Africa so rich yet so poor

Africa – Why Are We So Poor and Yet So Rich? The greatest challenge facing Africa is its oxymoronic economic state where the continent on one had boasts of unequalled natural resource endowment and yet on the other hand the continent continues to labour under the yoke of poverty and under development .Interestingly according to a paper produced by Trust Africa on “Illicit Financial Flows “Africa has lost between $1,2 trillion to $1,4 trillion in a thirty year period from 1980 to 2009 . This is in spite of the fact that Africa contributes almost 42% of the worlds gold reserves not to mention a significant proportion of the world’s diamond ,chrome and platinum deposits .In spite of this Africa continues to suffer the indecency of poor human development indicators such as lack of access to health ,education ,,water and even basic food security .Why is Africa so rich and yet so poor? Lessons From the Bible The Christian bible tells of an interesting episode in the history of the nation of Israel when there was not a single “blacksmith in Israel “”because the Philistines feared that if the Israelites had their own blacksmiths they would make their own weapons .The net result of the lack of blacksmiths was that the Israelites went to their “rivals “ to have their “agricultural implements sharpened “. The key lesson here is that any nation or any group of nations that does not have the technology or means of processing their own raw materials will remain forever a slave to other nations .This brings to the fore some key imperatives for African countries namely : 1.Beneficiation and value addition- This is not a revelation as African activists from the time of Patrcie Lumumbu and Nkwame Nkrumah have been harping on the importance of Africa producing finished products instead of exporting raw materials to the North or is it West and then re importing finished goods from the same countries at a higher prices .Some 60 years later after numerous heads of state summits ,regional SADC ,ECOWAS ,COMESA and African Union Summits there has been a spectacular failure to translate the language of Pan African economic renaissance from the mumbo jumbo of rhetoric into practical action . The imperative of value addition is noted in the Zimbabwe Government’s ZIMASSET policy blueprint and more recently at the SADC heads of state and government’s summit it was a key motif . 2.Curbing Illicit Financial Outflows The SADC Peoples’ Summit hosted by the Southern Africa People’s Solidarity Network [ a consortium of civil society organizations] met in Bulawayo recently and robustly proposed that African nations needed to curb the “illicit financial flows from Southern Africa “ .Importantly it must be noted that the amount of money which southern Africa and generally Africa loses as a result of illicit outflows is much more than what Africa seeks in aid .In effect Africa is like a man who carries a huge bag which has gold and diamonds and every treasure imaginable .However the bag has a huge hole and the man keeps on losing his treasure .Instead of fixing the hole ,the man begs for money from his neighbours to get food for his family .What an irony and what a tragedy ?There is need for African countries to ensure that leakages are plugged through tighter revenue collection mechanisms and anti corruption structures .Sadly it is not just multi national corporations that contribute to the illicit outflows of finances from Africa but also corrupt African leaders many of whom have more money in European capitals than in their home countries . Regional Integration I feel it is critical for African countries to expedite regional integration through Regional Economic Groupings {R.E.G.’s] such as SADC ,ECOWAS and COMESA .Traditionally these groupings have been too immersed in issues of politics and security at the detriment of economic development and integration . It is critical for regional economic integration to be prioritized so that African countries do not compete against each other for markets but are able to harness their collective potential and thus collect a larger economic dividend through greater leverage .Currently most African countries do not have the leverage to negotiate with both western and Chinese companies and institutions because of a lack of harmonized regional markets and processes .Imagine Zimbabwe ,Zambia and Mozambique as individual countries trying to compete with the European Union which already has a common currency and political level political structures and systems . Regional Economic Development Projects It is imperative for Southern Africa in general and southern Africa to vigorously explore the formulation of regional ,sub regional and continental infrastructure projects so as to ensure even economic development and greater value for capital and investment . Such projects should focus on energy ,water ,transport and extractives .Funding models could be premised on Private Public Partnerships which are well articulated in the New Partnership For Africa Development [NEPAD 2001] blueprint ] . A good example of such projects is the West Africa Power Pool [WAPP[ which seeks to create a regional electricity market for west African countries by ensuring that countries in ECOWAS have critical energy infrastructure .Quite possibly the Zambezi Water Project could be viewed a regional project that could also benefit Botswana and Zambia amongst other countries .This would ensure a broader funding /investment foundation with greater social and economic returns .Regional integration will fail as long as there is uneven infrastructural development within lets say SADC countries as it would then be difficult for good and services to move within the region due to poor road or rail infrastructure . Africa also needs innovative leaders who are not stuck in history or steeped in the politics of blame and corruption . Mayibuye

