Hi, I've been referred to Dr. X for an emergency consultation and I'd like to make an appointment for as soon as possible today.
OK. WHEN WOULD YOU LIKE TO COME?
Uhh, as soon as possible. Like today.
OK, TODAY WOULD BE FINE BUT HE'S NOT IN UNTIL NEXT MONDAY.
HELLO?
Why would I make an appointment for someone who will not be there for a week?
YOU COULD TRY - YOU NEVER KNOW.
HELLO?
Is there anyone else I could see or that I can be referred to?
NO.
So you're telling everyone who calls to stay sick until next week so that they can see this specialist?
YES.
Did you seriously just answer yes to that question?
YES.
Thursday, November 25, 2010
Monday, October 25, 2010
Infamous "Busted" on Kenyan Radio
On a Thursday night I was watching one of those Lifetime / CW / AnyUSNetwork syndicated shows that never survive more than two seasons. Only reason I was watching it was I needed some background noise while downloading The Amazing Race (greatest show ever!). Anyway, the show's premise was being able to revisit your past and change one aspect of it that changes somebody's life or your perception on life. Long story short, the original story was about a regular 20something in college going out on the town with her openly lesbian friend and realizing there was a connection between them. When the opportunity came, she backed out "not feeling" it. The flashback was about her "feeling it" and finally experimenting and coming to the realization that it was not her thing and the subsequent changes in her life based on that action. There was light kissing and groping involved in the flashback which I had to guess occurred because KTN, the local cable news network censored each and every movement and action of lesbian love (incredibly mild, sorry guys) and it ended up being hinted and not acted out. Seriously, they cut out pretty much half the story in an effort to prevent such scenes from hitting the Kenyan screen. I hmmphed but recognized the audience they were trying to "protect" from such images and as is with all things quizzical and comical Kenyan, I forgot about it.
The following morning, I was on my matatu (small minibus deathtrap commuter) ride to work and they were broadcasting a popular talk morning radio show with Maina Kageni & Mwalimu King'ani. They really are quite awesome in that the former is the voice of the typical urban Nariobian and the latter is the quintessential broke local Kenyan playing over each others perceptions of a modern Kenya. They typically pick a theme of discussion and work the audience opinions with call-ins, e-mails or FB updates on what the average Kenyan regardless of background, perceives.
So the topic this Friday was based on the "Busted" show of the previous afternoon. It runs every afternoon where an unsuspecting caller gets a call from a travel agent or corporate congratulating a suspected unfaithful with a trip or reward for two and asking them who they would like to bring along. Most times the idiots pick their clandestine (clandes!) as their designated invites but the savvy traitors always pick their spouses / girlfriends/ boyfriends. The show, Busted was started by a bitter chain smoking Kenyan lass named Ciku who busted her ex live on air with an unexpected phone call, and the premise of the show grew from there.
This particular "Busted" was by a Kenyan man who suspected his wife was cheating on him with her employer. So the show employed Ciku (?) or some woman with a convincing rural accent to call the woman up as the employer's wife and question the relationship, all the while the husband of the cheater was listening in. Let's call the cheater Maureen. So Mrs. A asks her politely whether the stories that have been making the rounds about Maureen and Mr. A are true. Naturally the girl denies the actions saying absolutely not and she would not cross that boundary. Mrs. A in a very matronly and nurturing voice says that she is a God-fearing woman and does not wish for confrontation and harbors no anger but feels that she needs to let Maureen know that she is HIV positive and her husband has in fact been tested with the AIDS virus. Maureen gives away the truth by repeatedly voicing "Oh God! Oh no! Oh God! No! No! Oh God!". Mrs. A asks her during this outburst whether she has been using condoms. Maureen blurts out, "NO! Oh God! No! No!" At this point Mrs. A says she's with her personal physician (Maureen's husband) and that he has something to say. The "doctor" gets on the phone, a very pissed off husband who starts yelling down the phone, "What is this?! Seriously? How could you? What were you thinking?" Maureen who has probably been outlining her life and how she got infected with HIV and WTF she's going to tell her husband, if she's going to tell her husband. She soon realizes that it is her husband on the line and quickly hungs up.
Maina (the radio DJ) now queries callers on their opinions. At eight in the morning, in a matatu, one caller says, "Shit! That woman is fucked! She should just go kill herself because she's in so much shit!". Another caller, "So what? Should we feel any different just because it was a woman who got busted?" Caller number 1,223 says that Justice served is justified.
Granted I didn't listen to the rest of the morning show for the next two hours - I have a job! But the overwhelming response was toward the actions of Maureen. I did not hear in that short period of time that you DON'T JOKE ABOUT AIDS or HIV! By the way, this thing has started to grow (quite appropriately) out of proportion because you don't make light of an epidemic. Of all the sexually transmitted afflictions, why did they pick AIDS / HIV! Pick syphilis or gonorrhea! Not a affliction that requires a total life adjustment and of all places in Africa where the disease should be taken more seriously than it currently is.
Did Ciku and her crew think ahead about the reactions of this girl Maureen? I haven't heard any followup on the girl but did she harm herself after this charade? She was busted on live radio with her husband listening in about her infidelity with a married man who may or may not be infected with HIV! And they were so blase about it!
Never liked that show, never liked the personalities behind it but I was more pissed off because just last night, I watched this supposedly controversial show that had to be heavily censored on the lip locking and suggestive lesbianism effect on impressionable Kenyans (at 11 p.m.) to wake up and hear cursing and abuse and mocking of an untreatable virus at 8 a.m.
Still quite livid about it because it trivializes the epidemic and the stigma attached to it as well as drive home so many uniformed perceptions about the HIV virus and AIDS. Isn't the job of radio to inform and not to perform?
Emotion: Angry and Disappointed.
