Why You Should Vote for Africa, Tech & Women SXSW Panel

I decided to write this blog post as a way to help prospective voters and supporters to understand the thinking and passion behind our Africa, Tech & Women: The New Faces of Development SXSW panel submission.  We believe this panel will help to change the conversation on Africa, about whom most people have a limited negative perception; its women, who are often depicted as helpless, uneducated and unproductive; and dispel the myth that there isn’t much technological development taking place in Africa.

When TMS Ruge and I embarked upon this SXSW journey together, we decided we would create a panel building upon his successful SXSW 2009 presentation, Africa 3.0.  We knew that with the 2012 panel, we wanted to add a new dimension and feature multiple voices.  After a lot of research and brainstorming, we discovered that the African Union declared 2010-2020: The African Woman Decade and decided it would be a source of inspiration for us.  Additionally, we’re both very passionate about gender rights issues, publicizing the greatness of Africa and its Diaspora and are tech enthusiasts — and as such, we decided on the title: Africa, Tech & Women.

The subtitle: The New Faces of Development came about after lots of trial and error.  We finally agreed to it, given that it encompasses the areas we want to cover and from a new perspective: (1) Economic, (2) Technological, (3) Philanthropic, and (4) Community.

We then decided we should showcase the different ways in which a cross-section of African women based in the Diaspora and on the continent are impacting Africa’s development through technology.  We were able to identify three incredible African women who leverage use technology in very significant ways to affect change on the continent and beyond.  They also helped us to flesh out the panel topics, so that the description you read below is representative of what we all want to share, in the limited time available on a panel.  Additionally,

Africa, Tech & Women SXSW Panelists

1. Isis Nyong’o – InMobi (Kenya)

Isis joined InMobi in February 2011 to lead business expansion in Africa. With over nine years of business development, marketing and sales experience, Isis is responsible for the overall growth on the continent.  Isis joins InMobi from Google where she led the company’s business development efforts in Africa. She specialized in mobile partnerships and developed Google’s content strategy to bring more African content online. She brings extensive media and tech experience to InMobi and drove the launch of MTV Networks in Africa where she was responsible for commercial relationships including distribution and sales. She developed the marketing strategy for Kenya’s first online recruitment service, MyJobsEye and holds degrees from Stanford University and Harvard Business School where she was president of the Africa Business Club. Isis has been named by Forbes as one of The 20 Youngest Power Women in Africa, is one of the ‘Top 40 Women under 40″ in Kenya, and is frequently featured by the Africa media including, Al Jazeera, BBC, Nation Newspaper, NTV, Standard Newspaper and UP Magazine, among others.

2. Ebele Okobi-Harris – Yahoo! (USA)

Ebele Okobi-Harris is Director of Yahoo!’s Business and Human Rights Program, leading Yahoo!’s efforts to promote privacy and free expression on the Internet. Before joining Yahoo!, Ebele was a corporate securities and mergers & acquisitions attorney at Davis Polk & Wardwell in New York, Paris and London, an attorney fellow at Consumers Union (a consumer rights advocacy non-profit) in San Francisco, a director of Advisory Services at Catalyst (a non-profit with the mission of advancing women in business) in San Jose and Amsterdam and at Nike’s EMEA headquarters as an MDP focused on marketing and business development in Africa.

Ms. Okobi-Harris earned a BA in Psychology from the University of Southern California, a JD from Columbia Law School and an MBA Certificat des Études from Hautes Études Commerciales de Paris.

3. Milly Businge – Kikuube Village Council (Uganda)

Milly Businge is a respected village elder and mother of eight children in the small village of Kikuube. She serves as the Local Chairperson (LC1) of her village, representing a population of nearly 1000 residents. She has been unanimously re-elected to this position by the residents of Kikuube because her work representing them at the government level. She has often wanted to retire and refused to stand for the position during elections, but the villagers always rally and vote for her anyway. That’s the mark of a great leader.  Mrs. Businge was also recently officially ordained as a minister and serves as the pastor of the small but growing community church.

In November 2010, Mrs. Businge delivered the keynote speech during the “Villages in Action” conference that was hosted in Kikuube.  The conference was broadcast live over the internet and proved to be a very successful initiative — giving the poor an opportunity to be heard in the global conversation about the United Nations Millennium Development Goals.

When she is not managing domestic disputes, land wrangles, and community health awareness campaigns in her community, she spends her time reading. She is also an enthusiastic user of mobile technologies as they help her connect with her constituency and connect globally to her son (TMS Ruge) in America.

