let's hope that the freedom of the press can be extended and strengthened.  The international community certainly can play a part, but the government and regional authorities need to be committed too.  One thing is clear:  the extremist insurgents who are threatening the country and the region will do everything they can to prevent independent reporting.  In that, as in so many ways, they are fighting against the interests of the Somali people.

Posted at 15:58 30 November 2009 by Rob Macaire  |  Comments[4]

UK AND KENYA: KENYANS IN THE UK

When I was back home recently I sat down with a group of Kenyans living in the UK, to hear from them how they see both countries, and to answer their questions.  This is something we probably haven't done enough of in the past, and is linked to the Foreign Secretary's wish to 'Bring Foreign Policy Back Home'.  The Kenyan diaspora is large and diverse, and can be a powerful source of ideas, skills and investment for Kenya.   I was very kindly hosted by a community group from around Luton, and these were some of the things they wanted to raise or ask about :
- British development assistance to Kenya:  since it was coming from their taxes, was it well spent, was it really going to the poor in rural areas?   How could we make sure it wasn't going to corrupt politicians?  I said that we had strict measures in place, including not providing direct budget support to government.  But that we would be able to spend more on Kenya if it were not for the concerns about governance and corruption.
- Could the UK be better at assimilating people coming to live there?  We had an interesting discussion about citizenship and what it means, and how views have changed over recent years in the UK towards a more conscious acknowlegement of what it means to be a British citizen.
- Why didn't the UK speak out more about corruption (Goldenberg, Anglo Leasing, etc)?   I explained that I thought we did a lot, and would be saying more shortly about what we are doing to try to help Kenya deal with its corruption issues.
- They felt that membership of the Commonwealth should allow Kenyans preferential treatment on immigration, lower university fees, and more access to scholarships.   I explained about how Commonwealth scholarships work, and we talked about UK immigration law, obligations to the EU, etc.
- They didn't feel that their own Government reached out to the diaspora enough (in particular they would like to be able to vote in Kenyan elections).   I see that Dual Citizenship is now in the harmonised draft Constitution from the Committee of Experts, and it will be interesting to hear more voices from the diaspora in the consultation.
- Some of them wanted to talk about the history of colonialism, Mau Mau veterans land issues, so we talked around those subjects.
- There was concern about Kenya's vulnerability to climate change, and hope that the Copenhagen conference would bring a fair outcome.   I agreed fully with the speaker on that.
 
I hope that the answers I was able to give on these points was helpful to the audience - I said to them, and repeat to readers, that I would be happy to take follow up questions, or questions on any relevant subject, on this blog. I was interested to learn about the online diaspora resources such as www.kenbrit.org.uk and www.semaniseme.com .  It was refreshing to meet this group and I will try to keep meeting the Kenyan diaspora when I am in the UK.   But clearly many of these concerns are the same as those that people raise with me here in Kenya.
 
I also met a group of Somalis to talk about the situation in the country - a subject for another day, I think!

Posted at 08:15 25 November 2009 by Rob Macaire  |  Comments[2]

UK and Kenya-Kenya's draft constitution

Exciting times for Kenya.  Many people see a new constitution as the centrepiece of
postive change in the country - there has been popular demand for this reform going
back well before the 2002 election.   I was at the KICC for the launch of the new
draft on Tuesday, and found it rather inspiring, as the Committee of Experts and
political leaders linked this moment in Kenya's history to the struggle for
multi-party democracy, and to the determination to remove some of the underlying
causes for last year's mayhem.

Yet it is difficult to avoid the sense that the future of this project hangs in the
balance.  As we go into the period of public consultation, it will take great
leadership and restraint by Kenya's politicians and opinion-formers to avoid the
temptation of playing politics over the draft.  

Everyone has their own view, butmaking a new constituion is a bit like pushing a big
stone up a hill: if everyonepushes in the same direction, it may get there.  But if some
drift away or startattacking each other, the stone will quickly roll back down to where
it started. Personally, I have a huge amount of respect for the work that the Committee
of Experts have done - drawing on all the public consultation and debate around the
Bomas process in 2005, listening to views from across society over the last few
months, and crafting a vision to reflect the best way forward to represent Kenya's
aspirations.

