My Tanzania, Will You Let Me Down?

I am a citizen of a country, a beautiful country in the East coast of Africa. I don't call it beautiful because I have been grown up to call it that way. No!, I am calling it beautiful because in the 23 years of my life, i have travel, seen, and lived in many parts of it, witnessed first hand the diversity of it, and more than anything fall in love with it.

I have embraced the diversity that cuts across religions, tribes, and a lot of other things that make Tanzania one of the most beautiful country in Africa.The differences I have mentioned earlier have been a cause of conflicts that escalates to total chaos, violence and death of thousands of people in our neighbor states, through out other states across Africa the story has been the same. But it is the existence of these differences, tolerating them, and stay united through one identification among us, is what has made us sustain peace and unity through it all.

The Senegal Story!

I love change, especially true change that is not under the influence of any outside interference. And this is why I am very interested on what is happening in Senegal right now, it is what Africa needs and I believe it is where all the continent is heading to. It is young people driving the change in all of these positive changes from Tunisia and Egypt to the peaceful through elections change in Zambia and now Senegal. There is no doubt that there is a big possibility of the incumbent president Abdoulaye Wade will lose in this election.

Young People are Now Becoming
The Main Voice for Change in Africa

In a country where 68 percent of the population out of the 12 Million is under the age of 25 [,http://www.acdi-cida.gc.ca/acdi-cida/acdi-cida.nsf/eng/JUD-217123240-NKY] and with a rate of over 100,000 young people entering the job market each year problems faced in Senegal are the same to those faced by other Sub-Saharan states. Where unemployment and under-employment are become more and more vivid on top of other problems such as corruption, high inflation, low wages in general workforce leaving the ruling class living in luxurious lifestyles, all these issues which were highly entertained due to the presence of a large population of uneducated people have no space in the current growing Africa population. 

More and more young people are becoming very concerned on their future, their countries future and more than anything the future of their own families. With this I believe more and more peaceful revolutions of long standing political parties and their ruling class are about to be replaced allover Africa if  immediate changes in their governance are not implemented. If Africa governments will continue to ignore various issues and social dissatisfaction of the young people, continuing to keep young people away from the development agenda then in this generation we will see more and more governments in Africa overthrown being peaceful as in Zambia and what will probably happen in Senegal or even the hard way as in Tunisia and Egypt.

Young People Wake Up lets take our future in our hands and build our Present and Future,
No One Will Give Us,Its Time to Stand Up and Be an Instrument of Change! Go Go Senegal!

A Successful Start!

I had a good start today for my project promoting internet and social media use and awareness for High School students in Tanzania. I worked hard to create a very easy to understand presentation about internet and social media. I worked on it for more than a total of 10 hours, thanks for the help I got from my brother who is in Dodoma for few days visit.


After all that hard work on presentation, today I woke up in morning ready to go for the first day of my project, visiting Central High School, located within Dodoma Town. With a projector that I got in the last minutes, I was with all that I did need for today´s presentation to go smoothly. Yesterday I visited the school to keep posters for today´s program, with the support of the school government I was sure it will all go perfect! BUT!!!!!!! I feared one thing, POWER! But I got there and everything was well, I had the students and electricity was OK.

After presenting on what Internet and Social Media is, I have come to realise there is more to be done than what our government and society think. In my log book out of all more than 40 students who did write down there contacts only few filled the email address space, and of those non got it right! And these were not O Level students, remember am dealing with A Level students, who have about a year to join university.

As I discuss and answer their questions I just realise how much we have to do to educate more youth on all things relate to internet. From setting up an email address to privacy settings of their social networks profiles.

Wait to read my next report when I will be visiting another local school here in Dodoma.

You can view more photos from my Google Plus public album by clicking here!

Please I welcome your comments and views on how I can improve what I am doing in this project, anyone is welcome to help me with a projector! I will appreciate!

Rising Smoking Habit And African Governments Position!

As we promote a tobacco free world, I would like to point out on the need for our governments in Africa to take a look into the smoking habit in the rise among young people.

For example in Tanzania, while we have written laws prohibiting the sale of cigarettes and alcohol to minors this is not what is happening in real life. Any youth, from any age in Tanzania can go to a shop and purchase a cigarette or alcohol without been asked anything by sellers.
It is time this issue to be tackle with action, there many minors who are falling into the addiction and hence exposure to various cancer related diseases. At the same time Alcohol expose them to various risk behaviors and sex predators. Unless governments in Africa take policies into action by dealing with all vendors who sell these products to minors, the present and future health of millions of youth across Africa is in danger!

