K
enya got independence over fifty
years ago and at that euphoric
moment we knew that we had
joined the comity of free nations and
would be invited to the table as an equal
partner in trying to navigate the progress
of humanity that we call life.
At independence we were under no
illusions and we recognized that education
and health were a crucial component in
lifting the Kenyan populace from the
indignity of poverty that we had blamed
on the colonialist.
It is a prudent practice for a person to
occasionally take a reality check and figure
out where he is at compared to where he
thought he was going, and this applies
to countries as well since as political
and economic entities they carry the
aspirations of the citizens they govern.
How is it that after all those years we are
still grappling with the same problem
and performing poorly for that matter?
Where did we go so wrong that we even
hear murmurings that the country needs a
revolution to get us back on track?
This is a conversation we need to
have as Kenyans. We need to ask the
uncomfortable questions and be willing to
delve into self-analysis and introspection
to try and get to the bottom of our
unfortunate situation which seems to be
getting out of hand.
The first question has to be whether we
actually got independence from Britain
in the same sense that the United States,
Canada, Australia and India also got
independence from Britain. How have
we fared in comparison to those that were
once subjects of the kings and queens of
the United Kingdom?
To attempt to answer this question we
need to figure out who currently runs
the world and how. In the history of the
empires, Great Britain was the last of
those countries that dominated the world
by sheer military might and subjugated
the globe and put it under colonial rule.
We know from philosophical studies
that leadership abhors vacuum and when
Britain and other colonial powers gave up
their colonies it was hoped that a body
like the United Nation would fill the void
and be the regulator of world affairs but
this has not been the reality.
Is this an indictment of our education sys-
tem that we produce paper pushers and not
productive workers? If we are unable to
produce the requisite manpower to create
economic prosperity then why are we going
to school? Yet Kenyans are obsessed with
school.
Whoever controls the world economy
by definition is the new global boss and
wields the same powers as the former
colonial powers did the only difference
being that it is now not by the use of
brutal force but by a clever manipulation
of world resources.
The group of nations that is dubbed the
G7 that meets annually had taken over the
role of the world government. This group
comprises of Canada, France, Germany,
Italy, Japan, the United Kingdom and the
United States.
These economic powerhouses had
managed to set the world agenda and they
formed a world economic empire that
subtly controlled the global wealth for a
better part of the twentieth century and
were able to maintain a skewed world
economy by their collective policies.
The United Nation which is a political
entity that has to be funded to operate
was mainly funded by these countries
and therefore they were able to also set a
political agenda for the world legitimized
by this world body. The owner of the purse
pulls the strings.
To complement the role of the United
Nation the World Bank was formed and it
is technically a part of the United Nation
system but since its voting structure is
proportional to the capital shareholding of
its members, it is evident that in operation
it is a tool of the G7.
In recognition of the changing dynamics of
global environment it became necessary to
expand the group of seven to incorporate
the changing global economic reality and
a new group of economic giants was set up
to keep a tab on the economic pulse.
The G20 was formed in 1999 as a
forum to ostensibly discuss policies that
touched on the global financial stability.
The countries included were those that
had strong economies and also included
were various emerging markets that were
showing potential.
These countries included Argentina,
Australia, Brazil, Canada, China, European
Union, France, Germany, India, Indonesia,
Italy, Japan, Mexico, Russia, Saudi Arabia,
South Africa, South Korea, Turkey, United
Kingdom and United States.
To put it in perspective these countries
control over 75% of the international
trade, account for about 85% of the global
GDP. These countries occupy about half
of the earth’s land area but they make up
approximately two thirds of the world
population.
What is worth noting is that the European
Union, which is an economic bloc is
represented hence all member states get a
voice although technically not members of
the G20. Note also that Africa has only
one member, South Africa and we can
question whether she really represents
Africa.
To set the scene for our conversation we
need to also note that even in the United
Nation, there are those that are more equal
than others. The most powerful organ of
this world governing body is the Security
Council.
This council comprises of fifteen members
of which five are permanent members. The
permanent members are China, France,
Russia, the United Kingdom and the
United States. Of interest is that these five
nations have individual veto powers that
can negate the decision of the fifteen.
To paint a more balanced picture we need
to have a look at the other end of the
economic spectrum and here we notice
that Kenya does not belong to the list of
Least Developed Countries commonly
known as LDCs which interestingly
include Uganda, Tanzania, Rwanda,