Boaz Adhengo's Housing Saga

Boaz Adhengo Police Report

Boaz Adhengo was beaten and forced from his home in Kajiado County, Kenya because he is not Maasai.  The issue for Maasai elders and their youthful henchmen was that land being sold by the municipal government to “outsiders.”  A group of you young Maasai men armed with machetes clubbed and hit him with.  Now Boaz is one of the hundreds of people who bought land in Kajiado County, but who are now being targeted by locals for eviction. They now find themselves unable to utilize their land.

Boaz's home doubles as the AAEA Kenya Office, so essentially, AAEA was evicted from its office.  To get the full story, you should read the police report listed at the link above.  The photos below show the original house in Kajiado County and the subsequent home he had to build to reestablish a residence and AAEA Office.

Boaz lost all of his furnishing, appliances, computers and much more.  If you can help him, please feel free to reach out to him.  We are very proud to be associated with such a dynamic individual.

While Adhengo holds that his title deed is valid, several other investors who bought land from areas like Kitengela, Rongai and other parts of Kajiado County have found themselves either homeless or fighting court battles to retain land that was allegedly acquired unprocedurally.

Kisaju Location chief David Teekais is promoting the evictions.  His view is that some people acquired land at throwaway prices and in other cases of people who stole title deeds from their parents later sold the land to those regarded as outsiders. The general feeling is that our ancestral land is being taken away by outsiders and Chief Teekais and his young squad of goons will not allow it. (Standard)

Boaz built his home in Kajiado, Kenya

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

Boaz Constructed A New Home

 

 

 

 

The Africa Clean Energy Corridor

Energy ministers from 19 countries are pushing ahead with the creation of the Africa Clean Energy Corridor. The Africa Clean Energy Corridor will provide the continent with the opportunity to leapfrog into a sustainable energy future.  Africa’s abundant renewable energy resources are a perfect match to meet rising demand in a sustainable and cost-effective way – from Cairo to Cape Town.

Spearheaded by the International Renewable Energy Agency, the Africa Clean Energy Corridor would create a 5,000-mile north-south electricity transmission grid stretching from Egypt through Sudan, South Sudan, Ethiopia, Kenya, Malawi, Mozambique, Zambia and Zimbabwe to South Africa.

Of particular importance is the Ethiopia to South Africa line to be completed by 2020. Another priority project is the 2,300-mile Central Africa Transmission Corridor linking the Democratic Republic of the Congo to South Africa through Angola and Namibia, and north to Chad through Equatorial Guinea, Gabon and Cameroon.

The second stage of development through 2040 involves the interconnection of all these power corridors into one continuous power grid linking clusters of renewable energy projects to the West African Power Pool grid, which links Ghana to Ivory Coast, Togo, Benin and Nigeria. According to the International Renewable Energy Agency, the goal Africa Clean Energy Corridor is to promote a “regional approach to developing the vast renewable energy resources that will help optimize the energy mix and attract more investment.”

A World Bank report, Turning the Lights on Across Africa, notes that regional power planning and power trade can address the continent’s chronic struggle for adequate and affordable electricity generation.

Currently, in Sub-Saharan Africa some 72,000 miles of links exist, while over 20,000 miles remain missing.The key to the Africa Clean Energy Corridor’s “action agenda” is the creation of “renewable energy development zones – special areas where renewable energy projects would be clustered based on resource potential, land suitability and infrastructure. Clustering these projects will make it easier to access the high-voltage transmission lines being built to send the electricity generated to where it’s needed and boost the energy trade between the power pools.

The focus is on regional project with a north-south transmission corridor is also part of the African Union’s New Partnership for Africa’s Development and the African Development Bank’s Program for Infrastructure Development in Africa, which estimates the cost at $360 billion through to 2040. To this end, the initial focus will be on connecting the 10-country East African Power Pool with the 12-country Southern African Power Pool.

 With demand for electricity expected to double in the Southern African Power Pool and quadruple in the East African Power Pool within twenty-five years, the pools expect to save $47.5 billion and $32.5 billion respectively due to the regional optimization of power generation and transmission.

