I am a blogger, journalist, lawyer, digital activist and new media consultant. I am interested in the relationship between social media and development in the developing world, particularly Sub-Saharan Africa.
I am the Sub-Saharan Africa Editor here at Global Voices. Follow me on Twitter: @ndesanjo
Latest posts by Ndesanjo Macha from November, 2006
Nigeria: Nigerian unwords
Ijebuman's Diary posts a list of Nigerian unwords and examples of how they can be used in a Nigerian context.
Sudan: can bloggers save Darfur?
In a post titled, Can Bloggers Save Darfur?, We Blog for Darfur respond to arguments raised by Mark Jones, the Global Community Editor for Reuters, “We don’t ask for your money, we ask for your attention so that you will be educated as to what’s actually going on in Darfur.”
Kenya: the world social forum
The world social forum and civil society: a reification of the state or an oppositional discourse?, asks Kameelah Writes.
Africa: are we failed states?
Enanga's Pov refutes the notion that Africa is a home to the greatest collection of failed states. She writes, “We should stop calling babies bad names because we cannot give them the time and freedom to grow.”
D.R. of Congo: volcanic eruption
Congo Rangers blog has a story about Mount Nyamulagira volcanic eruption in the Democratic Republic of Congo, “Nyamulagira erupted on Monday 27th at approximately 1930. Ever since, lava from the 1km long fissure has been moving down the western side of the volcano towards Sake, a small town 25km west...
Tanzania: IT related words in Swahili
Jesp wrote about the difficulties of accumulating a proper Kiswahili vocabulary as an IT professional in Tanzania. This is what he did not know when he was writing his post, “The Kamusi Project has a list of 700 IT related words translated from English to Kiswahili, made publicly available in...
Kenya: Kenyan entrepreneur on YouTube
Kenyan Pundit writes about a young Kenyan entrepreneur who is getting innovative with YouTube.
Malawi: lottery on mobile phones
“Earlier this year, Pay265.net launched their e-Wallet concept that would allow Malawians make payments via SMS and email when implemented. Now, the African Lotteries Company Limited (AFLOT) is looking for a company to operate on its behalf, an SMS/mobile phone lottery service that can enable the general public to play...
Africa: LGBTs issues in Africa
Black Looks writes about current development in LGBTs issues in Africa, “The Kenyan Times published an article in support of the South African Bill and states that it does not believe that homsexuality is “unAfrican” which in itself is quite a leap forward as that is one of the principle...
Nigeria: cybercrime bill
Naija Blog posts the Nigerian cybercime bill for, “Anyone who wants to read what is done about cybercrime in Nigeria…”
Sudan: UN troops in Sudan?
Sudanese Thinker is trying to make sense of the deal between the Sudanese government and the United Nations, “Has Sudan really accepted the deal and is simply downplaying that fact? Or are the UN and AU moving ahead without a clear “green light” from al-Bashir? The language used in recent...
Nigeria: putting the record straight
Grandiose Parlor responds to a blog post suggesting that Nigeria is skunk slime of Africa, “The writer displays a gross lack of knowledge, for he should have realized that while there are several bad elements among its nationals, Nigeria has contributed immensely to the socio-political, and economic growth of the...
D.R. of Congo: volcanic eruption
There is a volcanic eruption in Eastern DRC, reports Congo Girl: “I went to the website hoping for a photo of the volcano, Mount Nyamulagira, but there was only a photo of lava covering Goma that came from Mount Nyiragongo in 2002. The expert cited in the IRIN report stated...
Africa: technology conference '07
Tech4Africa '07 is gaining momentum, writes One Afrikan: “And so it begins…. We’ve started getting some really good feedback for the Tech 4 Africa conference (last check we were up to about 30 replies after a day or so of being up and emailing to an initial beta group for...
Malawi: Malawian windmill
Hactivate has a moving story about a windmill in Malawi, “The windmill stands on a tripod of wooden polls about five metres above the ground. It consists of locally-available materials and as far as he can remember his investments were K500 for two bearings, K500 for a bicycle dynamo, K400...
D.R. of Congo: Bemba should concede defeat
“…the time has come for Jean-Pierre Bemba Gombo to concede defeat,” writes Eye on Africa following the rejection of a legal challenge to last month's presidential run-off election by the Democratic Republic of Congo's Supreme Court.
Africa: the African ICT Achievers Awards 2006
Here is a list of winners of the African ICT Achievers Awards 2006, “The Winner of the Top ICT Youth Innovator Award, Nomfundo Nguse(19), was also a finalist in the Top ICT Young Entrepreneur category.”
D.R. of Congo: Bemba's election challenge update
“Before declaring the definitive outcome, the Supreme Court rejected Bemba’s challenge for lack of proof (the burden of proof being on the claimant). The CEI was found to have acted legally and transparently. One claim – that Kabila had spent government funds on his investiture ceremony – was regarded as...
Africa: Africa's economies
Eliesmith writes about the 2006 African Development Indicator, “According to the report, the Federal Republic of Nigeria and the Republic of South Africa have retained their dominant positions on the economies of sub-Saharan Africa. Both countries account for 55% of the GDP of the region.”
Tanzanian bloggers’ virtual conference
Tanzanian bloggers held their first virtual conference on November 18th, 2006. The aim of the conference was to discuss various steps to be taken to make the community more effective and expand its reach. Most bloggers feel that there is an opportunity for blogs to be a tool for critical...
Ethiopia: pro-democracy websites and blogs blocked
“All pro-democracy websites are now blocked in Ethiopia. Blogs which were unblocked for the last three months are blocked again including this blog,” reports Ethiopian Life, Culture, Politics, and Arts.
