SPEECH BY HON. PETER KENNETH, MGH, MP, ASSISTANT MINISTER OF STATE FOR PLANNING, NATIONAL DEVELOPMENT AND VISION 2030, DURING THE UNITED STATES INTERNATIONAL UNIVERSITY BLACK HISTORY MONTH, 6TH FEBRUARY 2012

The Vice Chancellor, Dr. Frida Brown
Deputy Vice Chancellors
USIU Faculty and Administrative Staff 
Students
Distinguished Guests
Ladies and gentlemen

I feel greatly privileged to have been invited to join you in celebrating the Black History Month. Black History Month salutes the contribution by the black people throughout human history in shaping the social economic and political spheres of the world as we know it today. By enabling us to look at our past, we are able to focus better into our future. For, if we don’t know how far we have come, we shall never understand how far we have to go.
Black History Month has now become a regular feature of colleges, universities and communities of African Descent not just in the Black Diaspora, but also in Africa itself since it was inaugurated in the US in 1976. It pays to note that 1976 was just a decade or so after the Civil Rights Bill was passed by the `US federal government, finally granting African-Americans the rights owed by them by the US Constitution and the US Declaration of Independence from European colonialism. Black History Month must therefore be seen as a strong symbol of African and African–American aspirations for freedom and human dignity.
This year’s theme here at USIU is Celebrating the Daughters of Africa: Spearheading the Pan-African Dream for Peace. I am impressed especially by the fact that as part of this year’s celebrations, you have invited some of the most prominent women in Kenya today to share with you their experiences. I am sure the young women and indeed all of you are learning, from them, the virtues of endurance, hard work, dedication and commitment that you should emulate and nurture if you are to become upstanding citizens in the future. I state this because, as we all know, history (including Black History) tends to emphasise the achievements of men compared to women. For instance, African scholars have focused more on the insubordination of women and consequently overshadowed the critical role women play in peace building and conflict resolution as well as in other social economic and political areas. This is despite the fact that it is women who have been most vulnerable to the atrocities committed during the numerous conflicts and wars that have scarred the continent. It is now time to correct that imbalance.
Allow me to celebrate, the following women who have, against all odds, chosen the narrow and painful path, to selflessly fight for peace, security and good governance in Africa:
•    Africa Celebrates Ellen Johnson Sirleaf: Listed by Newsweek Magazine in 2010 as one of the 10 best leaders in the world, the first elected female Head of State in Africa and 2011 joint Nobel Peace Prize winner left a lucrative career in the financial sector to actively participate in politics and leadership of Liberia. The prosperity being experienced under her administration is a great testament to the holistic approach of a woman’s leadership.
•    Africa Celebrates Leymah Gbowee: The 2011 Joint Nobel Peace Prize who, while working with hardly any resources, save for the extraordinary will and intense desire to end conflict, has been praised for mobilising women across ethnic and religious divides to bring an end to the long war in Liberia and ensuring women’s participation in elections.
•    I couldn’t forget Jacqueline Moudeina who has been championing equality for 11 years in Chad and the late Albertina Sisulu who endured decades of harassment and imprisonment in her relentless fight against apartheid. Africa celebrates Jacqueline Moudeina and Albertina Sisulu
•    A discourse on women and peace building would be incomplete without celebrating our own, the first woman to receive a Nobel Peace Prize, the late Prof. Wangari Maathai, who as an environmentalist, feminist, politician, professor, rabble rouser and human rights activist, advocated for a holistic approach to sustainable development that embraces democracy, human rights and women’s rights in particular. Africa celebrates Prof. Wangari Maathai.
•    I equally pay tribute to the daughters of Africa, past and present, who we honour today. We honour those present here, those going about their daily lives elsewhere and those who have departed from us. We celebrate you all.
Having said that, Ladies and gentlemen, allow me to address myself to our sub-theme today namely “Leaders of Tomorrow Start Today”. Just like in the USA where young black Americans, led by Martin Luther King Jr, Malcolm X and Ms. Rosa Park spearheaded the fight for civil rights in 1950s and 60s, young men of 1940s led the struggle for independence ending colonialism in Kenya. Every generation is presented with unique challenges. The challenge to the youth today is to rise up and play their rightful role in shaping the society.
