Cameron Herold: Let's raise kids to be entrepreneurs

In my opinion, this TED Talk by Cameron Herold is exactly what the world needs to hear.

Cameron speaks of his own struggles in the education system. He speaks of his ventures and passion for business at a very young age and how his dad would never allow him to get a "regular" job. He always had to find new ways to earn his own money.

Cameron states that children should be taught how to save at a young age and how to make use of their resources. Instead of giving monthly allowances to children give them opportunities to be innovative. Children should also be given the opportunity to nuture their creativity and not be told what to be in the future. We need to teach kids how to fish and not give them the fish.

TAMASHA-Vijana na Ujamaa Hip Hop Darasa

Ukiperuzi haraka haraka kwenye hii makala unaweza ukadhani umepotea njia na uko kwenye blog ya Fid Q. Hapana -- hapa ni Vijana FM, mzee!

Kama nilivyosema wiki chache zilizopita, kuna baadhi ya mambo au harakati zinazofanywa na Vijana wenzetu ambazo mara nyingi hazitambuliwi; kwa maneno mengine, inaonekana hazipewi kipaumbele. Lakini nadhani Vijana FM itabadili hii desturi.

Nia hasa sio tu kuwafagilia tu Vijana wenzetu. Ni matumaini yangu kuwa makala kama hizi zitawapa wahusika changamoto na kuwahamasisha Vijana wengine kujiunga na kuwasaidia wahusika kwa namna moja au nyingine.

Leo hii nakuletea harakati za Winston Churchill na timu yake nzima ya TAMASHA-Vijana. Mchana wa leo (tarehe 16 Juni, 2010) ulikuwa ni maalumu kwa ajili ya Watoto wa Afrika, na mzee mzima Fid Q ndio alikuwa mgeni rasmi au mwalimu wa kwanza wa Ujamaa Hip Hop Darasa.

Kabla sijakupa dondoo za hili Darasa, ningependa kukuambia madhumuni hasa ya TAMASHA-Vijana/Ujamaa Hip Hop Darasa.

Winston anasema,"[Tunajitahidi] kufikiria jinsi ya kuwasaidia Vijana... maana tunaona wana vipaji lakini jinsi ya kuvibadili katika ujasiriamali bado imekuwa ndio changamoto. "

Kwahiyo wameamua kuanzisha Ujamaa Hip Hop Darasa. Hili Darasa litakuwa linatumia falsafa ya Mwalimu Julius Kambarage Nyerere: "Binadamu hujikomboa na kujiendeleza mwenyewe; hawezi kukombolewa na kuendelezwa." Na litakuwa linatumia taswira ya utamaduni wa Ujamaa wa Kiafrika na Hip Hop ili kuwavutia zaidi Vijana.

Darasa rasmi la kwanza la Hip Hop litaanza tarehe 26 Juni (Mikocheni, Old Bagamoyo Rd, Dar es Salaam). Licha ya kwamba Madarasa yatakuwa bure, waandaji bado wanafikiria namna ya kufanya mpangilio mzima uweze kujiendesha wenyewe.

Ukiacha Hip Hop Darasa kuna mambo mengine yatakayokuwa yanaendelea na kufanyiwa kazi -- kwa mfano, utengenezaji wa video (Research, Archive and Documentary on Hip Hop), Outreach and Relations, Uhuru Clothing na Film Project.

Napenda kuchukua fursa hii kuwatakia kila la kheri TAMASHA-Vijana na Ujamaa Hip Hop Darasa kwenye shughuli zao na nadhani timu ya Vijana FM itajaribu kuwasaidia pale itakapoweza.

Cha muhimu zaidi ni wasanii wengine, wataalamu wa mambo haya na Vijana kwa ujumla kuitikia mwito.

Nawatakia jioni njema!

Tanzania's Education and Careers Exhibition

8 days to go!!! ( Date: June 24th & 25th, 2010)

Venue: Diamond Jubilee Hall, Dar es Salaam.

Tripod Media Company Limited is organizing “Tanzania’s Education and Career Exhibition” which will bring together Primary and Secondary Schools, Colleges, Tertiary Institutions and Universities in Tanzania, Kenya, Uganda, Rwanda and Burundi in a Careers and Schools Exhibition so that students/trainers/parents/guardians can interact one-on-one with representatives of these institutions on programs offered, careers, admission requirements etc.

