Kenya can have own Stellenbosch beyond wine and vineyards

I still stand by my declaration that South Africa (SA) is addictive, which is probably why I found myself back there too soon. 

This time, far away from Zululand into Stellenbosch on the outskirts of Cape Town. It was an intellectual trip for the annual African Conference on Operations and Supply Chain Management (ACOSCM).

It was sponsored by the Kuehne Foundation and hosted by Stellenbosch University at the Institute of Advanced Studies (STIAS).

As usual, a few observations made without the intoxicating effect of wine.  

One is the stunning beauty of Stellenbosch Mountain and its sisters, Simonsberg, Jonkershoek and Helderberg.  

Stellenbosch Mountain is the counterweight to Table Mountain, more famous because of its proximity to Cape Town and its stunning beauty. 

The counterweighting goes beyond nature. The Table Mountain area was predominantly settled by the English, and the Stellenbosch mountain area by the Afrikaans, better known as the Boers. 

Each region has its premier university; Table Mountain has the University of Cape Town, which teaches in English. Stellenbosch used to be purely Afrikaans (Dutch) but is now bilingual. 

Two, a visit to Stellenbosch would be incomplete without visiting a winery. The two were on my radar for functions not to do with wine tasting.

Morgenhof Wine Estate was established in 1692, and Nooitgedacht (1774). The wineries are popular venues for parties, weddings, and corporate functions like our conference dinner.

They are quiet and private. Can our coffee, tea or even pineapple farms do the same? I did not hear any loud music in the wineries. 

The old buildings add to the mystique of the wineries; change is moderated. One curious observation is the longevity of wine estates without chopping them into small pieces over the centuries.

When shall we stop subdividing land, making it uneconomical? Do we need a law for that, or is common sense enough?

Vineyards and their well-trimmed grape trees add to the beauty of the wine country. Wide and tree-lined streets make it hard to believe Stellenbosch town has been there since 1685.  

Three, and other frequent travellers can react. Wine and beer outside Kenya rarely make one drunk. Why are the same drinks so intoxicating in Kenya?  

Fourth, the coloureds, a mixture of black and white citizens, are predominant in the Western Cape. How did Kenya avoid coloureds? Have you noted they are becoming common in Kenya today?  Why?  Five, curiously, there was no paper or presentation on wine supply chains.  I have some keen interest in that; Kenya imports wine from as far as Australia and the US’s Pacific Northwest.

How do importers go that far and still break even? My hunch is that wine sold in Kenya has good margins, going by the price in South African wineries. 

Six, why is Uber so cheap in South Africa compared with Kenya? Better roads? More cars? Any takers on that? 

A visit to Maersk, a global shipping firm and a cold stage facility near the airport demonstrated the application of real-life operations and supply chain management. Seven, why do we go to conferences and still keep within our country groups? Is networking not the most important reason for physically attending conferences?   

Seven, Stellenbosch and the Western Cape are closer to Europe than Africa. It’s a big contrast to KwaZulu-Natal, not just ethnically and racially mixed but also in wealth, roads and even culture. 

Eight, I saw no hawkers; a testimony on how advanced the South African economy is despite inequality best represented by shanties like Kayelitsha and Nyanga. Who lied that Kibra is the biggest slum in Africa? 

Nine, losing in the Boer Wars (1899-1902) in SA, probably drove Boers or Afrikaans to Kenya from around 1900.  

Did they see Aberdares or Elgon as equivalent to Stellenbosch or Table mountains? The beauty of Stellenbosch, Table mountains, the vineyards, minerals and other resources explain why South Africa was fought over by the Boers and the English.

Add why it is still at the centre of geopolitics and economics even today. 

Ten, Stellenbosch is not just about wineries. Other fruits like strawberries grow under greenhouses. Tourism is popular, as evidenced by the number of global hotel brands.

High tech and innovation thrive, too, with a technology park. Their Silicon Valley? Any links with Stellenbosch University?  Finally, can we create some myths and legends around our beverages, just like wine? That would attract tourists and premium prices. How many coffee or tea factories are proud of their age like wineries?  

South African wines took time and clever marketing to penetrate the global market. The first wine was produced in 1659. Shall we be that patient? And who said Kenya can’t be a wine country? Have we started marketing our banana and cactus wines? Beyond Naivasha and Yatta, I have planted and harvested some grapes. Be on the lookout for my Chenin Blanc, Merlot, Pinotage, Zinfandel or Shiraz. Are all dreams not valid, excluding nightmares?