The second Kusi Ideas Festival that opened in Kisumu yesterday comes at a critical moment in our history. Kenya and the world are at the crossroads.
The Covid-19 pandemic has changed lives in a manner never anticipated. Economy, politics, culture, environment, and all spheres of human endeavors have been disrupted and foreseeably, for good.
Covid-19 has infected approximately 70 million people and killed more than 1.5 million. It has weakened health systems and redefined social relationships.
Yet, beneath the shadows of darkness, the pandemic has had its positive aspects. The world has witnessed momentous technological adaptations and advancements as nations sought ways and means to survive. Workplace and business practices have radically changed.
Contrary to what doomsayers predicted, Africa, which has suffered worst pandemics and pestilences, has demonstrated remarkable resilience. Infections and deaths are relatively fewer and for a continent with weak health systems and shaky economy, the experience thus far is a manifestation of sturdiness of the people.
Against this backdrop, the Kusi Ideas Festival is significant. It presents an opportunity to rethink a new world order. Economic, political and social models that have held the world for generations have come down tumbling.
Previous predictions and simulations have been shattered. What is emerging, now being referred to as new normal — is a totally different ball-game.
Kenya and the rest of the continent have a chance to reset the button. Survival in the post-Covid era will depend on innovation, entrepreneurship and adaptation, which are some of the issues being discussed at the Festival.
Organised by the Nation Media Group, the objective is to create a forum for ideation, which is the basis for progress and transition into the future. Speakers made that point emphatically.
This should be a turning point where ideas discussed are transformed into reality to usher the country into a new bold world.
