April 2012 www.un.org/africarenewal

United Nations Department of Public Information

Sustainable development A path to a cleaner, productive future

Africa Renewal at 25 Contents April 2012 Vol. 26 No. 1 Formerly ‘Africa Recovery’ Special feature 10 The future we want To Rio and beyond: Africa seeks sustainable solutions

1 2 A frica’s sustainable development priorities 1 5 Interview with Greenpeace’s Kumi Naidoo 1 7 Interview with Joan Clos, UN-Habitat 2 0 Towards African cities without slums 2 2 Radio gives voice to shack dwellers Africa is losing 4 million hectares of forest Africa’s vanishing Lake Chad 2 4 every year, twice the world’s average 2 6 Power from wind in South Africa deforestation rate.

2 7 Tapping geothermal power in Kenya Redux / REA / Gilles Rolle

Editor-in-Chief Also in this issue Masimba Tafirenyika Managing Editor 3 Africa Renewal at 25 Ernest Harsch 5 Interview with founding editor 6 Malian fabrics create beauty, profit Staff Writer Kingsley Ighobor 8 Oil subsidy controversy in Nigeria Research and Media Liaison Rebecca Moudio Departments Aissata Haidara Design & Production 29 Wired John Gillespie Appointments 30 Administration 31 Books Bo Li

Distribution Cover photo: Atar Markman A child walks to gather water near Mbale, Uganda. Panos / Sven Torfinn

Africa Renewal is published in English and organizations. Articles from this magazine French by the Strategic Communications may be freely reprinted, with attribution to Division of the United Nations Department the author and to “United Nations Africa of Public Information. Its contents do not Renewal,” and a copy of the reproduced necessarily reflect the views of the United article would be appreciated. Copyrighted Nations or the publication’s supporting photos may not be reproduced.

Subscribe to Africa Renewal www.un.org/africarenewal Correspondence Africa Renewal offers free subscriptions to should be addressed to: individual readers. Please send your request The Editor, Africa Renewal to Circulation at the address to the left or by facebook.com/africarenewal Room M-16031 e-mail to [email protected]. Institutional United Nations, NY 10017-2513, USA, subscriptions are available for thirty-five twitter.com/africarenewal Tel: (212) 963-6857, Fax: (212) 963-4556 US dollars, payable by international money order or a cheque in US dollars drawn on a E-mail: US bank, to the “United Nations” and sent to Africa Renewal is printed at the United Nations, [email protected] Circulation at the address to the left. New York, on recycled paper. Africa Renewal at 25: keeping up with a dynamic continent

Africa Renewal then and now: The first issue monthly visitors on average. Nearly UN magazine of Africa Recovery, and the first colour 20,000 follow its Facebook and edition of Africa Renewal. Twitter pages. devoted to Africa Renewal / John Gillespie

Africa’s progress There is a sombre feel to the first edition of the old newsletter, which present complicated issues in a language appeared in April 1985 and was a that anyone could understand. “It gave By Kingsley Ighobor predecessor of Africa Renewal. Two information that people were not used to cover photos feature a total of 15 people, getting from the UN: easy to read, easy to wo Africa Emergency debut all with grim faces. One is of Julius understand.” (See page 5) newsletters, neatly kept in the Nyerere, the late Tanzanian president, T New York offices of the UN whose exclusive interview featured in From emergency magazine Africa Renewal, provide a the edition. The stories are mostly on to recovery snapshot of Africa in 1985. That was drought and famine: Africa was facing The evolution of the publication before the internet, when many news- a severe humanitarian crisis, and the reflects the trajectory of the conti- rooms were noisy with the clacking of newsletter was part of the international nent. As the drought receded and it typewriter keys. The 16-page news- relief operation. became increasingly clear that the letter was printed in black and white, real challenge was promoting Africa’s except for the Emergency on the The UN had set up the Office of long-term economic and social devel- masthead, which appeared in green. Emergency Operations in Africa (OEOA) opment — its “recovery” — the UN to coordinate humanitarian efforts closed the OEOA and the General Fast-forward to 2012. Africa Renewal is after drought began in Ethiopia and Assembly held a special session on published in English and French, with spread to 20 African countries. It was African development. about 40,000 copies of each edition a “massive famine, the worst ever in distributed worldwide. All pages are African history,” recalls Salim Lone, But since the Africa Emergency news- semi-glossy and in full colour. The who worked as an editor under Africa letter had developed good links with magazine’s website — www.un.org/ Emergency’s editor-in-chief, Djibril the media, governments, non-govern- africarenewal — attracts 60,000 Diallo. The OEOA’s newsletter aimed to mental organizations and others,

April 2012 3 many thought it would be useful to As African countries moved towards The current website has impressed Ms. have a similar publication. As a result, greater democracy in the 1990s, McPheeters, who left the magazine in Africa Recovery was launched in 1987. political topics became easier to 2006. “I am gratified I had been part of cover as well. setting up the infrastructure.” An editor’s note in the first issue, in April 1987, explained the new maga- In 2004 the magazine’s name changed The current editor-in-chief, Masimba zine’s outlook: “Clearly emergency to Africa Renewal. In a message to Tafirenyika, joined the team in 2009 is no longer the continent’s prime readers, former under-secretaries- and has been pushing to ensure that concern,” wrote Mr. Lone, who stayed general Shashi Tharoor (communi- “we are not left behind in a changing on as editor. “The focus will now be on cations and public information) and world.” According to Mr. Tafirenyika, the continent’s recovery and develop- Ibrahim Gambari (the Secretary- “We were behind the time with a ment efforts.” General’s special adviser on Africa) black-and-white publication. We justified the new name: “Most coun- needed to change our style, layout Readership strategy tries [in Africa] now have democrati- and content. We want our publica- Over time Africa Recovery began to cally elected governments…. African tion to stand out.” While the expenses resemble a magazine more than a leaders have devised a forward- of full-colour publishing were once newsletter: additional pages, with looking plan, the New Partnership for prohibitive, advances in technology a dominant feature story and other Africa’s Development (NEPAD).” now mean that the costs of a colour articles on a range of topics. Initially magazine are not so different stories were mainly on economic, They continued: “By changing its from those of a black-and-white social and humanitarian issues. As name to Africa Renewal, the publi- publication. a publication of the UN, which is cation seeks to identify itself more composed of governments, it was squarely with Africa’s new dynamic of One of Mr. Tafirenyika’s first goals difficult for the magazine to deal initiative and rebirth.” was to broaden the magazine’s appeal. with “sensitive” political issues such “It is important to appeal to the youth, as coups and rights abuses. “It was The magazine continued to expand women, civil society and others.” more acceptable to deal with other its coverage of Africa’s development To accomplish that, “our writing things,” recalls Ernest Harsch, who agenda, highlighting the work of style has to be less academic and first joined the magazine in 1989 the UN Economic Commission for more accessible. The layout must be and became managing editor in Africa, NEPAD and the UN Office of appealing and our choice of stories 2001. Besides, it was fruitless to try the Special Adviser on Africa, among must be dynamic — in line with competing with the mainstream others. When NEPAD marked its 10th changes in society.” media in chasing breaking anniversary in 2011, Africa Renewal news stories. set up a web page on the celebrations. Writers, editors and other colleagues The magazine has printed special jumped with joy in August 2010 when More notably, adds Mr. Harsch, editions on children, HIV/AIDS and the first colour, semi-glossy pages Africa Recovery was not interested women, as well as pamphlets, flyers were printed. “It was a milestone in the kind of “sexy” stories favoured and other information materials. moment for the magazine. I was very by the major media, which tended proud of the team,” says Ms. Novicki. to dwell on famines, disasters, Modernization agenda wars and other topics that sensa- The internet and mobile communica- Information and communications tionalized the negative aspects of tions technologies now make multiple technologies are advancing rapidly, Africa’s complex reality. Instead, the sources of information readily avail- and the magazine is ready to plug in. magazine concentrated on Africa’s able to readers, notes Margaret “As internet connectivity and mobile challenges and the very real efforts Novicki, chief of the Communications access improve, especially in Africa, made by Africans and their partners Campaigns Service of the UN’s we would like to be able to deliver to improve people’s lives. Department of Public Information. our products in various formats and Consequently, she says, “Africa for different platforms, including on The magazine was able to get a good Renewal must go with the flow.” tablets,” says Mr. Tafirenyika. slice of the African elite audience, particularly the media, decision- Parvati Heather McPheeters, who In addition, relationships with more makers in government, academics, created the magazine’s first website than 250 different English and civil society activists and so on. It in early 1997, says that at the time “the French online and print publications, was “a breath of fresh air,” Mr. Harsch goal was to give access to a few more mostly in Africa, ensure that Africa remembers, “and it worked well for us.” readers, by dozens, not thousands.” Renewal’s articles are reprinted and 4 April 2012 Interview Looking back after 25 years Interview with And there were rigid controls over the print media. The amount of self- founding editor censorship, triggered by the repres- sion directed at editors and journal- Salim Lone ists, was immense.

That was one of the reasons that we alim Lone, who edited Africa undertook a number of journalists S Recovery during its first decade, tours [to Africa]. We requested the looks back at the magazine’s early New York Times, Economist, Financial days. At his home in Nairobi, Kenya, Times, others, to send their journal- he spoke with Africa Renewal’s ists on UN-sponsored tours dealing managing editor, Ernest Harsch. not with development in the abstract, but what was really happening at the grassroots. The coverage was excel- lent. If the media culture in our African Africa Renewal Africa Recovery was countries had been stronger, you would Salim Lone, the first editor of Africa a UN publication, about Africa. Did not have needed to bring journalists Recovery, at his home in Kenya. you report about what the UN was to Tanzania, Ghana, Senegal. It also Africa Renewal / Ernest Harsch doing there? helped open up Africa, African leaders in particular, to the Western world. For Salim Lone We didn’t have that much the media, apart from the magazine, [Nyerere] himself would go through it. about the UN in Africa Recovery. If it did we also had special mailings or supple- A number of US senators also wrote something important, then obviously we ments, with graphs and charts that the letters to us, just to compliment. covered it, but it wasn’t all about the UN. media could republish. There was so much more we could There would be no interest in that. have done. But we had no resources. AR In hindsight, what did Africa We had a very small staff. AR How different was the general Recovery do best, what might it have media landscape back in the 1980s done better? AR What about Africa Renewal and 1990s, compared with today? today? SL We knew from the responses we SL Dramatically different. For had that senior people were actually SL I realize how completely it has example, broadcast media was reading Africa Recovery. In Tanzania, changed, to reflect the debates and entirely under the control of govern- the personal adviser to President developments that take place now. ments, in every African country. Nyerere told me that Mwalimu That’s fabulous. that they reach a wide and The August-September 2011 issue of international publications can match diverse audience. Udvikling, a respected Danish develop- the way this quarterly magazine covers ment publication, rated Africa Renewal Africa in many ways.” Commendations as one of eight “foreign high-quality Independent appraisals in 1991 and magazines” that provide “vision and As Africa Renewal celebrates its 25th 1994 found reader satisfaction well perspective on global development.” anniversary, Ms. Novicki cautions that above 70 per cent. In a survey of Africa The others included the London-based “although the magazine has already Renewal’s online readership last year, Economist and the US magazines achieved a lot there is still work to be 91 per cent of respondents said that Foreign Affairs and National Geographic. done. We can’t rest on our laurels.” they understood Africa’s priority issues Referring to Africa Renewal, the For Mr. Tafirenyika and his team, there more after visiting the website. Danish publication said that “very few is only one way to go — forward.

