Thought Leadership: The Game is Changing.

Uganda, the land of milk and honey, corruption and money. A beautiful kaleidoscopic picture of zen view sunsets and the gory dog-eat-dog world of modern-day capitalism. To the naked eye, the country is preparing for elections in 2011 but to the trained eye the powers that be are in anarchy.
Over the past few weeks there have been relatively few ads in the newspapers. Well this is what has been going on…

A couple of months ago all the media houses in Uganda got together and decided that agencies who book, sell, buy and plan media for the corporate machine owed them too much money and therefore they were going to stop running all adverts. They called a meeting to talk about this and they were right; agencies and clients together owed the media houses a whopping [Red Pepper style] UGX 5.9 Billion! They gave the agencies, who foolishly agreed, 90 days in which to address the delicate matter with their respective clients and get back to them. 

 90 days later.

A couple of weeks ago Robert “KaBush” (from hereon known as Bush), summoned the mother of all meetings, he and his Nation Media Group counterpart Dr. Githinji (did you know he was a gynecologist?) had amassed all their smaller and diverse media cronies and, seated at the head of the table, announced that all advertising was going to stop running. They had done what scholars and industry watchers had thought was unthinkable, let alone undoable. They had blacklisted all media agencies; a blanket ban.
The review meeting following this announcement showed that the agencies had managed to bring down their debt to about UGX 2.9 Billion claiming that some of their clients were adamant to pay or had stricter payment procedures and therefore had not been able to remit the balance in the 90 days pending. So all advertising was going off air.

He shouldn't have:

1. Been positioned as the leader of the fight against the corporate machine because that evening nearly all MDs, CEOs, and CFOs of the corporate machine met separately to discuss this new turn of events while simultaneously the agencies also met to digest this new twist to things.

2. Put a blanket ban on the all the agencies because not all agencies had failed to pay. Therefore the whole industry being victimized for one agency’s lack of fiduciary wisdom was not perceived as just or bright.

3. Stood together with his competition to try and “Enforce” a measure that he felt was for the “greater good” because in the end he will still be standing alone to his shareholders to account for what’s happening to their investment.

The results of the meetings.

The Bush meeting ended up with an alliance signed in blood committing all the media houses to a cooperation where if you owe any single media house money e.g. Observer, you will not get be able to run your advertisement in any other newspaper. Of course this would mean increased cooperation amongst the media houses but it also posed the precarious question of commitment and solidarity. In a time when the market is shrinking and print media budgets are quickly being replaced you don’t want to be caught biting the advertisers’ hand. 

45 extra days were given and ZK Advertising, the second largest spender of advertising in East Africa since 2009 and Ignition advertising were blacklisted. All their advertising was blocked and no work would be coming through them from anyone. Instead, the media houses circumvented the agencies and went directly to the clients and got the adverts directly.
The MDs and CEO meeting resulted in reimbursement bills to their secretaries for coffees and networking time spent discussing “industry re-formation”. They all however agreed that what Bush had done was undesirable and they would have to find a way of punishing the bad boy for his behaviour. “Let’s pull all our advertising from him”, someone whispered, but just like the whisper, he was asked to speak quietly because they all needed Bush.

The agency meeting yielded slightly more than the above because they ended up forming something called the Advertising Association of Uganda. (AAU?) Kind of funny considering how much weed and alcohol those guys consume no?) They, on the other hand decided to give a united position to the Media Owners’ Association, which had triggered all of this. Some radicals said they should get together with their clients and force the media houses to apologize and come to more amenable terms of payment and relationships.

What does this mean for the future?

Bush and the Gynecologist are definitely not being loved in a lot of client circles and if you are keen there will noticeably be reduced invitations to them to attend corporate functions in the period ahead. 

A certain guerilla caucus has come together to find all the ways in which the Vision conglomerate and the Nation behemoth are replaceable starting with the newspapers. Starting at the top, they are re-doing the research, figures, rationales, and psychographics to justify why all the FMCG companies and the corporatocracy should shift from mainstream media and now invest in more audience-driven forms of media. Perhaps new media even; blogs, Facebook, websites, Twitter, You Tube, mobile phone ads, etc. Its no secret that Fireworks has a team dedicated to online/new media; surveying, analyzing, studying, experimenting. Are they about to propose a radical shift to their clientele that will extend the advertising frontier, once again?

