Book Review

Guru: A Long Walk to Success by Narendra Raval - A Testament to Grit, Purpose, and Unyielding Faith

Reviewed by Hezekiel Gikambi

Tagline: From temple steps to factory floors—Narendra Raval’s life story reminds every Kenyan youth that the journey to greatness begins with purpose, not privilege.

In a world often enamoured with polished finishes and the glamour of final success, Narendra Raval’s Guru: A Long Walk to Success takes us behind the curtain to the sacred and sobering terrain of beginnings—raw, uncertain, disciplined, and unyielding. It is the kind of story that, when told well, transcends biography. It becomes doctrine.

Raval’s journey, which begins in the narrow corridors of a temple monastery in Gujarat, India, and stretches into the thundering halls of industrial enterprise across East Africa, is not merely linear. It spirals upward with the slow grind of grit, propelled not by capital or connections, but by obedience, spiritual fidelity, and an irrepressible belief in duty. By the time the reader meets the present-day Raval—philanthropist, industrialist, and chairman of the Devki Group—they understand that this is no ordinary success story. It is, instead, a deeply human one, textured with moral clarity and anchored in values that today’s youth, especially those growing up in remote parts of Kenya, can embrace as a compass for life.

Raval does not shy away from revealing the weight of his early years. At just eleven, he left home to serve as a priest. This act of surrender marked his entry into a life of rigorous asceticism—waking at 4:00 a.m., fasting for spiritual purification, reciting scriptures, and undertaking tasks without question. To many, this may seem alien or even harsh, but it is precisely this crucible of obedience and denial that shaped the moral steel of the man he would become. This kind of spiritual discipline is almost absent in most narratives of business success, and yet in Raval’s case, it is the unshakable foundation.

The story takes a dramatic shift when his Guru commands him to move to Kenya. Raval obeys—not knowing where Kenya was, not having money, and not understanding the culture or language. That single act of obedience would redefine his destiny. The Kenya he finds is foreign, but not forbidding. He learns Swahili. He sells incense. He sleeps in the backroom of a shop. He stumbles but does not fall. He absorbs. He adapts. And, most importantly, he serves. His customers become his teachers. His honesty earns him trust. Slowly, the seeds of business are planted—not on the strength of ambition, but on the soil of relationship and reliability.

Kenyan readers will see in Raval a portrait of the youth they know: hardworking, constrained by opportunity, but bursting with potential. The boy who walked barefoot to school in India could well be the girl from Baringo or the boy in Kitui, dreaming of university. Raval does not suggest that the road is easy. On the contrary, the title of the book is deliberate. It is a “long walk.” The story affirms that shortcuts are illusions. Success, in his telling, is spiritual before it is material. And so it becomes possible—even beautiful—to endure, to wait, to struggle.

One of the most moving aspects of the book is Raval’s constant insistence that wealth is not to be hoarded. “Give more than you take” is not a mantra for him; it is a principle of existence. He funds hospitals and schools. He pays staff medical bills without fanfare. He builds temples not as trophies, but as tributes. This generosity is not performative. It is spiritual. It is deeply Gandhian, and perhaps more rare because it is not accompanied by noise or vanity.

And yet, the book is not overly moralistic. Raval acknowledges his imperfections, his moments of doubt, his fears, and the many times he risked everything. One particularly telling episode is when he decides to build his first steel mill, mortgaging almost all he had. People called him mad. He nearly lost everything. But he persisted—not because of recklessness, but because of a vision that refused to retreat. In those moments, one feels the full weight of what it means to walk by faith, not by sight.

Kenya is not a backdrop in this story; it is a central character. Raval speaks of Kenya with affection, reverence even. It is here that his journey flourishes, and he never forgets it. In fact, one senses that he considers himself more Kenyan than Indian—not in ethnic terms, but in soul and allegiance. He invests not just in business, but in the future of the country—its youth, its institutions, and its communities. There is a particular resonance for readers in counties like Samburu, Garissa, or Kwale—where young people often feel neglected by the national conversation. Raval’s story tells them: you matter. You can rise. You can build.

What is striking is that Guru does not read like a conventional business book. There are no frameworks, no bullet points, no prescriptions. Instead, there is story—rich, honest, painful, redemptive. There are characters who serve quietly: his wife Neeta, a pillar of support; his mentors, who shaped his spirit; his employees, who became his family. These are the unseen heroes, and Raval honours them with tenderness.

This book belongs not only in libraries and bookstores but in schoolbags and community halls. It should be read by every young person who has been told their dream is too big for their circumstances. It should be discussed in youth groups, dissected in leadership seminars, and quoted in sermons. For in it is the anatomy of true greatness—not the loud kind, but the luminous kind.