Expanding Regional Grids

The Africa Clean Energy Corridor builds on existing programs for power grid infrastructure development.

The Ethiopia-Sudan Transmission Interconnection Project was commissioned in 2013 and implementation of a further 930 miles of power grid for Burundi, DR Congo, Kenya, Rwanda and Uganda is on-going while interconnections between Kenya and Tanzania; Uganda and DR Congo; and Tanzania and Zambia are advancing.

In May 2013, the Ethio-Kenya Electricity Highway Project was launched as the first step to alleviate an ongoing bottleneck during the cross-border exchange of electric power with construction of a 650-mile power line to interconnect Ethiopia and Kenya. With help, the $1.3 billion project – with loans from the African Development Bank and World Bank – is scheduled to be completed by 2016. The World Bank also approved $380 million on May 2 to help expand sustainable urban infrastructure and services in cities across Ethiopia.

Other projects include:

• In the last five years, the Mozambican government built 4,600 miles of transmission lines, giving the country the third highest electrification rate in the Southern African Development Community region.

• Namibia’s national power utility announced in April a $668 million grid expansion plan over the next five to seven years to deliver power to all parts of the country.

• Kenya’s 2014/2015 budget, announced in April, includes an estimated $91 million for, among other things, new grid connections. Kenya is also in final negotiations for $840 million worth of long term loans from a number of bilateral development lenders, including $160 million expected this September from the African Development Bank, with the goal of connecting 500,000 new customers a year over the next five years to increase electricity access from the current 32 percent to 75 percent.

• The African Development Bank approved a $26 million grant in December 2013 for construction of over 249 miles of power lines and installation of 195 transformer stations in South Sudan, where only 1 percent of the population has access to grid electricity.

Pooling Economic Resources

An interconnected electric grid is important for the economy and businesses that need to make energy-related decisions. According to the International Renewable Energy Agency, more than 30 African countries experience power shortages and regular interruptions to service causing firms often lose 5 to 20 percent of potential business and losses to GDP typically ranging from 2 to 6 percent in some African countries.  (Africa Insider, 5/9/2014)

The Ethio-Kenya Electricity Highway Project

The Ethio-Kenya Electricity Highway Project is an important move towards the development of the regional power pool. Construction of the 500KV transmission line links the national grids of the two countries. The program would alleviate the bottleneck problem for the exchange of electric power between the two countries. The project is important because it would serve as the backbone of the East African Regional transmission network.

The project feasibility study completed in 2009 and more than 212 million people will be benefited. The project is scheduled to be completed by 2016 at a total cost of 1.3 billion USD. African Development Bank (ADP) and World Bank (WB) approved the loan.

The Ethio-Kenya Electricity Highway Project workshop, which is the first phase of the east African Power Integration Regional program, was officially launched in a ceremony held at Hilton Hotel here in Addis Ababa on May 14,2013.  High-ranking officials from Ethiopia and Kenya, representatives of the World Bank and African Development Bank (AFDB) attended the ceremony.

The Ethio-Kenya Electricity Highway Project is part of a larger program (The Africa Clean Energy Corridor) to construct an electricity grid throughout Africa.  (EEPCo)

Kristin Davis' Fundraiser: Protect Elephants from Poachers

A Message From Kristin Davis

BENEFITING: KRISTIN DAVIS FOUNDATION                                     

EVENT: #STARTARYOT Challenge

 

THE STORY:

Promotion: Donate at least $20 from 9/2 at 9am ET to 9/5 at 11:59 pm ET and you’ll be automatically entered for a chance to win an Autographed Photo of Kristin Davis and an Elephant.

Did you know that elephants will soon be extinct? Every 15 minutes an elephant is brutally killed for it's tusks. Everyday elephants are being attacked by poachers with poisoned arrows, spears, deadly snares and guns.

The David Sheldrick Wildlife Trust is fighting to protect these majestic animals in Kenya everyday. Our anti-poaching teams need a helicopter to respond quickly to wounded elephants and to catch the poachers and have them arrested.

Every dollar raised goes directly to the efforts of the DSWT team on the ground in Kenya.

Kristin Davis

We are in a crisis because there isn't much time to save the elephants.