The smaller players in this convoluted power play have failed to get their erections up to speak up for their rights and so they are doing what they know to do best; going behind the big media boys and saying ”Those guys are doing their own thing, you just give me my ads and I will run you.” The disconnect this has created is not to be ignored. The agencies have not and will not. What they do next with this crack will probably shake the media industry like we have never seen. Perhaps a total advertising blacklist of New Vision, or the Nation Group?

Let’s wait and see.

The agencies have become galvanized under one umbrella body. Whether this is a good thing or not can only be seen with the passing of time. The Scangroup behemoth (East Africa’s largest spender and biggest marketing services provider) is in search of a Ugandan Telco to bolster its ranks. They already have the East African Breweries and the regional Lafarge business to cater to. When I spoke with CEO to one of the agencies that handle one of the Telcos, she said, “What I think we should do is organize as the big agencies and squeeze these small motherfuckers out of business. Because if we dare try and stand against the media houses, they will go behind our backs and confuse our clients and next thing you know we will be royally shafted here. They can do it.” What she meant was squeeze the agencies without big clients out of business by negotiating better commissions from the media houses through bulk buying. What this would do in essence would be to force the industry to re-align reporting, billing and fiscal control procedures. So, one uniform billing document recognizable across the industry, one process. A clear signal of progress in the industry but what does it truly mean for the clients? In a world of organized and unionized advertising, there are no surprises, no game-changers, and definitely no lowered costs. The client looking for clear, distinctive and outstanding advertising and market presence will have to literally go rogue, but which agency will, or can? The argument can be made that a lot of agencies will think out of the box and go rogue. That is until they become isolated by fellow agencies, over charged by the media houses and soon rejected by the corporate machine; killing creativity, and dulling the sharp, incisive edge that it takes to cut through today’s’ advertising clutter. What is dizzyingly clear though is that the industry will never be same after this. 

Bush promised the powers that be a platform on which he would deliver the 2011 election. He gave them Bukedde TV, has opened a radio in every mainstream local dialect and is on a roll to revamp the local language papers. This happens amidst an environment where all media houses are trying to acquire more media houses. KFM, currently the most listened to station in inner and greater Kampala, is shopping for upcountry stations to bolster its arsenal of listenership and footprint, while Dembe FM recently acquired the rural based Rwenzori FM. So as the media landscape’s tectonic plates continue to shift and change one thing is for sure; we are on the cusp of something that has happened in very few other countries: Uganda is preparing to leap frog – Again!

THE HOUSE OF WALKER EXPERIENCE | Johnnie Walker Tasting in Uganda

The crowd gathered around at 7 O’clock and with just a few minutes to spare till the evening begun it was an experience to remember. I was here to attend the Launch of the House of Walker experience in Uganda and it promised to be an evening to remember. The invite had been sent out by email and even though it seemed like a general invite the feel had the aura of a specially selected individual written on it.

The pyramids restaurant was resplendently adorned in light strings that gave the room the air of a far away place. You could have been anywhere in the world, learning about Johnnie walker. Every table seat had five glasses placed in front of it for the five House of Walker brands: Red, Black, Green, Gold and Blue labels. The feel of ambient music transformed the venue to a surreal place.

When Christopher Othieno, House of Walker ambassador, and one of only two men in the region, started to speak the room fell to a silent glowing space with people dressed in all shades of formal and semi formal dress. All eyes were fixed on him. He began by telling of the rich history of Johnnie Walker and the inspirations of the House of Walker brands. What were the differences between a single malt whisky and a grain whisky? Why blends like Johnnie Walker exist.

Basically a grain whisky is a whisky made from maize or wheat. And a single malt whisky is whisky made purely from malted barley that comes from a single distillery.

The idea of blended whisky was made famous by John ‘Johnnie’ Walker who started brewing at the tender age of 15 in his grocery store in Kilmarnorck in Ayreshire Scotland. When he died in 1857 his son Alexander I took over the brewery and, combined with the good teaching his father had given him, the passion he had for the business, the skills and the vigour of youth, he set about brewing a whisky: “Of such a quality that nothing in the market shall come before it”

In 1909, Alexander II released the Red Label whisky. A blend of 35 whiskeys, transforming the original Extra Special Old Highland Whisky into a world class brand that was both sweet and smoky with a dash of spice on the palette. As he sampled the Red Label, Christopher spoke about this drink that is the world’s No.1 selling whisky in over 200 countries worldwide. A drink that introduces the discerning man from other drinks to a league where he can savour his days. In my mouth, unseasoned as it is, the drink left a harsh brash feeling on my tongue and almost a manly sense about it. The feeling you get when you have just been slapped by a man stronger than you and you can still tell he was merciful while he did it.

