Raila's crib

TEDx Nairobi

Having NOT secured a Ticket for the TEDx event earlier (since the event had been SOLD OUT way long before I came to get wind of it!). So, I made my way to the venue early and I camped there hoping for a Miracle happen! And boy it did happen. 

Being among the first, I got myself busy by getting checked up by Resolution Health one of the sponsors of the event who had set up tent outside the Louis Leakey Auditorium for guys like us. They checked my blood pressure, blood sugar, BMI, etc. I can comfortably disclose that they found me as fit as a fiddle.

At around 12.50pm guys started streaming in and I got to mingle with some friends and guys that I know from the Internet sphere.

So what is TEDx? And what (no) good are they up to?

TED means: Technology, Entertainment, Design. Their tagline is; ‘Ideas worth Sharing’. 

However, TEDx is an independently organized TED event.

Inside the Louis Leakey Auditorium. Everything was arranged into perfect symmetry with symmetry here signifying order and had that Africa feeling to it more like those reality series held outdoors (Does survivor Africa rings a bell here?)

Masaai Painting

Fit for king

Side view of the stage

Audience view

Juliana Rotich the MC for the day was there to welcome us (Well, I managed to get into the event because some guys who had secured tickets had other engagements to attend) us at 1400hrs and give us the house rules of TED events.

 The theme for this event was ‘Green City in the Sun’ which was Nairobi’s name back in the day before it lost its grandeur. The event was hosted at the Louis Leakey Auditorium which is within the grounds of The National Museums of Kenya.

The first speaker of the day was Su Kahumbu of Green Dreams which is a company that deals in organic farm produce. She was talking about the need to eat the right foods while also conserving the environment. She pointed out that the food in Nairobi has more than 1000 chemical residue compared to other places. One surprising fact that she gave is that corn is contained in most products that we use including toothpaste and shampoo. She pointed out that only Nakumatt has dedicated aisles for Organic Farming produce and wondered what Zuchinni, the Nairobi-based green produce store was doing about the same. The average age of a farmer is increasing as new generations move to cities and has increased to the age of about 45-50 years.

Wycliffe Sande during his presentation

Wycliffe Sande, one of the organisers of TEDxKibera was the next speaker. He talked a bit about Voice of Kibera which is used to get information on Kibera. It works in a simple way in that once can send an SMS and tag it with Kibera which will then be picked up and used to display the information on Kibera. Wycliffe also added that they had so far received 309 reports from reliable sources & 30 SMS plus 8 e-mails during referendum days using the Voice of Kibera network.

The third speaker was Kenya’s second Caine Prize winner; Yvonne Awuor. She did a piece going by the title ‘Engare Nairobi’ which is a prose reading about Nairobi’s Nairobi River from where it starts. It also gives a brief description of the current state of the river. Engare Nairobi means ‘the place of cool waters’ in the Maasai language. Before green was fashionable, Nairobi was green but with all the anti-environmental efforts undergoing, it is no longer green. The city’s local authority body, Nairobi City Council, also has its colours all about the green. Nairobi has a different story from other cities. Yvonne closed her talk by saying “We are a part of the ecosytem that is the city”.

Jon Bohmer

Next up was Jon Bohmer, a Norwegian inventor based in Kenya and my BEST TEDx speaker for this event. Jon Bohmer who is founder and CEO of Kyoto-Energy invented the Kyoto Box which is a solar-powered water cleaner. He stressed on the need to turn to solar as a means of meeting earth’s energy needs. Jon gave a demonstration of the Kyoto Box. He pointed out that in Kenya 90% of the population is not connected to the national electricity grid most of which comes from hydroelectric (about 80%) while the deficit is met by diesel-powered burners and to a very small extent by geothermal energy. He added that 7bn tons of CO2 are released into earth’s atmosphere every year and that currently earth is at the peak of consumption on fossil fuels. 10bn tons of plastic waste lies in the oceans. Jon said that some of these problems could be overcome by making solar energy devices by using recycled plastic material. This is what he does and ends up ‘kills two birds with one stone’. To illustrate this, he gave the following facts:

Kyoto cooking box for you

260mn tons of plastic per year are disposed and this is increasing exponentially.