Organized criminal and war lords like Joseph Kony are killing elephants to fund their illegal activities. So not only are we in danger of loosing a beautiful , intelligent animal, but more innocent people will suffer because of the money made from selling the ivory on the back market.

We must fight together against the bad guys before they win and we loose the elephants in the wild forever!

Every dollar means so much, thank you for your support

Kristin

(Crowdwise)

Kenya's Defining Year: 2012

Politicians, pundits, and development practitioners have been arguing that 2012 will be a make-or-break year in Kenya’s history, similar to 1963 or 1992. Is the 2012 challenge real or just a case of pundits playing Cassandra? Specifically there are three challenges coming together.

First are national elections. The last general elections ended in a catastrophe. If the 2012 elections are again violent, Kenya’s image as a peaceful, mature democracy may be tarnished for a generation. Investors and tourists would be even more reluctant to come to Kenya and quick to dismiss the “friends of Kenya” (including your blogger) who strongly believe in the strengths of this country and its medium-term potential. In news headlines, Kenya would join the ranks of other unstable African countries, and drift away from emerging economies such as India and Indonesia.

Second is implementation of the Constitution. Even though all eyes are on the presidential race, elections will be held simultaneously for parliament and the brand-new forty-seven counties governors and assemblies. This will not only make it the most challenging logistical effort in Kenya’s electoral history but also establish a new system of devolved government an alter Kenya's structure as a country. Kenyans bring to this process tremendous enthusiasm and energy, but the devil lies in the detail. The specific design of fiscal architecture, accountability systems and the management of this massive transition will determine whether Kenya can weather the economic storm in a way that enhances social equity, service delivery, citizen engagement, and so deliver the promise of institutional transformation.

Third is the next global economic crisis. It is clear that the world economy will be in turmoil in 2012.The only uncertainty is about the extent of the crisis. Europe’s inability to solve its debt problems is directly affecting economic prospects in developing countries.Flowers and vacations are luxury goods, which Europeans are likely to sacrifice as their income drops. Unfortunately for Kenya, these are among the main sources of foreign exchange. During 2008/09, Kenya was able to weather the global financial crisis by using fiscal and monetary stimuli. But today, Kenya’s economy is in a weaker position and fiscal buffers need to be rebuilt before they can be used again. Also, these economic challenges come at a time when more resources are needed, including for decentralization and the war in Somalia.

Kenya is at a similar turning point in its history. There is a direct relationship between the 2007/08 post-election violence and the adoption of the new Constitution, with its radical provisions for improved governance and devolution. 2012 will be the first big test of whether the “New Kenya” can deliver free, fair and peaceful elections as part of a new institutional structure and at the same time provide continued growth during a global economic crisis. Let us hope that Kenya’s politicians keep these challenges and opportunities in mind as they finalize their wishes and resolutions for the New Year. (World Bank)

Wangari Maathai Dies

Wangari Maathai

Wangari Maathai, Africa’s first woman recipient of the Nobel Peace Prize, died late Sunday after a long battle with cancer. Maathai, 71, won the Nobel Prize in 2004 for combining environmentalism and social activism.

According to the Nobel committee, Maathai made significant contributions “to sustainable development, democracy and peace.”The Kenyan environmentalist founded the Green Belt Movement (GBM) in 1977 – planting tens of millions of trees throughout her homeland.

Maathai served as an assistant minister in President Mwai Kibaki's government from 2003 to 2005.

Maathai is survived by her three children and a granddaughter. (Wiki,  Various News Sources)

AAEA Director Named Editor of Balozi Journal Magazine

A Journey Magazine into Science, Reason & Rationality [January 2012 Vol. 5.]

Boaz Adhengo has been named editor of the Balozi Journal, which will examine numerous issues within the broad categories of: 1) Science, 2) Reason, and 3) Rationality.  Mr. Adhengo is excited about the new assignment. 

Please feel free to donate to this new effort.

