I am still thinking about the Malawian blogosphere, which is generally not very active at the moment. Sometime in December 2005 Geeta, Jesse, Soyapi, Tess, and Mike met for the very first Malawi blogger lunch in Lilongwe. They discussed a number of interesting issues. After that, Mike organized a braii for Malawi bloggers. By then, I was still in South Africa where I was doing my MSc research and had not yet started blogging.
When I started blogging, I was looking forward to Malawi blogger meetups. But when I returned home, it looked like they were not taking place. I did not bother finding out because my time in Malawi was limited. Soon after coming back home, I received a scholarship from the Japanese government which brought me here.
Here in Tokyo, I have, however, attended a number of Tokyo Consumer Generated Media (CGM) nights, organized by Danny Choo (a.k.a the Tokyostormtrooper) and Andrew Shuttleworth. Bloggers, Youtubers, social networkers and folks who like to share meet at Tokyo CGM nights in order to share their experiences, get to know some new folks, witness the launch of new CGM related applications. Sometimes, we even get freebies such as pokens. Each time, I participate in the CGM nights, I learn new things. I also meet a lot of new people and increase my blog’s readership and backlinks. For in stance, courtesy of CGM nights, I have made friends with the likes of Serkan Toto, the first and only Asia-based writer for the TechCrunch network. We talk about a lot of issues when we meet.
I am, therefore, of the view that the meetups for Malawi based bloggers should resume. The benefits are immense both to the seasoned blogger and the new one. In July 2009, when Ndesanjo Macha, the Sub-Saharan Africa Editor at Global Voices, visited Lilongwe, he had a meetup with Victor Kaonga and Austin Madinga. He wanted to have a similar meetup in Blantyre when he visited the city in August 2009. A number of people promised to show up.
We can build on these meetups and ensure that they continue to take place on a regular basis. By so doing, there will be an exchange of conversations and ideas about technology and the power of the social web. We may start small but little by little these meetings will grow. Eventually, they will attract the interest of local companies which will come in to sponsor them. The Malawi blogosphere will not be the same.
Related posts:
9 users commented in " What about some meetups for Malawi based bloggers? "
Follow-up comment rss or Leave a TrackbackIt great to see you discussing on Malawi in Africa. If IT and allied business grow there will be good prospects for employing people and generating income in Africa.
[Reply]
Sounds like a good idea. A little too far for me tho.
[Reply]
Clement says:
October 2nd, 2009 at 2:39 am
Yes, it’s very far. But have u ever been to Africa before?
Do you take part in blogger meetups that side?
.-= Clement´s last blog ..What about some meetups for Malawi based bloggers? =-.
[Reply]
clement its a great idea! such a great idea that its already started… there is lilongwe writers’ circle… most of the people who come are bloggers. we meet once a month. email for more info acacia265@gmail.com and check out blog http://lilongwewriters.blogspot.com
.-= acacia´s last blog ..hooks to hang me on =-.
[Reply]
Clement Nyirenda says:
October 2nd, 2009 at 10:30 pm
Good to hear that development. I have already visited the site you have given. It does not give enough information. Can you please include an “About” page so that readers must know the objectives of the site and the people behind it.
You can also write an article on your blog about Lilongwe Writers Club. If you can give me more information, I can also write something here on my blog.
[Reply]
acacia says:
October 9th, 2009 at 4:55 pm
clement i forgot to mention my own aggregate http://blogmalawi.blogspot.com which is different to mabloga because it lists recently updated blogs, rather than all recent posts. i find this an easier way to see whos been writing… instead of being dominated by the excellent (but plentiful) links of the cryton chikokos. hehe.
.-= acacia´s last blog ..abandoned by the tide =-.
[Reply]
Clement Nyirenda says:
October 9th, 2009 at 6:26 pm
Wow! So you are the one who created this aggregate. It is nice. I see my recently updated posts coming up there. Of late, I am receiving some traffic from there of late. But is similar to http://mabloga.feedcluster.com/. The summaries of recently updated blogs are in the centre while the list of featured blogs come in the sidebar. It will be great to have more of these aggregates because, by so doing, visibility of Malawi blogs is increased.
You have however not answered my question. Are you one of the owners of http://lilongwewriters.blogspot.com?
[Reply]
I think it’s really great that you are trying to encourage blogging in different parts of the world
[Reply]
It’s a great ideea! We did the same thing in Romania
[Reply]
Please use your name when commenting. Using just keywords makes your comment seem spammy, and it's liable to get deleted. Please read my comment policy for more details. Many thanks for your cooperation!
Got an opinion? Leave a civil reply.