The world’s poorest nations have the largest land masses and the most sun (Africa)

Kenya has one of the best investment climates for solar products and technology making it a possible leading contender for ‘the country with one of the best energy efficient users’. Jon added that use of the Kyoto Box can lead to carbon savings of up to 750kg/yr.

Kyoto box explained. NB: Notice the solar torch by his waist

The Kyoto Box can also show when the water is already clean by use of a special filter. Other products that are made by Kyoto Energy are:

Turbo is a stove that is made locally by artisans and is energy efficient.

Butterfly is a plastic solar concentrator. It is quite low cost (25% PV). He is also working on a project of utilizing Butterfly which will be set-up in Naivasha.

Cocoon is an algae photo bi-reactor that can be used to grow food.

Hippo Roller can be used for getting water from the river instead of carrying it in jerry cans.

Kyoto Pump used to pump water and can be used either manually or with electricity.

He is also finalizing plans to set up ‘the Kyoto Institute’ which will be setup in Narok University College.

(After this: I think with the current constitution we should give some of those Norwegian Folks Citizenship based on such SMOKING HOT IDEAS!)

Njeri Wangari aka Kenyan Poet, was next on stage. Wangari Njeri is also an author with a book to her name, Mines and Mind Fields which is a poetry book.

She recited a soulful poetry piece on urbanization and its impact on the environment. Mind you the Chinese are constructing some super roads and next to the venue they were doing their thing!

Eric Kigada making his presentation.
Sadly KPLC was there to show us the other side of light

Eric Kigada, an architect with Planning Systems and Services talked on ‘sustainable cities’. His company has worked on various buildings in Kenya, factories and also other projects in Africa. Nairobi was Kenya’s capita city in 1927 after headquarters of the colonial government moved from Machakos. Nairobi had also been envisioned to grow towards Thika and not Athi River as it is at the moment. Eric pointed out that Nairobi’s 1973 master plan has already expired, in 2000 and at the moment we live in a city without any master plan! So this explains why people are building on the bypasses that are meant to help decongest the city. The Nairobi’s metropolitan plan hopes that by 2030 Nairobi will encompass Namanga and Thika municipalities. Nairobi has 3 rivers. Construction in Nairobi must occupy 30% total land area.

Rabia

Rabia who is a radio presenter with Nairobi’s X FM talked about her efforts to get Nakumatt to stop double bagging and also start using better methods to pack. To this effect she has started a Facebook Group page! This, she said that it came about after she had commented on the about double packaging on Nakumatt’s official Facebook page and asked them to find alternatives BUT the administrators wanted her to get 30,000 other persons so that they could act on this!

Rabia

John Kasaona’s talk on conservation and nature that he gave at the Feb 2010 TED event in Long Beach, California was screened.  The main part of the talk is that we should conserve nature and also maintain traditions while at it.

Juliana Rotich pointed out that one of the Kenyan conservancies has been profiled as one of those that are the best in nature conservancies in the documentary ‘Milking the Rhino’. This documentary had been show cased at the Goethe Institut which I managed to catch.

Afterwards was a salsa dance by Ian and Nicola. Immediately after which, there was a tea-break where tea, coffee, samosas and vegetable rolls were served.

After the tea-break, kids from Bishop Lawi Imathiu Secondary School in Meru performed 2 pieces. They are part of the generation that has come about after Jose Antonio Abreu who won a TED prize when he decided to teach musical instruments to the poor kids in Venezuela’s slum areas and he trained other trainers. One of the trainers came over to Kenya to start a similar program. Boniface Muturi introduced the team and said that this was their first performance outside of Meru. A wonderful performance it was coming from such a place.

Dr Laila Macharia, the MD for Scion Real which is a real estate company in Nairobi, talked about building green. She pointed out that East Africa has one of the highest rates of urbanization which could portend a problem in later days. Urban spaces when well used and well planned could be used for urban policy making and has a multiplier effect in that many more people could be employed. This will bring about real cash to the real economy. Green solutions should also be set out to be commercially viable from the onset of the project. High standards, aggressive and optimistic standards will push us to the green era and we should also appreciate backwardness.

