A unique summit took place on February 9-11 at the Acacia Premier Hotel, a majestic edifice with a stunning view of Lake Victoria and Kisumu International Airport. From its terrace made of marble, glass and shiny steel, one gains sight of the distant and rocky Riat Hills.

It is here where the who-is-who of this region, led by the former Premier Raila Odinga and the rising nouveaux rich of this vibrant town, dwell. The hills roll like a hem to the revamped lake city of Kisumu under the leadership of Governor Anyang’ Nyong’o.

"It's high time we move from the coloniser's language."

This is not part of a rousing speech by a pan-African idealist but rather the sentence is uttered quietly and calmly by Ghanaian Swahili student Annabel Naa Odarley Lankai.

But her words echo declarations by the continent's visionaries down the decades.

Africa should "have something that is of us and for us", the 23-year-old adds.

In its heartland, Swahili and its dialects stretch from parts of Somalia down to Mozambique and across to the western parts of the Democratic Republic of Congo.