February 2011 - 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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Posta; a sleeping giant
by Matunda Nyanchama 01 Mar '11

01 Mar '11

Robert, A few years ago I emceed the launch of PostaPay in the Diaspora; we were all excited and remarked how we would reclaim "our lunch" being eaten by others like Western Union, MoneyGram, etc. Years later we would learn of mismanagement and accusations of embezzlement from gains from this business line! We were astounded; and Western Union, MoneyGram and co continue to eat our lunch! Postal corporations world over are remaking themselves in the face of falling volumes of paper-based items - letters, ads, company reports, bills, statements, etc. Electronic Bill Payment and Presentment (EBPP) offers huge opportunities; this PCK is aware of; I am hoping they can take it up, especially with the growth of ICT infrastructure and smartening of mobile devices! Add mobile money, combine with payment platforms such as M-pesa and you are home clean, and relevant for the times. Agency Banking is another not fully exploited area that PCK could capitalize on; I cannot imagine another corporation with a larger branch network than PCK. But as the Kiswahili saying goes "ukiona vyalea, vimeundwa", nothing comes without clear planning, strategy, leadership, execution. Jumapili njema. ---------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------- Matunda Nyanchama, PhD, CISSP; mnyanchama(a)aganoconsulting.com Agano Consulting Inc.; www.aganoconsulting.com; Twitter: nmatunda; Skype: okiambe ---------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------- Be prepared to face ICT Security failures & know how to respond when they happen! Call: +1-888-587-1150 or info(a)aganoconsulting.com ---------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------- "A bus station is where a bus stops. A train station is where a train stops. On my desk I have a workstation…" - Anonymous ----------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------- This e-mail, including attachments, may be privileged and may contain confidential or proprietary information intended only for the addressee(s). Any other distribution, copying, use, or disclosure is unauthorized and strictly prohibited. If you have received this message in error, please notify the sender immediately by reply e-mail and permanently delete the message, including any attachments, without making a copy. Thank you. ________________________________ From: "kictanet-request(a)lists.kictanet.or.ke" <kictanet-request(a)lists.kictanet.or.ke> To: mnyanchama(a)aganoconsulting.com Sent: Sun, February 27, 2011 4:00:00 AM Subject: kictanet Digest, Vol 45, Issue 165 Send kictanet mailing list submissions to kictanet(a)lists.kictanet.or.ke To subscribe or unsubscribe via the World Wide Web, visit http://lists.kictanet.or.ke/mailman/listinfo/kictanet or, via email, send a message with subject or body 'help' to kictanet-request(a)lists.kictanet.or.ke You can reach the person managing the list at kictanet-owner(a)lists.kictanet.or.ke When replying, please edit your Subject line so it is more specific than "Re: Contents of kictanet digest..." Today's Topics: 1. Posta; a sleeping giant (robert yawe) ---------------------------------------------------------------------- Message: 1 Date: Sat, 26 Feb 2011 11:35:44 +0000 (GMT) From: robert yawe <robertyawe(a)yahoo.co.uk> To: Kictanet Mail list <kictanet(a)lists.kictanet.or.ke> Cc: KICTAnet ICT Policy Discussions <kictanet(a)lists.kictanet.or.ke> Subject: [kictanet] Posta; a sleeping giant Message-ID: <622799.66783.qm(a)web27805.mail.ukl.yahoo.com> Content-Type: text/plain; charset="utf-8" Hi, Finally seems that I am not the only one who believes that Postal Corporation has many more years in it, the IBM Corps are coming in to provide free consultancy services. As we were busy relegating Postal to the annals of technology other have made the move to take the plunge to revive the sleeping giant. http://www.standardmedia.co.ke/InsidePage.php?id=2000029740&cid=456& There is more to posta than just snail mail. 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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DAY 10: The Name "The Independent Communications Commission of Kenya"
by Catherine Adeya 28 Feb '11

28 Feb '11

Dear Listers, Today is the final day on the discussions on the Independent Communications Commission of Kenya Bill 2010. I think it would be worthwhile to revisit a concern Mr Wangusi raised on the first day.He was concerned that in the new Constitution -- specifically in Chapter 15, Clause 248 (1&2) which establishes Commissions in this country -- the ICCK name does not appear to be among those listed. So is this title in contravention of the Constitution and should we suggest another name like “Communications Regulatory Authority of Kenya” or something like that. We would appreciate your thoughts. Best Wishes, Nyaki

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Is there a govt. media policy?
by Wamuyu Gatheru 28 Feb '11

28 Feb '11

CNN is this week showing a documentary on the treatment of Kenya's mentally ill. Its being shown on the World's Untold Stories series and clips also being shown on various other CNN programmes. CNN journalist David Mackenzie and his crew are shown on 'Best of Backstory' locked in Ward 7 of Mathari Hospital by the hospital's administrator. They had govt permission to film but apparently things changed when they filmed a dead body lying next to one of the patients. David and his team call all sorts of high offices and in the end a call from the Prime Minister sets them free. Does govt have a media policy that public workers are educated on? This David saga is a really poor show for Kenya on top of the unfortunate public health story. Wamuyu -- Soko ID Co. Ltd Tel: +254 (0)721 468699 http://www.soko-id.co.ke/ Soko ID is an innovative company that supports public organisations and promotes the Kenyan heritage on the internet.

