A CHAT FROM LONDON: Sperm tanks, raising fatherless children freak me out

>Out of the blue, a modest unassuming English woman contacted me. In a few weeks’ time, they would launch Dira Foundation.

A good day becomes evident in the morning...so the Swahili proverb goes. It was ice cold but the sun was shining.

>May I share a few clips from last week? First the video.  A mass of frenzied people are chasing a man somewhere in West Africa.   Right on the knees of Ebola.  Someone sent it via WhatsApp.  Don’t frown if you don’t use WhatsApp.

>Wednesday, October 15, 2014...A tiny delegation of well educated women; modest and intelligent, will be welcomed into one of the most powerful rooms in the northern hemisphere. First is Mrs Rhobi Samwelly (pictured), mother of four children, hailing from Butiama, Mara Region.

It is a cold wet winter afternoon, a few days after the Paris and Bamako terrorist attacks. As I stroll down a major street in East London, a man is melodically hollering:“Evening Standard! Evening Standard!”

We’re bringing up our children in a very different world from when we were young.

Everyone wants their children to succeed. But how exactly do you do that? It’s not about spending lots of money on them — rich kids don’t grow up any cleverer, for example. It’s not about endless extra coaching or classes either.

>May we begin by asking a question? Is it true that there is a huge difference between the thinking of Africans living on the continent and those outside it? Over 50 years ago, we used to call overseas-based ones the “African Wazungus” not because of race but attitude and manners. It was insulting being called Mzungu Mweusi. Nevertheless, behind closed doors it was privileged.

>For decades now some of us have been disgusted by the cruel tradition of chopping off private parts of young girls, technically known as female genital mutilation (FGM).