Kenya reaps the wind
Much needed energy to be generated by first wind farm to open atop the Ngong Hills.


From a distance the highlands look like a giant fist resting on the landscape, a series of knuckles forming the peaks of the Ngong Hills. From the top of the escarpment Kenya’s capital Nairobi spreads out to the east, the breathtaking Great Rift Valley to the west.

Maasai herdsmen shepherd their cattle across the hilltop pastures, some dressed in traditional colorful red tartan-print blankets, beads round their necks, earlobes hung with heavy rings, a stick in one hand and leather sandals on their feet.

Every afternoon the gentle morning breeze that sweeps up from the Rift Valley grows into a strong wind and by nightfall it has become a blustering gale. Now, Kenya’s government hopes to harness that power. Next month the country’s first wind farm will open on the top of the
Ngong Hills.

For now the six 165-foot tall steel shafts with their 82-foot fiberglass blades are shiny white, stark against the horizon, and motionless.

Jackson Odhiambo, 30, is an IT technician working for a company that hopes to bring fiber optic cables and broadband internet to Kenya for the first time later this year. One recent morning he had driven up to take a look at the turbines that now watch over the hills.

“These will generate power which is good and with wind it doesn’t pollute the air or disturb people with the noise. There are a lot of advantages,” he said.

“Kenyans won’t mind the landscape being changed because there is such a need for cheap power,” Odhiambo went on, adding, “and they look nice.”

Nearby a bunch of cows nibbled at the grass beneath one of the gleaming white towers. Their owner — a herdsman who had walked all the way from neighboring Tanzania with his cattle — had no idea what the strange sculptures were for but thought they looked great, a glimpse
of the future.

Hezron Ng’iela certainly thinks the wind turbines are the future. He is the senior projects engineer for wind and renewable energy at KenGen, the state-owned power company responsible for the wind farm at Ngong and, if tests go well, at 11 more sites across Kenya.

“We have in Kenya a lot of wind potential, probably enough to sustain us for a number of years if we exploit it properly,” Ng’iela enthused. “Right now we are gathering data with a view to developing other wind farms in the future.” That will include a further seven turbines on
top of the Ngong Hills.

.../... By Tristan McConnell - GlobalPost


SOURCE ET ARTICLE COMPLET :

http://www.globalpost.com/dispatch/kenya/090730/kenya-reaps-the-wind?page=0,0

Bien que les vacances scolaires débutent officiellement le 7 août, de nombreux petits Kényans issus des régions pauvres dévastées par la sécheresse ou des bidonvilles de Nairobi et Mombasa pourront continuer à fréquenter leur école. Le ministre de l’Education, Sam Ongeri, a pris la décision de ne pas fermer certains établissements pour permettre à ces enfants de continuer à bénéficier d’un repas quotidien. Les enseignants des 4 000 écoles concernées par ce programme devront renoncer à leurs vacances afin d’assurer l’accueil des enfants, précise le quotidien kényan Daily Nation. Selon Sam Ongeri, sans le programme de nutrition mis en place dans les écoles tout au long de l’année grâce à l’aide du gouvernement japonais et du Programme alimentaire mondial de l’ONU (PAM), 2 millions d’enfants d’âge scolaire sur les 8 millions que compte le Kenya seraient touchés par la famine.

SOURCE :

http://www.courrierinternational.com/breve/2009/07/29/pas-de-vacances-pour-les-ecoliers-qui-ont-faim



About two million children in Kenya's marginal and poor areas will stay in school during the August holiday for feeding.

Various government ministries will coordinate the exercise to ensure the children’s safety and that there are adequate food and water supplies.

Teachers in the selected schools will also be expected to forfeit their vacation to ensure the smooth running of the programme. The decision was reached at a crisis meeting in Nairobi on Tuesday by top education officials.

Severe drought

Speaking to the Press after the meeting, Education minister Sam Ongeri said the government had taken this unusual measure to avert starvation among pupils.

“Sending the children home for the August holiday in areas experiencing severe drought is not tenable as this will expose them to hunger and malnutrition, negating the gains we have made in education and nutrition,” he said.

Prof Ongeri said the holiday feeding programme targeted 1.6 millions of Kenya's nearly eight million primary school pupils.

He, however, said the programme was not compulsory and parents who wished to take their children home could do so.
Schools close on August 7 or earlier.

The plan will target about 4,000 schools in the arid and semi-arid areas and those in slums in both Nairobi and Mombasa. “A recent assessment of the drought situation in the country indicates that numerous households in those areas are experiencing serious food insecurity.”

Families in affected areas have abandoned their homes for neighbouring countries or other distant places in search of pasture and water for their animals.

