April 2012 - KICTANet

Fwd:Defamatory Blog Publication by Moses Kuria & Demand For Apology
by Grace Mutung'u (Bomu) 20 Apr '17

20 Apr '17

Dear all, the suit between Muite & Others versus Moses Kuria, which I understand is proceeding to court, should be a very interesting one to watch. Hopefully it shall give some insights on content control vs freedom of expression. See below. ---------- Forwarded message ---------- From: Ngunjiri <ngunjiri(a)kikuyusforchange.com> Date: Mon, 10 Oct 2011 16:05:07 +0300 Subject: {K4c} Defamatory Blog Publication by Moses Kuria & Demand For Apology To: KC4 <kikuyusforchange(a)googlegroups.com> This will most probably interest some of us, and help all of us be careful about what we write on our blogs. --- Ngunjiri [image: Issa & Co Advocates] Our Ref: M/058/001/L**** **** Tuesday, October 4, 2011**** **** Moses Kuria**** P. O. Box 1838-00200 ‘*Advance copy by email*’**** *NAIROBI***** **** Dear Sir,**** **** *RE: DEFAMATORY PUBLICATION ***** ------------------------------ We have been instructed by our clients, Wambugu Ngunjiri, Paul Muite, Ndung’u Wainaina, Maina Kiai and Hassan Omar.**** **** Our instructions are that you published in your widely read blog the following words of and concerning our clients.**** **** *‘I have said Ocampo has no case. All he has are fake witnesses coached by Hassan Omar, Wambugu Ngunjiri, Paul Muite, Ndungu Wainaina, Njonjo Mue and Maina Kiai.’***** **** Your insinuations are unfounded and baseless and our clients’ professional respective standings, characters and reputations have been severely tarnished by your publication.**** **** Our instructions are to demand a retraction, an apology and an admission of liability on your part for the publication of the defamatory words. This we hereby do. We shall address the issue of the damages payable to our clients upon receipt of your apology and admission.**** **** *NOTE* that if you do not publish an apology and retraction on your blog within the next *Seven (7) Days* of the receipt of this letter we shall proceed to the law for redress at your risk as to costs. **** **** Yours faithfully,**** *ISSA & COMPANY ADVOCATES***** **** **** *MANSUR M. ISSA***** **** cc. Clients**** **** *Issa & Co Advocates* <info(a)issadvocates.co.ke>**** ------------------------------ 5th Floor, City House, Wabera Street P.O. Box *24210 - 00100*, Nairobi, Kenya *ph*: *+ 254 20 340 150 · * *fx*: *+ 254 20 340 151* *em*: *info(a)issadvocates.co.ke · ***** ------------------------------ *CONFIDENTIALITY NOTICE:* This email and any attachments may contain information that is confidential, legally privileged and protected by law. Access by the intended recipient is authorized. Any liability (in negligence or otherwise) arising from any third party acting, or refraining from acting, or any information contained in this email is hereby excluded. If you are not the intended recipient, please notify the sender immediatelyand do not disclose the contents to any other person, use it for any purpose or store or copy the information in any medium.**** -- --- Fear makes men act even against their own interests- changing them from men of reason to blubbering fools. -- Grace L.N. Mutung'u (Bomu) Kenya Skype: gracebomu Twitter: GraceMutung'u (Bomu)

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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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GSMA: Calls will remain high between African countries
by Grace Githaiga 02 May '14

02 May '14

GSMA: Calls will remain high between African countries By Rebecca Wanjiku, Computerworld Kenya 29 Sep, 2011 The cost of telephone calls between African countries is likely to remain high and international call volumes will drop with the introduction of taxes, according to a report from the GSM Association. Senegal, Ghana, Congo Brazaville and Gabon have introduced taxes on incoming international calls, leading to higher costs for users and reduced revenue and call volumes for mobile operators. The taxes are also likely to reduce foreign direct investments because the costs of operating businesses such as call centers will probably go up. "The tax takes the form of an imposed fixed price that operators must charge for international inbound termination, of which the government takes a set amount," said the report, issued on the sidelines of the U.N. Internet Governance Forum in Nairobi. A private party measures international inbound minutes terminated by operators and bills them accordingly, it said. While the taxes are different in the four countries, the affect on the operators has been the same. In Senegal, call prices rose by 50 percent. In Ghana, prices rose by 58 percent while inbound traffic fell by 12 percent in the six months after the tax was introduced. In Congo Brazaville, the price of inbound calls rose by 111 percent while the volume fell by 36 percent. In Gabon, prices rose by 82 percent when the tax was introduced in August 2011. The report questioned the benefit of the tax on economies, given that half the money collected is shared with the third-party company that monitors the calls. "The main objective of this taxation is to raise revenues for governments, in this case by taxing users calling from abroad into the country, however, the government transfers approximately 50 percent of the revenue from the tax to the external call monitoring party," the report said. "This leakage should be taken into account when assessing the effectiveness and net benefit of this tax." The report projects that other African countries are likely to reciprocate by raising the cost of inbound calls. In Congo Brazaville, an operator reported that an operator in another African country raised call termination charges by 30 percent. while in Senegal, an operator reported that nine operators in other African countries raised rates by 23 to 80 percent, making the call costs very high. The GSMA further noted that many operators are not making profits because the cost of other services and maintaining rural telecoms infrastructure is high. In supporting its case to remove telecommunication taxes, the GSMA released another report that highlights the benefits that Kenya has gained since it zero-rated mobile handsets in June 2009. This year, the mobile communications industry will contribute US$300 million to the GDP and a further $100 million from intangible benefits to Kenyan consumers. The industry also employs 250,000 people in Kenya. "Since June 2009 when the tax was removed, handset purchases have increased by more than 200 percent and penetration rates have increased substantially from 50 percent to 70 percent, this successful policy confirms that consumption taxes can have a significant impact on consumer behavior in Kenya," said the report. ----------------------------------------------------------------------------------- If you have the strength to survive, you have the power to succeed. Life is all about choices we make depending upon the situation we are in. Go forth and rule the World!

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Commodity Exchange System - Revisited
by robert yawe 21 Feb '13

21 Feb '13

Hi Listers, About 9 month ago (human gestation period) I mentioned the need for developers to start looking into the development of a futures exchange system and as always is with the village madman I was dismissed. On Wednesday 8th June 2011 the Capital Markets Authority advertised for a futures exchange system, rfp is open to both international and local vendors. Regards Hi, The National Cereals and Produce Board together with the East African Grain Council are working towards the creation of a commodity exchange to trade futures. This process is at an advanced stage which begun with a process called warehouse receipting and currently Equity Bank offers credit against the receipts. What does this have to do with us in the IT field? When the Nairobi Stock Exchange tendered for the automated trading system (ATS) and more recently for the Broker Back-office System no local IT company made it past the 1st round. The fact that companies like Virtual City are winning international awards for systems development and others like PesaPal are receiving large direct foreign investments means that we do have the skills to develop world class solutions. This is an appeal to all ICT experts in the country to prepare ourselves to make sure that the grain exchange system is locally developed and we stop being spectators in our own country. I know it is said that a prophet is never recognised in his own town, it is time we made this phrase redundant. NCPB and others are already shopping overseas for a solution so be warned that time is not in our hands and if we are to have an impact we need to move quickly. The proposed system is supposed to provide a trading platform, depository system, GIS for land information, settlement system, warehouse management, weather monitoring and seed planting information system (acreage, seed type, fertiliser, etc). Lets get off our high horses and put a together a world class solution for a local problem. No tears after the horse has bolted. Useful links http://dn.nationmedia.com/DN/DN/2010/09/03/ArticleHtmls/03_09_2010_030_014.… http://allafrica.com/stories/200904271171.html http://www.ratin.net/mainfeature.asp?id=40 http://www.monitor.co.ug/Business/Smart%20Money/-/688614/899436/-/bypmdxz/-… http://www.unctad.info/upload/SUC/LusakaWorkshop/WarehouseServicesKenya.pdf Robert Yawe KAY System Technologies Ltd Phoenix House, 6th Floor P O Box 55806 Nairobi, 00200 Kenya Tel: +254722511225, +254202010696 _______________________________________________ kictanet mailing list kictanet(a)lists.kictanet.or.ke http://lists.kictanet.or.ke/mailman/listinfo/kictanet This message was sent to: robertyawe(a)yahoo.co.uk Unsubscribe or change your options at http://lists.kictanet.or.ke/mailman/options/kictanet/robertyawe%40yahoo.co.…

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IIEC: voting for technology
by Andrew Limo 17 Aug '12

17 Aug '12

The Interim Independent Electoral Commission (IIEC) will hold a two-day conference and exhibition on election technology at the KICC grounds in Nairobi on 22nd- 23rd Sept., 2012. Over 40 firms dealing with election technology, both local and foreign, have been invited to showcase their innovations to the Commission and the public. Electoral management bodies from East African Community (EAC), professionals in electoral technology, political parties and other interested parties have also been invited to the open forum on election technology. Participants will be expected to interrogate and evaluate the solutions offered by the various vendors and share their findings with IIEC. The aim of the open day is to expose voters to election technology and give them an opportunity to try out some of the solution on offer. In looking for the appropriate technology, the electoral management body would like to make informed decision based not only on expert advice but also the user experiences. It is apparent that the expanded 2012 general elections, which will require voters to vote for six elective positions in a single session instead of the traditional three, will require a fast and reliable solution. The appropriate application of technology should increase administrative efficiency, reduce long-term costs and enhance political transparency.Since technology is always designed to solve problems, and elections are not short of problems, technology is therefore first port of call by the Commission. We would be happy to have the ICT fraternity visiting and sharing with us their views. Welcome all, Andrew