Mikul Shah from Eat Out Kenya was also on stage to talk about the use of plastic bags when wrapping goods that have been bought. A some what hilarious video was played on how customers can change habits and also force shopkeepers to do the same.

Sasini‘s MD Caesar Mwangi was up next and he talked about the way people look at business. He gave the story of the Mexican fisherman and the American businessman. Another example that he gave was the kind of people who live at the coast. There are two; the simple living, poor and the so-called ‘rich’ yet one of these categories is always stressed. Gratification and poor values is what has caused businesses that were once successful yet are family businesses to flounder once the younger generation takes over. The notion that poverty causes crime was discarded by looking at both South Africa and Ethiopia where Caesar had lived in earlier days. Asked what would be the best value that he would instill in his kids, “Delayed gratification” he said without hesitating.

James Nyoro, the MD of Rockefeller Foundation Africa, was next on stage talking about growth and the economy. Most of the sectors that are growing are those in the service industry which means that only a few people have access to the millions or billions that are in their control. The poor do not get access to these millions and billions. We should be targeting at growing the agricultural and the manufacturing sectors which are more relevant to the poor person. The opportunities that are also around us should be maximized. He also talked about climate change and how to solve problems. One striking note that he gave was that public problems can never be solved by private solutions. Innovation was also encouraged and while at it, people should also give back to society. James added that ICT should also be used for development and not merely for entertainment or just making what we have easier to work with.

Kevin Otieno, the founder and organizer of TEDx Kibera, came up next and said that they had formed that as a platform for them to discuss new ideas. They have also organised other TEDx events in Mathare, Kangemi, Korogocho and Kibera.

Julie

Julie Gichuru was one of the last speakers (You know what they say; they save the best for last). Julie is the first African woman to receive the Martin Luther King Salute to Greatness Award for Advocacy of Active Non-Violence and Peace. She described herself as an African, a woman, a wife, a mother and a dreamer. Africa to her is a metropolis but it is actually a green, thriving Eden. She foresees an Africa where protection of the environment is vital, human-wildlife conflict is addressed, eco-tourism thrives and a culture of value for environmental causes and smart utilization of the environment are addressed. Africa has the potential and they can do it especially when it comes to food. She stressed that the youth have the key to develop Africa. Young people need to be transformed to do much more than just wielding weapons that will destroy their present and Africa’s future. For these, Julie showed grisly images of young men holding weapons in some of Africa’s failed states and said that “A weapon in the hands of the most disciplined soldier is still dangerous.” Julie also said that leadership is meant facilitate and we should all be working instead of focusing on the leaders.

Julie makes a point

Ifran talked about TEDx Cinema Nairobi which is being organised and for which the details will be given out later on.

Al Kags talked about his book Living Memories which he authored after interviewing 196 people about their experiences. He also talked about how communities are going back to food sustainability. Communities are growing organic food by getting the water, use the whole plant, using old technology (terraces) and also by storing the food.

One of the organizers blogs

The event came to an end with an introduction of the organisers and a performance by the Akala band.

Organizers

We were treated to some more coffee, tea, vegetable rolls and samosas after it came to an end.

  *Photos from: Zulu Safari

Links

1. TEDx Nairobi
2. Kyoto Energy

Nokia's Growth Economy Venture Challenge Winner

Virtual City's Mobile Distributor Solution Won the Nokia's $1M. Virtual City which is a Company from Kenya, won the Nokia $1,000,000 Growth Economy Venture Challenge. This award is given to a new mobile product or solution that is designed to improve the lives of people in the developing world.

Is Kenya the new Silicon Valley of the world?

Virtual City Mobile Distributor Solution

Interesting YouTube clip from Green Peace

Mwangalio Tofauti

Mwangalio Tofauti* is a photographic exhibition currently running at the Nairobi Gallery next to Nyayo House. This exhibition is an installation of nine photographic perspectives from Kenya and one from South Africa (Black Diamonds).

