June 2007 - KICTANet

Google names first African Employee]
by alice 07 Jun '07

07 Jun '07

Congratulations Mucheru http://whiteafrican.com/?p=620 Joseph Mucheru has been named the new site lead for Google Kenya. This was whispered to be happening, but at today’s Google lunch at TEDGlobal the position was made official by Francoise Brougher, Director of Google Business Opportunities. This is great news for East Africa and Google. They’re getting one of the true leaders in the ISP space, and someone who has a great deal of experience navigating the many difficult situations that arise in the African IT sector. Congratulations Joseph! (Note: This is Google’s first sub-Saharan Africa employee, not counting a couple sales guys in SA)

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Fw: Greetings
by Florence Etta 07 Jun '07

07 Jun '07

Hi KICTANet list manager/s, Below FYI and action please. Cheers, FE ----- Forwarded Message ---- From: John Matogo <JMatogo(a)strathmore.edu> To: Florence Etta <feanywhere(a)yahoo.co.uk> Sent: Thursday, 7 June, 2007 3:05:34 AM Subject: RE: Greetings Greetings Florence I would like to join KICTANet, I believe I joined the mailing list sometime back but I am not sure if I get all the emails. Kindly let me know where I register, to the mailing list. Regards John From: Florence Etta [mailto:feanywhere@yahoo.co.uk] Sent: 07 June 2007 11:06 To: John Matogo Subject: Re: Greetings Thanks a million John. I hope we will keep in contact. I wonder if you will consider it useful to join a network which discusses ICT issues in the country called KICTANet. Cheers, FE Florence Etta P.O. Box 14285 ,00800 Westlands-Nairobi , Kenya Tel: Mobile + 254-733-621851 Terrestrial: + 254-20-7121506 Fax: + 254-20-7125732 Alternative Email: florence.etta(a)gmail.com ----- Original Message ---- From: John Matogo <JMatogo(a)strathmore.edu> To: florence.etta(a)gmail.com Sent: Thursday, 7 June, 2007 10:03:14 AM Subject: Greetings Greetings Florence I trust that you are well. Just a note to greet you and pass my contact information. Kindly find my contact information below. Regards John Matogo Faculty of Information Technology Strathmore University Email: jmatogo(a)strathmore.edu Web: www.strathmore.edu New Yahoo! Mail is the ultimate force in competitive emailing. Find out more at the Yahoo! Mail Championships. Plus: play games and win prizes. ___________________________________________________________ Inbox full of unwanted email? Get leading protection and 1GB storage with All New Yahoo! Mail. http://uk.docs.yahoo.com/nowyoucan.html

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Controversial Media Bill is Amended
by Alex Gakuru 07 Jun '07

07 Jun '07

I just heard it on Nation radio. Waruru and Dr. Ndemo enlighten us on the deal reached. I sure hope the clause on registering journalists was struck off. I stand my ground in support of "Registering journalists is a code word for censorship", because we cannot trust future regimes to be as democratic as the current. Genuine risk of use to suppress "non-journalists" opinions (like me, sometimes). http://www.nationmedia.com/dailynation/nmgcontententry.asp?premiumid=0&cate… Gakuru --------------------------------- Ready for the edge of your seat? Check out tonight's top picks on Yahoo! TV.

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Autoreply: Controversial Media Bill is Amended
by kfourati＠idrc.ca 07 Jun '07

07 Jun '07

I am currently away from the office. Will reply to your email upon my return on Monday 12 june je suis absent du bureau actuellement. je répondrai à votre message à mon retour le lundi 12 juin

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Re: [kictanet] Google names first African Employee]
by Njeri Rionge 06 Jun '07