The following morning, I was on my matatu (small minibus deathtrap commuter) ride to work and they were broadcasting a popular talk morning radio show with Maina Kageni & Mwalimu King'ani. They really are quite awesome in that the former is the voice of the typical urban Nariobian and the latter is the quintessential broke local Kenyan playing over each others perceptions of a modern Kenya. They typically pick a theme of discussion and work the audience opinions with call-ins, e-mails or FB updates on what the average Kenyan regardless of background, perceives.
So the topic this Friday was based on the "Busted" show of the previous afternoon. It runs every afternoon where an unsuspecting caller gets a call from a travel agent or corporate congratulating a suspected unfaithful with a trip or reward for two and asking them who they would like to bring along. Most times the idiots pick their clandestine (clandes!) as their designated invites but the savvy traitors always pick their spouses / girlfriends/ boyfriends. The show, Busted was started by a bitter chain smoking Kenyan lass named Ciku who busted her ex live on air with an unexpected phone call, and the premise of the show grew from there.
This particular "Busted" was by a Kenyan man who suspected his wife was cheating on him with her employer. So the show employed Ciku (?) or some woman with a convincing rural accent to call the woman up as the employer's wife and question the relationship, all the while the husband of the cheater was listening in. Let's call the cheater Maureen. So Mrs. A asks her politely whether the stories that have been making the rounds about Maureen and Mr. A are true. Naturally the girl denies the actions saying absolutely not and she would not cross that boundary. Mrs. A in a very matronly and nurturing voice says that she is a God-fearing woman and does not wish for confrontation and harbors no anger but feels that she needs to let Maureen know that she is HIV positive and her husband has in fact been tested with the AIDS virus. Maureen gives away the truth by repeatedly voicing "Oh God! Oh no! Oh God! No! No! Oh God!". Mrs. A asks her during this outburst whether she has been using condoms. Maureen blurts out, "NO! Oh God! No! No!" At this point Mrs. A says she's with her personal physician (Maureen's husband) and that he has something to say. The "doctor" gets on the phone, a very pissed off husband who starts yelling down the phone, "What is this?! Seriously? How could you? What were you thinking?" Maureen who has probably been outlining her life and how she got infected with HIV and WTF she's going to tell her husband, if she's going to tell her husband. She soon realizes that it is her husband on the line and quickly hungs up.
Maina (the radio DJ) now queries callers on their opinions. At eight in the morning, in a matatu, one caller says, "Shit! That woman is fucked! She should just go kill herself because she's in so much shit!". Another caller, "So what? Should we feel any different just because it was a woman who got busted?" Caller number 1,223 says that Justice served is justified.
Granted I didn't listen to the rest of the morning show for the next two hours - I have a job! But the overwhelming response was toward the actions of Maureen. I did not hear in that short period of time that you DON'T JOKE ABOUT AIDS or HIV! By the way, this thing has started to grow (quite appropriately) out of proportion because you don't make light of an epidemic. Of all the sexually transmitted afflictions, why did they pick AIDS / HIV! Pick syphilis or gonorrhea! Not a affliction that requires a total life adjustment and of all places in Africa where the disease should be taken more seriously than it currently is.
Did Ciku and her crew think ahead about the reactions of this girl Maureen? I haven't heard any followup on the girl but did she harm herself after this charade? She was busted on live radio with her husband listening in about her infidelity with a married man who may or may not be infected with HIV! And they were so blase about it!
Never liked that show, never liked the personalities behind it but I was more pissed off because just last night, I watched this supposedly controversial show that had to be heavily censored on the lip locking and suggestive lesbianism effect on impressionable Kenyans (at 11 p.m.) to wake up and hear cursing and abuse and mocking of an untreatable virus at 8 a.m.
Still quite livid about it because it trivializes the epidemic and the stigma attached to it as well as drive home so many uniformed perceptions about the HIV virus and AIDS. Isn't the job of radio to inform and not to perform?
Emotion: Angry and Disappointed.
Saturday, October 23, 2010
The Egg Chapati
Most delicious bar hopping snack ever. Discovered at a fast food restaurant called Moto Moto (hot hot or fire fire) just outside of Westlands, Nairobi, it tastes even better the next morning as a breakfast food.
They take a very soft chapati dough, shape it flat and spread all around a permanently hot karai (wide flat frying pan. Once spread, brush with oil and then take two well beaten eggs and pour into the middle of the dough. Fold the chapati's edges to make a square shape. Cook for two minutes and then flip the egg-chapati over and cook for a few more minutes.
Awesome awesome snack.
I meant to take a picture of it but I was starving.
They take a very soft chapati dough, shape it flat and spread all around a permanently hot karai (wide flat frying pan. Once spread, brush with oil and then take two well beaten eggs and pour into the middle of the dough. Fold the chapati's edges to make a square shape. Cook for two minutes and then flip the egg-chapati over and cook for a few more minutes.
Awesome awesome snack.
I meant to take a picture of it but I was starving.
Wednesday, June 16, 2010
Life so far
It's been interesting in Nairobi. I dislike this city more and more on some days but adore the company that I keep regularly to pass the evenings. I have established Hooters as my local. Nope, not the boobies, beer and wings fest variety, rather a typical pub/bar/restaurant that is in the Central Business District of Nairobi. The food is awesome, the beer is fantastically cold - except on Friday because a couple of us take Thirsty Thursday's to task.
My job has unfortunately become just that. A job. I don't enjoy what I do as much and I'm trying to figure out how better I can move up or around to bring that excitement back because I am LOSING MY FREAKING MIND! I think I just need a holiday to reboot but that's a band-aid on a gaping seeping open sore at the moment. Opportunities elsewhere are difficult to come by and Kenya is truly truly truly a country of networking. If you know nobody, it's virtually impossible to find a job. Oh, and they are super fixated on certificates. Some companies even require you have a Microsoft Office certification before they consider you. Ummm, I graduated using Microsoft applications, does that count? And I use Excel so much that Word has become a challenge. Sigh.
