May 2010 - KICTANet

Digital to Analog Conversion
by robert yawe 19 Jun '15

19 Jun '15

Hi, When the migration from analog to digital was initially raised fear was put into the public on how there would be no option but to throw away our analog TV sets and replace them with Digital. Now that digital transmission is finally here we need to look at how to make the migration as painless as possible while at the same time we do not disenfranchise any citizens. It has been mentioned that there are over 1 million TV sets in Kenya today, that means 1 million digital to analog converters will be required over the next 2-3 years. I believe this is a great opportunity for us to go into the electronic assembly business, I would like to propose that we 1st increase duty on converters from the current 35% to 250% so as to discourage the importation of the converters. Then exempt from duty and vat all assembly stations, test equipment and components for anyone who sets up a converter assembly plant, with a 3 year tax holiday. If you setup the plant more than 200 kilometers from Nairobi or Mombasa you receive an addition 2 years tax holiday. I believe this will sort out the issue of substandard converters and will also provide an opportunity for us to develop our electronic devices assembly skills. If you make a net profit of 1,000/- there is a clean 875,000,000/- to be made, close to what the government is spending on purchase of the Malili farm. This is assuming a standard device, there is still a market for those who want high end devices with recording, tuners, USB ports, etc which would mean that the returns could be much higher than projected above. So will we move away from juts being importers and retailers or do we have what it takes to do some value add? Regards Robert Yawe KAY System Technologies Ltd Phoenix House, 6th Floor P O Box 55806 Nairobi, 00200 Kenya Tel: +254722511225, +254202010696

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Re: [kictanet] KCSE Performance
by Jotham Kilimo Mwale 03 Mar '11

03 Mar '11

Hi Akich, I found the list you are asking for from The Standard online home page. I have attached the document. Regards, Jotham --- On Thu, 3/4/10, Akich Kwach <kwach(a)archway-productions.com> wrote: From: Akich Kwach <kwach(a)archway-productions.com> Subject: Re: [kictanet] KCSE Performance To: jokilimo(a)yahoo.com Cc: "alewela" <alewela(a)ict.go.ke>, "ke users" <ke-internetusers(a)bdix.net>, "KICTAnet ICT Policy Discussions" <kictanet(a)lists.kictanet.or.ke> Date: Thursday, March 4, 2010, 1:01 AM _filtered #yiv689680575 { font-family:Wingdings;} _filtered #yiv689680575 { font-family:Cambria Math;} _filtered #yiv689680575 { font-family:Calibri;} _filtered #yiv689680575 {margin:70.85pt 70.85pt 70.85pt 70.85pt;} #yiv689680575 P.MsoNormal { MARGIN:0in 0in 0pt;FONT-FAMILY:"serif";FONT-SIZE:12pt;} #yiv689680575 LI.MsoNormal { MARGIN:0in 0in 0pt;FONT-FAMILY:"serif";FONT-SIZE:12pt;} #yiv689680575 DIV.MsoNormal { MARGIN:0in 0in 0pt;FONT-FAMILY:"serif";FONT-SIZE:12pt;} #yiv689680575 A:link { COLOR:blue;TEXT-DECORATION:underline;} #yiv689680575 SPAN.MsoHyperlink { COLOR:blue;TEXT-DECORATION:underline;} #yiv689680575 A:visited { COLOR:purple;TEXT-DECORATION:underline;} #yiv689680575 SPAN.MsoHyperlinkFollowed { COLOR:purple;TEXT-DECORATION:underline;} #yiv689680575 SPAN.EmailStyle17 { FONT-FAMILY:"sans-serif";COLOR:#1f497d;} #yiv689680575 .MsoChpDefault { FONT-SIZE:10pt;} #yiv689680575 DIV.Section1 { } #yiv689680575 OL { MARGIN-BOTTOM:0in;} #yiv689680575 UL { MARGIN-BOTTOM:0in;} Many thanks Barnabas for sharing this valuable information. Would you be having the list of top 100 candidates national and provincial categories with names of schools in which the candidates sat for their KCSE exams? If you do, kindly share it. The way the list is published in the media only gives incomplete information. Would you imagine if they announced the names of the winners during the Olympic Games and then they only play the national anthem without mentioning the countries they represent, (in our case the Index numbers represent schools). In the case of Olympic games, one has to go through the catalogue and find out which country is represented by such a flag; similarly, in the case of KCSE relults, those few who knows index numbers for various schools. I am of the view citizens should never be denied information they deserve. All in all your Ministry (MoE) and the KNEC has made good progress by incorporating ICT tools while releasing results. This has greatly saved parents and candidates the costs of running to schools, (some of them miles away) for their results. May God bless this nation to keep moving in the right direction at competitive speed. Akich Kwach ----- Original Message ----- From: Barnabas K. Sang To: kwach(a)archway-productions.com Cc: alewela ; ke users ; KICTAnet ICT Policy Discussions Sent: Thursday, March 04, 2010 9:26 AM Subject: Re: [kictanet] KCSE Performance Thought would be of interest to you. Kind regards B. K. Sang _______________________________________________ kictanet mailing list kictanet(a)lists.kictanet.or.ke http://lists.kictanet.or.ke/mailman/listinfo/kictanet This message was sent to: kwach(a)archway-productions.com Unsubscribe or change your options at http://lists.kictanet.or.ke/mailman/options/kictanet/kwach%40archway-produc… -----Inline Attachment Follows----- _______________________________________________ kictanet mailing list kictanet(a)lists.kictanet.or.ke http://lists.kictanet.or.ke/mailman/listinfo/kictanet This message was sent to: jokilimo(a)yahoo.com Unsubscribe or change your options at http://lists.kictanet.or.ke/mailman/options/kictanet/jokilimo%40yahoo.com