WRITERS WANTED

One of the first articles in the journal includes the tome below:

The Range of Religious Freedom

By Paul Marshall

Belief in the supernatural dimension is central to all world religions Religion by its nature defies precise definition. However, the central commonality to all world religions is the belief in the supernatural dimension. Thus, it can be said that the most significant element of a religious worldview is this belief in a divine being or power, which is greater than humankind and the natural world. This being or power is believed to be responsible for the creation of the world, for providing a moral framework for human life and being the ultimate destiny of a human person at the end of their mortal life.

Oil Pipeline Fire Kills Approximately 150 People

According to local officials, scores of people were burned to death and many more were injured when a fire from a pipeline explosion engulfed a thickly populated slum in Nairobi. The provincial commissioner said more than 60 were confirmed dead, with the number likely to rise. One local television station quoted an official at the scene declaring that he had counted more than 120 bodies, while a local radio station said the dead numbered more than 150.

The cause of the explosion was still unclear, but local officials said it was likely caused by a cigarette butt that ignited gasoline leaked from the pipeline. Local television broadcast images of smoldering bodies as firefighters battled the blaze, and showed badly burned slum residents emerging from the flames.

It is believed the fire started after a fuel tank spilled fuel into an open sewer that flows through the slum. As slum residents tried to scoop up the fuel, someone tossed a cigarette into the sewer. (Wash Post, 9/12/2011)

AAEA Kenya Director Named Director at Jahwar Amber Fund

Boaz Adhengo

Jahwar Amber Fund, publisher of the Balozi Journal has appointed Mr. Boaz Adhengo as its Programs Director, a role that could lead to being ‘Editor–in– Chief’ of the Balozi Magazine.

Boaz established the AAEA Kenya Office in 2010.  His role as director will complement the Jahwar Amber Fund and AAEA.  AAEA will provide outreach support for the fund and the fund's journal will provide an additional platform for disemination of AAEA information.

Boaz is the man for the job because he has the unique entrepreneurial qualities to make both institutions a success.  We hope that others will support his efforts by making donations to the fund and AAEA.

The fund was established in 2009 as an effort to steer the realization of Church – State separation in Kenya, focusing greatly on campus projects and consequently diversifying its approach to involve capacity building of like-minded organizations in East Africa.

The next issue of Balozi Journal will focus on “Genetically Modified Organisms,’ highlighting the possible debates en route to ending famine and drought in Africa at large, using successful Kenyan examples and documented cases. This owes to the fact that at this time of the year, Kenya is recording numbers of starved children and the whole region is suffering from food insecurity, which warrants a probable debate on such issues.

Articles are welcomed for submission to be considered on the next issue of Balozi Journal, which is managed by the AAEA Kenya Office.

Obama Rumored To Attend Mboya Statue Unveiling

Mboya Statue

President Barack Obama might attend the unveiling of the Tom Joseph Mboya statue on Mashujaa Day on October 20. The late Tom Mboya was a freedom fighter and economics minister. The statue weighs about 1.5 tonnes and was mounted on a pedestal of cast stones in Nairobi city centre. The Tom Mboya statue is made out of cast bronze and stands on curved stone foundation.

Tom Mboya was a friend and mentor to Barack Obama, Sr.  Tom Mboya was assassinated in July 5, 1969 due to his political activities.

The cast stone the statue is standing on, the fountain and the flamingo birds underneath symbolise the planes for which Tom Mboya paid tickets for Kenyan students to study abroad during the famous airlifts of the 1960s. The 10 metres high statue has been erected two metres away from the scene where he was shot 42 years ago. The statue is on Moi Avenue formerly Government Road, near Stanbank House and faces the National Archives and Ambassadeur Hotel. The statue has been dressed in Ghanaian regalia, which the late Kwame Nkuruma presented to Mboya. (The Star, 8/3/2011, The Latest Kenyan News, 2/26/2011)

National Black Chamber on Trade Mission to Kenya

The National Black Chamber of Commerce is sponsoring a Trade Mission to Kenya to evaluate business opportunities during June 12 – 17, 2011.

Contact Charles DeBow for more information.

UNEP Meeting In Nairobi Struggles on Environmental Issues

Approximately 100 environment ministers gathered last week in Nairobi under the auspices of the United Nations Environment Program (UNEP) to address the need for an in-depth reform its own system for addressing environmental issues, particularly climate change.  The ministers called for the question to be studied and if possible decided on at the next UN summit on sustainable development planned for June 2012 in Rio de Janeiro.  Beginning with the 1992 earth summit in Rio, a thick mesh of directives that remain confusing even to specialists have evolved.

