Items by Ken Opalo

Opalo's weblog

• On Industrial Policy (In which I concur with Blattman 1001%)

  Posted: May 7, 2012, 8:43 pm by Ken Opalo

  I have made the case before here, here and here. For more here’s Blattman, commenting on Industrial policy: “You can’t pick winners” is the knee-jerk retort to the mention of anything that even rhymes with industrial policy. I would call it the triumph of ideology over evidence, except that even “ideology” feels like a generous [...]

• Some Readings in Economic Anthropology

  Posted: May 1, 2012, 12:50 am by Ken Opalo

  Perhaps in a subconscious attempt to distract myself from writing my dissertation prospectus I am currently taking an Economic Anthropology class [and loving it] with Jim Ferguson, author of Expectations of Modernity, among other famous works in Economic Anthropology. The class has a fascinating reading list that includes works like Debt (by the anarchist David [...]

• Kenya’s Obscene Politician’s Salaries: Still a Problem

  Posted: April 30, 2012, 10:08 pm by Ken Opalo

  President Kibaki will probably not win the Mo Ibrahim Prize because of his questionable reelection but he sure will leave office a happy man. According to the Star: “When President Kibaki walks out of State House after the next elections, he will go home with a hefty gratuity—Sh50 million. The gratuity, the highest to be [...]

• World Bank President Doubles as a Rapping Spaceman

  Posted: April 20, 2012, 12:58 am by Ken Opalo

  Just in case you haven not seen this yet: H/T Erin. Filed under: africa Tagged: Barack Obama, barrack obama, dartmouth, development economics, epidemeology, Erin Pettigrew, hanover new hampshire, jim kim, poverty, public health, World Bank, World Bank President

• Big vs. Small Development

  Posted: April 16, 2012, 12:37 am by Ken Opalo

  The Economist raises an interesting question regarding approaches to “development,” claiming that the recent race for the World Bank presidency represented a contest between two broad approaches: Michael Woolcock, a World Bank staffer, suggests that two rather different models of development have been pitted against one another in the contest for president. On the one hand is [...]

• Your statistical guide to The Hunger Games

  Posted: April 15, 2012, 6:05 am by Ken Opalo

  If you need some relaxing weekend reading be sure to check out the statistical guide to The Hunger Games. It is pretty awesome, really. This is how the author (Brett Keller), described it: Whenever a new fad  takes over pop culture, social scientists take note. They host conferences, teach courses, and write popular pieces trying to tie the [...]

• Elite political instability continues in Guinea-Bissau

  Posted: April 13, 2012, 9:30 am by Ken Opalo

  UPDATE: The coup leaders have set up a transitional government and dissolved all state institutions. The BBC reports: Soldiers have taken control of much of the capital of the Guinea-Bissau in what appears to be a coup attempt. Heavy gunfire was been heard in the city of Bissau and the residence of outgoing President Carlos [...]

• This is why you should “never text and walk at the same time”

  Posted: April 11, 2012, 7:58 am by Ken Opalo

  Love texting while walking? You might run into a bear: H/T Brad DeLong Filed under: africa Tagged: bear, Brad DeLong, texting while walking

• Is regionalism helping the East African Community

  Posted: April 11, 2012, 4:10 am by Ken Opalo

  Evidence seems to suggest it is: Trade between the EAC countries almost doubled from $2.2 billion in 2005 to $4.1 billion in 2010, although regional trade with the rest of the world expanded faster, meaning that the relative share of intra-EAC trade has stayed around 21 per cent since 2005 [The African Average is 11 [...]

• Rumors that Mugabe is “fighting for life” in Singapore

  Posted: April 10, 2012, 10:16 am by Ken Opalo

  UPDATE: The sensational rumors about Mugabe’s health situation appear to be just that. The government is denying that the longtime autocrat is critically ill. According to Reuters: A terse Zimbabwean government statement saying a weekly cabinet meeting set for Tuesday had been postponed to Thursday had fed the rash of media speculation about the president’s [...]

