MPs get grades

BY: Paschal
PUBLISHED: May 29, 2009 | 0 comments

African Leadership Institute, a Ugandan think tank, made news yesterday when it released grades for each member of parliament. The Institute's system rates the MPs on attendance and performance.

The grades are a positive step towards elevating the expectations that constituents have for their MPs, whose standards are still quite low.

"I have DStv, my people watch football free, I provide newspapers throughout the year," he said. "I think [the scorecards are] good, it encourages us to do better."

Kitgum district MP John Okello Okello

A list of the MPs and their grades is available on the African Leadership Institute's website.

How to save money as an African Start up

BY: Paschal
PUBLISHED: May 04, 2009 | 0 comments

Saving money is a priority for any startup, but especially so if the startup is based in a developing economy. When it comes to keeping the purse-strings tight, Appafrica has some wisdom to share:

2. Buy an inverter. Here in Kampala, we lose on average about 5 hours a week to power outages. That’s twenty hours per month, nearly a whole day! Across a year, that’s nearly an half a month you’re paying your staff to sit around and do nothing. Do the math on that. Actually, the more you spend on your inverter and batteries, the longer it will last. I have friend who spent about 5 grand on a power solution that can last him up to three days if necessary. Very rarely is there a lost workday due to power for him.

Appfricast and Appfrica Labs

BY: Paschal
PUBLISHED: May 04, 2009 | 0 comments

Last week's Appfricast Podcast presented a roundtable interview with all the developers at Appfrica Labs. The team includes Jon Gosier (CEO/Director), Barbara Birungi (Administrative Assistant), Felix Kitaka (Developer), Jerry Opolot (PHP Developer), Ivan Kavuma (COO/Director of Operations), Emma Oluka (Developer) and Dennis Senyonjo (Mobile Apps Developer).

It is definitely worth a listen.

Greetings from Uganda

BY: Paschal
PUBLISHED: Apr 27, 2009 | 0 comments

How good is this guy? I was looking away and thought a local was speaking. These guys are hilarious.

(Courtesy of Jim)

Africa Gathering

BY: Paschal
PUBLISHED: Apr 24, 2009 | 0 comments

Africa Gathering is an event to be held in London on the 25th of April. That is in just two days.

What do expect:

Many of the speakers are running successful organisations that are using technology to help improve the lives of others. Some of the projects make innovative use of old technology, some is brand new. However, you’ll find that the really interesting part will be hearing from imaginative thinkers and entrepreneurs who are passionate about developing and implementing sustainable ideas that bring affordable change for good where it’s needed - to those that need it the most.

If you plan to be there you had better have your ticket already. It is a sold out event.

If you are going to be there, post a comment with what you expect. If you have a presentation going on at that event, do likewise and link back to your own project.

Edun

BY: Paschal
PUBLISHED: Apr 22, 2009 | 2 comments

It's no secret that Bono has a thing for Africa. You may also know about his ONE campaign and his quest to improve the terms of trade for African countries. But you may not have heard about Edun, his clothing company.

EDUN is a socially conscious clothing company launched in Spring 2005 by Ali Hewson and Bono. The company's mission is to create beautiful clothing while fostering sustainable employment in developing areas of the world, particularly Africa.

Uganda is one of the countries providing the organic materials.

Bono has been criticized for being yet another European who insists of telling Africa's stories. We have no trouble talking about ourselves. What we have trouble with is finding people who want to work with us. In this case, Bono and Hewson deserve a nod for letting their actions do the talking.

That said, $70 for a tee-shirt is...wow.

Erik Hersman on Ushahidi and Change

BY: Paschal
PUBLISHED: Apr 08, 2009 | 0 comments

Erik Hersman discusses Ushahidi, information flow, media and change in Africa.

(via http://blog.ushahidi.com)

ALA Survey Results 2008

BY: Paschal
PUBLISHED: Apr 08, 2009 | 0 comments

Influential web magazine A List Apart has published its survey results for 2008. It is a must-read for anyone in the business of building web sites. Yes Monitor, you too.

The 0.7% of people who responded from Africa are an inspiration. Hopefully they will be preaching the virtues of web standards to the rest of the web pros on the continent.

About Geography:

We changed the categories in 2008. North and Central America and Europe account for almost 90% of the responses, and there is slightly more diversity than last year, with increased percentages from Asia, South America, and Oceania. Within North and Central America, 88% of respondents are from the United States. There were nine respondents who claimed to be located in Antarctica.
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