UNEP is behind the World Trade Organization or the World Health Organization. With a 2010 budget of 83 million dollars, it is one of only two UN agencies to be headquartered in Africa. Only 58 states, out of a total of 193 in the world, are members. Each convention has its own secretariat, which scarcely communicates with the others.

Between 1992 and 2007, 540 meetings have been called under 18 international treaties, generating more than 5000 decisions. The convention on climate change, adopted in 1992, has collected about 100 billion dollars for its budget. But beyond the facade of everything being unanimous, talks on how to harmonize the system have been deadlocked for years. (AFP, 2/25/2011)

J. Scott Gration Appointed Ambassador to Kenya

Scott Gration

J. Scott Gration, the Obama administration's Sudan envoy, will become U.S. ambassador to Kenya.

Gration, a retired Air Force major general, was one of the first prominent military officials to embrace Obama as a presidential candidate, and he traveled with the then senator to Africa in 2006. Gration grew up in Africa, the son of missionaries, and speaks Swahili.

He has a bachelor's degree from Rutgers University and earned a master's degree in national security studies from Georgetown University in Washington in 1988. (Wash Post, 2/11/2011, Wiki)

African American Environmental Association: 25th Anniversary

PRESIDENT'S CORNER

By Norris McDonald

Today is our 25th anniversary.  We was incorporated on November 20, 1985.  The African American Environmentalist Association (AAEA) is the outreach arm of the Center for Environment, Commerce & Energy (Center).

You can see a listing of many of our activities during that time at our original website, which we converted to Multiply when the original Msn Groups platform ended).  There is more activity information at our History page. My career has been very satisfying.  From my beginning in the Fall of 1979 at the Environmental Policy Center (now Friends of the Earth) until today, the adventure has been incredible.  I started out in the Washington, D.C.-based environmental movement.  Jimmy Carter was president and was just finishing a rough 4-year run.  I shook his hand at the Democratic National Convention in New York in 1980 not knowing that Washington was about to get a completely new makeover.  The Reagan era was interesting and quite the challenge for the environmental movement.  I still remember his 'no standard standard' for appliance efficiency standards.  I also remember the Air Florida crash and the Metro subway accident on the day that I was walking back from the U.S. Department of Energy after testifying on appliance standards.

Well, without sounding like the old guy in the room sharing old war time stories that nobody really wants to hear, the situation today is as exciting as ever.  We are embarking on trying to build biomass power plants in Mississippi, California and in Kenya.  The adventure continues and I am having more fun than ever.  Our team is lean and mean and green. 

I have kept the AAEA small on purpose and will continue to do so.  I almost died from respiratory failure in 1991 and 1996 (intubated for 4 days in ICU each time).  After getting divorced and full custody of my son when he was 2 years old, I decided that I wanted to stick around to see my son grow up.  But I also wanted to continue with my entrepreneurial environmentalism.  So keeping it small worked.  Although I still struggle with a chronic acute asthma that could kill me any day, my son is now 18 and I am still 'doing my green thing.'  Life is good.  Hey, and we just opened a new Center Hollywood blog this week (Also see AAEA Hollywood).  Oh, and if you're feeling generous, feel free to click on our Donation button on our sites.

Woodchip-To-Methane-To-Electricity Plant for Kogelo

AAEA Kenya, in cooperation with National Clean Fuels (NACF), intends to develop a ten-megawatt woodchip-to-methane-to-electricity plant in Kogelo, Kenya. We are recommending the construction and operation of a wood chip to electricity plant with accompanying substation and electricity transmission and distribution lines. The Center and NACF is presenting this proposal to the Kenyan government and other local stakeholders in order to get approval to proceed with the project.

We envision a ten megawatt, wood chip/sawdust syngas turbine power plant that will operate as a base load unit.  We expect of capacity factor of above 90 percent.  It is anticipated that the plant will consume approximately ten tons of wood chips per hour.  We expect the plant construction and engineering services costs to be approximately $5 million.  The facility will need an interconnect  and purchase agreement with the national utility, Kenya Power and Light.