Topics:
Career Choices -- Challenges and Motivation
Changing Career -- Refocusing
Going against the wind -- Choosing unpopular career path
Caught in between -- Incomparable Careers within an individual
Employment vs. Entrepreneurship
Politics and Leadership -- Is it a career path?

Speakers:
Susan Mashibe (Engineer and Pilot), Modesta Lilian Mahiga (Managing Director, Professional Approach Ltd.), Janeth Mbene (MP), Sebastian Ndege (Doctor, Radio Presenter and Public Speaker), Khadija Mwanamboka (Fashion Designer), Ali Mfuruki (Economist and Entrepreneur), Lady Jay Dee (Musician), Master J (Music Producer), Femi Banigbe (Engineer & TIGO CTO), Sadaka Gandi (Psychologist), Siana Nkya (Scientist) & Emelda Mwamanga Mtunga (Bang! Magazine CEO Relim Entertainment).

For more info about the event, click here...
















Vijana FM Crew is wishing the organizers and all the participants all the best!

Raghava KK: Five lives of an artist

Raghava KK is an artist who started by drawing cartoons in the classroom. Listening to him and see what he has done, you’ll agree with me, his pencils & paint brushes are mightier than the sword. One thing that really impressed me with Raghava is his creativity, and how his art evolves and transforms, while still maintaining its originality.

Secondly, how he collaborates with different type of artists to revolutionize his own is just so impressive. I hope young artists will learn not to limit themselves, kwani ubunifu kama huu ndio unao kosekana kwa wasanii wengi wa Bongo Hip Hop/ Bongo flava na hata aina nyingine za sanaa.

Africa's Leaders of Tomorrow School (ALTS)

By BK

Everyday I read stories about the economic growth of China. I read about Germany's solutions, clean energy in particular, aimed at solving global challenges. I read about a student in a Tanzanian village who uses an oil lamp with a small floating wick, and that 60% of African population is living without electricity. I read that while two out of five Africans lack clean water supplies and Africa's economy is greatly reliant on international aid, the African population will double by 2030.

Some challenges are old. Some are new. I ask myself many questions. Some are: For countries to reaclh or maintain global leadership, should they focus on global solutions? Because global solutions are always also local while local solutions cannot always be global. If the correct answer is yes, then, is it the likeliest situation that an African country will never become a super power?

Obviously, we are living at a time when all agents of development, across all age ranges and professions, must work together to solve these challenges. Since life is only a choice that must have a purpose to be lived well; for Africa, I would propose a leadership school, Africa's Leaders of Tomorrow School (ALTS) that would involve young African students at the earliest time possible in solving African challenges.

ALTS would be a social business, and would place education at the service of the society. Interested mid-school students who are top in their classes, and who have demonstrated great leadership and risk taking skills in their communities would be admitted. They would be brought together and shown the greatest challenges that the continent faces in preparation for tomorrow's leadership. I am mindful that we learn best from the people who surround us. That's why guest speakers who are themselves entrepreneurs, policy makers, government leaders and infuential people would be invited to talk with the students.


The core subject, 'Africa and the World' would guide students through the history of Africa after independence, the challenges it faces and its e orts to solve them. An emphasis would be on why the continent is the poorest despite the great natural endowment it possesses. It would encourage debates and discussions, to emphasize on the development of leadership skills, entrepreneurial skills and global citizenship. It would be discussed on how leaders can play a greater role to improve the life of an African. The students will be required to write a project on a topic of their own choice but related to Africa and the World. An example of such a topic would be 'Africa, what is the missing link? a look at African governance.'

Not until we are aware of the challenges our small communities face, can we dream of solutions to national, continental or global problems. ALTS students would have to complete a minimum number of hours of community service in preparation for leading an interesting life in which serving others is the greatest character.

The major feature of ALTS curriculum would be to train young great minds to understand how every discipline has and can be used to solve the challenges humankind faces. I see this being met through talks by guest speakers and mandatory class discussions with course instructors.

I see graduates from the school become CEO's, politicians, activists, scientists, policy makers and economists of tomorrow, to mention but a few examples. ALTS students would become global citizens. They would not be fatalistics but able to embark on meaningful and unprecedented projects that would change the way Africa and the world operates. They would be able to integrate into the ever changing world in terms of technology, culture, science and politics while devising methods to integrate with solutions that aim at making Africa a bigger economy. With an emphasis on creativity, they would gain problem solving skills rather than mere knowledge accumulation. They would therefore be equipped with an ability to apply knowledge obtained in class to nd answers to the the problems of the society.