This exhibition opened on the 10th of September 2010 which I attended and was blown away by what is being exhibited there and the DJ-set music from Just A Band. 

What I liked about this exhibition is that the photos are projected on the wall. So what you have to do is sit down and let the picture flip. 

Boniface Mwangi of the Picha Mtaani fame (a CNN Photo Journalist recipient mind you!) brings out a vivid account of what happens during the night in Nairobi through an on going Kwani? project called 24Nairobi. (Although some of his pictures could not be displayed because the head of gallery judged them to be inappropriate!). You can find some of this projects work on 24nairobi website.

Nairobi at night

Nairobi downtown

Antony Kaminju a former photoeditor with the Nation Newspapers and now a lecturer in South Africa show cases the transformation that is taking place in South Africa. This is through his installation of 'The Black Diamonds of Soweto' which show cases how South African society has changed through the pictures of patrons of Panyaza Chesa nyama ('cook the meat') in Soweto Township, south of Johannesburg, South Africa. 

Rock Soweto

''Most of the patrons are young black South Africans with a good bank balance to spend on entertainment - the marketing world calls them "black diamonds". They come here in droves every Sunday afternoon wearing the latest fashion labels and sunglasses; the girls walk about as though on a catwalk. Many of them have moved to the suburbs, but come back to the township to party. They drive here in sunroof BMWs, new Mini coopers, and top-of-the-range 4x4s. The cars are spotlessly clean and some have been fitted with 15 inch subwoofers. Hip hop music blasts from the cars; everyone dances.''-Antony Kaminju

Soweto party

Barbara Minishi experiments portraits from Cyrus Kabiru who has his own unique line of eye glasses. You can catch his line of eye wear which are being exhibited at Alliance Francaise Until 26/09/2010.

Futuristic?

Hi!

Guerrilla? 

You can catch a glimpse of this and other photo journalists such as Jakub Barua, James Muriuki, Jim Chuchu, Miriam Syowia Kyambi, Sam Hopkins, Wambui Mwangi at Nairobi Gallery until 12/12/2010.

Event poster

This exhibition brings together Kenyan photographers and artists who navigate between art and documentary photography. Among them are: Antony Kaminju, Barbara Minishi, Boniface Mwangi, Jakub Barua, James Muriuki, Jim Chuchu, Miriam Syowia Kyambi, Sam Hopkins, Wambui Mwangi.

The show is displayed in an unconventional and powerful way of photography exhibition: as projected images.

This Exhibition has been organised by Goethe Institute in cooperation with the National Museums of Kenya

* Different Perspective

NB: I hope this title has some inspiration drawn from the passage of the new constitution as we (the people) hope to see things in different perspective.

Moving the Masses

On 12th September 2010 (Sunday) a friend of Mine (P) and I joined the debate in "Moving the masses" aired live on KBC channel 1 at 5pm same day. The guest of the show was Prof. John K. Lonyangapuo, CBS, Permanent Secretary, Ministry of Public Works, and his host was Commissioner Hassan Omar of Kenya National Commission on Human Rights (Prof.Patrick Lumumba aka PLO now the chair of Kenya Anti Corruption Commission used to host the show before he left to head the anti-graft body).

Commissioner,  Hassan Omar

The topic of discussion during this  episode was  "Kenya's best brains overseeing billions of shillings to transform a nation". This show I came to learn is funded by the National Anti-corruption Campaign Steering Committee (NACCSC). Through this they seeks to create awareness and mobilise Kenyans to stigmatise and eradicate Corruption. 

Prof. John K. Lonyangapuo

Afterwards, we got a chance to interact with the guest of the show and his entourage in a cocktail (talk of NACCSC facilitating us the common mwanainchi to meet the BIG government!). I got to chat with the chief architect and came to learn that issues like sustainability and Eco-friendly government building are soon going to hit us.

PS: This Ministry is the one that transformed the Prime Minister's Office and did a good job in doing so

To participate as a member of the studio audience, check the naccsc site.