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CCK releases 2nd Quarter ICT sector statistics for 2011/2012
by Wambua, Christopher 01 May '12

01 May '12

CCK releases 2nd quarter ICT sector statistics for 2011/2012 <http://www.cck.go.ke/news/2012/ICT_Sector_statistics.html> The number of Internet subscribers in Kenya increased by 13.48 percent from 5.42 million to 6.15 million between September 1 and December 31 last year. During the same period, the estimated number of Internet users rose to 17.38 million up from 14.30 million, representing an increase of 21.55 per cent. According to the CCK 2nd Quarter ICT Sector Statistics for 2011/2012 released today, broadband subscriptions increased to 131,829, posting a 4.14% growth from the previous period. Of the total Internet subscribers in the country, broadband subscription represented only 2.14 per cent. Meanwhile, the total mobile traffic declined to 6.70 billion minutes from 7.09 billion recorded in the previous quarter. This represented a 5.5 per cent drop in voice traffic. Similarly, Minutes of Use (MoU) per subscriber per month declined to 79.9 down from 89.3 recorded in the previous quarter (i.e. July to September 2011), posting a 10.53 per cent decrease. The number of SMS per subscriber per month also declined from 17.42 in September 2011 to 10.42 SMS by the end December 2011, representing a decline of 38.52 percent. The report further indicates that the number of mobile subscribers increased to 28.08 million up from 26.49 million recorded during the previous period, posting an increase of 5.99%. Mobile penetration increased to 71.3 percent during the same period from 67.2 per cent recorded during the first quarter. The total local letters sent over the same period declined by 4.75 per cent from 20.57 million in the previous quarter to 19.59 million. Click here to view the full http://www.cck.go.ke/resc/downloads/SECTOR_STATISTICS_REPORT_Q2_2011-12. pdf Christopher Wambua Ag. Manager/Communications Communications Commission of Kenya P.O. Box 14448, NAIROBI 00800 KENYA

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DEADLY THIKA ROAD - WHO IS LISTENING?
by Edith Adera 30 Apr '12

30 Apr '12

Listers, One may ask, why talk about roads on an ICT list? As a vision 2030 project like Konza City, I thought it's important to bring to our attention the dangers of cutting corners...I hope this will NOT happen with Konza city. I would like to address this note to Mugo Kibati as Director of V2030. On Friday, amidst the pounding rain, I ventured out on Thika road (for the first time, since the super highway was done)....I've been avoiding the road like a plague given the grisly stories I hear about thika road. But this time, it was out of necessity. I've seen the dazzling roads of south Africa, Dubai, the US, Japan...you name it....so in my mind I thought a "slip road" would be the standard slip road it ought to be; sign boards would be clear so I know where to go and when to turn off; and that I should NOT expect (NEVER) to find a speed bump smack right in the middle of the highway when I've hit 100+km per hour and enjoying the cruise. We appreciate the development (one should not question that), but can we do things with excellence? First, I was on a lane around Parklands heading towards Thika, when suddenly I noticed on-coming cars flashing, warning me that while I was right to use that lane as a short diversion, I had missed an opening that should have taken me back to the right lane! I promptly took the next left turning to get back to the right lane, luckily I was driving at snail speed. The next encounter was when I suddenly came across a notice board indicating that the road was closed, but it was not clear which one - the one ahead or the one to my right...my sixth sense suggested a take the road on the right, when I did, it happened to be the right one, but yet again, there were cars coming from the right side of that road from behind me and a had a near miss with a speeding country bus...and you know how they zoom! (I understand later another car did not know which route to take at this same spot and crashed the barriers at high speed and the driver was removed from his car unconscious! possibly dead!). My next headache was to find out which slip road to take off Thika road to my destination - I have never seen 90o slip roads....the standard from my lay knowledge is that they are around 350 - 45o - Thika road has 90o slip roads!!! - how do you do that from a highway! Finally, on my way back, I had to make some maneuvers below a bridge to get back onto the road coming back to Nairobi (with huge concrete walls on the side so you can't see other cars coming from all directions) - I've never seen interchanges under a bridge with blind spots and cars coming in all directions! Thika road is a death trap and needs to be sorted out as soon as possible. Summary 1. The slips roads need to be made proper slip roads with clear signs 2. The bumps on the highways should be removed and foot bridges constructed for pedestrians 3. The interchanges, need to be rectified and ensure people moving in different directions do so without meeting cars coming in the opposite directions (at a blind spot with concrete walls - the Museum area is a classic example) - do 2-3 layers of road even consider underground passages, but for heavens sake don't let ongoing cars meet under a bridge with blind spots. 4. Have proper legible sign boards erected urgently. While the road is under construction and one can dismiss issues raised about Thika road indicating that diversions are just temporary, the main point of my intervention is with the design and its usability in a safe manner. The fact is that Thika road is not safe as it's currently designed - it does not give the impression that it was done by those who have done the roads we see in other countries that work. Mugo, I look forward to hearing from you and trust that you will have discussions with your counterparts at the Ministry of Roads so Kenyans know that something will be done about Thika Road. It is sad that while many Kenyans have complained about this road among themselves, we do not have forums to bring this to the attention of the decision-makers. This is my attempt and I believe we will hear from you. Lets design and implement Konza differently....we must never compromise on standards. Edith (personal opinion)

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Great story on Estonia as an Internet nation
by Paul Kukubo 30 Apr '12

