Many discussions in social places in Nairobi these days seem to revolve around the direction in which our country is heading or at least the direction we would like to see it go. After eight years of a better than average government, the anxiety as to whether the next government will build on the progress made by the current one is a real concern for many people. Truth be told, we don't have a choice. We must, as a country, do better than we ever have so as to achieve the aspirations of our citizens. It is sad that in the 21st century we are still plagued by the same challenges that our founding fathers identified as the greatest obstacles facing our nation; poverty, disease and ignorance. If these were our only challenges, perhaps we wouldn't be so unfortunate. However, that list seems to have grown since independence to include negative ethnicity, corruption and insecurity. These are in my estimation, our 21st century challenges. The path that Kenya takes will largely depend on how the government deals with these issues.If we are able to deal with the perpetrators of corruption and make the country secure enough that we don't always have to look over our shoulders in case someone is following, I honestly think that our country would take off. After all, lots of fundamentals have been put in place or strengthened over the last eight years. These include the promulgation of a new constitution, which among other things ensures that national resources are never again concentrated at the centre; the improvement of core infrastructure including roads, airports and a new port, and radical judicial reforms which have seen many unfit judicial officers leave the bench. Moreover, the government has made significant economic strides over the last eight years which include consistently growing the economy in spite of otherwise tough conditions.The intention now, is that the country will attain middle income status by the year 2030. The government has outlined various programs which it plans to implement so as to propel the country to this status. Without analyzing the merits of the programs it is possible to say with certainty that none of them will bear fruit if the 21st century challenges are not addressed. For instance, if ethnic considerations overshadow the construction of the Lamu port (long the Indian Ocean Coast) to the extent that the ethnicity of the construction workers rather than the efficiency of the personnel determine the project's progress, it will be difficult to build the port to be as successful as it could be. Similarly, it would be worthless to build a tourist resort city in Isiolo if we are not able to persuade the local communities to coexist peacefully as opposed to viewing each other as outsiders and fighting over resources in the area.In my view, Vision 2030 is achievable if the government is able to efficiently use the resources which are at its disposal for the general good of the Kenyan people. This is especially so, given the country's recent discovery of oil & gas. This discovery has the potential to unlock huge financial benefits which could be used to finance the various flagship projects identified as key drivers of Vision 2030. At the same time however, oil & gas also have the potential to be a curse as has been experienced by a number of oil rich African nations. This will undoubtedly be one of the crucial tests faced by our next government.In the meantime, Kenyans will soon need to determine who they entrust with the task of addressing the foregoing issues and all others that need to be addressed. Only today, two individuals who have been indicted by the International Criminal Court have intimated that they will run on a joint ticket as President and Deputy President respectively. This in itself causes uncertainty as to Kenya's place in the community of nations if these individuals are elected. Accordingly, whereas there is huge potential for growth and prosperity, there is also potential that Kenya will like other similarly placed countries around the world, not realize its potential. Perhaps only time will tell what the future holds for Kenya.Daniel MutisyaeduKenya International Board/Kenya Vision Team