THE LAUNCH OF THE AGRICULTURAL SECTOR DEVELOPMENT STRATEGY (ASDS) AND SIGNING OF THE KENYA CAADP COMPACT

On 24 July 2010 Kenya signed the African Union and the Comprehensive Africa Agricultural Development Programme (CAADP) Compact and the Agricultural Sector Development Strategy 2010 - 2020, the new blueprint for Kenya's agricultural sector.

A pre-launch forum had been held the previous day (23 July 2010) to offer a platform for information-sharing between the CAADP Lead Pillar institutions and stakeholders.

Stakeholders were taken through detailed presentations on the 4 CAADP pillars (Pillar 1, Pillar 2, Pillar 3 and Pillar 4) and afforded a question-and-answer session.

The president together with his ministers were at hand on 24^th July to witness the signing and in his address the president noted that more than 80 per cent of the total population in Africa lives in the rural areas and is mainly dependent on agriculture for their livelihood and that agriculture remains the mainstay of most African economies contributing about 30 per cent to the GDP and providing more than 60 per cent of all employment. 'In spite of its importance, the agricultural sector remains largely underdeveloped in Africa," President Kibaki added. 'Out of the 874 million hectares of arable land in Africa, for example, only 27 per cent is optimally utilized'.

The President futher deplored the low use of farm inputs such as fertilizer, improved seed and mechanization, and little irrigation potential resulting in the continent being a net importer of food and agricultural products. He outlined measures that African countries should take to revitalize agriculture in Africa.

'I am encouraged to note that the Comprehensive Africa Agriculture Development Programme that we shall be signing today is a step in this direction and aims at the implementation of these measures,' President Kibaki said. 'The objective of this African programme is to support country-driven agricultural development strategies and programmes by establishing clear commitments to deliver on specific targets'.

This commitment paves the way for Kenya to get resources from the World Bank and other development partners to carry out the activities it has outlined in the medium-term investment plan for the Agricultural Sector Development Strategy that will soon be presented for financing. Kenya is also expected to commit at least 10 per cent of its national budget to agriculture as is required by the CAADP Compacts.

Others who addressed participants during the launch included Mr Sindiso Ngwenya, Secretary General of COMESA; the Permanent Secretary in the Ministry of Agriculture, Dr Romano Kiome; the Minister for Agriculture, Dr Sally Kosgei; the Deputy Prime Minister and Minister for Finance, Mr Uhuru Kenyatta.

More than 400 participants attended the ceremony. Participants included sector ministers and assistant ministers, agricultural experts, policymakers, representatives from farmer organizations, the private sector, development partners, non-governmental organizations, representatives of the African Union / NEPAD, the East African Community (EAC), and the Forum for Agricultural Research in Africa (FARA).

Hon Uhuru Kenyatta and Hon Dr Sally Kosgei signed the Kenya CAADP Compact on behalf of the Government of Kenya. Other signatories to the Compact included a representative of the Kenya Private Sector Alliance, the EU Head of Delegation on behalf of the Agricultural Sector Development Partners, representative for the African Union Commission, Mr Sam Kanyarukiga for NEPAD (CAADP); and Mr Sindiso Ngwenya for COMESA.

Other countries in the COMESA region to sign the CAADP Compact are Rwanda, Burundi, Ethiopia, Swaziland, Uganda and, more recently, Tanzania.

At the same event, President Kibaki launched the Agricultural Sector Development Strategy 2010 - 2020 (ASDS). 'I am glad to note that the Agricultural Sector Development Strategy has mainstreamed all the principles of the CAADP... the strategy is effectively the Kenyan tool for implementing the continental framework,' he said. The strategy is a guide for public and private sectors efforts in overcoming the outstanding challenges facing the agricultural sector in Kenya. Besides ensuring food and nutritional security for all Kenyans, the ASDS aims at generating higher incomes as well as employment, especially in the rural areas.

