Crude oil prices are yet to recover and Kenyan consumers are still rejoicing over low fuel prices; never mind that in Kenya, any good news must be counter-balanced by bad news, such as the closure of roundabouts and weakening of the shilling.
It could take another five years or so before we export the first barrel of oil. It is surprising that oil did not elicit as much excitement as we initially expected. It might be a sign that Kenya has matured and learnt from other nations that suffered the so-called oil curse.
Some observers, however, opine that low-level skirmishes in northern Kenyan might be early symptoms of the oil curse and need to be nipped in the bud.
Let’s digress from oil for now into our most abundant resource: sunshine.
Solar farms
Why don’t we have solar farms like the wind farms in Ngong, yet we have endless summer in Kenya? We even have a solar-powered plane flying around the world. Sunshine is longer lasting than fossil fuels, and less polluting.
Maybe once we start running out of oil, we shall take solar power more seriously. Oil is still a very convenient source of power, and with new technologies like fracking, more of it is now accessible, leading to oversupply and low prices.
I have heard it said that the low oil prices are meant to punish Russia for its adventures in Crimea and Ukraine. The truth will be known one day after lots of intelligence documents are declassified — that allegation cannot be 100 per cent wrong.
The sunshine I am referring to goes beyond solar power for lighting your house.
Sunshine is the most unappreciated resource in Kenya, perhaps because it is so abundant, but more likely because most Kenyans have not lived elsewhere.
In some countries, winter temperatures reach -20 degrees Celsius, meaning you are better off living inside your fridge. But in these cold countries, entrepreneurs still take advantage of this weather to make money — skiing is a big sport.
Why have we not taken advantage of sunshine, nature’s gift?
While in cold countries, skiing is big business, we ought to be making big money from sun-friendly sports like golf. It is not surprising that the Masters Golf winner Jordan Spieth is from Texas, a sunny state. The 21-year-old made $1.8 million, equivalent to about Sh160 million, for a weekend enjoying himself. Any athlete who’s ever made such money?
Closer home, another 21-year-old South African, Haydn Porteous, won the Barclays-sponsored Kenya Open golf tournament last weekend, but made off with less money — about Sh3.2 million.
With all our sunshine, why is golf not the leading game in Kenya? I hear that at independence, there were about 150 golf courses in Kenya. Some high-cost schools in Nairobi had golf courses within their compounds. Is it true some later became paddocks for grade cattle?
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True to Kenyan culture, you will hear that golf courses are expensive, there is no land and several similar excuses. The truth is that if we built great golf courses that attracted players from all over the world, they would pay for themselves.
Think of a Kenyan playing in the PGA Tour, winning the green jacket and pocketing Sh160 million. Suppose Tiger Woods was a Kenyan? We would get more tourists and their dollars and more Kenyan youths would play golf instead of getting radicalised.
Addictive golf
I can tell you for free that golf is as addictive as any drug, or even some cults. Golf would capture a lot of young men going the wrong way. The walking and the concentration demanded by this game makes it perfect for young men and women.
Unfortunately, in Kenya, golf has been made a cult, with the belief that is for the elderly. But as Spieth, golf’s current world number two, and Tiger Woods showed the world, it is a game for the young. Look at the age of the top golfers in the world. It will remain the game of the young, just like athletics and football.
Why don’t we have golf in our curriculum? Who said a golf course must be par 72? In fact, one secret to the growth of golf in South Africa is that they have all sizes of courses; I’ve played on a par 29!
A lot of farmers could easily turn their small farms into golf courses and stop worrying about crop failures.
What of cycling, can we have an equivalent to Tour de France? What of football, when are getting into the World Cup?
Holiday homes
The other investment in sunshine is homes. There is an explosion of holiday homes built around golf courses.
Naivasha is a leader in this because of its proximity to Nairobi. These homes attract non-Kenyans, too, who appreciate the value of sunshine. Kenyans are slowly buying into the idea, but not fast enough.
In Mombasa and along the coast, lots of holiday homes are on sale. The sellers quote their prices in pounds and dollars, targeting non-Kenyans. That’s a foreign exchange earner.
Suppose we made Kenya the home of retirees or pensioners looking for sunshine, and even created a special visa for them? Such pensioners have money and will create demand for our goods and services.
The next phase of Kenya’s economic growth will demand new thinking beyond textbooks and conventional wisdom. Sometimes it’s about doing more with what we already have in plenty — like sunshine. Is that not what we expected from governors?
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