In the News

Local and international news about Africa.

Obama to Forgo Kenya during Visit to sub-Saharan Africa

By George Bamu on May 22, 2013

Obama in Ghana in 2009

Speculation that President Obama would visit Kenya, the home country of his father, during his second visit to sub-Saharan Africa as president of the U.S. appears to have been put to rest.

Though a visit from Obama would have provided Kenya with good news to help cool things down after tense elections ushered in a new era with Uhuru Kenyatta at the helm as president, Obama is not currently scheduled to make a visit to the East African country.

Rather, the U.S. administration may be sending Kenya a subtle message by skipping the country while Obama is on the continent, according to the New York based Global Information Network (GIN).…

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By George Bamu on May 22, 2013.
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Nigerian-born Masai Ujiri Named 2013 Top NBA Executive

By George Bamu on May 12, 2013

NBA Executive of the Year 2013_Ujiri

Masai Ujiri, the first African-born general manager of a major American sports team, recently accepted the NBA Executive of the Year award.

The NBA Executive of the Year is not just an award, “but the rare NBA honor that is actually voted on by colleagues and front office peers,” according to Kelly Dwyer of Yahoo Sports.

Nigerian-born Ujiri, named to his current position as general manager of the Denver Nuggets in August 2010, came to the Nuggets after three years with the Toronto Raptors.

In this story about the NBA award presented to Ujiri, he “was instrumental in assembling a balanced roster that featured nine players averaging between 8.0 and 16.7 points and a bench that ranked second overall in scoring (41.3 ppg).…

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By George Bamu on May 12, 2013.
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Uhuru Child Invites CU Students to Help End Poverty in Kenya

By Maggie Bridgforth on May 6, 2013

Uhuru Child

One hundred and thirty people, many of them students from the University of Colorado at Boulder, gathered for an Uhuru Child benefit concert on April 25.

Uhuru Child, an organization that creates employment for adults and provides children access to quality education in East Africa, hosted its first ever concert at Shine Restaurant and Gathering Place in Boulder, Colorado.

The event raised over $1,300 and helped create awareness for the organization’s mission – to find creative solutions to fight poverty – on the CU campus.

Local bands The Whicker and Pine , The Belle Jar and Jay Kraemer and Friends played and helped Uhuru raise awareness for the organization’s mission to end poverty in Kenya.…

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By Maggie Bridgforth on May 6, 2013.
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As Kenya turns 50, Denver city officials “want direct flights to Nairobi”

By George Bamu on May 4, 2013

Michael Hancock and Kenyans in Colorado

Independence Day celebration for the Kenyan Community of Colorado (KCC) is a big event. Kenya gained freedom from British rule in 1963.  Far away in Denver-Colorado, inside the Artwork Network, on May 4, Kenyan natives and the international community sang cheers and praises to the East African nation.

It is not only “Jubilee time” for Kenyans around the world, but a time when the community needs to know where they come from.

‘It is a moment to look ahead and see,” said pastor Ndegwa Mwangi who opened the event with prayer for God to bless Kenya.

‘Fifty years ago the citizens of Kenya did not have the freedom we have today,” said Deputy Chief of Mission at the Kenyan embassy in Washington DC , ambassador Jean Kamau.…

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By George Bamu on May 4, 2013.
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African community challenged to use persuasion, help navigate U.S. health care system

By George Bamu on April 28, 2013

Alok Sarwal

If the United States is a melting pot it is because of the diversity of immigrants in the country who come from the four corners of the globe. While this is the case, once in the America, some immigrants face more challenges than others.

It is a disparity that is evident in the health care system and often times defines how and why some communities cope and survive better than others.

Within the health care bureaucracy,  it is not just differences in culture that Africans bring with them; it is also issues of “poverty, language, racism and education” which they confront while in America.…

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By George Bamu on April 28, 2013.
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Obama meets with African leaders who “exemplify progress” in the continent

By George Bamu on March 28, 2013

African leaders at White House

U.S. president Barack Obama met Thursday, March 28 with the leaders of Senegal, Malawi, Sierra Leone and Cape Verde.