• More on Obama’s WB President Nomination

  Posted: April 9, 2012, 9:52 am by Ken Opalo

  Nigerian Ngozi Okonjo-Iweala is definitely the dream candidate for the Bank. But the realities of U.S. domestic politics and foreign policy concerns are stacked against her nomination to the presidency of the Bank. It will be hard for the U.S. to selflessly relinquish an important tool of foreign policy and influence in the Bank’s presidency. [...]

• Will Joyce Banda become Malawi’s next president?

  Posted: April 7, 2012, 11:04 am by Ken Opalo

  UPDATE: The New York Times is reporting that Malawi’s vice president, Joyce Banda, was sworn in as president on Saturday, ending a tense 36 hours of speculation and confusion about the future of one of central Africa’s most enduring democracies after the death of President Bingu wa Mutharika on Thursday. UPDATE: government broadcaster MBC officially [...]

• Bingu wa Mutharika, Malawian President, is dead

  Posted: April 6, 2012, 2:09 pm by Ken Opalo

  The Daily Nation reports the passing away of Malawian President Bingu wa Mutharika (May he rest in peace). Vice President Joyce Banda is next in line to run the country, according to the constitution. But her succession to power could create new political tensions, because Mutharika kicked her out of the ruling party in 2010 [...]

• The complex problem of slavery in Mauritania, a response

  Posted: March 20, 2012, 1:43 am by Ken Opalo

  This is a guest post by Mauritania (and the broader Sahel) expert and  friend of the blog Erin Pettigrew (PhD Candidate, Stanford University) A response to John D. Sutter over at CNN.com I’ve been working in Mauritania on and off for the past eight years and this issue of ‘slavery’ is still one I am [...]

• The complex problem of slavery in Mauritania

  Posted: March 20, 2012, 1:40 am by Ken Opalo

  Over winter break I was in Mauritania, a vast country slightly bigger than Egypt but with a population 24 times smaller than Egypt’s. Whenever I told people where I was going they usually paused to ask where Mauritania was. I was a little more disturbed when Mauritanian gendarmes had no idea where Kenya was. The [...]

• Bongo jams

  Posted: March 17, 2012, 12:15 am by Ken Opalo

  It is week 10, the end of the quarter, and time to be just a little home sick – and listen to some bongo flavour. Found this PSA on letting girls go to school. Swahili speakers out there, enjoy.   Filed under: africa Tagged: bongo flavour, bongo music, educate the girl child, fataki, psa, tanzania

• Kony 2012

  Posted: March 13, 2012, 12:58 am by Ken Opalo

  As if you have not had enough… Click and watch this amazing rap parody of Invisible’s Kony2012 campaign. H/T @viewfromthecave   Filed under: africa Tagged: Alice Lakwena, child soldiers, gulu, Joseph Kony, kony2012, lord's resistance army, LRA, Uganda, Yoweri Museveni

• Can RCTs be useful in evaluating the impact of democracy and governance aid?

  Posted: March 11, 2012, 1:44 am by Ken Opalo

  The Election Guide Digest has some interesting thoughts on the subject. Here is quoting part of the post: The use of the RCT framework resolves two main problems that plague most D&G evaluations, namely the levels-of-analysis problem and the issue of missing baseline data. The levels-of-analysis problem arises when evaluations link programs aimed at meso-level [...]

• CNN under fire for alarmist reporting of Nairobi blasts

  Posted: March 11, 2012, 1:26 am by Ken Opalo

  The Kenyan online community reacted with harsh criticism to CNN’s reports of the grenade blasts in Nairobi. The news network reported on the story with footage from 2007-08 and gave the impression that violence had erupted all over the country. Grenade attacks by suspected al-Shabab operatives killed six people at a bus terminal in Nairobi. [...]

