KENYA: HEAR OUR VOICES: "Why I attended the World Social
Forum" - slum resident
Source: IRIN
Reuters and AlertNet are not responsible for the content of this article or for any external internet sites. The views expressed are the author's alone.
NAIROBI, 25 January (IRIN) - Duncan Otieno, 22, lives in Huruma, one of four main slums in Kenya's capital, Nairobi.
Otieno has lived there since coming to the city in 2003 after finishing school in Kisumu, in the west of the country. Four years on, he remains unemployed except for the odd construction job, which
helps him pay the rent of his one-roomed house and support his younger brother. Otieno attended the last day of the World Social Forum, a platform for activists, social movements, networks and
coalitions from Asia-Pacific, Latin America, the Caribbean, North America, Europe and Africa to discuss issues affecting poor countries, such as the debt burden, poverty, human rights and access to
basic needs. This year's forum, the seventh, was held in Nairobi from 20-25 January. For Otieno, attending the forum even for just a day was important because the issues under debate affected him
and majority of the people he knows: "I attended the World Social Forum because they [the participants] were focusing on issues affecting the youth, especially in the slums, such as unemployment,
rampant poverty and frustration with the government. "They were also talking about water which is very expensive in the slums. I pay at least five shillings [US$0.01] for 10 litres of water yet
sometimes I do not even have the odd job. The few people in the slums that have running water, those with permanent houses, sell the water to us. We should not be charged for water, it is our right. "The rent in the slums is also high yet we are poor. I pay 2,000 shillings each month (about $30) yet the house is made of rusted iron sheets. There is no garbage disposal and sewage floats freely
across the paths. "The houses are crammed close together such that we suffer a lot of losses when there are fires in the slums. The government has forgotten us as we have no access roads. "Developed countries should not look down on Africa; instead they should assist us by cancelling our debts as called for by the forum to enable us to develop. Then we will not depend on donors but
rely on our resources. "The government can then help people start small businesses. For as little as 500 shillings ($7.50) one can be a hawker instead of sitting at home. "If I had the
opportunity, I would have attended the World Social Forum for the full five days. But I had other priorities. How can I just sit at Kasarani or Uhuru Park [the venues of the forum] the whole day when
I do not have food? Today I am free, that is why I am here. "I am glad people were sharing ideas at the forum to help uplift each other not to lose hope but to stay determined. "However, if the
forum is just a matter of people talking, just for the sake of gathering, then it will be of no use. "What has been discussed should be formulated into policies that have tangible results that an
ordinary mwananchi [citizen] can appreciate." Aw/js/mw