30 Apr '12

In 1995, four years after Estonia <http://www.guardian.co.uk/world/estonia> broke free from the USSR, Toomas Hendrik Ilves read a "very Luddite" book by Jeremy Rifkin called The End of Work. "It argued that with greater computerisation there would be fewer jobs," remembered Ilves, then a senior diplomat, now the country's president<http://www.guardian.co.uk/world/2011/nov/03/president-ilves-made-estonia>, "which from his point of view was terrible." Ilves and many of his colleagues saw it differently. In a tiny (population: 1.4 million) and newly independent country like Estonia, politicians realised computers could help quickly compensate for both a minuscule workforce and a chronic lack of physical infrastructure. Seventeen years on, the internet<http://www.guardian.co.uk/technology/internet> has done more than just help. It is now tightly entwined with Estonia's identity. "For other countries, the internet is just another service, like tap water, or clean streets," said Linnar Viik, a lecturer at the Estonian IT College, a government adviser and a man almost synonymous in Estonia with the rise of the web<http://www.eubusiness.com/europe/estonia/040420021538.qhs3vusx> . "But for young Estonians, the internet is a manifestation of something more than a service – it's a symbol of democracy and freedom." To see why, you just have to go outside. Free Wi-Fi<http://www.guardian.co.uk/technology/wifi> is everywhere, and has been for a decade. Viik says you could walk 100 miles – from the pastel-coloured turrets here in medieval Tallinn <http://www.guardian.co.uk/travel/tallinn> to the university spires of Tartu – and never lose internet connection. "We realised that if the government was going to use the internet, the internet had to be available to everybody," Viik said. "So we built a huge network of public internet access points for people who couldn't afford them at home." The country took a similar approach to education. By 1997, thanks to a campaign led in part by Ilves, a staggering 97% of Estonian schools already had internet <http://www.tiigrihype.ee/?op=body&id=45>. Now 42 Estonian services are now managed mainly through the internet. Last year, 94% of tax returns were made online, usually within five minutes. You can vote on your laptop <http://news.bbc.co.uk/1/hi/world/europe/6407269.stm> (at the last election, Ilves did it from Macedonia) and sign legal documents on a smartphone. Cabinet meetings have been paperless since 2000. Doctors only issue prescriptions electronically, while in the main cities you can pay by text for bus tickets, parking, and – in some cases – a pint of beer. Not bad for country where, two decades ago, half the population had no phone line <http://news.bbc.co.uk/1/hi/world/europe/3603943.stm>. Central to the Estonian project is the ID card, introduced in 2002. Nine in 10 Estonians have one, and – by slotting it into their computer – citizens can use their card to vote online, transfer money and access all the information the state has on them. "There's nothing on the ID card itself, because that could be dangerous if you lost it," says Katrin Pärgmäe, who is in charge of public awareness at RIA, the country's internet authority <http://www.ria.ee/en>. "It only gives you access to the database if you type in the right code." You can also present the card at the pharmacy to pick up a prescription. On public transport, it doubles as a ticket. Many people also have special ID chips on their mobile sim cards that allow them to pay people by text. To a British audience, the ID card will have a whiff of Big Brother. But many Estonians argue the opposite: that it allows them to keep tabs on the state, rather than the other way round. "You'd think, given our history, we'd have a problem with it," said Ilves, in an oblique reference to the days when the KGB had an office down a cobbled street in central Tallinn. "But I feel much more secure with a digital ID. If anyone goes into my files, they're flagged. Whereas if my files – which would exist anyway – were made of paper, no one would know who was looking at them." Every Estonian can see who has visited their data, and they can challenge any suspicious behaviour. In one famous case, a policewoman was caught accessing information about her boyfriend. During a recent election campaign, a candidate was swiftly punished for accessing personal information about would-be constituents. "I don't know what the idiot was thinking," said Viik. "You can't hide." To an outsider, it is not immediately clear why Estonia took to the internet so much faster than its Baltic cousins, Latvia and Lithuania. All three won independence at the same time. All three needed quick ways of revamping their ailing infrastructure. But to Estonians, the reason is simple. Estonia has a sizeable Russian-speaking minority, but the country's ethnic Estonian majority feel Nordic, rather than Slavic or eastern European. In the early 90s, this meant they looked to tech-happy Scandinavia for both inspiration and investment. Those Finnish and Swedish businesses that did invest expected their Estonian counterparts to communicate by email rather than fax. And pretty soon it was the newcomers who were leading the way. "I remember when one of our banks was bought by a Swedish one, they came over and said: 'And now we're going to teach you how to do computer banking'," recalled Ilves. "And we said, 'well, you might want to look at what we're actually doing with computer banking ourselves.'" At the last count, 99% of Estonian bank transfers were online. It helped that many politicians in the early 90s were unusually quick to "get" the internet. "The people in power after the collapse of the Soviet Union were really young," said Jaan Tallinn, the co-founder of Skype, the Estonian internet telephone company, and a co-developer of file-sharingwebsite Kazaa <http://www.guardian.co.uk/technology/2012/apr/15/www.kazaa.com>. "They knew what was going on." Mart Laar was 32 when he became prime minister in 1992. Ilves is slightly older, but had learned to code as a child, growing up in exile in the US. "I thought if I can do it, anyone can," he said in his strong New Jersey accent. "I was completely at ease with computers." The internet was also seen as a buffer to Russia<http://www.guardian.co.uk/world/russia> . "We were afraid that Russian armies might take down the TV tower, the central radio station, or newspaper press," said Viik. "Three addresses shut down, and we would have been disconnected from the rest of the world. "But the internet would still work – and so we realised that this would be a great way of keeping in touch with the world in case of emergency." Ironically, when an attack did finally come, it came via the internet – and promptly disconnected Estonia from the rest of the world. In 2007, the government infuriated its Russian-speaking minority by moving a Soviet war memorial from central Tallinn to a cemetery on the city's outskirts. Violence flared on the streets, and later reached the internet. The first cyberattack was simplistic, and easily dealt with: thousands of unknown individuals bombarding government, media and banking websites with "denial of service" (DoS) attacks. "It was like an internet riot," said Hillar Aarelaid, who led Estonia's response, at the time. But what started as an emotional backlash soon became a far larger, longer and better co-ordinated assault on Estonia's very being. It lasted three weeks and could only be contained by restricting internet traffic in and out of the country. It was, in effect, a cybersiege. "This is how a lot of myths were created," remembered Pärgmäe. "Those outside the country couldn't access Estonian websites, but they didn't realise that people inside still could." Rumours circulated about the collapse of the Estonian online banking system, and how people were struggling to buy groceries. "But actually the longest downtime for a bank's website was just one and a half hours." The debacle had two positive effects. First: Nato founded a cyberwarfare thinktank in Estonia<http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Cooperative_Cyber_Defence_Centre_of_Excellence>, to learn from the experience. Second: the government set up the Cyber Defence League<https://www.eesti.ee/eng/riigikaitse/eesti_kaitsejoud/kaitsevagi>, a network of 100 volunteers from the cybersector who, among other roles, will form – a kind of territorial army during future strife. "Traditionally in western countries," said Ilves, "you've had a weekend-warrior thing where volunteers run off into the woods and do target practice. In Estonia, we have a unit of IT people from banks, software companies who in their spare time for one day a week work on cyber issues." This kind of collaboration between private and public sectors was also central to Estonian innovation in the 90s, Viik claims. "The government started several IT programmes as a catalyst," he said. "But only in a few was it the main sponsor. From the early days, government philosophy was not to hire programmers, but to use the services of private companies, which in turn increased the competitiveness of the Estonian IT sector." Case in point: the ID card. "It's private companies who developed and manage the service – and who can now export their new-found competencies to other countries." Viik argues that this benefits both the private sector and the state, who otherwise would not have the resources for ID card technology. But some think the overlap between occasionally threatens Estonia's open internet. For many years, each Estonian citizen had the right to a free domain name. As in the UK, they could not register top-level domain names – but they could bag a ".pri.ee" site, similar to a ".co.uk" site in Britain. In 2010, that changed: the government outsourced the responsibility of allocating domain names to private registrars. The pri.ee domains were abolished, and individuals were instead given the right to top-level ".ee" websites. The only catch was a £15 price-tag – one of the highest rates in Europe<http://www.guardian.co.uk/world/europe-news> . Many academics and high-profile techies were outraged<http://kogukond.org/in-english/>, and some founded a pressure group – the Estonian Internet Community (EIC) – that campaigns to give ordinary citizens more of a say in how Estonia's internet is run. After public outcry, a new set of free domain-names - era.ee - were introduced. More generally, it is feared that the same politicians who had such enlightened attitudes to the internet in the 90s may be starting to lose their progressive edge. "They're still in power," said Jaan Tallinn, "but I'm not sure they still understand what's going on. Technology keeps progressing. Young people follow the curve. But as they get older they get inertia, and they start deviating from that curve." Ilves himself is fairly critical of parts of Acta<http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Anti-Counterfeiting_Trade_Agreement>, the hugely controversial international agreement that opponents fear will curtail the rights of individual internet users. But there is a perception that other politicians could be doing more to oppose its introduction. "It's difficult because it's actually an EU agreement," admitted Jaagup Irve, a PhD student at the Tallinn University of Technology, and an EIC board member. "But the government isn't doing enough to stop Acta<http://www.guardian.co.uk/technology/acta> ." Viik says that among politicians of all stripes there has always been "a silent consensus" about the importance of the internet. For many years, Estonians could expect whomever they elected to have the best interests of the internet at heart. But Irve thinks the public can no longer be so complacent. "People think a government is like a smart missile: the thing practically flies itself," he argued. "But today it's more like a bomb that we have to guide. We have to guide the government, and that's what the internet society has woken up to." *• Explore the seven-day special series on the Battle for the internet<http://www.guardian.co.uk/technology/series/battle-for-the-internet> * • This article was amended on 17 April 2012 to clarify details of the registration and selling of domain names. -- Paul Kukubo Chief Executive Officer, Kenya ICT Board PO Box 27150 - 00100 Nairobi, Kenya 12th Floor, Teleposta Towers Koinange Street Tel +254 20 2089061, +254 20 2211960 Fax: +254 20 2211962 website: www.ict.go.ke local content project: www.tandaa.co.ke, www.facebook.com/tandaakenya twitter:@tandaaKENYA BPO Project: www. doitinkenya.co.ke Digital Villages Project: www.pasha.co.ke personal contacts _______________ Cell: + 254 717 180001 skype: kukubopaul googletalk: pkukubo personal blog: www.paulkukubo.co.ke personal twitter: @pkukubo ____________________ Vision: Kenya becomes a top ten global ICT hub Mission: To champion and actively enable Kenya to adopt and exploit ICT, through promotion of partnerships, investments and infrastructure growth for socio economic enrichment

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The Size of this Elephant (from my blog)
by Paul Kukubo 29 Apr '12