africans as Global citizens

Africa –The Age Of The Global Citizen The tremendous strides in information communication technology has literally revolutionized the manner in which individuals ,corparates and states go about their business .We now have mobile banking ,electronic commerce , e – commerce ,e governance ,internet banking and it has become possible to do business without physically travelling thousands of kilometres of to seal a deal .Nation states which are traditionally defined by territory ,population ,geographic borders and government now have to manage the unstoppable phenomenon of globalization which is transforming people and institutions into global citizens who are only limited by geography in their socio economic and political activities . Global Media It is a fact that most Zimbabweans and indeed Swazis and Sothos have more access to South African television channels than their own media content .Conversely the influence of international news agencies such as Al Jaazeera ,C.N.A. ,France 24 ,B.B.C and to a lesser extent E .T.V and S.A.B.C is much more profound than of local news stations .The failure of the country [Zimbabwe ]to rapidly liberalize the airwaves has meant that people have managed to access independent media on their own without the assistance of the state .Globalization and the impact of satellite T.V cannot be limited in this day and age and politicians have to understand that even if they limit people’s choices to “independent “or “private T.V and radio stations at a national level there will always be international media alternatives .The rapid rise of the internet and the “citizen journalist ‘ also renders efforts at censorship pointless as people now have unlimited access to information through the internet . It is estimated that over 8 million Zimbabweans have access to mobile phones and literally this means every other person excluding babies and small children have mobile phones . Increasingly most phones have access to the internet and thus access to global social connections through face book ,what ‘s app or twitter [ albeit to a lesser extent ]. In countries such as Uganda and Kenya mobile technology has had a profound impact on agro business with mobile applications being developed to suit the needs of farmers in those countries .In the last four years we have also seen how social media literally catalyzed the demise of regimes in Tunisia ,Libya and Egypt although the problems in those countries are far from over .Only China has managed to effectively control internet traffic through the state’s superior coercive superstructure . The Global Citizen Today’s young person is only limited by geographic boundaries , a factor which is increasingly under threat because a person can wake up in the morning and greet face book friend in Ghana ,tweet to a hundred people in the U.K ,and send a what’s app message to another person in Canada .The very same person can spend one year without seeing their uncle in Magwegwe or Gwanda but be in more regular contact with somebody in Canada or Dubai .Business can be conducted through Skype calls or Skype conferences hence reducing the gap between people in different countries . Global Citizen and Sports Why is it that on a Monday morning you are more likely to hear a heated debate about how Manchester United ,Liverpool ,Arsenal or Chelsea performed rather than how Highlanders F.C or Dynamos ,Kaiser Chiefs or Green Buffaloes[ can a buffalo be actually Green] performed ?.Its all about globalization and not necessarily the fact that our local soccer is dying [ although it is ] .It is a function of global culture and access to information .That is why it is possible today for someone to tell you the whole Real Madrid or Barcelona line up and not know a single CAPS United or F.C Chiredzi player . It is not lack patriotism it is just the manner in which the world is rapidly metamorphosing and at the slow pace of integration of I .C.T ‘s in sport ,music ,art ,development ,governance and literally everything in Africa .At the click of a button you can Google any player or any team from Europe and you will have access to updated information through well maintained websites and spaces .We cannot say the same for government ministries , soccer teams and so forth in Africa Zimbabwe in particular . We are still holding on to information dearly as sacrosanct when the world has moved on and left us in the sanctuary of a latter day “stone age “. African individuals however still have access to information about global music ,film , sports ,political or business icons and thus it becomes easier for them to identify with them .It is not just about patriotism but the imperative of ensuring that African entities be they corporate , political ,artistic or sport ensure are techno centric in their approach or else Africa will become irrelevant to its own people who have become ‘global citizens only limited by time zones and geographical locations .

