Schools are closed. So, some homework is in order. Find a chimpanzee. At first sight, this might appear to be difficult, chimpanzees are not native to Kenya. They live in West and Central Africa. But Kenya does have the Sweetwater chimpanzee sanctuary to take care of abused and orphaned chimpanzees. So, they are not far away.
Biologically, if you classify humans as part of the ape (Hominidae) family, then chimpanzees are our closest relatives genetically. Humans and chimps had a common ancestor about six million years ago and today share between 96 and 99 per cent of the same genes.
Like decent human beings, chimpanzees have been reported to respect their elders and observed to be compassionate and empathetic. In their natural habitat, they live in groups and an individual chimp usually bonds very tightly with its mother. So, we are not far apart. In human terms, chimps' intelligence is compared to a human toddler's. So, we can relate at a certain level to a chimpanzee. Here is the interesting thing.
If you were to take a chimpanzee, place before them any five human beings, let us say, a typical Chinese, Bulgarian, Nigerian, Kenyan and a Briton, it would not be able to tell the difference between them. Genetically comparing to the chimpanzee, all human beings are alike. But interesting among human beings, the small genetic differences that exist are greater among Africans than between Africans and say Europeans.
That is a Nigerian and a Kenyan, both black, will have greater genetic diversity compared to a black Nigerian and a white German. The gene that codes for skin colour is only a tiny part of our genetic makeup. The chimp, just like the human toddler, instinctively knows that skin colour or tribe does not matter when judging human character and competence. Genetic studies show them to be right. What then explains our societal differences?
December 12, 1963, is when 10 million Kenyans first celebrated Jamhuri day. Kenya had been a British protectorate since November 1920, having been part of the East African Protectorate from 1895 and not existed prior. Our current history is narrated from a perspective of being ‘free’ from colonial rule.
Yet, colonial rule in total was 68 years, even though missionaries had been wandering around in the region since about 1840. Kenya has been independent longer than it was ruled by the British as a colony. But Kenya is now part of East Africa, just as it was before 1920. Fine. Then we have less than 10 years of excuse, that is the two terms of the current government. What would we be excusing?
Kenya’s current population is about 50 million while the United Kingdom’s is 67 million. By 2030, the UK will add 2 million people for a total of 69 million, while Kenya will add 18 million for a total of 68 million. Because of our poor public health set-up and inability to tackle basic determinants of health such as access to water and adequate nutritious food, about 5 million Kenyans born between now and 2030 will be stunted.
Kenya’s current GDP is about $100 billion, while that of the UK is $3,100 billion, 30 times that of Kenya. Can you see the problem? The problem is not genetic, it is social and therefore a problem that government must solve. As Kenyans, we struggle to form a functional government devoid of tribal mediocrity and so continue to sink. The race is backwards towards the lowest common denominator instead of forwards. Can understanding genetics help move us forward?
To create a new human being, we need a sperm from the father and an egg from the mother to meet and create an embryo. The sperm contributes only DNA from the father, while the egg contributes DNA from the mother and the initial nutrients. From this initial fusion of two cells, a fully grown human will develop.
Whether it is a chimpanzee or a human being, the mechanism to create the first few cells that form structures that develop into the backbone, the brain, the limbs, the heart, the kidneys and so on are the same. Genes follow a sequence that enables the head to be at one end and the legs at the other, so that the heart does not start to grow from the back of the head.
Each gene is triggered when needed and switches off as appropriate. The trigger is time and whether there is adequate nutrition for the mother. One gene does not try to do everything. The gene for the head does not exclude the gene for the kidneys from being a part of the process. It is a system. In Kenya, two babies are born every minute, so we cannot claim ignorance, that we do not know that an organised all-inclusive system works.
The politics that ties Kenya to a colonial history has to end. It is a tired narrative, and it is not genetic. Between 2022 and 2027, about 10 million Kenyans will be born. If we continue to mess around with poor government 5 million of those born in the next 10 years will have a stunted future unless we embrace basic competence in government.