It takes 40 different whiskies or Scotches (the term is used interchangeably) and 12 years of brewing and ageing to produce Johnnie Walker Black label. The notes that guide the making of this deep amber drink today were made by Alexander I. Each scotch, a unique creation of its climate, region and distiller. Each of these whiskeys must at least be 12 years old. It is deep. I take a sip and I feel my neurons tell my fingers to put the glass down and roll my eyes. My nose catches the whiffs of smoke Christopher is talking about. The earthy peaty undertone is something I guess I will discover as the night goes on, or not because the only peat I will taste will be at the bottom of the pit into which I will fall if I don’t stop drinking this smooth, indecipherable, rich, dark whisky. The roof of my mouth, called in this complex business a palette, manages to grasp onto some fruit and the slightest dash of vanilla.

Christopher says this drink is a statement of elegance, style, mystery. I look at my neighbour whose grin clearly says he is not mystified, he has hit a jackpot high! And he is not coming down! The man next to Mark, as I discover later he is called, has already downed all his drinks and looks at the ambassador with a blank look as he talks about mystery; because his dilemma of tastes just grew bigger. I was beginning to see black.

Then there was a water break at which point Christopher took the opportunity to announce quite smugly that a whisky drinker never gets sloshed. “That’s why you don’t swig it. Those guys who drink beer can get high, you must always have one finger on the ground” I curse under my breath because I sense that he is about to plunge us into another sensory assault. You see, the way to take whisky is not to just put your mouth to the glass, create a tunnel between your lips, and suck. Thats for primordial homo sapiens [read pedestrians]. Apparently, you have to Nose it (use your nose to sense its aroma; the verb smell is vile in whisky tasting), let it hit the palate (taste it; *rolling my eyes at this one) and then as if swallowing is not enough, you have to wait for the finish (the length of time the flavour of the whisky remains. The longer the finish, the older richer and smokier the whisky)

Christopher resumes his ambassadorial stance; stern, unflinching like a man about the training of the planet’s next set of frontier defenders. It is with a deep somber voice that he starts to talk about Green Label. Defined as the “definitive malt whisky”, it is taken from the best malt whiskies from the Scottish Hihglands. With over 500 years of malt history to draw on, the House of Walker produced this 15 year old blend for both deluxe and malt drinkers. After swishing my mouth with water at the break my tongue feels relieved and so this drink hits it with the full floral sensation. I later learn that it is actually the fruits: fir, oranges, sherrywood that give it this zing and freshness. My mind is talking to my hands. I should put my finger in my neighbor’s ear and feel his temperature because I feel like the things about me are all of a sudden in a different world. Everyone looks excited and they are chattering. We are 10 at each table and people who initially sat as strangers have thawed and are talking about why the journalist in the back row has no drinks in his glass, or why Christopher all of a sudden appears like James Bond sharing state secrets.

In 1805, John “Johnnie” Walker was born. In 1995 to celebrate a century of his life the House of Walker released a special blend: Gold Label. A creamy rich blend, this rich gold-hued drink tastes soft, or is it my tongue, am not sure but it slips on my tongue like it is tumbling into my belly with a final mushroom of warmth splashing throughout my stomach when it lands. And almost explodes in my mouth like a gentle splash of raisins, toffee and a light cream. What is interesting to see is how it is served. The gold Label is brewed for 18 years. The perfect serve for Gold Label is to freeze the bottle for 24 hours prior to drinking. Then serve in a frozen glass with the finest bitter chocolate. There is about to be a mutiny of my senses as the chocolate hits my mouth because it feels so rich, like I am indulging and, like my mouth wasn’t built big enough for this job.

Mark has by now started talking; asking about what I do for a living, and golf. I am not going to tell him that this drinking business is for people well out of my league. I am thinking about who on earth deserves to drink this kind of liquid sunshine. Yes, liquid sunshine is what George Bernard Shaw called it.

Then a white man in a kilt appears. I am impressed at the ambassador’s transformation. I lean to my neighbour and ask, “Does Johnnie Walker make you do that?”, I ask almost mutedly. The Johnnie Walker Blue Label is unwrapped complete with its certificate of authenticity. The age of this blend is undisclosed, and the satin lined box in which it lies speaks of a peerless pedigree. Made from the rarest whiskies in the world, it has 16 whiskies and looks dark; fully gold.

“This is it. It is the crème de la crème. It’s what separates the chicken from the peacock. It’s what separates the lizard from the crocodile. This is the ultimate drink,” says Christopher right before he asks us all to rinse our mouths with fresh cold water.