April 2012 5 Malian women create beauty — and profit

After the bazin fabrics are dyed, they are hung out to dry.

Redux / Contrasto / Riccardo Venturi

but sometimes silk or wool — from Germany, the Netherlands or China. Then they cut it to standard sizes. Next they knot tissues tightly into parts of the fabric so that those parts remain undyed when the cloth is dipped into buckets of pigment and fixative. When the fabric emerges it bears coloured spirals, rings or patterns. So it will have a glittering appearance, it is then soaked in a starch solution and hung on fences to dry.

“To hand-dye a bazin takes a lot of real effort,” says Djénéba Diarra, who lives in Badalabougou West, the neighbour- hood in Mali’s capital famous for high-quality dyeing.

Maureen Gosling, a US filmmaker, is collaborating with Maxine Downs, an anthropologist, to produce a film on bazin called Bamako Chic: Threads of Hand-dyed fabrics wedding day / Men and women put Power, Colour and Culture. According on their best boubous / The bazins to Ms. Downs, they want to show how win praises, are waiting for you / This is the “self-empowered African women wedding day.” It became the hit song turned their artistic creativity and capture markets on an album that won two prestigious resourcefulness into a force for British Broadcasting Corporation alleviating their own poverty.” awards the following year, including By Kingsley Ighobor and one for best “world music” album. Ms. Downs visited Mali several times Aissata Haidara to meet some of the women in the There is an engaging paradox in two burgeoning industry. “When I went to blind people singing about the beauty Mali, I was shocked by the women’s and-dyed polished cotton — of bazin, and the floral patterns and resilience, their ability to create some- called bazin — is the mainstay alluring colours that make young thing out of nothing. I was instantly H of Malian fashion. The women look so elegant that bachelors impacted by the amount of cloth dyers blind singers Amadou Bagayoko and hastily vow marriage. that I saw,” she told Africa Renewal. Mariam Doumbia extolled the fabric in a song released in 2005, “Beaux Production process Malians have historically been good at dimanches” (“Beautiful Sundays”). Hand-dyeing bazin can be labour-inten- making fabric and used to compete with The song’s scintillating lyrics include sive for the women who produce it. First Yorubas in Nigeria. In the 1960s, when the lines: “Sunday in Bamako is the they import the fabric — mostly cotton, synthetic dyes arrived in West Africa, 6 April 2012 Malians learned how to use colorants on groups of women come together to motivated to work even harder. Many fabrics to reflect their aesthetic tastes. overcome their limited collateral. “They are already exporting to countries Nigerians have since established a niche are like joint solidarity groups. They such as Senegal and Nigeria, and for themselves in embroidery, allowing vouch for each other and they jointly more traders from other countries are Malians to claim the bragging rights for repay the loans.” The NGO channels coming into Mali to make purchases. high-quality hand-dyed fabrics. all micro-credit support through local “In Mali, you come into the market and credit institutions, which also help you will hear different West African Growing industry organize the women into groups. languages,” says Ms. Downs. Bazin, Ms. Downs elaborates, is not just a fashion statement. The women make Shaky markets It makes good business sense to set a profit. And the industry has turned As good as the business appears today sights on the enormous West African them into a close-knit social group, with for Malian women, they fear that a market of 252 million people. West a common socio-economic purpose. moribund indigenous textile industry Africans are proud, traditional “It is like a collective enterprise, very could hold back progress. Mali’s two dressers. The leaders of Nigeria, Mali, communal. The women work with leading textile companies, Comatex Liberia and other countries often their children, friends and other family and Batexci, both privately owned, wear traditional attire at official members to dye the fabrics. They hang are gasping for breath as they face functions, for example. A variety of them on their neighbours’ fences to dry, competition in their own market from fabrics and styles feature regularly turning the whole community into a cheaper and better products from at weddings, red carpet events and huge advertisement,” she says. Europe and Asia. in African films. At the UN General Assembly in October 2011, Mali’s The involvement of textile importers, In addition, depressed world cotton Prime Minister Cissé Mariam dye sellers, tailors, bankers and, ulti- prices have made it difficult for West Kaïdama Sidibé was the centre of mately, consumers further enlarges Africans to compete internationally. attention in a flowing bazin. the industry. This is good news for a Cotton production in Mali declined country ranked by the World Bank as from 600,000 to 240,000 metric tonnes Increasing demand for bazin has trig- one of the poorest in the world. Life between 2004 and 2011, and cotton gered innovation, as Malian women expectancy is just 51 years, while the growers are paid as little as 30 cents introduce more exotic colours and average gross domestic product per per kilogramme. Less than 2 per cent of products of higher quality. But the person is $691. The country ranked Mali’s cotton is processed locally, with challenge is that a fast-growing 175 out of 187 countries in the UN the rest exported to developed countries and profitable business may attract Development Programme’s 2011 and Asia, where it is processed and resold people with more interest in profit Human Development Index. to dealers, including West Africans. than quality. “Why can’t these women just get machines that will support The bazin industry is still informal. There are also health and environ- production?” asks Oumar Damba, a There is no registration of those mental concerns about bazin produc- Bamako-based fashion designer. involved, according to Hannah Larsson, tion. “The women continue to develop who has studied textile dyeing in Mali. respiratory illnesses. They are exposed Not so fast, cautions Ms. Downs. However, the entrepreneurial successes to sulphur that they use to help colours Machine production may affect the of the women depend on micro-loans stick to the fabrics,” Ms. Downs notes. unique character of the bazin designs from non-governmental organizations The leftover colour baths are discarded and, perhaps, the style conscious- such as the US-based Freedom from in the Niger River, street gutters or ness of the producers. “Since the Hunger. The group’s Saving for Change soakaway pits in housing areas, causing 1960s, there has been the question programme in Mali, which began in the “transport of a substantial amount of whether the hand-dyeing industry 1989, has so far reached more than of compounds to surface water and can be modernized. It is hard for me 350,000 Malian women, with cumula- groundwater,” Ms. Larsson writes in to answer that question,” she adds. tive financing of nearly $7.5 million. her study of Malian textile dyeing. The government’s environmental As Malian politicians campaigned Some of those women are in the bazin agency has had little success in dealing for the April 2012 presidential business, according to Christopher with the environmental impact of election, there also seemed to be a Dunford, a senior research fellow with hand-dyeing. contest over which one could wear the NGO. The programme provides the best bazin on billboards, on affordable credit and saving services, Sub-regional opportunities posters and even in Facebook pages. while repayment terms are flexible. As bazin’s popularity spreads beyond Meanwhile, Malian women are To access the loans, Mr. Dunford adds, Mali’s borders, the women are smiling all the way to the bank.

April 2012 7 Bid to end subsidy stirs protest in Nigeria Unrest highlights problems of mismanagement and corruption

By Yemisi Akinbobola

igerians have never been shy about public protest, even N during the days of dicta- torship. So when the government of President Goodluck Jonathan welcomed the country into 2012 by announcing the removal of a petrol subsidy — more than doubling costs at the fuel pump — the subsequent nationwide protests could have been anticipated.

With 37.2 billion barrels of proven oil reserves, Nigeria has the second-largest reserves in Africa (after Libya) and is With consumer prices already high, the continent’s largest oil producer. It was therefore not surprising that many Nigerians protested when the Yet Nigeria is the only member of the on 9 January, a week after the government abruptly announced an end Organization of Petroleum Exporting announcement of the subsidy’s removal, Countries that needs to import refined industrial strikes and demonstra- to petrol subsidies, nearly doubling prices fuel, and often suffers scarcities. The tions spread nationwide. That reaction at the fuel pump. ordinary Nigerian by no means feels prompted the government to bring Panos / George Osodi rich: divided among nearly 160 million down the new petrol price from N141 to people, the gross domestic product (GDP) N97, still higher than the old price but alone. As an oil-producing country, he averages just $1,695 per person annually. retaining a partial subsidy. adds, Nigeria should not be importing — and subsidizing — refined oil. Prior to the subsidy’s removal, the Reform needed pump price of fuel was 65 naira ($0.40) Despite the widespread condemna- According to Professor Akin Iwayemi, per litre, against a landing cost of N139. tion, most economists, both in Nigeria an expert in energy, environment, The government therefore contributed and abroad, believe that removal of the infrastructure and development a N73 subsidy, for an annual total of subsidy is a necessary step towards economics, government interference in N1,200 billion (US$7.6 billion), or 2.6 long-needed reform, since the country the oil industry has prevented its being per cent of the country’s GDP. In effect can no longer sustain the cost. “run in a profitable manner.” since 1973, the subsidy was regarded by a majority of Nigerians as one of the few Political analyst Garba Sani points to A report by Renaissance Capital, a benefits they enjoyed as citizens of an the colossal sums spent on the subsidy, leading investment bank that focuses oil-producing country. N3,700 billion ($23 billion) in 2006–2011 on emerging markets, argues that 8 April 2012 removal of the fuel subsidy, combined Importance of strategy “more careful,” argues Mr. Sterner. “You with other reforms in the power sector, While President Jonathan may have need to have a strategy, and say, ‘We could increase global investors’ interest had the best of intentions for Nigeria’s are moving the money immediately. in the Nigerian market. Potentially, it economic future, observers argue, his We will use it on health or education or suggests, Nigeria could become one of government lacked an effective imple- something else’.” That, he says, would the world’s top “frontier markets.” mentation and communication strategy. make it harder for the beneficiaries of Subsidy removal may have been the right the status quo to say that removing the ‘Just the spark’ move, but it was done in the wrong way, subsidy hurts the poor. With the experts’ positive view of and at the wrong time: the country was the subsidy removal, why was there still recovering from multiple bombings Democratic participation so much resistance among ordinary by Boko Haram on Christmas Day. Beyond the subsidy issue as such, Nigerians? Because of years of anger political observers have recognized the and discontent with government Mr. Sani argues that it would have been significance of the mass demonstra- performance, answers Denja Yaqub, better to remove the subsidy in phases, tions against its removal as an indicator the assistant general secretary of the while at the same time refurbishing the of how far the country has come in Nigeria Labour Congress. country’s four dilapidated oil refineries. terms of democratic participation. Since 2000 the government has spent “All sectors have problems in Nigeria, so $1.78 billion on maintaining the four Taiwo Obe, an editor, notes that while the subsidy removal was just the spark refineries, with very little to show for Nigerians also protested under the that Nigerians needed,” says Mr. Yaqub. it. They operate at less than a quarter dictatorship, today there are fewer of capacity, and are 30 years behind injuries, deaths and arrests. The media Many point to corruption. In 2011, modern standards. Some maintain is also freer, he adds, with private Transparency International ranked that the money used on the fuel subsidy broadcasters like Channels TV giving Nigeria as among the 40 most corrupt could have been better put to building extensive coverage to the protests. nations in the world. The oil industry in new refineries and thus ending the need Ordinary people too are better able to particular is notoriously corrupt, notes to import refined petroleum. make their voices heard through social Renaissance Capital. media platforms. In addition, tackling corruption and Despite the promise of the transi- mismanagement within the Nigerian Perhaps most significant was the unity tion from military rule to democracy National Petroleum Corporation among the demonstrators, especially in 1999, trust also remains a major would have helped make removal of the given the reports of increasing problem, argues Mr. Sani. Those subsidy a more acceptable proposition religious intolerance. “We all governing the country seem “incapable to the populace. witnessed the fact that the north- of addressing the social and economic south divide was not an issue,” injustices that they have inherited.” “If they can simultaneously fight observes Mr. Sani. “The Muslim- [corruption] as well as increase refinery Christian divide was not an issue. Nigeria now has democratic structures, capacity and withdraw the subsidy Nothing was an issue other than adds Mr. Yaqub, but corruption and gradually,” says Mr. Sani, “the country the issue at hand. Muslims were mismanagement within the legislative would have then set up a solid foundation protecting Christians in their bodies mean they do not adequately for a permanent removal of the subsidy, churches, and Christians were perform their democratic duties. “They a permanent capability of domestic protecting Muslims on Friday while are constitutionally set up to check production and a more stable economy.” they were praying.” each other, but they are all behaving the same way: corrupt, undemocratic, irre- According to Thomas Sterner, an expert And in a sign that the government is sponsible and absolutely reckless.” in environmental economics, getting moving towards a longer-term strategy rid of corruption within the industry to win public acceptance for the subsidy This corruption, unaccountability and may not be easy because of the powerful removal, President Jonathan inaugu- lack of transparency have now been interests involved. Urban elites directly rated the Subsidy Reinvestment and coupled with the government’s apparent benefit from the petrol subsidy, he argues, Empowerment (SURE) programme inability to tackle increasing religious as do smugglers and oil companies such in mid-February. The programme is intolerance, including the attacks of as Oando, which took in $1.4 billion from intended to monitor the funds saved from the Islamist sect Boko Haram. All the subsidized fuel imports last year. the subsidy removal and manage their this contributed to the resistance the investment in public works projects authorities met when they announced The next time the government contem- that may generate 370,000 new jobs, the removal of the fuel subsidy. plates removing the subsidy, it must be especially jobs for women and youth.