• On the unintended consequences of the Sachs-Kristoff syndrome

  Posted: March 7, 2012, 1:43 am by Ken Opalo

  Badvocacy alert! With due apologies to the eminent economist and journalist. Invisible Children’s Kony 2012 publicity push is generating some backlash. Here is quoting Under the Banyan: Critics of the Invisible Children campaign say that while it is well-intentioned and while Kony deserves international condemnation, there are questions about the organisation’s methods, money and support [...]

• How I would not lead the World Bank – Bill Easterly

  Posted: March 5, 2012, 10:29 pm by Ken Opalo

  For those, like me, who still miss Aid Watch, here is Easterly over at FP: I would not appoint U.S.-educated elites vetted by their autocratic home governments to represent the underrepresented peoples of the world. I would not negotiate the contents of World Bank reports with governments in either the West or the Rest, except [...]

• Africa’s Singapore or Uganda waiting to happen?

  Posted: March 3, 2012, 9:56 am by Ken Opalo

  Yet Rwanda has one huge advantage: the rule of law. No African country has done more to curb corruption. Ministers have been jailed for it. Transparency International, a watchdog, reckons Rwanda is less graft-ridden than Greece or Italy (though companies owned by the ruling party play an outsized role in the economy). “I have never [...]

• 2011 KCSE results

  Posted: February 29, 2012, 1:16 pm by Ken Opalo

  The break down is as follows: The usual suspects dominate the top ten list – with the new addition of Maranda. Boys take 7 out of the top ten positions. Top girl fourth (from Alliance Girls). Top three students from St. Peter’s, Kakamega, and Alliance High School. Top ten schools are: Maranda High School Alliance [...]

• kCSE results to be released tomorrow

  Posted: February 28, 2012, 10:53 pm by Ken Opalo

  The 2011 Kenya Certificate of Secondary Education (KCSE) results will be released tomorrow. The exam is a make or break affair for most students since it is the key determinant of whether they will continue on to college or drop off the education ladder and join scores of unemployed youth with limited economic prospects. These [...]

• Njenga Karume dead at 83

  Posted: February 24, 2012, 9:24 am by Ken Opalo

  Former Defense Minister and GEMA leader Njenga Karume is dead at 83. Mr. Karume succumbed after a long battle with cancer. The late Karume, who made most of his money from the beer distribution business, was one of the most influential and richest politicians among the “independence generation.” Njenga Karume was mostly a self-made man [...]

• Lest we forget…

  Posted: February 22, 2012, 10:29 am by Ken Opalo

  There was a time when Somalia was different… Democracy is also a deeply rooted Somali political principle which, I suspect, continues much as usual in the more remote parts of the nomadic interior. How long it will be before it reasserts itself in the central political life of the state remains to be seen. We [...]

• Kenyan politician John Michuki dead at 80

  Posted: February 21, 2012, 1:08 am by Ken Opalo

  John Michuki, MP for Kangema is dead at 80. The late Michuki was a Kenyan politician that many learned to love (and sometimes love and hate). As Transport Minister he brought sanity to the rowdy matatu sector with the much-loved “Michuki Rules”. As Minister for the environment he cleaned up Nairobi River. His less illustrious [...]

• The dangers of simplistic single narratives

  Posted: February 21, 2012, 11:17 am by Ken Opalo

  As Stearns argues in this excellent book, the causes of the conflicts in eastern DRC are multiple and complex. Yet simple narratives in the media and among aid workers and advocacy groups have tried hard to reduce these causes to a fight over minerals; and similarly the consequences as mass rape of women and young [...]

• Kenyan Intervention in (al-Shabab dominated) Southern Somalia

  Posted: February 15, 2012, 1:16 am by Ken Opalo

  The ICG has an excellent new report on the state of the the Kenyan military intervention in Somalia. The pressing issues raised in the report include economic, political and social concerns: The slow pace of the military operation and the high cost of keeping troops in the field are the main reasons behind Nairobi’s desire [...]

