Having said that I admit there are indeed NGOs doing sterling jobs in
Kenya and we need to support them.  But for the most part, and I make
no apology about this, many of them are simply busy bodies that muddy
the waters, distort the facts (or focus on the negative ones), stir
controversy (in NGO-ese: "foster open dialogue") etc and strive to
remain relevant in order to secure funding.  In so doing they must
continue to paint a negative picture of Kenya.

On 21 June 2012 13:16, Kivuva <Kivuva@transworldafrica.com> wrote:

> Francis,
>
> Thank you for bringing this up. I think the ratings are more to do with
> perception than reality. Most of the negative that make us rank so poorly is
> our own creation. What about thousands of NGOs taking pictures of slums,
> drought and starving children then run to western donors begging for cash to
> "HELP" the poor they "REPRESENT"! This has ruined the developing world's
> image beyond measure. Our own PRESS is also a major problem. I don't see
> western country publish widely sensationalizing  their homeless, street
> gangs, mafia, and grand grand corruption, as we do ours.
>
> In recent times, I have seen our leaders, including PS Ndemo insist on
> positive reporting from our media. That is the direction we should seek. If
> we instill cockiness in the direction of  narcissism, then the west will
> stop taking us for granted.
>
> Self Love
>
> On 21 June 2012 10:47, Francis Hook <francis.hook@gmail.com> wrote:
>>
>> Apologies this is not mainstream ICT but at the periphery some ICT
>> aspects need to be considered as well...(open access to information,
>> ICT enabling democracy/choice/transparency, ICT in corruption, etc) .
>>
>> This index is by the US group Fund for Peace.   I wonder what metrics
>> they are using or how they are weighting the values of the 13 indices
>> they use.
>>
>> Kenya is ranked 16th...that's just 15 steps away from Somalia (???),
>> 14 from DRC and shares the "teens" positions with Pakistan, Nigeria,
>> Niger among others. The lower the  score, the more "failed" a state
>> is.
>>
>> Anyway....the links:
>>
>> 1 - http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/List_of_countries_by_Failed_States_Index
>> (updated with 2012 Index)
>>
>> 2 - http://www.foreignpolicy.com/failed_states_index_2012_interactive
>>
>>
>> Personally I don't think Kenya should rate that poorly out of a 177 or
>> so countries...I suspect some of the 13 indices are weighted more
>> heavy than others (corruption, criminality, political situation etc) -
>> and if such were removed from the index, just for the sake of seeing
>> how it shifts the rankings, I'd like to think some EU countries would
>> be in the top 50 at least....social unrest, steep economic decline,
>> slum creation (US - housing/mortgage crisis has seen more people
>> living in the streets in the last couple of years than in the last
>> half a century), Wall Street demos, etc, ...."Suspension or arbitrary
>> application of law" (Guantano Bay still open for business, The
>> Patriots Act).
>>
>> And "Intervention of external political agents" - I think in Africa's
>> case these "political agents" are usually from (or supported/fronted)
>> by some developing countries that would want to nurture certain
>> regimes in order to reap some economic gain...but that's an argument
>> for another day.
>>
>> I'm also surprised the use of the adjective "primitive" by Korean
>> Airlines, to describe Kenyans, elicited more reactions than this lowly
>> ranking...should we get all hot and bothered about what is likely an
>> issue of translation or summon our national pride and repudiate this
>> "failed" states index?
>>
>> Rgds
>>
>>
>> --
>> Francis Hook
>> +254 733 504561
>>
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>>
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>
>
>
>
> --
> ______________________
> Mwendwa Kivuva
> For
> Business Development
> Transworld Computer Channels
> Cel: 0722402248
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>
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>
> The Kenya ICT Action Network (KICTANet) is a multi-stakeholder platform for
> people and institutions interested and involved in ICT policy and
> regulation. The network aims to act as a catalyst for reform in the ICT
> sector in support of the national aim of ICT enabled growth and development.
>
> KICTANetiquette : Adhere to the same standards of acceptable behaviors
> online that you follow in real life: respect people's times and bandwidth,
> share knowledge, don't flame or abuse or personalize, respect privacy, do
> not spam, do not market your wares or qualifications.



--

Francis Hook
+254 733 504561