April 2012 9 Twenty years ago world leaders gathered in Rio de Janeiro, Brazil, for a ground-breaking summit on environment and development. In June 2012, they will meet there again for the UN Conference on Sustainable Development, known as “Rio+20.” The stakes for Africa are enormous. In this special series, Africa Renewal looks at the key issues that will shape the future Africans want.

To Rio and beyond: Africa seeks sustainable solutions Paving the path well-being as a global objective, with the needs of the present without minimum conditions for human survival compromising the ability of future to “the future and development. generations to meet their own needs.” we want” It was Bhutan that convinced the UN The report of the commission — to adopt a resolution on “Happiness: named after its chairperson, former a holistic approach to development.” Norwegian Prime Minister Gro Harlem By Masimba Tafirenyika The resolution commits nations to Brundtland — strongly influenced the create “the necessary political, social debate at the first Earth Summit in Rio and economic conditions to enable the in 1992. The leaders at the then biggest- t is rare for a head of government to pursuit of happiness by citizens within ever political gathering agreed to set up be greeted with applause at the very a stable environment.” new global standards to stop nations I beginning of a speech before the from destroying irreplaceable natural United Nations General Assembly. But The desire of the prime minister — and resources and polluting the planet. that’s what happened last September of humanity — for a better future will They accepted that human behaviour when Prime Minister Jigmi Thinley of dominate the agenda in June when had to change to prevent more divided Bhutan took the podium and signalled more than 50,000 people converge on societies, increased poverty and his intention to talk about “happiness.” the Brazilian capital, Rio de Janeiro, worsened environmental damage. The prime minister’s seeming change for the UN Conference on Sustainable of subject from the discussion of global Development. Dubbed “Rio+20” — Footing the bill crises immediately provoked the audi- following a similar conference in the As recently noted by The Economist ence’s curiosity. same city 20 years ago — the gathering magazine, that summit acknowledged will give participants a rare opportunity “that environmental protection had After a brief pause for effect, Mr. Thinley to agree on a new approach for achieving to be part of the promotion of develop- complained that the annual ceremo- a prosperous and sustainable future. ment rather than a check on it; that nial debate had become a mournful poverty eradication was a part of the discussion of promises broken, endless But what exactly does “sustainable process; and that while all the world’s conflicts, depleted resources, new development” mean? The most widely nations had a responsibility to protect diseases and threats of economic ruin. accepted definition was crafted by the environment, rich nations that had Instead, the Bhutanese leader preferred the Brundtland Commission, which done more damage had a different sort to talk about promoting happiness and defined it as “development that meets of responsibility — one that developing 10 April 2012 countries thought should include a willingness to foot some of the bill for keeping development clean.”

What are the pressing issues for Africa at Rio+20? First, let’s start with poverty. Nowhere is it more acute than in Africa, where new chal- lenges are giving rise to new diseases, worsening hunger, lack of access to clean water and sanitation, and youth unemployment.

Climate change is another hot-button issue. UN studies show that Africa’s climate is warming faster than the global average, significantly compro- mising its development possibilities. The continent’s low capacity to adapt threatens food and water supplies, especially in the Sahel region and in central and southern Africa.

Green economies Another pressing issue is the much-talked-about move to green economies, which would emit less Ensuring safe drinking water is a top priority carbon and use fewer resources. from geothermal, wind and bio-fuel for Africa, since about 340 million people According to the UN Environment power. Uganda is promoting an across the continent now lack access Programme (UNEP), the transition organic agriculture initiative that to it. Africa Media Online / Guy Stubbs to green economies is being “driven has attracted thousands of farmers by concerns about climate change, and increased exports of organic air pollution and energy security” products. Meanwhile, UN Secretary- People, Resilient Planet: A Future and by a desire to create jobs in new General Ban Ki-moon is pursuing a Worth Choosing,” is intended to chart industries. Africa fully supports green Sustainable Energy for All initiative a new path to sustainable growth. economies, but is concerned that and has asked the world to improve Unprecedented prosperity, it says, has wealthy nations might use the global energy efficiencies and double the put the planet under unprecedented transition as an excuse to impose share of renewable energy in the stress. It warns that multiple crises trade restrictions or not to fulfil their energy mix by 2030. across the world have made sustainable commitments to poor countries. development more important than ever. More than a dozen issues are up for An issue of particular interest to discussion in Rio, including food “Economies are teetering, ecosystems Africa is renewable energy. About 3 security, access to clean water, sustain- are under siege, and inequality — within billion people on the planet — many of able cities and protection of the envi- and between countries — is soaring,” them in Africa — lack access to elec- ronment. African governments have notes the report, which was compiled tricity. They are forced to use wood, agreed to adopt common positions and by the 22-member High-Level Panel on coal or other unhealthy materials to speak with one voice in Rio. Global Sustainability appointed by the for cooking or heating homes, which UN Secretary-General and headed by expose them to harmful smoke. ‘Economies are teetering’ South African President Jacob Zuma The challenge in Rio will be to craft and his Finnish counterpart, Tarja Already some African governments measures to ensure that the poor and Halonen. The panel blames the current have adopted “smart and forward- vulnerable benefit from economic economic crisis on narrow specula- looking” energy policies. Kenya has an prosperity. To that end, a UN report tive interests that have “superseded ambitious green-energy programme released early this year has attracted to increase the production of energy global interest. The report, “Resilient see page 28

April 2012 11 Africa’s priorities for sustainable development

Under a sustainable forestry programme, production have not guaranteed food a logger cuts down a tree in the Ndoki n preparation for the UN security. Africa still relies on rain-fed rainforest of the Democratic Republic of I Conference on Sustainable agriculture, making it vulnerable to the Congo: Slowing deforestation is a high Development in Rio, African heads harsh weather conditions, including priority in Africa. Redux / REA / Gilles Rolle of state and ministers have been climate change. Africa’s food inse- meeting on a consensus response. curity has been further worsened Africa’s priority areas — some by the threat of rising food prices also aim to boost growth in agricul- highlighted below — show a mix caused by increased incomes in tural production to at least an average of challenges and progress. countries such as China, India and 6 per cent a year. Countries, such as Brazil, the growing use of land for Sierra Leone, that have increased biofuels and the subsidies rich coun- budgetary allocations have improved tries offer their own farmers. African their productivity. leaders need the developed world to Agricultural increase its commitments to assist production & agricultural productivity and food Industrial food security security in the continent. They have development Increasing commitments to committed themselves — through the Action to boost manufacturing agricultural productivity Comprehensive Africa Agriculture Development Programme (CAADP), Agriculture employs 60 per cent of adopted in July 2003 under the Africa’s industries — manufacturing, Africa’s labour force, while three- framework of the New Partnership mining and construction — are weak. fifths of farmers work at a subsis- for Africa’s Development (NEPAD) The sector currently employs only 15 tence level. Efforts in many African — to allocate at least 10 per cent of per cent of Africa’s workforce. The countries to increase agricultural national budgets to agriculture. They share of manufactures in Africa’s 12 April 2012 exports fell from 43 per cent in only 1.25 per cent. The infrastruc- Africa. Many African countries 2000 to 39 per cent in 2008. Labour- ture capacity to provide safe water is have met their commitment under intensive manufacturing such as also uneven: although 90 per cent of the Dakar Declaration to ban textiles, fabricated metals, apparel people in North Africa have access leaded gasoline. The International and leather products declined from 23 to safe drinking war, only 61 per cent Atomic Energy Agency is helping per cent of all manufacturing in 2000 of people in sub-Saharan Africa do. some countries to safely manage to 20 per cent in 2009. African leaders Gambia and Cape Verde, however, radioactive wastes, especially in February 2008 adopted a Plan of provide clean water to 80 per cent with the discovery of uranium in Action for the Accelerated Industrial of their populations. According to a number of African countries. Development of Africa. South Africa, the UN Environment Programme Gambia, Nigeria and Senegal, among Egypt, Morocco and Tunisia have (UNEP), harvesting rainwater could others, have started implementing made improvements. provide water for half of all Africans. the Globally Harmonized System of Classification and Labelling of Chemicals, to help standardize the Water Hazardous wastes handling of chemicals. Providing access to For environmentally sound safe drinking water management Climate Change Protecting an especially Africa is a dry continent, second Africa’s infrastructure and land use vulnerable continent only to Australia. Around 340 planning are unable to cope with million Africans have no access to the rapid growth of urban areas safe drinking water, about 40 per (currently 3.5 per cent per year), In Africa climate change is hindering cent of the world’s total. Estimates adding to the discharge of wastes progress towards sustainable devel- indicate that only 26 out of 54 African in water and other uncontrolled opment by contributing to reduced countries will meet the Millennium places. African leaders have asked rainfall, hotter temperatures, Development Goal (MDG) of halving the international community to flooding and the spread of water- the percentage of the population support the transfer of knowledge borne diseases such as cholera. without access to safe drinking water and technology for environmentally Africa accounts for only 2-3 per cent by 2015. Uneven water distribution is sound management of wastes. They of the world’s carbon dioxide emis- one problem. Central Africa accounts also want support to strengthen sions. Africa’s biggest contributors for 48 per cent of Africa’s internal capacity to control imports and are South Africa, Algeria, Egypt, water supply, while North Africa has exports of wastes into and within Libya and Nigeria. While it contrib- utes relatively little to global green- house gas emissions, Africa’s low adaptive capacity makes it more vulnerable to the impacts of climate change. If greenhouse gas emis- sions are not curtailed, scientists agree, average global temperatures could rise 4-5° centigrade within a century, which would be calamitous, according to the Intergovernmental Panel on Climate Change. Currently the Horn of Africa is facing its worst drought in over 60 years.