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ICANN head warns against putting Internet addresses under UN control
by alice 12 Oct '10

12 Oct '10

http://www.theglobeandmail.com/news/technology/icann-head-warns-against-put… Alexander Dziadosz Cairo — Reuters Published on Tuesday, May. 25, 2010 8:00AM EDT The head of the U.S.-monitored organization in charge of assigning global internet addresses such as .com and .net has cautioned against proposals to put the group under UN or other international control. The Internet Corporation for Assigned Names and Numbers (ICANN), at the heart of global debate over who should run the Internet, is the closest thing the vast system of intertwined computer networks has to any central authority. Countries such as Iran and Brazil have argued ICANN, which was founded in 1998 under the aegis of the U.S. Department of Commerce and still reports partly to the U.S. government, should cede its authority to a global body such as the United Nations. “If you think of that rate, or pace, in technology, it’s just a lot more rapid than most traditional forms of policy development would be suited to,” Rod Beckstrom, the organisation’s chief executive, told Reuters on Monday. Multilateral state control could make ICANN less nimble, he said, and therefore less likely to quickly develop technologies like Arabic-language domain names that feed rapidly expanding Internet demand. “It’s hard to imagine any replacement for (the current system), and I feel I can say that somewhat objectively because I’ve worked for government as well,” he said, adding such a decision would be up to ICANN’s board of directors. Still, the U.S. government last September agreed to changes that meant ICANN would no longer report solely to the United States, part of a push to give global constituents more say. The agreement set up an international review team to monitor ICANN’s performance and it is due to issue initial recommendations at the end of the year. The deal also included guidelines aimed at making the group more transparent. In 2003 a group of nations suggested ICANN come under the authority of the International Telecommunication Union, a UN agency, but that move stumbled on the view that the private sector is better able to run the Internet’s addressing system. A contract that gives ICANN authority over much of the Internet’s basic plumbing, such as allocating Internet Protocol (IP) addresses, is up for review next year. Mr. Beckstrom was in Cairo after Egypt became one of the first countries to win approval to use Arabic script on its national domain name, the last part of the address after the dot. ICANN approved use of non-Latin scripts in October. Egypt said this month it had launched the first domain name using Arabic letters under the name .misr – the Arabic word for Egypt, which is spelt in Arabic script. Countries including China, Russia, Saudi Arabia and the United Arab Emirates have so far won ICANN approval to use their national language scripts on the top-level domain. ICANN is now on track to broaden the non-Latin script, top-level domain names that are available into generic names such as .org, Beckstrom said. “Of course you know .com and .net. Those are English language names that are shortened, basically. Where’s the equivalent of that in Arabic?” he said. He said ICANN might be able to introduce generic domain names in international scripts by the end of this year, but the approval process made dates hard to forecast.