The power plant will couple a wood gasifier to a turbine, which will more than match the efficiency (30-35%) of conventional coal-fired power stations in converting fuel to electricity. Potential benefits include worthwhile cost savings as well as the "greenhouse-friendly" replacement of fossil fuels with a renewable energy source.  A key requirement in developing a practical unit that will run with minimal attention, will be devising an automated handling system that provides a constant supply of chipped wood to the gasifier. Gasifiers generally run on a portion of the supplied feedstock as well as converting the balance of it to a fuel for other applications.

AAEA President Norris McDonald and NACF principal Maurice Stone met with Kenyan Ambassador Elkanah Odembo at a National Black Chamber of Commerce Conference in Los Angeles, California to discuss the power plant project.


Maurice Stone, Ambassador Elkanah Odembo, Norris McDonald

Support the AAEA Kenya Office - 3 Proposals

Boaz Adhengo, left, is working very hard to address environmental issues in Kenya.  The AAEA Kenya Office needs your help to assure that we can accomplish our environmental mission in Kenya.  Help today. Give a small or large general support donation or support one of the proposals below.

Click on the Donate button and donate.

Education & Environment Proposal

The purpose of the project is:

1. To support civil society organizations in the rural areas and the Government of Kenya to participate meaningfully in the climate change debates at the international level, including Conferences of Parties (COP).
2. To strengthen the civil society to campaign for good policies that are designed to help Kenya’s poor to adapt to climate change
3. To re-examine the present critique of the economic development as a main source of environmental crises;
4. To explore the thought and representations of crisis awareness of rural Kenya, especially on ecological aspects;
5. To determine the ways in which mitigation ideas of the relationship between humanity, nature and science provide a starting point for a renewal of environmental ethics and for rethinking ideas of sustainability

Medical Advisory Support Services for the Maringo Community in Kenya

Objectives of the Project:

The objective of this project is therefore to organize a medical seminar that will be delivered freely to a target group. It is planned that this medical seminar will follow up with arranging for the implementation of a medical camp where minor illnesses could be treated and sensitization on key medical issues can be addressed. The main beneficiaries will be the youth and parents of Maringo village who have greater trust on ‘Mwarubaini” for its popularity on having a capability to treat forty diseases as confirmed by herbal doctors.

Increased Access For Women in Kenya

Objective of the Project:

Access to education for girls remains a challe
nge in Kuria district due to poverty, retrogressive cultural practices such as Female Genital Mutilation (FGM) and a general negative attitude towards educating girls. It is important that these causes are addressed to ensure gender equity in education. This program works towards eliminating the root causes of inequalities in access to education.

Boaz Adhengo's New Book

"Peace Art: The Forbidden Expression"

Boaz Adhengo writes:

"My purpose of writing this book is to describe the complex ‘Peace Art’ as it occurs in Africa and specifically, Kenya. My understanding of Peace Art is not universally accepted. Some researchers’ prefer less expressive, more cognitive behavior models to describe this concept. More so, conflict and chaotic relation of art, a look into the opposite. It is more of a proposal into collective action, into resourceful organization of art into action. The approach into this writing is purely creative but informing, merging existing examples with experience into a digestible piece that will not warrant a meeting."

Purchase the Book via Amazon.com

Remembering Environmental Justice Legend Dana Alston

Dana Alston was 47 years old when she died 11 years ago on August 7, 1999.

Dana Alston, left, was a leader of the original environmental justice movement that started in the 1980's. She was one of the organizers of the first National Environmental Justice Leadership Summit in 1992. She participated in the meetings to convince the U.S. EPA to open an Office of Environmental Justice. She was a committed environmental justice activist and the movement clearly benefited from her leadership. We remember you Dana. And we will never forget you.

Dana Alston received a Bannerman Fellowship in 1992 in recognition of her leadership in the development of the environmental justice movement. The Bannerman Fellowship Program was founded in 1987 on the belief that the most effective approach to achieving progressive social change is by organizing low-income people at the grassroots level. In 2002, the Fellowship Program was renamed the Alston/Bannerman Fellowship Program in honor of Dana Alston.

