mv_ufanisi wrote:Things which hoodwinked me in the past
In no short order;
1. Poverty causes insecurity and thuggery - until you visit poor countries where no one will steal from you
2. Education leads to national wealth - until you realize that there are lots of educated poor people and lots of uneducated wealthy people. This raises the question, should we be always talking about educating people as the solution to poverty alleviation in our countries?
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Agree with the points except 1 and 2
Nothing exists in a vacuum, there are other factors that have to be present.
Poverty is the primary factor in a high crime rate but not by itself. In order for poverty to breed crime, there has to be a culture of stealing. Countries like Tanzania and Burundi do not have a culture of crime which is why crime is much lower there despite them being poorer than Kenya. Kenya on the other hand has a culture of crime that was formented by our own leaders. That is why in Kenya the crime rate spirals as opportunities become fewer and people become poorer.
Wherever there is a high crime rate, there is always poverty. There is no place on this planet where a high crime rate exists without significant poverty.
With regard to education, it does indeed create wealth but only if the leaders of the country create an environment where said education can be utilized. For example, Kenya has a significant number of highly qualified staff. With these Kenya can be a services outsourcing destination for big companies in Europe. But only if government tackles corruption and builds the infrastructure needed to attract outsourcing.
In other words, having a highly educated workforce attracts foreign investment but only if the government gets it act in order. Thats why I have always said Kenyans are their own worst enemies. You choose voting based on tribal sycophancy instead of voting to hold government accountable.