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Lessons from Idlelo4
by ikua＠lpakenya.org 03 Jun '10

03 Jun '10

Dear Listers, I have always wondered why it is that it is mainly the rich and developed/developing nations that see the value of adopting open source in their governments. I was reminded of this in the just concluded Idlelo4 conference in Accra, where we were shown a study conducted by the Centre for Strategic International Studies (CSIS.org) The poor nations are still paying the price of proprietary software. Read more on my blog here: http://www.ict-innovation.fossfa.net/blog/ikua

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KENIC is wanting
by robert yawe 31 May '10

31 May '10

Hi, How safe is .ke if the servers have questionable security certificates, it seems we are taking this ctld issues very lightly. After attending ICANN I am now more informed about the importance of secure servers and the costs of lax dns issues. Regards Robert Yawe KAY System Technologies Ltd Phoenix House, 6th Floor P O Box 55806 Nairobi, 00200 Kenya Tel: +254722511225, +254202010696

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Fwd: FW: Survey of National Cyber Security and CERT Capacity in Africa
by waudo siganga 31 May '10

31 May '10

Dear Colleagues - The International Cyber Center (ICC) at George Mason University and our survey co-sponsors Africa Union and WITSA are conducting a survey to determine current state of national cyber security and CERT capacity in Africa. This survey is intended to promote understanding of the needs and requirements of the region and provide a basis to engage key public and private stakeholders whose participation, support and action are critical to progress in this area. ICC will follow up the survey with a series of workshops in Africa during 2010 and 2011. Anonymized results of the survey will be published on the ICC website. We seek input from all stakeholders - government, industry, academia and civil society - in the Africa region. Given their unique roles, participation by government, critical infrastructures and industries (including banks, utilities, and manufacturing) are of particular interest. The survey is at http://internationalcybercenter.org/Home/africasurvey . The password is CERT-AFRICA . We request that you complete the survey by the end of May 2010. Finally, recognizing that responses from a broad cross section of stakeholders will enhance the survey results, we encourage you to forward this invitation to others with interest in the cyber security in Africa so that they too may participate in the survey. Thank you for your participation. Sincerely, Arun Arun Sood, PhD, Prof Computer Science and co-Director International Cyber Center Andy Purdy, co-Director International Cyber Center Joseph Richardson, Senior Fellow International Cyber Center

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SMS becomes e-mail and chat – Safaricom implements new service and others will follow shortly
by alice 31 May '10