• 14th of February Edition

  Posted: February 14, 2012, 12:37 am by Ken Opalo

  Click to enlarge. Source: http://benkling.tumblr.com/ H/T Paul G. Filed under: africa Tagged: adolf hitler, castro, chairman mao, China, cuba, dictators, fascism, fidel castro, germany, hitler, joseph stalin, karl marx, leon trotsky, love, Mao Zedong, marx, memes, peace, revolutions, Russia, Saint Valentine, soviet union, stalin, trotsky, Valentine's Day, war

• College Memes Edition

  Posted: February 13, 2012, 1:59 am by Ken Opalo

  It’s a rainy Monday in Palo Alto.. More on this here. Filed under: africa Tagged: college memes, foreign aid. summer volunteer work. ethics of summer volunteer work, Stanford University

• Zambia’s Chipolopolo win the Africa Cup of Nations

  Posted: February 13, 2012, 2:10 pm by Ken Opalo

  Congratulations to the Chipolopolo and their fans all over the world! Filed under: africa Tagged: Abidjan, Africa Cup of Nations, caf, CAN, Chipolopolo, equatorial guinea, Gabon, Ivory Coast, lusaka. libreville, malabo, Zambia

• Innovation in Kenya

  Posted: February 11, 2012, 1:11 am by Ken Opalo

  The Kenyan tech industry just got another boost, this time from the global phone maker Nokia. The Sunday Nation reports: Nokia plans to make Nairobi its global hub for research and investment for the India, Middle East and Africa region. The move is a big win for the country which will serve as a nerve [...]

• A note from Mr. Development Man

  Posted: February 9, 2012, 12:57 pm by Ken Opalo

  Perhaps after experiencing a Bill Easterly moment, a friend of mine (grad student here at Stanford) had this on his facebook wall: “Hello, my name is Mr. Development Man. I know Africa so much!! I went there one summer and stayed with an NGO. I talked to my servant cook who served me food, so [...]

• Stanford Africa Forum 2012 (Feb 25th)

  Posted: February 7, 2012, 5:29 am by Ken Opalo

  Please register here. Filed under: africa Tagged: Danladi Verheijen, equity bank, Graduate School of buisiness, James Mwangi, Jeff Sachs, Jeffrey sachs, Stanford, stanford africa forum, stanford gsb, Stanford University, the end of poverty, the end of poverty and the economic possibilities of our time

• Stanford Africa Forum 2012 (Feb 25th)

  Posted: February 6, 2012, 10:45 am by Ken Opalo

  Here is introducing the annual Stanford Africa Forum: SAF is organized by a multinational and multidisciplinary group of Stanford University students who share a common passion: a firm belief in the potential and promise of the African continent. Previous editions of the Forum have placed the spotlight on this potential and we plan to continue [...]

• In which Mitt Romney channels Downs (1957)

  Posted: February 2, 2012, 8:20 am by Ken Opalo

  Sometimes politicians get out of character and reveal the naked truth about the strategic logic of hunting for votes in a two-party electoral system. Briefly stated, the median voter rules (also check this out). For more on this check out the piece on the Times website. Filed under: africa Tagged: american politics, Antony Downs, Barack [...]

• Picture of the Day

  Posted: February 2, 2012, 3:25 am by Ken Opalo

  Introducing the Magdeburg Water Bridge in Germany. Filed under: africa Tagged: canals, elbe, Infrastructure, Magdeburg Water Bridge, Magdeburg Water Bridge in Germany

• Africa’s most forgotten Democrat

  Posted: February 1, 2012, 7:20 am by Ken Opalo

  Who was the first leader of independent Africa who lost an election and agreed to step down? No, it was not Mathieu Kerekou of Benin. Because my adviser [I doubt he reads this blog] spent some of his early years in academia working and publishing on Somalia, I have been reminded quite a few times [...]

• South Africa and the AU [Rant and rave alert!!]

