Gazeti la CNN la Business 2.0 limetoa orodha ya tovuti ambazo ni kiboko toka katika nchi nyingine duniani, nje ya Marekani. Afrika kuna tovuti moja tu. Je unaijua? Buni…ni hii blogu ya Jikomboe:) Nimekupiga changa la macho. Ni kile kikusanya habari cha Afrigator. Bonyeza hapa usome habari yenyewe:

Africa’s first social media aggregator tracks more than 1,000 Africa-related blogs, podcasts and news sites. Readers can rank individual posts and read them online. In May, Afrigator began using OpenID, a system that allows users to operate a single login at multiple websites.

Kuna watu ambao wamezoea kutumia barua pepe kiasi ambacho habari ya kwenda kununua bahasha, karatasi, stempu, kutafuta kalamu, kwenda posta, n.k. ni usumbufu mkubwa. Lakini je watu hawa wanaweza vipi kuwasiliana na watu wasio na anuani za barua pepe? Dunia yetu hii watu wanakaa chini wanakuja na kila aina ya huduma. Cheki jamaa wanaojiita Postful. Wao (kwa Marekani) wana huduma ambayo wewe utamwandikia babu yako barua pepe ila itamfikia kwa njia ya posta! Barua pepe —-> barua ya posta (barua konokono) —> babu. NI kama vile walijua kuwa nachukia mno, mno kwenda posta na kulamba stempu. Wanasema:

Most of us know people who can’t receive e-mail. For me, it’s my grandparents. For others it’s a friend in the hospital or in the military. We’d like to write, but between stamps, envelopes, printing, and mailing, it doesn’t get done. With Postful, it’s as easy as sending an e-mail. You can even create unique e-mail addresses for frequent contacts so that you don’t have to type in their mailing address each time!

Postful.

Wikimania 2007 ndio imekaribia. Bonyeza hapa usome orodha ya watoa mada. Au hapa. Mkutano ni tarehe 3 - 5, Taipei, Taiwan (hivi neno tapeli lilitokana na Taipei, au?). Kama unakuguswa na masuala ya wikipedia na miradi mingine huria iliyochini ya Wikimedia Foundation (au miradi inayohusiana), nitaripoti mkutano huo hapa. Unaweza pia kufuatilia habari zake (mkutano utakapoanza) hapa. Unaweza pia kushiriki bila kwenda Taiwan kupitia chumba cha Skype. Bonyeza hapa.

Baada ya mwanablogu mpiga picha, Issa Michuzi, kukumbwa na kasheshe ya wachazaji (hackers) ambapo wamechukua anuani yake na hivyo akashindwa kuingia ndani ya blogu yake, amefanikiwa kuhamisha blogu yake kwenye anuani mpya. Badala ya neno “issa” kuwa na “s” mbili, sasa kuna “s” moja, yaani: http://isamichuzi.blogspot.com
Bonyeza hapa usome kisa chenyewe na upate kiungo cha mahojiano yake.
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Halafu unajua wakati sisi tumekazania akina “Stela,” dada Jeni (Jennifer) anasema kuwa nao wanao akina Maiko (Michael)! Kumbe. Da Mija, Serina, Miriam, Shamimu…ninyi akina Michael wenu vipi? Bonyeza hapa umsome dada Jeni akiahidi kutupa kisa cha “Michael” wake.

Pole sana ndugu yetu, Issa Michuzi.
Huenda umepata barua pepe ikitoka kwa “Issa Michuzi” ikisema kuwa yuko Nigeria. Amekwama hotelini. Anakuomba hela. Kisha atakurudishia baadaye. Ni uongo mtupu. Bonyeza hapa usome kisa chenyewe kwenye mahojiano yake na BongoCelebrity. Hongera BongoCelebrity kwa kudaka habari hii na kuifanyia kazi mapema. Tungesema tusubiri vile vyombo vyetu ya kwenda kupigwa chapa “Kiuta”….mmhn! Wizi wenyewe unasambazwa mtandaoni basi nasi tusambaze habari hii mtandaoni kwa haraka iwezekanavyo. Pole Michuzi. Tupo wote. Niandikie.

BlogHer (mkutano wa wanablogu wanawake) mwaka huu ni Chicago. Wanablogu wa Afrika tumewakilishwa kwenye mjadala wa “Women Across the World” na Juliana wa blogu ya Afromusing. Mjadala huu umeongozwa na Georgia Popplewell toka Trinidad, ambaye ni Mhariri Mkuu wa Global Voices Online. Mwingine ni Amira Al-Hussaini, ambaye ni Mhariri wa Global Voices wa Mashariki ya Kati na Afrika Magharibi. Bonyeza hapa usome yaliyojadiliwa kwenye mjadala huo. Kisha bonyeza hapa usome aliyoandika Juliana tokea hapo mkutanoni.