It was no ordinary meeting. Perhaps as a clear sign of some sort of a ‘litmus test” the White House has set for African leaders, the guests were carefully selected for this meeting.

How do we know this? In the president’s words, “the reason that I am meeting with these four is, they exemplify the progress that we are seeing in Africa,” Obama stated. So, what about the leaders who do not exemplify the kind of progress the White House would like to see in Africa?…

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By George Bamu on March 28, 2013.
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Chinua Achebe reasserted ‘African dignity’

By Kenneth Usongo on March 26, 2013

Achebe as a young man in 1966

One of Africa’s most celebrated novelists, Chinua Achebe, died in Boston, Massachusetts, U.S.A., on Thursday, March 21. He was 82 years old.

There is mourning as well as celebration all over the world to salute this great son of Africa. This can be seen and heard in special news broadcasts , announcements, marketplace meetings, press releases, emails and discussions of all sorts . As a lover of African literature and someone who reveres Achebe’s works, I have a take on the matter as well.

Wole Soyinka is imploring Ogun ; Ali Mazrui has his hands on his head; Nadine Gordimer is fretting in her study; Ben Okri is stupefied; Chima Amanda is utterly disheveled; the pen is trembling in the hand of Abiola Irele; and Tala Kashim is perusing the dictionary: that is the imaginary scenario of how things fell apart following news of the passing away of Africa’s leading wordsmith.…

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By Kenneth Usongo on March 26, 2013.
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Did the Obama administration and western media try to influence Kenya elections?

By George Bamu on March 17, 2013

Kenyan president-elect, Uhuru Kenyatta

On March 4, Kenyans elected Uhuru Kenyatta as their new president by a 50.07 percent vote. Runner up, Raila Odinga, the preferred choice of many western governments, according to media reports, lost a close vote.  Odinga came close but fell short with 43 percent of the vote.

For good or for bad, the question going around now is whether the United States tried to play its hand to make Raila Odinga the president of Kenya. This was Odinga’s fourth try to win the Kenya presidency.

The issue about U.S. and European influence appears to linger and still probably a big news story as the Kenya results head to the country’s Supreme Court .…

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By George Bamu on March 17, 2013.
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Its Uhuru, Kenya’s new president

By George Bamu on March 10, 2013

Kenyatta and his supporters: Courtesy: Time magazine

There is disappointment among many Kenyans who wanted Raila Odinga to be their next president. The apparent disappointment comes as Uhuru Kenyatta, currently facing an indictment from the International Criminal Court (ICC), is set to be the next president of Kenya.

Kenyatta, who is the son of Kenya’s first president, Jomo Kenyatta, beat his main challenger and prime minister, Raila Odinga, after a hotly contested March 4 presidential election. Uhuru was deputy president in the Nwai Kibika administration. Kibaki, the outgoing president, has already congratulated Kenyatta for his victory, according to the Kenyan Star newspaper.

“It’s Uhuru!”screamed one news headline from the AllAfrica.com website.…

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By George Bamu on March 10, 2013.
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Ahead of March 4 elections, Kenyans hold a prayer vigil for the homeland

By George Bamu on February 23, 2013

Kenya Prayer for Peace

The upcoming Kenya presidential election, part of scheduled general elections, has been described as the most critical election for Kenya in a decade. The election is critical because it is the first of its kind since a disputed vote in December 2007 sparked chaos in the country.

In Foresight Africa: Top Priorities for the Continent in 2013 , Kenyan native, Nwangi Kimenyi, director for the Africa Growth Initiative at U.S. Brookings Institution says:  “This will also be the first general election after the 2007-2008 post-election vio­lence, and there is growing anxiety over whether there will be a repeat outbreak of violence.”

Not only that, Kenyans will be electing leaders in other areas as well.…

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By George Bamu on February 23, 2013.
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2011 Africa Agenda