29 Apr '12

Listers I thought id share from my latest blog post (www.paulkukubo.co.ke) I have pasted the entire piece here. The size of this Elephant. The recent #140friday twitter and off twitter debate was centred around a simple and important theme. If the Kenya Government procurement ecosystem developed a preferential orientation towards local firms, the result would be that we would develop greater capability. It was argued by some that the government seemed to indicate an inclination towards foreign big name firms. Whereas the facts don’t necessarily support the claim, I doubt anyone would argue with the basic premise of the argument. Local businesses should benefit from tax based projects. I offer some discussion points that may guide the continuing discussion. How do we turn preferential advantage into true national capacity? The recent procurement of seats from the Prisons department for the national assembly is a welcome effort by any measure. Without the benefit of detail, one hopes that the process has created capacity for the Prisons department to be competitive in furniture making regionally and even become a net exporter. One hopes they have worked with some of the best furniture designers locally and created synergies that can be replicated. One hopes that the low cost of prison labour has also been value added by developing prisoners who can become great furniture makers once they leave. Use of materials is important. Have we used woods plastics, composites that wee sourced from locally sustainable sources. Parliaments are important national symbols in so many ways. They must represent the best of our national collective aspiration. How they look and feel is important to our national psyche. We can draw parrellels here for ICT. 2. Sometimes,even the government does not necessarily know what it does not know and is often seeking to know what it should know first, before seeking answers. The whole area of drilling down from service objectives to architecting an ICT solution can be daunting. For example, we need to have a simple, easy to use lands information management system so that Kenyans can search for land titles. One issue that may arise here is that only 30% of Kenyan land mass has been adjudicated, and surveyed and provided with title. Your ancestral land may not be under title yet. So how is a lands system relaxant just yet for you, some may argue. Another issue might be that the lands ministry collectes substantial revenue in fees and rates that has to be remitted to the treasury every year. The same department then has to go back to treasury to seek finance for a new system to support its operations. Treasury has myriads of pressing priorities. The Kenya ICT Board proposes a system that allows a private sector partner to provide a system and recover its revenue from the collected fees. The issue becomes one of structuring the deal so that the best in class partner can be found and government is guaranteed of improved revenue whilst having a system that can carry us to the next generation. Many systems in government can be delivered like this. The task and the system goes beyond the technology implementation to change management, capacity and capability development. Indeed the systems and processes will need to change to accommodate this need. The partner in question must therefore have capability to underwrite this massive task. 3. There is great public sensitivity around this subject of local capability. I choose to use capability instead of capacity, because capacity may imply the potential given the right mix of circumstances, whearas capability would mean the collective experience. Telling private sector that certain capability does not exist locally even when it might be true, raises huge emotion and rightly so. What does one mean? How dare one? The intended service outcomes occasioned by the new constitution are huge. 47 counties that must replicate central government capability in the management of their affairs. The experience with local governments provides lessons about how comes this can be. Do elected officials make good administrators?, Do counties as autonomous entities have the structural capacity to manage their affairs? ICT offers interesting options here. We can share critical systems across counties reducing the need to duplicate say financial and HR systems and indeed people. Is the private sector in the. Idle of this conversation? 4. The past experience on major ICT projects as projected in mainstream media has been less about the intended service outcomes and more around the procurement. In the past there may have been substantial capital made out of over specified, created for self gain ICT projects. This has changed, but the private sector appetite by some may of have. Obfuscate the issue, create a project that no one really understands, make money and run is common in many economies in the world. The onus is on us all to create a new confidence in this space. A new governance contract which says we ad committed to right priorities. The private sector especially can do this by collectively aligning to national priorities. 5. National capacity building is mostly a discussion about what talent I’d needed from the universities. Some major changes are in the offing here with both task forces of government education reform. The issue is that the building local companies that have capability is a continuous process involving planting the right seeds in school, developing talent, allowing the right ecosystem to thrive in terms of capital and talent flows, business and market access, the right local and international partnering, national incentives systems. And most of all time. Like we say in Swahili, nothing is better that experience and we must eat salt. Lazma tule chumvi. The responsibility of Institutions like the Kenya ICT Board therefore is to ensure we stay in touch with the sector intimately enough to understand their pressing issues and work with other government agencies to direct critical concerns as they emerge. Another responsibility is to help the private sector understand the public sector better in meeting their needs. Having said that, the public sector pie is very big. And there is much hard work done to make public efficient and effective. Indeed looking at the presentation made by the the PS Ministry of Information and Communications, the ICT Secretary, and various permanent secretaries, government directors and state corporation CEOs during 4th Connected Kenya Summit recently, one can attest to this. A true partnership between public and private sector is emerging through consultation and this must be encouraged. The elephant is big and fat and has to be eaten a piece at a time.. Asante Paul Kukubo Chief Executive Officer, Kenya ICT Board PO Box 27150 - 00100 Nairobi, Kenya 12th Floor, Teleposta Towers Koinange Street Tel +254 20 2089061, +254 20 2211960 Fax: +254 20 2211962 website: www.ict.go.ke local content project: www.tandaa.co.ke, www.facebook.com/tandaakenya twitter:@tandaaKENYA BPO Project: www. doitinkenya.co.ke Digital Villages Project: www.pasha.co.ke personal contacts _______________ Cell: + 254 717 180001 skype: kukubopaul googletalk: pkukubo personal blog: www.paulkukubo.co.ke personal twitter: @pkukubo ____________________ Vision: Kenya becomes a top ten global ICT hub Mission: To champion and actively enable Kenya to adopt and exploit ICT, through promotion of partnerships, investments and infrastructure growth for socio economic enrichment

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Multistakeholder Advisory Group for IGF 2012 Announced
by Muchiri Nyaggah 29 Apr '12

29 Apr '12

Listers, I'm glad to see Judith Okite representing Kenya on the MAG. Great stuff. http://www.intgovforum.org/cms/component/content/article/114-preparatory-pr… Kind regards, Muchiri Nyaggah | PRINCIPAL PARTNER @muchiri Cell: +254 722 506400 eGovernance, Healthcare, ICT and Financial Services Innovation for Africa SEMACRAFT CONSULTING PARTNERS Nairobi, Kenya. www.semacraft.com | www.semacraft.com/blog twitter: @semacraft

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Safaricom discontinues unlimited internet
by Grace Githaiga 28 Apr '12

28 Apr '12

http://www.wanjiku.co.ke/2012/04/safaricom-discontinues-unlimited-internet/

2 1

Kenya changes BPO strategy, striving for efficiency
by Grace Githaiga 27 Apr '12

27 Apr '12

Service providers have failed to establish a strong international presence Read more:http://www.pcadvisor.co.uk/news/small-business/3353512/kenya-changes-bpo-strategy-striving-for-efficiency/

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Looking for Database Administrators
by Badru Ntege 27 Apr '12

27 Apr '12

Hi All We are looking for Database Administrators. Please follow the URL and apply if you fit the bill http://www.nftconsult.com/vacancies/job/249/1/list regards Badru Ntege

1 0

The mayhem that is the Under Sea Fiber Cables
by Harry Delano 26 Apr '12

26 Apr '12

We just never really seem to get a grip on things, do we.? Harry

3 2

On PCK - Re: How To Revive Postal Service
by Matunda Nyanchama 26 Apr '12

26 Apr '12

Re: How To Revive Postal Service Amenya You are living in the past. Postal services worldwide are declining and only those with futuristic leadership will enable their corporations adopt. Part of the reason is the growth of electronic communications (fast, reliable, etc.) and competition from other carriers: courier companies, etc (in fact in Kenya bus companies deliver parcels more reliably than Posta) and more. In the advanced western economies, futuristic postal corporations have created virtual mailboxes for almost entire populations. Here one gets their bills, statements, etc electronically; documents that can be accessed via a secure web portal. Smart phone growth has been a key enabler of such services, which allow you to scan your documents, pay your bills, etc. Two years ago we approached PCK on a similar approach. The idea was for us to help them craft a strategy to position themselves for survival in the future. Much of our strategy is based on use of technology, taking advantage of their reach across the country, agency banking, etc. Our good general looked at us without betraying a sense of whether he understood what we were saying or not. He dispatched us to the ICT department, composed of very good knowledgeable people working under very difficult circumstances. Long story short: we hit a brick wall. The PCK leadership is archaic, doesn't understand business. Most of them have the civil service mentality .... hang your coat, go roast meat/check how your matatu is doing, come back 3-4 hours later, review one file, go home and for sure there will be a pay cheque at the end of the month! Zip productivity! I could write tons about the unrealized PCK potential but let that be for another day! In the meantime you may wish to check the story of PostaPay which was supposed to compete with MoneyGram and Western Union in international money transfer business! We launched this with pomp ... a few years later, the same people with who we were singing songs of patriotism, were in the dock for embezzlement. Remember the recent article I shared on why Africa lags the Asian Tigers: we eat it all! Matunda Nyanchama --- In NewVisionKenya(a)yahoogroups.com, amenya gibson <g_amenya2000@...> wrote: > > I think Kenyans we can make Kenya great when we join hands and walk > together unlike Hon Mudavadi who said he shall never walk alone yet he > decamped from a party that uplifted him from political oblivions when > Akaranga fried him in 2002 elections ,A conflict statement. > > Back to my little thinking. > > I have been reasoning that since we are gearing towards an elections in > 2013 why can the MPs pass a law that requires all parties to send their > respective partymanifestos through post offices to Kenyans and also via > parcel firms.? > > This will see a boost in revenues collections both direct and indirect and > KRA will have enough avenue to collect taxes to pay teachers ,soldiers etc. > > Postal Corporation will see demand for its stamps go up ,their rental > boxes will be active and also we shall see an increased parcels movements > with other private firms like G4S,Wells Fargo and many more. > > So as Kenyans let us demand all parties to send their manifestos via > registered firms and this will see an increased economic activities because > when this is done ,printing firms will have business,they will hire people > ,hence helping reduction of unemployment in Kenya. > > It can be done let nobody tell me that democracy is suppose to be > affordable hence they party manifestos should be distributed freely. > > Kenyans must come up with simple ideas that will help our GDP uptick. > > They say we lose Ksh 3.4 B through corruptions and other panya routes what > if we sealed those loopholes then we shall have more money said to have > parties pay for postal services so that their supporters can get the > manifestos in their mail boxes. > > > > -- > Thanks > Gibson Amenya > Level Moja Solutions > Skype amenya.gibson > http://levelmojafinancials.kbo.co.ke > ---------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------- 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.

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Re: [kictanet] Counting the blessings, 10 years of Kibaki government
by Charles Mutsi 26 Apr '12

26 Apr '12

where is this going? we pay taxes. the immigration personnel get salaries. it is a constitutional right. where is the blessing? Sent from Yahoo! Mail on Android

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On PCK - Re: How To Revive Postal Service
by Emmanuel Kimeu 26 Apr '12

26 Apr '12

Edwin, I suggest that we try to lobby to have an apex ICT society representing all spheres of ICT be entrenched in an Act of parliament (maybe the ICT Bill) just like the accountants and lawyers have ICPAK and LSK respectively. I believe this is a better way of having a more representative and effective organization. I don't know what's your take on this. Best Regards [Description: Description: Description: ProTecEkkLogoNewSignShort] PROTEC IS THE CURE FOR ALL YOUR ICT SECURITY HEADACHE To grow your business, you must focus on � your business. Not on worrying about system security, That's our job! Scan your systems or update your security policies with a single click Let us show you how. Call us on +254 020 2722485, 2729676. FAX: +254 020 2722480 Email us on Sales(a)protec.co.ke, info(a)protec.co.ke Techinical Support, Techsupport(a)protec.co.ke Visit our website @ www.protec.co.ke for more info..