In the end, what Narendra Raval offers Kenya is not just cement and steel. He offers belief. Belief that the temple boy can become a tycoon. That the foreigner can become a patriot. That wealth can wear humility. That success, when rooted in service, is not something to be feared but to be emulated.

Guru: A Long Walk to Success is not just a book. It is a pilgrimage into what it means to build, to endure, to give, and to believe. For a country in search of moral renewal, it is exactly the kind of story we must tell ourselves—again and again. Having already been translated into Gujarati, the book deserves to find voice in Swahili, the lingua franca of over 200 million speakers across Africa and beyond. A Swahili translation will not only extend its reach but also ensure that millions of readers in East and Central Africa can draw inspiration from Guru Narendra Raval’s journey, anchoring its values of resilience, entrepreneurship, and accountability within their own cultural and linguistic heritage.

Gikambi is the Author of Safari ya Serengeti, a Swahili Scholar, a Communications Professional, a Language technologist and a Translation Consultant based in Nairobi, Kenya.

E-mail: hezekielgikambi@gmail.com

 

KAWEGERE: MWANDISHI WA ‘SHAMBA LA WANYAMA’ BADO ANATETEA HAKI

 

KAWEGERE, MWANDISHI WA  ‘SHAMBA LA WANYAMA’ BADO ANATETEA HAKI

Na Hezekiel Gikambi akiwa Bukoba, Tanzania, Agosti 2013

Katika Kongamano la hivi majuzi la kumbukumbu la miaka 50 la kumuenzi mwandishi mashuhuri wa riwaya na mashairi marehemu Sheikh Shaaban Suleiman Ufukwe Bin Roberts almaarufu Shaaban

 Roberts mjini Bukoba Tanzania, nilikutana na mwandishi mwengine maarufu sana. Huyu si mwingine bali ni Bw.Fortunatus Felix Kawegere aliyetafsiri na kuifasiri riwaya iliyoibukia kupendwa sana ya Shamba la Wanyama kutoka kwa riwaya asilia ya Mrusi George Orwell ya Animal Farm.

Wasomaji wa kazi zako hasa riwaya maarufu Shamba la Wanyama wangependa kukufahamu zaidi.

Nilizaliwa tarehe 08/04/1943 hapa mjini Bukoba mkoani Kagera nchini Tanzania na kusomea katika shule ya Msingi ya Bunena baina ya mwaka wa 1950- 1954 na kuendelea na Shule ya Kati ya Kitejagwa –kama ilivyoitwa enzi hizo. Baadaye nilijiunga na Chuo cha Ualimu cha Kijunguti baina ya mwaka wa 1960-1961. Tarehe hiyo inakuambia kuwa nilikamilisha kozi ya ualimu wakati Tanganyika inapata uhuru wake.

Masomo yako yalikomea hapo au ulijiendeleza zaidi?

Niliamua kupiga hatua mwenyewe kimasomo kwa kujisajili na vyuo vilivyotoa masomo kwa njia ya posta vilivyoitwa ‘Rapid Results’ kati ya mwaka 1960-1963. Nilichukua somo la Lugha ya Kiswahili, Uchumi na Biashara. Kwa kweli nilimakinikia somo la Kiswahili kwa kuwa nimekuwa nikiipenda sana lugha hii. Napenda chochote kinachomtambulisha mtu yeyote na kukuza utamaduni wake. Hapo ndipo mbegu ya uandishi ilipoatikwa na ikamea na kuzidi kupaliliwa na mapenzi yangu kwa Kiswahili.

Ulianza lini  kazi ya uandishi wako na uliiendelezaje?

Nilisoma riwaya ya George Orwell ya Animal farm mwaka wa 1964 na ikanichochea sana. Niliona kama inamulika na kuakisi uhalisia katika jamii yetu kwa kiwango kikubwa mno. Nilipata mshawasha wa kuifasiri riwaya hiyo kwa Kiswahili mwaka wa 1965 ili ujumbe uliokuwemo uwafikie wananchi wa Tanganyika na Afrika Mashariki kwa jumla. Kilichapishwa mwaka wa 1967. Kabla  ya hapo nilikuwa tayari nimeandika riwaya ya Kiingereza ya upelelezi iitwayo-Inspector Rajabu investigates. Nilipokuwa Mwalimu, Wizara ya Elimu pia iliniita Chuo cha Walimu cha Kiburunyembe, Morogoro  kushiriki katika kuandika kitabu cha wizara cha kozi ya mafunzo ya Kiswahili kilichoitwa Tujifunze Lugha Yetu. Sura tatu nilizoandika kama vile Gulio la Katerero, Mbunge wetu, ziliibukia kupendwa sana. Hapo nikajitoza kikamilifu katika uandishi.  Nimeandika vitabu vingine kama vile riwaya ya Kinga ya Rushwa, diwani ya Mashairi ya Kazi yangu, Uongo uliozaa jitu, Sayari iliyozama, Mgeni wa Usiku na vya  Kiingereza kama Flying without Wings, A Narrow Escape na A Dancing Boat. Ninaendelea kuandika.