  Posted: January 31, 2012, 11:23 am by Ken Opalo

  As you may already know South African candidate for the AU Commission Chair Nkosazana Dlamini-Zuma (ex-wife of president Zuma) failed to get elected. Instead the AU extended Mr. Jean Ping’s term till June. Ms Dlamini-Zuma intends to vie for the seat again in June. South Africa and its backyard (SADC member states) had lobbied hard [...]

• The Extramarital Origins of Poverty and dictatorship?

  Posted: January 30, 2012, 9:08 am by Ken Opalo

  Polygyny is widespread across many human societies…. Yet in much of the world, particularly the wealthier parts, monogamy — albeit with cheating around the edges — has flourished. Why? The article says the answer lies in the “group selection” advantages conferred by the one-wife norm, which reduces the pool of men who can’t find any [...]

• Why go into investment banking (as opposed to grad school)?

  Posted: January 27, 2012, 11:47 pm by Ken Opalo

  Davos envy and Romney’s income in the last two years (and tax rate) have got quite a few people thinking and talking about the morality and usefulness of the financial sector. The odd thing, however, is that ever more brilliant college leavers (including from my alma mater) continue to be attracted to the financial sector [...]

• How Africa Tweets

  Posted: January 26, 2012, 10:58 am by Ken Opalo

  Click on image to enlarge. Just out of curiosity I did a quick calculation of per capita tweets based on the figures from Portland Communications. The biggest difference between the two rankings is Gabon. My guess is that the rather slight variation in the right and left columns (especially for the top ten) is a [...]

• Wade of Senegal insists on third term

  Posted: January 26, 2012, 4:29 am by Ken Opalo

  UPDATE: The BBC reports that riots erupted in Dakar after a court in Senegal declared President Wade eligible to run in next month’s general election. President Wade will be seeking a third term in office. More on this hear. ********************************************* It looks like Senegalese may be forced to live with their country’s model of soft [...]

• Kenya’s stalled operation in Somalia

  Posted: December 13, 2011, 4:35 am by Ken Opalo

  The East African reports: There are four major factors that have bogged down the military campaign. They are: Lack of finances to run a long-drawn war; the differences between interested parties over whether to divide Somalia into autonomous regions or maintain one united country; differences over the option to engage Al Shabaab in a political [...]

• Happy Jamuhuri Day to all the Wananchi out there!

  Posted: December 12, 2011, 3:24 am by Ken Opalo

  Kenya is 48, with a lot to celebrate. Happy Jamuhuri Day!   Filed under: africa Tagged: Achieng' Oneko, Bildad Kaggia, Daniel Arap Moi, James Gichuru, Jomo Kenyatta, kapenguria six, Kenya, Kijana Wamalwa, Masinde Muliro, mau mau, Mwai Kibaki, Nairobi, Oginga Odinga

• Live blogging the Kenya National Dialogue and Reconciliation Conference

  Posted: December 5, 2011, 3:01 pm by Ken Opalo

  Here is a link to the live stream. I will post my own comments on the day’s proceedings later tonight. Filed under: africa Tagged: Kenya, Kenya National Dialogue and Reconcialiation Conference, KNDR, Nairobi, Upper Hill

• The missing big thinkers

  Posted: December 5, 2011, 8:38 am by Ken Opalo

  In order to think big your country/region must have some geopolitical significance… or so it seems. Here is a quote from the comment section on Dan Drezner’s post on the big thinkers that were overlooked in the FP 100 top thinkers list. What’s the criteria for big thinkers? do they precede big issues or are [...]

• Tough trying to be good in a bad neighborhood

  Posted: December 4, 2011, 9:32 am by Ken Opalo

  A few days ago a Kenyan judge ordered the government to arrest Sudanese President Omar al-Bashir if he ever sets foot in Kenya. Mr. Bashir has an outstanding arrest warrant against him from the ICC for crimes against humanity committed since 2003 in Darfur. The ruling has since metastasized into a full blown diplomatic row; [...]