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Re: [kictanet] Counting the blessings, 10 years of Kibaki government
by Charles Mutsi 24 Apr '12

24 Apr '12

what about the thousands of school leavers who cannot get id cards. 10 years ago, school leavers got id cards! Sent from Yahoo! Mail on Android

1 0

CCK hosting its website abroad
by Grace Githaiga 24 Apr '12

24 Apr '12

Quoting the article by Rebecca Wanjiku... For a regulator like the Communications Commission of Kenya (CCK), you would expect them to be promoting services if the whole talk of how infrastructure has improved and how it is getting better. Read more...http://www.wanjiku.co.ke/2012/04/cck-hosting-its-website-abroad/ RgdsGG

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Internet gets a hall of fame
by alice＠apc.org 24 Apr '12

24 Apr '12

Internet Hall of Fame Inductees Honored at Historic First Annual Awards Ceremony in Geneva, Switzerland Internet Society celebrates inductees’ landmark achievements at Global INET 2012 Launches new website to highlight Internet Hall of Fame, www.internethalloffame.org [Washington, D.C. and Geneva, Switzerland – 23 April 2012] – The names of the inaugural Internet Hall of Fame inductees were announced today at the Internet Society’s Global INET 2012 conference in Geneva, Switzerland. Internet pioneers and luminaries from around the world gathered at the conference to mark the Internet Society’s 20th anniversary, and attend an Awards Gala to honor the following 2012 inductees: Pioneers Circle Recognizing individuals who were instrumental in the early design and development of the Internet: Paul Baran, Vint Cerf, Danny Cohen, Steve Crocker, Donald Davies, Elizabeth Feinler, Charles Herzfeld, Robert Kahn, Peter Kirstein, Leonard Kleinrock, John Klensin, Jon Postel, Louis Pouzin, and Lawrence Roberts. Innovators Recognizing individuals who made outstanding technological, commercial, or policy advances and helped to expand the Internet’s reach: Mitchell Baker, Tim Berners-Lee, Robert Cailliau, Van Jacobson, Lawrence Landweber, Paul Mockapetris, Craig Newmark, Raymond Tomlinson, Linus Torvalds, and Philip Zimmermann. Global Connectors Recognizing individuals from around the world who have made significant contributions to the global growth and use of the Internet: Randy Bush, Kilnam Chon, Al Gore, Nancy Hafkin, Geoff Huston, Brewster Kahle, Daniel Karrenberg, Toru Takahashi, and Tan Tin Wee. Commenting on the 2012 Internet Hall of Fame inductees, Internet Society President and CEO Lynn St.Amour stated, “This historic assembly of Internet visionaries, innovators, and leaders represents an extraordinary breadth of vision and work. While the inductees have extremely diverse backgrounds and represent many different countries, each individual has an incredible passion for their work. We all benefit from their outstanding contributions to a global Internet, making it one of the greatest catalysts of economic and societal development of all time.” Raúl Echeberría, Chairman of the Internet Society’s Board of Trustees, noted, "The Internet, which connects more than two billion people around the world today, is the result of many important contributions from creative and visionary individuals over the past several decades. The 2012 Internet Hall of Fame celebrates the accomplishments and advancements of 33 talented people who have made significant contributions to the design, development, and expansion of the Internet." In conjunction with the announcement, the Internet Society has launched a website at www.internethalloffame.org that will showcase the inductees and their contributions on an ongoing basis. The website, which includes inductee photographs and biographies, will feature an exclusive interview series authored by Wired. Highlighting multiple inductees each month in Q&A interviews, the first interview will feature Internet Hall of Fame Pioneer Vint Cerf. About the Internet Hall of Fame The Internet Hall of Fame is an annual awards program that has been established by the Internet Society to publicly recognize a distinguished and select group of leaders and luminaries who have made significant contributions to the development and advancement of the global Internet. More information on the program can be found at www.internethalloffame.org. About the Internet Society The Internet Society is the trusted independent source for Internet information and thought leadership from around the world. With its principled vision and substantial technological foundation, the Internet Society promotes open dialogue on Internet policy, technology, and future development among users, companies, governments, and other organizations. Working with its members and Chapters around the world, the Internet Society enables the continued evolution and growth of the Internet for everyone. For more information, see: http://www.internetsociety.org

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identity.go.ke still not working
by Warigia Bowman 24 Apr '12

24 Apr '12

Dear colleagues, It has been over 6 months since I wrote about this last, yet my sister still does not have an identity card (It has taken over a year and a half, and no results). In addition, the website of identity.go.ke does not come up, and as you can see below, the email of the director is still bouncing. Maybe there is a new website. If so, please let me know. Sigh. Kibaki comes from my home area of Othaya, and I think that efficiency has increased in some areas. That being said, we have some work to do. Furthermore, as a political scientist/public policy person, it strikes me that perhaps we see greater efficiency in areas used by the elite, (i.e. passports) and lesser efficiency in areas used by wananchi, because wananchi have less political capital. Thoughts? Sincerely, Warigia ---------- Forwarded message ---------- From: Mail Delivery Subsystem <mailer-daemon(a)googlemail.com> Date: Tue, Apr 24, 2012 at 9:34 AM Subject: Delivery Status Notification (Failure) To: warigia(a)gmail.com Delivery to the following recipient failed permanently: director(a)identity.go.ke Technical details of permanent failure: Google tried to deliver your message, but it was rejected by the recipient domain. We recommend contacting the other email provider for further information about the cause of this error. The error that the other server returned was: 530 530 5.7.1 Client was not authenticated (state 12). ----- Original message ----- DKIM-Signature: v=1; a=rsa-sha256; c=relaxed/relaxed; d=gmail.com; s=20120113; h=mime-version:in-reply-to:references:date:message-id:subject:from:to :content-type; bh=+pylQ0FXNnR1O3triV8F9yhxw4f66aQH/BO/X0gmVlg=; b=Do/4A1rELvXoBSp8wuIEhRTtaLD/QiUig+l86uj0SGYUqsCY7CeCM9jcQJYOeh2HeL 0c4eXzoRijYIRumSDny392peMgXNs+E0CaxNUn9HmzlkkmEnv6lhL5onL5ARuMDseqqD 89uMyAxVlzlZBDHGtpE03YxqQdxKCjKgK5DSJr/SzdOKjsBnQztpAiapSlTd1ZT/ieoR QL57Aybq9LG7u8H9LfLeplOtopTriiSa7gklveHkQkE/fxHIm4FaUXfyWIghWPxFbolk p/slUT3aUBmIXKZYrNooCO/+x33s7X1VZgfVxfjCYOGNJq3XXy7EEn+qS4vszbY4Ad+y g85Q== MIME-Version: 1.0 Received: by 10.182.174.42 with SMTP id bp10mr13593162obc.54.1335278087383; Tue, 24 Apr 2012 07:34:47 -0700 (PDT) Received: by 10.76.116.197 with HTTP; Tue, 24 Apr 2012 07:34:47 -0700 (PDT) In-Reply-To: < CACeY99S6AhGW8HXq_SS3ui_ZvdNWOooDQuroOsYAWjf-YLXXmg(a)mail.gmail.com> References: < CACeY99S6AhGW8HXq_SS3ui_ZvdNWOooDQuroOsYAWjf-YLXXmg(a)mail.gmail.com> Date: Tue, 24 Apr 2012 09:34:47 -0500 Message-ID: < CACeY99TtrehwSvivytr1NfiLS0rtZdoVcg6Tn-Z3NcprPX6eXg(a)mail.gmail.com> Subject: Re: identity.go.ke not working, reprise From: Warigia Bowman <warigia(a)gmail.com> To: Bitange Ndemo <bndemo(a)information.go.ke>, bitange(a)jambo.co.ke, joecketer(a)yahoo.co.uk, director(a)identity.go.ke Content-Type: multipart/alternative; boundary=e89a8f642a68132cdb04be6da86f Dear Secretary Keter and PS Ndemo. Hope you are very well. I was wondering if you have any update on my sister's identity card? Identity.go.ke still does not appear to be working. It is over 6 months since I last wrote you. Many thanks, Warigia Bowman ********************************************************* > > Dear Secretary Keter > > Thank you for your kind reply. > > What I have with me is the waiting card for my sister Patricia Njeri. Her > address at the time she applied was P.O. Box 145 Othaya. > > The waiting card was stamped 154 Municipality Div. Nyeri District. > > Is this sufficient information, or do you need additional information> > > Sincerely Yours, Warigia > > On Mon, Aug 22, 2011 at 3:07 PM, <Joseph.Keter(a)kenya.go.ke> wrote: > > > Dear Wariga, > > > > We are in receipt of your concerns on challenges you faced in monitoring > > status of processing of national identity card of Patricia Njeri > Wairimu. We > > shall appreciate if you could give us more particulars especially the > > station where Patricia applied for her identity card. Please send her > > details to director(a)identity.go.ke for further necessary action. > > > > Regards. > > Mr Joseph K. Keter > > ndc(K) > > Senior Deputy Secretary, > > Ministry of State for Immigration & Registration of Persons, > > Nyayo House,20th Floor, > > P.O. Box 30395-00100, > > Nairobi, Kenya. > > Phone : +254202222022 > > Tel/Fax: +254202229349 > > Mobile : +254722135090 > > Email : joecketer(a)yahoo.co.uk > > Website:www.mirp.go.ke > > > > -- Dr. Warigia Bowman Assistant Professor Clinton School of Public Service University of Arkansas 1200 President Clinton Ave. Sturgis Hall Little Rock, AR 72201 501-683-5227 wbowman(a)clintonschool.uasys.edu http://democratizingegypt.blogspot.com -- Dr. Warigia Bowman Assistant Professor Clinton School of Public Service University of Arkansas 1200 President Clinton Ave. Sturgis Hall Little Rock, AR 72201 501-683-5227 wbowman(a)clintonschool.uasys.edu http://democratizingegypt.blogspot.com