Jacques Diouf, then director-general of the UN’s Food and Agriculture Organization, addressing a World Food Day ceremony: African countries are pushing to increase agricultural productivity to feed their growing populations.

FAO / Alessandra Benedetti

April 2012 13 ENERGY while Tanzania and Mauritius are mostly girls, still have no access to not far behind. However, tourism education and there is an acute need Enhancing the efficient use slowed in North Africa due to recent for more trained teachers. At the of energy resources political developments. tertiary levels, enrolment is just 6 per cent, while up to 40 per cent of faculty Of the 1.4 billion people worldwide positions are vacant. without access to energy, 40 per Gender Equality cent are in sub-Saharan Africa. African women’s involvement Many African countries face a high The continent’s energy develop- in politics is increasing prevalence of malaria, HIV/AIDS and ment lags behind the growth of its non-communicable diseases such as population and socio-economic cancer, diabetes and cardiovascular needs, according to a NEPAD report. Twenty-nine African countries ailments. In 2008 Africa accounted Africa, with 13 per cent of the have ratified the protocol of the for half of the world’s 8.8 million child world’s population, produces 7 per African charter promoting women’s deaths. But there is also good news. cent of global commercial energy, rights. All but 10 African countries Since 1990, under-five mortality in but consumes only 3 per cent of have adopted the Convention on sub-Saharan Africa has declined it. “Thus, most of the commercial the Elimination of All Forms of by 22 per cent. In 2008, some 76 per energy it produces is consumed Discrimination Against Women cent of one-year-olds were immu- elsewhere,” states NEPAD. In (CEDAW). The AU launched in nized against measles, compared sub-Saharan Africa, traditional October 2010 the African Women’s to 58 per cent in 1990. Mozambique fuels, such as firewood, constitute Decade. In addition 18 of the 28 has achieved a reduction in infant two-thirds of energy consumption. countries where female genital muti- mortality of more than 70 per cent, African leaders have endorsed a lation was widely practiced have Malawi of 68 per cent and Niger of 10-year programme on sustainable outlawed it, with a goal of totally 64 per cent. Burundi, Cape Verde and consumption and production to eliminating it by 2015. African Egypt have also registered impressive enhance the efficient use of energy women’s involvement in politics is progress in reducing infant mortality. resources. increasing. In 2008 Rwanda elected a majority of women to its lower chamber of parliament, the highest Ecological Sustainable worldwide. Africa’s first female degradation Tourism president, Ellen Johnson-Sirleaf Safeguarding forests and Africa is the fastest growing of Liberia, was elected in 2005 and natural habitats tourist destination in the world then re-elected in 2011. Despite such gains, only 76 girls for every 100 boys are enrolled in colleges and Africa is losing 4 million hectares of About 7.7 million people are universities in Africa, 91 girls for forest every year, twice the world’s employed in Africa’s tourism and every 100 boys in primary schools average deforestation rate. While travel sector, according to the UN and 79 girls for every 100 boys in deforestation may increase agricul- World Tourism Organization. In secondary schools. tural land, it also leads to only short- 2004, NEPAD approved a Tourism lived agricultural productivity as land Action Plan to make Africa the “21st nutrients are depleted. Approximately century destination.” Most African Education and 50 per cent of Africa’s eco-regions governments have tourism in their health have lost 50 per cent of their areas to development strategies, including Many countries are on track degradation, cultivation or urbaniza- marketing, research and develop- to achieve universal primary tion, according to UNEP. Africa still ment, and codes of conduct for education has over 2 million square kilometres tourism. There are plans to invest of protected areas. Nevertheless, the in major projects likely to generate continent’s coastal areas continue to spin-offs and enhance Africa’s Many African countries are on track confront problems associated with oil economic integration. Tourist to achieving the MDG target of and mineral extraction, uncontrolled arrivals in Africa grew 8.8 per cent in universal primary education by 2015. fishing, mismanagement of mangrove 2009-2010, the highest rate for any Burundi, Ethiopia, Ghana, Kenya, forests and coastal development. region. Morocco, Angola, Cape Verde, Mozambique and Tanzania have abol- Forest trees are being used to build Madagascar, Egypt and South Africa ished school fees for primary educa- shelters and for charcoal, destroying are recording double-digit growth, tion. However, 30 million children, the habitats of many species. 14 April 2012 Interview ‘Only our collective voice will be heard’ Interview with Kumi Naidoo, executive director of Greenpeace International

rom the struggle against F apartheid and poverty in his native South Africa, to helping lead Greenpeace, one of the world’s foremost environmental advocacy groups, Kumi Naidoo sees less of a difference than a continuum. “An activist is an activist,” he explains to Africa Renewal. In advance of the June 2012 UN Conference on Sustainable Development — also known as “Rio+20” — we asked Mr. Naidoo, who became executive director of Greenpeace International in 2009, to reflect on a few of the more pressing issues affecting Africa. (For the full interview, see Africa Renewal online.)

Kumi Naidoo, fighting for the environment, ecological boundaries the planet development and people's empowerment. sets for us. Greenpeace Africa Renewal Twenty years ago, the first Rio summit emphasized Key environmental agreements, such as that environmental protection and the Kyoto Protocol and the Protocol on To be credible, Rio+20 must support economic development are comple- Access and Benefit Sharing have been an energy revolution based on mentary, rather than counter-posed agreed since Rio. Last year investments renewable energy and energy priorities. How significant was that in renewable energies overtook invest- efficiency and providing access shift in perspective? ments in old fossil fuel technologies for to energy for all. Governments the first time. and businesses must commit to Kumi Naidoo Rio 1992 ended the zero deforestation by 2020 and false dichotomy between environ- At Rio [2012] governments must governments must upgrade the UN ment and development. Governments listen to the people, not the polluters, Environment Programme to pledged to make development work otherwise they are bound to fail the specialized agency status. for all, including for future genera- world. It’s a very small but powerful tions. This was a breakthrough and group of players who gain from the AR Rio+20 will seek to popularize the remains our real global challenge: to current destructive status quo that is notion of the “green economy.” What deliver decent lives for all within the holding us back. might that mean for Africa? April 2012 15 works with the land rather than against it, which avoids degradation. Greenpeace works in the forests — including with indigenous peoples — to show that development is possible without deforestation and degrada- tion. Also without proper gover- nance — land use planning — and regulations and law enforcement, the problem of desertification cannot be addressed properly.

AR At international conferences on the environment, African delegates often raise the need for financial support to help them adapt and change. Do you see this happening?

KN Social and environmental protec- tion needs additional money, and it is high time governments provide it. Developed countries have indeed broken many aid promises. That is shameful, especially when you consider how much money they could easily find when they decided they needed to bail out their greedy banks. A solar power panel in Cape Town: Developing South Africa’s renewable Climate change can be an opportunity AR Can Africa become more than energy industries could create nearly for Africa; it doesn’t have to remain a bystander in the international 150,000 new jobs by 2030. a threat. There is huge potential for discussions on climate change? building new industries across Africa. Africa Media Online / Ed Suter We are blessed with vast renewable KN The tragedy about this whole energy sources such as sun and wind. issue for somebody like me — coming The wealth is simply amazing. In from Africa — is that the people who KN The fair green economy we want South Africa 149,000 direct jobs could are least responsible for climate chaos is one that provides sustainable be created by 2030 — 38,000 more are the ones who are paying the first livelihoods for all while fully than in the current government’s and the most brutal price. Climate respecting ecological limits — our plan. That’s the kind of decisive action change in Africa is contributing to the planetary boundaries. In a truly — leading to wins for the planet and creation of more deserts, starvation green economy, the economy will be the poor alike — that a green economy and water scarcity. a mechanism to deliver societal could deliver. goals, and economic growth as an Our continent needs to take leader- end goal in and of itself will be AR Desertification and land degra- ship in the international negotiations, abandoned. dation are particular concerns in nationally and regionally. Our polit- Africa. Are they getting enough atten- ical leaders need to understand and The green economy is not only an tion in international discussions of accept that other nations’ actions will opportunity for African countries, but sustainable development? impact their own people at home, and a necessity. Africa is at the frontline they need to be clear and not compro- of climate change. One can already KN No, they are not given sufficient mise our right to a future. see the impacts: drought, conflicts weight. You can see that when you in areas such as the Horn of Africa, look at the pitiful budget and capacity AR How can global management of increased migrations, food security of the UN Convention to Combat the environment be strengthened? compromised . . . We can no longer sit Desertification. Greenpeace calls back and watch it happen. for sustainable agriculture that see page 19

16 April 2012 Interview For sustainable cities, Africa needs planning Interview with UN-Habitat’s Joan Clos

frica’s cities are growing very A rapidly. By 2009 some 395 million Africans — nearly 40 per cent of the continent’s population — lived in urban areas. That number is projected to triple to more than 1.2 billion, or 60 per cent of all Africans, by 2050. For the United Nations Human Settlements Programme — known as UN-Habitat — that growth represents a dual challenge: helping Africans to better harness the productive potential of their cities, but also to cope with the increased demands for municipal services and decent housing, so that more and more people are not obliged to crowd into impoverished slum areas. Joan Clos, a former mayor of Barcelona, Spain, and since 2010 the executive director of UN-Habitat, believes that tackling those challenges will above Joan Clos, executive director of to plan for city growth. At the begin- all require more systematic urban UN-Habitat, visiting the Kibera slum ning, it’s usually very difficult. The planning. Africa Renewal’s managing in Nairobi, Kenya. first waves of migration to the city editor, Ernest Harsch, spoke with UN-Habitat / Julius Mwelu him at UN-Habitat’s headquarters in are unplanned. But it is necessary to Nairobi, Kenya. introduce as soon as possible urban planning on a massive scale in Africa. no other entity. The problem is that if the government is uncoordinated, or it AR In some countries in Africa, doesn’t have the instruments, the speed Africa Renewal How has the excep- where urban planning is being of planning is much slower than the tionally rapid growth of Africa’s attempted, it often seems slow and speed of city growth. The only solution cities affected general approaches to bureaucratic, and by the time it is to speed up the planning process, urban development? reaches implementation, things because you cannot stop in-migration. have already changed, growth has If it’s complex because it involves Joan Clos We are seeing an unprec- outstripped the plans. Can planning different ministries, it needs to be edented pace of urbanization in efforts really keep up? simplified. And if it’s too dependent on Africa. We have seen similar move- central government, then it should be ments in other continents before. JC The first step is the limitation of delegated to the local authorities. But what is different in Africa is the public space in relation to private space. speed of the process. The response This is something that has to be done For every “if” there must be a solution. to that is to improve urban planning, by the government, because there is There’s no other alternative for proper