Serikali changa ya Tanganyika ilichukuliaje riwaya ya Shamba la Wanyama inayosawiri viongozi wanaowadhulumu raia wake?

Kwa sadfa kubwa, riwaya ya Shamba la Wanyama ilipotoka mwaka wa 1967, ndipo Azimio la Arusha lilipopitishwa na kuzinduliwa rasmi. Azimio  hilo lilikuwa kama ramani ya taifa. Nilikuwa na mgogoro kidogo na utawala kwa kuwa labda serikali ya Mwalimu Julius Nyerere ilifikiria kuwa kitabu changu kitapingana na mfumo wetu mpya wa Ujamaa. Walinijia maafisa wa polisi na vijana wa usalama wa taifa na kunihoji wakitaka kujua madhumuni yangu katika kutoa kitabu cha ‘kisiasa’. Niliwajuza kuwa hata sikuwa na habari kuwa azimio la azimio lipo au litatoka lini? Viongozi wengi serikalini hawakukipenda sana kwa kuwa

Mbona kazi zako nyingi zinaelekea kutetea haki za umma na kupinga dhuluma katika jamii?

Kwa kweli mimi napenda siasa sana. Nimewahi kuwa diwani wa Manispaa ya Bukoba miaka ya 1980 na hata baadaye nikajaribu kugombea ubunge ila nikaibuka wa tatu mwakani 1985. Sidhani hadi wa sasa kama nilishindwa kihalali. Ninaona siasa kama njia moja ya kutoa uongozi na kuelekeza jamii na kufikia hadhira kubwa. Siasa sasa zimegeuzwa jukwaa la kujichumia mali kwa urahisi. Hata nimeangazia dhuluma katika jamii katika  kazi zangu kama ‘Sayari iliyozama’ ambapo nilitumia ndege kuonyesha uozo wa kimaadili  kama ulaji rushwa na wizi  wa kura uchaguzini na kadhalika. Mathalan, riwaya ya Shamba la Wanyama ni kioo cha uhalisia ulioko katika serikali zetu hasa barani Afrika ambapo viongozi wanaanza kwa lengo moja la kupinga dhuluma lakini hatimaye wakishatwaa hatamu za uongozi, wanabadilika  na kuwa kama watangulizi wao. Yule mhusika nguruwe aliyeitwa Mkimwa riwayani na wengineo kwa mfano ni viwakilisho hakika vya viongozi kama hawa.

Riwaya ya Shamba la Wanyama ilisomwa sana Kenya au Tanzania?

Kusema ukweli, kilishamiri sana nchini Kenya kuliko hapa Tanzania. Mauzo yake hadi wa sasa nchini Kenya ni ya kufurahisha. Kimekuwa kikisomwa kama riwaya teule nchini Kenya kwa miaka mingi. Labda ni kwa sababu palitoa mwamko mpya wa kisiasa na kijamii nchini Kenya kabla ya Tanzania kwa kuwa sisi hapa tulilimatia katika siasa za kujitegemea za Ujamaa. Utamaduni wa kusoma ulikita mizizi Kenya kuliko Tanzania.

Mwalimu Julius Kambarage Nyerere alikuathiri kwa njia yoyote katika uandishi wa wako?

Mwanzo mimi nilishuhudia Tanganyika ikijinyakulia uhuru. Zile hotuba za Mwalimu Nyerere za kwanza na mwelekeo tuliokuwa tumeanza nao ulikuwa  unatia moyo sana. Kidogo kidogo tulianza kupoteza mwelekeo na lengo tuliloanza nalo. Niliposoma  Animal Farm ya George Orwell nikaanza kung’amua kuwa  kumbe haya ninayoyasoma riwayani inaelekea ni kama yanayoanza kutokea nchini. Hilo likanisukuma kuharakisha kukitoa kitabu hiki. Pia uhalisia wa mambo nchini Tanzania wakati huo ulinisaidia kutafuta majina ya wahusika katika Kiswahili.

Je, bara la Afrika katika karne ya 21 limetoka katika ‘Shamba la Wanyama’?