This extract from US National Library of Health represents views of two scholars in early 1980s about the rising Smoking culture in Africa and it's impacts..and its plain clear what they had found about 30 years ago is more than true.

"World Smoking Health. 1982 Summer;7(2):25-30.

Smoking in Africa: the coming epidemic.

Taha A, Ball K.

Abstract

This discussion describes the development of tobacco smoking in Africa, the increase in consumption, and how tobacco use is promoted. It also presents evidence to show that smoking-related diseases similar to those seen in Western nations may be emerging. Tobacco was first introduced into Africa in the 16th century by the Turks who brought it into Egypt. The smoking habits of today's Africans are governed by local custom and economic status. Cigarette smoking is replacing the traditional pipe (hookah), although the latter is still used, particularly in rural areas. The prevalence of smoking is higher in urban than rural areas. Traditionally, only men smoked, but the proportion of women smokers is now rising. Smoking is also increasing among African children and adolescents. Cigarette consumption was examined in the 6 African countries from which statistics were available. In all of them, it rose steeply between 1967-76 and actually doubled in Libya and Ethiopia. In Egypt domestic cigarette sales increased by 23% between 1976-78, but sales of imported cigarettes rose by 25% in 1 year alone. Consumption of imported cigarettes is rising in many African countries. Between 1965-76 the volume of tobacco imports almost doubled. Cigarette smuggling is common in some African countries and may account for about 1/3 of total cigarette consumption in the Sudan. Some African countries are expanding tobacco agriculture so that they can supply their own needs. Nigeria has increased tobacco cultivation by about 10% a year to meet local dmeands. Zaire's imports of tobacco increased by about 30% between 1969-73 but now expects to become self sufficient in tobacco production. Tanzania's tobacco output incrased 7-fold between 1962-74 and will continue to grow through the help of the International Development Association. Cigarettes are heavily promoted in Africa. The advertisements present smoking as socially desirable by showing young, happy people and by relating it to manliness and success. Smoking-related diseases have already made their appearance in Africa. The 2 most common types of cancer in the Natal Bantu are lung and esophageal tumors. Lung cancer in Natal men has increased 6-fold and in women about 5-fold over the past 11 years. Other studies from southern Africa show much higher smoking rates in patients with lung cancer than in controls. The incidence of esophageal cancer in blacks in Durban, South Africa, and Zimbabwe is among the highest in the world. Other suggestive associations with cigarette smoking in African subjects are bladder cancer, myocardial infarction, and chronic bronchitis. Many Western governments and health authorities now try to persuade people not to smoke, and in some developed countries consumption has already begun to fall. As a result, tobacco companies have started to diversify and intensify promotion of cigarettes and the growth of tobacco in the 3rd world.

PMID:

12179604

[PubMed - indexed for MEDLINE

http://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pubmed/12179604

I remember Nigeria government tried to sue several Tobacco companies back in 2007 for 40$ billion in compensatory damages due to the health complications it left to the smokers. This was a good move but I real don't know how it ended. Anyone who knows how it ended? I look forward to see African governments sue everyone that is responsible for young smokers in African countries. Lets care about the health of these children who are not yet to understand the consequence of their actions.

Lets think, hope and act for not only a economically well Africa, but a healthy one too!

Thanks!!

AM WORKING HARD!

Thanks a lot. I have been receiving emails, people asking me what am doing 'why am I not updating my blog?'. Am working on few things and few weeks from now I will be updating this blog with also my activities socially.
I have always been looking for opportunities to encourage my fellow youths in social, political and economical developments and now I am about to take further steps in doing that. From March this year I will be spending much time in Dodoma, and when am there I will visit various local schools provide seminars to youths on various topics and where they will be teachers scarcity am planning to be spending one to two days in a week for helping to cover that space in local schools.
Am excited and it is going to very interesting and special time of the year to me, you got any view that will help me in making this thing more easy I welcome it.
I can't wait to ensure there are smiles on the little kids and fellow youths! I will be posting all developments, so stay with me!
Thank you all for your encouragement and care since 2007 to present! It has been a long journey and that time to do my part too has come! Thank you!

Stev,
'Kijana Makini kwa Taifa Makini!'

ELECTIONS ARE OVER! A TANZANIAN YOUTH REVIEW!

Firstly the report on the numbers of people who turned out for this year elections was discouraging. Only 42 percent of the 20 million registered voters turned out. This is truly a mark of low political awareness or as a friend of mine kept, that people still don't believe in free and fair elections. Whatever the case the turn out was poor!