4. Liz Ngonzi – New York University Heyman Center for Philanthropy and Fundraising (USA)

Born in Uganda and “raised” at the United Nations, Liz Ngonzi is an international educator, speaker and consultant, who has since 2009, been on Adjunct Faculty at New York University’s Heyman Center for Philanthropy & Fundraising – for which she has developed and taught courses on online and mobile fundraising, and where she is one of four noted social media experts.

Liz is a recognized authority on ICT for development, the African Diaspora market, hospitality / service management, women in business, and social entrepreneurship.  She’s a frequent conference speaker, including as a panelist during the Entrepreneurship@Cornell Celebration, in the spring of 2007; as a featured international speaker at the May 2011 Southern Africa Institute of Fundraising’s 10th Biennial Convention in South Africa; and as a panelist for New York University’s Philanthropy 3.0 Speaker Series: Mobile in Advocacy The Next Frontier.  In September, she will speak in the Congressional Black Caucus Foundation’s 41^st Annual Legislative Conference and will chair the 2^nd Annual ICT Women Empowerment Africa Summit in South Africa.

A committed volunteer, Liz has held several board positions, including currently serving as a member of the President’s Council of Cornell Women (for which she is a Vice Chair of its Communications Committee); the Advisory Board to the Cornell University Pillsbury Institute for Hospitality Entrepreneurship; and the United Nations International School’s Council for Alumni Affairs.

Media outlets in which Liz has been featured, include: CBS’ The Early Show, Crain’s New York Business, New Jersey Jewish News, Successful Meetings Magazine, The New York Times, The Nonprofit Times and ZambiaBlogTalkRadio.

Liz founded and runs Amazing Taste, LLC., a values-led boutique consulting firm that connects NGOs with philanthropists and corporations, to achieve strategic objectives through fundraising events, marketing campaigns, along with educational activities.   Amazing Taste has worked with or advised domestic and international educational institutions, gender rights organizations, healthcare foundations, political campaigns, and youth development organizations.

Liz spent her 10-year corporate career in marketing, sales and business consulting at Digital Equipment Corporation, MICROS Systems, Inc. and Arthur Andersen, respectively.  She obtained her Master of Management in Hospitality degree from Cornell University and a Bachelor of Science in Information Systems degree (with a concentration in Telecommunications Systems) from Syracuse University.  Additionally, she graduated from the United Nations International School.

5. TMS Ruge (moderator and “token male”) – Project Diaspora (USA)

TMS Ruge was born in Masindi, Uganda and grew up in Uganda, Kenya and the United States. Capitalizing on his understanding of different cultures and markets, Ruge has become a successful global social entrepreneur.

In 2007 he co-founded Project Diaspora — to motivate, engage and mobilize the African Diaspora to take an active role in Africa’s development. Following his passion to engage the continent, he has invested his time and money in a number of development initiatives including Uganda Medicinal Plants Grower’s ltd. – an indigenous farmers’ business specializing in the export of value-added medicinal plants, and Women of Kireka – a women’s jewelry making cooperative.

A technology enthusiast, Ruge writes and speaks extensively on Africa’s current renaissance driven by technology, youth and the Diaspora. He is a frequent contributor to several online publications including CNN, PopTech, The Globe and Mail, and The Guardian, and the Project Diaspora blog. He is also the host of The Digital Continent Podcast, a weekly technology podcast for people who believe that Africa is full of innovation and opportunity. Ruge is also a founding board member of Hive Colab – an open, collaborative, community-owned, work environment for young Ugandan tech entrepreneurs to focus on projects..

Ruge also serves as an advisor for ?OpenAction.org – an online platform that allows development organizations to richly engage their online audience.

He graduated with a Bachelor’s degree in Communication Design from the University of North Texas.

Description of the Proposed SXSW Africa, Tech Women: The New Faces of Development Panel:

This panel provides a rare glimpse into the multitude of ways African women are applying technology to advance Africa’s development. The panel aims to dispel the myths about African women as breeders and victims — incapable of participating in their own continent’s development, by: (1) showcasing contributions they are making in the technology field – through entrepreneurship, philanthropy, and community leadership; and (2) providing insights into how they are using technology to raise awareness about, mobilize campaigns against and address human rights violations.

The panel will specifically explore how African women are using technology to make an impact through: – Digital advocacy to protect people’s rights – Social media to help grassroots organizations engage new supporters worldwide – Mobile advertising to enable small businesses to access new markets – Internet connectivity to integrate the often unheard community voices into the global conversation on development

Throughout the discussion, panelists will provide anecdotes on how the resulting increased access to information, is altering the role of women in African society.

Questions our panel aims to answer are:

1. What is the role of women in Africa’s fast emerging digital landscape and what types of contributions are they making?
2. How is technology improving the everyday lives of women on the continent?
3. What is the negative impact of increased access to information, on the role of the African woman in her society?
4. What are the opportunities and connections technology is facilitating between women in the Diaspora and on the continent?
5. Given the increased adoption of mobile phones in Africa and the rise of its middle class, what opportunities exist for marketers interested in targeting African women?

