A revolution is doubtful in Kenya but innovation can humanise the nation

Failure to plan is planning to fail. And central to every plan is a review, or at least an audit of the previous state of affairs that then guides the planning, informing of what gaps have been left, what gaping cracks need to be filled, which priorities are shouting the loudest. November is the best time to audit so that December can be left for planning, and this is what is on the agenda for the day.

LIP SERVICE

The one key thing missing in the nation is not more finance, it is not an end to corruption, it is not communities living in peace and oneness, it is humanity. Humanity and its component of fellow feeling, its aspect of compassion, its capacity to treat each person as a human being first and then apply the rules of the system second. You find it in isolated pockets sometimes, you find it with the stray individual here and there. But what is missing is existence in a systemised form. It needs to exist as a whole entity on its own, following which it could then be mainstreamed into other sectors and spaces. It needs to be recognised as the guiding value in the nation, which all others bow to, rather than the one barely even paid lip service to.

As has been outlined many times before, Kenya’s social, political and economic system is premised on dehumanisation. The Kenyan state was founded as a place to exploit and repatriate finance and resources, never a place to nurture or grow the human being. This is why the social conditions in the country are closer to a microwave rather than a greenhouse. The system is quicker to fry and boil its people than it is to tend to and fertilise them. And it is this of course that we must change. But first, a review. What has our humanity been like in 2019?

LOWEST LEVEL

When talking about humanity, it is easy to confuse it for simply being about warm and fuzzy feelings, standing in circles hugging and singing Kumbayah; which then keeps it in an abstract and theoretical space. Humanity, however, encompasses all aspects of the human being, body, mind and soul. In answer to what our humanity has been like in 2019: Not the best. People have been going hungry and dying from famine, people in cardboard boxes in slums have continued living like the wretched of the earth, people have been losing their minds over the economic conditions of the country.

The body of the nation — under which fall basic needs like housing, food, environment, clothing and daily living needs — is still far from being ideal. The famine in Turkana earlier in the year took place at the same time money had been set aside by the same county for a cultural festival. This inability to prioritise shows a disjunction between the county’s mind, body and soul, a reflection of the national state. The year has been rife with hysteria about toxic chemicals in food following media reports. This is an apt metaphor for what happens when values of grasping and getting-rich-at-whatever-cost run amok. The corruption at high levels has sunk down to the lowest level, the level of food, and we are cannibalising ourselves from our very plates. On housing, Kibera was the in the spotlight recently with the constituency by-elections. But forget the politics. Run your mind back to the housing situation, and think of how we have normalised flying toilets and people living in paper shanties. The economy has seen thousands lose jobs and multinationals continue to close shop in search of greener pastures elsewhere. The national body is bleeding.

NATION'S SOUL

Under the mind, we can examine education and the media. There hasn’t been a hullabaloo about exam cheating as was seen in previous years. That’s a good sign. That discipline aside, there hasn’t been news of an increase in the budget to the education sector, especially higher education, this is something vital if we are going to get the national mind right. Only a strong mind can lead a strong body. The mind has to be way ahead of the body, otherwise the body runs amok. Eliud Kipchoge’s “No human is limited” clarion call following the record-breaking challenge was one of the biggest deals of the year, hope reigned supreme. If all this excellence is possible in one sector, it is possible in all.

The national soul has been on an upward trajectory this year, one could say. There has been a continued focus on the creative economy and creative industries, led by groups such as HEVA. Training institutions for the arts are on the increase and even national universities have opened up to setting up new courses on the arts over time. Amid this, gender wars continue. There was an outcry against the stereotype that women from certain communities are murderers and women from certain communities are unmarriageable, following two high-profile events.

DYSFUNCTIONAL

As we evaluate the state of our humanity, it’s key to keep in mind that the problem is not that no people are doing the work, but that humanity itself is not recognised as a priority. It is a value still scoffed at and seen as a luxury. And so the government’s department of social services is one of the least funded, and organisations doing the work (NGOs and churches mostly) make their interventions with minimal coordination. Foreign donors still set the agenda for what our national priorities are, hence those perpetually deprived of humanity — the mentally ill, street families, slum dwellers, the jobless — continue wallowing in their dysfunctional cycles, life going on as normal.

There is a need for the government and those in the humanity and humanitarian sectors to heighten coordination, stop playing the defence game and get on offence. The question would then be, what would offence look like in 2020? What would be the key goals and targets?

INNOVATION

Many aggrieved still urge revolution but with the current social conditions (especially divided so ethnically) and Kenyans generally fearful of power and authority, the success of one is doubtful. Not to mention the drama and chaos and counter-revolutions and anarchy that would accompany it. What is needed is innovation. It could be that many of these solutions will not be given in the realm of the humanitarian world alone but working with others, such as the entrepreneurship sector. Because entrepreneurship by definition is about providing sustainable solutions to problems. Given all the problems we have, 2020 could be a potentially good year for us, if we do the planning well.

Ms Kamencu can be reached on [email protected]