So a moment of truth for Kenya, and in particular for the qualities of leadership
and statemanship needed from promininent MPs and Ministers.   Kenya's development
partners, such as the UK, have supported this process as a key part of the National
Accord.   And we'll carry on supporting it.  But it is for Kenyans to take a view on
the substance, and to engage with the process.  I hope that the debate about the
nature of the Presidency is a considered one.    

The Experts have set out a vision
for a President who is a father-figure to the nation - someone who carries the
burden of defending the country and safeguarding its values, but above the
day-to-day squabbles of political life.  As set out in the draft, the President
would be someone whom the whole nation, rather than one sector or region, could look
to as a rallying point.   Elected directly, he or she would have far more than a
'ceremonial' role.   It's a bold and hopeful vision for bringing greater harmony to
the nation.  But it remains for Kenyans to decide what they want from their
constitution.  I will be following the debate with as much interest as anyone else.

There's a good blog by Michael Mumo on Capital's website urging everyone to read the
constitution and the politicians to take a back seat.

Posted at 07:38 23 November 2009 by Rob Macaire  |  Comments[0]

Commonwealth Conversation - Kenya

Last week we held the local edition of the global conversation on the Commonwealth that I mentioned in my last blog. Here are some notes that I took of the event;

Many people still associate the Commonwealth with Britain and believe that membership should allow free visa travel to the UK and other Commonwealth countries. There was quite a lot of awareness on specific areas of Commonwealth activity such as Commonwealth games, Scholarship programmes, media training and coordination on legal systems.

There was a feeling that the Commonwealth could do more in exerting pressure on rights issues and constitution building in Kenya. One of the audience commented that the Secretariat should be given more power to address issues to do with Member states.

An overwhelming conclusion was that more needed to be done to promote Commonwealth and raise awareness on the activities been carried out.

I urge you to look at the website of this global conversation which has thrown up some lively debate

Posted at 13:57 02 November 2009 by Rob Macaire  |  Comments[1]

BLOG ACTION DAY 2009 - CLIMATE CHANGE

Today is Blog Action Day, with bloggers around the world writing about climate change, from thousands of different perspectives.
 
Writing here in Nairobi, it's particularly topical.  Parliamentarians from around Africa have just been meeting here, and have made very clear that they want African voices to be heard more strongly in the debate, as the negotiations intensify in the run-up to the Copenhagen conference in December.   

And tomorrow, together with representatives from the Government of Kenya and UNEP, I will be taking part in an event highlighting a ground-breaking research and communication initiative called 'Africa Talks Climate'.

Run by the British Council and the BBC World Service Trust, this work is founded on the belief that those worst affected must be better informed in order to understand and effectively respond to their changing climate.  Discussions were held with over 1000 citizens from countries across Africa, and interviews carried out with policymakers, religious leaders, business people and the media.

These two events show two different aspects of the climate change debate.  On the one hand, the importance of countries that are vulnerable to climate change having a full say, and being clear about their priorities and needs.  A remark made repeatedly at the MPs' meeting here this week has been that developed countries, who have historically produced most emissions, need to support developing countries, both in coping with and acting on climate change.   That must be right, and the UK believes that a high priority for Copenhagen will be to put in place finance needed by developing countries for both mitigation and adaptation.   And of course developed nations must set ambitious and binding targets for emission reductions.
 
But the the other interesting thing for me is that the Africa Talks Climate project shows that people most affected, here in Kenya, actually need better information about what climate change is and what it means. When this research is published after tomorrow's launch, I will put a link up on this blog.
 