I would envision a family of such schools all over Africa under the social business concept that would prepare students to become leaders of tomorrow who would change Africa and the world at large.


BK, a guest columnist, is a senior at Jacobs University Bremen (in Germany) pursuing a B.Sc degree in Electrical Engineering and Computer Science. He hails from Mwanza, Tanzania.

South Africa via Dar es Salaam

by Angelique Kidjo

UNAWE-Tanzania

Kuna baadhi ya mambo unayaona au kuyasikia na hukupa motisha ya aina fulani - hasa yanapotokea nyumbani. Kitu muhimu zaidi ambacho hukufanya hata uanze kujivunia ni watu wanaojitolea kuwafundisha wadogo zetu na kuwaandaa na dunia hii ambayo inaendelea kutekwa na sayansi ya teknolojia.

Mara nyingi nikitembelea tovuti ya UNAWE-Tanzania, nashindwa kujizuia kujiuliza maswali mengi. Ingekuwa vipi kama ningefundishwa na timu ya kaka Mponda? Je, kama ningeoneshwa mwezi, sayari nyingine, nyota na vimondo wakati bado niko mdogo, mambo yangekuwa tofauti? Kusema ukweli kuna wakati nawaonea donge watoto wanaopewa nafasi na UNAWE-Tanzania. Na nina uhakika juhudi zao zitazaa matunda ambayo yataleta mabadiliko kwenye jamii yetu kwa namna moja au nyingine.

Nakumbuka nilikuwa napenda sana masomo ya sayansi. Na nilijifunza jinsi ya kukokotoa maswali ya lenzi (i.e. ray optics), nilikariri majina ya sayari zote (na idadi ya miezi yao) na hata umbali wao kutoka kwenye jua. Lakini nilikuja kuiona telescope kwa mara ya kwanza nilipokuwa kidato cha pili! Nadhani unaelewa kwanini nawaonea donge wadogo zangu.

Wiki chache zilizopita, UNAWE-Tanzania walipokea vitabu, CDs na vifaa vingine muhimu vya kufundishia. Bahati mbaya au nzuri, kuna baadhi ya vitabu ambavyo itakuwa vema vikitafsiriwa kwenye lugha ya Kiswahili. Kwahiyo, wasiliana nao kama unaweza kuwasadia.

Nakusihi utembelee tovuti yao mara kwa mara ili kufuatilia vitu wanavyofanya. Kama hutaweza kuwasaidia kwenye mradi huu wa kutafsiri vitabu, nina uhakika hapo baadae unaweza ukawasaidia kwa njia nyingine.

Pongezi zangu ziwaendee UNAWE-Tanzania! Nitaendelea kuwatupia jicho kama kawaida yangu.

Tovuti ya Wahapahapa Na Sanaa..

Leo hii sanaa bado haijapewa heshima na kipaumbele kama inavyotakiwa, pamoja na sanaa kuwa kioo cha jamii. Tovuti na blog zimeanza kumea kama uyoga, lakini chache zimekuwa zikitetea nafasi ya sanaa katika jamii na haki na umuhimu wa wasanii ndani ya jamii.

Wahapahapa ni moja ya tovuti ninazoweza kusema zimejikita katika sanaa, siyo kuishia kuzungumzia sanaa tu. Kitu kilichonifurahisha na tovuti ya wahapahapa, ni kuwa wameweka michezo ya kuigiza ya redio katika tovuti yao. Hii inawapa fursa hata walio mbali kufaidi sanaa hii kongwe iliyopewa kisogo kutokana na ukuaji wa utandawazi. Nadhani kizazi cha enzi zile tunaweza kukumbuka ile michezo ya akina marehemu Pwagu na Pwaguzi katika redio ya Taifa, RTD.

Tembelea tovuti hii ya Wahapahapa na sikiliza michezo hiyo ya kuigiza na pia kujisomea mambo mengi mengineo ya kuelimisha kupitia sanaa.