Kwa maoni yangu, hata hali ni mbaya zaidi katika nchi zetu kwa kuwa pengo baina ya tabaka la maskini na matajiri linazidi kupanuka. Viongozi wanaboresha maslahi yao ni kusahau ya umma. Tunashuhudia wabunge wetu wakijiongeza posho na hata mishahara wakati walimu hawalipwe hela zao. Kama nguruwe kina Mkimwa walivyojiongeza maziwa, wanasiasa wanajijaji tu. Uzuri wa mambo ni kuwa kuna demokrasia na uhuru wa kujieleza kuliko siku za mwanzoni. Suluhisho lipo katika kizazi kipya kikipewa nafasi za uongozi . Wafike mahali na wakatae hongo na uozo wowote katika jamii na wajitenge na Waliotangulia.

 

Waandishi kama wewe watabadilishaje jamii na kuiboresha?

Kazi za fasihi zina nafasi kubwa ila pia kuna changamoto kwa kuwa utamaduni na hamu ya kupenda kusoma kazi hizo ili wapate ujumbe. Vipo vitabu vingi vilivyo na ujumbe unaoweza kubadilisha hata mifumo ya kisiasa. Tumejitolea hata kupunguza hata bei za vitabu ili viingie shuleni lakini mwitiko ni mdogo sana. Unashangaa wanafunzi wanaanguka mtihani kwa asilia kubwa kwa kukosa kusoma. Pia mifumo ya elimu inahitaji mabadiliko. Wizara ya elimu ina jukumu la kuwaridhirisha walimu na kutoa mitalaa inayoambatana na maendeleo katika jamii. Vitabu sibakia kama biashara tu.

Sasa unajishughulisha na nini?

Mimi bado nazidi kuandika vitabu. Hivi karibuni nitatoa tamthilia yangu. Aidha ninafanya kilimo katika shamba langu pamoja na ufugaji. Hali kadhalika ninatoa mchango wangu katika jamii ya Bukoba kama mjumbe wa Baraza la Ardhi na Nyumba nikiwa mmoja wa washauri. Pia mimi  mwenyekiti wa chama cha SACCO ya kata ya Kibeta na vikundi vinginevyo. Pia ninashiriki katika shughuli za UKUTA kama Katibu wake. Ukuta ni Chama cha Usanifu wa Kiswahili na Ushairi -UKUTA- ambacho kimeshirikiana na BAKITA-Baraza la Kiswahili la Taifa na Taasisi ya Taaluma za Kiswahili- Chuo Kikuu cha Dar es Salaam-TATAKI katika kuandaa hafla hii ya kumuenzi Shaaban Roberts.

 

Hezekiel Gikambi ni mtaalamu wa lugha ya Kiswahili na Tafsiri na pia Meneja wa Mradi wa Swahilihub.com wa Nation Media Group, Nairobi Kenya na mwandishi wa Safari ya Serengeti.

Barua pepe: hezekielgikambi@gmail.com

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

GWIJI WA WIKI: HEZEKIEL GIKAMBI PETER

 

GWIJI WA WIKI: HEZEKIEL  GIKAMBI

PETER

Aliyekuwa meneja wa SwahiliHub, tovuti ya Nation Media Group, Peter Gikambi (kulia) amkabithi tarakilishi meneja wa E-Kitabu Will Clurman ambazo zilitolewa kwa hisani ya Taifa Leo na Swahili Hub na kampuni ya Nation Media Group kuwatuza wanafunzi bora wa Kiswahili na shule alizipokea kwenye jumba la habari la Nation Centre Jijijini Nairobi, Septemba 1, 2015. Picha/ ANTHONY OMUYA (NAIROBI)

Na CHRIS ADUNGO

KUKIMILIKI Kiswahili ni sawa na kuwa na malighafi au mtaji sawa na ule alionao daktari, wakili, rubani au mhandisi. Muhimu zaidi ni kufuata msukumo wa ndani ya nafsi hadi lengo lako lifikiwe.

Mungu ana mbinu na uwezo wa kumsaidia binadamu anayewafaa wenzake. Vitu vilivyo bora zaidi maishani hutolewa bila malipo. Mtu hawezi kabisa kukadiria thamani ya afya, uzima na uhai alionao.

Kufaulu maishani na kitaaluma kunamhitaji mtu kuwa mwepesi wa kujifunza kutoka kwa kila anayetangamana naye. Jisake mara kwa mara ili ujue ilipo ari yako.

MAISHA YA AWALI
Bw Hezekiel Peter Gikambi alizaliwa katika kijiji cha Muutine, eneo la Igembe, Kaunti ya Meru akiwa mtoto wa nne kati ya wanane katika familia ya Mama Jennifer Thirindi na marehemu Mzee Peter M’Ituiri Nabea.