Please help us to amplify the voices of African women in the global discussion on development.

Vote for Africa, Tech & Women: The New Faces of Development and tell your friends to do the same.

Thank you

Follow us on Twitter: Liz Ngonzi @LizNgonzi | Isis  Nyongy’o @Inyongyo | TMS Ruge @TMSruge

My last couple of blog posts on Project Diaspora have focused on best practices to improve service delivery on the continent and mobile solutions to potentially improve visitors’ experiences when they travel to Africa.

San Bushman man from Botswana. Photo Credit: Ian Beatty from Amherst, MA, USA

As I contemplated this current blog post, I looked through my notes to find an inspiring idea. I wasn’t inspired by any of them. So I revisited a Wikipedia search for Africa, which I recently conducted.  What I found was seemingly pretty basic: history, geography, politics, etc.  What struck me, however, was that the overall entries about contemporary Africa were quite negative in general, supported by images of a San bushman from Botswana, Beja Bedouins from Northeast Africa, a rural woman from Benin and a street musician from South Africa.

Beja Bedouins from Northeast Africa. Photo Credit: I, Jpereira

While none of these photos are particularly derogatory, they fail to accurately reflect what the continent has to offer, in terms of its educated urban population and its market potential.

As a diasporan born in Uganda and raised in New York, this all stirred up negative emotions within.  I grew up in New York during a time when it wasn’t cool to be African and I struggled with my identity, despite having gone to the United Nations International School – a very inclusive and empowering academic institution — and living in a community of mostly multicultural families.  At the time, it was much easier for me to assimilate as an African American (a group with which I still very heavily identify having grown up in the US) trying to bury my “Africanness”.  It’s only when I got to Syracuse University as an undergrad and took a few Africana studies courses that I began to develop pride for my heritage and to seek out additional sources to reinforce that feeling. So while the title of this post is about the kid in Podunk, I believe that what I’m proposing below is important also for the African kid (a) living in the diaspora, (b) who is fortunate enough to access the internet in Africa and even (c) whose friend and can teach him/her about who he/she can become as a result of hearing about his/her fortunate friend’s discovery online.

I must stress that my issue in post isn’t actually with Wikipedia — “a nonprofit charitable organization dedicated to encouraging the growth, development and distribution of free, multilingual content, and to providing the full content of these wiki-based projects to the public free of charge.” The question then is “who should bear the responsibility for the inaccurate portrayal of Africa?”  Is it an individual, an organization or African governments?  Who stands to benefits most from a more inclusive and therefore positive branding of Africa?  You may in turn ask “why this is important?”  Well here are my two cents:

Children, the future leaders of the world, are generally quite impressionable.  So what they’re taught as children influences the decisions they make as adults.  Exposure to correct information about Africa would therefore lead them to recognize Africa and Africans are valuable partners in the global economy rather than the current perception of Africa and its people as a lost cause.

Liya Kebede, Ethiopian model, maternal health advocate, clothing designer and actress who has appeared three times on the cover of US Vogue. Photo Credit: Ed Kavishe, Fashion Wire Press

It’s imperative therefore that Africa and Africans amend the Wikipedia pages on Africa and the African Diaspora, to reflect more inclusive images of Africa and the African Diaspora, given the intrinsic value of the latter both to the continent and the countries where they reside.

Below is a very SMALL sample of diasporans of note who could potentially be spotlighted.  I used the following methodology to find them:

1. I searched Wikipedia for diasporans with whom I am familiar and then used links from their profiles to identify others. I was mindful about the need to reflect talent from the whole continent.
2. I excluded people on the continent making their mark, purely as a means to remain focused on Project Diaspora’s mission: to promote African diaspora engagement in sustainable economic activities within Africa.
3. For simplicity sake, I narrowly defined Diasporans as those who currently reside outside of Africa and who were born in or have parents from Africa.
4. I linked to the Diasporans’ existing Wikipedia pages and grouped each sample according to primary industry.
5. Finally, I used photos from diasporans whose Wikipedia pages had rights-free photographs.