Tuache utani kila mtu lazima ana “Stela” wake. Stela wangu, ambaye nimeambiwa anaishi Himo, Moshi, kisa chake wengi mnakijua. Asiyekijua bonyeza hapa. Sasa kumbe Sankofa naye ana “Stela” wake. Kisa cha “Stela” wake nimekisoma kama nasoma riwaya moja kali mno ya mapenzi na mahaba. Bonyeza hapa ukisome. Halafu kaweka picha za “Stela” wakekwenye flickr. We! Brazili tutaenda wote, Sankofa! Haya, pole. Hebu wengine wenye “Stela” wao watueleze. Eeh, Tunga we vipi? Jeff na Simon hamna “Stela” nyie? Simon we inaelekea “Stela” walikuwa wengiwengi hivi…eeh? Egidio naona unataka kuingia mitini na kisa cha “Stela” wako.

Indaba ya kwanza ilikuwa ni mwaka jana. Ikaleta ubishi mkali sana. Ulileta balaa kama mesenja (unakumbuka wimbo huu?). Bonyeza hapa usome ubishi wenyewe. Mwaka huu mkutano huu wa wanablogu, ambao unaitwa Digital Citizen Indaba, unafanyika mwezi wa tisa. Utafanyika wakati mmoja na mkutano wa HighwayAfrica. Kama wewe ni mwanablogu, bonyeza hapa uende kwenye ukurasa wenye fomu ya kuomba skolashipu ya kuhudhuria Indaba ya mwaka huu.

Web2forDev 2007 ni mkutano wa teknolojia na maendeleo utakaofanyika huko Roma, Italia. Kituo kiitwacho “The Technical Center for Agricultural and Rural Cooperation” kitagharamia waandishi wa habari watatu toka Afrika, Karibiani, na Pasifiki ili wahudhurie na kuripoti juu ya mkutano huo kwenye blogu yao.

Kwanza kabisa juu ya mkutano wenyewe:

Web2ForDev 2007 is the first conference devoted to exploring the ways in which international development stakeholders can take advantage of the technical and organizational opportunities provided by Web 2.0 methods, approaches and applications.

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Jaribu bahati yako.
1. Southern African Media Training Trust - NSJ:

The NSJ Trust provides full and limited scholarships to Southern African Journalists and media practitioners to advance their professional skills and competence.

2. Media Institute of Southern Africa:

As part of its ongoing commitment to training, MISA offers a scholarship exchange programme, which is facilitated by the Regional Secretariat in Windhoek, Namibia.

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Makala ile ya mwandishi wa Kinigeria Uzodinma Iweala (kama hufahamu nazungumzia nini, bonyeza hapa kwanza kabla ya kuendelea) inayowaambia “jamaa” waache kujifanya “Yesu” wa Afrika imejadiliwa pia na mwanablogu Joshua Goldstein, ambaye amewahi kufanya kazi nchini Uganda (yeye anatoka Marekani.) Yeye amepinga kabisa hoja za Uzodinma. Kwa mfano anasema:

Much has been said of Uzodinma Iweala’s piece “Stop Trying to ‘Save’ Africa” in yesterday’s WaPo. Those in the Afro-blogosphere have heard these points many times, though they seem to stick more when they come from a provocative headline penned by a much acclaimed young novelist whose classmates (he graduated from Harvard in 2005) are the ‘perky young blondes’ working on Save Darfur and other post-9/11 youth led grassroots movements. I want to address one particular subtle point that Uzo makes.

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Mwandishi wa Kinigeria, Uzodinma Iweala, ana makala kwenye gazeti la Washington Post inayosema: Stop Trying To “Save” Africa. Anasema kuwa wananchi wa nchi za Magharibi waache kutuona Waafrika kama vile hakun tunalofanya kubadilisha maisha yetu na kuwa wao ndio “wakombozi” wetu. Kama vile wao (akina Bono, Tony Blair na ile sijui tume yake ya Afrika…imeishia wapi? na wengine wengi) ni “Yesu Kristo” fulani hivi. Wanatuletea habari njema za ukombozi na wokovu. Sehemu ya makala yake inasema hivi:

Why do the media frequently refer to African countries as having been “granted independence from their colonial masters,” as opposed to having fought and shed blood for their freedom? Why do Angelina Jolie and Bono receive overwhelming attention for their work in Africa while Nwankwo Kanu or Dikembe Mutombo, Africans both, are hardly ever mentioned? How is it that a former mid-level U.S. diplomat receives more attention for his cowboy antics in Sudan than do the numerous African Union countries that have sent food and troops and spent countless hours trying to negotiate a settlement among all parties in that crisis?

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Media Institute of Southern Africa (MISA) imeshatangaza tuzo yake ya kila mwaka ya Pres Freedom Award ambayo mshindi wake atajipatia kitita cha dola 2,500:

The Media Institute of Southern Africa (MISA) is inviting nominations for its annual MISA Press Freedom Award which is brought to you in conjunction with Southern Africa Trust. The award, with a cash prize of US$2,500, is given to honor excellence in journalism.

Ingawa zimebaki siku chache hadi tarehe ya mwisho hakuna ubaya mtu mwenye sifa akachamgamkia tuzo hii. Tarehe ya mwisho ni Julai 30. Bonyeza hapa ujue sifa zenyewe na jinsi ya kuingia.