31 May '10

(From Balancing Act) SMS becomes e-mail and chat – Safaricom implements new service and others will follow shortly In issue 452 in May 2009 we asked what the difference was between e-mail and SMS? Answer: A different interface and one has a far more limited length of message. The moment has now arrived at which the distinction between the two will now become completely blurred. Russell Southwood talks to Jeremy George, the COO of ForgetMeNot Africa about the implementation of a new service called Kipokezi which has just launched with Safaricom. ForgetMeNot Africa’s implementation means that all standard phones that can SMS can be turned into phones that can use e-mail and chat. The company sets up a gateway for the operator that translates SMS into e-mail and vice-versa. So for example, if your message is longer than a single SMS it will go out as two linked SMS messages and it will also be possible to send it to e-mail addresses. Users need to register but there is a simple “auto-register” procedure. The user then simply simply adds a contact and gets a number to send the e-mail to. The user can also set up a chat with another user by just adding “chat”. Everyone registered gets their own e-mail address which is “Yournumber(a)safaricom.com So now 15 million mobile phone subscribers in Kenya – over a third of the country’s population - will now be able to access email and online chat regardless of the make and model of their mobile phone. The new Kipokezi service is being rolled out by Kenya’s largest telecoms operator, Safaricom, suppliers of mobile phone connectivity for almost 9 in 10 Kenyan mobile phone subscribers. Safaricom CEO, Michael Joseph pointed out that it has been “the price of Internet-ready phones that has kept many Kenyans off the web,a trend we are determined to Change”. According to the company, 3.5 million out of the 5 million Kenyans who access the Internet do so through their 3G network. He believes that it will be widely used by the tech-savvy youth of Kenya, particularly for chat services like MSN Messenger, Yahoo!, Windows Live and Gtalk so that users can send and receive messages and invitations globally. The only downside is that if your message is two SMSs long, you pay for two SMSs to send it but you pay nothing to receive it. However, Safaricom’s tariff for chat is a third of the cost for e-mail as most chat messages are shorter. Another network ForgetMeNot Africa is working with is looking at a chat tariff that will be one sixth of the e-mail rate. So is the service being picked up anywhere else on the continent? Econet Lesotho implemented it at the end of last year and has already got a “high single figures percentage figure registered” out of their total subscriber base. ForgetMeNot Africa is also working with another half dozen operators on implementation: one in Southern Africa (which is just a few weeks away from launch); a couple in West Africa; and a couple in East Africa (which are at the trial stage). In several previous stories in the last year, we have talked about how the Internet in Africa will gain “critical mass” over the next two years. The blurring of the distinction between SMS and e-mail is another clear step in that direction. Users just want to communicate and they want to be able to do that as easily as possible.

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Mobile sim registration
by Okech 28 May '10

28 May '10

Hi all, Several countries e.g Tanzania have or are in the process of ensuring that all sim cards in their jurisdiction are registered by the mobile operators who serve them. Of course, one reason taunted for doing so is to help track criminals. This indeed sounds a noble idea. However, it does result infringement of peoples privacy especially owing to the fact that the investigators may consult the mobile phone operators to get ones details without their consent. Why must we allow this then? Regards, Okech JMMy blog

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[Fwd: [reformsnow] If we vote YES for the proposed Constitution
by alice 28 May '10

28 May '10

Dear all For those following (all Kenyans of course...) the constitutional review process, please see below. best alice -------- Original Message -------- Subject: [reformsnow] If we vote YES for the proposed Const.... Date: Wed, 26 May 2010 03:53:54 -0700 (PDT) From: Wamuyu Gatheru <wamuyulearn(a)yahoo.co.uk> To: alice(a)apc.org CC: reformsnow(a)lists.reformsnow.or.ke Hi all, We are still struggling to get Constitutional reform behind us. Please find attached a brief question and answer write out done by Njoki Ndungu, a COE Commissioner, breaking down some issues: how muslims pay for Christian, Hindu etc marriages, what ratification of an international treaty means, how devolution will work... *Today's Fact*: If we vote YES for the proposed Constitution no proposed legislation can be delayed for longer than one year beyond the time specified for its enactment (see the 5th schedule on legislation). For example, new law on Citizenship (dual citizenship, women passing on citizenship to spouses after 7 years, law abiding residents obtaining citizenship after 7 years...) should be in place in one year. If after 2 years this legislation is not in place, Parliament will be ordered by the High Court to enact the legislation within a specified period of time. If Parliament fails to obey this order, _Parliament will be dissolved_. regards, Wamuyu P/S Invite your networks to this mailing list (reformsnow(a)lists.reformsnow.or.ke) Facts on political reforms will be posted regularly.