Dumisani O Nkomo: Cuatomer Service Goes To The Dogs

Dumisani O Nkomo: Cuatomer Service Goes To The Dogs: Customer Care Goes To The Dogs Customer care is central to building brand loyalty and cultivating a broad customer base . However if the tru...

Cuatomer Service Goes To The Dogs

Customer Care Goes To The Dogs Customer care is central to building brand loyalty and cultivating a broad customer base . However if the truth be told it is now commonplace for retailers and service providers to routinely abuse customers .Just three weeks ago i was horrified to discover that a huge snake had make its way into our yard and as a loyal and responsible citizen i immediately decided to report the matter to the Department of Parks . Much to my disappointment i received a lukewarm reception from everybody at the Parks department and an indifferent officer called Godfrey coldly told me that i should wait until i saw the snake again and then call him .He was too busy with other business to attend to this “trivial issue ‘ . In my naivety i had thought that the officer would at least offer some advice on how we could deal with the snake . But alas the young officer did not often bother to find out what kind of snake it was or what precautionary measures could be taken to ensure that children where safe .The Department of Parks is not alone in this indifference to customers as other government departments and private retailers have gained notoriety for abusing customers after having institutionalized rudeness . Till Operators On a number of occasions after having patiently waited in supermarket queues for long periods of time my temperament has been tested by till operators who decide to close their tills just when you get to their tills and then rudely tell me to join the next long winding queue without even an apology .I understand that till operators also endure abuse from customers some of whom shout obscenities at them for no apparent reason but there is no reason to then abuse innocent customers who bring business to them and ensure that they are employed . I recently had an unpleasant brush at a popular fast foods outlet which is known for serving fresh hot chips and Russian chips when a grumpy till operator angrily told me to take my chips and go away . I tried to tell her to speak courteously to customers but was met with refined coldness and rudeness . The young girl really thought she was the best thing that has happened to Bulawayo since Bosso won the championship in 2006 .I tried to request to speak to the manager but was told that there was no manager . imagine a shop without a manager or even a proper complaints structure .After a full thirty minutes remonstrating with this rather dull till operator i received a rude “sorry phela “and left The Police and Roadblocks Zimbabwe has virtually become a police state with roadblock on every major road and to crown it off almost every other department manns these roadblocks . It must only be Zimbabwe where you find four government departments and the local authority at a roadblock .Motorists are subjected to on site interrogation not only from the police but ZINARA ,the City Council and it wont be long before we see ZESA ,ZINWA and ZIFA manning roadblocks as well .Comedy aside it is not healthy for a country which is it peace to have so many roadblocks as this is not a good reflection of the country as a tourist attraction .After all how come there is no institution that is checking the innumerable number of potholes in the country’s roads but instead people are harassed for the condition of their cars when the condition of the roads has crippled many cars . In any case i digress and may i however emphasize that in spite of the large number of roadblocks the police have improved their public relations in most roadblocks as officers are now courteous to motorists .The number of roadblocks is however not warranted as this slows down business .My parting shot is that the police are now to be referred as the Police Service under the new constitution and should thus reflect the aspect of delivering security services to the public . I would like to urge government departments and local authorities to improve their customer signage so that customers are aware of what kind of services they can receive from which offices . At times one is told rather rudely ’Kanti awukwazi ukuthi information inga ?“[ you don’t know where the information department /office is ].Services to customers should be timely as outlined in Chapter 9 of the constitution and organizations , institutions as well as other organs should ensure that frontline officers such as receptionists and till operators are trained in public relations and customer care . The customer is king .

Dumisani O Nkomo: Are New Year's Celebrations Now Illegal In Zim

Dumisani O Nkomo: Are New Year's Celebrations Now Illegal In Zim: Are New Year’s Celebrations Now Illegal? I had an unpleasant brush with the law on New Year’s Day when my nephew and niece alongside two fr...