Kila mwaka Tume ya Uchumi ya Afrika ikishirikiana na wadau wengine hutoa tuzo za AISI Media Awards. AISI ni kifupi cha “The African Information Society Initiative”:

The African Information Society Initiative (AISI) is an action framework that has been the basis for information and communication activities in Africa since 1996. AISI is not about technology. It is about giving Africans the means to improve the quality of their lives and fight against poverty.

Unaweza kuingia kwenye kushindania tuzo hizi au kama unajua watu wenye sifa unaweza kuwapa taarifa hii. Mwisho ni Agosti 15.
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David Ajao katupatia makala moja ya kuchekesha (ingawa ina ujumbe ambao sio wa kuchekesha) toka GhanaWeb kuhusu Ghana. Nimeisoma nikaona kuwa makala hii unaweza kubadilisha neno “Ghana” na neno la karibu nchi zote za Afrika. Kwa mfano, inasema:

1. A Ghanaian minister earns $600-a-month, buys three houses for $200,000 each and three cars for $20,000 each, sends his kid to a $10,000-per-year university in the US, pays $20,000 to be allowed to contest for the presidential nomination of his party and his bank balance is still in the black. With such an ‘economic genius’, I wonder why we are still begging for food aid?

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Niliandika kuhusu ile kampeni ya Unicef iliyozua hisia za kudharauliwa kwa watoto wa Afrika. Unicef imelitoa tangazo hilo baada ya malalamiko ya wanablogu, hasa African American Opinion Pundit. Bonyeza hapa kwanza usome kuhusu kampeni yenyewe kama huifahamu. Baada ya tangazo hilo kutoka na wanablogu kuandika wakilipinga vikali, mwanablogu African American Opinion Pundit aliamua kuwaandikia Unicef barua.
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Inawezekana wanajumuiya wa tovuti ya picha ya Flickr wanaona ufundi na ubunifu wa Sankofa kwenye picha zake kuliko sisi? Sijui. Naona kule Flickr Sankofa ana wapenzi wengi wa picha zake na wengine wanampa tuzo na hata kumtaka atangaze picha zake zaidi. Sasa siku ya leo ikumbuke, kuna siku utasikia jambo fulani kubwa linamtokea Sankofa kutokana na picha zake. Isipotekea utanifanya nini? Utanipa hela! Na ikitokea? Utanipa hela pia! Tazama ukurasa wake wa Flickr, bonyeza hapa. Ukitazama picha zake utagundua kuwa sio tu ule ufundi wa kupiga na kuzihariri bali pia kuzipa vichwa au maelezo mazuri kwa sentensi chache.

Katika wizi mbaya, wizi wa mchana ni mmojawapo. Wizi wa mchana - ukiwa unatazama hivi hivi bila kushindwa kufanya lolote, ama kwa woga, ujinga, au kutojua la kufanya. Au kuzidiwa tu kete na mabeberu. Eti Kikoi na Kiondo ni mali ya wazungu sasa. Wash*** kweli. Soma habari hiyo hapo chini.

Slavery, colonialism, plunder, cheap labour, brain drain… and now bio-piracy. Nothing has changed much in Africa-Europe ties for centuries. Africa continues to oil the wheels of industry in the West.
The latest example is the ongoing debate over the kikoi, a name (kikoy) that a British firm wants to patent in the UK. Other cases have involved the kiondo and an enzyme used to give jeans a faded look. In 1992, American company Genencor International discovered commercially useful organisms in several lakes in the Rift Valley. The organisms are now being used to manufacture enzymes which, among other properties, give jeans clothes a coveted, faded look. The company has reportedly made huge profits yet the Kenyan Government says it has not benefited from the venture.

Bonyeza hapa usome habari nzima.

Unakumbuka niliandika huko nyuma nikijiuliza Stela yu wapi? Bonyeza hapa kama hukusoma wakati huo na kama humkumbuki Stela ni nani. Basi nilipokuwa Moshi hivi majuzi nikakutana na mama yake, akaniambia kuwa Stela yuko Himo siku hizi, “pale stendi ya Himo ukifika tu, ukimuulizia utaonyeshwa kwake.” Je nilienda au sikwenda?

Halafu si unakumbuka kisa cha Stela kilinikumbusha kisa kingine? Bonyeza hapa.

Mwenye macho haambiwi tazama.

Kuna wakati kunaweza kutokea mwanablogu ambaye ujio wake unakuwa umeleta msisimko fulani. Kwa mfano, Simon Kitururu alipokuja alikuja na nguvu fulani ambazo anazo hadi leo. Inaweza kuwa rahisi sana kuanzisha blogu leo, ila kuiendeleza na kuweza kuwapa wasomaji wako habari na mada mbalimbali kila siku au mara kwa mara ikawa sio kazi rahisi. Simon aliingia kwa nguvu ambazo anaziendeleza hadi leo. Lakini pia alikuja na mtindo fulani wa kuuliza maswali kama utani utani hivi lakini maswali yenyewe yamebeba ujumbe mzito wa kifalsafa na kimaisha.
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