Baada ya kupata elimu ya msingi katika Shule ya Kaongo Ka Mau (KK Mau) kati ya 1979 na 1986, alijiunga na Shule ya Upili ya Burieruri mnamo 1987 na kuhitimu Hati ya Masomo ya Sekondari (KCSE) mwishoni mwa 1990.

Mbali na mwalimu Mugambi aliyemchochea kuandika Insha bora zilizompa tuzo nyingi akiwa mwanafunzi wa shule ya msingi, anatambua pia mchango wa walimu Jeff Irware na Bw Muroki katika kumwelekeza vilivyo na kumhimiza ajitahidi masomoni akiwa katika shule ya upili.

Gikambi alivutiwa sana na watangazaji wa redio za BBC na KBC; hasa Willy Mwangi, Tido Mhando, Mohamed Juma Njuguna na Anderson Kalu. Alipokuwa darasa la tatu, alikuwa tayari ameanza kuiga jinsi walivyokuwa wakitangaza.

Baada ya KCSE, alipata msukumo wa kutaka kujitosa kikamilifu katika ulingo wa Kiswahili na kuwa ama mwanahabari, mhariri au mwandishi.
Hizi ni taaluma alizozipenda ingawa tangu utotoni mwake, alitaka sana kuwa daktari.

USOMI
Mnamo 1992, Gikambi alijiunga na Chuo Kikuu cha Nairobi, Bewa la Kikuyu kusomea ualimu (Kiswahili na Historia).

Miongoni mwa wahadhiri waliofanikisha safari yake ya elimu chuoni ni Profesa Rayya Timammy, Profesa John Habwe, Dkt Zaja Omboga, Dkt Swaleh Amiri, Dkt Ayub Mukhwana, Dkt Jefwa Mweri na marehemu Profesa Jay Kitsao ambao mbali na kumpokeza malezi bora zaidi ya kiakademia, pia walimrithisha ilhamu ya kukipenda Kiswahili.

Mnamo 2001, Gikambi alijiunga na Chuo cha Kimataifa cha Cambridge, Uingereza kusomea Stashahada katika usimamizi wa mauzo na uvumishaji wa bidhaa.
Alifuzu mwishoni mwa 2002, na mnamo 2011, alisomea Diploma katika Uanahabari na Mawasiliano katika Chuo Kikuu cha Kenyatta.

Akiwa Nation Media Group (NMG), alienda Afrika Kusini mnamo 2013 kusomea kozi ya Usimamizi wa Habari za Kidijitali katika Chuo Kikuu cha Rhodes katika Taasisi ya Sol Plaatje Media Leadership Institute mjini Grahams Town.

Ilipofika Septemba 2013, Gikambi alirejea katika Chuo Kikuu cha Nairobi kusomea Shahada ya Uzamili. Alifuzu 2015 baada ya kuwasilisha Tasnifu Teknolojia ya Lugha katika Utafiti wa Kiswahili: Kifani cha Mradi wa SALAMA chini ya usimamizi wa Dkt Zaja Omboga na Profesa Iribe Mwangi.

Mnamo 2016, aliandaa Pendekezo la Utafiti lenye mada Mabadiliko katika Tasnia Ya Uanahabari: Uchanganuzi wa Diskosi kwa Lugha ya Kiswahili na Teknolojia Nchini Kenya kwa minajili ya Shahada ya Uzamifu (PhD) katika Chuo Kikuu cha Leipzig, Ujerumani chini ya uelekezi wa Profesa Dkt Rose Marie Beck. Anaendelea na utafiti huo katika Chuo Kikuu cha Kenyatta.

Bw Ezekiel Peter Gikambi (kulia) akiwa kwa picha na meneja wa E-Kitabu Will Clurman na washindi wa insha nchini katika ukumbi wa Sarit Centre, Septemba 23, 2015. Picha/ ANTHONY OMUYA (NAIROBI)

UALIMU
Baada ya kufuzu mnamo 1996, Tume ya Huduma kwa Walimu (TSC) ilimtuma Gikambi kufundisha katika shule ya upili ya Kitany, eneo la Keiyo, Kaunti ya Elgeyo-Marakwet.

Aliwachochea wanafunzi wake kushiriki zaidi mashindano ya muziki na uigizaji hadi kufikia kiwango cha kitaifa. Isitoshe, aliteuliwa kuwa mlezi wa masuala ya drama na vyama vya Uanahabari na Burudani shuleni Kitany.