The strategy is expected to position the agricultural sector as a key driver in achieving the 10 per cent annual economic growth rate envisaged under the economic pillar of Vision 2030. The agricultural sector ministries will ensure that farmers, producers, processors and marketers of agricultural produce employ the most contemporary methods and technologies. The strategy also underscores the need to develop and prudently manage factors of production such as land, water, inputs, and financial resources so that the cost of production is within international standards.

This will entail reforming and streamlining agricultural institutions that provide services to farmers such as extension, training, research and regulatory services to ensure that they serve farmers efficiently and cost effectively. Similarly, policy, legal and regulatory reforms will be instituted to encourage individual farmers to shift from subsistence to market-oriented production.

President Kibaki concluded by urging those entrusted with the responsibility of managing the sector to cultivate the culture of performance and service deliver. He also urged the farming, pastoral and fishing communities as well as the private sector to cooperate and fully participate in implementing the strategy.

President Mwai Kibaki presents the signed Comprehensive Africa Agricultural Development Programme (CAADP) Compact to Agriculture Minister, Dr. Sally Kosgei after the official launch of the Agricultural Sector Development Strategy (ASDS) at K.I.C.C, Nairobi.

Twitter 101

National Democratic Institute was in Town!

The National Democratic Institute Board of Directors were in town at the beginning of this Month (September 2010). The NDI committee members had jetted into the country for a historical (Annual General meeting during its 25th Anniversary) board meeting  first ever to be held out of American soil (as if they had run out of place to hold their meetings in America or the rates there were too high!) They said they had done this gesture in acknowledgment of the democratic strides the country had taken to realize a constitutional dispensation. So am thinking next we should expect a G.O.P think tank is next in line to hold its meeting in Kenya or Nairobi County as it is now called under the new dispensation can lobby to hold the Democrats and Republican Party conferences for US, national people's congress standing committee for China and Labour party conference due sometime this year to select their party head!


Not that I am opposed to the NDI holding its symbolic meeting in Kenya considering that Obama's Administration did not send any high profile dignitary to attend the promulgation ceremony. I had hoped to see the US top diplomat for Africa, Ambassador Johnnie Carson. But considering NDI is affiliated to the democratic party then perhaps NDI had a personal message from the US president to deliver in Kenya. I was also surprised to find in their website that they were involved in mediating after the 2007 post election violence. 
The NDI also welcomed our man in Washington (picture below) with a public lecture to highlight the implications of the passage of the new constitution

US President B. Obama with our ambassador to the US Amb. Elkanah Odembo

The NDI in collaboration with Center for Strategic & International Studies (CSIS) Africa program are also organising another event 'moving forward with constitutional reform in Kenya' and have invited chair IIEC, David Ndii and Pheroze Nowrojee


While in Kenya the board did meet a broad spectrum of the populace starting with the President, Vice President, Prime Minister and Students. 
In their meeting with the president, they got assurances from the head of state that his government was committed to implementing the new constitution and that priority had been given to the passage of new laws to anchor the new constitution. The president pointed out that the public needs to be educated on their role and that of the government under the new structures of government envisioned in the constitution.

President Kibaki with NDI board members

The Vice President also got a chance to speak to the board and was able to post of  what transpired in his official communication line (Campaign for 2012 have started in earnest!)

H.E. Kalonzo Musyoka meets Global Board of NDI chaired by Madeleine Albright.

The ODM was not to be left behind and seem to have had the better part of NDI trip to Kenya however much was not availed to public apart from the photo ops with the former US Secretary of State. Let hope they will return the favor and hold their next ODM Delegates conference in US. Considering they were taught a thing or two about democracy.

Albright with ODM luminaries

However, what fascinated me in this whole NDI visit was the public lecture at Taifa Hall (our equivalent of Ancient Athens Public discourse gallery!). Too bad I missed the discourse BUT I was able to get what went down thanks to K24 (This is Louis) which I have been looking for to upload to this blog but to no avail. However, the whole public discourse was facilitated by Louis Otieno our equivalent of Fareed Zakaria. The discourse was on two topics;

• Helping Democracy deliver by Madeleine Albright, Former US Secretary of State
• The Role of Legislature in the implementation of reforms by Thomas Daschle (Senior Policy Advisor DLA Piper)

Senator Tom Daschle (who is also a vice chair of NDI) in his address highlighted the four pillars of democracy. This are;

1. Tolerance
2. Respect to the rule of law
3. Participation
4. Leadership

While former Secretary of State Madeleine K. Albright talked about democracy and economic prosperity and if the two are synonymous and what comes first if there is anything like that.