African Diasporans of Note

Arts / Entertainment	Akon || Johannes Anyuru || Michael Blackson || Chiwetel Ejiofor || Idris Elba || Safi Faye || Edi Gathegi || Haile Gerima || Namugenyi Kiwanuka || Boris Kodjoe || Sal Masekela || Peter Mensah || Tom Morello || Ntare Mwine || Thandi Newton       Photo: Thandi Newton, English actress born to Zimbabwean mother and British father. Photo Credit: gdcgraphics”
Education	Ilesanmi Adesida || Kwame Anthony Appiah || Patricia McFadden
Fashion	Amsale Aberra || Ozwald Boateng || Iman || Kiara Kabukuru || Liya Kebede
Financial Services	Mo Ibrahim || Dambisa Moyo || Adebayo Ogunlesi
Journalism	Sade Baderinwa || Ron Mwangaguhunga || Hoda Kotb || Dinaw Mengestu || Adaora Udoji
Politics	Peter Bossman || David Soares
Hospitality Management/Travel	Dorinda Hafner || Marcus Samuelsson         Photo: Marcus Samuelsson, Ethiopian-born Swedish chef and co-owner of Aquavit and Red Rooster restaurants in New York City and C-House Restaurant, located in the Affinia Hotel in Chicago. Photo Credit: Tduk Alex Lozupone”
Religion	Rev. Peter Gomes* || Archbishop John Sentamu
Science & Technology	Kwatsi Alubaruho || Cheick Modibo Diarra || Chinedu Echeruo || Gebisa Ejeta || Ave Kludze || Noah Samara || Window Snyder
Sports	John Amaechi || Kelenna Azubuike || Yinka Dare || Obinna Ekezie || James Ihedigbo || Ruth Kasirye || Mathias Kiwanuka || Dikembe Mutombo || Emeka Okafor || Hakeem Olajuwon || Betty Okino       Photo: Dikembe Mutombo, retired Congolese American professional basketball player, who last played for the Houston Rockets of the NBA. Photo Credit: Keith Allison”

In conclusion, while Wikipedia is a great tool for cataloguing a part of Africa’s reality through its Africa and African Diaspora pages, they need to project the other side of the story.  The basis for this is currently available as individual dots on the Wikipedia site.  What’s needed is for these dots to be connected and given a little bit of context to make it easy for a kid anywhere in the world to access a more inclusive picture about Africa.  I am pleased to note that individual Africans including: Mo Ibrahim, G. Kofi Annan, Sophie Bekele, Ida Horner, Mariéme Jamme, Sheila Ochugboju, Emeka Okafor, Alex Okosi and Joshua Wanyama , are some of the many already working towards the rebranding of the continent.

My hope is that this post will inspire others to join this vital effort.  I welcome any feedback or suggestions for other Diasporans or Diaspora-related items to feature.

Please feel free to connect with me:
Twitter || LinkedIn || Facebook || Email || Amazing Taste Website

*Rev. Peter Gomes passed away on February 28, 2011

“An echo, a stain,” seems to have bounced into my corner of the blogoshpere in the form of new meme I feel I must contribute to. Not so much that I must, but very much that I should contribute to it. Thanks to Kiwanja for tagging me.

I blog about Africa because I can seemingly do nothing else. I am neither wealthy, powerful, nor connected in any shape or form that could spark a revolution. I may not have a lot, but I do have dreams, I do have a vision for a new Africa, and I have the ability to express that vision on this here platform. My weapon of choice for change in Africa is my heart. I will bleed it dry in all that I do for the love of that red soil that sifts through my toes every time that I step on my mother’s  compound. I will bleed it dry for the noise and symphony of Kampala’s chaotic rapture and Nairobi’s thuggish boasts. I will bleed it dry for the love of Victoria Falls’ thunderous crash, Serengeti’s serenity, and Zanzibar Chest-ful of mystery. I am but one man with a voice and a song for Africa.

Africa is Africa’s problem. She is my problem. And I beg of no one else to assist me with her weighty issues.

She is my Africa. And indeed the very same Africa that many of us blog about. The very same dark and mysterious continent that many of us fall in love with and don’t know why. It grips us, hugs us, and shrouds in a warmth we neither understand nor deny. We simply beg for more, and thus dig deeper into it’s belly in futile thrusts to wrap logic around that which cannot be grasped, only felt like a warm thick air one walks through in a drunken stupor. It’s an emasculating realization to stand in her presence and bathe in new-found truth that you are powerless in her presence.

You simply accept defeat, that this largely uncoordinated babe is lumbering forward on a journey to somewhere and in no certain hurry to get there. Rome wasn’t built in a day, neither will Africa. 60+ years removed from colonial rule, we are but Democratic tad poles, the lot of us. We were left to crawl and stumble into this new form of self-governance, after a century of foreign rule. Our day in the sun will come, oh yes it will. But not after more battle scars decorate our knees and blacken our souls—symbols of the price that has to be paid—in the name of progress.

I blog about Africa because I believe that the dawn of our day in the African sun has begun. I cannot hasten the sunrise alone or brighten the rays. But I blog about Africa, so that I am among those early risers who’ve heard the morning drum. I join this chorus of voices to welcome a new era, and new optimism. I may be one man with a song, but together we are a chorus with an anthem!