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FW: [DigAfrica] Kenya's Safaricom's year profit jumps 37 pct
by Edith Adera 27 May '10

27 May '10

FYI _________________ Edith Ofwona Adera Senior Program Specialist International Development Research Centre | Centre de recherches pour le développement international +254- 20- 2713160 ext 3406 | eadera(a)idrc.or.ke<mailto:+1-613-696-3406eadera@idrc.or.ke> | www.idrc.ca<http://www.idrc.ca/> | www.crdi.ca<http://www.crdi.ca/> ________________________________ From: DigAfrica(a)yahoogroups.com [DigAfrica(a)yahoogroups.com] On Behalf Of chifu_wa_malindi [chifu2222(a)gmail.com] Sent: 26 May 2010 09:54 To: DigAfrica(a)yahoogroups.com Subject: [DigAfrica] Kenya's Safaricom's year profit jumps 37 pct Kenya's Safaricom's year profit jumps 37 pct NAIROBI, May 26 (Reuters) - Kenya's Safaricom, the country's largest telecoms operator, said on Wednesday pretax profit rose by 37 percent to 20.97 billion shillings ($262.6 million) for its year ended March. The firm, which is also east Africa's largest by market value and part-held by Britain's Vodafone, said the market was at 50 percent penetration and the greatest growth opportunities lay in data services. (Reporting by Duncan Miriri and Helen Nyambura-Mwaura; Editing by Richard Lough) ($1=79.85 Kenyan Shilling) Keywords: SAFARICOM/ (Email: nairobi.newsroom(a)reuters.com<mailto:nairobi.newsroom%40reuters.com>; Tel: +254 20 222 4717) __._,_.___ Reply to sender<mailto:chifu2222@gmail.com?subject=Kenya's%20Safaricom's%20year%20profit%20jumps%2037%20pct> | Reply to group<mailto:DigAfrica@yahoogroups.com?subject=Kenya's%20Safaricom's%20year%20profit%20jumps%2037%20pct> | Reply via web post<http://groups.yahoo.com/group/DigAfrica/post;_ylc=X3oDMTJwdDQwY2J2BF9TAzk3M…> | Start a New Topic<http://groups.yahoo.com/group/DigAfrica/post;_ylc=X3oDMTJlY3NlczdzBF9TAzk3M…> Messages in this topic<http://groups.yahoo.com/group/DigAfrica/message/8194;_ylc=X3oDMTM0cjg4OXBuB…> (1) Recent Activity: * New Members<http://groups.yahoo.com/group/DigAfrica/members;_ylc=X3oDMTJmam43bW9uBF9TAz…> 3 Visit Your Group<http://groups.yahoo.com/group/DigAfrica;_ylc=X3oDMTJlZ2VwNnU1BF9TAzk3MzU5Nz…> Dig Africa site welcomes you to join us at http://www.yahoogroups.com/group/Digafrica on IT in Africa Feel free to join at our google group digital africa http://groups.google.com/group/digitalafrica Thanks. Chifu Moderator MARKETPLACE Stay on top of your group activity without leaving the page you're on - Get the Yahoo! Toolbar now.<http://us.ard.yahoo.com/SIG=15okd72ri/M=493064.13983314.14041046.13298430/D…> ________________________________ Get great advice about dogs and cats. Visit the Dog & Cat Answers Center.<http://us.ard.yahoo.com/SIG=15o34naf6/M=493064.13814537.14041040.10835568/D…> ________________________________ Hobbies & Activities Zone: Find others who share your passions! Explore new interests.<http://us.ard.yahoo.com/SIG=15og6ukk2/M=493064.14012770.13963757.13298430/D…> [http://l.yimg.com/a/i/us/yg/logo/us.gif]<http://groups.yahoo.com/;_ylc=X3oDMTJkanMwYnYxBF9TAzk3MzU5NzE0BGdycElkAzI5M…> Switch to: Text-Only<mailto:DigAfrica-traditional@yahoogroups.com?subject=Change%20Delivery%20Format:%20Traditional>, Daily Digest<mailto:DigAfrica-digest@yahoogroups.com?subject=Email%20Delivery:%20Digest> • Unsubscribe<mailto:DigAfrica-unsubscribe@yahoogroups.com?subject=Unsubscribe> • Terms of Use<http://docs.yahoo.com/info/terms/> . __,_._,___

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