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Uganda: Telecoms Regulator Puts Breaks On Tariff Cuts
by alice＠apc.org 27 Feb '11

27 Feb '11

Uganda: Telecoms Regulator Puts Breaks On Tariff Cuts Mobile phone users may no longer enjoy dramatic call tariff cuts as the sector regulator, Uganda Communications Commission (UCC), issues new guidelines. The new Retail Tariff Guidelines for Voice Telephony Services that could become effective March 15 shall empower UCC to establish minimum rates below which players will not be allowed to offer services, even under promotions. The guidelines are intended to curb anti-competitive practices, encourage new investments (including new players), enhance tariff transparency and protect consumers. "A service provider shall not price a service in a manner that is intended to deliberately lessen the level of competition in the market," says the draft guidelines, signed by Godfrey Mutabazi, UCC's Executive Director. Under the guidelines, the regulator will also require players to notify it five days before offering any new call tariffs and to limit promotions to not more than ninety (90) days, and only once every 12 months. UCC circulated the draft guidelines last week to key industry players, asking them to respond before Feb. 18. A stakeholder meeting in the last week of February will discuss them. The guidelines come in the wake of aggressive promotional tariff cuts in the mobile phone market that have led to dramatic increase in telephone usage and subscription on one hand, and deterioration in service quality, due to network congestion and reduced capital investments. The guidelines may be bad news for mobile phone users but UCC's Communications and Consumer Affairs Manager, Fred Otunnu, says they were "triggered by concern about the consumers of the telecom services and the future of the industry". "The reduction in call rates has not been in tandem with the quality of service; this has been compromised," Otunnu said. Otunnu added that while reduced rates were good for consumers in the short-term, as they made services more affordable, current pricing trends in the retail voice market distort the spending habits of low income users who (unknowingly) end up spending disproportionate amounts of their income on communication, to the detriment of other essential needs. He added that UCC, as the regulator, had to ensure that service providers remained profitable, for investments to continue. The new guidelines target aggressive companies like Warid Telecom that have shaken up the sector with unprecedented tariff cuts and highly popular promotions like Pakalast, Kawa, Pepeya and Berako. Under Pakalast, subscribers load airtime worth Shs 1,500 and call for 24 hours Warid-to-Warid. When it was introduced, the product increased Warid network users from 700,000 to 1,000,000 per day and its subscribers grew to two million. It also dramatically raised the company's market presence, putting it at par with older players like MTN, UTL and Zain (now Airtel). To avoid losing customers, competitors adopted similar tactics, dropping the Ugandan market to its lowest call rates since the entry of mobile telephony. Warid has led tariff cuts in the market since September when it cut rates to Shs 5 per second, and then to Shs 3, forcing MTN, UTL and Airtel to adopt similar cuts. In its latest promotion - Kawa - the company has further dropped Warid-to-Warid call rates to Ushs 1 for 4 seconds, enabling subscribers to talk for 30 minutes at Shs 500. By last week, reactions of Telecom companies ranged from cautious to positive. Warid's Chief Executive Officer, Madur Taneja, said "all the issues raised in the guidelines are pertinent and will be most important in shaping the future of the telecom industry." MTN Chief Executive Officer, Themba Khumalo, told the media at the height of the price war last year that "price reduction will benefit the end-users, but it must be done without losing value and when the operators can afford it." "Regulators have to manage the situation before it goes out of control," Khumalo said. Khumalo told Reuters at the time that with five major companies, Uganda's telecom industry was small and overcrowded. However, Taneja disagrees. Taneja told The Independent that with a 32 percent penetration, the telecom industry needs more players. UCC's Otunnu is of Taneja's view, but he says price competition must be guided. Low access to telephones means the players are suffering low business volumes yet some of them have been investing massively. In 2009 for example, MTN borrowed US$100 million from local commercial banks, to be repaid based on the company's revenues from service sales, key of which is sale of airtime. Industry sources say that with the Shs 3 per second, 180 per minute tariff, the telecoms earnings boom has ended. With interconnection fees at Shs 131 (72 percent of the total call cost) and VAT accounting for 30%, companies say they have been making losses, especially on cross-network calls. MTN financial data shows its average revenue per user (ARPU) declines to US$6 for the quarter ended Dec 2010, compared with an average of US$8 and US$10 for 2008 and 2007 respectively. As revenue from voice - the industry's traditional cash cow - decelerated, competition has shifted to the data market with investments in 3G broadband networks and data. UCC estimates the industry's annual revenues will grow by 25 to 30 percent over the next five years, propelled by expansion of data services. UCC is not the first to come up with similar guidelines. Kenya gazetted the Fair Competition and Equality of Treatment Regulations 2009 and the Kenya Communications Tariffs Regulations 2009 to curb abuse of competition by market leaders. UCC has also been enforcing the Fair Competition Regulation as well as the Tariff and Accounting Regulation 2005, which are currently undergoing revision. source The Independent