I believe co-ordination system that was in place for processing the results was poor! Plainly poor! It might be much harder to convince the masses to take part in the future elections because they have lost trust in the body responsible for Elections due to things like what happened in these elections. It began with the mix up of names of voters by declaring some of the alive voters as dead! Dead and gone? Yeah! I can't imagine that happening to me, that is real scary! "People try to sue them!" Then it came to results, more than 72+ hours of waiting for the Results took away the trust of majority of voters. Actually mine has cracks!

To be honest most of the youths don't have trust in the body responsible for Elections, people kept a lot of trust in the body before the elections but the body failed them. Doubts is a big problem here. And in one way or another it's the Elections governing body that is keeping it's self in situations that encourage people to lose trust in it.

Before the 2015 Elections come it is the time for the body to sit down and see measures to be taken so as to avoid all the shortcomings that happened in these Elections. Lets create a system whereby the looser never looks for a fault knowing it is not there. Lets create a system that the society in general understands and trust in it, therefore it should real be transparent!

Presidential elections results for each polling post should be announced at the given local polling post, this will truly remove a lot of pressures that the body gets right now.

To Mr President, as a kijana with positive hope for my country, and on behalf of all other peace loving vijana, I would like to ask you in your new leadership of 5 years before you step down in 2015 give us the biggest democratic gift of all. Make the Election Body as independent as possible backed up by a new legislation in relating to all operations carried down by the Body. This will reduce accusations to future governments and furthermore it will rebuild and strengthen democracy, the trust in Free and Fair elections in our nation.

I believe by correcting the mistakes/shortcomings that happened in this year elections the Body will be helping in building trust between them and youths of this country. Lets remember without that trust the youths might be easily exploited to cause political unrests in the near future. Lets avoid all that by doing our best in ensuring that True and Fair Elections are always practiced in this beautiful nation!

God Bless Africa,
God Bless Tanzania!

ELECTIONS ARE HERE! VIJANA ARE WE PREPARED?

Prepared not to take bribes, but prepared to instruments of change. Change that is desperately needed. It can be any change, it depends from which prospect you judge it, but where i stand is a positive change by voting to serious people, am not talking about facial seriousness but seriousness in bringing maendeleo that we need.

Personally I am tired of corrupt officials, tired of politicians who are just talkers and not doers!!

It is our time vijana, time to take part in deciding our fate, our future prosperity and the future of our children and grandchildren for it is a solid truth that the people who will vote for in the coming few days will stay in government for a quite long time for them to cause lasting effects. Being positive or negative is what we are to decide!!

Lets stand up and MAKE AN IMPACT IN THESE ELECTIONS, LETS STAND UP AND DECIDE HOW WE WANT OUR COUNTRY TO BE LED IN THE COMING FIVE YEARS!

Lets not let political parties tear us apart, lets not let propaganda to influence our votes, lets let the need for a positive change, positive leaders influence our votes!

As we listen to the campaigns lets keep one thing in mind, LETS VOTE FOR REAL LEADERS AND NOT REAL POLITICIANS..LETS VOTE FOR PEOPLE WITH HUNGER FOR CHANGE AND NATION PROSPERITY.!!!


2010! Lets say 'Vijana tunaitaji zaidi!'

Sauti za Busara; The Right Place for a Better Understanding of Cultural Diversity!

As our Africa continent is being negatively affected by the globalization trend in terms of cultural values, Sauti za Busara stands as a better place to get the positive side of globalization. Sauti za Busara music festival presents the music from various parts of East Africa, the one stage presents to us what we should call the most beautiful cultural fusion of all time!


I argue African schools to find way to bring their students to experience 'the best positive culture event of all time!'.

Far from travelling to natinal parks and museums, its time for students to be exposed to the most beautiful musical festival of all time.

A Kijana! A African youth!!

Still I stand and walk tall
Walk tall against all odds against me...
A Sub-Saharan kijana....
Against HIV/AIDS, Malaria, Civil Wars, Draught, Unemployment and the like.
Still I stand....
I walk tall and with confidence and hope..
That one day things will change..
One day it will be peaceful and beautiful...
And all this will be a story to tell my grand children..
Yeah...it will be so......

But not without a fight..
Not without clean governments...
With good education systems..
Application of rule of law and democratic principles...
Promising us not only a better tomorrow but a better today...

Yeah..as I wake up....
A Kijana! A Youth! A proudly African Kijana...
I know things can change..
And am ready to influence those changes today...

Here I walk..Here I go....

Influencing changes and take part in making changes!!!!!