Rise Africa

africaisdonesuffering:

When it came to patriotism, no American citizen was as determined to scream his allegiance to the States as much as Eddy. Originally from Nigeria, he had come to the USA, a wide-eyed, overzealous foreign student; a sponge, willing to soak up everything about the much disseminated and celebrated American culture. It didn’t take long before he dropped his birth-name in favor of an English one; one that lacked the clicks and clangs that came with stringing together native phrases to produce the esoteric rhythm of an African name. He learnt to pronounce his words the American way, dropping his t’s and inculcating as many Ebonics in his sentences as he possibly could because it made it easier for him to fit in with the African- American crowd. But sounding American wasn’t good enough; he needed something more, he needed to BE American, Literally. Money exchanged palms and a phony marriage was arranged. His wishes were granted as he became a full-fledged American citizen with the bragging rights that came along with his new classification. He basked in this new citizenship status, flaunting his dark blue passport to less-fortunate African friends. A month after he became an American citizen, he was pulled over by a cop for driving above the speed limit. The punishment for this offence is usually a slap-on-the-wrist sort of reprimand, or at worst, a ticket. Unfortunately for our hero, the confrontation became a little heated, climaxing when the officer threatened him with jail time. Eddy who had never read the Nigerian constitution, who only knew the first stanza of the Nigerian anthem and couldn’t name all thirty-six states in Nigeria without skipping either Taraba or Jigawa, was quick to tell the officer that taking him to jail would be violating the eighth amendment to the US constitution against cruel and unusual punishments. He raged and puffed, using biting phrases full of conviction like “as an American citizen…” and “…goes against the very principles this country was founded on”. The officer, a middle-aged conservative took one look at Eddy’s driver’s license, at the unfamiliar syllables that made up his name, words he couldn’t even dare attempt to pronounce, and shooting Eddy a cold piercing stare, he mechanically delivered these chilling words – “You may be a citizen, but you will never be an American”. Two months later, Ifesinachi Okadigbo aka Eddy broke the leasing contract he had with his apartment office, and relocated back to Nigeria, leaving behind not even a single item.

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b-sama:

THE conference room resembles an old “Star Trek” set, with swivel chairs, laptops on desks and headsets that switch between Kinyarwanda and other tongues. Paul Kagame, Rwanda’s president, sits in the captain’s chair. His technocratic ministers sit nearby. When the talk turns to business, Mr Kagame becomes animated. It is his passion—he says he reads business case studies in bed. He wants to turn Rwanda into the Singapore of central Africa. He is nothing if not ambitious.

Rwanda is best known for the genocide that claimed at least 500,000 lives in 1994. It has been peaceful since then, but lacks nearly all of Singapore’s advantages. Singapore has the world’s busiest port; Rwanda is landlocked. Singapore has one of the world’s best-educated populations; Rwanda’s middle class was butchered in 1994. Singapore is a gateway to China; Rwanda’s neighbours are “less than ideal”, as a recent report from the Legatum Institute, a British think-tank, put it. Uganda is corrupt; Burundi a basket-case; Congo worse.Yet Rwanda has one huge advantage: the rule of law. No African country has done more to curb corruption. Ministers have been jailed for it. Transparency International, a watchdog, reckons Rwanda is less graft-ridden than Greece or Italy (though companies owned by the ruling party play an outsized role in the economy). “I have never paid a bribe and I don’t know anyone who has had to pay a bribe,” says Josh Ruxin, one of the owners of Heaven, a restaurant in Kigali, the capital.