In Kajiado, for example, 30 per cent of the animals have died and the rest moved to Tsavo West. Prof Ongeri urged the various agencies of government to assist in the programme but welcomed any other help.

“We hope the Water ministry will supply water to the schools in their tankers. I also urge individuals, religious organisations and corporate bodies to support the programme,” he said.

A meal a day

The government allocated Sh1.6 billion for the school feeding programme this financial year. The World Food Programme and the Japanese Government have also thrown their weight behind the programme through the Home Grown School Feeding Programme, which has boosted the number of children being fed by 550,000.

Since 1980, the government and the World Food Programme have been feeding 1.1 million pupils in primary and early childhood centres.
It has been found that schools that provide children with a meal a day register increased enrolment and stable attendance.


SOURCE :

http://www.nation.co.ke/News/-/1056/631530/-/item/0/-/10p4klw/-/index.html

Photo prise ce jour a 19h08'

Photo prise ce jour...


PLUS DE PHOTOS EN FORMAT PDF :

VOIR : http://www.fileden.com/files/2008/3/13/1811927/COUCHER%20DE%20SOLEIL%20SAMBURU%20DISTRICT%2028%2007%202009.pdf

Apres une journee a surveiller les troupeaux, a la recherche de quelque paturage....retour au village...

Time to think together or declare this country a national disaster


Kenya is at a crossroads. Almost every sphere and sector of life is in a crisis. Over 10 million people face hunger and starvation. The number is set to increase as the current crop season has failed.

Urban life is facing imminent danger. Water shortages have persisted. Outbreak of water–related diseases is a real threat. Urban transport is degenerating. Rules introduced by former Transport minister John Michuki to rein in matatus are no longer observed. Road carnage is back.

Insecurity has reached alarming levels. Everyone is under threat. Kidnapping, violent robberies, car jacking and other ills reign in our society today. Cases of police brutality and extra-judicial killings abound.

Inter–communal tensions and conflicts continue to rise. Class tensions are beginning to emerge. Militant illegal groups are taking shape. The entire Kenya community is threatened.

External conflicts such as terrorism and national boundary disputes are finding their way into a country beset by her own problems.

Many of our youth have become despondent. We are losing a productive and energetic youth to illicit brews, idleness, drug abuse and illegal groups. Unemployment is a major issue.

Commodity prices are at an all-time high. Most basic goods, such as food, are beyond the reach of many. Agriculture faces collapse. Tea farmers are uprooting their crops. Maize farmers are facing crop failures and poor payments. Other sectors such as coffee and pyrethrum are at lowest levels.

National leadership has become ineffective. People no longer trust their leaders. The Executive has failed to show leadership. Parliament tries, but loses focus too often. The Judiciary is fast losing trust. The spiritual leadership is fast losing credibility.

Families are disintegrating. Cases of fathers raping daughters and other social ills dominate our media outlets. Hundreds of internally displaced people are still in camps.

The health sector is no better. Doctors are now urging the government to declare TB a national disaster. HIV and Aids are wrecking our society.

Swine flu is a looming danger. Malaria, cholera and other preventable diseases are on the rise. Environmental degradation continues to be a hot political subject.

Yet, the country continues to experience extreme weather conditions. Major rivers are drying up. Our forests are fast dwindling. Natural resources are over-exploited.

.../...

SOURCE ET ARTICLE COMPLET :

http://www.nation.co.ke/oped/Letters/-/440806/627462/-/item/0/-/jucberz/-/index.html

Written by William Lambers, Global Hunger Examiner


Fighting hunger in Kenya with school meals


The drought emergency that has been declared in Kenya arrives on top of previously existing problems: an AIDS epidemic, urban migration, and a lack of government resources to deal with these challenges. People who were already struggling to feed themselves because of high food prices have now been hit by maize shortages and drought. Nearly 50 percent of the population lives below the poverty line—on less than a dollar a day—and with inadequate access to food. 1.2 million children remain out of school despite the 2003 declaration by the Government of free primary education for all.

The United Nations World Food Programme (WFP) runs school feeding programs to help impoverished children in Kenya. Rene McGuffin, a WFP program advisor, talks about how critical school feeding is for overcoming hunger and poverty in Kenya.

How many children benefit from the WFP School feeding programs in Kenya?

WFP Kenya is providing food assistance to 770,000 primary schoolchildren in more than 1,700 schools located in the remote, arid regions and the unplanned urban slums of Nairobi and Mombasa. Due to the drought and resulting food crisis, WFP is looking at scaling up the number of children it feeds by April 2009 in an effort to ensure that those children who might otherwise drop out of school to help their families during these difficult times remain in school.