Alishirikiana sana na mwalimu mwenzake shuleni humo, Bw Joseph Ngure kuandika makala mengi yaliyochapishwa katika kumbi mbalimbali za gazeti hili.
Akifundisha shuleni Kitany, Gikambi alishiriki mipango ya marehemu Dkt Abel Gregory Gibbe kuendesha Semina Kuu za Kiswahili (SEKUKI) katika sehemu mbalimbali za humu nchini kwa nia ya kuwaelekeza na kuwahamasisha walimu na wanafunzi kuhusu mbinu mwafaka zaidi za kujiandaa kwa mitihani ya KCSE.

Mnamo 2003, Gikambi alijiunga na Shule ya Upili ya Riara Springs Girls, Nairobi. Akiwa huko, alihariri vitabu Darubini za Kiswahili (F.M Kagwa, Phoenix) na Heri Subira cha (Omar Babu, Oxford University Press) na kuanza kuandika msururu wa vitabu Johari ya Kiswahili (1-4) vinavyosomwa nchini Tanzania.

Isitoshe, alishiriki pia utunzi wa majaribio ya mitihani ya KCSE inayochapishwa na gazeti hili. Pia alitafsiri makala na ripoti nyingi za mashirika mbalimbali ya kitaifa na kimataifa.

UANAHABARI
Baada ya kufundisha Riara Springs kwa miaka saba, Gikambi alijiunga na kampuni ya Habari na Mawasiliano ya NMG mnamo 2008 akiwa Mhariri wa Makala ya Elimu katika gazeti la Taifa Leo.

Mwaka mmoja baadaye, alianzisha Shindano la Uandishi wa Insha linaloendeshwa hadi sasa na gazeti hili miongoni mwa wanafunzi wa shule za msingi na upili nchini.

Hadi alipoondoka NMG mnamo 2016, Gikambi ndiye aliyekuwa Meneja Msimamizi wa tovuti ya Swahilihub aliyoizindua rasmi mnamo 2012 katika Kongamano la 25 la Kiswahili katika Chuo Kikuu cha Bayreuth, Ujerumani.

Wazo la kuanzishwa kwa Swahilihub mnamo 2010 lilikuwa pendekezo lake Gikambi kwa lengo la kujenga jukwaa la kidijitali la picha, video, makala na habari za Kiswahili.

UANDISHI
Gikambi anaamini kwamba safari yake katika uandishi ilianza akiwa tineja.

Insha alizozitunga nyakati hizo zilimpandisha katika majukwaa anuwai ya tuzo za Kiswahili. Aliandika michezo na mashairi kwa ajili ya mashindano mbalimbali alipokuwa akifundisha katika shule za upili za Kitany na Riara Springs. Mashairi yake yalitia fora katika tamasha za kitaifa za muziki na drama.

Ameandika vitabu vingi vya Kiswahili vikiwemo mkusanyiko wa Peak Encyclopedia KCSE Compulsory Subjects uliochapishwa na kampuni ya EAEP mnamo 2006.

Pia alishirikiana na Profesa Collins Mumbo na Dolaria Kyando kuandaa msururu wa vitabu Johari ya Kiswahili vilivyochapishwa na kampuni ya Ujuzi Book Ltd mnamo 2009.

Mbali na kuandaa Miongozo ya vitabu vya Fasihi ya Kiswahili ambavyo vimewahi kutahiniwa katika kiwango cha KCSE, anajivunia pia kuandika vitabu Safari ya Serengeti na Ningependa Kusahau vilivyochapishwa mnamo 2010.

Mnamo 2014, kampuni ya Longhorn ilimchapishia kitabu SmartScore Encyclopaedia kwa Darasa la 8.

UHADHIRI
Kwa sasa, Gikambi anafundisha kozi ya Uanahabari na Mawasiliano kwa wanafunzi wanaosomea kiwango cha umahiri katika Chuo Kikuu Katoliki cha Afrika Mashariki (CUEA). Pia anawafundisha kozi ya Mawasiliano ya Kibiashara kwa wanafunzi wa Shahada ya Kwanza chuoni humo.

Amewaelekeza wanafunzi wengi wa Shahada ya Kwanza kutoka Vyuo Vikuu vya Multi-Media na Moi (Bewa la Nairobi) katika kozi za Mawasiliano, Sintaksia ya Kiswahili na Historia ya Kiswahili.

 

UFANISI
Anapojitahidi kupiga hatua, Gikambi anajivunia kuwahi kufundisha idadi kubwa ya wataalamu ambao kwa sasa wanashikilia nyadhifa za juu katika sekta mbalimbali ndani na nje ya ulingo wa Kiswahili.