When it came to patriotism, no American citizen was as determined to scream his allegiance to the States as much as Eddy. Originally from Nigeria, he had come to the USA, a wide-eyed, overzealous foreign student; a sponge, willing to soak up everything about the much disseminated and celebrated American culture. It didn’t take long before he dropped his birth-name in favor of an English one; one that lacked the clicks and clangs that came with stringing together native phrases to produce the esoteric rhythm of an African name. He learnt to pronounce his words the American way, dropping his t’s and inculcating as many Ebonics in his sentences as he possibly could because it made it easier for him to fit in with the African- American crowd. But sounding American wasn’t good enough; he needed something more, he needed to BE American, Literally. Money exchanged palms and a phony marriage was arranged. His wishes were granted as he became a full-fledged American citizen with the bragging rights that came along with his new classification. He basked in this new citizenship status, flaunting his dark blue passport to less-fortunate African friends. A month after he became an American citizen, he was pulled over by a cop for driving above the speed limit. The punishment for this offence is usually a slap-on-the-wrist sort of reprimand, or at worst, a ticket. Unfortunately for our hero, the confrontation became a little heated, climaxing when the officer threatened him with jail time. Eddy who had never read the Nigerian constitution, who only knew the first stanza of the Nigerian anthem and couldn’t name all thirty-six states in Nigeria without skipping either Taraba or Jigawa, was quick to tell the officer that taking him to jail would be violating the eighth amendment to the US constitution against cruel and unusual punishments. He raged and puffed, using biting phrases full of conviction like “as an American citizen…” and “…goes against the very principles this country was founded on”. The officer, a middle-aged conservative took one look at Eddy’s driver’s license, at the unfamiliar syllables that made up his name, words he couldn’t even dare attempt to pronounce, and shooting Eddy a cold piercing stare, he mechanically delivered these chilling words – “You may be a citizen, but you will never be an American”. Two months later, Ifesinachi Okadigbo aka Eddy broke the leasing contract he had with his apartment office, and relocated back to Nigeria, leaving behind not even a single item.

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This one’s a slow jam for all the lovers out there. FRITZ, a buzzing new sensation from Ghana, is an icon in his own league and a force to be reckoned with. The 20 year old student of the University of Ghana, is currently pursuing a bachelor’s degree in mathematics and statistics. He is the second amongst four children and is a proud product of Mfantsipim School in Cape Coast.

[click link to read more]

dynamicafrica:

African countries have been urged to increase investments in agriculture to guarantee the continent’s food security.

Rwanda President Paul Kagame said more resources should be provided for research and new technologies that will in the long run ensure increased food production in the continent, especially for staple food crops like maize.

Small holder farmers in the continent, he added, should equally have access to essential inputs like fertiliser, improved seeds, professional advice, as well as markets for their produce.

The Rwandan leader further called on the countries in the continent to move away from rain-fed agriculture, and instead intensify their irrigation capacities.

“We must make available sufficient resources to strengthen rural financial systems for farmers,” said Mr Kagame while delivering a key note address at the opening of the International Fund for Agriculture and Development (IFAD) Governing Council meeting in Rome, Italy.

He was accompanied by Italian Prime Minister Mario Monti and IFAD’s President Kanayo F Nwanze. The meeting is also being attended by a number of world leaders including Microsoft owner Bill Gates, international policymakers, farmer representatives and government ministers.

The two-day meeting will discuss how to increase food production and promote sustainable use of the earth’s natural resources.

His call comes at a time when the East African region is still reeling from the effects of the one of its worst droughts in 60 years, which affected more than 11 million people in both the arid and semi-arid areas of Kenya, Somalia, South Sudan, Ethiopia, Tanzania and Burundi, among others, being affected.

In Kenya, at least 3.5 million people were affected mostly in the counties of Garissa, Marsabit, Isiolo, Tana River, Tharaka, Wajir, Mandera, West Pokot, Samburu, Baringo, Kajiado, Makueni, Kwale, Kilifi and Turkana.

Mr Kagame said ultimately, long-term solutions to investment in agriculture will come from a greater involvement of the private sector - mostly in technology, production, marketing and research.

“And that is targeted support and investment in smallholder farming to raise agricultural productivity, contribute to food security and reduce poverty, while protecting our planet,” he said.

Statistics from the Food and Agriculture Organisation (FAO) indicate that the world’s food production is not keeping up with the rapidly growing world population.

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