We Kenyan leaders have often said that youth are the leaders of the future. I now want you to believe that leaders of tomorrow start today. In Kenya, about 73 per cent of the population is under 30 years of age. This means that Kenya is, by all standards, a very young society. Youth also comprise more than 67 per cent of the unemployed thus making them vulnerable in many ways. Unemployment, especially amongst the youth, leads to high risk behaviour such crime, drugs, HIV/AIDs and political manipulation as witnessed in 2007. Yet out of that same troubled youth we need leaders of tomorrow’s Kenya; and they must commit themselves to the task now.
In my view, most of the problems afflicting the youth today are down to their perception of an uncertain and unstable future. Much as we know that youth face so many problems, we also recognise real potential in being a predominantly young nation. Economists call it ‘the demographic dividend’, and this simply means that if you can attract huge investments that create jobs for products aimed at local and global markets, youth become an asset, not a liability. They will contribute the skilled jobs that will drive our economy forward. This is what we can see now in South East Asia.
The Kenya Vision 2030, our long term economic development blue print, as well as the new constitution, has set out the roadmap to harnessing the youth optimism, energy and potential to contributing to a better Kenya. Similarly, the new Constitution 2010 offers leadership opportunities for youth at various levels of government. The Youth Enterprise Development Fund, for instance, provides loans to youth with bankable ideas. For youth to play a leadership role in this transition they must make effort to understand the policies, the process we are going through under Vision 2030 and the new policies that we require to quicken the process especially in creating more jobs.
Here in Kenya, our youth have demonstrated great capacity for innovation especially in information and communication technology. M-PESA, M-KESHO and the public witness website called USHAHIDI bear witness to this. These amazing and widely acclaimed innovations are being copied worldwide. In the recent years, the youth have also taken responsibilities in most corporate boardroom across the country and all over the world. These youth, even though they may not think themselves as such, are world class leaders and pioneers. We need more like them in other sectors like education, health, religion and peace-making.
While some young men and women sit back and wait for the silver platter, others have unleashed their entrepreneurship and leadership skills to create employment opportunities for themselves and for others. You only need to Google to get some of these examples and learn the motivation behind their achievements. One common denominator you will find among them is that they were not born leaders, but that they had their eyes sharp, focused and trained on higher and better things, and more importantly…they got up and went for it. A good example is Ms. Khanyi Ndhlomo a young South African media tycoon whose amazing background teaches us that Failure inspires winners, and that, failure only defeats losers.
Ladies and Gentlemen
I cannot emphasise enough that leadership today demands a clear vision in a rapidly changing world. It is disheartening that, for many generations, our youth have only been referred to as leaders of tomorrow without being encouraged to be bold and visionary. The late Robert F. Kennedy is quoted as having said the following. ‘Some people see things as they are and ask “why?” I dream of things that never were and ask “why not?’ I urge the youth of today that if they want to become future leaders, to start with the inner faith, inspiration and a vision of what Kenya could be…a great, proud nation that meets the needs of all its people, and that has overcome the problems we face today. However, I must add that a vision, an inspiration must be backed by concrete evidence that it is indeed possible to achieve it. In the world of government today, this is called “evidence based policy making”. I urge you to strike in that direction as a point of departure. The youth need to be socialised in this manner to become leaders of today, who put service to the society before self, a process that is bound to involve sacrifices, risk taking and uncertainty.
Always remember that what you do today determines your tomorrow. Live like leaders today, behave like leaders today and that is what tomorrow holds for you. And for the youth seated here today; today is NOW and the moment is HERE!! Set high standards and expectations for yourselves and accordingly guide your behaviour and learn to take full responsibility for your actions. To quote Geoff Thompson: It is not easy, but you can be anything you want to be. I mention this because if you want to move Kenya or Africa forward, you must begin by placing the common good higher than raw self-interest. For too often in our society, we equate success with self achieved, especially in wealth.
To achieve this aspiration, you must start working, from today, on removing the barriers that limit, confine and marginalize youth. Start by believing in yourself and then seek to acquire knowledge and skills that will prepare you for leadership. By the virtue of being in this reputable academic institution, you have already taken the first step towards leadership. Education is not only a critical determinant of skills and capacity that will enable you gain employment and/or start your own business enterprises, but will also define the extent to which society will be willing to trust you with responsibility.