The country is gearing up to vote in the referendum concerning a new constitution. The Yes team (color green) are for the proposed new constitution that updates the archaic one from yesteryear. While the No team (color red) says hell to the no, keep it like it is. What's worked for us for 30 odd years is good enough. The colors were picked and approved by both camps. No team are not to bright, eh? Anyway, I'm voting yes for one reason only. Currently, under the No team, if I get married to a foreigner as a woman, I lose my citizenship and my children, unless born in Kenya are party and parcel to my husband's country. The New Constitution is much more progressive and recognizes that women are individuals unto themselves and should be treated the same as men who have not had that restriction. I don't care what else the package comes with - but isn't that democracy for you? Find what works for you and promote the hell out of it. The No idiots are campaigning on the ignorance of Kenyans, spreading all sorts of malicious vitriol about what the Yes guys really want. The Yes team recognizes Kadhi courts (Muslim courts that administer and serve justice to willing Muslims). The No team goes into villages that have probably never seen a Muslim and they tell them that the Kadhi court means they too will be subjected to Muslim Law and that includes yes, Al Shabaab and other extremist groups. And there are plenty of village idiots that believe this.
Oh yes, I have become way more cynical and hardened to life since moving here. I have less patience for people (more for queues, eeek!), I don't answer numbers I don't recognize, I don't call "flashers" back. (Flashers are the fools that let your phone ring once so that you can call them back or they send "please call me requests")98% of those callers are looking for money. I don't go out on weekends as much because I hate the routine of bar hopping, eating tons of roast meat, trying to move around crowded bars and generally spending too much money. I have had (and still do) have the opportunity to go to a mate's place for a Saturday dinner but the idea of going home late at night driving down car-jacking streets is not appealing.
I hate that I don't have a washing machine and I'm one of those who doesn't let the maid do my delicates so I have to do that every freaking weekend.
Pros at the moment - my family, who recognize my quirks and know when I am itching for a fight and they will always make me laugh and remember why I am still here. Oh, and reading blogs of people in the service industry really makes my day. Right now on Melissa's Flight Attendant blog. So hilarious!
Other than that, actively looking to going back to school. Missing the structure of a full day of coursework and the occasional pint at the pub.
Will be in a better place next time. I promise.
My job has unfortunately become just that. A job. I don't enjoy what I do as much and I'm trying to figure out how better I can move up or around to bring that excitement back because I am LOSING MY FREAKING MIND! I think I just need a holiday to reboot but that's a band-aid on a gaping seeping open sore at the moment. Opportunities elsewhere are difficult to come by and Kenya is truly truly truly a country of networking. If you know nobody, it's virtually impossible to find a job. Oh, and they are super fixated on certificates. Some companies even require you have a Microsoft Office certification before they consider you. Ummm, I graduated using Microsoft applications, does that count? And I use Excel so much that Word has become a challenge. Sigh.
The country is gearing up to vote in the referendum concerning a new constitution. The Yes team (color green) are for the proposed new constitution that updates the archaic one from yesteryear. While the No team (color red) says hell to the no, keep it like it is. What's worked for us for 30 odd years is good enough. The colors were picked and approved by both camps. No team are not to bright, eh? Anyway, I'm voting yes for one reason only. Currently, under the No team, if I get married to a foreigner as a woman, I lose my citizenship and my children, unless born in Kenya are party and parcel to my husband's country. The New Constitution is much more progressive and recognizes that women are individuals unto themselves and should be treated the same as men who have not had that restriction. I don't care what else the package comes with - but isn't that democracy for you? Find what works for you and promote the hell out of it. The No idiots are campaigning on the ignorance of Kenyans, spreading all sorts of malicious vitriol about what the Yes guys really want. The Yes team recognizes Kadhi courts (Muslim courts that administer and serve justice to willing Muslims). The No team goes into villages that have probably never seen a Muslim and they tell them that the Kadhi court means they too will be subjected to Muslim Law and that includes yes, Al Shabaab and other extremist groups. And there are plenty of village idiots that believe this.
Oh yes, I have become way more cynical and hardened to life since moving here. I have less patience for people (more for queues, eeek!), I don't answer numbers I don't recognize, I don't call "flashers" back. (Flashers are the fools that let your phone ring once so that you can call them back or they send "please call me requests")98% of those callers are looking for money. I don't go out on weekends as much because I hate the routine of bar hopping, eating tons of roast meat, trying to move around crowded bars and generally spending too much money. I have had (and still do) have the opportunity to go to a mate's place for a Saturday dinner but the idea of going home late at night driving down car-jacking streets is not appealing.
I hate that I don't have a washing machine and I'm one of those who doesn't let the maid do my delicates so I have to do that every freaking weekend.
Pros at the moment - my family, who recognize my quirks and know when I am itching for a fight and they will always make me laugh and remember why I am still here. Oh, and reading blogs of people in the service industry really makes my day. Right now on Melissa's Flight Attendant blog. So hilarious!
Other than that, actively looking to going back to school. Missing the structure of a full day of coursework and the occasional pint at the pub.
Will be in a better place next time. I promise.
Tuesday, March 16, 2010
Time to Travel!
I'm way overdue for a mini vacation so with a whole week ahead of me, I'm debating where to go. I'm tempted to do my tried and tested trips to Diani but going solo is not as fun - plus my sister will annihilate me if I put one toe on a sandy white beach without her. I don't want to go upcountry to the highlands either because it has been raining intermittently which renders the roads impassable. Naivasha is lovely but will be full of Nairobians who quite frankly I'm a bit tired of at the moment.