As the gorgeous waitresses clad in gold pass around pouring this most expensive whisky into everyone’s glass, he introduces a man I later learn is called Ivo Buratovich, the Managing Director, Uganda Breweries, to talk. He is in a kilt! Oh now I can see why the ambassador had become the Scotsman. He is a “Keeper of the Quaich”; such a highly respected position among whiskey drinkers because it is the equivalent of the tribal council in that Mel Gibson movie based out of Latin America.

“The Blue” as I fancy it being called by enthusiasts, is taken neat. The experience, sublime.

As I walk away from the grande silhouette of the Pyramids Casino, I have two thoughts in my head, how do you create a legend? And how do I become the man who deserves to drink Johnnie Walker?

The first one I was in no state of mind to contemplate unless I perhaps asked that man in a kilt. The second thought though tickled me. By the time I got home that evening after the 10 minute walk from the taxi stop I knew the answer. If Johnnie Walker was a drink for men who had a passion for excellence, men in pursuit of excellence, men who saw the drink in themselves and not the themselves in the drink, then I would do as thousands of men had done over the years: I would keep walking.

Johnnie Walker Ambassador

The Spartan with Christopher

I recently found myself standing next to and talking to Christopher Othieno. One of only two men in the region known as Johnnie Walker Ambassadors. A peerless connoisseur, and a teacher by training, Othieno is a fine speaker. Kenyan-born. Standing in his presence feels like a lot of the things I know matter little to the man I wanted to become. He has class, is irreverent, takes no hostages, and does what he does ruthlessly.

As we talked about how he was selected to become an ambassador, from his stay in Scotland, to his endeavours to teach a timeless tradition of exclusivity, passion, pursuit of excellence and desire for recognition, I see in this man a lot of the things I want to be, or at least , i hope to become.

As the end of the evening draws nigh, I see him gleam like a pastor preaching to new converts; like a mentor to a fresh batch of proteges. He is steady, firm, unflinching and a damn good speaker!

I think about mentors and proteges and how possibly the greatest mentor I have ever admired might leave me soon. The idea that the one person for whom you would move half the world will just up and go - creating panic, insecurity, heartache and disrepute looms over me. Like an axe over Antoinette.

I muse on the preponderance that if nothing else I will learn to be the best if nothing at all. But its not enough. Its not enough that they teach you to be the best. The movies lie to us when they say mentors hate their proteges outwardly but secretly love them. Mentors should be your friends, care about you enough to try and avoid breaking your heart. This is betrayal, of a high calibre, and there will be recriminations.

I look again at Christopher and I understand his dilemma. Tomorrow he will be on a flight back home and he might never remeber any of what happened here tonight. But for this chance I will to speak with him and ask him why he is the Ambassador for the Johnnie Walker Striding Man Society.

What drives him to be part of something so exclusive that even the people who should be part of it don't even know it exists? It is a society of men who appreciate that life is not easy but they have done their due diligence and paid their dues. Now they sit and 'exhale' [is what my mentor called it] and say

"I might not have achieved all my goals and targets but for today I will rest here and start tomorrow." They are driven by the idea that through perseverance any dream

ANY DREAM

can be realised.

We love our mentors. We are loyal. We are diligent because we believe in them; sometimes more than in ourselves. They have found their light and we hope that maybe, just maybe, we can borrow their light too; just a glimmer. But alas, we never can.

No We Can't

The StreetSider…

I am currently reading this guy who is so totally hilarious I am lifting the best quotes from his posts and forming a whole post into them...

In no particular order, I love this guy's adjectival biceps. He flexes them and I have moments...
He reminds of what I want to become, a prolific asshole.

No. 1. As he talks of his Conscience in Pamella

"But the wind never sighs but I feel her gentle eyes turned on me questioning
And the eagle never cries but I hear her spirit in the sky turned to me beckoning
And the moon never beams but I am wafted away on dreams
To a far off land where we walk hand in hand
Talking about the things she never did see,
Talking, murmuring, laughing, talking
Talking till we tire the fire-colored sun back into the sea."

No. 2. His description of his first sighting of the antipop "Teeth that are pearly gems of glowing exquisiteness, a skin so smooth and delicate when rain drops see themselves sliding off they weep and gnash their teeth, dimples that are bewitching pools of sooty darkness, eyes that turn your knees to toothpaste, curves that make virtual reality look like its not happening."

No. 3. What he thinks of the 27th comrade "When he walks it looks as if 27 hundred gangster leeches are fornicating furiously with his head."