Are New Year's Celebrations Now Illegal In Zim

Are New Year’s Celebrations Now Illegal? I had an unpleasant brush with the law on New Year’s Day when my nephew and niece alongside two friends who they had invited for an all night prayer service were arrested by a bunch of over zealous junior police officers . They had just gone out for a breather during the official all night break when we got news just five minutes afterwards that they had been hounded by the police who apparently where on a spree of arresting every other young person or female .These actions were largely unconstitutional ,illegal and an affront if not a calculated assault on civil liberties as enshrined in the supreme law of the land . This is not the first time where law enforcement agents have been caught on the wrong side of the law as last year there were numerous reports of armed policemen beating up and arbitrarily arresting people in places such as Lobengula ,Nkulumane and the city centre . On New Year’s Day they took it a step further by arresting hundreds of innocent people allegedly for loitering . Has it become a crime let alone a sin for one to be seen on streets of Bulawayo on New Year’s Eve . Virtually the whole world breaks into celebrations during this time and in most civilized countries there are impressive fireworks displays with hundreds of thousands of peoples massing the streets in joyous celebration . Not so in Zimbabwe and specifically in Bulawayo were the police decided that it was illegal for people to be seen on the streets of Bulawayo . The police do have a big role to play in maintaining law and order as well as preventing crime .However on New Year’s Eve they took it too far by arresting people that were coming from church services and even others who were not necessarily coming from church but who have a right by virtue of the fact that they are human beings and have a right to join in the merriment of celebrating the New Year without infringing on the rights of others . On this horrendous and harrowing morning or rather night young police officers were moving through the streets of Bulawayo and arresting any and every other person they thought was loitering . For goodness sake there will be normal people on any normal city in any normal country celebrating New Years Day unless a new draconian law in gazetted clearly making New Year’s Celebrations an offence .In the first place the constitution which is the supreme law of land grants Zimbabwean fundamental rights and freedoms which allow they to peacefully and responsibly move freely ,associate freely within the borders of the land .Section 2 of the country’s constitution is abundantly clear in stating that “the constitution is the supreme law of Zimbabwe and any law , practice ,custom or conduct inconsistent with it is invalid “ .Quite clearly the practise of arbitrarily arresting people without even telling them of their crime is at variance with the supreme law of the land and should be condemned by all law abiding citizens . The constitution further protects citizens against such blatant disregard of their rights by entrenching the following freedoms : 1. The right to personal liberty which includes the right not to be detained without trial and not to be deprived of their liberty without just cause [Chapter 4,Section 49 Zimbabwe Constitution] . 2.Rights of arrested and detained persons-this includes the right to be informed of the reason of arrest at the time of arrest ,access to a spouse ,partner or relative . The right to consult a legal practitioner . All arrested persons should be treated humanely and with respect for their inherent dignity . [Section 50,Zimbabwe Constitution]. 3.Right to human dignity[section 51] 4.Freedom form torture or cruel ,Inhuman and degrading treatment[section 53] 5. Freedom of association and assembly[section58]is that loitering ? 6.Freedom of movement[ section 66] I witnessed with my own eyes these constitutional provisions being torn to shreds by overzealous police officers who are inviting unwarranted litigation upon the state and especially the ministry of Home Affairs through this shameful and unconstitutional conduct .I tried in vain to remonstrate with an uninformed uniformed female police officer at Central Police Station that five people had been unlawfully arrested when coming from a church service but i was rudely told to come at eight o ‘ clock the next day . This implied that my young nieces and nephews had to spend a night in jail without eating [ this qualifies as inhuman treatment],when they had not committed a crime and in conditions which were sub human because that evening it rained the whole night and female prisoners had been bunched into a “game park “like fence in the open like wild animals whilst the rain pounded their fair skins . [These conditions were clearly inhuman and degrading ] . Fortunately section 85 of the constitutions gives citizens recourse to justice because it allows citizens whether on their own behalf or on behalf of others to approach the courts in cases where their rights and freedoms have been suppressed [This is a route i will happily take] . Section 243 empowers the Zimbabwe Human Rights Commission to investigate any person alleged to have infringed on any human right or freedom ,to secure redress and even recommend the prosecution of offenders ,where human rights or freedoms have been violated ] .The role of the security services including the police is to uphold the law and the constitution which includes fundamental rights and freedoms [section 206] .The police should therefore not violate the very constitution which they should uphold and guard jealously . By undermining fundamental rights and freedoms they are undermining the constitution and by undermining the constitution they are compromising the “territorial integrity and sovereignty of the nation “ which they are supposed t protect . These human rights abuses should be immediately investigated and the individual perpetrators brought to book . I will continue with part two of the instalment next week . Views and opinions from the public are welcome . Mayibuye !