Whilst researching where to go, I've been following some travel blogs to get inspired. I never tire of the budget backpackers tales of going Cape to Cairo or reverse. I think you have to have some degree of insanity to try and sustain a trip on the road for $25 max a day, including accommodation, food and transportation. But these trips mean so much in a life changing way to these people and their accounts of misery, woes and subsequent joy make me want to experience something just like that.
One of the travelblogs I've read is written by a young man from Cape Town who has bipolar disorder and has documented his trip in a very articulate manner and has written in such a way to transport you into his experience. In addition to that, I learned about the Abayudaya who are Ugandan Jews, very much in existence at the foot of Mount Elgon. Fascinating stuff!
So I'm going to get out my old Twende magazines and pick up a new one called Destinations, all about East Africa Travel and see if I can find somewhere to do a mini backpacker vacation.
Whilst researching where to go, I've been following some travel blogs to get inspired. I never tire of the budget backpackers tales of going Cape to Cairo or reverse. I think you have to have some degree of insanity to try and sustain a trip on the road for $25 max a day, including accommodation, food and transportation. But these trips mean so much in a life changing way to these people and their accounts of misery, woes and subsequent joy make me want to experience something just like that.
One of the travelblogs I've read is written by a young man from Cape Town who has bipolar disorder and has documented his trip in a very articulate manner and has written in such a way to transport you into his experience. In addition to that, I learned about the Abayudaya who are Ugandan Jews, very much in existence at the foot of Mount Elgon. Fascinating stuff!
So I'm going to get out my old Twende magazines and pick up a new one called Destinations, all about East Africa Travel and see if I can find somewhere to do a mini backpacker vacation.
Monday, February 22, 2010
For all those wanting to move back to Kenya and work....
I found the following on a Kenyan Jobs blog site. Very interesting and shockingly true. I know a couple of people who've come back and found it immensely difficult to adjust to a country that is heavy on certification.
http://kenyanjobs.blogspot.com/2009/09/job-search-experience-from-usa-with.html?showComment=1266799837386
Job Search Experience: From USA with Great Expectations of the Kenyan Job Market
So I decided to return to Kenya after ten years abroad. I figured that with over 8 years of experience working in the United States of America, it should be a breeze finding a job here in Kenya.
So every day I went to the cybercafé and sent out email after email with my resume attached. Funny enough after two weeks of sending out emails, there were absolutely no responses to my enquiries or even my submissions to advertised jobs. I thought that was very strange.
I have a Bachelor of Commerce degree and a Master of Business Administration degree. I am also very interested in software so most of the jobs I have held have required both Information System skills and business acumen. In every company I worked for in the USA, I got rave reviews and that’s saying something.
The last company I worked for in the USA tried hard to make me stay but I really had my heart set on returning home. I have experience managing large budget IT and process improvement projects all of which were completed on time and under budget. The projects all achieved their objectives. I really should have been flooded with email and phone requests for interviews! But not one company responded. It was time for a strategy change.
First I registered with the recruiting firms that I knew about. The first recruiting firm called me up because they thought I was a good match for a project management position they had. After looking through the job description, I thought, “Bingo, I found my job!’ The interview did not quite go as I expected.
As much as a tried to steer the conversation towards a discussion of the projects I had successfully managed, it somehow shifted towards a discussion of how well I knew a particular ERP software. I explained that my most fulfilling experience was actually managing the implementation of an ERP that I had never used before. I also explained that I am a really fast learner and enjoy a challenge. I don’t think she was convinced. I never heard from her again. No matter. I had to keep looking.
Things went much better with the next recruiting firm. They were very professional. They also had a job in mind for me but they needed to meet me first and have me pay a membership fee.
The vacancy was for a business analyst position. They wanted someone who could analyze business processes and determine if there was a software that could be written, purchased or modified to improve the process. I had done this is the USA and was very excited that this would be the job for me. They also need ed the applicant to be conversant with the Sarbanes-Oxley Act. That was my speciality in the USA! Oh, this was it.
After our meeting, the recruiting agent was happy with me and submitted my resume to the hiring company. Just like me, the people at the recruiting agency thought that I would get the job. At the company, I was interviewed by two men. The interview was held on a little round table in the office of one of the men.
This was a very strange interview.
This was how part of the interview went:
THEM: Do you like sports?
ME: Yes.
THEM: Which sports do you participate in?
ME: Well, I have recently started to play golf. I also play squash, swim and cycle.
THEM: Do you like to party?
ME: Once in a while I will but I do not do it often.
THEM: Do you like house parties or would you rather go to club?
ME: I prefer house parties that do not have really loud music because I like to have conversations where I can hear what other people are saying and I don’t have to shout to be heard.
THEM: Do you like to have people over to your house?
ME: Yes, I do. I like to invite friends over to watch movies, play cards and games like Taboo.
THEM: What would you rather do: go out to play golf or invite your friends over for a game?
ME (quite puzzled by now): Well, I guess, I would prefer to have my friends over.
THEM: How old are you?
ME: (That is an illegal question in the USA, can they ask this in Kenya? I don’t know if it is illegal in Kenya so I’ll go ahead and answer it): 29
THEM: Where do you live?
That had to be the strangest interview. They did ask a few questions about my qualifications but for the most part, I felt like I was being interviewed for a date. I was quite confident about my skill match for the position and they both seemed like really nice people. I was looking forward to working with them and asking them why they asked such strange questions at the interview. After two weeks I hadn’t heard from them or the recruiting agency. I wrote one of the men an email asking what the progress was. He wrote back saying I did not qualify.
So emailing wasn’t working, recruiting firms seemed promising but I had had no luck so the next strategy was to call up people I knew. I called up all the people I knew to let then know that I was looking for a job and need their help.