No. 4. His acceptance speech for the Honest Scraps Award given him "If you could roll this award into a joint and smoke it, you would be guaranteed a front seat at the Holy Ghost Concert with God Almighty shredding guitar and Jesus Christ on drums."

No. 5. "... I cannot begin to come close to being in the same constituency as describing the urge to maim and kill that engulfs me when some one mouths such garbage in my direction. It's an urge to do horrible and grossly disfiguring bodily harm. To gash and slash your chest open, rip your filthy heart out and stand over your warm corpse, face and arms covered in gore, cackling insanely at the night sky.

Basically never ask me if I am sure, I don't like it."

No. 6. The way he describes his domain; the Streetside: "... that harsh friendly land of far way-where angels and demons together play-where children are born old and grow young-where the sun is mist and rocks melt on your tongue-where idiots are wise-where philosophers are idiots in disguise and sallow faced regrets stand in line to stare in your eyes

Where the streets are paved with mirrors, and your past is reflected, life is resurrected, reconnected, respected, the journey re-begun, the race re-run, the thread re-spun…

For a child stands on the corner and whispers and if you listen very very carefully you will hear her say, "seek ye the truth and the truth shall set you free, for truth is a pathless land and you cannot reach it if you do not embrace your true self. So follow your instincts, find you inner light and let it be the one to guide you out of the darkness.""

No. 7. Then the guy who messed with him and told him he couldn't take criticism, or was it that he tried too hard: "Fine, let us assume for argument's sake that I am a narcissistic and immature so and so. So what, so was Oscar Wilde and I'd rather be an Oscar Wilde than an emotionally stable socially respectable accountant with a paunchy middle, a house in kitintale and 2.3 kids. Let us also assume, that I am preaching, that I want attention, who doesn't, in fact I don't know why I am even bothering to rationalize this guy's crap, and while I must say I have some measure of respect for a person who can come up with "gigantic self absorbed, self loathing baby", I am still pissed, I didn't even know how pissed I was till a few sentences ago, and when I get pissed, resolutions leap out of my way with amazing alacrity. You better sit tight punk coz the way ama feelin', yo bout to git served.

Now, listen to me carefully Mr. Unctuous Motherfucker With an Axe to Grind. Are you listening? You said you read this blog so I assume you are. You have messed with the wrong nigger, as my uncle Eliah would say, don't take a shit in the path of red ants and then start complaining when at night you feel them biting your scrotum."

No. 8. This whole post: Excerpt III; ON GAYS, FAGGOTS AND HOMO-SHE-XUALS.

No. 9. And somewhere near his very first post; an old classic: The Confused Confuser;... "If I may be so bold sir, I do not think the phrase "confused confuser" accurately captures this dynamic. Even if one could completely disregard the blatant grammatical absurdity of the term, one must admit that at any rate, it is a statement without reasonable paradigms. To confuse, one cannot be confused in oneself, one has to assume that the confusion is a deliberate effort on the part of the confuser and ergo the possibility of her also being confused as she successfully conducts this maliciousness is highly unlikely. On the other hand if it were possible that the confusion sprung out of a prima facie confusion on the part of the confuser, you still could not in all fairness lay any culpability at her door. If anything the resultant confusion on your part (and I say this with the greatest regret) reflects more your unfortunate susceptibility to confusion than it does her predilection to confuse. Either way sir, I am sorry. (Sits)"

Streetsider, I have mad respect for you. Just keep at it, you are hilarious.

Who Is This Man?

His Motto:

Give me where to stand, and I will move the earth. Archimedes (287-212 B.C.)

His Profile:

He is a Professor of Computer Science and holds a Ph.D. in Computer Science, and is currently serving as Dean, Faculty of Computing and Information Technology, (CIT) Makerere University. He is a member of Makerere University Senate and Council. Continuously demonstrating competence as a leader driven by the need to serve, respect and strengthen those he serves. He believes in building and strengthening institutions.

Under his leadership, the Institute of Computer Science at Makerere University transformed from a small unit with one academic programme, 28 students and an annual budget of USD $15,000 to a Faculty of Computing and Information Technology with 22 academic programmes, over 5,000 students undertaking degree programmes and an annual budget of over USD $7 million by September 2005 (within a period of four years only). Today the Faculty of Computing and IT budget is over USD $10 million.

At the national and regional level, he coordinates (multi- million dollar) projects and research programs aimed at building specialized computing and ICT Human Resource Capacity in Africa; its universities and other tertiary institutions plus the private and public sectors

He is a consultant in ICT research, training, advisory services and policy and a recognised expert on e-governance.