Backyard Studio na Uchaguzi Mkuu

Studio ya Backyard ya jijini Dar es Salaam inatoka na changamoto kabambe kwa wasanii wa muziki wa aina yote. Backyard Studio inatoa offer ya kurekodi bure kwa msanii yeyote mwenye nyimbo ambayo inahusiana na uchaguzi mkuu ujao.

Samuel Andrew Mbwana a.ka Braton anaelezea nia na madhumuni ya offer hii kwa kusema, “nimeona nitoe offer hii ili mradi wasanii wapate nafasi ya kutosha katika kuelimisha jamii kuhusu uchaguzi wa amani, faida kupiga kura na kuelimisha jamii kuhusu viongozi wanao tufaa katika jamii".



Hii ni changamoto tosha kwa wasanii, hivyo mjitokeze na kuelimisha jamii. Tunatarajia kuona wengi wenu mkijitokeza na kuchangamkia fursa hii ambayo ni adimu. Tukiwa bado tunasononeka na wengi wenu kutojitokeza na kutunga nyimbo kuhusiana na kombe la dunia, basi tunategemea mtatumia hii nafasi vyema kutunga nyimbo kuhusu uchaguzi mkuu.

Habari kwa hisani ya Issa Michuzi

VijanaFM @ TEDxDar

I was able to attend TEDxDar on Saturday along with another member of VijanaFM so I wanted to do a quick review of the event while it was still fresh in my mind. I've been trying to post this since Monday, but alas the internet in Dar has been letting me down.

The event overall was very well organized and coordinated for a grassroots effort and the first event of its kind in Dar. It was even streamed live on the net as well as supported by live blogging and tweeting. There were some minor technical hiccups and heavy rain but those were overcome relatively smoothly. It was also a great networking opportunity to meet likeminded folks in the city as well as drive change through collaborative work.

There were a range of speakers at the event ranging from a retired professor speaking about the need for equality between Swahili and English to a social entrepreneur working on a carbon offset venture. They spoke along the themes of ‘What would Nyerere do?’, ‘Hadithi zetu’ and ‘In Between the spaces’ each sharing their perspective on one of the themes.

To give you a feel of each of the speakers I’ll try summarizing some quick points:

Prof Pete Mhunzi

• Why equal bilingualism (giving Swahili the same importance as English in business and formal communication) is key to shaping Tanzania’s identity and culture.

Jamie Yang (Co-Founder EGG Energy):

• Spoke about what he has learned through his startup.

• Its expensive to be poor because water, money and electricity cost more per unit than in the ‘west’?
• The poor actively manage their finances and have their own unique portfolio of cash, assets as well as short and long term borrowing.
• The poor value quality products and will pay for them.
• We need to see more social investment.
• More businesses need to serve the poor first then grow up instead of the other way round.

Sarah Mikes and Mejah Mbuya (Street Level):

• Promoting preservation of Dar Es Salaam’s architectural and cultural heritage.
• Created a series of cartoon sketches that depict daily life in Dar as well as landmark buildings.
• Dar is a dynamic city with a lot of history.
• How can we create a more sustainable city?
• How can we influence policy makers to be more sustainable?

Babu Sikare – Spoke about his experiences with albinism from his childhood days till present. He also expressed his reaction towards the albino killings in Tanzania. He’s started an NGO – Afrobino Inc that is working to educate albino’s about their condition and what they can do to prevent skin cancer which kills an average albino before the age of 35.

Rakesh Rajani – Told two stories. One of despair and another of hope. His first story illustrated the lack of education and medical in rural Tanzania. Swanky clinics are being built but there are not sufficient teachers, medical equipment, medical staff etc. ‘The hardware exists but none of the software’ is available. The second story was about a farmer who on the surface was just a subsistence farmer but in reality had a lot of profitable side businesses. Plenty of dynamism and innovation exists, we just need to get out of people’s way.

Selemani Kinyunyu – Started east Africa’s first carbon offset company ‘Offset Africa.’ He’s working with rural communities to offset carbon emissions whilst also improving local farming/environmental practices.

Vicensia Shule – Spoke about art, drama and dance in Tanzania and in particular about the cultural policies that have been established over time since independence. She was critical of Mwalimu Nyerere in that a concrete cultural policy was not defined during his tenure which left a gap till today in how the government views cultural affairs.

Modesta – Discussed the lack of human resource talent in Tanzania. She envisions confident, tenacious, professional, altruistic, entrepreneurial and patriotic Tanzanians and this will only be possible if we have a national vision to fill this gap with every policy geared towards this vision.