Africa is our problem. And we hereby take charge of this brand new day!

In the spirit of this meme, I hereby tag my fellow bloggers to share their views:

Tracy1314

Afromusing

David Sasaki

Epic Change

Ugandan Insomniac

Siena Anstis

Uganda’s own Scarlet Lion has created a Google group just for you…

Citizen Media in Uganda

From Glenna:
After I had received a bunch of inquires from people around the globe about
Citizen Media in Uganda, I thought it best that I start a list of all the
people I know who are or may be interested in such things. I don’t want to be
the only one speaking about the topic since one principle of Citizen Media, as
I understand it, is that many people should be able to participate in a
dialogue.

I have no aims or objectives for this group other than the idea that if a
bunch of people had a better forum to discuss things and get things started,
then maybe more things will be discussed and more things will be started.

So, let the dialogue begin!

GG

Here is the group’s description:
Think citizen media in Uganda is important? So does everyone on this list. So
share your voice and ideas here.

If you want to learn more about the reading challenge visit Dave… and he will tell you all about it!

King Leopold’s Ghost by Adam Hochschild
So far this reading challenge is turning into a crash course in African history. I must space these books out more carefully. Going from one book of death and disaster to another is playing hell on my mood, leaving me both cranky and sad (or maybe that is the flu!) At any rate, going from War torn Nigeria/Biafra to Colonial Africa was not the smartest thing I ever did. It is not that I was unaware of the horrors of colonialism. I come from the original Banana Republic after all, but I don’t think I had ever confronted them quite so baldly as I did reading this book.

I am a big fan of this kind of Historical writing, it is a fast read, you get a good sense of the personalities not just the events and the dates. I was as engrossed in this book as I was with Devil in the White City and The Professor and the Madman. I think these books share a similar esthetic in terms of the writing. They build a narrative for us, do a little foreshadowing and build suspense as best they can given that all of the events are a forgone conclusion. Since I am mostly a reader of fiction, I appreciate this style and makes me feel more comfortable with the language and structure of the book. However, for a history Mr. Hochschild was extremely prone to editorializing and opining. He pointed out flaws in all the characters as a good historian should but then was quick to excuse them if they were on the right side of the battle against Leopold. I think the evidences he gave us were strong enough to allow us to draw our own conclusions. I am not sure I needed to know his opinions on the relative weight of their flaws versus those of another. I did find his portrait of Stanley the most human. We saw all sides of his character, and in this instance Hochschild does let us draw our own conclusions.

The history itself covers alot of territory. He starts far enough back to really give a sense of the scope and sheer tenacity of Loepold’s will for dominion over his own personal colony. No matter where really. No one place was better than another as long as it gave him power and wealth. It is interesting that in giving us a picture of Leopold’s family life growing up and again as an adult, how little connection with actual real human affection he ever had. While Hochschild again gives us his opinion on what shaped Leopold, I think there is alot more to be inferred that was not stated. It is also another glaring how boring evil really can be. There is always this idea that evil is a rush of energy and almost sexual excitement, crazed lustful violence with all the florid language that goes with that. But the truth is here like in Nazi Germany it was a machine, a bureaucracy driven by paperwork, forms, quotas, weights, measures and money. It is methodical and the people who performed the atrocities just sort of got used to it. Which is infinitely more scary than all the florid phrases in the world.

In the end history teaches us, (and this book) that it is not hate that brings us down. It is indifference.

You don’t know, what you don’t know… until you do.
I joined this challenge, because I have been frustrated in my attempts to find note-worthy African authors. Clearly there are plenty, but without knowing who they are, Amazon is a wasteland. Which is just the tip of the iceberg when it comes to what I don’t know. At any rate, thanks to the wonderful advice from other Reading Challengers; I discovered this beautiful book. Which leads me to the next thing I did not know. Biafra. My goodness, what a rich story. Part of me is truly surprised that this story was COMPLETELY unknown to me… and the other resigned to the inadequacies of the American education system. At any rate, I began this reading this book… with zero background about the history. Which just goes to show how truly wonderful the storytelling is in this book. I was hooked from the beginning. I read and read and read, until at 2:30 am on the 3rd day of reading I was done.

A couple of things grabbed me. The sweetness and innocence of Ugwu, the arrogance of Odenigbo, Olanna and Kainene and their complex relationship, Richard the British ex-pat that reminded me so much of people I knew growing up in Central America. People who fell in love with a place they did not understand because they felt lost in their original places. Actually, Ugwu also reminded me of people I knew growing up… sweet and eager to please in their innocence and naivete. Grateful in a way I never understood. Always with that under-current of watchfulness that Adichie paints so wonderfully in this book.