He is the Chairman and Managing Director of ICT Consults Ltd, a prestigious ICT consultancy firm.

He is currently the Executive President of Connect Uganda Foundation, a non profit making organization incorporated in Uganda in 2003 with the overall objective of stimulating new firms and creating jobs in the knowledge-intensive sector, by linking entrepreneurs and innovators with research and development, service providers, venture capitalists and partners.

He is the Executive President of Uganda National Academy of Computing and Internet Technologies, an association that brings together all computing/ ICT faculties/ institutes in all public and private universities to address common objectives and challenges.

A member of the Presidential Investors Roundtable- B.P.O. working group and was also a member of the ICT working committee of the 1^st Presidential Investors Roundtable.

His Education:

• Ph.D. in Computer Science, University of Bergen, Norway 2000
  
• Post Graduate Certificate in Public Relations, University of Minnesota, Minnesota 1999
  
• Post Graduate Certificate in Administration, University of Bergen, Norway 1999
  
• Post Graduate Certificate in Business Management, Sofia University, Bulgaria 1998
  
• Postgraduate Diploma in Mathematical Modelling, University of Trondheim, Norway 1998
  
• Post Graduate Diploma in Economic Modelling, University of Trondheim, Norway 1997
  
• M.Sc. in Computer Science, University of Bergen, Norway 1996
  
• M.Sc. (Mathematics)-Coursework, Makerere University, Uganda 1995
  
• B.Sc. (Mathematics), Makerere University, Uganda 1994
  

  
  

His Expertise:

A distinguished academic, researcher, leader and manager, he lectures courses in Computer Science, Networks, Information Systems and Software Engineering at all levels including Doctoral levels.

He has supervised over 50 masters' students and over 80 postgraduate diploma students to completion and is currently supervising several graduate students both at Masters and PhD level. His plan is to have 100 PhD holders in Computing & IT related courses by 2012.

As Dean, CIT he has accumulated experience in staff training and retention in an African University setting. He manages today over 200 staff and a student population of over 5000 on degree programmes in Computing and ICT disciplines.

With over sixteen years of teaching experience under his belt, a peerless educator and in many ways the man of his time.

His Awards:

Between Himself, His Company - ICT Consults Ltd., and CIT his most prestigious awards are:

1. In January 2009, Prof. Baryamureeba was considered for inclusion in the ''2000 Outstanding Intellectuals of the 21^st Century'' by the International Biographical Centre, which is scheduled for publication in early 2010.
   
2. The '2008 HP Technology for Teaching Higher Education Grant'' was awarded to CIT the 'in appreciation for its commitment for student success and for seeking innovative ways to transform teaching and learning through the effective use of technology.
   
3. Appointed an honorary member of the International Association of IT Governance Standards (ITGOVS), in November 2008. Honorary Membership to ITGOVS is by invitation only and is extended to the top professionals in this area, both from the corporate world as well as the academic world.
   
4. 2^nd Runner-up, Presidential Science Awards, Science and Technology Excellence Award in September 2008, in recognition of his innovative approach to institutional and human capacity development in computer science by the President of the Republic of Uganda.
   
5. ICT Consults Ltd received 10^th Platinum Technology Award for Quality and Best Trade Name, July 2008.
   
6. 'Top ICT Educator/ Academic' Award in Africa for 2007 under the theme "Making the African Century a Reality", at the 9th Annual African ICT Achievers Awards.
   
7. IBM made a gift in his honor to the United Nations (UN) Foundation in support of Nothing but Nets, a grassroots campaign to save lives by preventing malaria in December 2007.
   
8. "The International Star Award for Quality in the Diamond category" - April 2006 in Paris, France. (http://www.bid-star.com/) in recognition of Excellence in Leadership and Business Management; Quality and Excellence; and Technological Innovations and Expansion.
9. Professional of the Year 2005 – British Council Award. An award mainly for achievers, mentors and inspirational managers who have contributed immensely to the management of their organizations as well as International communities.
10. The 2005 Presidential Science Award Cycle: He was also recognized for his efforts in spearheading ICT training, research and consultancy services in sub-Saharan Africa.
11. International Arch of Europe Award for Quality and Technology in the Diamond Category- February 2005, Frankfurt, Germany.
12. The ICT Quality Summit International Award- New York, USA on 21^st June 2004.
13. The 2003-Century International Quality Era Award- May 2003, Geneva, Switzerland.

