PROJECT SWAHILI HOUSE: A Concept Note

By Safari Ohumay

1:  Background:

It all begins with an idea whose time has come.  When a group of people with shared interests is rallied  around  a mutually beneficial concept, nothing is impossible to achieve. Swahili language which is currently spoken by over 150  million people  from several countries in  East, central and southern Africa and the Middle East, has become the language of choice  for the African continent. It is an African cultural component with the widest geographic coverage on the continent and abroad. In a broader perspective, over 100  top tier universities  world wide offer Swahili courses.  The countries in the East African Community have declared Swahili as the official language of  their nations and others are  receptively poised for Swahili.  It deserves a home in a nation whose culture grew symbiotically on the African culture.

2: Call to Action:

 There is a growing need to promote Swahili through concerted and action oriented efforts on the continent of Africa  and abroad.  This need arises  from the notion that probably Swahili is without  a rival as the fastest growing language possibly in the world, but most certainly on the African continent.

The time to launch it is now as already there exists a groundswell of support from the African communities of the DMV region and elsewhere in the US.  Intrinsic in this proposition is the desire to have a location/s where all things Swahili would  happen for the benefit  of its enthusiasts and learners.

  The  onus  of spearheading Swahili initiatives  lies squarely on the nationals of the countries of the East African Community, especially Kenya and Tanzania.  While a large majority of Kenyans speak Swahili, nearly 100 percent of Tanzanians do.

3: Sponsors:

There is every indication that the Tanzania embassy in Washington DC and the government of Tanzania recognize  their  vital role in and are supportive of Swahili initiatives.  Conceivably,  a collaborative effort between the embassy/GOT on the one hand and the Swahili diaspora in the DMV region and the US  in general  on the other, can become a viable launching pad that  could foster a palpable commitment to make the Project Swahili House a reality.  It will require  the DMV community to take a pro-active step to orchestrate this initiative in liaising  with all stakeholders and potential sponsors.

  Once this vital step of commitment is achieved, then a suitable framework for partnering in the undertaking (Swahili community and the embassy/GOT) could be worked out fairly quickly.  Such  a partnership framework would spell out in detail important issues  including:

a) Decision on the location which, to a large extent, will be influenced by the costs of acquisition as well as the management of the facility;

b) The possibility of 

the embassy/GOT, leasing out its property on U and 22^nd street NW for the purposes of this project;

b) Funding  responsibilities and the potential sources, structure and magnitude of project finance for a complete overhaul and redesign of the said property(subject to affirmative feedback on b) above)  so as to provide  rental space for 1) small conferencing; 2) Swahili small classrooms, and 3)  multi-purpose space for limited accommodation, recreation, and cultural artifacts and goods.

c)  Discussions  and  decisions on the kind of  income generating services that  the facility  could offer to its clients;

d) Revenue sharing   formula between the  key partners if   and when needed; and

e) should  the prospect of the embassy property  fail to materialize, a viable alternate site will need to be evaluated and a decision of an alternate site need to be taken to keep alive the hope of the Project Swahili House.

4:  Getting Involved:

a)      Endorse  the concept of a Swahili House in  Washington DC, where Tanzania and every major nation is represented through its embassy, and where the premier international economic and financial institutions such as the World Bank Group and the IMF often hold international meetings  at their head quarters in Washington DC;

b)      Contribute with  ideas or financially  towards the funding and operationalization of  the Swahili House;

c)      Sponsor a fund raising initiative in the US and in the Swahili speaking countries to raise  the requisite financing; and

d)     Help disseminated this mission for the promotion of the Swahili language.