Fred Oluoch

  1. KENYA: IS GREEN ENERGY POSSIBLE?

    27-11-2009 12:34 door foluoch
    - By FRED OLUOCH Nairobi Kenya's development partners are out to help the country enhance her capacity to produce green energy, even as they point out that continued reliance on hydro-electric power is not sustainable. Recently, the French Development Agency (AFD), together with the Ministry of Energy and United Nations Environment Programme (UNEP), convened an energy conference to explore ways in which Kenya can be self-sufficient in green energy. . The conference came a head of the Copenhagen Environment Conference which will be held in December, in which Kenya will be an active participant. Dubbed, Powering Kenya into a green energy future, the conference provided a forum for k…

  2. BRACING FOR COMMON MARKET

    15-11-2009 12:58 door foluoch
    - By FRED OLUOCH Partner states of the East African Community are preparing to usher in the common market by the end of the week amidst anxiety in some countries of what it holds. Leaders of Kenya, Uganda, Burundi, Tanzania and Rwanda, will on November 20 sign the Common Market Protocol in Arusha Tanzania, marking the beginning of the run-up to free movement of goods and services within the five member countries. With a combined population of 125 million, the EAC becomes the first regional economic bloc to initiate common market, after introducing a partial customs union in December 2005. By January next year, all products moving in the region—be they raw materials, intermed…

  3. ``CSOs should be part of integration process``

    01-11-2009 11:22 door foluoch
    As the political class in the East African region grapples with how to go about creating regional uniform standards of good governance, the question is whether the civil society in the region has the capacity to keep the member states in check. - Despite the fact that Section 127 of the East African Treaty compels member states to involved civil society organizations in the development agenda of the regional trade block, a conference held in Burundi recently proved that members of the civil society are still not sure whether they will be allowed to play their role of keeping the political class in check. Given that the civil society forum was convened by the East African Community (EAC) s…

  4. KENYA POWER CRISIS CONTINUES

    01-11-2009 11:16 door foluoch
    - By FRED OLUOCH Even though power rationing in Kenya has come to an end, there are still concern that the country's continued dependency on hydropower generation could affect its competitiveness as a leading investment destination in the region. The business community is worried that power shortages will still recur unless the government invests in alternative sources of energy. But of great concern to the manufacturing sector is the high power tariffs that has made production cost in Kenya is one of the highest globally. According to the managing director of the Kenya Association of Manufacturers (KAM), Betty Maina, Kenya's products are increasingly finding it difficu…

  5. ELECTORAL REFORMS: WILL KENYA SUCCEED?

    30-10-2009 14:36 door foluoch
    - By FRED OLUOCH The East African region is watching keenly as Kenya tries to reform its electoral system that almost plunged the entire region into turmoil in 2008. But while the Kenyan leadership is upbeat that elections will never be bugled again, discussions at the three-day National Conference on Electoral Reforms, reveal that Kenya still faces major challenges if the country is to avoid a repeat of the violence in 2012. One of the key challenges is how to deal with the issue of ethnicity that has always undermined Kenya’s democratic process, which came out clearly in the run-up to the 2007 elections. According to the chairman of the recently formed Interim Independe…

  6. DOES FAZUL EXIST?

    19-08-2008 12:07 door foluoch
    - By FRED OLUOCH Reports that Kenyan authorities have made two futile attempts to apprehend the alleged mastermind of the 1998 Nairobi and Dar-es-Salaam bombing, Fazul Abdullah, has raised two fundamental questions. The capacity of the Kenyan anti-terrorism squad and the veracity of the threat against Kenya. Is somebody out to keep Kenya permanently on edge given that the country has suffered two terrorist attacks, in 1998 and 2002? The sudden focus of the possible presence of terrorist cells in Kenya has rekindled the fears that Western powers are pushing the government to re-introduce the controversial anti-terrorism bill. Some human rights groups and the Muslim community are jittery…

  7. Hard option for Kibaki and Raila

    03-02-2008 10:16 door foluoch
    - After a month of political impasse, pressure is now weighing on both president Mwai Kibaki and Raila Odinga to narrow down on realistic options, even though they still remain hostage to their uncompromising associates. With the former UN chief, Kofi Annan, having started the mediation process, it is now clear for both camps that Kenyans are getting tired of the anxiety and would like to see workable solution to the dispute that followed the December 27 elections. Even as Mr Annan was categorical that the two leaders must be prepared to take painful decisions, the main question is what hard options await them? However, both sides seem to be unanimous that the embattled Electoral Commis…

  8. Kenya: Youth cry foul as Moi backs Kibaki

    14-11-2007 16:36 door AfricaNews editor
    - Kenya's political landscape is reeling from the generation gap as older generations hold on tightly to political leadership at the expense of the energetic and more adventurous young generation.The question is who is to blame, between the older generation, who is not just about to relinquish its long hold on power, and the younger generation who have kept out of competitive politics in favour of their careers. This comes as Kenyans are yet to agree whether the younger generation could be the panacea to our political morass or whether they are destined to stick with greying leadership one after the other. President Mwai Kibaki for instance, incensed the youth after taking power, when he stu…

  9. Kenya: no end polythene menace

    14-11-2007 16:17 door AfricaNews editor
    - The river is just but one of the victims of the serious pollution problem caused by poor and careless disposal of polythene papers or plastic bags, for the last two decades. Plastic bags have served Kenyan shopper well because they are cheap and convenient, but they have been an environmental disaster.With Kenyan supermarkets doling out 80,000 plastic bags everyday, the plastic bags- which are not biodegradable- have clogged up the sewage and drainage systems, pollute the soil and endanger marine life, and lead to the death of livestock who inadvertently swallow them while grazing.But recent development has left many environmentalists wondering whether Kenya- home to the 2004 Nobel laureat…

  10. KENYAN WOMEN DEMAND MORE SEATS

    10-08-2007 10:55 door foluoch
    - By FRED OLUOCH Never before have Kenyan women been united in the demand for fair representation in parliament than now. Taking advantage of the forthcoming general elections expected in December, Kenyan women have vowed not to let go the proposal by the government to create 50 special seats for women, who since independence in 1963 have been grossly under-represented in parliament. Yet this proposal is facing fierce opposition from mainly the male folk, who maintain that women should compete like the rest and should not expect parliamentary seats on a silver platter. Opponents argue that it is better for women to compete among themselves and win on merit rather than waiting to be…

  11. NO END POLYTHENE MENACE

    07-08-2007 11:01 door foluoch
    - By FRED OLUOCH Nairobi River, the stream from which the Kenyan capital derived its name has been turned into flowing grime. Known to the Maasai as Enkarre Nairobi (sparkling cool waters), the river that cuts across downtown Nairobi is hardly recognisable as the source of clean cool waters that attracted colonial settlement in Nairobi a century ago. The river is just but one of the victims of the serious pollution problem caused by poor and careless disposal of polythene papers or plastic bags, for the last two decades. Plastic bags have served Kenyan shopper well because they are cheap and convenient, but they have been an environmental disaster. With Kenyan supermarkets doling ou…