Dana died on August 7, 1999 at California Pacific Medical Center in San Francisco. Dana was a native of New York and lived in Washington, D.C. She was in San Francisco for treatment of kidney disease and consequences of a stroke when she died.

Her son, Khalil Alston-Cobb, now 17, resides in Clinton, Maryland. He is (or was at 16) a skateboard enthusiast (see videos). Here is how Khalil describes himself on his MySpace page:

"I like Skateboarding, Playing videogames, listening to music, talking to Gurls, surfing the Web, and Chillin wit the Homies."

Khalil is also on Twitter. He has a great skateboarding video on MonsterArmy.com. He is listed on Children of the Struggle. Dana would be very proud of her teenage son. All who knew her are not surprised that Khalil is an energetic and productive young man.

Africa's Largest Wind Farm Opens in Morocco

Morocco’s officially inaugurated a wind farm in the town of Melloussa this week. The project has 165 turbines and a production capacity of 140 megawatts, enough power for 140,000 homes. The farm is touted as Africa’s largest wind farm and cost $300 million to construct. Besides significantly reducing CO2 emissions, the farm is expected to save over 125,000 metric tons of oil annually. Like many parts of the world, Morocco relies on imported oil and coal for its energy needs. The Kingdom of Morocco is the only North African country without its own oil.

Funding for the project came from the European Investment Bank, Official Credit Institute of Spain, the Moroccan National Office of Potable Water and Germany’s Kreditanstalt fur Wienderaufbau. This is not the first wind project for Morocco. The first farm was constructed in 2000 and several others have been added over the years. (Triple Pundit, 6/30/2010)

Electricity Company Commissions Geo-Thermal Power Plant

Kenya’s energy firm, Kenya Electricity Generating Company (KenGen) has commissioned a 35 megawatt (MW) third unit at the Olkaria II power plant in Naivasha, about 90 km southwest of the capital Nairobi.

It was co-financed by European investment Bank (EIB) which put in 40.8 million U.S. dollars, the International development Association (IDA) with 27. 6 million dollars and the Agence Francaise de Development (AFD) which provided 20 million dollars with KenGen providing the rest of funds.

The new unit was completed in record 27 months as per schedule and went to commercial operation on May 12.

With the additional power, the Olkaria II power station, the largest geothermal plant in Africa, has a combined output of 105 MW.

KenGen is adding green energy capacity mainly through geothermal energy, which is environment friendly and has no carbon emissions. (Coast Week, June 25-July1, 2010)

Donating Footballs To Local Communities

DIRECTOR'S CORNER

By Boaz Adhengo

It all about World Cup and it is all about fun! The situation at shanty slums in Nairobi is worsening, as the financial crunch is increasing. Free education has not been able to bare fruits, and the Institute for African Ecology and Philosophy’s past proposal on community policing are losing relevancy, as poverty takes over. The World Cup is the most widely viewed sporting event in the world; an estimated 715.1 million people watched the final match of the 2006 World Cup held in Germany. The current World Cup is being held in South Africa, between 11 June and 11 July 2010, and the 2014 World Cup will be held in Brazil. It is therefore an event that unites different people, of different backgrounds and abilities, into a focused celebration, understanding and life sharing moments, including eco ethics.

For this reason, Project Nabuur Stiftung/AAEA Kenya, through its life sponsor, the Leah Foundation, has been donating footballs to local communities where informal settlements are located. The board identified Kayole, Huruma, Mathare, Korokocho, Babadogo and Kibera as the priority areas. Thus, fifty balls have been given in a shared pattern with hopes that after the World Cup TV broadcast, we shall be able to organize our Eco Ethics Festival, with sports as the uniting element. Ghetto Radio is involved in the same quest. They have decided to follow up our football donation with live broadcasting of the event. They will provide twelve projectors for the six shanties while the local youth will organize themselves into security teams for the sake of protecting the equipments from theft or subsequent damages. We thank our membership for their ideas during our 1st Kor Bondo Lecture in Maranda, from where this generous outreach has come. We look forward to more involvement as we welcome the Africa Partners in Safari in our launch of our MoU for the coming year.