Mbali na kuandika makala ya kitaaluma katika majarida mbalimbali, anajivunia pia kuandaa, kuhudhuria na kuwasilisha katika makongamano mengi kwa nia ya kukipigia chapuo Kiswahili katika viwango vya kitaifa na kimataifa.

Amekuwa mjasiriamali na mshauri wa tafsiri, mawasiliano na uhariri wa machapisho ya Kiswahili katika kampuni tofauti za uchapishaji nchini Kenya na Tanzania, kwa wanasiasa,mashirika mbalimbali kutoka Ulaya na Marekani na katika Benki ya Dunia.

Amehariri miswada mingi ambayo sasa ni vitabu mashuhuri katika ulimwengu wa taaluma za Kiswahili. Kwa sasa, anajishughulisha na kampuni ya Fasiri Communications ambayo mbali na kuchapisha vitabu, pia hutoa huduma za uhariri, tafsiri na ukalimani.

Fasiri Communications imewahi kuchapisha Wasifu wa Burudi Nambwera Baba wa Mayatima (kitabu cha Paul H. Boge kilichotafsiriwa na Ken Walibora mnamo 2016), Mwongozo wa Kigogo na Mwongozo wa Tumbo Lisiloshiba na Hadithi Nyingine.

Pamoja na mkewe, Bi Kawira Gikambi, wamejaliwa watoto watatu: Furaha, Faraja na Fadhili.

Mecca of Swahili in Europe hits 30 years as 23 nations meet in Germany

Mecca of Swahili in Europe hits 30 years as 23 nations meet in Germany

By Hezekiel Gikambi

#Hezekielgikambi

 

 

The 2017 Swahili colloquium at the University of Bayreuth in Bavaria region, Germany has celebrated its 30th Anniversary since its inception in 1987 with over 100 participants from 23 countries from 4 continents meeting and discussing on Swahili language and it’s multi-disciplinary contact areas as historic four generation of scholars fete the ‘Mecca of Kiswahili in Europe’.

As he run through Schiphol Airport to catch his flight back to Nairobi, a delighted Harrison Bahati, a teacher of Swahili language and literature in Nairobi and an MA student in the language, found the grip of his iphone tighter than usual. The gadget had historic memories of the biggest Swahili function he had ever attended in his lifetime anywhere. Little did he know that, as a first timer, he just represented the fourth generation of scholars from 23 countries in the 30^th Anniversary of the Swahili colloquium at German’s Bayreuth University, a dream come true for him. The Swahili Colloquium which was founded in May 1987 to celebrate 100 years since the publishing of the first Swahili dictionary in 1887. This year in May 2017 it is celebrating its 30^th year of existence and at the same time marking the 25th anniversary at the University of Bayreuth because it has ever been held at least five times in other universities in Germany like Leipzig, Berlin Mainz and Hamburg.

The first generation of scholars at the meeting were well presented by Prof said Ahmed Mohammed, retired from Bayreuth University after teaching Swahili literature and linguistics for over 17 years, Abdilatif Abdalla, Prof Dr.Grudun Miehe- popularly known as Mama Swako-the co-founder of the Swahili colloquium together  Prof .Said, Prof Farouk Topan, Prof Elena Berntoncini  among others. These had become the face of the colloquium. Watching ‘Mama Swako’ speak during the anniversary celebration session, a colleague was reminding me that she taught a prominent Kenyan Swahili scholar and famous author Prof Kyallo W Wamitila who was in turn our lecturer. Having therefore, personally taught Bahati in his MA studies last year, I counted myself in the third generation of scholars at the conference. 

 

 

 Bwana Hezekiel Gikambi akiwabidhi Dkt. Serena Talento n Dkt Roberto Gadiosso vifurushi vya zawadi za Swahilihub.com  katika kongamano la Bayreuth mwaka  2014

 

Since it started to move its timid first steps back in the 1980s, the colloquium has been a platform where senior and junior researchers could exchange expertise, knowledge, experiences, and enduring bonds of professional friendship. In May 2017 Iwalewahaus, the location of the colloquium, will got ready to welcome guests from four continents. This 30^th colloquium had the special thematic focus on: “Mahusiano! Languages and literatures in interface”, and featured presentations discussing linguistic contact zones, media representations, the educative sector, literary translation, historiography, entangled literatures and political aspirations, among others. The Swahili writers and philosophers Prof Euphrase Kezilahabi and William Mkufya were the special guests of this colloquium, together with the Tanzanian poet Idd Mohamed Mwimbe and the poet and rapper Mutalemwa Jason Mushumbusi who contributed with artistic performances to cheer the Swahili Colloquium Jubilee.