Ugwu, starts out so simple. He is a child, soft, malleable, unformed. His growth tracks with the growth of the story, he starts out whole, soft, pure and ends scarred, tarnished, strong, and brave. Just as Nigeria is a young and innocent nation that finishes hardened and scarred. Both Nigeria and Ugwu are poised for a brighter future at the end of the book… but with so much lost.

Olanna and Kainene as twins are really two parts of a whole. Each uncomfortable in the world and taking polar opposite positions to try and find a place. Olanna walking away from money and power for love of a strong, rebellious, intellectual man. Kainene withdrawing into herself behind a mask of indifference and sarcasm. Olanna is sweet, soft, idealistic beautiful. Kainene is hard, handsome, acerbic, practical. Kainene’s man is weak and does not know himself… and her even less so.

Odenigbo starts off so confident. So, strong… and is worn down and broken by the war. He loses himself in drink and depression leaving Olanna the stronger of the two. While Richard, so weak, lost and mild before the war, learns to love, learns confidence, learns his place in the world… It is significant that he of all the characters really has nothing but himself in the end. He loses his love… Kainene, his novel… everything that he valued was gone. Never to return. The truth is it was never his. If only we could all learn that lesson.

Now the construction of the novel. The way it bounces around in the timeline. I am not sure, why that choice makes sense. I does make sense. I just don’t know how. I liked the contrast and the flickers of insight into the future/past that it gave me. I wonder how she came to put the book together in that way.

The scenes of Olanna visiting her family… wanting to just enjoy her time with them and at the same time repelled by their circumstances. Those scenes were so honest. Aren’t we all torn between idealism and reality? Ugwu goes through the same thing… he is less able to appreciate his family as he grows up. In many ways his education begins the separation that is completed by his war experiences.

There is so much more in this book than I can even begin to talk about here. Plus there is probably a ton of stuff that I missed completely. It is a wonderful, beautiful, sad book. Worth reading. So if you haven’t, please do!

If you want to learn more about the reading challenge visit Dave… and he will tell you all about it!

Ok thanks to Mike, Dave, the Insomniac and olmoti8 I am ready to revise my list. So here is version number 2. Which is also subject to change!

OLD LIST

NEW LIST

So this is seven not six… so if there is one that leaps off the page in need of an ax… please let me know. Very excited! Can’t wait to get started. Now to decide. Which book 1st? hmmmmmm…..

If you want to learn more about the reading challenge visit Dave… and he will tell you all about it!

Ok everybody… I need some serious help. I am both overwhelmed by the options and frustrated at the lack of options. So general search on Amazon yielded some good results for general non-fiction type stuff. And I am tremendously interested in these three books and hope to learn alot from them.

The Trouble with Africa

Africa Unchained

New News Out of Africa Uncovering Africa’s Renaissance

However when it comes to the fiction category I am a little annoyed. EVERYTHING seems to be about South Africa. And while these two book looks quite good I really was hoping for a bit more scope.
You Can’t Get Lost in Cape Town

Fools and Other Stories

And then this also looks interesting but is a FOURTH book to the non-fiction category. And I really want THREE solid Fiction books.
Africans

Plus I would really like to add a memoir to the mix, but all I found was one on Nelson MAndela. And I love the guy… but I was hoping for some untrodden ground for me and he sure as heck aint that. Plus it is South Africa again.

And this list makes my eyes cross. I have no way to make a choice and googling all 100 has no appeal. So I guess what I am saying is HELP. I need to eliminate 2 books out of my non fiction category… Maybe New News out of Africa and the Trouble with Africa? (Or maybe my list is eight books long… lets see how the first picks go and see if I don’t add the others back in… I do like to read!) Leaving space for a nice memoir. Maybe the King Leopold Book? Seems very interesting and leads me to Congo and out of SA. Leaving me with a big gaping hole where my novels should be… And this, I ask the impossible. If you were me, what would you fill that hole with?

Umh… yeah she rocks.
Snarky, smart and extreamly well informed.

I missed her during her recent posting hiatus. Also her photography is quite nice. She is nominated in the The Kampalan’s Best of Blogs… for photography. Although I think her writing is quite good as well. A good place to pick up on the local news, see what is of interest and unique, a little bit about her life, a little bit about her interests, a little bit about some of craziness that is Africa and Uganda particularly. Right now she is doing a round up of interesting articles found in the media… of particular interest to us here at Project Diaspora. The article on mosquito nets and the article on the possible extinction of Uganda’s Ankole cattle. Check her out!

If you did not check her out the last time I blogged about her… go check her out… right. freakin. now.

