Senate whip beats back barriers

Parliamentary official says Kenya and china have much to learn from each other

Senator Beatrice Elachi's personal mission is to promote people-to-people exchange programs between China and Kenya. It is a critical way of breaking down barriers erected by cultural differences, she says. "And more importantly, they are the foundation toward a sustainable long-term relationship," says the majority whip of Kenya's Senate.

The upper house was created in August 2010, when the new constitution was promulgated. It ushered in 47 devolved government units known as counties.

Appointed by the president, Elachi's work is to rally party members to back government-sponsored bills presented on the floor of the house.

Her commitment to bridging the gap between China and Kenya is on sound footing, as she is also the secretary-general of the China Africa Friendship Association's Kenya chapter.

Many politicians, especially those in the Senate and the National Assembly, have visited China on separate occasions through the association's programs.

In May 2014, Senate Speaker Ekwe Ethuro led a 19-member delegation to Beijing to attend the commemoration of the 60th anniversary of the China People's Association for Friendship with Foreign Countries.

Ethuro's counterpart at the National Assembly, Justin Muturi, was in China in May and met with Zhang Dejiang, chairman of the Standing Committee of the National People's Congress.

These programs have achieved two things: The Kenyan leadership has had high-level dialogue with China's top leaders, and second, it has become acutely aware of China's mammoth manufacturing sector, through guided tours to various factories.

"We know that it is market, where one acquires what they can afford. This has broken the brazen misconception that Chinese products are substandard. Kenyan policymakers understand that the negative image is fueled by unscrupulous traders, who manipulate the process by importing low-quality goods for our market.

"Therefore, complaints of this nature are dealt with from an informed perspective," says Elachi.

She says that global manufacturers have invested in China. "Some of the multinationals bidding for tenders here purchase from China."

Most of Kenya's electricity transformers are made in China, she says.

Elachi admits that the increase in Chinese imports, together with personnel, also increases misconceptions.

She believes, however, that the solution lies with the Kenyan government.

"What we have to do as a government is strengthen law enforcement. The law is clear on the modalities of importing Chinese labor and we have to tighten these laws," she says.

She has visited China five times and, during those trips, has admired the country's order. "It is a country with more than 1 billion people, but it runs like clockwork, everything is systematic. We can also have this here," she says.

She also admires how proactive Chinese youths are in state-building.

"They are highly patriotic, and you quickly learn this at the immigration offices. In addition, we are currently battling youth radicalization, extremism, and the abuse of drugs and alcohol. We have abandoned respect for family life, which is a fundamental virtue in Chinese society."

In China, the respect for elders is noticeable. "They still value collectivism, where you are responsible for your family. You therefore cannot compromise on anything that threatens this. We need this back," says the chief whip.

She partly blames it on leaders who have abandoned their responsibilities as role models. "Youths now want to emulate the shortcuts taken by some leaders to succeed. This is eroding our culture."

A way of addressing this problem is through the youth programs from the Kenya chapter of the China Africa Friendship Association. Elachi says that local universities, such as Jomo Kenyatta University of Agriculture and Technology, the University of Nairobi and Moi University manage most of these programs. Students are selected to participate in an exchange program with their Chinese peers.

"Almost 22 counties in Kenya have been visited. It has promoted cultural knowledge and how different communities seek solutions to prevailing challenges. What we need to do now, as an association, is to arrange a follow-up on the gains and areas of opportunity."

It has also increased awareness of local challenges on transborder challenges, such as wildlife poaching, which in turn have encouraged Chinese youths to be anti-poaching ambassadors back home.

Elachi says the interaction and exchanges have increased awareness on the status of food insecurity in Kenya. "In China, they have hundreds of recipes that turn easily found foods into delicacies.

In Africa, we are very choosy, despite having a big population teetering on the edge of food insecurity."

She introduced a food security bill that was passed on July 2.

The Food Security Bill 2014 recommends systems to be put in place by both the national and county governments to boost the quality and quantity of food supplies for citizens. It also promotes the use of traditional foods, such as vegetables, as opposed to the heavy reliance on cereals.

She says programs have also promoted the need for twin cities. Elachi concedes that this may be difficult because Chinese cities are geographically and economically larger than Kenyan ones. "Maybe we need to look at this from a regional context in which the East African region agrees on an economic model that would be suitable for a Chinese city," she says.

"This would speed up the integration process, which has been sluggish for a long time. It would push a regional block, such as COMESA, to also engage as a whole with a Chinese province."

A champion of women's rights, Elachi says women have actively participated in the program by learning about agricultural and economic concepts practised by their Chinese counterparts.

Elachi says that these programs are already laying the groundwork for future exchanges between the two countries. The industrial relocation pilot project that is keenly being followed by the two states would definitely increase employment.

However, issues of pollution and environmental degradation will arise.

"The ministry involved needs to tread very cautiously on these issues. I wish we could have started by reviving locally based factories that have shut down due to mismanagement under the Public-Private Program. This would inform us on a way forward. Otherwise, such bills may receive stiff resistance on the floor of the house."

Her role as a policymaker and secretary-general of the association positions her as the government adviser on matters affecting the two countries.

She says Kenya has embarked on an ambitious energy project to increase the uptake of clean energy technologies. "We can strengthen policies that increase tree-planting to mitigate against air pollution."

Competition on where to first set up these factories may not arise, she says, as all the counties have been encouraged to set up special zones to accommodate industries. "I know county governors are rational and will only allow what they can maintain."

But while these plans are still in the design phase, other ongoing projects, such as the Standard Gauge Railway that will run from Mombasa to Nairobi, are setting the stage for more collaboration with the Chinese.

"I hope by the time it is completed that Kenyans will appreciate Chinese technology and their zeal to open up Kenya to the world," she says, adding that on the other hand, Chinese will also understand rural Kenya.

"I know we prefer the Chinese because they are keen to appreciate and even enhance an environment they find themselves in. I think they are our long-term partners."

Bio

Beatrice Elachi

Majority whip of Kenya's Senate; secretary-general of the China Africa Friendship Association's Kenya chapter

Age: 48

Education:

2014, Bachelor's in peace and conflict studies, Africa Nazarene University

2015, Master's in peace, governance and security, Africa Nazarene University

Career

2011-present, Director, China Africa Association

2009-10, Executive director, the League of Kenya Women Voters

Coordinator, Collaborative Center for Gender and Development

Program Coordinator, National Council of Women of Kenya

Awards

Chief of the Order of the Burning Spear, awarded for public service

lucymorangi@chinadaily.com.cn

(China Daily Africa Weekly 08/07/2015 page32)