1. 1. The Key Milestones of his career:

• In 1996 he finished a two year M.Sc. in Computer Science in a record time of 8 months;
  
• In 2000 he graduated with a PhD and had the best PhD dissertation that year at the University of Bergen;
  
• In 2000 discovered the Barya function;
  
• In 2000 at the age of 30 he was the youngest PhD holder at Makerere University;
  
• In 2000 he became the 1^st Ugandan to obtain a PhD in Computer Science;
  
• In 2001 at the age of 31 he was appointed Director of the Institute of Computer Science and became the youngest Director in the History of Makerere University;
  
• In 2005 at the age of 36 he was appointed Dean of the Faculty of Computing and IT and became the youngest Dean in the history of Makerere University;
  
• In 2005, he spearheaded the construction of the largest computing building in Africa with 12,500 sq metres of space worth over USD$ 20 million and was funded from internally generated funds in the Faculty of Computing and IT. Previously he had spearheaded the construction of the Faculty of Computing and IT Building (Block A) worth 2500 sq metres.
  
• In 2006 he was appointed a full Professor at the age of 37 making him the 1^st Professor of Computer Science in Uganda and the youngest Professor in sub-Saharan Africa;
  
• In 2006 he raised from the rank of Associate Professor to Professor in a record time of less than three (3) months;
  
• In 2007 he received the 'Top ICT Educator/ Academic' Award in Africa for 2007;
  
• In November 2008 he was included in the 2009 Edition of Who's Who in the World; a global distribution relied upon by business leaders, journalists, academics, and other professionals for its accuracy and currency of information.
  

The Man:

Professor Venansius Baryamureeba.

Dean, Faculty of Computing and IT, Makerere University.

Website: www.cit.mak.ac.ug

Truly a look at the future.

Cheers!

Heroes and She-roes

“You have people who are exceptions,” said Stephen Francis, the coach of Bolt’s main Jamaican rival, Asafa Powell, the former 100 world-record holder. “You have Einstein. You have Isaac Newton. You have Beethoven. You have Usain Bolt. It’s not explainable how and what they do.”



… And when I checked into Cheri’s after a while, I figured there was something about the place that had changed and then I saw it. It was this huge poster of “The Bolt” in triumph!!
This morning as I rode to work, the guy who was commentating in Luganda, I don’t even know why I even listen, but yes, he said that Usain Bolt had dashed to glory to set a new world record for 100 metre dash and in one summer had also broken the 200 meter record.

Sitting there. Thinking. I remembered. And then he added something that told me he wasn’t too bright; a characteristic of most of Uganda’s radio presenters… anyway he said,
“ bwe yamaze okuwangula naziina endongo! Yakubye endongo ne ye kyanga!” [When he won he danced, so much! He danced and pranced all over the place.]
Now if a Russian had set a new world record and had cruised to a double Olympic victory and had done the kozak dance we’d all be like “ooh! How cute” but that fool had to go and spoil the moment.
It reminded me of a story my father told years ago about when a South African official in the era of apartheid went to England and in an interview on the BBC about why the whites were oppressing the blacks in south Africa, why they were making them miserable, raping their women, tear gassing them, segregating who they gave jobs, and so on…etcetera

WG *looks at the interviewer*: “you say we make them unhappy?”
Interviewer: “yes”
WG: *looks at TV screen across the room and sees a Zulu cultural troupe dancing and singing and looks back at interviewer with a puzzled look* “… but the fellows are always dancing and merry making. They cannot be unhappy!”

Anyway tangentially…

As I am in that taxi, my eyes start to water [yeah am a sentimental bastard. I cry at anything that strikes me the right way] I am thinking of all the black men and women in history who have stood for something. Every single one my small brain cluster can care to remember: Martin Luther King Jr., Malcolm X, William Wilberforce, Sirleaf Ellen Johnson, Oliver Thambo, Dedan Kimathi, Patrice Lumumba, Kwame, Gamal Abdel Nasser, Ngugi wa Thiong’o, Chinua, Milton, Wangare Mathaai, and dear old Nelson.
And then I thought about the sporting heroes and heroines who risk life and limb in the best years of their youth on the track; on the line; on the edge, for glory of country and home; people who had written the name of Africa indelibly in the hearts of the world, and set it in stone in the sands of time;
Mohammed Ali,
Haille Gebraselassie,
Michael Johnson,
Marion Jones,
Michael Jordan,
Chester Williams,
Moses Kiptanui,
Francis Nyangweso,
John Akii Bua,
Maria Muthola and [ am next to weeping as I write this]…
Dorcus Inzikuru.