MAKE THE CONSTITUTION A REALITY

Making The Constitution A Reality-Prioritize Levels of Government By Dumisani Nkomo The new constitution brings with it numerous challenges to the legislative arm of government chief of which will be the imperative of aligning at least 200 laws with the new charter .New constitutional structures and institutions also have to be put in place in reflecting the new constitutional realities whilst the government has to ensure that mechanisms are in place to simplify ,translate and disseminate the new constitution .This process will not take a long time and I predict that it could take up to four years for all these structures ,laws ,processes ,institutions and mechanisms to be fully operational and by that time the country will be gearing for fresh elections .I would strongly advise the government that this year they have to identify the key constitutional priorities and move with speed to ensure that foundational governance and institutional issues are addressed this year so that the country does not find itself in a constitutional crisis with citizens taking various issues to the constitutional court challenging the constitutionality of various processes ,structures and laws .I would like to argue that this realignment should place a premium or priority on actualizing the different tiers o government namely central government ,provincial and metropolitan councils and local authorities . RE ALIGNMENT At least 200 laws need to be re aligned with the new constitution and this in itself bears numerous challenges for parliament as well as the executive which traditionally has driven the legislative process with parliament debating and endorsing the legislative agenda set by parliament .Former COPAC chairpersons Munyaradzi Paul Mangwana and Edward Mkosi were quoted in the media postulating that up to 280 laws needed to be realigned with the new constitution .Most of these constitutional imperatives will result in official constipation given the magnitude of work that needs to be done .It would then be critical for the government to prioritize legislation which needs to be put in place or realigned .An example that cannot be ignored is that of the three tiers of government which are espoused in Chapter 1[ section 6] ,Chapter 14 and 17 of the new constitution. These tiers of government need to be given full legal ,statutory and administrative effect or this will result in paralysis of government functions and efficacy .The new constitution broadly envisages the setting up of three tiers of government namely national government ,provincial and metropolitan councils and local governments and leaves the actualization of these structures to an act of parliament .It is expected that such a law would fully outline the functions ,powers and parameters of the various stratas of government especially the provincial and metropolitan councils which are a new entity and phenomenon . Local government legislation namely the Urban Councils Act ,the Rural District Councils Act as well as the Traditional Leaders Act will need to be urgently revisited so that there is efficacy ,efficiency and effectiveness in service delivery ,local governance and development .The Traditional Leaders Act for example creates [in theory anyway] Village Development Committees ,Village assemblies ,Ward Development Commitees ,Ward Assemblies and District Development Committees all of which are supposed to develop annual development plans .There is no link whatsoever with provincial and metropolitan planning and implementation processes in order to ensure that the concept of bottom up decision making development is effected .There is thus a need for all these laws to be aligned to the new constitutional realities reflected in chapter 14 of the new constitution . Clearly the new constitution states that “an act of parliament must provide appropriate mechanisms and procedures to facilitate co ordination between central government ,provincial and metropolitan councils and local authorities [section 265]. The constitution also envisages the creation of a secretariat or “civil service “of sorts for provincial governments and leaves the conduct o employees of local and provincial councils to an act of parliament .Specifically the political neutrality of such employees is specifically stated [section266] but the nuts and bolts are left to an act of parliament . Legislative functions of provincial and metropolitan councils are left to an act of parliament and so are other broader administrative functions of provincial and metropolitan councils .Chapter 17 of the constitution which focuses on public finance also speaks to the desirability of an act of parliament to determine allocation of resources between the three tiers of government . I would like to implore the government to ensure that the Provincial and Metropolitan Councils Act is swiftly put in place so as to avoid duplication ,confusion ,chaos and disorder in the manner in which the three tiers of government relate to each other and citizens .This is in the best interests of Zimbabwe as the government consists of these three tiers and if one or some of these levels or tiers is not functional government itself will ail to function effectively