Young Kimaro - Described how each and every Tanzanian must change their cultural habits so that they do the best they can every day, every week, every month, every year if we are to compete with other nations. She compared how tiny Mauritius is able to draw 100 times more tourists because of their great service all the time.

My biggest critique of the sessions was that a lot of the discussion was geared around identifying or communicating problems that exist and less on identifying concrete solutions that could be put into place. Maybe I’m a little too optimistic.


What are your thoughts on the themes/issues discussed? Did you attend the event in person or online? Please leave your comments.

Siasa na Vikaragosi…

Leo hii nimekumbana na habari hii inayohusu kipindi hiki kinachoitwa Za Newz cha Afrika ya Kusini. Kipindi hiki kinafanana na ze comedy cha Tanzania, sema wao wanatumia vikaragosi na wamezamia zaidi kwenye ulingo wa siasa.

Kipindi kama hiki cha ze newz kina nafasi kubwa sana kwenye jamii zetu, hasa katika kuelimisha wanajamii maswala ya kisiasa. Tanzania tukiwa bado na mwamko mdogo katika siasa, vipindi kama hivi vinaweza kuongeza changamoto na mwamko wa kisiasa, hasa miongoni mwa sisi vijana. CCM wamenza kufanya hivyo kwa kutumia wasanii wa bongoflava, mfano ni katika kampeni yao ya mimi nimechangia, naomba na wewe uchangie pia.

Vyombo vya habari bado vinakazi kubwa kuhakikisha wananchi wanajihusisha na maswala ya kisiasa. Kupiga kura ni namna moja tu ya kujihusisha na siasa, lakini je tunazifahamu itikadi za wagombea vizuri. Lazima tujue katiba ya vyama tunavyotaka kuvipigia kura. Sasa kipindi kama Za Newz kinajitahidi kusogeza jamii karibu na maswala ya kisiasa kwa kutumia njia ya kukejeli na kuchekesha. Mimi ninadhani hiyo ni njia nzuri ya kuvuta jamii hasa vijana, na kuwapa habari juu ya maswala mbalimbali ya kisiasa.

Uchaguzi mkuu wa raisi na wabunge ndio huo unakuja, lakini je, sisi kama wapiga kura tumejiandaa vyakutosha, au tunaenda tu kupigia kura wale wagombea wenye sura zenye mvuto na matabasamu mazuri?

Bring on the learning revolution!

Creativity expert, Sir Ken Robinson makes the case for a radical shift from standardized schools to personalized learning -- creating conditions where kids' natural talents can flourish.

I certainly did enjoy the talk! Which part resonated with your spirit?

Ujumbe kwa TCU & CAS

Tumepata waraka huu kutoka kwa mmoja wa wasomaji wa Vijana FM (Japhet Joseph):

Tanzania Commission for Universities (TUC) ilibadilisha utaratibu wa wanafunzi kujiunga na elimu ya juu kupitia Central Admission System (CAS), ambapo mtu analazimika kutumia simu ya mkononi na mtandao (internet) kuomba nafasi.

Mfumo huu umesaidia kwa kiasi fulani lakini tatizo linakuja kwa wale ambao hawajajiunga mpaka tarehe hizi za mwisho, ambapo mwanafunzi analazimika kukaa kwenye internet café hadi saa tano usiku na kuendelea ili kupata huduma hii -- wakati huu system inakuwa haijaelemewa.

Suala lingine ni kwa wale waliopo vijijini. Hivi wanajua taratibu hizi mpya au wanaendelea kusubiri matangazo ya redio ili wakachukue fomu za vyuo vikuu? Tunaomba wanaohusika na huduma hii waboreshe taratibu hizi nyeti ili wanafunzi wote wapate fursa ya kuomba nafasi kwenye vyuo.

Tunashukuru kwa msaada wenu.

Welcome to *Badilisha Poetry X-Change.

Badilisha is a project of the Africa Centre, which promotes Pan-African poets through: Badilisha Poetry Radio, the only poetry podcasting platform dedicated exclusively to the voices of Africa and its Diaspora; and Badilisha Live which hosts two annual poetry events that include performance, workshops and lectures in Cape Town, South Africa.