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Posta; a sleeping giant
by robert yawe 26 Feb '11

26 Feb '11

Hi, Finally seems that I am not the only one who believes that Postal Corporation has many more years in it, the IBM Corps are coming in to provide free consultancy services. As we were busy relegating Postal to the annals of technology other have made the move to take the plunge to revive the sleeping giant. http://www.standardmedia.co.ke/InsidePage.php?id=2000029740&cid=456& There is more to posta than just snail mail. 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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VSAT need information
by warigia bowman 25 Feb '11

25 Feb '11

Dear technical people, esp michuki, mctim, and Jean given that Egypt, and now Libya have cut off Internet access, would it be possible to invest in VSATs in order to get some limited internet access via sattelite? Obviously, this will not help egyptian sites, but may allow access to sites based in the US? Please advise. Rigia -- Dr. Warigia Bowman Visiting Assistant Professor American University in Cairo Global Affairs and Public Policy (office)(202)2615-4346 (cell) (201)05590948 warigia(a)aucegypt.edu

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Ongoing IGF Consultations in Geneva
by Joe Kiragu 25 Feb '11

25 Feb '11

Dear Listers, In addition to McTim's Comments on the extension on IGF mandate, I would like to inform you that Kenya is hosting the 6th Internet Governance Forum (IGF) in Nairobi latter this year. The Permanent Secretary Ministry of Information and Communication, Dr. Bitange Ndemo constituted a National Organising Committee chaired by Ms. Alice Munyua last year. Members of this committee are drawn from the Ministry of Information and Communication, the Communication Commission of Kenya (Secretariat), Kenya Network Information Centre, Telecommunication Service Providers of Kenya, Kenya ICT Board, among others. Members of the National Organising committee led by the Chair to the National Organising Committee are currently attending an IGF consultations meeting in Geneva, Switzerland. The meeting is hosted by the United Nations IGF secretariat. Important to note is that the Chair of the Kenya IGF organizing committee , Ms. Alice Munyua has been appointed by the UN Secretary General to chair the ongoing IGF consultations in Geneva, Switzerland. We congratulate her for her appointment. More information available at the IGF website http://www.intgovforum.org Warm Regards, ...................... Joe Kiragu Ag. Chief Executive Officer Kenya Network Information Centre (KENIC) "Where the internet begins in Kenya" kiragu(a)kenic.or.ke > All, > > Our own Alice M is chairing todays meetings > > http://nubes.lscube.org/live?lid=27 > > -- > Cheers, > > McTim > "A name indicates what we seek. An address indicates where it is. A > route indicates how we get there." Jon Postel > > > > > On Fri, Dec 31, 2010 at 4:01 PM, waudo siganga <emailsignet(a)mailcan.com> > wrote: >> Dear Colleagues - for those following the IGF, information is that the >> UN >> General Assembly has renewed the mandate for another 5 years starting >> tomorrow. The 2011 activities will kick off with open consultations in >> Geneva Feb 23-24. You will also remember that Kenya has proposed to host >> the >> 6th IGF meeting at the end of September. >> >> Kind Regards, >> Waudo >> _______________________________________________ >> kictanet mailing list >> kictanet(a)lists.kictanet.or.ke >> http://lists.kictanet.or.ke/mailman/listinfo/kictanet >> >> This message was sent to: dogwallah(a)gmail.com >> Unsubscribe or change your options at >> http://lists.kictanet.or.ke/mailman/options/kictanet/dogwallah%40gmail.com >> >> > > _______________________________________________ > kictanet mailing list > kictanet(a)lists.kictanet.or.ke > http://lists.kictanet.or.ke/mailman/listinfo/kictanet > > This message was sent to: kiragu(a)kenic.or.ke > Unsubscribe or change your options at > http://lists.kictanet.or.ke/mailman/options/kictanet/kiragu%40kenic.or.ke > > -- > This message has been scanned for viruses and > dangerous content by KeNIC MailScanner, and is > believed to be clean. > > Kenya Network Information Center (KENIC) > > -- This message has been scanned for viruses and dangerous content by KeNIC MailScanner, and is believed to be clean. Kenya Network Information Center (KENIC)

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Day 7: SECTION 14: STAFF TO THE COMMISSION
by Catherine Adeya 24 Feb '11

24 Feb '11

Dear Kictanet List Members, Muriuki, Walu, Matunda, GG, Barrack, Vitalis, Kerubo.....thank you for your contributions these last two days. I believe others are gearing up for this last week of discussions. Day 5 and 6 have had very similar summaries and as such I do not want to be repetitive. Therefore, I will keep this short. Today we begin the discussion on: SECTION 14: STAFF TO THE COMMISSION. 14(1)(a) The Commission shall appoint a Director-General. 14 (2) Shall appoint staff by ensuring equal opportunity employment practices and represents cross-section of population in Kenya Question: Your thoughts on this? Would you like to see more clarity on gender issues, people with disabilities etc. please clarify and elaborate. I look forward to reading your contributions. Best, Nyaki

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