April 2012 17 city growth than to be planned. If an for everybody to be better off. Urban the population against climate unplanned city is built, then its recon- planning can help generate wealth. change disasters. struction, the introduction of planning And when you generate wealth, there’s afterward, is much more difficult. always the possibility of distributing These are now typically considered to It’s very expensive, it brings social it. But if someone tries to develop the be natural disasters. But in the future conflicts. When you see economies, city and capture all the wealth for they will be seen as a failure of govern- like the African ones, growing at 6 to 7 himself, then conflict is sure to arise. ment. In a lot of countries in the world, per cent, there’s no excuse. You cannot people at first saw them as natural have such a rate of growth without at There are many examples [of good disasters, but they later on looked at the same time putting in place urban planning] in Africa, but mostly at the government and said, “No, no. It’s planning instruments. the small scale. They are not perfect, wrongdoing. It’s a lack of planning, a but are advancing in a good direc- lack of foresight by the government.” AR In some cities in Africa, particu- tion, in Morocco, Mauritius, Rwanda. We have seen earthquakes with very larly major ones, there have been What we still don’t see is a pro-active high tolls of victims, and similar, even efforts to revitalize centre cities, to approach, of national governments stronger, earthquakes elsewhere, with attract foreign investors and busi- developing national urban policies to very few victims. The natural disaster, nesses. Sometimes, when this has cope with the challenging future of the quake, is the same. What is different been done in a top-down fashion, African cities. Urban planning is not is the outcome. local communities have resisted. something for tomorrow. It should be How can this be avoided? there today, this afternoon. AR Many urban Africans currently are obliged to live in slums. Could you JC It is a question of the maturity AR How does climate change affect talk about UN-Habitat’s approach to of the political system. In a weak urban development? participatory slum upgrading? system, sometimes the way they do planning is by authoritarian means, JC The typical unplanned city, which JC In a sense, the slum is a failure of the without taking into account the rights has no streets, no drainage system, or state. In most slums the state doesn’t of the people. There’s no need for is built on slopes, is very susceptible intervene. Legitimacy inside of the slum practices that don’t take care of the to climate change. It’s very prone to rests with the community. If you want affected people. There’s room enough huge catastrophes. The solution to to improve the conditions of the slum, the risk of climate change, again, you need to establish a dialogue with the is urban planning. This is one community. They are the ones who will Construction of a housing project additional reason why governments understand it, the ones who have the in KwaMashu, the largest poor township will be pushed to do something in legitimacy to perform it. near South Africa's port city of Durban. favour of urban planning, to protect Africa Media Online / South Photos / John Robinson When you introduce streets and latrines, and put lights in the streets, immedi- ately you have shops that emerge, you have more economic activities. There’s a virtuous circle of self-improvement. Yes, this requires an initial investment. But it also requires dialogue with the stake- holders in the slums, the local commu- nity, the structure owners, to agree on the improvements.

AR Do upgrading slums and urban planning also involve land tenure reform?

JC Yes. Security of tenure is very related to urban planning. First you need to identify the plots. We are advising governments, regional authorities and local governments, through different legislation and land tools, to have a

18 April 2012 proper census of urban plots. The next cannot really talk about decentralization. Of course, there are going to be step is introducing urban planning. What is new is that national constitu- scandals, problems. But in general This includes introducing public space, tions and national political agreements the tendency that I foresee is mainly streets. This sometimes affects now allow for the empowerment of local toward an increased complexity existing plots, so you need to readjust authorities. This allows more forces in and completeness of institutional land ownership. And that requires a legal society to develop. It empowers local relationships and capacities in a instrument — which is lacking in most of governments to have local taxes, to create more modern state. The only way to Africa — by which a pool of owners can local fiscal systems. That requires some fight corruption is to improve your readjust their share of the property in a kind of inventory of businesses. institutions. This is something that way that they don’t lose value. In every will be demanded by the population. urbanized continent there are centuries With all that, slowly, you see an Municipal services, as any other of tradition of land readjustment. This is improvement of the general insti- good, also need to be financed. I something we need to help introduce and tutional capacity of the country. I would expect that with the growth develop in Africa. am sure that we will see in the next of African economies, room will be 10, 15, 20 years in Africa an evolu- created for financing urban services. AR In many African countries there tion of local institutions, regional have been moves toward the decentral- institutions and, of course, central It’s not going to be easy. It’s not ization of government institutions. How government institutions, which will going to be without conflicts. In the does that relate to urban development? add more meat to the backbone of the end there will be better conditions state that we know today. of living, and better conditions of JC I don’t like the word “decentraliza- freedom and capacity for citizens. tion.” It doesn’t explain well what is AR What about urban governance? The young people in Africa are happening. I prefer to say “local govern- pushing very strongly. They are going ment empowerment.” The weight of JC This process will also bring to be a political force. They are going central government is so weak that you an improvement of governance. to demand these kinds of changes.

Naidoo interview Protocol, which seeks to curb emis- The power of the people can no sions of the “greenhouse gases” that longer be undermined. What our from page 16 harm the earth’s ozone layer? brothers and sisters in North Africa and the Middle East have done is a KN The answer is simple: They then clear example of that. Based on what KN Today governance gaps created will be admitting that governments history has taught us, at the end of the by globalization provide a permis- and political leaders are sleep-walking day it is up to the voices of thoughtful, sive environment for wrongful acts us into a crisis of epic proportions, concerned citizens to stand up and by companies. At Rio 2012, govern- putting the future and lives of our resist the lack of action. If there is ments must agree to the development children and grandchildren in one thing I have learned about big of a global instrument that ensures jeopardy and great danger. systemic change, it is the following: full liability for any social or environ- Without decent men and women mental damage that global corpora- Many citizens in the world, espe- who say that enough is enough, and tions cause. African governments cially young people — I know my who are willing to go to prison for it, should also call for creating strong own daughter feels this way — are systemic change won’t happen. regulation and control of financial completely disgusted by how govern- markets and introducing restric- ments lack the political will to estab- There is strong civil society across tions on speculators and speculative lish a solid, time-bound process to Africa, and it’s getting stronger and products to stop harmful practices address the biggest threat our planet stronger. The recent events not only that lead to rising resource and faces. in North Africa but also across the commodity prices and an acceler- continent have shown the power of ated depletion of natural resources, AR Do African governments need to people. We need to go beyond the solo with dramatic consequences for poor pay more attention to their own people? approach and work together and lend people and small economies. our voices across all sectors: environ- KN A true revolution can only start mental, human rights, health, educa- AR What if negotiators fail to agree when governments start listening to tion, etc. Only our collective voice on a suitable successor to the Kyoto the people and not to the polluters. will be heard. April 2012 19 Towards African cities without slums

Poor district in Algeria’s capital, Algiers. Governments set dwellers, but also preventing the forma- Most North African countries have made tion of new slums,” says Joan Clos, progress in reducing slum areas.

course towards executive director of the UN Human Africa Media Online / Ricardo Gangale improving poor Settlements Programme (UN-Habitat).

urban areas Africa’s housing ministers, who Some slum dwellers fear this may be last met in Rabat, Morocco, in mostly talk. “I am only interested in September 2011, are well aware of this being removed from here, to live in a By Kaci Racelma Rabat challenge. Gathered under the auspices more decent environment,” says Rachid of the African Ministers Conference Lashab, who lives in the Essekouila on Housing and Urban Development slum in Casablanca. “I am not inter- illions of Africans live in (AMCHUD), they outlined new policies ested in the many conferences that our slums, and the rapid growth of for housing and urban development leaders attend.” M African cities is compounding across the continent, in line with the the problem. Africa faces the huge chal- “cities without slums” initiative they But in Rabat, the ministers at least lenge of “improving the lives of slum originally adopted in 2005. laid out broad goals. These included 20 April 2012 improving urban planning, making Urban Development Noureddine 1990 to 61.9 per cent in 2010. In South service land (for public buildings) more Moussa noted that the expansion of Africa, the proportion dropped from available, developing industrial, agri- cities in Africa limits the ability of 46.2 per cent to 28.7 per cent during cultural and crafts towns, and slowing national and local governments to the same period. down rural-to-urban migration of people provide security and supply basic social in search of job opportunities. services in health, education, water and Morocco’s urban development model sanitation. continues to draw a spotlight. In 2004 Crowding and disease the government launched its own “cities According to estimates by UN-Habitat, Climate change without slums” programme, fashioning 200 million people in sub-Saharan In addition, notes Mr. El Hadj, climate an urban development strategy to enable Africa were living in slums in 2010, change will interact with urban- slum dwellers to have decent homes with or 61.7 per cent of the region’s urban ization in unpredictable ways. In access to water, power and sanitation. By population, the highest rate in the world. 2007 an assessment report of the 2011 about 100,000 new housing units North Africa had another 12 million Intergovernmental Panel on Climate had been created in different parts of the slum dwellers; that was just 13.3 per Change, established by the World country. Overall, 37 of Morocco’s 83 cities cent of its urban residents, the lowest Meteorological Organization and the have been transformed, a change that has rate in the developing world. UN Environment Programme, warned benefitted more than 1.5 million people. that “urbanization and climate change These cities now boast streetlights, The lack of adequate sanitation, potable may work synergistically to increase drainage systems, safe water, roads, water and electricity, in addition to disease burdens.” sanitation and other infrastructure. substandard housing and overcrowding, The development of Bouregreg Valley aggravates the spread of diseases and Slum dwellers also face harsh (near Rabat) and other “green areas” avoidable deaths, according to a recent environmental challenges due to the is also notable. report of the International Federation of low quality of construction materials Red Cross and Red Crescent Societies. used in buildings and slums, which are Fathallah Oualalou, former Moroccan Slums contribute to low life expectancy. located mostly on marginal land. Many minister of housing and currently In Mali, for example, more than 80 slums are vulnerable to accidental fires. mayor of Rabat, linked the successful per cent of the population lacks good In September 2011, for instance, more urbanization efforts to effective imple- housing and average life expectancy than 100 people were killed when a mentation of the road map developed is just 51 years, according to the UN leaking petrol pipeline exploded in in 2010 in Bamako, Mali, at the third Development Programme. Mukuru wa Njenga, a densely populated conference of African housing minis- Nairobi slum. ters — making the point that such Mali’s situation reflects that of much of meetings can in fact be useful. The sub-Saharan Africa. Gakou Salimata Individual countries’ differences in roadmap emphasizes efficiency in land Fofana, Mali’s former minister of geography, climate, expertise and management, sustainable housing, housing, land affairs and planning, urged financial resources will influence urban transportation and sanitation, urgent measures from Africa’s housing efforts to implement any continent- among other issues. ministers. “We must take decisive wide urban development plan. In Rabat, action,” she said. “Otherwise there is the the ministers suggested that these chal- Mr. Moussa, the Algerian housing risk of having an urban population [in lenges can be tackled through effective minister, lists other keys to success. Mali] of about 6 million souls still living collaboration and support from interna- These include the efficient and equitable in informal settlements by 2020,” or tional partners, including the UN. management of land, the enactment of nearly twice the current number. appropriate land laws so that women and Steady progress other vulnerable groups can have access, Jugurtha Ait El Hadj, an Algeria-based There is some good news. A 2010 and improvements in social conditions urban planner, believes that African UN-Habitat report found that countries in housing projects. The provision of ministers are on the right course. such as Egypt, Libya and Morocco have schools, clinics, electricity and sanitation “Such meetings are especially helpful “nearly halved their total number of is important, says Mr. Moussa. “We in that they allow exchange of experi- urban slum dwellers, and Tunisia has can’t design a sustainable development ences. But these meetings must be eradicated them completely.” Ghana, plan without sustainable urbaniza- accompanied by concrete steps.” Senegal and Uganda have also made tion,” he argues. Urbanization should be steady progress, reducing their slum controlled, he adds, and efforts should There are many roadblocks to achieving populations by up to 20 per cent. In be made “to reduce inequality between the dream of cities without slums. Nigeria, the slum population came down the rich and the poor by offering basic Algerian Minister for Housing and from 75 per cent of all urban residents in services to all people.”

