On Monday 20 June, HRH’s Project Manager for East Africa Niels Jacob Harbitz will participate at a seminar focussing on the continued need for political change in Kenya. The seminar is co-hosted by the Norwegian Council for Africa, HRH’s partner in our recent seminar on Northern Uganda, and FORUM for Environment and Development. Keynote speakers are Apollo Njonjo and Halle Jørn Hanssen. (16-JUNE-05)

Kenya has lately seen a sharpening o the conflict between the Government on the one hand and the national civil society and international NGOs on the other. As reported previously in this website (Nairobi subpage), a unanimous civil society recently decided to oppose the Government’s present policies and work for new political alliances ahead of the 2007 elections.

Expert speakers
While Apollo Njonjo will speak about Kenya and the continuing need for political and democratic change, Halle Jørn Hanssen will comment on the current political sitation in Kenya, and the growing rift between Government and civil society.  Hanssen is the current President of the FORUM Board of Directors and among those in Norway with the longest relationship and most intimate knowledge of East Africa. He has lived and worked in the region through several periods of his life.

Forced to leave for his criticism
Apollo Njonjo has been active in Kenyan politics since the late 60s. As a young student, he joined FRELIMO and fought for freedom and independence in Mozambique. from there, he moved on to establish himself as one of the sharpest voices of the political developments instigated by the Moi regime. Towards the end of Moi?s reign, Njonjo was even banned from taking up professional work as an economist and a consultant on water development in Kenya. Instead, from 1998 and until 2002, Njonjo worked in Uganda.

Back with a vengeance
In the early 90s, Njonjo was part of a group establishing the Social Democratic Party of Kenya, for which he was elected Secretary General. The party first ran in 1991, did surprisingly well in -97 and had 15 MPs elected. In 2002, the party split on whether or not to join current President Mwai Kibaki?s socalled Rainbow Coalition, and Njonjo?s ?No to Kibaki?-fraction did badly. This last winter, though, a new creation emerged in Kenyan political life; the Centre for Multi Party Democracy, with 38 political parties and groupings as members. Njonjo was elected the Chairman of this Centre.