ケニア特集

ケニアは日本人に最もよく知られているアフリカの国の一つではないでしょうか。ケニアへは毎年１万人前後の観光客が日本から訪れ、サハラ砂漠以南のアフリカでは南アフリカ共和国に次いで居住している日本人の数が多いのがケニアです。このコーナーでは日本人に親しみ深いケニアの魅力を改めてお伝えしたいと思います。

  

サファリ抜きには語れない！ケニアの大自然の魅力

ケニアと聞いてまず思い浮かべるのがサファリだと思います。ケニアはタンザニアと並ぶサファリの名所で、世界各国から観光客を惹きつけています。中でも、動物が大移動を行う７〜９月はサファリのハイシーズンで、ヌーの大群の川渡りを見ようと大勢の観光客がつめかけます。

また、ケニアは唯一首都に国立公園がある国で、ナイロビ市の中心街から車を20分走らせた場所に国立公園が広がっています。野生動物が高層ビルを背景に大草原を闊歩する姿はケニアでしか見ることができません。

世界一のマラソン走者輩出国

ケニアの国際的知名度を上げているもう一つのケニア名物はマラソンです。実は、ケニアは世界陸上のマラソン種目において、男女ともに世界で最多の優勝者を 輩出してきました。どのくらいケニアの選手が強いかというと、例えば現在の男子マラソン世界ランキングの上位50名のうち28名がケニア人で、同じくマラソンが有名なお隣のエチオピアと合わせるとなんと47名がケニア・エチオピア選手なのです。

速さの秘訣は高地トレーニングと言われています。ケニアは標高が高く、首都ナイロビも標高1700メートルの高さに位置しています。 酸素が薄く気圧も低いため、高地で運動する際には血液から筋肉へ運ばれる酸素量が減少し、身体にかかる負荷が増します。そのため、高地の厳しい環境に身体が慣れた選手が低地に下りてくると、パフォーマンスが上がるのです。

マラソンが有名なケニアにちなんだ日本とケニアの交流行事も行われています。たとえば、日本の子ども達と一緒にシューズを回収しアフリカの子ども達に届ける「スマイル・アフリカ・プロジェクト」の一環として、シドニー・オリンピック金メダリストでありJICAオフィシャル・サポーターでもある高橋尚子さんの参加の下、2009年からソトコト・サファリ・マラソンが毎年開催され、ケニアのスラムに居住する裸足の子ども達にスニーカーや運動靴が届けられています。2012年は1300足が寄贈されました。

スマイル・アフリカ・プロジェクトhttp://www.sotokoto.net/smileafrica/index.html

バラの国

ケニアと日本を結びつけている意外なもの、それがバラです。実はケニアは切り花の生産が盛んで、中でもバラはケニアの切り花輸出全体の４分の３を占めています。日本も多くのバラをケニアから輸入しており、ケニアからのバラの輸入は年々増加しています。ケニアのバラは一輪ごとのボリュームがあり、発色がよく、寿命も長く、実は人気がとても高いのです。ケニアは赤道直下に位置するため日照時間が長く、かつ高地に位置するため朝夕の寒暖差が大きいことから、こうした高品質のバラの生産が可能になります。

さて、ケニア特集、いかがでしたでしょうか？まだケニアを訪問したことがない方は、ぜひ一度は訪れてみてください。筆者のように、病み付きになるかもしれません。

Kibera Slum After the Election

On March 4^th, Kenyan people across the country queued in long lines to cast vote.  As the official results of the Presidential race has not yet been declared, Kenyans are now patiently waiting for the official announcement on who is going to become their 4^th President.  But as a tallying process prolongs, there are some signs that people’s living conditions in so-called hot spots are tightening up.

Three days after the general election, I visited Kibera slum, which blew up during the 2007/2008 post-election violence.  Kibera is the largest slum in Nairobi, and it is a melting pot of different tribes.  For example, people of Kikuyu, which is Kenya’s largest tribe, live next to Luo people, and the two tribes have been contesting for the Presidential seat in this election; Prime Minister Odinga is from Luo, while Vice Prime Minister Kenyatta is from Kikuyu.  Orange campaign posters for PM Odinga are ubiquitous in Luo-dominant areas in Kibera slum, while Mr. Kenyatta’s red leaflets can be found in every corner of the opposite side of the slum.  As Kenyan people have tended to vote along tribal lines, the tribally mixed slum became one of the sites of the appalling post-election tragedy.

As the 2007/2008 experience still remains a fresh memory, slum dwellers in Kibera have not yet returned to work, taking precautionary measures.  When I visited the slum on 7th, almost 80% of the shops and street vendors in some areas had been closed since the election day.  Even if people open their shops, it is not easy to earn their living.  Households have restrained their consumption in fear of emergency, and customers have not come back yet.  “I am thinking of closing my shop again because there are no customers,” said a lady who stood sadly in front of her rotting tomatoes. 

Higher wholesale prices due to less production raised the overall price level in the slum.  A distribution system has posed another challenge.  Trucks with fruits and vegetables usually come to the slum every day, but the service has been suspended.  As the demand exceeds the supply, prices of food, water and other commodities have gone up by the factor of two to three.  Charcoals, which are basic commodities for the people in the slum, were also sold at higher prices.  “I usually sell one bucket of charcoals at KSh 40, but now I’m asking customers to pay 70,” said a man on the street. 

In sum, their financial inflow has been suspended, while their outflow has increased tremendously.  For those who are living from hand to mouth, such a situation imposes an enormous pressure.  “I have four children, but now, the price of milk is higher, water is higher, and I can no longer afford living here.  I’m taking my children back to my hometown in Kisumu,” said a lady who had not had breakfasts for days.

Once the election results are confirmed peacefully, people will soon return to their ordinary life.  Kenyan people have learnt from their bitter experience how important peace is.  I hope Nairobi would come back to life soon.

48 Hours Before the General Election

Kenya will have a general election for the first time since the 2007/2008 post-election violence in less than 48 hours, and people’s mood here in Nairobi is mixed.  For some, the election is a festive event.  Today I saw some excited young people singing songs together on the street.  But for some, it is a source of anxiety.  When I went for a grocery shopping at 10am this morning, there was already a long line at the register.  It was interesting to see each Kenyan queued with two to three huge carts whereas Westerners waited impatiently with only one cart per person (of course Kenyans generally have larger families than Westerners).  Some daily stuff, like 5-liter water bottles, went out of stock quickly. But the situation is not as serious as to raise the price level.

Such anxieties are well understandable.  More than 1000 people were killed and around 0.6 million lost their homes after the last election.  In December 2007, the voting itself was conducted peacefully.  It was after vote counting started when the peaceful atmosphere suddenly changed.  After people started questioning the results, the violence spiraled out of control just like a wild fire.  Kenyans paid the high price.

President Kibaki called for peace during the election. (Source: KBC)

This time, many people are preaching peace, from young to old, from laymen to religious leaders, and from big names to street beggars.  Yesterday, President Kibaki appeared on Kenya’s national TV and asked Kenyans not to pick up arms.  The eight Presidential candidates pledged for peace during the historic presidential debate conducted for the first time since the independence.  Peace concerts and rallies have been taking place across Nairobi in the past several weeks.

The vote is mightier than the sword.  Let’s hope that Kenyans will show the international community that it is undeniably the leader and role model of East Africa with a free, fair, credible, and peaceful election.