"CEOs can't wait to read Sunny Bindra's articles every week."

Apr 13, 2003
Economic growth is about mind, not matter

100 days is a ridiculously short period in which to start evaluating the performance of a new government. I guess it’s a nice round number, and gets public attention. But it is absurd to expect any real outcomes in just three months. Have new jobs been created, is inflation coming down, has forest cover increased? […]

Read More
Apr 06, 2003
What our cricket team says of us

On Thursday 20th March 2003, Kenya’s cricket team was doing a lap of honour having just lost a match in South Africa. Why? Because our cricketers had just been beaten by India in the semi-final of cricket’s World Cup. The crowd – South Africans, Indians, Kenyans – was on its feet applauding. And those of […]

Read More
Mar 30, 2003
They see no blood; they see only a chessboard

And so we have a war. If you listen to George W. Bush, this is a noble war indeed. It is about freeing Iraqis from the shackles of a cruel dictator. It is about creating a model for democracy in the Middle East. It is about eliminating terrorism from its roots. Don’t listen to this […]

Read More
Mar 23, 2003
A whole country to rebuild, and all we can do is play political games

The emperor Nero, it is said, played the fiddle while Rome burned. In Kenya today, our new leaders are showing a frightening propensity for doing the very same thing. The Narc government swept into power on a wave of huge public sentiment. The people had had enough of entrenched poverty, enough of poor services, enough […]

Read More
Mar 16, 2003
Kenya must embrace her prodigal sons and daughters

I want to tell you about a country I know. This country has a population of 20 million people. Its citizens include doctors, scientists, technologists, industrialists, shopkeepers, salespeople, artisans and housewives. The average income of this group is approximately 8,000 US dollars per annum- more than 20 times that of the average Kenyan. This country […]

Read More
Mar 02, 2003
The private sector must also embrace good governance

For years, Kenya’s corporate sector was in denial. Everything was the government’s fault: rotting infrastructure; imprudent monetary policies; corruption and malfeasance in public institutions. And, of course, that old favourite: the lack of a ‘level playing-field’. Meaning that while ‘we’ did things by the book, our competitors dodged taxes, maintained illicit relationships with power brokers, […]

Read More
Feb 23, 2003
Good governance is the measure of our civilisation

A new song is on every politician’s lips these days: good governance. Every minister, every permanent secretary, every technocrat, in the new government can be heard singing it for the cameras. The president even made it the cornerstone of his address at the state opening of parliament, and announced the creation of a special department […]

Read More
Feb 16, 2003
War with Iraq: a view from Kenya

The drums of war started beating around Iraq early last year. Today, a full orchestra is in place, led by its conductor-in-chief, George W. Bush. As the music of imminent destruction rises to a crescendo, we must ask ourselves here in Kenya: what is this war about? Does it have a rationale that we can […]

Read More
Feb 09, 2003
The new government’s big challenge: connecting the dots

Kenya’s new government is off to a flying start. There’s no shortage of activity as ministers roll up their sleeves and try to outdo one another in their quest to impress Kenyans. Civil servants and technocrats are having to work all hours to build the iceberg of details that must be constructed beneath the tip […]

Read More

Archives