Ellis Mbaka
12 July 2007
opinion
Nairobi — A vision without work is an illusion, while work without vision is confusion.
Kenya Vision 2030 envisages a competitive and prosperous nation with high quality of life. Per capita ranking should rise to be among the five highest in Africa, eliminating absolute poverty and building on equitable and just society.
The vision also plans to make Kenya Africa's most competitive economy and ensure a 10 per cent annual growth for the next 25 years.
To realise the dream, it is critical that universities and research institutions get involved. Scientific, social and economic research must broaden and deepen human understanding of development.
Dry lands house sedentary agro-pastoralists. It is reasonable to argue that any development agenda should take into account resources in the dry lands. The regions receive between 259 and 500mm of erratic rainfall a year. Areas that receive 500mm are suitable for irrigated agriculture.
Majority of arid and semi-arid lands (Asals) receive less than 259 mm of rain a year. Generally, soils are easily eroded, shallow and have low water holding capacity due to limited organic matter. Asals are home to more than 10 million people from Maasai, Samburu, Borana, Somali, Rendille, Turkana, Pokot, Kamba, Tharaka and Taveta.
They constitute about 80 per cent of Kenya's total land area. Water shortage, high temperatures and short erratic rainfall characterise them. They have experienced serious droughts in the last decade, intensifying desertification. To achieve a global development agenda, the challenges in the Asals, the home of more than 30 per cent of the population, more than 50 per cent of the livestock and 67 per cent of wildlife, will be an uphill task.
Kenya has the highest level of poverty among 27 poorest nations, with 60 per cent of the population living on less than a dollar a day and a Gross National Product of only $400 (Sh26,800).
The country has high unemployment with only 40 per cent of population in gainful employed. Deprivation of basic needs could be attributed to civil conflicts, political upheavals and colonial rule.
There is a need for continuous investment in research and development. Given the diversity of factors for poverty and underdevelopment, it is difficult to point at specific research initiatives universities should focus on. However, it is prudent that the basis of development and transformation be natural resources, infrastructure and equitable sharing of resources.
Research must focus on food, health, energy, land and earth resources; export and domestic industries, communication and market intelligence. Research for development should identify hot spots capable of addressing poverty and its consequences.
Elimination of development barriers would be in conformity with the Millennium Development Goals and Vision 2020 and 2030. The potential of the initiatives will not be realised unless the living standards of the people are improved. The socio-economic status in the Asals is less reassuring. The inhabitants are poor, engage in subsistence existence and live on less than a dollar a day. Food insecurity, poor nutrition and poor sanitary conditions are threats.
They have little access to modern health care, no jobs and services for the youth and there is a problem with the land tenure system.
Despite the bleak picture, the regions have great potential if good Government policies are implemented. Pastoralists must be involved in decision-making and funding and well-trained agents deployed.
Provision of quality water, soil and new crops should be introduced. Other prospects include production of oils for cosmetics, herbal and modern medicine, mining of precious metals and smelting of iron. Proceeds from the sales should be ploughed back to the dry lands.
What is lacking is committed action.
The writer is an associate professor of agronomy at Egerton University
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