Posted at 15:11 15 October 2009 by Rob Macaire  |  Comments[2]

UK, Kenya and the International Community

A crucial time for Kenya.   The EU, in the company of many other countries issued a statement on Friday expressing concern that nothing has been done to attack impunity for the post-election violence: neither a special tribunal nor referral to the International Criminal Court.  The ICC prosecutor issued an important statement a day earlier, supporting what he called a 'three pronged' approach to those crimes:  ICC, a special tribunal, and the TJRC to tackle historical issues and reconciliation at community level.   Now Kofi Annan , on behalf of the African Union,  has arrived in Kenya for talks with the two Principals and others.  All this coming hard on the heels of some tough, and well-chosen, words from the Obama Administration about the urgency of reforms and the responsibility of politicians and officials to act swiftly on them.   There's a strong sense of unanimity among the international community, and it echoes what is being heard far more loudly from Kenyan voices.   My impression from all this is that  the Kenyan people aren't willing to accept 'business as usual', particularly when that makes the chances of a repeat of last year's violence more likely.   While reconciliation is vital, I can't think of any country in the world where reconciliation has been achieved by deciding to allow people to get away scot-free with the use of violence for political ends on a massive scale.  Meanwhile Agenda 4 remains largely in the realms of commissions and recommendations, with Kenyans waiting  anxiously for the key actions to be taken.
[ends]

Posted at 07:08 06 October 2009 by Rob Macaire  |  Comments[2]

SOMALIA, KENYA, AND THE UK

I am just back from Addis Ababa, where I have had the chance to discuss with my colleagues from here and London, and also with the Ethiopian government, some regional problems including Somalia.  I spend a great deal of my time on Somalia.  But the situation in the country remains desperate, and there is a long way to go before Somalis can look forward to a more normal, stable existence.

Kenyans tell me that they are increasingly concerned about the problems that instability in Somalia brings over the border: refugees, small arms, all manner of threats.  People complain that money from piracy is behind the price of housing in Nairobi!  I am not so sure the arithmetic stands up for that claim, but there is no doubt that people here are directly affected by the situation in Somalia.  Actually, so is the UK.   With one of the largest Somali diasporas in the world, we have a direct interest in helping to resolve the ongoing crisis in that country.

That’s why we put money into both humanitarian and development assistance; support the AU force who are courageously defending the capital from rebels, and taking casualties from terrorist attacks (AMISOM);  work with our EU and other partners to support political moves towards stability; and back the Transitional Federal Government both diplomatically and practically.   One of the allegations I have little time for is people in the region saying that the international community “must do more” on Somalia.   It’s right up near the top of our international priorities.  But one thing we’ve learnt over the painful years since Siad Barre was overthrown in 1991 is that the outside world can easily do more harm than good by intervening.   The whole world needs to be resolute in supporting the widely-recognised government in the face of attacks from extremists.  But I believe that Somalis, not foreigners, will be the ones to bring eventual peace and development to their country.

But from the perspective my posting here in Kenya, I sense a bit of a danger that people will indiscriminately blame the Somalis living in Kenya (and even Kenyan Somalis) for the threats coming from over the border.  I'd be interested in any comments on that - especially if you are a Kenyan Somali or refugee.

Posted at 08:32 25 September 2009 by Rob Macaire  |  Comments[3]

UK and KENYA: CONFLICT AND SPORT

I spent the weekend at an extraordinary event, the Laikipia Highland Games.  Although I don't usually blog about what I have been up to, this event was very topical to what is making headlines in the country.  It took place not far from where a brutal armed attack had left over 30 people dead less than a week before, in the latest round of bitter fighting between pastoralist communities in that area.  So it was impressive to see an event that was bringing those very communities together through sport, and to see teams from Samburu, Pokot, Njemps and other communities putting their hearts into athletics and traditional tribal sports at a day dedicated to peace-building.  The noted conservationist Kuki Gallman is the moving inspiration behind this event, and I commend her efforts. 
 
But although these initiatives are tremendously important at a community level, the conflicts are too deep and complicated to be resolved that easily.  The state needs to do more.  For example, while we were in Laikipia for these Games, there was a heavy Administration Police presence.  It was very welcome.  But it is a temporary measure, and what will happen when they leave?  Even while we were there, the AP presence didn't stop a gang armed with AK47s being spotted nearby.  And poaching continues to be a serious problem: we saw an injured elephant by the side of the road; three hours later when we came back it was dead, with its tusks cut out.
 