Badilisha ni mpango wa kituo cha Afrika, kinachosaidia washairi wa Pan-African kupitia: Radio ya Washairi, jukwaa pekee linalojikita kwenye kupaza sauti za washairi kutoka Afrika na wale WaAfrika waishio nje ya bara la Afrika. Badilisha Live huandaa tamasha la ushairi mara mbili kwa mwaka, kukiwa na utambaji, warsha na mihadhara huko Cape Town, Afrika ya Kusini.

Mpango huu unazidi onyesha ni jinsi gani tunavyoweza kutumia majukwaa mbalimbali kuwasilisha matatizo yetu na kujadili masuala yanayojiri katika jamii zetu. Hii ni changamoto kwa sisi vijana, kwani kama sisi ni asilimia sitini ya watu wote Afrika, lakini kundi letu pamoja na kundi la wanawake, ni makundi makuu mawili yaliyosahaulika, hivyo kuna haja ya lazima kutafuta mbinu mbadala za kutetea haki zetu na kuhakikisha sauti zetu zinasikika.

Mapenzi

Anaitwa Loise van Baarle, mchoraji chipukizi kutoka Uholanzi. Hapa chini waweza tazama moja ya kazi zake, katuni fupi kuhusu mapenzi katika kijiji cha Tanzania.

tanzanian love story from Lois van Baarle on Vimeo.

Kwa zaidi, mtembelee hapa : http://loish.net/

What Do You Want to be When you Grow Up?

I'm sure everyone reading this blog was asked this question repeatedly throughout their childhood. Your answers to this also probably changed as you grew older and your interests changed. Some folks might still be trying to answer this question even beyond university and their first job. This post tries to shed some light on how one can go about finding what they want to do when they are growing up.

Trying out new things
I remember as a young boy, I was fascinated by planes. Naturally, whenever I got asked what I wanted to become, I would answer a 'pilot'. Then one day I was fortunate enough to be able to go see a cockpit of a plane (yes, this is before 9/11 and double reinforced doors). My initial reaction after looking at all the switches and lights was 'wow,' so cool. Soon, this changed to 'oh my god' as I was explained that one needed to learn how to use each and every switch before you got to fly. The aim of becoming a 'pilot' quickly went away.

The point of this story is that as you pass through more experiences the clearer your direction becomes. The example above was a simplistic one, but 'experiences' can be varied and not necessarily through employment. They can involve volunteering, athletics/sports, part-time work, boy scouts etc etc. It is also important to be open to trying out new things and keep your mind open, otherwise you will never know what you missed out on. These 'experiences' allows us to discover both what we like/don't like and our strengths/weaknesses. Do you like to work with and talk to people? Are you detail oriented? Are you a problem solver? The list goes one. Through this iterative trial and error process you may be able to arrive at your answer to 'what do you want to be when you grow up?'

Keep Talking
The trial and error process is a long term plan and takes time to take shape. To speed things up, you need to talk to a lot of people, even if you don't like to. Most people are more than willing to share their story, you just have to ask. If you don't know a lot of people you can start with your family members, siblings, parents, uncles, aunts and then ask them to refer you to others in your area of your interest. You can even request them to let you shadow them at work for a day to learn what its like. In return for their time and patience be extra willing to help them out with anything such as running errands, making a website, teaching them how to use a feature on their mobile phone etc.

The process of figuring out what you want to do in life can be daunting and confusing, but by following some of the suggestions above as well as starting early you may be able to make it an easier and fun process. Do you have stories of how you found out what you wanted to become? What other strategies have worked for you? Please share your thoughts.

Cross listed here.

Asset Based Community Development

Asset based community development seeks to shift models of community development from treating communities in need as clients who need a service that is brought from the outside. How does it do this? It calls for “discovering a community’s capacities and assets” to build community initiatives that are sustainable and assure that communities help create the very solutions they solicit outsiders to provide.

Every social entrepreneur knows understanding the community and its issues are the foundation to creating an initiative. How, then, do we go about “getting to know” our communities, whether we are from the very communities we seek to help or not? According to the model, the assets of a community are individuals, associations and institutions; this includes businesses, schools, hospitals or clinics, churches, cultural groups, etc. and says that community builders should work with these organizations with a goal of making them “become full contributors to the development process”.