06 Jun '07

CONGRATULATIONS MUCHERU, THIS IS GREAT NEWS.... WELL DONE! THE SKY IS NOT EVEN THE LIMIT.... Njeri, -----Original message----- From: alice alice(a)apc.org Date: Wed, 6 Jun 2007 04:50:00 +0300 To: njeri.rionge(a)igniteconsulting.co.ke Subject: [kictanet] Google names first African Employee] > Congratulations Mucheru > > http://whiteafrican.com/?p=620 > > > Joseph Mucheru has been named the new site lead for Google Kenya. This > was whispered to be happening, but at today’s Google lunch at TEDGlobal > the position was made official by Francoise Brougher, Director of Google > Business Opportunities. > > This is great news for East Africa and Google. They’re getting one of > the true leaders in the ISP space, and someone who has a great deal of > experience navigating the many difficult situations that arise in the > African IT sector. > > Congratulations Joseph! > > (Note: This is Google’s first sub-Saharan Africa employee, not counting > a couple sales guys in SA) >

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is FOI a milestone for freedom of expression in Kenya?
by Rebecca Wanjiku 06 Jun '07

06 Jun '07

the MPs are in Mombasa discussing the FOI, i know we are following discussions keenly but here is an analysis by a kenyan journalist which i hope will help shed some light, please read and comment FOI: A MILESTONE FOR FREEDOM OF EXPRESSION By Vincent Lempaa Freedom of Information Policy, if finally becomes a law or a statutory instrument in Kenya will be a big millstone for not only the freedom of expression but freedom to know as well. From the outset it is worth noting that our former colonial masters- United Kingdom published its White Paper on freedom of information in 1997 which eventually became a law in the year 2000 but was fully implemented 2005. The government for the first time in the history of the United Kingdom intended that the citizens should have a legal right to information and the records in which that information is contained. In addition an independent Information commissioner was appointed who is answerable not to parliament but the court. Just like the Kenyan Legal System has been substantively influenced by the English Legal System so is the Kenyas policy document is influenced by the freedom of information act 2000. If the document, as prepared by the Information Ministry becomes a law or a statute it will resemble the English 2000 Act not only in form but also in content. It is expected that if it becomes a statutory instrument, it will supersede the existing documents related to the information in Kenya such as the National Archives and Documentation Act, the Records Disposal Act and the Official Secrets Act. In its preamble, the Access to Information Policy ( 3.1.1) the document is couched in very liberal terms like facilitating citizens with greater communication with public bodies and increasing participation in the Democratic Processes and Nation Building. Indeed citizens will have wider access to information subject to harm test. The document, if it sees the light of parliamentary calendar will definitely open up the processes of government but the harm test as it is applied in the so called liberal democracies is likely to be more strict in Kenya for obvious reasons that ours is a nascent democracy unlike the West. By way of an introduction s. (3.2) states that: There will be some consultation that will not be accessible not to fetter the operation of those institutions. How narrow or wide such clauses will be interpreted can have an equally high degree of fettering the freedom to know. It is to be assumed the meaning to be accorded to such words as public bodies will be as wide as the one used in determining what they really are in the judicial review given the document chooses judicial review remedies as the best to vindicate any infringement on freedom to know. S. (3.6) provides for the procedure of handling application but it is cast in such general terms: application for access to documents shall be handled promptly. How prompt is prompt will be the underlying question is this situation. This is to be compared and contrasted with the specific terms that characterize the English Freedom of Information Act 2000. Request must be in writing and the authority is under duty to respond to the request within 20 working days of its receipt. The provision of s. (3.10.1) is specifically express that private bodies that carry out statutory functions and those that are contracted out by the public organizations are within the bill. This distinction is crucial given the type of problems of interpretation it has continuously created in courts for the purposes of the judicial review remedies. By s (3.11) - The reuse of Public Information. The minister, guessing it is the information minister is given discretion to - issuing regulations regarding access to public information for the purposes of commercial exploitation. How reasonable such discretion will be exercised by the minister is everybodys guess. It would also be better if the bill stated expressly under which circumstances do records become value- less and non current as per the provisions of s (3.13.1) for the purposes of destruction. The provisions on National Security, Defense and International Relations are cut and paste of the Freedom of Information Act 2000 and critics and scholars have been at pains with its wide and ambiguity. They have argued that such terms are prone to abuse by the executive arm of the government. In our situation, the Bill does not try to define them and it can only be concluded that parliament will be creating an assailable discretion on the executive to decide on the remits of such words. By s (3.14.4) the freedom of Information Act shall uphold the right of personal privacy. This is to be welcomed as it will protect the vulnerable members of the societies from the excesses of the media in the behest of freedom of expression. On Review and Appeal the Bill is also a copy cut of the FIA 2000. The proposed office of information commissioner is and his powers and functions are akin to those of the same institution as it abstains in England. The Bill, by s. (4.3.4) attempt to oust any parliamentary or executive power upon the commissioner. The provision, good as it sound, raises some constructional questions. The provision that the commissioner will only be answerable to Court hence judiciary ousts the power of the people expressed through elected representative. The judiciary will have control of such an important office and it is not an elected body and in theory they are not answerable to the electorate. On the rights of appeal as per the provision of s (5.4). This section is somewhat ambiguous. It bars individual from appealing against the decision of the information commissioner in Court. One is left wondering whether representative groups are also barred. Besides, Freedom of information is about interests that are normally christened as fundamental rights. Much as judicial review procedures are thorough they have their inherent limitations like the standing locus standi Public and private law exclusivity rules and other strictures as time limitation. As a fundamental right- freedom of expression, the bill would have not limited review to judicial review. Individuals rights and those of representative groups will be better protected if they had several ways of accessing justice like constitutional reference that are not fettered by excessive procedures. By and large Freedom of information Bill as drafted is an ambitious project and when it eventually becomes an act it will a big steps towards much cherished freedom of expression. This will be more so for the so called forth estates that works for gain from processing and disseminating information. There will be more accurate reporting as journalist and editors will base their reports on facts and not speculations. This will in turn reduce the high number of defamation suits that have crippled some of the media houses. However the experience in the United Kingdom shows that this is not likely to happen quickly as the media would like it to be. In the United Kingdom a Bill that was published in 1997 was implemented eights years later 2005. This delay attracted more criticisms that overshadowed the discussion of the content of the Bill Ends Rebecca Wanjiku, journalist, p.o box 33515, Nairobi.00600 Kenya. Tel. 254 720 318 925 blog:http://beckyit.blogspot.com/ --------------------------------- We won't tell. Get more on shows you hate to love (and love to hate): Yahoo! TV's Guilty Pleasures list.