1 0

CCK Should Provide Tools for Service Monitoring
by Muchiri Nyaggah 24 Apr '12

24 Apr '12

I've given up on my ISP. I am currently receiving 1/16th of the advertised bandwidth according to various independent tests. Even for a shared connection this is outrageous. They insist that I should only use their tool to measure my provisioned bandwidth, a tool that measures speeds between my premises and theirs. A pointless exercise since I subscribed to Internet services not a local loop connection. Now if the CCK could provide consumers with an online tool to measure what they are actually receiving, as well as compelling ISPs to clearly state the performance limitations of their service, we would all make informed decisions on who to purchase Internet services from. Is this within the regulator's mandate? Muchiri. ******* Sent from my Android device

3 2

PRESS RELEASE ON FIXING OF PRICES
by Wambua, Christopher 24 Apr '12

24 Apr '12

PRESS RELEASE 23rd April 2012 Listers CCK's response to media reports on alleged collusion to fix retail mobile voice prices The attention of the Communications Commission of Kenya (CCK) has been drawn to media reports alleging a plan to fix retail voice tariffs by a section of the mobile service providers ostensibly with tacit approval of CCK. The CCK wishes to state as follows: 1. CCK considers the retail mobile voice market as sufficiently competitive, thus making it unnecessary to impose any stringent retail price regulatory obligations on the licensed mobile operators. However, even for such competitive market segments where the Commission does not impose retail price setting obligations, the law (i.e. clause 4(3) of the Kenya Information and Communications (Tariff) Regulations, 2010,) prohibits licensees from applying tariffs that distort competition, exploit consumers and, possibly even prevent market entry. 2. Therefore, all mobile operators set their retail prices independently guided primarily by their costs of providing a particular service and are only obligated to file with the Commission their retail rates as provided for in their respective licences. 3. While the CCK recently held discussions with some licensees regarding the wholesale interconnection rate and the attendant glide path, no request has been officially made regarding the intention to fix the retail mobile voice tariff either by those players on any other licensee. As such, no such approval has been granted. 4. Retail price fixing as practiced in collusive oligopoly markets is an anti-competitive business practice that is contrary to the prevailing competition law and policy. Retail price fixing in the mobile voice market in Kenya would, therefore, be in breach of the law; and as such no approval can be granted. 5. The Commission is currently carrying out a study to evaluate the impact of competition on the mobile voice market on the entire economy. We would like to clarify that the study, which is being undertaken by the Kenya Institute of Public Policy Research and Analysis (KIPPRA), is in not in any way meant to determine interconnection rates for the mobile telecoms market. Issued by Francis W. Wangusi Ag. Director-General

1 0

Here are #Startups that Would Do Best Without Venture Capital" by @DanShapiro
by Agosta Liko 24 Apr '12

24 Apr '12

http://fi.co/posts/568 'Here are #Startups that Would Do Best Without Venture Capital" by @DanShapiro <http://fi.co/posts/568> *Founder Feedback gives you insights from the startup trenches.* *In a post on his *blog <http://danshapiro.com/>*,** Dan Shapiro, former Founder & CEO of Sparkbuy (acquired by Google) and Ontela (merged with Photobucket)**, and **Founder Institute Mentor**, **explains the types of companies and entrepreneurs who should not raise venture capital. It is a very insightful article on how venture capitalists think that may not be obvious to many entrepreneurs. * *Dan will be speaking at tomorrow's Founder Showcase<http://foundershowcase.com/>event in San Francisco. There are still a few tickets remaining, and over 100 investors will be in attendance, so register today<http://foundershowcase.com/tickets> .* This post originally appeared on DanShapiro.com here<http://www.danshapiro.com/blog/2012/01/companies-that-would-do-best-without…>. Below it is republished. "I just got the following email. *Subject: Small taxi company looking to expand* *Hello,* *I run a small taxi company outside of Boston Massachusetts. My community has been targeted for casino development and I am looking to expand my business. Could you possibly provide some advice on how to find venture capital?* * * For someone who lives in the startup world, this looks pretty silly. But I’m sure I’d say a lot of silly things if I were getting in to the taxi business, too. So I figured I’d point him to a simple explanation of why taxi companies (actually, services companies in general) aren’t appropriate for VC. I did the Google thing for a bit to find a good article. And no luck. Well, you know what they say: when the internet fails you, make more internet. Here, then, are a very good set of reasons not to take venture capital (or – why venture capital won’t take you). *1. You want to build a profitable company* First day of Founder's Institute I ask how many people want to raise venture capital. Most of the hands go up. I then ask who wants to build a profitable company. Again, most hands go up. The funny thing about this is – VCs don’t actually like their companies to be profitable. Someday, sure, but not on their watch. You see, profitability means that the company *wont grow any faster*. This seems odd, but think about this for a minute. At the early stages, a company may be making money, but it’s almost certainly investing every penny it makes back in to the business. If it has access to outside capital (e.g. a VCs), it’s investing *more* than it makes. And that’s exactly what VCs like: companies that can grow at amazing speed, and never slow down their burn rate to amass cash. They like this for two reasons. First, VCs want to invest in companies that can grow explosively. That means huge markets, executives who can scale up a business fast, and a willingness on the part of management to double down on a winning bet – over, and over, and over again. Second, because it means the company *keeps coming back to the VC for more money*on positive terms. That means the VC keeps getting to buy more and more of the growing concern. Of course, this is something of an over-broad generalization. I’m required to include one per post or I lose my startup blogging license. In fact many venture backed companies are profitable, it’s very impressive to bootstrap your company to profitability in a few months before raising outside investment, etc. But if you are excited about a profitable business that can cut you giant dividend checks (not that most VCs can even accept divided checks - long story), realize that VCs will not be pleased with that approach to running the business. They will want you to plow those earnings back in to the business. And when the day comes that a VC-backed business generates cash faster than it can effectively spend it? They sell the company, or IPO (which is technically also selling the company), or replace the CEO with someone who can spend faster. A taxi business should be run for profits. That’s not VC style. *2. Your business has reasonable margins* As a general rule, VCs don’t like reasonable margins. They are exclusively interested in *outrageous* margins. Ludicrous margins. We’re talking about sneering at 50%, and hoping for 80%, 90%, crazy astronomy stuff. Venture capital is all about investing a little bit of money to create a business with massive scale and huge multiples – investing tens of millions to build software that then can be duplicated or served up for virtually nothing extra per-person with a total market size of billions. In particular, VCs don’t like businesses that are people-powered. Software businesses are awesome, but their evil twin – software consultancies – are near-pariah to VCs. If adding revenue means adding bodies, they don’t like it. In fact, enterprise software companies, which can tread a fine line between software consulting & software development, sometimes get really creative <http://kellblog.com/2011/06/27/why-palantir-makes-my-head-hurt/>to come down on the right side of the line. So the rule of thumb is that VCs like product companies: software, drugs, cleantech, and so on. And they don’t like the manufacturing, service industry, and consulting businesses that often are just a tiny shift of business model away. Every new taxi requires a… well, a new taxi. And a new taxi driver. Not the right business for VC. *3. You are going to double your investors’ money* I’ve covered this before, but VCs really don’t want to double their money<http://www.danshapiro.com/blog/2010/08/vc-insanity-economics/>. Strange though it sounds, their economics make that look like a failure. They need to target a 10x return on their investment, and that means – depending on stage and fund size – that you company has to grow to somewhere in the hundreds-of-millions to billions range to be interesting. That means taking your taxi business from $20MM in annual revenue to $40MM just doesn’t do it for them. Particularly because the valuation multiples on the aforementioned lower-margin businesses are smaller. *4. VCs probably don’t want to invest in you* Here are the people VCs *really love* to invest in: - Entrepreneurs who’ve already made them lots of money - Their closest buddies Here are the people who VCs *can be convinced* to invest in: - People who have been wildly successful at high-profile past jobs that are related to their new business (e.g. a former executive VP at a Fortune 500 company, inventor of thingamajig that everyone knows) - New graduates from top-of-the-top tier schools who have built something amazingly cool already - Extremely charismatic type-A personalities Anyone else is possible, but our taxi driver is going to have a devil of a time. *5. You have better things to do with 9 months, and you will probably fail* That’s how long it took me to do my Series A for Ontela. 9 months before the first check came in. Average is 6-12. That’s because a busy VC will look at a few companies a day, and will make a few investments a year. The math says the hit rate is well under 1%. That matches my experience – I pitched over 100 times during our Series A investment. Not only that, but most of the companies pitching the same events and people that I saw worked just as hard as I did, and did not get funded. And fundraising is a near-full time job; you won’t have much time for actually driving your taxi. *6. You will have a new boss* You know the great thing about working for yourself? Well, if you raise VC, you probably don’t have that thing any more. Raising VC usually means forming a board that includes your investors, and that board is charged with, among other things, potentially firing and replacing you. I’ve worked with a number of boards and have been lucky in that they were all awesome and I would recommend those folks to anybody. But if you like your freedom, then bringing on VC may feel somewhat familiar – in an “I have a boss again” way you probably won’t enjoy. *What are my alternatives?* VC is really only appropriate for a tiny fraction of a fraction of the companies in the US. But there are numerous alternatives. - *Angel investors* are individual investors who can invest larger amounts, on more flexible terms, and with less onerous restrictions. Many companies that take VC money actually start with angel investments – but lots of companies never do VC, and just grow off of angel investment. - *Traditional bank loans* are always an option if you have a sufficiently traditional company – while they may not be right for many purposes, they’re definitely the best terms you will find for bringing in capital. - A *Revenue Loan* from a company like Lighter Capital<http://www.lightercapital.com/>is a way for companies with revenue to bring in capital with a debt structure – without giving up control to outside investors. - And, of course, *Bootstrapping* is arguably the best way of all – re-investing your company’s profits in your own growth, and building a strong company based on the revenues from your business. *…So does this mean I shouldn’t raise VC?* Look. I’ve raised over $30mm from 7 different firms in the course of my two startups. I will tell you: if you are the right kind of company, and find the right kind of investor, then VC is *awesome*. It’s an instant infusion of cash, connections, experience, credibility, and confidence at the stroke of a pen. It accelerates everything. It focuses the mind. I can’t recommend it highly enough. But most companies are not the right kind of companies. And the only thing more frustrating and time consuming than raising a VC round is failing to raise a VC round. So think hard. Make sure it’s for you. And if not – keep on driving! *(Update: Mike Carter <https://twitter.com/#%21/MikeFROMRevere> from Revere Taxi <http://reveretaxi.com/> has pointed out that if I’m going to use his email to write my blog post, the least I can do is give him a backlink.)"* *Dan Shapiro currently works at Google following their acquisition of his most recent company, Sparkbuy, a comparison shopping website that offered unprecedented depth and accuracy of information. Before that, he was founder and CEO of Ontela, a pioneering mobile imaging company that merged with Photobucket, where he was named CEO of the Year by MobileBeat. **He blogs at *DanShapiro.com <http://danshapiro.com/>*, and you can also follow him on Twitter at @DanShapiro <http://twitter.com/@DanShapiro>.*

