NYONGESA: As Kiswahili spreads its wings across borders, let's embrace it



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By ANTONY NYONGESA
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Kiswahili to the deputy State House spokesperson, Ms Kanze Dena, during her brief press briefing was a show.

Some journalists could hardly express themselves in Kiswahili, a language that defines Kenyans. It was a clear indication that, despite being the official language in Kenya, Kiswahili is still highly appreciated by the people who should be at the forefront of championing it.

Some members of the 'Fourth Estate' resorted to English. But even then, the veteran Kiswahili television news anchor remained firm. Needless to say, she tackled the questions eloquently in fluent Kiswahili.

That was a wake-up call to the journalists and the rest in the communication industry there is a paradigm shift from when English, or the "Queen's language" as It has been known, was the in-thing.

With State House having appreciated the value of Kiswahili in nation building and development,

In the Constitution, Kiswahili is, English and Kenyan Sign Language (KSL), an official language in public offices, including Parliament.

President Uhuru Kenyatta 's administration has embraced Kiswahili by hiring employees, including communicators and journalists, from the Kiswahili world.

They include Ms Dena and Ms Munira Muhamed, who was, until recently, the deputy State House spokesperson and now heads the Presidential Library.

Ms Munira was a television reporter while Ms Dena co-anchored the weekend with Ms Lulu Hbadan.

It is important to note that 80 per cent of Kenyans converse in Kiswahili in their daily activities and, hence, the need to promote communication, especially in the office and business set-up,

Communication being a key component of everyday life, a number of organizations and business entities, when hiring communicators, prefer those with a

When the theology of the world and the environment of the world,

Kodu Bypbad in Mombasa County, the contractor, who is of Asian origin, who was born in Kiswahili.

He is not the only foreigner who has mastered Kiswahili. US ambbadador to Kenya Kyle McCarter is fluent in Kiswahili, having been in the country for many years doing charity work. Others include his Japanese counterpart Toshitsugu Uesawa and former German sent Andreas Peschke

The last two had never been to Kenya before their diplomatic posting and they revealed in media interviews that they learned they immediately had a pbadion for the language

Kiswahili has spread widely in the region. Millions of people speak the language in Uganda, Burundi, Rwanda, the Democratic Republic of Congo and even South Sudan.

This, definitely, disproves the popular saying in East Africa that Kiswahili was born in Zanzibar, grew up in Tanzania, fell sick in Kenya, died in Uganda and was buried in Congo.

With the ongoing integration of the East African region, Kiswahili is key to bringing together the bloc's member states.

Uganda's National Curriculum Development Center (NCDC) has finalized its 2017 secondary school curriculum, which includes Kiswahili and English. Kiswahili, Kiswahili, Kiswahili, Kiswahili, Kiswahili, Kiswahili, Kiswahili, Kiswahili, Kiswahili, Kiswahili, Kiswahili, Kiswahili, Kiswahili, Kiswahili, Kiswahili school level. A number of universities also teaches at the bachelor's and master's degree level with Kiswahili for Journalists unit

Mr. Nyongesa, a senior corporate communications officer at the National Transportation and Safety Authority (NTSA), is a Kiswahili television news editor at Nation Media Group. [email protected] Twitter: @nyongesaanthony

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