Not for the the easily queasy… her latest blog fearlessly looks at the disrespect with which local government and even the local communities are paying to both the law (local school collapse kills construction workers while everybody turns a blind eye to the warning signs) and their own dead… as a local cemetery is desecrated in the name of faceless anonymous housing. Seriously… she is smart, fearless, smart and clear eyed… check her out.

I also want to mention that the blogren are equally up to the task of clear-eyed, reasoned conversation about their home and their people. The comments on this post show where the future hope of Uganda lies… BLOGGERS!

Yeah… READ IT HERE

Great post by White African on ways to address the coming financial hit that all this violence will wreak on Kenya. Do you have ideas on how to leverage technology to make people aware that all is not lost in Kenya? Take a look and see what he has to say… plus a very lively comment roll! Lend your voice and be part of the solution!

Ohhh… YAY! I found more fiction Never Man. A blog dedicated to the novel of the inimitable Ernest Bazanye. Well respected in the amongst the UG Blogren, he shows his mastery of the written word in this what appears to be his first novel. As I read the first chapter, I realized that I was about to read my first on-line novel, because there is no way I am not reading on after the end of chapter one. GREAT HOOK. I wasn’t sure as the first paragraph began that it was going to be my cup of tea. It just seemed a bit dry… but as that paragraph unfolded, and the next one opened up, as I began to pick up the rhythm of the writing… well, I am intrigued, interested, curious about where this is going and what it is about. This guy deserves a bigger platform, a wider audience. I an a word… a publisher.

So Dennis Matanda’s “Between a Rock and a Hard Place”… is ready to challenge your preconceptions, piss you off, state the un-stated, and has no issue with sarcasm or telling it like it is. His lastest series of posts entitled… “The Inferiority of the Black Race” challenges everyone to look long at hard at their own blindspots and hidden prejudices. Like a touch of sarcasm to go with your study of dialectical materialism? Dennis Matanda is not concerned about political correctness, pulling his punches, hurting anybody’s feelings or even pissing some folks off… as Kissyfur said…. Truth hurts. Check him out… leave him some love… those willing to tell it like it are a few and far between… so if you appreciate a no BS zone as much as I do, make sure he knows it!

Today on my daily blog troll I discovered a link to Paradox Uganda… So firstly thanks to the Ugandan Insomniac for posting it. Anyway, I was reading about the Ebola outbreak and all the fear and misinformation that is swirling around. The Blogren is doing a good job talking about this by the way. To me, all the way over hear in the US, Ebola has been a big scary monster… reason A#1 to avoid Africa. Every movie, news report designed to make you petrified to set foot in Africa for fear of hemorrhaging to death. This from a gal that spent her childhood in Central America… not exactly a germ-free zone ya know? So, Paradox Uganda… whose “about” reads as follows…

We are a pair of docs in working in Africa … Paradox: “A seemingly absurd proposition which when explained may prove to be true”– Oxford English Dictionary. Dying that we might live. Becoming poor that we might be rich. Strong in our weakness. Joyful despite our suffering. Sinners, yet saints. Apparent contradictions, but core truths. 

… are in the heart of the epidemic. Doctors who just happen to be in the center of the storm. They count the dead, report the well, comment on their community and what is happening to it. The Doctors’ reports make the outreak real; all the more tragic; bring it into perspective and bring it to life in a way that news reports can’t and don’t. Dr. Jennifer Myhre is particularly eloquent when it comes to the death of personal friend Dr. Jonah Kule. The tears flow, but how else can one honor the dead? Well today, she brought him to life for me so I could mourn him with her… Thank you Doctors’ Myhre for what you are doing now, what you have been doing quietly for some time now, and everything you will do in the future. Thank you.

So I am noticing a trend in my exploration of the UG blogosphere… and that is… there are some talented but twisted folks writing out there! I happily tripped on to Nada Yada’s amazing tale of corruption, murder and pointless sex; honestly I cannot wait until the next installment. He piles on the surprises and the suspense… connecting each blog in unexpected and delightful ways. Must I wait to see what happens when the police discover not only the dead body in the bath, but the weeping naked hooker in the room? What about the lesbian cop next door? What other twisted connections are coming my way? And most importantly… when is the next post coming? I am an impatient soul and I want my literary satisfaction NOW. So come on Ivan… keep it coming!

UPDATE: As if he heard me crying with frustration out here in the cyber-wilderness… new post went up TODAY! Thanks Ivan!

