Nairobi Forum: Is Somalia Ready for Foreign Investment? Jan. 17 2014 @ Serena Hotel

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9am – 12pm ǀ Friday 17 January 2014 ǀ Amani Room ǀ The Serena Hotel

Private sector development is crucial to generating employment, stimulating livelihoods, and the provision of basic services in Somalia. Nevertheless, Somalia remains a challenging environment for most Somali and foreign investors.

An analysis of market potentials and business strategy, and an understanding of local business practice is necessary. This meeting, organised by HanVard Africa and the Nairobi Forum of the Rift Valley Institute, will examine the opportunities and challenges of private sector development in Somalia. It will discuss opportunities for national and international investors in manufacturing and in key sectors such as oil, gas, construction, agricultural production, livestock, fisheries and banking.

The speakers are drawn from the private sector, government, and the donor and diplomatic communities.

Chair
Jonathan Brooks, UNDP PREP Director

Panellists
Luca Alinovi, FAO Regional Director
Shirwa Jama, IDLO Somalia Country Director
Hassan Noor, HanVard Africa, CEO
Davis and Shirtliff
UAP

Entrance is by prior registration only. Register here.

Nairobi Forum: South Sudan Is Peace Possible? Voices from Civil Society, Jan. 10 2014 @ Louis Leakey Auditorium

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Date: Friday 10 January 2014
Venue: Louis Leakey Auditorium, National Museum of Kenya
Time: 6 – 8pm

Entry: Prior RSVP

Panelists : Jok Madut Jok – Sudd Institute, David Deng- South Sudan Law Society, Leben Moro – Centre for Peace and Development Studies, University of Juba and Don Bosco Malish – Open Society Initiative for Eastern Africa

Thousands have died and hundreds of thousands have been displaced as a result of the political crisis in South Sudan. Armed conflict continues as peace talks between government and opposition begin in Addis Ababa.

Leading South Sudanese civil society institutions have come together in Nairobi to sponsor discussion of the current situation, its historical origins and the prospects for a peaceful resolution.

The meeting is organised by the Rift Valley Institute’s Nairobi Forum and supported by the Open Society Initiative for Eastern Africa.

Challenges Facing Africa

Aly-Khan Satchu’s #Mindspeak Co-hosted with Vimal Shah: Guest IMF MD Christine Lagarde, Jan. 6 2013 @ Inter-Con Nairobi

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Challenges Facing Africa
Date: January 6, 2013
Venue: Intercontinental Hotel
Time: 1530-1700 Hrs
Entry: Prior Invite

Chief Guest: International Monetary Fund Managing Director Christine Lagarde

About
Aly-Khan Satchu is the CEO of RICH.CO.KE and convenor of mindspeak.
Prominent guests to grace mindspeak sessions in the past include sitting African heads of state [HE Paul Kagame & HE Yoweri Kaguta Museveni], European Ministers [HE Didier Reynders – Belgian Deputy Premier and Minister of Foreign Affairs & Ms. Lilianne Ploumen – Minister for Foreign Trade and Development Co-operation of the Netherlands] and industry captains.

Vimal Shah is the CEO of Bidco Oil Refineries and Chairman of Kenya Private Sector Alliance

Essential reads on M/s Christine Lagarde: The Guardian’s Christine Lagarde: can the head of the IMF save the euro? by Decca Aitkenhead

Nairobi Forum: ‘Other’ Kenya – Conversation w/ AlJazeera’ Mohammed Adow, Dec. 18 2013 @ KICC – Aberdares Room

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Date: December 18, 2013
Venue: KICC Aberdares Room, Harambee Ave
Time: 6 – 8:30 pm
Entry: Prior RSVP here

Mohammed Adow’s documentary, Not Yet Kenyan, which aired on Al Jazeera English Channel on 14 November this year brought to the fore the divide in Kenyan society, revealing a history of institutionalised discrimination against ethnic Somalis of North Eastern Kenya since independence.

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=ACBT0fOIFvk

About
Born and raised in Garissa County of northeast Kenya, Mohammed Adow has lived through and witnessed at first hand the political and economic marginalisation of this part of Kenya. For Not Yet Kenyan he went back to see how the region and its people had survived and started to prosper, only to find that Kenya’s intervention in Somalia and the actions of al-Shabaab are threatening to throw the region into turmoil.