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FW: PRESS RELEASE ON FIXING OF PRICES
by Wambua, Christopher 24 Apr '12

24 Apr '12

PRESS RELEASE 23rd April 2012 Listers CCK's response to media reports on alleged collusion to fix retail mobile voice prices The attention of the Communications Commission of Kenya (CCK) has been drawn to media reports alleging a plan to fix retail voice tariffs by a section of the mobile service providers ostensibly with tacit approval of CCK. The CCK wishes to state as follows: 1. CCK considers the retail mobile voice market as sufficiently competitive, thus making it unnecessary to impose any stringent retail price regulatory obligations on the licensed mobile operators. However, even for such competitive market segments where the Commission does not impose retail price setting obligations, the law (i.e. clause 4(3) of the Kenya Information and Communications (Tariff) Regulations, 2010,) prohibits licensees from applying tariffs that distort competition, exploit consumers and, possibly even prevent market entry. 2. Therefore, all mobile operators set their retail prices independently guided primarily by their costs of providing a particular service and are only obligated to file with the Commission their retail rates as provided for in their respective licences. 3. While the CCK recently held discussions with some licensees regarding the wholesale interconnection rate and the attendant glide path, no request has been officially made regarding the intention to fix the retail mobile voice tariff either by those players on any other licensee. As such, no such approval has been granted. 4. Retail price fixing as practiced in collusive oligopoly markets is an anti-competitive business practice that is contrary to the prevailing competition law and policy. Retail price fixing in the mobile voice market in Kenya would, therefore, be in breach of the law; and as such no approval can be granted. 5. The Commission is currently carrying out a study to evaluate the impact of competition on the mobile voice market on the entire economy. We would like to clarify that the study, which is being undertaken by the Kenya Institute of Public Policy Research and Analysis (KIPPRA), is in not in any way meant to determine interconnection rates for the mobile telecoms market. Issued by Francis W. Wangusi Ag. Director-General

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Counting the blessings, 10 years of Kibaki government
by Kivuva 24 Apr '12

24 Apr '12

We have always been a country of complaining and criticizing. I applied for a passport renewal on 2nd April 2012 and collected the new passport on 19th April. That was within 11 working days. The automation and workflow seems to be working smooth;y. These are the positives that we did not have 10 years ago. Probably listers can also count their blessing for the last 10 years. Regards 10rdmwesh -- ______________________ Mwendwa Kivuva For Business Development Transworld Computer Channels twitter.com/lordmwesh www.transworldAfrica.com | Fluent in computing kenya.or.ke | The Kenya we know

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Professional Certification and Standardization a Must, is this feasible?
by Barrack Otieno 23 Apr '12

23 Apr '12

Listers, I am just going through an article by Harry Hare in the CIO magazine Vol 4 March 2012. He mentions efforts by the Computer Society of Kenya and the IT standards association to institutionalise some form of standards, it appears there is no organisation to spearhead this initiative. I am involved in Standards developement at Kenya Bureu of Standards (ISO 27000 series) together with a number of colleagues on the list and must admit it has been frustrating to get this message out there to the industry, how practical is it to use the Directorate of industrial training to enforce this? Best Regards -- Barrack O. Otieno +254721325277 +254-20-2498789 Skype: barrack.otieno http://www.otienobarrack.me.ke/

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Konza: Similar route to all kenyan urban centres?
by Andrew Gesora 23 Apr '12

23 Apr '12

This article should make an interetsting read, especially to the physical planners http://goo.gl/RRvod <kictanet(a)lists.kictanet.or.ke> --------------------

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Fw: [afnog] African Internet Standards Forum - May 12th 2012, 9AM GMT
by Walubengo J 20 Apr '12

20 Apr '12

Here's one more Kenyan bringing "goodies" to the African Techincal landscape. Apply. walu. --- On Wed, 4/18/12, Kevin G. Chege <chege(a)isoc.org> wrote: From: Kevin G. Chege <chege(a)isoc.org> Subject: [afnog] African Internet Standards Forum - May 12th 2012, 9AM GMT To: afnog(a)afnog.org Date: Wednesday, April 18, 2012, 1:37 PM Dear all, The Internet Society Africa Regional Bureau is organizing the first ever Africa wide Internet Standards Forum that will take place in Serekunda, Gambia on May 12th 2012 from 9.00am GMT to 1.00pm GMT. The forum will also be streamed live on the online conferencing tool Webex. The forum will discuss Internet standards and the role the Internet Engineering Task Force (IETF) plays in setting open Internet standards. African participation in IETF activities has been limited and this forum is an effort to encourage African participation in the IETF, especially for graduating class, Masters and Ph.D. level University students and instructors in order for Africa to play a role in the development of the Internet.University students, lecturers, researchers and Internet enthusiasts from Africa interested in learning about open Internet Standards are encouraged to attend. To attend, you can register online and participate remotely or attend the session at a participating local hub in your country. Details of the participating hubs (hosted by ISOC African chapters) will be made available by the 6th of May 2012. For those who will be in Gambia already attending AfNOG, details of the meeting room will be made available before the day of the forum. For more details, please visit http://internetsociety.org/events/african-internet-standards-forum To learn more about the IETF, watch this video http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=tqc8vd_jPpg Regards Kevin G. ChegeISOC -----Inline Attachment Follows----- _______________________________________________ afnog mailing list http://afnog.org/mailman/listinfo/afnog

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Re: [kictanet] Fw: [AfriNIC-rpd] Call for Public Comments on AfriNIC Board Candidates
by Walubengo J 20 Apr '12

20 Apr '12

@10rdmwesh - being a Prof. is not easy ;-) Anyhow, your question maybe be better handled by the next Board, however I can give some personal analysis from experience. 1. Despite AfriNIC training thousands of Internet Engineers in IPv6, you will agree that adoption/uptake of IPv6 has been comparatively poor. So expect to see more emphasise on IPv6 Training for "Non-Techies" i.e. Business & Government Leaders in an attempt to present the case for IPv6 in non-technical jargon in order to reach decision makers outside the hard-core tech-field. 2. As IPv4 (the original Internet Protocol "Platform") numbers get depleted in other regions (e.g. Asia, Europe) expect the black-market for IPv4 trading which does exist in developed economies to start focusing on the large perhaps "idle" African IP resources. So the next Board has to deal with this reality sooner rather than later. 3. Cyber Security: As the African region gets more and more online, the Cyber Incidences and issues will become more prominent and more people (Governments) especially will begin to justifiably wonder how and if the critical building block of the the Internet - the IP number - can be used to enhance Security. So expect to see a more pronounced outreach to Governments as an effort to better understand how both stakeholders can work together rather against each other to enhance Cyber-security. 4. Also expect to have some Agencies exploiting Point 2 and 3 above as reason enough to have IP resources allocated to Governments rather than AfriNIC in order to hold the same in trust. I may not agree with this but it will be something to deal with going forward. walu. --- On Fri, 4/20/12, Kivuva <Kivuva(a)transworldafrica.com> wrote: From: Kivuva <Kivuva(a)transworldafrica.com> Subject: Re: [kictanet] Fw: [AfriNIC-rpd] Call for Public Comments on AfriNIC Board Candidates To: jwalu(a)yahoo.com Cc: "I-Network Uganda" <i-network(a)dgroups.org>, "eThinkTankTZ eThinkTankTZ" <ethinktanktz(a)yahoogroups.com>, "KICTAnet ICT Policy Discussions" <kictanet(a)lists.kictanet.or.ke> Date: Friday, April 20, 2012, 12:35 PM Mr. Walubengo (soon to be Prof), as we endorse your second term candidature at https://meeting.afrinic.net/afrinic-16/?q=content/board-elections-candidates, and with the good work the board did for the last 3 years including bringing Afrinic14 home at Daressalaam, and holding a KENIC/IPV6 training workshop in conjunction with Tespok at Sarova Stanley hotel Nairobi. What should we expect as a region for the next 3 years? 10rdmwesh -- ______________________ Mwendwa Kivuva For Business Development Transworld Computer Channels twitter.com/lordmwesh transworldAfrica.com | Fluent in computing kenya.or.ke | The Kenya we know _______________________________________________ kictanet mailing list kictanet(a)lists.kictanet.or.ke http://lists.kictanet.or.ke/mailman/listinfo/kictanet Unsubscribe or change your options at http://lists.kictanet.or.ke/mailman/options/kictanet/jwalu%40yahoo.com The Kenya ICT Action Network (KICTANet) is a multi-stakeholder platform for people and institutions interested and involved in ICT policy and regulation. The network aims to act as a catalyst for reform in the ICT sector in support of the national aim of ICT enabled growth and development. KICTANetiquette : Adhere to the same standards of acceptable behaviors online that you follow in real life: respect people's times and bandwidth, share knowledge, don't flame or abuse or personalize, respect privacy, do not spam, do not market your wares or qualifications.