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online discussion on The Kenya Communications ( Amendment ) Bill 2007 - introduction
by Muriuki Mureithi 06 Jun '07

06 Jun '07

Colleagues As you are aware the Kenya Government has at last published the Kenya Communications (Amendment) Bill 2007 . The purpose of the Bill published on May 17th , 2007 ( world telecommunications day) is to amend Kenya Communications Act 1998 . The structure of the bill as a follows; Clause 1 - 14 - change of name, new definitions, ICT policy development and promulgation , governance of the sector and constitution of the regulator , fines for contravention of the act Clause 15 - introduces part IVA on broadcasting services - regulation , licensing and revocation , and promotion of local content Clause 16 -29 - enhances penalties of the contravention of the Act, reduce the duration of notice of a grant of licence, refusal to grant or modification, exclude certain classes in the notice of grant of licence Clause 30 . introduces part VIA on information technology - legal recognition of electronic communications, electronic records and electronic transactions , offences . introduces part VIB universal service fund - establishment and operationalisation . introduces part VIC Fair competition and equal treatment - definition of dominant operator , investigation of unfair treatment clause 31 introduces miscellaneous provisions on National communications secretariat, establishment of the advisory councils ( content and universal service), action in the occurrence of an emergency, use of information by an operator, service to CCK etc clause 33 introduces two schedules . fourth schedule - operation of advisory councils - content and advisory . fifth schedule - transitional provisions and proposes to repeal other acts - Kenya broadcasting act, penal code, evidence act , part VII electronic records To understand the implication of the Bill , you need to study the Kenya Communications Act 1998 which is being repealed and the Bill itself . Once enacted the governing law will be information and Communications Act and will have far reaching implications in the sector for the next decade or so. it is therefore important for stakeholders to study the document. KICTAnet facilitated a review of the Kenya Communications Act 1998 last year using the a draft bill prepared by the Ministry of Infocom and developed a report supported by the stakeholders. This document made a number of proposals which were presented to the Permanent Secretary Dr Bitange Ndemo. Some of the proposals have been included in the Bill As this Bill awaits discussion in parliament , KICTANet wants to facilitate an informed debate on the Bill , these comments are intended to support the evolution of a law to make Kenya effective user of ICT for development .I invite you to read the Kenya Communications Act 1998, the Kenya Communications ( Amendment) Bill 2007 and the proposals by KICTANET as a resource for your comments . The Act and the Bill are available at the government printer and meanwhile we are making arrangements to scan have all documents hosted in a website for ease of access by end of Wednesday . We start the online discussion on Thursday 7th and will start with Clause 1-14 and follow the sequence . In the meantime , we welcome any comments on the structure and the process of online discussion between today and Wednesday 6th Regards Muriuki Mureithi

