2022 is here... what to do?

 Happy New Year.

 

Just a few questions occupying my mind as the New Year 2022 begins.

 

-Will Kenyan president Uhuru Kenyatta have a honest look at the CBC and make a bold decision –the only decision he has to make, which teachers and parents agree on—, or will that have to wait until the next President comes to office?

 

-The whole world has been talking about ‘The Great Resignation’ or ‘The Big Quit’, where employees were quitting toxic workplaces (after the pandemic revealed just how short life is to live a mediocre life). Will this get to Kenya in 2022, or are employees in Kenya (and much of Africa) perpetually in survival mode (thinking about bills) that it makes sense to suffer the toxicity?

 

-Kenyan elections are on the horizon. All the top presidential contenders are above 50 years. It is estimated that more than 50% of the voters will be under 35 years. Will the young people use their numbers to surprise the world with a new hitherto unknown candidate, or do the moneyed politicians who have been in politics the last 30 years ride on the young people’s backs to power? Is there anyone, who can organize, mobilise young people to have a fresh start?

 

-The rains failed in 2021. The country will definitely import millions of bags of maize to make sure the food balance sheet is, er, balanced. But before that happens, the price of maize and maize flour will shoot up. Inflation too. Maize farmers will cry and beg for better prices. The government will offer lower prices, and pay the cartels that will import maize higher than the farmers. It happened in 2017 because the strategic grain reserves were, well, empty. Are the reserves full? If not,what can I do to sustainably earn a livelihood while feeding the country?

 

-The EU gave us GDPR (General Data Protection Regulations), that were big on privacy, consent and control over data. Much of Africa is still fertile for data theft by the big tech platforms. The EU is once again working on laws on digital markets. Many African countries aren’t even there yet. What’s the opportunity here, in an election year in Kenya?

 

Anyway, these questions will not stop you from having a good night’s sleep throughout the year.

Unless:

 

a) You are a parent with a child in primary school

 

b) You work in a toxic environment

 

c) You have to explain to an archaic political bureaucracy the basics of the demographic dividend and why it makes sense to have the bulk of the population in meaningful employment

 

d) You have to buy food

 

e) You need to make money legitimately from the digital markets.

 

Help me think about the answers in 2022 as you strive for prosperity. 

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