Another thing I did was to cut off my dreadlocks. Maybe they were putting off some recruiters.
The strategy of using my network of friends and acquaintances was the most successful. I got an audience with people from several of the firms that I would like to work with.
After four months of searching, I did find a job.
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Posted by jobsinkenya at 5:41 AM
Labels: Job Search Tips, Job Search Incidences
10 comments:
Anonymous said...
Wow, I really can relate to your experience. Came back to Kenya after 10 years in the IT Management field in Canada - and you just wrote what I am experiencing. I am in my 3rd month now and possibly just maybe close to getting a job. But what a culture shock its been!
Thanks for posting your experience.
October 6, 2009 1:49 PM
Anonymous said...
I can imagine the experience... Jobs are so hard to find...you need connections and influences to land on a good job...It's so heart breaking!!!I have had a number of interviews.. where the interviewer would ask.. what does your father do?? what does your mother do?instead of concentrating on what you can do!!!!!!it's so unfortunate that the answers you give will determine whether ul earn a good pay or not............if the father is poor be sure to earn less than 15k for a graduate!!!!and if your father is rich........why are u seeking employment then???they would remark....go and join your father in doing business......that would be a farewell for you and your papers thrown away..Hope this mentality will change one day... it has been persistent for a long time now
October 19, 2009 6:24 AM
Anonymous said...
Weird, but I'm sort of happy that I'm not the only one going through that. I had begun thinking that there's something about me that really turns the prospective employers off. I have a degree from a university in the USA and even before graduation, I actually applied to so many jobs in Kenya in the hopes of being an intern. None responded. After graduating, I worked at a local airport in Houston, but still kept applying for aviation related jobs back home, because that's where I want to be. None ever responded, yet day in day out, they keep posting new jobs on their sites. It really is sad, especially when one is dealing with big companies that try to portray themselves as being equal opportunity employers, yet that's exactly what they're not.
November 10, 2009 12:13 PM
Baraza said...
that is the way to go,know some few people here and there,papers are not everything since if we ask for papers how many people will bring them,so many.job hunting is very hard especially if the HR are asking for strange things,recently i saw a job advert of a Logistics Manager who should have Degree in Law,and another one which was still Logistics Coordinator who should have Degree in IT,so what about those specialist in Procurement and Logistics,is this not there work.
November 26, 2009 2:33 AM
nelly said...
i know the feeling, i came from japan in 2008 Dec with what i thought was an impressive CV (i can speak and write japanese for heavens sake how many in the job market can do that!!) till now i havent found a job!! and am giving up on kenya, am planning how to go back and stay there, we need to start employing people for what they can do not for who they know!! its time we stopped running our country like the free mason where you have to know one to be one! you know what the saddest part is , no one in JKIA (airport) has a mastery of language like i do (did i say i speak french too and have an economics degree from ritsumeikan, and experience working in Tokyo!!) ive given up on kenya!the world is a village nowadays anyway, whoever said i have to be tied to where i was born?
January 4, 2010 2:40 AM
Anonymous said...
nelly and the rest, please stop complaining.To get a job in kenya you must be VERY SMART and not necessarily know somebody...its simple there are so many others you dont know who are smatter than you.I have a degree in Computer science-egerton university,certifications in sun solaris,certification in SPSS-statistical analysis, a diploma in banking and i am now taking Oracle certification.I have changed 5 jobs in the past 4 years and i never apply for two jobs without being called for an interview by one and i am only 28.i at one time got two jobs and kept one appointment letter for BBK in the house in 2007.so its simple...go back to school and get more and more certifications in as many fields as possible and ensure that you are a master in all.there are others who have better papers and will always get an upper hand in job hunting in kenya!
January 7, 2010 1:25 AM
Anonymous said...
Strange that they asked you such illegal and irrelevant questions. I think your downfall was actually answering those questions. They may have been testing you to see how far you'd go. Maybe do some research on the type of interview questions kenyan companies ask. Hope you find something soon!
January 9, 2010 6:05 AM
mercy said...
My simple advise to the people coming from abroad is - Keep yourself simple.Dont try to over-impress your interviewer by the fact that you were studying abroad coz it gives them a leeway to tease you.
Next,if someone asks some obnoxious qstns such as what your mother does, kindly remind them that the Q n A is about you.It doesn't hurt to show them that you know what you went for at the interview.Remember,most of them will not ask that unless they want to put you off.So again, don't intimidate these fellows with your foreign accent, or papers.Then again, I honestly wonder if recruitment firms ever help anyone.Be careful, they will only want to spend your money.
Sorry about your experiences.
January 11, 2010 4:47 AM
Anonymous said...
Its real shame that kenya will not progress.WHY?you have to know somebody ,who know somebody to get connected to work.They should encourage people from abroad to come back more so that our country could prosper from foreign experience we have gained.I am longing to come back home but my fear is to end up as a housewife and never getting a chance to put my experience and career in use.
They should learn from South Africa,china,India Record shows 40%of south african's always go back home because of jobs availability.
BY the way do kenya travel & hospitality companies realise utalii college is not the only qualification in the country!
January 11, 2010 3:47 PM
Anonymous said...
Kenyan employers are too cheap hiring overqualified people for peanuts. The qualifications they ask for are practically unattainable i.e if you had them all you would just be basically competent in either field and an expert in none. No wonder we are a 3rd world country! In developed countries they hire you for your abilities rather than papers.
February 21, 2010 4:50 PM
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http://kenyanjobs.blogspot.com/2009/09/job-search-experience-from-usa-with.html?showComment=1266799837386
Job Search Experience: From USA with Great Expectations of the Kenyan Job Market
So I decided to return to Kenya after ten years abroad. I figured that with over 8 years of experience working in the United States of America, it should be a breeze finding a job here in Kenya.