Vice President Joe Biden Visits Kenya

Vice President Joe Biden and Dr. Jill Biden departed for Egypt, Kenya, and South Africa on June 5th. The Vice President will meet with Kenyan President Kibaki and Kenyan Prime Minister Odinga.

Arriving Jommo Kenyatta Intenat'l Airport

Biden's trip to Nairobi is focusing on regional issues, particularly the security and humanitarian situation in Somalia and the prospects for secessionist southern Sudan. Biden will meet with South Sudan's president Salva Kiir will discuss the January referendum on self-determination in southern Sudan. The widely-predicted decision by the southern oil-rich half of Sudan to acquire independence would have wide-ranging effects on the region.

There is also concern in Washington that one of Kenya's other troubled neighbors, Somalia, is becoming a new haven for Al Qaeda operatives. Vice President Biden will discuss this situation with Kenyan President Kibacki. (The White House)

Vice President Joe Biden's motorcade en route to US Ambassador Michael Ranneberger's residence, Nairobi, Kenya, June 9, 2010. (Official White House Photo by David Lienemann)

Audio Slideshow: Dr. Biden Sees the Neighborhoods of Kenya

Dr. Jill Biden toured the Kibera area of Nairobi, Kenya. It’s one of the largest slums in the world at just about 1.5 million people living in an area about 2 square miles total. Very few people have electricity or running water and many of the residents are living with HIV.

Director Participates In Climate Change Conference

Kenya Office Director Boaz Adhengo presented a poster at a conference at the Multi-Media University of Kenya. The conference theme was “Climate Change and Natural Resource Use in Eastern Africa: Impacts, Adaptation and Mitigation.” This was the third Scientific Conference of the Ecological Society for Eastern Africa in conjunction with the Pan Africa Climate Justice Alliance. The conference convened from the May 19-22 and will brought together key stakeholders in the environmental philosophy of East Africa. Though the major defining strategy was to discuss climate change within its multiple realms, there were also avenues for analyzing energy and the business dilemmas that steer development in ways that are not sustainable.

Adhengo's poster drew from a paper that he presented in 2009, “Ethical Implications of Ecotourism on Sustainable Development.” The poster is designed to draw the participant into understanding the patriotic role that humans must adhere to, for we are citizens of the world, and climate change has no borders. Destruction looks for no visas, for it is interdependent, interconnected and cross cutting. Adhengo believes we must work as a team as much as we preserve our aesthetics.

USDA & George McGovern Visit Kenya on Food Program

USDA Deputy Under Secretary Darci Vetter Visits Kenya Tours Food Program Sites

George McGovern Visits School Sites in Nairobi Meets with Farmers in Rural Areas

USDA Farm and Foreign Agricultural Service’s Deputy Under Secretary Darci Vetter, right, will join former Senator George S. McGovern, left, in Kenya May 10-16 to visit World Food Program sites and observe, first-hand, how nutrition programs fit into broader food security initiatives in Africa. The World Food Program is an important participant in USDA’s McGovern-Dole International Food for Education and Child Nutrition Program. McGovern currently serves as the Ambassador to the World Food Program and was recognized in 2008, along with Sen. Robert Dole, by the World Food Prize for his leadership in forging the link between the productivity of American farmers and the needs of hungry children around the world.

Vetter and McGovern will visit school feeding sites in Nairobi and rural areas and meet with communities that are establishing homegrown school feeding programs. Additionally, they will meet with small farmers who participate in the World Food Program’s local and regional procurement program. Vetter will also have the opportunity to visit agricultural development projects in the dairy and cassava sectors.

The McGovern–Dole International Food for Education and Child Nutrition Program, administered by USDA’s Foreign Agricultural Service, helps support education, child development, and food security for some of the world’s poorest children. It provides for donations of U.S. agricultural products, as well as financial and technical assistance, for school feeding and maternal and child nutrition projects in low-income, food-deficit countries that are committed to universal education.

USDA and FAS Food Aid Programs

Contact: Katie Gorscak
(202) 720-0555