Thus Spaketh Idd Salim

Part 2 Here >>

It is 3am, and am yet to sleep because code has to be done. My coffee is getting cold and so is the night. Then comes the Email from Timo.

“The CDSC want a software very similar to Esplanade. The tender was in the newspaper so this seems a fair thing to propose for”. [Esplanade is our revolutionary system that allows people to monitor, watch and trade shares in the stock market from home via web, sms or email]. “Nice!!”, I remark. At last a Kenyan company will but software from a Kenyan developer because the advantages of dealing with local talent are clear.

• We understand the local market needs than any punjabi coder could ever hope to.
• We have local support and dont need to be hosted at Hilton for USD 400 per night as we debug.
• We make better software than the Indians/Sri Lankans anyway. Better Interfaces. Better Backends.
• We come unbelievably cheap. Pay us a mere KSHS 2M and we will do an entire system for you.
• The government has the ‘Kazi Kwa Vijana’ initiative underway.

Ohh how wrong I was! CDSC called us for about 3 meetings :

• Meeting 1 – We meet and take them through our concept. We could see how awed and disbelieving they were. “Hii kitu imetengenezewa Kenya kweli?”, One fella asked, “Ama nyinyi ni partners na some Indian Firm. Nyinyi ni resellers sio?”. Well, we malizad the concept and we were slotted for an actual demo in 3-4 days time. We were informed that we have been shortlisted as one of the 3 companies to do the job. YES!!
• Meeting 2 – We suggested they book the shortcode CDSC [2372]. And we took them through a demo on how an investor would detect fraud, set stock price threshold alerts, make statement and valuation inquiries via SMS etc. About 13 unique features. We discuss financials and do a quote for KSHS 1.2M.
• Meeting 3 – We get a regret email that the job has been given to another Company and that the meeting was not necessary.

Ok. Ok. Ok. No problem. We can take it on the chin like hardcore coders do and we keep soldiering on. Ama vipi? Maybe the best proposal won.

So, a month later, the CDSC launch this innovative System.

Developed by a firm rumoured to be from Sri Lanka for an amount rumoured to be bordering KSHS 50 M, the system launches. It has only 2 features and pathetically build. [Call it sour grapes, but my 6 year old daughter knows enough Visual Basic to do that system while watching Tom n Jerry.] My beef was:

• The system used our proposal, WORD for WORD, even up-to the shortcode and modus operandi we proposed.

Why is it, to a Kenyan, so EASY to engage a Kenyan group of hard working and smart programmers to spec and brain storm, but paying them is VERY hard. Where is the pain?

Why is it so hard to financially empower a Kenyan [a mere KSHS 1.2M] but so easy to pay out overseas [KSHS 50m+] for a baby-class implementation of the same system?

Part 2 Coming up n Wed. This time round, Safaricom does it…

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