Each of these in their won way provided a light; they held up a lamp when times were dim. They blazed a trail for generations to come. They should always be remembered, maybe not for all they were but for the period that they were.
They might not have been not the heroes we deserved but they were the heroes we needed. In the dark night when we despaired, there was someone holding a candle; bearing the torch, and people from all walks of life saw the light and did not give up.
And because we believed, South Africa was freed. Because we believed, Liberia will recover. Because we believed, the civil rights movement triumphed. Because we believed, THE SPRING BOKS RULE!!
How does “The Bolt” fit into all this? You ask me?!?

Seriously?

Go to hell!


................................................................Because I Believe

A Poetry Recital

In a packed room lit with candles and dimmed lights, the Lantern Society of Poets in their inaugural recital put on a show to remember.

The Lantern Meet which has been meeting for over a year meets fortnightly at the National Theatre To share poetry, talk and critique young poets’ work was conceived over three years ago by four students who shared a passion for poetry. Guy Mambo, Oj Raymond, Aki Brenda and yours truly. With a view to raising the bar. What bar? Well… the social bar, the literary bar, the intellectual bar… all the bars you can think of!!!

But, hush performance in progress…

Next on stage is a poem called the musician performed by Rachael, she walks down the stairs and the orange glow of the stage light flows on her body. Her voice undulates over the room, the clarity of her voice carrying the poem across the room. It is like a smooth melody, floating on a cushion of wafty notes produced by the guitarist plucking obliviously away at his guitar. The audience in the back of the room stops talking for an absolute moment. Captured. Riveted. Transposed almost. In one puissant moment, as she takes her final bow, the room explodes into applaud…

The Lantern Meet of Poets has put together an ensemble of poems from almost all walks of life, drawing deeply on human nature and the way our own humanity relates to the circumstances around us. To the intricate tapestry in which is interwoven every man’s fortune and fate. From sorrow to exhilaration, to love and loss the poems flow, exciting, scintillating. Some drawing tears from the audience, others creating a long lingering laughter.

At the end of the show, as the Lanterns bow for recognition, and they promise another exciting show over the Christmas holiday, it reminds me of that old adage ”the best things are free.” By drawing on the talents of scholars from a myriad of disciplines the lanterns have shown the true color of intellect: colorless.

The Lantern Meet is headed by Guy Mambo and the poetry recital was directed by Samantha Kachwinya.

*Disclaimer: for the more objective view of the recital I recommend you read more objective [read less informed] views but more balanced nonetheless.

Per Adua Ad Astra!!

..................(Through Hardship To The Stars!)

I am going to my best friend's send off and then some random guy thinks it is a good idea to send off my phone too!!
Yeah!! you may not believe it but my phone was robbed too. I am still in awe of the powers that be at this incongruous circumvention of cataclysmic events. Should I be? I don't know honestly. This is less than 22 hours after a guy wiped out my whole closet and thought it good to just not let me know. He even took my prize underwear so now I have to be very careful with the pair that I have so that it does not get soiled before end of day. I tell you I am living the life of a hermit.

Am sure the guy who stole my phone was a male; this at least am sure about. The rest is pretty hazy. Me seated on a motor bike chasing the matatu (public transport vehicle) across town does not seem to register at first thought. So I am depressed, broke, hungry( haven't eaten in close to 28 hours)
My friend has his send-off which is really a great quiet time in which we reflected about his stay in this Beautiful Shithole(Oxymoron? tell me a better way to describe this country) for the last 8 months. We shared of travels to forbidden lands, prospects of meeting on a street in Washington DC and some pretty shocking revelations. Witnesses ? Jackfruity was there.
And today in between trying to say goodbye to him and recovering my phone, I was in the throes of agonizing regret that I did not spend more time with him.
I mean what tribute is there to a guy who has been lost with you in a forest in the middle of an impenetrable jungle where the people start playing flutes of rejoicing that you are lost (probably in anticipation of dinner).
What do you say to a guy who has been accosted by a rat the size of a goat (for all he knows) in your house?
There is no literary expletive to even bring half of the times and memories made and shared to the imagination of the bystander.
The only thing I will say is that when an In An African Minute was born we never had an inkling that the idea would yield a character so bold and yet so strong.

GODSPEED AND JOURNEY MERCIES TO YOU.
May the sun bow wherever he meets you
May the stars always be resplendent of your valor
May the ladies always be ware of your omnicient charm
And to the ends of the earth, may you find that which completes us all.
Neither Harry Belafonte nor Jeffrey Sachs wish you as much.

Peace Out Josh.