So every day I went to the cybercafé and sent out email after email with my resume attached. Funny enough after two weeks of sending out emails, there were absolutely no responses to my enquiries or even my submissions to advertised jobs. I thought that was very strange.
I have a Bachelor of Commerce degree and a Master of Business Administration degree. I am also very interested in software so most of the jobs I have held have required both Information System skills and business acumen. In every company I worked for in the USA, I got rave reviews and that’s saying something.
The last company I worked for in the USA tried hard to make me stay but I really had my heart set on returning home. I have experience managing large budget IT and process improvement projects all of which were completed on time and under budget. The projects all achieved their objectives. I really should have been flooded with email and phone requests for interviews! But not one company responded. It was time for a strategy change.
First I registered with the recruiting firms that I knew about. The first recruiting firm called me up because they thought I was a good match for a project management position they had. After looking through the job description, I thought, “Bingo, I found my job!’ The interview did not quite go as I expected.
As much as a tried to steer the conversation towards a discussion of the projects I had successfully managed, it somehow shifted towards a discussion of how well I knew a particular ERP software. I explained that my most fulfilling experience was actually managing the implementation of an ERP that I had never used before. I also explained that I am a really fast learner and enjoy a challenge. I don’t think she was convinced. I never heard from her again. No matter. I had to keep looking.
Things went much better with the next recruiting firm. They were very professional. They also had a job in mind for me but they needed to meet me first and have me pay a membership fee.
The vacancy was for a business analyst position. They wanted someone who could analyze business processes and determine if there was a software that could be written, purchased or modified to improve the process. I had done this is the USA and was very excited that this would be the job for me. They also need ed the applicant to be conversant with the Sarbanes-Oxley Act. That was my speciality in the USA! Oh, this was it.
After our meeting, the recruiting agent was happy with me and submitted my resume to the hiring company. Just like me, the people at the recruiting agency thought that I would get the job. At the company, I was interviewed by two men. The interview was held on a little round table in the office of one of the men.
This was a very strange interview.
This was how part of the interview went:
THEM: Do you like sports?
ME: Yes.
THEM: Which sports do you participate in?
ME: Well, I have recently started to play golf. I also play squash, swim and cycle.
THEM: Do you like to party?
ME: Once in a while I will but I do not do it often.
THEM: Do you like house parties or would you rather go to club?
ME: I prefer house parties that do not have really loud music because I like to have conversations where I can hear what other people are saying and I don’t have to shout to be heard.
THEM: Do you like to have people over to your house?
ME: Yes, I do. I like to invite friends over to watch movies, play cards and games like Taboo.
THEM: What would you rather do: go out to play golf or invite your friends over for a game?
ME (quite puzzled by now): Well, I guess, I would prefer to have my friends over.
THEM: How old are you?
ME: (That is an illegal question in the USA, can they ask this in Kenya? I don’t know if it is illegal in Kenya so I’ll go ahead and answer it): 29
THEM: Where do you live?
That had to be the strangest interview. They did ask a few questions about my qualifications but for the most part, I felt like I was being interviewed for a date. I was quite confident about my skill match for the position and they both seemed like really nice people. I was looking forward to working with them and asking them why they asked such strange questions at the interview. After two weeks I hadn’t heard from them or the recruiting agency. I wrote one of the men an email asking what the progress was. He wrote back saying I did not qualify.
So emailing wasn’t working, recruiting firms seemed promising but I had had no luck so the next strategy was to call up people I knew. I called up all the people I knew to let then know that I was looking for a job and need their help.
Another thing I did was to cut off my dreadlocks. Maybe they were putting off some recruiters.
The strategy of using my network of friends and acquaintances was the most successful. I got an audience with people from several of the firms that I would like to work with.
After four months of searching, I did find a job.
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Posted by jobsinkenya at 5:41 AM
Labels: Job Search Tips, Job Search Incidences
10 comments:
Anonymous said...
Wow, I really can relate to your experience. Came back to Kenya after 10 years in the IT Management field in Canada - and you just wrote what I am experiencing. I am in my 3rd month now and possibly just maybe close to getting a job. But what a culture shock its been!
Thanks for posting your experience.
October 6, 2009 1:49 PM
Anonymous said...
I can imagine the experience... Jobs are so hard to find...you need connections and influences to land on a good job...It's so heart breaking!!!I have had a number of interviews.. where the interviewer would ask.. what does your father do?? what does your mother do?instead of concentrating on what you can do!!!!!!it's so unfortunate that the answers you give will determine whether ul earn a good pay or not............if the father is poor be sure to earn less than 15k for a graduate!!!!and if your father is rich........why are u seeking employment then???they would remark....go and join your father in doing business......that would be a farewell for you and your papers thrown away..Hope this mentality will change one day... it has been persistent for a long time now
October 19, 2009 6:24 AM
Anonymous said...
Weird, but I'm sort of happy that I'm not the only one going through that. I had begun thinking that there's something about me that really turns the prospective employers off. I have a degree from a university in the USA and even before graduation, I actually applied to so many jobs in Kenya in the hopes of being an intern. None responded. After graduating, I worked at a local airport in Houston, but still kept applying for aviation related jobs back home, because that's where I want to be. None ever responded, yet day in day out, they keep posting new jobs on their sites. It really is sad, especially when one is dealing with big companies that try to portray themselves as being equal opportunity employers, yet that's exactly what they're not.
November 10, 2009 12:13 PM
Baraza said...
that is the way to go,know some few people here and there,papers are not everything since if we ask for papers how many people will bring them,so many.job hunting is very hard especially if the HR are asking for strange things,recently i saw a job advert of a Logistics Manager who should have Degree in Law,and another one which was still Logistics Coordinator who should have Degree in IT,so what about those specialist in Procurement and Logistics,is this not there work.