This model also introduces a tool called “capacity inventory” which is much like a survey that would be taken of a community’s assets (individuals, associations and institutions). The model and the tools were developed and tested in urban Chicago and spread to other metropolitan areas in the United States but can easily be modified for the needs of any community. Go to "Read More" to find where you can take a look at the capacity inventory tool.

Have any of you used tools or models similar to the capacity inventory and asset based community development? Can you describe your models and how you carried it out in the community? What challenges were faced as a result of using this model and how were you able to overcome it?

READ MORE

Asset Based Community Development Institute – located at Northwestern University. This website has a LOT of information and literature on the model, all of which is a worthy read and free. To access its resource page, click HERE.

Capacity Inventory – click HERE to view the capacity inventory (scroll down to "Mapping Tools")

“Building Communities from the Inside Out” – read the 1993 publication that introduced me to asset based community development.

Questions to think about while you read: Do you agree with asset based community development? Are there any initiatives that you know of that can benefit or won’t benefit from using a model? Do you believe there are more models aside from service based and asset based community development?

Follow VijanaFM (@vijanafm) and Stephanie (@radiomorillo) on Twitter.

Radio for Peace Building Africa

I receive notices from Radio for Peace Building Africa, which is a project that supports educative and collaborative radio initiatives. Founded under Search for Common Ground, the goals for RFPA are as follows (as quoted from their website):

• To increase the knowledge and skills of radio broadcasters, and particularly youth radio broadcasters, in covering issues with multiple perspectives;
• To encourage key government officials to communicate effectively with their constituents;
• To improve the communication flow between policy makers and civil society members and radio broadcasters.

The notices that RFPA sends by e-mail to me may be useful to some of our readers, so I would like to share two particular notices I received this week (quoting directing from their e-mail):


Graca Machel Scholarships

The 'Graça Machel Scholarship Programme' will provide scholarships over an initial 3 year period and aims to empower disadvantaged women from Lesotho, Swaziland, Malawi, Mozambique and South Africa by providing them with an opportunity to further their professional development and thus play a constructive role in the development of their country. Scholarship applications are now available and will be open until 11 August, 2010. To download an application and learn more, visit: http://www.canoncollins.org.uk/scholarships/index.php

If you know of any new funding opportunities that we could advertise, please feel free to send us your suggestions to the following web address: rfpa@sfcg.org.

REMINDER: ACCRA Conference

18th -20th August 2010, Accra - Ghana: The Africa Media & Democracy Conference invites papers for its annual Africa Media and Democracy Conference. The theme for the Conference is: "Mediating Democracy in Africa".

ABSTRACTS & PAPERS: Please email abstracts (maximum one page) along with contact information and a 500-word bio to: info@amdmc.org.

All Abstracts must be in English, full papers may be submitted in either English or French.

· Deadline for receipt of abstracts: 30th April 2010

· Notice of acceptance of abstracts: 5th May 2010

· Deadline for receipt of full papers: 30th May 2010

For further information and other enquiries please contact Conference Team.

ENQUIRIES HOTLINE 24HRS: MOBILE: +233 54 3793228

For more information, please visit the Radio for Peace Building Africa website. They also have a Swahili version here.

Media in East Africa: Past and Present

I have been meaning to write a post about the Pan-Africa Media Conference held in Kenya on March 18th and 19th 2010.

Host to this conference was the Nation Media Group, an established and experienced media corporation based in Nairobi, Kenya with subsidiares and outlet across the East African region.

The conference served to highlight past and present experiences of media in East Africa, and to also anticipate future challenges and goals. As noted in the conference follow-up report, mediums are changing fast; what used to be published only in print yesterday is now being covered on TV channels, radios and blogs. Content is becoming dynamic, ever-changing, and easily transferable.

At the same time, the political economy in East Africa is changing. Our governments are talking to eachother about building a basic economic framework by which Uganda, Kenya, Rwanda, Burundi and Tanzania can trade freely. With this will come improvements in the mobility of people, goods and services in the region. And given the Seacom Fibre Optic Bandwidth project, more and more people have access to a broadband connection to the world wide web.