The Chancellor of the University (UoN) Dr. Wanjohi was there to wrap up the discourse with his pet subject of JFK airlifts (This time he added to this story of his that they were questioned by the FBI before departing to the US) and occasionally dropping that he knew Obama senior who was one year ahead of him. 

Black Eyed Peas - Rock That Body

2009 Census Results Highlights

I attended the release of the much awaited Population & Housing Census 2009 results which was held at KICC on 31/08/2010 and got the following highlights;

The launch was called to order at 10.40 am by the Master of Ceremony Dr. Collins Opiyo, Director for Population & Social Statistics.

After Prayers the Director General of KNBS Mr. A.K.M. Kilele gave the welcoming remarks where he pointed out that the Census was carried out to allow policy makers to carry out evidenced based policy planning. He did point out that his team administered 12 million questionnaires in this exercise to 1.2 million households and that the Publication of the Census results will be done in 4 Volumes. These 4 volumes will offer a more detailed account than the previous census reports.

The Development partners who financed 5% of the Ksh. 8.4 billion Census Budget were represented by representatives from Swedish Embassy, World Bank and UNRC. They were all in praise of KNBS for conducting a census that met the International standards and for being the first in the region to release the results within one year of conducting the census exercise.

The Planning Permanent Secretary, Dr. Edward Sambili who was also a National Census Officer and Chairman of Census committee gave some background information on the Census exercise paving way for Ambassador Francis Muthaura, Head of Public Service and Secretary to the Cabinet who observed that the office of the President was impressed by KNBS and Ministry of Planning for work done well. He did point out that the census results could not have come at a better time than this. This is because it will assist the government in the implementation of the new constitution.

Assistant Minister Peter Kenneth said the 2009 Census had taken several years of preparation and had a 90% participation rate. Plus, the Bureau had produced a Video on the census exercise.

The Minister of State for Planning, National Development & Vision 2030 Hon. Wycliffe A. Oparanya gave a presentation of the 2009 Census Results and Officially Launched the 2009 Census. The highlight of the presentation is that Kenya has a total population of 38,610,097 people.

Planning Minister with a copy of one of the launched census statistics volumes

Dr. Boniface K’Oyugi, the CEO, National Coordinating Agency for Population & Development gave the vote of thanks and the launch came to an end at 01.15 pm.

2009 Census Results in Figures & Numbers 

The total population of Kenya is lower than expected at 38.6 million. The expectation were that we had hit the 40 Million mark! This nevertheless reflects a population increase of over a third in the last ten years, similar to population growth rates of the previous decade.

At this rate of population growth, in order to sustain and continue to develop, the Kenyan economy would have to grow at a rate of more than 10% per annum, placing more pressure on successful implementation on Vision 2030. The country's blue print on economic development to make it a middle level country come the year 2030.

Population by Provinces

Map of Kenya

Province	Male	Female	Total
Nairobi	1,605,230	1,533,139	3,138,369
Central	2,152,983	2,230,760	4,383,743
Coast	1,656,679	1,668,628	3,325,307
Eastern	2,783,347	2,884,776	5,668,123
North Eastern	1,258,648	1,052,109	2,310,757
Nyanza	2,617,734	2,824,977	5,442,711
Rift Valley	5,026,462	4,980,343	10,006,805
Western	2,091,375	2,242,907	4,334,282
Total Population	19,192,458	19,417,639	38,610,097

In addition to the count, there is much social and economic data of the population. 

Only in Nairobi is there a majority of residents connected to sewers, whilst  residents in the vast majority of other regions use pit latrines while some region people still use the bush. But, most people have access to either piped or spring well/ borehole water throughout the country. 