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resources for Kenya Communications ( Amendment ) Bill 2007 - online discussion
by Muriuki Mureithi 06 Jun '07

06 Jun '07

Colleagues The relevant resources for the online discussion are at http://www.kictanet.or.ke/documents/ [Muriuki Mureithi]

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Faster registration of firms boosts Kenya
by Alex Gakuru 06 Jun '07

06 Jun '07

[Business Daily] 06-June-2007: Author Abyssinia Lati Most welcome! <snip> At the State Law Office, RRI initiative is aimed at improving the work environment and raise the level of customer satisfaction by 80 per cent in 100 days. Analysts reckon that improvement of efficiency in key areas of the public service such as the registration of companies and in courts, is critical to the realisation of the Government-driven Vision 2030 that aims at tranforming the country into a middle income economy. Mr Muchemi said installation of an e-filing system that will enable the public to access files on-line was underway at the company registry. The office will host a website that will provide downloadable forms, and also provide an on-line name search facility, he said. <snip> <http://www.bdafrica.com/index.php?option=com_content&task=view&id=1336&Item…> To eliminate ghost companies, we wish the State Law Office even comes up with something even better than UK's http://www.companieshouse.gov.uk/ and then this year they will truly deserve No.1 position Public Service Award from the President. Have a laughly online day ;-) Gakuru --------------------------------- Fussy? Opinionated? Impossible to please? Perfect. Join Yahoo!'s user panel and lay it on us.

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Firms Race to Update E. Africa Telecom - New York Times http://www.nytimes.com/aponline/technology/AP-Eastern-Afric..
by alice 05 Jun '07