Once out of here, remember to pursue knowledge and update your skills continuously, for as the great Nelson Mandela observed, “after climbing a great hill, one only finds that there are many more hills to climb” Any youth who seeks leadership must understand that there is no time to rest. As you overcome one problem, another one appears.
Ladies and gentlemen
I would like to address the problem of how one gets accepted as a leader. As I have already said, a good leader starts with an attractive vision. Secondly, he or she should be able to communicate the Vision in a convincing manner. Here, communication is of essence. One must be able to motivate and inspire people to do something new, something untried. A leader inspires people to move in the right direction.
Start today by identifying the kind of activities and programs that you feel need change. Inspire people with the vision you see, be it your university, at your various places of worship, in the community, in Kenya, or even in the neighbourhood, that will not only allow you to exercise your leadership skills on your peers, but also give you experience in planning, design, implementation, and evaluation. Show willingness to take up responsibility and decision making. Don’t wait to be invited or be asked to leadership, just step forward. Keep in mind that leadership, just like other skills, can be learned through experience and practice. Internships and placements are also good avenues for young professionals and aspiring leaders to apply what they have been taught and how to advance into higher positions of influence.
Never assume a project or initiative is too small to have an effect. Remember that Prof. Wangari Maathai began by planting trees in used containers in her own backyard here in Nairobi. She then proceeded to expand the experience to the women of Kenya and finally elsewhere in Africa. She won the Nobel Peace Prize in 2004. She is not with us any longer, but her vision, inspiration and work will be remembered for generations.
Ladies and Gentlemen
Leadership, therefore, is about possessing a strong commitment to making a difference in the lives of others. Do not look at earning quick profits in leaderships. At this young age, it is important that you nurture this tenet by expressing and demonstrating your desire to participate in society through volunteer work and community service. As in the case of Prof. Maathai, self-sacrifice is the beginning of leadership. In your case, you can mobilize fellow youth to undertake community projects such as environmental conservation, assisting the needy or even motivating fellow youth on the importance of education and dangers of social ills such drug use and crime. Again, no task is too small, to start with as a leader.
Above all, make use of modern technology. The advent of technology has reduced the world into a global village. This has placed the world literary on our desktops, laps and palms and has inspired inventions that changed the way we interact with one another. Social networking sites such as Tweeter, Facebook and Skype, for example, have decimated the time and distance barriers in communication. As youth you should endeavour to use these platforms to your advantage by engaging in positive debates that will make a difference in your lives. Use them to feed your mind with healthy thoughts, positive thinking which will enhance your confidence in leading others. Today, social websites are credited with changing many things in the world from marketing new products, to bringing democracy, as was the case in the so called “Arab Spring” of 2011.
At this stage in your life, please be wary of influence of negative peer pressure. I see this, in particular, as a danger that our young women face daily. How you will end up in life is largely influenced by how you manage peer pressure at this age. One way of achieving this, therefore, is to identify strong role models around you, who you can look up to for inspiration. Regular leadership forums like this, enables those who have set standards to share experiences and wisdom with you. Through the university, you can as well, organise mentoring and coaching programs tailored to specific leadership needs.
Ladies and Gentlemen
The challenges facing young people in Kenya transcend race, ethnicity, class, religious beliefs and gender. It is therefore crucial that as we approach elections and given our experiences in the aftermath of the 2007 General Elections, we think hard about our long and difficult history, regardless of our ethnic or racial origins. We have a country we love and cherish. You have the greatest state in the future; never again should the world see you at war with each other over issues that can be resolved peacefully, and with love and a caring community spirit. This time round you should take it upon yourselves to ensure social, economic and political change at all levels through peaceful but legal means.
I urge the youth to use the various platforms at your disposal, be it internet, social networking sites, print and electronic media. Let it be known that as youth you will not tolerate divisions along tribal lines. You have no choice! You must rise above what the sceptics around you expect and define the political and development agenda of this country. Show the older folks that you are intelligent and rational. Show them that your time is here and now. In fact, the new constitution affords us a one off opportunity to build a nation that we and our generations can be proud of. We can’t afford to miss the bus this time.
I thank you once again for inviting me. May you have a fruitful and educative Black History Month.
Thank you