Percentage households by main mode of Human Waste Disposal

	Rural	Urban
Main Sewer	0.2	19.5
Septic Tank	0.5	8.0
Cess Pool	0.1	0.7
VIP Pit Latrine	4.3	5.9
Pit Latrine (Covered/ Uncovered)	74.1	62.5
Bucket	0.1	0.6
Bush	20.7	2.6
Other	0.1	0.2
Total	100	100

Majority of Kenyans still live in rural areas (67%) while 63% of Kenyans have a mobile phone.  Free primary education has significantly boosted the number of students, however, only 19% go on to secondary schools, and out of this only 11% proceed to universities. 

Education

Population, 3 years and above attending school

	Pre-Primary	Primary	Secondary	University
Male	1,150,890	4,838,278	962,887	115,094
Female	1,096,181	4,587,112	833,580	83,025
Total	2,247,071	9,425,390	1,796,467	198,119

Population by tribe was also captured. The five largest tribes in Kenya were unchanged with Kikuyu being (17%), Luyha (14%), Kalejin (13%), Luo (10%), Kamba (10%). The release of tribe apportionment, often used to generate political division, has generated some criticism, but the argument in favour of compiling and releasing the data is that it has many positive, non-political uses.

During the launch it was pointed out that the census information will be used to more equitably address issues of poverty and infrastructure development by region.

Population by county

No.	COUNTY	MALE	FEMALE	TOTAL
1	NAIROBI	1,605,230	1,533,139	3,138,369
2	MOMBASA	486,924	452,446	939,370
3	KWALE	315,997	333,934	649,931
4	KILIFI	535,526	574,209	1,109,735
5	TANA RIVER	119,853	120,222	240,075
6	LAMU	53,045	48,494	101,539
7	TAITA TAVETA	145,334	139,323	284,657
8	GARISSA	334,939	288,121	623,060
9	WAJIR	363,766	298,175	661,941
10	MANDERA	559,943	465,813	1,025,756
11	MARSABIT	151,112	140,054	291,166
12	ISIOLO	73,694	69,600	143,294
13	MERU	670,656	685,645	1,356,301
14	THARAKA	178,451	186,879	365,330
15	EMBU	254,303	261,909	516,212
16	KITUI	481,282	531,427	1,012,709
17	MACHAKOS	543,139	555,445	1,098,584
18	MAKUENI	430,710	453,817	884,527
19	NYANDARUA	292,155	304,113	596,268
20	NYERI	339,725	353,833	693,558
21	KIRINYAGA	260,630	267,424	528,054
22	MURANGA	457,864	484,717	942,581
23	KIAMBU	802,609	820,673	1,623,282
24	TURKANA	445,069	410,330	855,399
25	WEST POKOT	254,827	257,863	512,690
26	SAMBURU	112,007	111,940	223,947
27	TRANS-NZOIA	407,172	411,585	818,757
28	UASIN GISHU	448,994	445,185	894,179
29	ELGEYO MARAKWET	183,738	186,260	369,998
30	NANDI	376,488	376,477	752,965
31	BARINGO	279,081	276,480	555,561
32	LAIKIPIA	198,625	200,602	399,227
33	NAKURU	804,582	798,743	1,603,325
34	NAROK	429,026	421,894	850,920
35	KAJIADO	345,146	342,166	687,312
36	BOMET	359,727	364,459	724,186
37	KERICHO	381,980	376,359	758,339
38	KAKAMEGA	800,989	859,662	1,660,651
39	VIHIGA	262,716	291,906	554,622
40	BUNGOMA	795,595	835,339	1,630,934
41	BUSIA	232,075	256,000	488,075
42	SIAYA	398,652	443,652	842,304
43	KISUMU	474,760	494,149	968,909
44	HOMA BAY	462,454	501,340	963,794
45	MIGORI	499,298	529,281	1,028,579
46	KISII	550,464	601,818	1,152,282
47	NYAMIRA	287,048	311,204	598,252
	TOTAL	19,192,458	19,417,639	38,610,097

Useful Links

1. Kenya National Bureau of Statistics Website
2. Ministry of Planning Website