Kenyan Pundit

July 24th, 2006

Link of the week

Posted by Ory Okolloh in Kenya, Nairobi

The Web Bandit (Living the Nairobi Life).

Popularity: 12% [?]

July 21st, 2006

Eh…

Posted by Ory Okolloh in Geekery, Miscellany

I’m still on my blogging drought (or is it blog-menopause? TM Nick 2006).

Cool link of the week: coCooment, tracks all your comments wherever you leave them online andtracks responses to your comments.

Why donor funded projects often suck. Wouldn’t it have been simpler / more sensible to just have the Ministry of Justice allocate funds to train and hire court reporters (job creation, hello?) and buy the requisite machines, rather than keep some (foreign) consultants in business and keep the process mired in procurement shadiness?

Can Kimunya focus on implementing his directive instead of chasing bogeymen?

Mzalendo news: First, if you haven’t done so please read Thinker’s brilliant piece on Mzalendo…sometimes we just get vexed about all the (unhelpful) pontificating. Second, it looks like I’ve managed to find a way to get my hands on the Parliament’s Order Papers…they do make for interesting reading so please check them out, I hope my access will be regular (eternal thanks to my super-duper hookup…50% of my time on mzalendo is spent on finagling information out of a very closed system). Finally, Mzalendo got wiki’d!

Popularity: 5% [?]

July 13th, 2006

Quick hits

Posted by Ory Okolloh in Miscellany

- Computer for all Nigerians Initiative. Sound promising.

- Korogocho (slum in Nairobi area) goes online. Even more interesting (and relevant for residents of Korogocho) is the launch of Koch FM, a community radio station. Wouldn’t it be great if we could get a collabo going between KBW and such initiatives e.g. maybe helping them reach a wider/international audience via podcast. Now can Gukira launch his ‘zines please :-)

- Some interesting commentary on the use of expat consultants on donor projects.

- Ken Lay is alive?

- This blog post reminded me of my experience growing up when the type of news material available at home was a good indicator of the state of the household finances e.g. both standard and nation everyday and not just weekends, plus Weekly review and Gitobu’s publication = things are good; one paper except on weekends and the weekly review = things are kinda when-is-the-end-of-month going to get here tight; one paper every day = things are really thick. My dad was a news junkie so one gazeti was as bad as it got (I was/am also a news junkie whose day was/is not complete without the newspaper…in fact I think sometimes he bought the paper just for me even though he could have managed without the paper just so I didn’t feel deprived).

Popularity: 5% [?]

July 10th, 2006

On hospitality in Africa

Posted by Ory Okolloh in Africa, Miscellany

Digression….so I’ve been on a bit of a blogging slow-go. Combination of work, tinkering with ideas for Mzalendo, and bloggers block/ geek-depression because my Mac crashed while I was trying to do some sql-related stuff and got cute. Hopefully my mojo will be back sooner rather than later.

In the meantime, I came across this wonderful story in the CSM. It reminded me of the hospitality that one experiences in Africa, it’s often humbling (you know when you show up at someone’s house, and they are hardly able to put food on the table but they slaughter a ka-chicken for you because you are a “special” guest from so far…can’t put a price on that) especially after spending time in the West where being offered chips and dip is about the max extent of feeding you will receive if you show up in someone’s digz (OK, I’m exaggerating but y’all know what I’m saying).

Shameless plug
: I made the Business Week!

Popularity: 5% [?]

July 4th, 2006

Global Voices Sub-Sahara Africa Regional Editor

Posted by Ory Okolloh in Africa and blogs, Blogging

Global Voices Online (www.GlobalVoicesOnline.org), an international bloggers’ network, is looking for an experienced blogger to take on the role of Sub-Saharan Africa Regional Editor which involves coverage of the vast diversity of countries and cultures across the region.

This is a part-time position with modest compensation, for somebody who is passionate about helping to amplify the voices of bloggers from across Africa and bringing the world’s attention to the region’s citizens’ voices. It is also a great opportunity to become involved with a global community of bloggers who are working on the cutting edge of citizens’ media.

The role involves selecting and posting between five and ten short “global links” entries to the Global Voices weblog each weekday. The posts should reflect the most interesting, significant or engaging blog posts from across the African region.

In addition the Regional Editor should recruit, encourage and oversee volunteer bloggers around the region who write the regular longer “weblog” posts about particular countries, sub-regions or topics, building on the existing dedicated team of volunteers.

You can see the most recent entries for the region here: http://www.globalvoicesonline.org/-/world/sub-saharan-africa/. The longer weblog posts are to the left, the shorter global links posts are in the middle column.

It is also the Regional Editor’s responsibility to seek out, collect, and make available for public consultation in the Global Voices blog aggregator, a list of “bridge blogs” for the region.

The role requires liaising closely with the relevant language editors who monitor blogs in the region (currently French, Portuguese, Arabic and Spanish) as well as working closely with the whole editorial team in determining the current and future direction of Global Voices.

There is an editorial meeting every two weeks via IRC for all regional editors and language editors. The hours are otherwise completely flexible. The job is paid on a part-time basis.

Requirements include:
- Demonstrated ability to cover blogs from Africa in a fair and thorough manner with sensitivity and respect for cultural differences and divergent points of view;
- Familiarity with one or more of the widely-spoken and blogged-in African languages a definite plus;
- Information research and writing skills;
- Participation in blogging either as an individual or team member and familiarity with blogging and other digital media tools;
- Team player who works well with others, who would be able to help recruit and manage volunteer blogger-contributors from around the region;
- A person who was born in the region or with strong family roots in Africa is preferred.

If you are interested in the position please send an e-mail to Rachel Rawlins at editor@globalvoicesonline.org giving an outline of why you’d be the right person for the job including relevant experience, qualifications and the url of your blog.

Closing date for applications - Friday 14 July.

AOB: Afrofeminizta’s report on her day in Parliament.

Popularity: 6% [?]