April 2012 21 Community radio gives voice to shack dwellers With new outlet, Korogocho residents push for reforms

By Ernest Harsch Nairobi

orogocho, a slum in north- eastern Nairobi, had many of K the ingredients for a political explosion similar to those that rocked other parts of Kenya in early 2008. It is crowded and very poor and has a reputa- tion for brutal crime. The future looks exceedingly bleak for most of its 100,000 residents. But when a contested election brought violent protests to Mathare and other nearby slums, with hundreds killed and many more displaced, Presenters at the studio of Koch FM, Kenya's Korogocho remained quiet. radio appeals by donating food, clothing first licensed community radio station.

and other goods to help victims of the Africa Renewal / Ernest Harsch Much of the credit rests with the activ- violence elsewhere. Much of what was ists who operate Koch FM, Kenya’s first collected in Korogocho was delivered to licensed community radio station. As displaced people who had found refuge other crimes — often found themselves political tensions mounted nationally in a church in Mathare North. “stigmatized,” Mr. Mboya explains. when the initial results of the election The Korogocho Primary School even were challenged by the opposition, This experience was a very good changed its name so that graduates “people expected Korogocho would case of community-based “conflict would not so easily be identified as explode,” recalls Tom Mboya, the Koch prevention,” agreed a group of experts coming from the area. FM team leader. To head off such an on conflict and security who visited outcome, station activists quickly went Korogocho following a meeting orga- At first community activists consid- to church leaders and other influential nized by the UN’s Office of the Special ered producing a documentary film figures to record appeals for calm. The Adviser on Africa. to portray the positive sides of life in recordings were broadcast repeatedly, Korogocho. But they lacked the funds, several times a day, emphasizing that A new image and someone proposed another idea: longtime neighbours had no reason to In setting up Koch FM (Koch is short setting up a radio station. “It was fight. “Those messages worked,” says for Korogocho), Mr. Mboya and his simple,” Mr. Mboya observes. “You just Mr. Mboya. “That really convinced colleagues were motivated by a desire need a computer, a microphone, a mixer people, and calmed down everything.” to enhance the community’s image — to and a transmitter.” outsiders and residents alike. People Beyond that, adds Leonard Njeru, from the area — one of the poorest But even this simple idea required another member of the station staff, slums in Nairobi, with high rates of jumping hurdles. Kenya’s broadcasting Korogocho residents responded to unemployment, drug use, rape and regulations at the time covered only 22 April 2012 public and commercial stations, and directly elected by the members of the licences were very expensive. So community.” supporters mounted a public campaign, and received some positive coverage Residents had been subjected to a from other Kenyan media, as well as variety of illegal levies. Those who from the BBC and Radio Netherlands. wanted to improve their shacks, such as Eventually the Communications by putting up a new sheet of iron roofing, Commission of Kenya agreed to grant a had to pay the chief a “repair fee.” Since license in December 2006, the first for that amount often exceeded the cost any community station in the country. of the repair itself, few residents had Several others, inspired by Koch FM, any incentive to upgrade these rented have since secured licences as well. shacks. In addition, street vendors, many of whom are women, were obliged A non-governmental organization, to pay a daily “space levy.” Norwegian Church Aid, donated enough money for an old shipping Koch FM invited onto the air lawyers container to house the studio and other from Kituo cha Sheria, a non-govern- facilities. A contribution from the Open mental legal aid society. They explained Society Initiative made it possible to that such fees had no legal foundation. upgrade the structure and replace an Once residents became aware of this, old makeshift transmitter with a more they refused to pay. Both levies were professional one. soon cancelled.

For programming ideas the staff Educational programmes on the radio, went directly to the community. targeted to young women and men Koch FM staffer Leonard Njeru outside the There are now programmes on alike, are intended to raise awareness radio offices. "Edutainment" — education women and children, youth, health, of women’s rights. Reports of rape have through entertainment — is the station's the environment, HIV/AIDS, political declined as a result. Benefit dinners and motto. Africa Renewal / Ernest Harsch governance and other issues, as well other fund-raising activities sponsored as music by local performers. The by the station have raised money to send guiding principle is “edutainment” young women to secondary school. to be allowed to elect representatives to — education through entertainment. the CDF board will be accepted. The station broadcasts around the Holding leaders to account clock, with presenters operating the The station helps organize periodic The adoption of a new Kenyan consti- studio from 6 am to midnight and public forums. These are usually held tution in 2010 expanded human and recorded music being broadcast in the community hall — or, if they democratic rights in various areas of automatically during the night. are too large, in the square in front of life. Unfortunately, many Kenyans are it — and take up particularly pressing still not fully aware of those rights. Koch Campaigns for change issues. One prevalent concern is the FM brought on the chief justice of the The interaction between the station and use of money allocated by the govern- Supreme Court, lawyers from Kituo cha residents has helped change political ment to Korogocho through a decen- Sheria and others to help explain the dynamics in the community. Previously, tralized Constituency Development constitutional safeguards. each of Korogocho’s nine villages still Fund (CDF). Since members of parlia- had an office of the youth wing of the ment are responsible for overseeing With a new round of elections coming former ruling party, at which residents the CDF, the local MP was asked to up (probably in early 2013), activists were often brutalized. In alliance with come to Korogocho to explain how are worried about the possibility of several community groups, Koch FM the money was used, but declined. political violence. “How do we sustain mounted a public campaign that closed He lost his seat in the subsequent the peace during that forthcoming them down. election and blamed the radio station election?” asks Mr. Mboya. Koch FM’s for his defeat. answer is to organize more public Each village also was managed by an forums, so that residents can openly “elder” appointed by the area chief. The His successor did come to hear air whatever animosities or misun- radio station agitated for elections. Korogocho residents’ complaints. But derstandings they may have. “After “As we speak,” says Mr. Mboya, “the little has happened since then, and they speak out,” says Mr. Mboya, “you representatives of all nine villages are people are skeptical that their request see there is a sense of relief.”

April 2012 23 Africa’s vanishing Lake Chad

Passengers in Nigeria taking ferries Action needed air is dusty, the wind is fierce and to cross Lake Chad, whose shoreline is unrelenting, the plants are wilting receding because the lake is drying up. to counter an and the earth is turning into sand Panos / Jacob Silberberg dunes. The sparse vegetation is “ecological occasionally broken by withered catastrophe” trees and shrubs. The lives of Agriculture Organization (FAO) has herders, fisherfolk and farmers are called the situation an “ecological teetering on the edge as the lake catastrophe,” predicting that the dries up before their eyes. lake could disappear this century. By Ahmad Salkida Maiduguri, Nigeria Vegetation and water, the tradi- According to FAO Director of Land tional staples of livelihood for the and Water Parviz Koohafkan, the s you approach the Lake Lake Chad community dwellers, are Lake Chad basin is one of the most Chad basin from Maiduguri, vanishing. Vultures feast on dead important agricultural heritage sites Ain northeastern Nigeria, the cows as drought and desertification in the world, providing a lifeline atmosphere of despair is telling. The take their toll. The UN Food and to nearly 30 million people in four 24 April 2012 countries — Nigeria, Cameroon, be by the lakeside, is now 20 kilome- 1963 to just 1,500 square km in 2001. Chad and Niger. ters from its edge. However, a 2007 satellite image shows improvements from Lake Chad is located in the far west Alhaji Baba Garba, a 78-year-old previous years. of Chad and the northeast of Nigeria. fisherman who has spent his life on Parts of the lake also extend to Niger the banks of the lake, says that much Recent drought may again have and Cameroon. It is fed mainly by the of the village used to be alongside worsened the situation, says Professor Chari River through the Lagone tribu- it. Pointing at one of his children Mohammed of the University of tary, which used to provide 90 per in his mid-30s, Garba adds, “even Maiduguri. He urges the LCBC and its cent of its water. It was once Africa’s before that boy, Suleiman, was born.” partners to tackle the impact of climate largest water reservoir in the Sahel Another villager, Salisu Zuru, laments change, as well as to control damming region, covering an area of about the death of livestock. and irrigation by the LCBC countries. 26,000 square kilometres, about the size of the US state of Maryland and The once busy Baga market in Replenishment plans bigger than Israel or Kuwait. Maiduguri, where truckloads of fish The commission’s member from the lake used to be processed countries have plans to replenish By 2001 the lake covered less than and then transported daily to other the lake by building a dam and 60 one-fifth of that area. “It may even be parts of the country, is now quiet. The miles of canals to pump water uphill worse now,” says Abbas Mohammed, villagers must now travel by canoe from the Congo River to the Chari a climatologist at the University of and on foot for days from Doron Baga River and then on to Lake Chad. Maiduguri, Nigeria. to Daban Masara, then to Darak in The replenishment project “will be search of food. Darak is an affluent the first of its kind in Africa,” says Dams and irrigation fishing community to the east of Martin Gbafolo, the LCBC’s director The UN Environment Programme Cameroon’s border with Nigeria. of water resources and environment. (UNEP) and the Lake Chad Basin The commission has raised more Commission (LCBC), a regional Tensions rise than $5 million for a feasibility study. body that regulates the use of the The impact of the drying lake is Although the total cost of the project basin’s water and other natural causing tensions among communi- will not be known until the study is resources, maintain that inefficient ties around Lake Chad. There are completed, experts like Professor damming and irrigation methods on repeated conflicts among nationals Mohammed expect it will take a huge the part of the countries bordering of different countries over control of injection of funds to save the lake. the lake are partly responsible for its the remaining water. Cameroonians shrinkage. Emmanuel Asuquo-Obot and Nigerians in Darak village, for Already the World Bank is providing of the World Wildlife Fund (WWF), example, constantly fight over the $10.6 million for a project to reverse an organization devoted to wildlife water. Nigerians claim to be the land and water degradation in parts conservation, points to the diver- first settlers in the village, while of the lake. In addition, the LCBC is sion of water from the Chari River to Cameroonians invoke nationalistic educating livestock herders on gaining irrigation projects and dams along sentiments, since the village is within access to grazing and watering areas. the Jama’are and Hadejia Rivers in Cameroonian territory. Fishermen Water users are taught efficient water- northeastern Nigeria. also want farmers and herdsmen to utilization methods and fishermen cease diverting lake water to their more appropriate techniques for As parts of the lake dry up, most farmlands and livestock. catching fish. farmers and cattle herders have moved towards greener areas, where The LCBC — established by the At the opening of the African they compete for land resources with leaders of Chad, Nigeria, Cameroon World Forum on Sustainable host communities. Others have gone and Niger in 1964 and later joined Development in N’Djamena, Chad, to Kano, Abuja, Lagos and other big by the Central Africa Republic in in October 2010, Nigerian President cities for menial jobs or to roam the 1994 — and its partners continue Goodluck Jonathan stressed the streets as beggars. to make efforts to save the lake or collective determination of leaders of at least mitigate the impact of its the LCBC member countries to salvage Those who remain in Lake Chad shrinkage on people’s lives. In his the lake. But among the 30 million shoreline communities such as Doron book An Inconvenient Truth, former people who depend on it, there is Baga are haunted by the speed with US Vice-President Al Gore shows uncertainty as to how much longer the which the lake is vanishing. The several images of the lake shrinking lake will remain and when they will be Doron Baga settlement, which used to from 25,000 square kilometres in able to get a relief.