Event while we celebrate Kenya at 50
During this meeting organised by the RVI Nairobi Forum, Gabriel Gatehouse of the British Broadcasting Corporation (BBC) will talk with fellow journalist Mohammed Adow about his experiences and the story behind this documentary. Dr Ekuru Aukot, a Constitutional Lawyer, who hails from Turkana in northwest Kenya will discuss the issues raised by Adow.

Panellists
Mohammed Adow, Al Jazeera English
Gabriel Gatehouse, BBC
Dr Ekuru Aukot, Constitutional Lawyer

the East African Arts Summit

7th E. African Arts Summit: Incorporating 10 years of the GoDown, Nov. 21-23 2013 @ Various Venues

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the East African Arts Summit
Where is East Africa headed? Socio-political, Economic, Cultural and Technological outlook for coming decades, and their implications for culture and the arts

The 7th Edition of the East Africa Arts Summit will take place from Thursday 21st to Saturday 23rd November in Nairobi, Kenya. It comes at a time of milestone anniversaries in the region. Most East African nations are marking or have recently marked 50 years of Independence, while at the same time, several influential arts organizations in the region celebrate their contribution to a decade of significant change for East Africa’s cultural sector.

As part of The GoDown Arts Centre’s celebration of ten years of diverse events and activities, it invites regional colleagues, artists and arts organizations to reflect on possible future scenarios for East Africa.
The discussions, framed within socio-political, economic, cultural and technological contexts will examine potential prospects, and challenges. The GoDown will also share its ten-year journey in the regional sector, highlighting its perceptions and indicating notable issues for the arts in coming years.

Sparking off the discussion will be keynote speakers envisioning possible directions for East Africa based on current developments; East African Community integration; increasing political awareness by regional citizens; oil, gas and mineral deposits in East Africa; burgeoning youth population and unemployment; urbanization; a growing middle class; infrastructural developments–mobile telephony, fibre-optic installation, rail, road and ports; East African innovators, etc –followed by round-table discussions by all participants around key themes on the place and purpose of the arts within these possible futures.

Events open to the Public: The GoDown Gig – Celebrating the 10 years of the GoDown
the GoDown Gig
Date: November 23, 2013
Venue: the GoDown Arts Centre
Time: 5 pm till dawn

Performances by: Sarabi, Iddi Achieng and Makadem
On the Decks: DJ Kafi

Spoken Worlds

Lost in Translation? Panel Discussion, Performances & Open Stage, Nov. 13 2013 @ Goethe Institut

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Spoken Worlds
Date: Wednesday 13th November
Venue: Goethe-Institut Auditorium
Time: 6.00 pm
Admission: free

Does translation open up new frontiers for art or does it lead to the loss of context and the purity of the work? Join 16 poets, spoken word and rappers from the SPOKEN WOR:L:DS project (that draws artists from Nairobi and Berlin) as they discover and debate the joys and challenges of translation and the translatability of lyrics. They shall also share their experiences of the project as well as subsequent performances. Rappers, Poets, Spoken Word artists are very welcome to present their work during the open stage segment. (Please register through spokenworlds@literaturwerkstatt.org or at Goethe Institut by Wednesday, November 13th between 4:00 pm – 6:00 pm.) Karibuni nyote!

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SPOKEN WOR:L:DS – lyrical performance between Nairobi and Berlin – is an international literature exchange project between artists from both cities, focusing on contemporary performance poetry.

It takes up impulses of Poetry, Spoken Word, Slam Poetry and Rap, which are art forms that mix literature, music, dance, and visual arts. Eight artists from Berlin, including Josefine Berkholz, Diamondog, Erko, Christian Filips, Josh, LMNZ, Madog, Sabine Scho will meet the following artists from Nairobi: Checkmate, L-Ness, Ogutu Muraya, Wanjiku Mwaurah, Namatsi, Sitawa Namwalie, Octopizzo, and Poetic B.

The project takes place in Nairobi November , 9th – 15th 2013 and in 5th – 12th April 2014 in Berlin.

SPOKEN WOR:L:DS is a project by Literaturwerkstatt Berlin, Maono Cultural Group and Kwani Trust in cooperation with Goethe-Institut Kenya. It is funded by the TURN Fund of the German Federal Cultural Foundation, Heinrich-Böll-Stiftung and supported by Goethe-Institut, Auswärtiges Amt, and Gangway e.V. The project’s media partner is AfricAvenir.