The colloquium this year was unique not only because of the number of people coming from 4 continents but also because the new generations of scholars like Kaka Bahati were, linking up with the wazees as the shared on broader spectrum of the topics which reach beyond the language and literature but touch on history, sociology, anthropology, cultural and political studies. There were  more presentations than any other past year and that the 3 days of conference needed to be split into several panels in separate halls said a lot about how big this event has become and the impact it has worldwide. When it started back in 1987, it lasted one day with 8 presentations according to the host Prof Clarissa Vierke, a scholar of African literature and an expert in Classical Swahili Poetry.

In her official opening remarks of the colloquium at Iwalewa house Ms Serena Talento, a BigSas PhD student who was key in the organization of the event, said that the 2017 colloquium was that was celebrating 30 years had attracted an historic 108 participants from 23 nations from four continents. The Bareuth colloquium this year had participants from Austria, Botswana, Democratic Republic of Congo, Ghana, Hungary, Italy, Kenya, Nigeria, Norway, Poland, Rwanda, Tanzania, Belgium, France, Uganda, England, Germany, Chzeck Republic, China, Netherlands, Russia, Switzaland, USA and Turkey that meet in Bayreuth to extend the warmth of the Swako-(Swahili Colloquium) as it has been famously refered to. According to Ms Talento this attration to Swahili language has built not only a network of academicians and linguists but also a strong family of Swahili enthusiasts 30 years down the line.

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The colloquium co-founder and co-author of Damu Nyeusi na Hadithi Nyingine, the current KCSE Swahili anthology of stories setbook Prof Said Ahmed Mohammed, refered to Bayreuth University and the Swahili Colloquium to the Mecca of Swahili in Europe, and requested the government and universities in East Africa  to take the development of Kiswahili seriously. Prof Said has taught the language in Zanzibar, Dar es Salaam, Moi University in Kenya, Tokyo in Japan, Leipzig and finally Bayreuth until his retirement in 2002 during the colloquium Silver Jubilee. He commended his successor Prof Clarissa Vierke for taking the organization of the event seriously and taking it higher and higher year in year out.

Some of the milestones in this year’s colloquium that will remain in the minds of the participants forever include the reflections and nostalgic moments in Prof Grudun Miehe’s speech. She reminded the gathering that the current host, Prof Clarissa Vierke was elementary school, the equivalent of Class one in the Kenyan system of education when the first colloquium was held in 1987, a fact that caused roars of laughter as Clarissa stood tall next to her on the podium amidst historic photo galleries playing on the big screens behind them. The second milestone was the launch of two books one edited by Prof Clarissa with contributed book chapters from

the presentations of 25th colloquium of 2002-themed- Dunia Yao and a second one edited by Bayreuth Univeristy PhD student Roberto Gadiosso Lumuli and his lecturer from University of Naples Prof  Flavia Aurelio, a collection of Swahili and Italian translation of  Prof Kezilahabi’s free verse Swahili poems and Abdilatif Abdalla’s  poems  where the two poets stepped up the podium to recite them as Flavia and Roberto read the Italian rendition. 

The last but not the least, it was the spicing up of the presentations with a African philosophical expositions and exchanges from the Tanzanian Prof Euphrase Kezilahabi(the one of the Swahili free-verse and exsistentialism fame), currently teaching Swahili and African literature at the University of Botswana and the Kenyan reknown expert in Sage Philosophy Prof ..........that completed the academic discourse setting the aura of high academic pitch across the room as laughter and complex questions on simple things truth and life rented the air at Iwalewahaus.  This sesion was combined with the inauguaratioin of over 100 invited Bayreuth International Graduate School of African studies-BIGSAS- who  filled the hall to its capacity.

What comes in ones mind after witnessing the success of such an event that is Swahili based, held several thousands of kilometres away from East Africa,the origin of Swahili, is obviously the unstopable growth and importance of an African language gradually turning into a global one. However, as this year’s colloquium took a minute to remember the late Kenyan poet and own educated Swahili expert Prof Sheikh Ahmad Nabhany’s contribution to Swahili language, I could not help but remember what he once told me in Mombasa; ‘’Unless our governments in East Africa are committed to funding efforts that develop the Swahili language, our children will one day travel abroad to learn this language-their mother tongue.’’ Only time will tell.

Hezekiel Gikambi, co-author of Johari ya Kiswahili series in Tanzania is a Swahili Scholar, multimedia journalist, lecturer, and currently a PhD student in Swahili Language, Media and Technology at the Kenyatta University in Kenya

E-mail- hezekielgikambi@gmail.com