April 2012 25 Power from the wind in South Africa

Turbines at the Darling Wind Farm in power producers to feed energy into the South Africa. Liane Greeff Turbines national grid. generate hope What made the difference was that the then sells the electricity through “Green for clean energy then minister of mineral and energy Energy Certificates” to buyers prepared affairs proposed the Darling Wind to pay a higher price for green energy. For Farm as a national demonstration example, when the African Wind Energy By Liane Greeff project in 2000. She also requested Association decided to hold a conference international assistance in devel- in Cape Town in May 2010, the hree blades — each the length of oping wind energy from the Global organizers purchased certificates for a tennis court — revolve atop a Environment Facility, UN Development 9,900 kilowatt hours to ensure that the T wind energy tower reaching 50 Programme (UNDP) and Danish conference used only green energy. metres into the sky, equal in height to a International Development Agency. 17-storey building. There are four such Catalytic effect turbines whirling in the hot, dry and That assistance led to the South SAWEP was one of several initia- windy landscape near the town of Darling African Wind Energy Programme tives contributing to South Africa’s in South Africa’s Western Cape, gener- (SAWEP), a project to reduce green- adoption of a target of reaching 10,000 ating 7 gigawatt hours per year of green house gas emissions through the gigawatt hours of renewable energy in energy. This first commercial wind farm promotion of wind power. It facilitated its Integrated Resource Plan, an energy in South Africa, reflecting the collab- the creation of the Darling Wind Farm. blueprint for the period from 2010 to orative efforts of international donors, 2030. The government is now soliciting government agencies and the private Private sector bids from independent power producers sector, shows that wind energy is feasible. “The significant thing to remember to generate an initial 1,850 megawatts of about the Darling Wind Farm is that wind energy within the next few years. The development of the Darling Wind it shows that wind energy can be done Farm, which was established in 2008, by the private sector,” says Andre Otto, “The establishment of Darling had an was fraught with obstacles. This was the project manager of SAWEP. “It was important catalytic effect in promoting mainly because large-scale wind never intended to be a fully economical wind energy in South Africa, as it showed generation was new to South Africa business,” he adds. It also served to that on-grid wind could be a reality,” and institutional arrangements were demonstrate how to develop power says Lucas Black of the UNDP/Global not yet in place to allow independent purchase agreements with Eskom, South Environment Facility unit. Africa’s public electricity utility. As the Darling Wind turbines revolve at Liane Greeff is coordinator of EcoDoc Africa, a South Africa-based non-govern- A power purchase agreement was signed a constant speed of 32 revolutions per mental group that promotes ecological with the city of Cape Town to buy energy minute, they represent the baby steps of sustainability and social justice. from the Darling Wind Farm. The city an industry whose time has come. 26 April 2012 Full steam ahead to sustainable energy Tapping ‘Geothermal energy is the future’ geothermal In Kenya, the Olkaria geothermal power in Kenya’s power plants operate in the Rift Valley, 105 km northwest of the Rift Valley capital, Nairobi. They are expected to become the largest power genera- tion complex in Kenya and to eventu- By Björk Hakansson ally increase the share of geothermal power in the country’s supply mix to about 25 per cent. here is clean energy in the ground in Kenya — a lot of Anna Wairimu Mwangi, a geophysi- T it — and Kenya has already cist from Kenya and a graduate of the moved to start tapping the Rift UN University Geothermal Training Valley’s vast steam reserves. The Programme, is confident that her government hopes to generate country is heading in the right direc- about 27 per cent of the country’s tion. “I think geothermal energy is electrical power from geothermal the future,” says Ms. Mwangi. “It is a sources by 2031. resource that is renewable.”

Kenya, the first African nation to Currently, about 1.5 billion people drill for geothermal power, and other worldwide have no access to modern developing countries are benefit- energy services. One of the main ting from a programme guided by challenges in achieving an energy- scientists from another country with sustainable future is to phase out ample geothermal expertise, Iceland. inefficient fossil fuel consumption Steam venting from beneath Kenya’s Since 1979, the United Nations and make a smooth transition to Rift Valley: Geothermal power may University Geothermal Training clean energy. Programme, a partnership between eventually supply a quarter of the country’s the university and the government Sharing knowledge energy needs. Alamy Images / Mark Boulton of Iceland, has been operating in Since Iceland has been one of the Iceland to boost geothermal projects pioneers in using this unconven- As of 2011, 482 professionals from worldwide. tional source of energy, its scientists 50 countries had graduated from the and engineers have led the develop- geothermal training programme, with Geothermal energy is fuelled by the ment of the partnership. Their goal enough understanding and practical internal heat generated and stored is to help developing countries by experience to conduct independent in the earth. Many developing coun- offering tailor-made training courses projects back home. The graduates tries have significant geothermal for professionals in advanced from Kenya are now among the leading resources. Costa Rica, El Salvador, geothermal technology. specialists contributing to geothermal Indonesia and Kenya have initiated development in the Rift Valley. successful medium- to large-scale “This is a place for exchanging ideas geothermal power development and knowledge,” says Ingvar Birgir “These projects,” said Kenyan Prime projects, among more than 20 Fridleifsson, director of the partner- Minister Raila Odinga during a countries worldwide already gener- ship. “Capacity building in renew- ceremony in Nairobi, “mark the ating electricity with geothermal able energy technology is essential, beginning of Kenya’s journey to energy. More than 70 countries use especially in developing countries, transform its energy sector and put geothermal resources to some extent because that is where the biggest the country on the path to green for heating. increment in energy use will occur.” economic growth.”

April 2012 27 To Rio and beyond in policy decisions is rising and of measuring development be created corporations are more aware of their to go beyond the current measure, from page 11 social responsibilities. gross domestic product (GDP), which many economists believe has outlived common interests, common responsi- Additionally, technology has made its usefulness. It further calls for the bilities and common sense.” information widely available and setting of “Sustainable Development decision-making more transparent. Goals” to take the place of the Advocacy groups concur. In a There is now a better understanding Millennium Development Goals, discussion paper for Rio+20 entitled of the ecosystem and the use of appro- whose deadline expires in 2015. “A Safe and Just Space for priate sustainable technologies. Humanity,” Oxfam, a UK charity, For now, governments are busy final- adds its voice. The biggest cause of Retooling the izing the Rio+20 outcome document stress to the planet, says Oxfam, global economy that they intend to provide a clear is excessive consumption by the Yet this progress has been insufficient guide for action towards sustainable wealthiest 10 per cent of the world’s to significantly reduce poverty among development. Under the theme of “the population and the means by which the world’s population of 7 billion — future we want,” the negotiations are companies produce what they buy. expected to reach 9 billion by 2050. focusing on global commitments to More than a billion people still live on expand access to the essentials of life, While mounting concern over the less than $1.25 a day and many more such as water, food and energy. state of the planet is reflected in are facing hunger. Also troubling is The negotiators face a difficult task in the diagnoses contained in several the amount of food going to waste: 222 balancing the diverse views in more reports produced by governments million tonnes wasted annually by than 6,000 pages of contributions and civil society groups to stimu- consumers in rich countries, a figure from UN member states, interna- late debate in Rio, it cannot be roughly equal to all the food produced tional organizations and other denied that some areas have seen in sub-Saharan Africa. By 2030 the stakeholders. progress. According to a World Bank demand for food will have risen by 50 report released in March this year, per cent, for energy by 45 per cent and The document is still a work in sub-Saharan Africa succeeded in for water by 30 per cent, according to progress — some of its proposals are reducing extreme poverty from 55.7 the report of the High-Level Panel on modest, others potentially ground- per cent in 2002 to 47.5 per cent in Global Sustainability. breaking; some will be modified 2008. At the global level, reports the or dropped, and new ones may be UN, the damage to the ozone layer is To retool the global economy, added before a final text is adopted. declining, civil society participation preserve the environment and provide Still, it gives a reasonable picture of equal opportunities to all, the panel the issues likely to dominate in Rio. lists 56 recommendations. It proposes Africa, for example, wants to see the At a flower farm near Lake Naivasha, Kenya, that prices of all goods and services Nairobi-based UNEP transformed a greenhouse is heated with geothermal reflect their true costs to people and into a specialized agency with a power from underground steam. the environment, and that new means bigger budget and a stronger mandate. Redux / Hollandse Hoogte / Fred Hoogervorst It argues that the current global structures do not fully address the continent’s needs. Other proposals include adopting a set of sustainable development goals—akin to the MDGs.