05 Jun '07

Firms Race to Update E. Africa Telecom - New York Times http://www.nytimes.com/aponline/technology/AP-Eastern-Afric... 1 of 3 6/5/07 1:31 PM June 3, 2007 Firms Race to Update E. Africa Telecom By THE ASSOCIATED PRESS Filed at 5:27 p.m. ET NAIROBI, Kenya (AP) -- Plans to lay an undersea fiber-optic cable off eastern Africa could be the beginning of the end of crackling long-distance calls, slow dial-up Internet connections and universities without e-mail. Four projects are in the works to link 22 eastern, central and southern African countries to the world's network of submarine cables and 21st century communications. They would enable cheaper international calls with no static and fast Internet access. The first cable could be finished as early as March. At the moment, the Indian Ocean's eastern African seabed is the only one in the world without a submarine fiber-optic cable, forcing the region to rely heavily on limited and expensive satellite links. As a result, countries along the coast and in its hinterland have some of the highest communications costs in the world. Even though fiber-optic links would drive down communication costs for businesses and consumers, it also could be a big opportunity for entrepreneurs. ''We think in general that the high price of satellite communication is creating a high price, artificially low demand market and because of that we think there is pent-up demand,'' Brian Herlihy, vice president of New York City-based Herakles Telecom LLC, which is leading one of the projects. A 2005 study by a U.N. task force found that 90 percent of calls between African countries are routed by satellite through Europe or North America at a cost of $400 million a year. Direct calls would be cheaper, though the study did not say by how much. The cost of laying the fiber-optic cable -- stretching up to 8,000 miles along selected points in the Indian Ocean -- is estimated to range from $100 million to $200 million. Individual countries will spend even more laying fiber-optic cables inland and connecting their networks to the submarine cable. State-owned and private African telecommunications companies, the World Bank and other international financial institutions, governments and foreign private investors are funding the projects. The oldest, the four-year-old Eastern Africa Submarine Cable Systems, or EASSy, was conceived by a group of East African businessmen in November 2002. The cable can ''contribute to the expanding intra-Africa trade by providing better communication in the region,'' Abiodun Jagun, a researcher in information communication technologies at the University of Manchester, said in a February paper. Competition among companies rolling out the new cables could drive prices down even further and deliver results faster. Firms Race to Update E. Africa Telecom - New York Times http://www.nytimes.com/aponline/technology/AP-Eastern-Afric... 2 of 3 6/5/07 1:31 PM One project would not necessarily cancel another out -- India, for example, has several submarine fiber-optic cables linking it with the international telecom infrastructure. Ethiopia, the most populous country of the region, thinks the rival cables offer it choice and the opportunity to negotiate favorable prices. ''The more alternatives, the better,'' said Ethiopian Prime Minister Meles Zenawi, who leads the Horn of Africa nation of 77 million. The landlocked country will be linked to the undersea cable through either neighboring Djibouti or Kenya. Kenya, one of the most dynamic economies in the group, wants to drive down telecommunications costs to tap into the multibillion dollar outsourcing industry and make Kenya an information technology hub, said Bitange Ndemo, the country's information and communications permanent secretary. Kenya's nascent call center business has grown from employing 200 people last year to 3,000 this year, despite relying on expensive satellite-based communications. To get more companies to give their business to Kenyan call centers, the country needs to increase its bandwidth up to 500 megabits per second by year's end and subsidize the cost until a submarine fiber-optic cable is working, Ndemo said. For Kenya, the fiber couldn't come fast enough. The Eastern Africa Submarine Cable Systems project has been held up because of negotiations over its ownership and funding, and debate about whether it will be for-profit. Worried the project was taking too long, Kenya teamed up with the United Arab Emirates telecommunications company Etisalat, and set up the East African Marine Systems, or TEAMS, project in November. Kenya will finance 40 percent of the project, Etisalat 20 percent, and still to be identified private Kenyan investors the remaining 40 percent. Ndemo said that the government will soon invite bids for a company to lay the cable between Kenya's Indian Ocean port of Mombasa and Fujairah in the United Arab Emirates and have Kenyans connected to it by March 2008. Kenya also remains a participant in the Eastern Africa Submarine Cable Systems project. Meanwhile, a private company -- Kenya Data Networks -- is involved in a third initiative and is negotiating with a subsidiary of the Indian conglomerate, Reliance Group, to lay a cable between Mombasa and near the coast of Yemen. Kenya Data Networks Managing Director Kai Wulff said that his company would not invest in laying cable, only guarantee clients for it. The most recent project is led by U.S.-based Herakles Telecom. In April, the company commissioned a survey of the Indian Ocean and expects its cable to be in place and in use by March 2009. Herlihy, Herakles' vice president, declined to identify the private investors who make up the company. He said the company will not only be laying an undersea cable but also connect major urban areas of Kenya, Madagascar, Mozambique, South Africa and Tanzania. The undersea cable and inland networks, called SEACOM, will cost $300 million, Herlihy said. ''Laying our cable will lead to a low price, high-demand market and change the price paradigm in the region,'' Herlihy said. Firms Race to Update E. Africa Telecom - New York Times http://www.nytimes.com/aponline/technology/AP-Eastern-Afric... 3 of 3 6/5/07 1:31 PM Copyright 2007 The Associated Press Privacy Policy Search Corrections RSS First Look Help Contact Us Work for Us Site Map

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