November 26, 2009 2:33 AM
nelly said...
i know the feeling, i came from japan in 2008 Dec with what i thought was an impressive CV (i can speak and write japanese for heavens sake how many in the job market can do that!!) till now i havent found a job!! and am giving up on kenya, am planning how to go back and stay there, we need to start employing people for what they can do not for who they know!! its time we stopped running our country like the free mason where you have to know one to be one! you know what the saddest part is , no one in JKIA (airport) has a mastery of language like i do (did i say i speak french too and have an economics degree from ritsumeikan, and experience working in Tokyo!!) ive given up on kenya!the world is a village nowadays anyway, whoever said i have to be tied to where i was born?
January 4, 2010 2:40 AM
Anonymous said...
nelly and the rest, please stop complaining.To get a job in kenya you must be VERY SMART and not necessarily know somebody...its simple there are so many others you dont know who are smatter than you.I have a degree in Computer science-egerton university,certifications in sun solaris,certification in SPSS-statistical analysis, a diploma in banking and i am now taking Oracle certification.I have changed 5 jobs in the past 4 years and i never apply for two jobs without being called for an interview by one and i am only 28.i at one time got two jobs and kept one appointment letter for BBK in the house in 2007.so its simple...go back to school and get more and more certifications in as many fields as possible and ensure that you are a master in all.there are others who have better papers and will always get an upper hand in job hunting in kenya!
January 7, 2010 1:25 AM
Anonymous said...
Strange that they asked you such illegal and irrelevant questions. I think your downfall was actually answering those questions. They may have been testing you to see how far you'd go. Maybe do some research on the type of interview questions kenyan companies ask. Hope you find something soon!
January 9, 2010 6:05 AM
mercy said...
My simple advise to the people coming from abroad is - Keep yourself simple.Dont try to over-impress your interviewer by the fact that you were studying abroad coz it gives them a leeway to tease you.
Next,if someone asks some obnoxious qstns such as what your mother does, kindly remind them that the Q n A is about you.It doesn't hurt to show them that you know what you went for at the interview.Remember,most of them will not ask that unless they want to put you off.So again, don't intimidate these fellows with your foreign accent, or papers.Then again, I honestly wonder if recruitment firms ever help anyone.Be careful, they will only want to spend your money.
Sorry about your experiences.
January 11, 2010 4:47 AM
Anonymous said...
Its real shame that kenya will not progress.WHY?you have to know somebody ,who know somebody to get connected to work.They should encourage people from abroad to come back more so that our country could prosper from foreign experience we have gained.I am longing to come back home but my fear is to end up as a housewife and never getting a chance to put my experience and career in use.
They should learn from South Africa,china,India Record shows 40%of south african's always go back home because of jobs availability.
BY the way do kenya travel & hospitality companies realise utalii college is not the only qualification in the country!
January 11, 2010 3:47 PM
Anonymous said...
Kenyan employers are too cheap hiring overqualified people for peanuts. The qualifications they ask for are practically unattainable i.e if you had them all you would just be basically competent in either field and an expert in none. No wonder we are a 3rd world country! In developed countries they hire you for your abilities rather than papers.
February 21, 2010 4:50 PM
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Thursday, February 11, 2010
Opening a Post Office Box in Nairobi
This was incredibly easy. I'm still reeling from how simple and quick the whole process was considering the institution is part of a bureaucracy. And also because I went to one of the smaller Post Offices! Forget GPO (00100) or City Square (00200). I shuddered at one of the employees suggestion of going to the Nyayo Stadium post office to try my luck as the first two are completely full and there's a waiting list the length of the ICC corruption charge sheet.
I remembered on many of my walkabouts to Biashara (Business) Street where you can find any and all kikoy fabric and touristy stuff at normal prices, that there was a new branch at the Jamia Mall which is right next to the very large and active Jamia Mosque. The Jamia Mall is what I would imagine upscale Mogadishu would offer. It's a three story building with a hotel at the top called the Jamiat Hotel. The post office is right next to it in the same building. There are no queues! At all! And the process of opening the account was painless and fast and I've now discovered a place to make my DSTV payments in addition to other utility bills.
The only problem I forsee is its location. A few weeks ago, there was a riot and most of the action took place around there so there are still some missing window panes all over the place. But other than that, a lovely spot and smack dab in the city.
Something nice about Kenya....finally.
I remembered on many of my walkabouts to Biashara (Business) Street where you can find any and all kikoy fabric and touristy stuff at normal prices, that there was a new branch at the Jamia Mall which is right next to the very large and active Jamia Mosque. The Jamia Mall is what I would imagine upscale Mogadishu would offer. It's a three story building with a hotel at the top called the Jamiat Hotel. The post office is right next to it in the same building. There are no queues! At all! And the process of opening the account was painless and fast and I've now discovered a place to make my DSTV payments in addition to other utility bills.
The only problem I forsee is its location. A few weeks ago, there was a riot and most of the action took place around there so there are still some missing window panes all over the place. But other than that, a lovely spot and smack dab in the city.
Something nice about Kenya....finally.
Friday, January 15, 2010
Protests in Nairobi over deportation of Jamaican Muslim cleric with terrorist links
So the fighting is near the mosque in downtown Nairobi.
The story as reported by Capital FM
Kenya unable to deport Jamaican cleric
BY BERNARD MOMANYI
NAIROBI, Kenya, Jan 6 - Controversial Jamaican Muslim cleric Abdullah al-Faisal who was deported from the country on Monday through Tanzania has been returned to Kenya after authorities in the neighbouring country declined to receive him, police sources said.
Police and Immigration officials who had escorted him to Tanzania were unable to get him through to the neighbouring country and had been staying with him at the border until Wednesday morning when they escorted him back to Nairobi.