So what does this mean for East Africa? The conference has showed a few things, and these are my reflections on them:

1. We need to prepare for local, East African media spreading further to areas than just East Africa;
2. Mobile technology is competing with desktop and laptop technology - media websites need to keep mobile-readable websites in mind;
3. The subject matter of media is much more fluid than it was 50 years ago - people have more access now to discuss issues they want to discuss, and the media needs to prepare for this to continue to happen if not more;
4. News is now covered by anyone, not just professionaly-trained journalists. The quality is obviously different, but people can find out about things from people, not just their local radio news station. So media outlets need to consider how to give access for contribution to anyone (commenting on talk shows, blog posts, etc).

Let's see if media outlets (Vijana FM included) can live up to these challenges!

Links on this post:
Pan-Africa Media Conference website
Pan-Africa Media Conference follow-up report
Nation Media Group website
The East African newspaper website
Seacom Fibre Optic Bandwidth project
Vijana FM project website

Source: signed, ak (Monday, April 12, 2010)

Unapenda Mpira kuliko Elimu?

Jezi za timu zetu zilikuwa hazina majina ya wachezaji migongoni (na tunajua kwanini ilikuwa mwiko kwa wachezaji kubadilishana jezi baada ya mechi!). Lakini kila mtu - hasa mabeki wa vilabu Afrika Mashariki nzima - walikuwa wanajua kuandika "Edibily Jonas Lunyamila" kwa ufasaha. Ndio, jina la yule winga machachari aliyekuwa anatumia guu la m@#i! Hakika alitingisha Afrika Mashariki alipokuwa anavaa uzi wa njano.
Wengi tulikuwa tuna ndoto za kuwa kama Lunyamila, Mohammed Hussein "Mmachinga", Thomas Kipese "Uncle Tom", Kizota, Gagarhino...Nilishawahi kuota nawapiga 'matobo' mabeki kama Lunya; kupiga mashuti kama Chinga; kuteleza kwenye chaki kama Kipese; kupewa kadi nyekundu baada ya kupiga mabeki 'vipepsi' kama Kizota; na kuchana nyavu kama Gagarhino (hivi ni kweli jamaa alichana nyavu alipopiga penati dhidi ya timu ya Sigara?)! Tafadhali usiniulize ndoto zangu zimefinifikisha wapi - maana'ke itanibidi niandike kitabu ili kujibu hilo swali tu!

Kutokana na sababu mbalimbali baadhi ya wachezaji waliamua kusitisha masomo yao ya sekondari ili kujiingiza kwenye kabumbu ya ridhaa Tanzania. Sina uhakika, lakini kulikuwa na tetesi kuwa mmoja wa wachezaji maarufu aliingia kwenye kikosi cha kwanza cha Yanga wakati yupo kidato cha tatu na kuamua kuachana na shule baada ya 'kuhitimu' kidato cha nne.

Ndoto za kizazi cha sasa zimebadilika. Sasa hivi Vijana wana ndoto za kucheza mpira wa kulipwa nje ya nchi, hasa Ulaya. Sipingi kuwa Bongo kuna vipaji vingi sana, lakini huwa nashtuka pale Kijana anapoamua kuweka vitabu pembeni ili kujaribu kutimiza ndoto zake. Kwa kifupi, vikwazo ni vingi sana kwenye safari ya kuwa mchezaji wa kulipwa. Ukiangalia safari za Vijana wengine kutoka nchi mbalimbali waliofanikiwa utakubaliana nami kuwa ni kama kamari. Kuna kujeruhiwa, suala la kupata timu inayokufaa na kocha ambaye atakufanya ujiamini, na muhimu zaidi kuliko vitu vingine vyote ni kuwa utahitaji bahati sana.

Siwezi kuweka wachezaji chipukizi wote kwenye kundi moja; lakini itakuwa ni jambo la busara sana kutokimbia umande hadi pale utakapokuwa na uhakika kuwa utafanikiwa kwenye mpira wa kulipwa.

Pia, mawakala, makocha na watu waliokuwa karibu na wachezaji wenye ndoto za kusakata kabumbu Ulaya hawana budi kuwapa picha halisi na mawaidha ya busara kama The Right to Dream Academy ya Ghana inavyofanya.



Tunajua wapi wachezaji wengi wa Tanzania walipoishia na wanapoishia. Lakini, unadhani labda mambo yangekuwa tofauti kidogo kama wangejaribu kujiendeleza na mambo mengine? Bila shaka wangekuwa na fani nyingine baada ya kumalizana na mpira - hasa ukizingatia mpira wa kulipwa ni kazi ya miaka kumi hadi kumi na tano tu.