It’s easy to miss the signs if you don’t know what you are looking for, and it’s quite easy not to hear the chorus amid all this CHOGM cacophony, but if you stop for just one second, you can almost hear the rising crescendo of Ugandan voices online. In the past two to three months, between traveling, getting buried by the Dallas Cowboys Cookbook, Project Diaspora and my generally busy life, I’ve had an ever-widening grin on my face.  <!–adsense#sponsors–>

But, before I go on, let me back up slightly and let you in on what I’ve been up to.I got back from my three month trip to East Africa in early October. I was really there for many reasons, one of which was to figure out a way to get involved in changing the face of Africa. I wanted to see where I fit in on the continent. After being gone for 20 years, I wanted to start giving back. I viewed Uganda as my little corner of the world where I could make a difference. So I set out to find where I could be the most helpful. Now you may ask, why travel all across the world to try and make a difference, when I could make a difference right here in Dallas. The answer to that is not that I am against volunteering here in the states, it’s just that I think I can do greater good in Uganda. Here’s why:

I know my people

While I have been in the West for the better part of 20 years, I still consider myself Ugandan. I have refused to renounce my citizenship to this “troubled,” landlocked, and generally unrecognizable patch of dirt. Why? Because when I am here, I belong. I FEEL at home. I feel like this is my back yard. I can kickoff my shoes and be OK with life in tattered jeans and a sweaty shirt. I don’t even flinch when I am treated like a human sardine in the ultra modern transportation system. I mean, what’s so bad about a few chickens complaining under your seat and accosting your nasal cavity with their seriously malodorous stench! This is home to me. And to me, home is where the heart is. Home is where change begins. Home is where charity begins.I was having dinner one day with a bunch of backpacking East European expats at Tuhende’s on Martin Road in Old Kampala. The weather permitted, as we were seated on the veranda right next to the dusty street.

Halfway into dinner I spotted a little boy in school uniform, walking with his school bag on his shoulders; looking completely comfortable on the dim street. From where I was seated, past the platefuls of steak, past the empty bottles and glasses of waragi and coke, past the spent cigarette butts, past the candles lighting the celebrating, jovial faces, was a ghost from the past. Walking by us was me, circa 1985, scurrying about Masindi on the way home. Late, because I’d been playing football in the street for too long. But this boy had a different, far off look to him. He wasn’t terrified, he wasn’t concerned about the time or place. He was deep in thought.I got up from the table without hesitation and stopped him. I looked him deep in the eyes, he wasn’t scared of me.

I told him, “… wherever you are going, wherever you are coming from, please remember that you are the future of our nation. Those books in your bag, read them passionately. That school uniform, wear it proudly and against all odds finish your studies.”

He promised me he would. I handed him a 20,000 shilling note, put him on a boda boda and sent him home.I had no idea why I did that, but I later thought, if I don’t invest in my country now, who is? If I don’t trigger a life-changing event in at least one person’s life, then what the hell in my doing buried in dept in the West? What are all the other Ugandans in the Diaspora doing to make life here easier? Do they even care? Is it truly out of site, out of mind?

[End Part one]

Well, I am continuing my search for blogs to love here in the ugblogosphere… and to what did my wondering eye but appear but one crazy female who needs some sleep! I stumbled across her… I’m not sure where and then Citizen Uganda showed her some love… so I buckled down and started to read. My, my, my… Citizen Uganda was right. Miss the honesty and ribald humor of “Sex in the City”? This lady has got it in spades! Beautiful (says she) intelligent (say I) funny, and not afraid to tell it like it is (well just read her blog and see for yourself). Political in the way only people who both love and hate their homeland can be… I got a real sense of what both she and Kampala are like. Great read, and worth going back to… if you are not already reading her… read her now. The Ugandan Insomniac

Today I was looking for blogs that covered business and agriculture in Uganda… and I found this poor fella. Poor thing… ignored and rejected for over 2 years. Let’s all take a moment to mourn its sad state.

We here at Project Diaspora are a diverse group. I have travelled far and… well… near. But my world has mainly encompassed the America’s (North and Central). I come to know Uganda through my good friend TMS Ruge. When we embarked on this little (hah!) project I had (have!) a lot of learning to do. So I have begun to explore your world a bit, by reading your words… and what wonderful words they are! The blogroll that you see here is all of you.. who I am getting to know, by reading the words you sent out into the ether. And look! They landed in Texas. So if you are visiting here as a Ugandan blogger… welcome! If you are part of the Diaspora and have not explored these blogs… well, you are missing out, so get to clickin’! There is some great stuff in here! Since I have just begun to explore these blogs, I wanted to comment a bit on a few that made a strong impression on me.Today I am most struck by Dante of Remotely Personal: dante-no-more.blogspot.com. I started to read and I was made so uncomfortable by his blog… I skipped it and went on to others that I could read without confronting anything unexpected; but I went back. I felt the need to know; where was he going with that story? What happened? So I read on. I am so glad I did. Such honest, raw emotion… such clear stories. Lovely to read; if you can get past the gritty and sometimes pathetic reality that none of us ever really wants to face.