“He was escorted back to Nairobi and is currently at the Jomo Kenyatta International Airport. We are pondering the next move,” a police source said.
Police Spokesman Erick Kiraithe who had confirmed Al-Failal’s deportation earlier on Tuesday was not immediately available for comment.
He had said “Al-Faisal is no longer in the country because we have deported him to Jamaica through Tanzania.”
A group of Muslim leaders led by Al-Amin Kimathi said they had spent the better part of Wednesday at the JKIA trying to seek audience with the cleric in vain.
“The police are totally violating Al-Faisal’s rights. They have unsuccessfully tried to deport him. All the countries have declined to receive him and now they are keeping him here at the airport,” he said.
“We have information that they are planning to deport him to an unknown country tomorrow morning (Thursday). We don’t understand why they are not allowing us to see him. We went with a lawyer ready to represent him but they have declined us access,” he added.
Al –Faisal was arrested on Thursday last week, shortly after attending prayers at a mosque in Mombasa.
Police and Immigration officials said at the time they arrested him for “violating Immigration regulations.”
He had been accused of engaging in preaching, contrary to immigration procedures which did not allow him to engage in such an activity.
So they vowed to protest today Friday 15th 2010 and they have been going at it for 2 hours now. I hope no one is seriously hurt.
What is Nairobi fashion?
I think I need to make a trip back to States because clearly, I'm out off kilter with fashion trends. I would never personally admit to being an patron, much less an owner of the shoes below. This beauty sells for $28 (Kshs. 2,100) which can get you 3 pairs of mitumba shoes.
Or what about this beauty called a Gomax Thong Wrap which is also $28? I have seen Masai herding cattle outside Harlequins with much more attractive bladder beauties. Bladder is the slang version of tire tubes.
Okay, fashion is interpretive to individuals but this is hideous! Among others I discovered while browsing for shoes:
which are super stylish!
which retail at about 37 dolla each.
The problem with shoe shopping in Nairobi is that there are no quality shoes. The next time someone asks you in the diaspora or just visiting, for shoes, even from Payless, I beseech you to hear their prayer and tell them to register a wish list. Affordable shoe shopping Nairobi is limited to the choices that bulk purchasers get from Dubai and China to promote in exhibitions. Exhibitions are these tiny 6 x 4 shops that have imported, more often low quality clothing items from the above two countries. Some will also offer counterfeit items but the prices are close to the value of the real item. As I've pointed out before that Nairobi fashion tends to be more a miss than a hit and I'm beginning to think it's because of the styles in these stalls. Open toed and pointy seems to be the sole shoe style available. If you want boots, you have to buy mitumba and I will always have a problem wearing shoes that have been worn by someone else before. Or you could easily folk out the $150 minimum (Kshs. 10,000) that is advertised at many of the stores at Westgate or Junction malls, for gorgeous boots that will most likely scuff easily or be stolen by your angry maid.
I think I'm going to take a trip down South early this year and visit my beloved Nine West and load up on proper office shoes as well as some gorgeous boots for the cold weather to come.
Speaking of cold weather, apparently Kenya is experiencing El Nino again as it has been extremely cold and wet in the city for the past month. Considering our summer is from about the beginning of December to about the middle to end of March, it has been unseasonably cold for a while so it feels like it has been the cold season from June to date.
Hopefully it ends soon.
Or what about this beauty called a Gomax Thong Wrap which is also $28? I have seen Masai herding cattle outside Harlequins with much more attractive bladder beauties. Bladder is the slang version of tire tubes.
Okay, fashion is interpretive to individuals but this is hideous! Among others I discovered while browsing for shoes:
which are super stylish!
which retail at about 37 dolla each.
The problem with shoe shopping in Nairobi is that there are no quality shoes. The next time someone asks you in the diaspora or just visiting, for shoes, even from Payless, I beseech you to hear their prayer and tell them to register a wish list. Affordable shoe shopping Nairobi is limited to the choices that bulk purchasers get from Dubai and China to promote in exhibitions. Exhibitions are these tiny 6 x 4 shops that have imported, more often low quality clothing items from the above two countries. Some will also offer counterfeit items but the prices are close to the value of the real item. As I've pointed out before that Nairobi fashion tends to be more a miss than a hit and I'm beginning to think it's because of the styles in these stalls. Open toed and pointy seems to be the sole shoe style available. If you want boots, you have to buy mitumba and I will always have a problem wearing shoes that have been worn by someone else before. Or you could easily folk out the $150 minimum (Kshs. 10,000) that is advertised at many of the stores at Westgate or Junction malls, for gorgeous boots that will most likely scuff easily or be stolen by your angry maid.
I think I'm going to take a trip down South early this year and visit my beloved Nine West and load up on proper office shoes as well as some gorgeous boots for the cold weather to come.
Speaking of cold weather, apparently Kenya is experiencing El Nino again as it has been extremely cold and wet in the city for the past month. Considering our summer is from about the beginning of December to about the middle to end of March, it has been unseasonably cold for a while so it feels like it has been the cold season from June to date.
Hopefully it ends soon.
Friday, January 08, 2010
100th Post!
Happy New Year to all! I wish I had been at Il Covo in Mombasa on the beach but alas, I was at a party in the suburbs which was infinitely safer than running about the beaches. The club pictured below is mind blowingly fun. Great restaurant, great dance floor and good music too. But don't go two nights in a row because the DJ just plays the same music. Clientele is a great mix of foreigners and locals and there are not too many twilight girls. Maybe there were tons but they must have been well dressed. It's walking distance on the beach from many hotels but watch out for druggie beach boys. Go in a group or as one person in my party who elected to stay behind when we left, run like the wind to your hotel at dawn!
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