Discuss what effect the meals have on the children in terms of school attendance, performance, and nutrition.

Although progress has been made, there are significant regional disparities in access to social services and schooling across Kenya. In both the remote, arid districts and the urban slums, more than 67 percent of the population lives below the poverty line, many on less than a dollar a day. Basic social services are grossly inadequate.

Chronic food insecurity and poverty reduces opportunities for children to complete primary education in many parts of Kenya. To support children in school, WFP launched a school feeding program in 1980 with an overall objective of supporting the Government’s goal of ensuring universal primary education and education for all by 2015.

The daily meal, mixed with oil and salt, provides the children with 703.25 calories, including 13.5 grams of protein and 5 grams of fat necessary for their growth.

According to a WFP 2008 survey, the net enrollment rate for boys and girls has risen from 77% in 2002 to 92% in 2007, due in part to the Government of Kenya’s Free Primary School initiative, and in part to the provision of school meals. While gender ratios are below parity in all schools, meaning fewer girls are attending school than boys, the ratio is closer to parity in schools with school feeding. This suggests that school meals attract the more underprivileged female students to class. Attendance rates in WFP-assisted schools have increased to 89 percent, demonstrating that school feeding draws hungry children to school each day.

Teachers routinely cite school meals as having a positive effect on the ability of students to concentrate in the classroom, the duration of their attention spans, and their cognitive and learning abilities. Improving school enrollment has been cited as the single most effective child protection intervention, and school meals ensure that children in the impoverished slums come to class. Crime and violence are prevalent in the slums, and children are often the victims. One study found that primary school-aged girls were the most vulnerable, with a 60% likelihood of being victims of abuse and violence. High poverty levels in the slums expose children to sexual violence. Child prostitution is common and the prevalence of HIV/AIDS is high. Providing a meal in school means that children are less likely to be roaming urban streets where they are subjected to violence.

What plans are there for making school meals available for all children?

WFP’s new five-year development program (2009-2013) has emphasized the need to hand the program over to the Government after 28 years of assistance. The Government’s 2008/2009 budget included $5 million USD for feeding an additional 550,000 children through a Home-Grown School Feeding Program, which brings school feeding and agricultural development together through local procurement, support of school gardens, and agricultural education in the classroom. This brings the total number of children targeted for school meals to 1.32 million.

During times of severe drought, WFP expands its school feeding program to hard-hit areas. Due to the threat of drought from little rain in the Eastern and Coast Provinces in 2008, an ongoing assessment will determine how many more children will benefit from school meals in 2009. Even without this expansion, nearly 63 percent of the children enrolled in primary schools are currently receiving food.

What would be the sources of funding for any expansion of the school feeding program?

WFP Kenya’s school feeding program, like other programs around the world, relies entirely on voluntary contributions. Given competing priorities, including saving lives in emergencies, WFP Kenya advocates for funding from corporations and individuals, as well as governments, to reach the 770,000 children currently under its program. Additional support by the private sector would enable more children to be fed in school. Currently, WFP Kenya receives annual contributions from International Paper, Unilever, and individual donors, and would be pleased to welcome other partners.

The Government of Kenya, through the Kenya Education Sector Support Project (KESSP) and with support from the international donor community and the United Nations, has identified school feeding as an efficient and effective means of promoting access to basic education for all in the remote arid regions. While Kenya has made budget allocations to feed an additional 550,000 children under its Home-Grown School Feeding Program, the country continues to depend on aid, with external grants comprising five percent of total public revenue.

Significant grant financing will be required to support achievement of the Millennium Development Goals (MDGs) in the near future, especially as the post-election crisis of 2008 eroded some of the gains that previously had been made. The Ministry of Education has the opportunity to utilize donor funding through the KESSP for school meals and would welcome any other support from the international community.

What has been the effect of high food prices on this funding effort?

High food prices have caused the cost of feeding a child one meal each school day to increase from just 9 cents to 18 cents a day in Kenya. As a result, 2008 contributions only covered 50 percent of the previously identified requirements, and additional resources were required to reach all children. In an effort to address the impact of higher food prices, WFP headquarters allocated an additional $2 million to expand school feeding in Nairobi slums and in early childhood development centers (pre-school) in remote, arid districts. High food prices have had a disastrous effect on both the urban poor, who spend 60-80% of their income on food, and pastoralists in northern Kenya, where malnutrition rates among children under five is routinely above the international emergency threshold of 15 percent.

How can someone help the school feeding program?