At this point, even with many leaders signing up to go to Rio, it’s too soon to determine if Rio+20 will be remembered as a turning point or a lost opportunity. What is obvious, though, is that progress will require strong political will from global leaders. When that happens, the world will have taken a significant step towards bringing happiness to present and future generations. 28 April 2012 Mobile phones are getting smarter in rural Africa

Every phone can become a “mobile computing device”

magine you are in according to Douglas Yokadouma, a rural commu- Mboweni, the chief executive I nity in eastern Cameroon officer of Econet Wireless with little electricity and inac- Zimbabwe, a mobile network. cessible roads. You have an old, inexpensive mobile phone How does the MO deliver with which you can only make messages without the internet and receive calls. The good or a personal computer? First, news is that it is now possible a mobile phone subscriber for that phone to be smarter — sends an SMS to a given short to send and receive e-mails, code. The message is received check a Facebook account in the mobile company’s and chat online, even without message centre, which then internet access. forwards to ForgetMeNot Africa’s internet servers. The ForgetMeNot Africa, owned servers process, route and by Lon-Zim and ForgetMeNot deliver the message to the Software, developed the subscriber, who can then Message Optimizer (MO) respond. service in March 2009 to enable telecommunica- Many factors account for why tions operators to provide ForgetMeNot Africa’s MO is messaging services to spreading speedily, especially customers at no extra cost, in rural areas. Africa has about without any new applica- 1 billion people. Some 72 per tions or phone upgrades. cent of them live in the coun- Popular chat services such tryside, while internet penetra- as MSN Messenger, Yahoo!, tion overall is just 11 per cent, Windows Live and Gtalk are largely in urban areas. all incorporated into the MO. Yet mobile phone use is Now Africans can easily make their old mobile phones “smarter,” even without the capacity for internet connection Panos / Abbie Trayler-Smith “Message Optimizer turns increasing at a fast pace. In every mobile phone into Nigeria, for instance, there are a mobile computing and about 90 million mobile phone The company currently has 100,000 Cape Verdeans, mobile authentication users, while only 12 million around 48 million users, following collaboration with device,” states ForgetMeNot people are connected to the having made inroads into T-Mais, a mobile company in Africa. The MO allows “more internet. By providing low-cost east, west, southern and Cape Verde. and more of our subscribers access to people in rural areas, central Africa. In late 2011, it to get access to the internet ForgetMeNot Africa aims to started targeting 23 million Jeremy George, the without having to purchase capture the huge market of Portuguese-speaking chief operating officer of expensive smartphones,” mobile phone users. Africans, beginning with ForgetMeNot Africa, says w April 2012 29 Appointments that the company “can On their success so far, offering customers a now serve the vast Mr. George adds that the unique service.” With Fatou B. majority of people company has been able every phone becoming Bensouda of across the continent, to offer “a new revenue smart, Africa’s rural Gambia has no matter whether they stream from their [mobile dwellers can proudly been appointed speak English, French or companies’] existing now hold aloft their as the new chief Portuguese.” subscriber base, while inexpensive phones. UN Photo/Rick BajornasUN Photo/Rick prosecutor of the International Criminal Court, based in The Hague in the Netherlands. She has been serving as deputy prosecutor since 2004 Orange to offer device they’re using,” said and previously worked as a legal Sue Gardner, the executive adviser and trial attorney at the customers free online director of the Wikimedia International Criminal Tribunal Foundation. “This partner- for Rwanda, based in Tanzania. access to Wikipedia ship with Orange will enable The current chief prosecutor, Luis millions of people to read Moreno-Ocampo, from Argentina, Wikipedia, who previously will step down in June, after nine n what is being promoted According to a joint state- couldn’t.” years on the job. I as the first partnership of ment by Orange and the its kind, millions of mobile Wikimedia Foundation, The group executive vice- The World Bank phone owners in Africa any customer with an president for Africa, the has announced the appointment and the Middle East will Orange SIM card and Middle East and Asia at of Makhtar Diop soon have free access mobile internet-enabled Orange, Marc Rennard, of Senegal as to Wikipedia, an online phone will be able to access said, “In countries where

Agência Brasil its new vice- encyclopaedia. Wikipedia the Wikipedia site either access to information is not president for Africa. He will take up is available for free on the through their browser always readily available, his new position in May, succeeding internet, but to access it, or an Orange widget or we are making it simple Ms. Obiageli Ezekwesili. A former mobile phone users have software application. This and easy for our customers finance minister in Senegal and to be enrolled in a data plan will give users “access to the to use the world’s most chair of the West African Economic that can be costly for most Wikipedia encyclopaedia comprehensive online and Monetary Union’s Board of people, especially in low- services for as many times encyclopaedia.” Finance Ministers, Mr. Diop joined income African countries. as they like at no extra the World Bank in 2001. At the Bank charge as long as they stay he has served in various senior While Orange has 70 positions, including as country A leading French mobile within Wikipedia’s pages.” million customers across director for Kenya, Eritrea, Somalia company, Orange, has Africa and the Middle and, most recently, Brazil. struck an agreement According to information East, the free service with the Wikimedia on its website, Wikipedia will be available only to The world’s Foundation, a non-profit “is a free, collaborative, users — currently about largest inter- organization that operates multilingual internet ency- 10 million — who have national police Wikipedia, to provide clopaedia.” The website mobile phones with 2G or organization mobile subscribers access has more than 21 million 3G capability to access has appointed to the digital encyclo- articles (over 3.8 million in the internet. The French INTERPOL ICPO INTERPOL Elizabeth paedia without incurring English alone) that have mobile operator expects to Kuteesa of Uganda as director additional costs on their been written by volunteers expand the service to 50 of INTERPOL’s National Central Bureau and Regional Police internet data plans or around the world. Most of per cent of its customers Services (NRPS) unit, making her subscription fees. The Wikipedia’s articles can by 2015. But since the the first African woman to become service is being launched be edited by anyone with deal with Wikipedia is not an INTERPOL director. Since 2007 throughout 2012 and will access to the website. exclusive to Orange, similar Ms. Kuteesa has served as assistant be available in both urban arrangements with other director for INTERPOL’s Africa and remote parts of Africa “Wikipedia is an important phone operators in Africa, region, and previously held a range and the Middle East. service, a public good — currently the world’s fastest of positions with the Ugandan Orange has operations in and so we want people growing market for mobile police. 15 African countries and to be able to access it for phones, are likely to be five in the Middle East. free, regardless of what struck in the future.

30 April 2012 Africa Book review More Than Good Intentions: How a New Books Economics Is Helping to Solve Global Poverty by Dean Karlan and Jacob Appel (Penguin Group, New York, USA, 2011; 320 pp; hb $26.95, pb $16, ebook $12.99) Indigenous Knowledge and the Environment in Africa and North ith their book More than Good America, eds. David M. Gordon and Shepard Intentions, Dean Karlan and Krech II (Ohio University Press, OH, USA, W 2012; 368 pp; hb $59.95) Jacob Appel seek to stimulate debate on Coping with Global Environmental better and more efficient ways to address Change, Disasters and Security, eds. global poverty, beyond foreign aid or other Hans Günter Brauch et al (Springer, New common approaches. By combining anec- York, NY, USA, 2011; 1872 pp; $399.00) Vulnérabilité, insécurité alimentaire et dotes with straightforward explanations, environnement à Madagascar by Jérôme the authors ask good questions about what Ballet and Mahefasoa Randrianalijaona works and what doesn’t. They also keep (L'Harmattan, Paris, France, 2011; 246 pp; the reader anchored with simple and clear pb €22.50) Petite histoire de l'Afrique. L'Afrique au explanations, even when they cite complex Sud du Sahara, de la préhistoire à nos social science notions, such as using jours by Catherine Coquery-Vidrovitch (La control groups to measure the impact of Découverte, Paris, France, 2011; 222 pp; pb €15) particular interventions. “For each dollar Issues in Women's Land Rights in donated,” the authors ask, “how much good Cameroon, ed. Lotsmart Fonjong (Langaa RPCIG, Bamenda, Cameroon, 2012; 178 pp; can be done?” To illustrate, they contrast pb £18.95) different school attendance programmes. including through better access to health Que vivent les femmes d'Afrique? They find that $1,000 in “conditional cash services, more investment in education by Tanella Suzanne Boni (Karthala, Paris, transfers” (direct payments conditional on France, 2011; 168 pp; pb €19) and better monitoring of school atten- participants’ behaviour), can bring one year Global Exchanges and Gender dance. The book concludes with seven Perspectives in Africa, eds. Jean-Bernard of improved school attendance. But the prevalent ideas that have been proven to Ouédraogo and Roseline M. Achieng' same result can be obtained with $100 in work: microsavings instead of microcredit, (Codesria, Dakar, Senegal, 2011; 212 pp; pb “uniform give-aways” (such as giving school £20.95) reminders to save (banks sending text uniforms to all students) and just $3.50 ECOWAS and the Dynamics of Conflict messages and mail to their clients), fertil- and Peace-building, eds. Thomas Jaye spent on deworming children. izer bought at harvest time before the and Dauda Garuba (Codesria, Dakar, Senegal, 2011; 252 pp; pb £24.95) The book also criticizes microfinance as an next season to improve usage, deworming Sustainable Intensification: Increasing alternative to foreign aid. Although microfi- to increase children’s health and school Productivity in African Food and nance has been popular, the authors argue attendance, remedial education in small Agricultural Systems by Jules Pretty, that it may not be suitable to everyone and groups, chlorine dispensers for clean water Camilla Toulmin and Stella Williams (Earthscan Publications, London, UK, 2011; that people’s specific needs must be thor- and locked-in savings accounts to help 200 pp; hb $99.95) oughly examined before handing out loans. people reach their goals and make better Les dessous de la Françafrique: Les People’s needs can be very complex, and choices. Although very stimulating, dossiers secrets de monsieur X by may not be met by just obtaining a loan. In the proposed options are based on Patrick Pesnot (Nouveau Monde Editions, Paris, France, 2011; 511 pp; €9) the long term, such loans can at times be microanalyses — studies of small groups Nation-States and the Challenges of more detrimental than beneficial. of people. But a macroanalysis of a wider Regional Integration in West Africa: population would have enhanced the The Case of Gambia The emphasis, say Karlan and Appel, by Siga Fatima Jagne validity of their research. (Karthala, Paris, France, 2010; 140 pp; pb €15.20) should always be on helping people to G20 and Global Development: How improve their basic living conditions, ­— Rebecca Moudio Can the New Summit Architecture Promote Pro-poor Growth and Sustainability?, eds. Thomas Fues and Peter Challenging the Rulers: A Leadership Au Cameroun de Paul Biya by Fanny Wolff (German Development Institute, Bonn, Model for Good Governance, eds Okoth Pigeaud (Karthala, Paris, France, 2001; 276 Germany, 2010; 113 pp; free e-publication) Okombo et al (East African Educational pp; pb €24) L’Afrique condamnée à l’espoir by Publishers, Nairobi, Kenya, 2011; 300 pp; Sud-Soudan, conquérir l'indépendance, Ibrahima Signate (L’Harmattan, Paris, France, pb £32.95) négocier l'Etat by David Ambrosetti 2012; 158 pp; pb €15.68, ebook €12.38) L'Afrique subsaharienne face à la (Karthala, Paris, France, 2011; 232 pp; pb €19) L'Afrique en face: Dix clichés à l'épreuve mondialisation by Mahmoud Ben Said Côte d'Ivoire : La réinvention de soi dans des faits by Vincent Hugeux (Armand Colin, (L’Harmattan, Paris, France, 2012; 86 pp; la violence, ed. Francis Akindès (Codesria, Paris, France, 2010; 192 pp; pb €16.20) pb €8.55) Dakar, Senegal, 2011; 272 pp; pb £24.95) April 2012 31 Introducing

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