But nevertheless this was an important initiative, and I was glad that the British High Commission was able to support it.  In fact, part of our support was to offer sponsorship to one of the winners, an impressive sprinter and long-jumper called Jacob Kurere, to go to Kip Keino's high altitude training camp.  Nothing would make me happier than for someone like him to go on and make the Kenyan team competing at the London Olympics in 2012.  Sport retains its ability to reach everyone, and to motivate whole communities.  And in Kenya, there are ways it can be used to break down conflicts between communities, be it youths in Nairobi slums playing football or pastoralist warriors joining events like the Highland Games.  We'll continue to support that sort of initiative.

Posted at 07:28 24 September 2009 by Rob Macaire  |  Comments[0]

Kenya and UK: Some thoughts on police reform

Many countries, Britain included, have reached moments when reform in the police service has become a pressing need.  My sense is that Kenya is at one of those moments now.   Security is a real issue.  Those of us who live in Nairobi are acutely aware of violent crime.  In recent weeks I have heard at first hand from people in Central province, in Laikipia and Isiolo, in Mombasa, and in Kisii about the crime problems they face.  And those are just the places I have been.  It's one of the issues that regularly comes at the top of opinion polling about people's concerns, and of course it remains a central element of the reform agenda.
 
We have been giving targeted support to improve the police's capacity in areas like forensics and crisis management work which are critical for security in Kenya. But I'm also glad that we have been able to help provide some practical support to the police reform task force itself.  We've done this, at the request of the Kenyan Government, by providing funding for quality international expertise to the task force - a technical police adviser,  local expertise, the South African deputy chair  and help with understanding oversight mechanisms. We are also supporting civil society to campaign for reform. .
 
The task force has produced its interim report and is due to complete its work soon.  Some have been sceptical, labelling it as "yet another commission"- we certainly won't be providing large scale support until we see evidence of real will to change policing culture.    But let's judge by results    I think there is a pretty strong appetite for serious reform of the police across the political spectrum , and amongst police  personnel themselves.  We'll be very interested to see how the recommendations are taken forward.  There has now been a shake-up at the top of the police, which is usually a precondition for far-reaching reform in any institution.  So let's see.
 
However, I really hope that such moves are not seen as an attack on the Kenyan police.   We all know that they do an almost impossible job, in dangerous circumstances, with very limited resources.  Police reform should be about boosting their ability to do their job, with Government investing more in policing and providing the men and women who risk their lives with a fair welfare and promotion package.  And a central ingredient in that is changing the relationship between the citizen and the security forces.  If the police are trusted by the public, they will have a cooperative environment to work in.  Many countries have found that to be the key in effective police reform.   Part of that is indeed about accountability of the police force, and independent oversight.  But if that relationship can be shifted, so that people have faith in the police to solve crimes, and not to demand bribes or to break the law themselves, the morale of the force should soar.  These are general points from experience around the world, but I believe they hold good in Kenya.  What do you think?

Posted at 09:36 18 September 2009 by Rob Macaire  |  Comments[6]

KENYA AND THE CHALLENGES OF CORRUPTION

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Posted at 13:25 04 September 2009 by Rob Macaire  |  Comments[8]

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Posted at 21:11 01 September 2009 by e-Media Global  |  Comments[1]

Electoral Reform in Kenya

Met with the Interim Independent Electoral Commission (IIEC), together with various other Ambassadors and development colleagues.  Kenya has a plethora of new Commissions and task forces at the moment, but this has to be one of the most important in the country.  

As we discussed with them, their wide mandate charges them with enormous responsibilities, with the outside world and Kenyans all watching to see how well they are able to chart a course through the political obstacles to robust electoral reform.   The bye-elections this week will be an important test, but the IIEC is up against the clock in trying to build a set of electoral reforms and processes that will re-build Kenyans’ faith in the democratic process to deliver governments who are genuinely working for the national interest. 

I found it encouraging to hear some of the steps they have taken so far, and also the goodwill they reported from a wide range of stakeholders including the media.  Everyone knows how important it is for them to succeed.   Those of us in the international community share that desire, and we will continue to deliver practical support to them.   I'd be interested in any comments from readers about electoral reform, and where you see it heading.

Posted at 16:28 26 August 2009 by Rob Macaire  |  Comments[3]