Individuals, schools, and corporations interested in supporting school feeding can find information on how to donate online. If in the United States, you can find information through Friends of the World Food Programme. Both sites allow donations to be targeted directly to WFP’s operations in Kenya.

Since 2004, corporate partners like International Paper and Unilever have ensured that nearly 100,000 WFP-supported children in Kenya receive a hot, nutritious meal in the Nairobi slums and in the Masai region. By providing an incentive to come to school, these corporations are helping to build a brighter future for both the children and the country. These children, with the help of the school feeding program, will be the next generation of successful contributors to Kenyan society.

In addition, through the UK Really Good School Dinner campaign, school children across the UK raised funds for school meals in Kenya and other countries.

We are encouraging other corporations, schools, and partners to get involved by adopting a school or donating money for school meals. Cash and in-kind contributions to support the school feeding program are welcome.

Anything else you'd like to add about why you think school feeding is important for people to support?

Many children are frequently absent from school, drop out to look for food or income, or are simply too hungry to come to school. Even if they do come to school, hunger can diminish their ability to learn. These chronic problems are intensified during acute food shortages such as those caused by drought and other shocks. In Kenya, as in many other developing countries, school feeding increases the number of children enrolled, and encourages them to stay in school. Many times this is the only meal that these children have in a day.

Kenya is currently facing a multitude of challenges. Last month, the government declared food shortages as a national disaster, and announced that 10 million Kenyans were in need of food assistance. While a WFP-Government assessment on total needs is still being finalized, the government has indicated that as many as 850,000 additional children need school meals to keep them in class during the 2009 school year. As a result of the drought, many families resort to extreme measures, including pulling their children out of school to work, just so families can eat one meal a day. In schools where school feeding is offered, this is less likely to happen.

The high food prices that continue to plague Kenya have a direct impact on those living in urban slums, who spend 60-80 percent of their incomes on food. From December 2007 to December 2008, the price of maize (the main staple) increased by 100 percent, cooking fuel by 50 percent, and water by 114 percent in the urban markets.

School meals help get children in the Nairobi and Mombasa slums off of the dangerous streets and into classrooms, ensuring them least one hot, nutritious meal each day.

SOURCE :

http://www.examiner.com/x-16819-Global-Hunger-Examiner~y2009m7d15-Fighting-hunger-in-Kenya-with-school-meals

Some pictures of Samburu people on this site :

VOIR:

http://www.tonigreaves.com/photos/samburu%20rites%20of%20passage/

Rift Valley Diary

The red pick-up drives fast heading north, past Nakuru, towards the heart of the Rift Valley. On the left side of the road, tea fields as far as one can see ranging from light blue-green to deep, depending on the inclination of the hills. On the right side, colourful women scattered around an endless coffee plantation.

When the road begins to descend, the environment around abruptly changes. The tea and coffee plantations disappear, the soil loses part of its characteristic blood-red colour and emaciated goats look along the road for something to graze on. As we drive further, the tarmac road turns into rough, dusty soil. All around is aridity: a vast plain dotted with trees, bushes and rocks.

"Pole, Pole!" - slow down - says everyone standing by the track, while trying to protect themselves from the dust. The driver seems restless and every group of people we encounter quickly disappears into a thick cloud of red dust. “Drought,” the driver says with a grin. “We’ve missed the short rains ofDecember.”
This is the Kenyan Rift Valley when the rains fail to come: an arid area with little food left. Animals grow skinnier as days pass by,and the people of the countryside grow hungrier. They cling to small plots of land that have hardly managed to survive the disaster.

For many African countries, a drought means the complete loss of harvest, hence famine. This is especially true for Kenya, which – as the government declared some weeks ago – is experiencing a serious food crisis involving at least a third of the country's population. This is not surprising since, as the World Bank reminds us, East African countries face regular fluctuation in food supplies dependent upon rainfall. However, the very actions needed to solve, or at least mitigate, the current situation, have not yet been taken by the Kenyan government.

.../...SUITE ET ARTICLE COMPLET

http://sloweb.slowfood.com/sloweb/eng/dettaglio.lasso?cod=3E6E345B116f119C45ikP3032CFA

The world's population - already at least 6.7 billion people - will double in the next 40 years if current growth rates are left unchecked, warns the United Nations Population Fund (UNFPA).

EXTRAIT:

"What we see is countries like Kenya, which had stabilised its growth, are now growing faster again," Alex Ezeh, executive director of the Africa Population and Health Research Centre, told IPS. "By 2050 Kenya is projected to have 87 million people."

Kenya currently has a population of 39 million.


SOURCE ET ARTICLE COMPLET:

http://www.ipsnews.net/news.asp?idnews=47587