• Tackling Africa’s Image Problem

  Posted: December 1, 2011, 11:13 pm by Ken Opalo

  Back in 2000….                 And now… The latest issue of the Economist has “Africa” on the cover, with the pronouncement that the continent has, in the last ten years, moved from hopeless to hopeful. Africa’s enthusiasm for technology is boosting growth. It has more than 600m mobile-phone users—more [...]

• More than 30 million dead, and counting…

  Posted: December 1, 2011, 2:20 pm by Ken Opalo

  But it can be stopped. Be aware. Filed under: africa Tagged: HIV/AIDS, World AIDS Day

• Ocampo’s successor to be named

  Posted: December 1, 2011, 4:08 am by Ken Opalo

  Current Deputy Prosecutor of the ICC, Fatou Bensouda, will become the next top Prosecutor at the International Criminal Court. What does this mean for the future of the ICC, especially with regard to African cases? JiC poses the following question: ….. Bensouda becomes the first African Prosecutor at the ICC. This fact will almost surely garner [...]

• Kenyan Court Orders Bashir Arrest, Sudan Expels Kenyan Ambassador

  Posted: November 28, 2011, 8:49 pm by Ken Opalo

  UPDATE: The BBC reports: Sudan ordered the expulsion of the Kenyan ambassador after a Kenyan judge issued an arrest warrant for Sudan’s President Omar al-Bashir, Sudan’s foreign ministry has said. Mr Bashir is wanted by the International Criminal Court (ICC) for alleged war crimes in Darfur. Sudan has ordered the Kenyan ambassador to leave the [...]

• Quick hits

  Posted: November 27, 2011, 7:20 pm by Ken Opalo

  Follow the goings on in the DRC (especially this election season) over at Alex Engwete’s blog. Living under the shadow of Kony and his men in Eastern CAR. On a related note, the Ugandan army’s dirty war in the Congo and CAR. Shame on the ANC. But there is still hope for cleaner politics in [...]

• $500 million, and for what?

  Posted: November 25, 2011, 12:22 am by Ken Opalo

  Congolese go to the polls on Monday, the 28th of November. The result of the election is almost a foregone conclusion. Incumbent president Joseph Kabila looks set to win another term in office – another 5 years to continue the mismanagement of the DRC’s resources through shady mining deals. According to the Economist: Whatever the [...]

• Mining and Voting in the Congo

  Posted: November 21, 2011, 6:05 pm by Ken Opalo

  Elections in the DRC have come to be marked by a fire sale of state assets. A recent report by the UK parliament estimates that the government may have lost up to $5.5 b due to undervaluation of these state assets before sale. No prizes for guessing where part of the difference in these sales [...]

• The Catholic Church and AIDS: A Sorry Case of Denial

  Posted: November 19, 2011, 8:38 pm by Ken Opalo

  The Church’s continued ostrich approach to the catastrophe that is HIV/AIDS on the continent: Pope Benedict XVI on Saturday signed off on an African roadmap for the Roman Catholic Church that calls for good governance and denounces abuses, while labelling AIDS a mainly ethical problem. Benedict signed the apostolic exhortation called “The Pledge for Africa” [...]

• Portugal Seeks Angolan Investment

  Posted: November 16, 2011, 1:04 am by Ken Opalo

  The Portuguese once ruled an empire that included Brazil, Angola and Mozambique, among other smaller possessions. But since the loss of empire Lisbon has fared rather poorly. First it was the Brazilians who managed to economically dominate their former colonizers. The Angolans are beginning to also get in the game. Angola is one of the [...]

• donkey markets and the al-shabab

  Posted: November 15, 2011, 11:47 am by Ken Opalo

  Kenya’s invasion of al-Shabab held parts of Somalia has inadvertently elevated the demand for donkeys. Because of the rains (making the use of vehicles a nightmare) and a desire to disguise their transportation of arms, the al-Shabab have resorted to the use of donkeys. The BBC reports: In his latest series of tweets, the Kenyan [...]

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Fish cakes

Alas a fish cake.

Yet more fish cakes

Guess what ... yeah ... fish cakes.

The end of the fish cakes