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Fwd: World Tech Jam - Contribute your Ideas
by waudo siganga 20 Apr '12

20 Apr '12

The Newsletter below will interest some colleagues. The World Congress on IT will be held in Montreal, Canada 22-24 October and will be a gathering of global voices from the ICT fraternity. Juliana Rotich from Ushaidi is one of the confirmed panelists. An online "World Tech Jam" June 5-7 (open to all) will be a precursor to the Congress. During the World Tech Jam component online participants will brainstorm on digital opportunities and contribute their ideas and insights to collectively forge ahead on some of the world's most urgent challenges in education, healthcare, smart cities & sustainability, the future of government, and the media. Please feel free to arrange your participation in the Jam as well as to travel to Canada for the Congress! ----- Original message ----- From: WCIT 2012 Montreal <[1]mail(a)mail.zd01.com> To: [2]info(a)cskonline.org Subject: World Tech Jam - Contribute your Ideas Date: Wed, 18 Apr 2012 20:20:51 +0000 [3]View as a web page | [4]Version Française | [5]Unsubscribe / Se désabonner [6]WCIT [head-top-en.jpg] [head-left.jpg] [7][head-linkedin.jpg] [8][head-twitter.jpg] [head-right.jpg] During the IBM & WCIT 2012 World Tech Jam - from June 5 to 7 - discuss innovations that society can adopt to [9]improve healthcare, education, urban living, energy & sustainability as well as media & culture in the digital age. [10]Shaping the Future of the Urban Environment [11]Smart Cities In this [12]Jam Forum on Smart Cities and Transportation, join forces with some of the world's leading thinkers and practitioners to reveal how digital technologies can help to improve land-use, enhance municipal services, ease congestion and much more. [13]Energy, the Environment and Sustainability [14]Sustainable Development This Jam Forum on Sustainable Development is perfect to voice your environmental concerns and discuss how digital innovations can dramatically reduce global emissions and generate energy savings for businesses and consumers. [15]Discover the main topics and key questions. [16]A Global Digital Society Action Plan [17]iStock One of the outputs of the IBM & WCIT 2012 World Tech Jam will be an open and inclusive Global Digital Agenda that our governments, businesses and society can adopt in order [18]to address societal and economic challenges. Good to Know [19]Early-Bird Registration ENDS in 12 days! Until April 30, the full conference pass is $CA 1,150. [20]Place d'Armes Originally built at the end of the 17th century, Place d'Armes has become a prestigious address in Montréal. The surrounding buildings are remarkable mementos of the major milestones in the city's history. [21]Boule de cristal 2012 The major international conference on IT issues. IT'S ALL ABOUT DATA! it's 27 lectures and case studies on Innovation - Management - Visualizing - Operations Cloud Computing. May 15, 2012 in Montreal. ____________________________________________________________ Media Partner The Globe and Mail Acknowledgment WCIT 2012 is made possible through the generous support of many sponsors including of Intel, Microsoft, CSC, Xerox, OpenText, AMD, RIM, Dassault Systemes, SaskTel International, IBM, CGI, Softchoice, Dell, Invest in Canada and Air Canada. Full Conference Pass $CA 1,150 until April 30 Featured Sponsors Pinnacle Intel Diamond CSC Platinum IBM RIM Gold Dell [22]Montreal in Picture [23]Montreal in Picture Description : Place d'Armes Credit : © Tourisme Montréal, Mario Melillo [foot-top.jpg] [foot-left.jpg] About WCIT 2012 and WITSA. [24]The World Congress on Information Technology (WCIT 2012) is a fast-paced 3-day conference that will focus on the theme of “ONE Vision for a Global Digital Society”. It will feature more than 100 high-profile speakers and attract up to 3,000 delegates from more than 80 countries, including representatives from industry, governments, academia, and civil society. WCIT is a signature event of the [25]World Information Technology and Services Alliance (WITSA), the leading voice of the global ICT industry since 1978. [26]Unsubscribe / Se désabonner | [27]Contact Us | 380 rue Saint-Antoine Ouest, Montreal, Quebec H2Y 3X7 [foot-right.jpg] [i.x?t=kpmdccplcookjacebjkdon&v=4] References Visible links 1. mailto:mail@mail.zd01.com 2. mailto:info@cskonline.org 3. http://lnk.zd01.com/a/l.x?t=kpmdccplcookjacebjkdon&M=14&v=4 4. http://lnk.zd01.com/a/l.x?t=kpmdccplcookjacebjkdon&M=15&v=4 5. http://lnk.zd01.com/a/l.x?t=kpmdccplcookjacebjkdon&M=16&v=4 6. http://lnk.zd01.com/a/l.x?t=kpmdccplcookjacebjkdon&M=17&v=4 7. http://lnk.zd01.com/a/l.x?t=kpmdccplcookjacebjkdon&M=18&v=4 8. http://lnk.zd01.com/a/l.x?t=kpmdccplcookjacebjkdon&M=19&v=4 9. http://lnk.zd01.com/a/l.x?t=kpmdccplcookjacebjkdon&M=20&v=4 10. http://lnk.zd01.com/a/l.x?t=kpmdccplcookjacebjkdon&M=21&v=4 11. http://lnk.zd01.com/a/l.x?t=kpmdccplcookjacebjkdon&M=22&v=4 12. http://lnk.zd01.com/a/l.x?t=kpmdccplcookjacebjkdon&M=23&v=4 13. http://lnk.zd01.com/a/l.x?t=kpmdccplcookjacebjkdon&M=25&v=4 14. http://lnk.zd01.com/a/l.x?t=kpmdccplcookjacebjkdon&M=26&v=4 15. http://lnk.zd01.com/a/l.x?t=kpmdccplcookjacebjkdon&M=27&v=4 16. http://lnk.zd01.com/a/l.x?t=kpmdccplcookjacebjkdon&M=28&v=4 17. http://lnk.zd01.com/a/l.x?t=kpmdccplcookjacebjkdon&M=30&v=4 18. http://lnk.zd01.com/a/l.x?t=kpmdccplcookjacebjkdon&M=31&v=4 19. http://lnk.zd01.com/a/l.x?t=kpmdccplcookjacebjkdon&M=32&v=4 20. http://lnk.zd01.com/a/l.x?t=kpmdccplcookjacebjkdon&M=33&v=4 21. http://lnk.zd01.com/a/l.x?t=kpmdccplcookjacebjkdon&M=34&v=4 22. http://lnk.zd01.com/a/l.x?t=kpmdccplcookjacebjkdon&M=36&v=4 23. http://lnk.zd01.com/a/l.x?t=kpmdccplcookjacebjkdon&M=37&v=4 24. http://lnk.zd01.com/a/l.x?t=kpmdccplcookjacebjkdon&M=38&v=4 25. http://lnk.zd01.com/a/l.x?t=kpmdccplcookjacebjkdon&M=39&v=4 26. http://lnk.zd01.com/a/l.x?t=kpmdccplcookjacebjkdon&M=40&v=4 27. http://lnk.zd01.com/a/l.x?t=kpmdccplcookjacebjkdon&M=41&v=4 Hidden links: 28. http://lnk.zd01.com/a/l.x?t=kpmdccplcookjacebjkdon&M=24&v=4 29. http://lnk.zd01.com/a/l.x?t=kpmdccplcookjacebjkdon&M=24&v=4 30. http://lnk.zd01.com/a/l.x?t=kpmdccplcookjacebjkdon&M=35&v=4

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IBM is dead!
by robert yawe 20 Apr '12

20 Apr '12

Hi All, I always said that my short lived mini computer skills will serve me again soon, the big boys are back in the game and at the front of the pack is old Blue. http://www.informationweek.com/news/hardware/data_centers/232900099 Cloud is the death knell for the PC Servers and the rebirth of the mainframe team, it is good to be back home with total and absolute control. 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] IBM innovation
by Paul Kukubo 20 Apr '12

20 Apr '12

Listers A writer's reputation can sometimes precede the message. I will confess that I did not understand that it was irony or sarcasm that was intended. The biggest opinion shapers have the greatest responsibility to always be clear, factual, empathetic. Robert Yawe is one such opinion shaper no doubt. So the matter merited clarification. And I certainly could not relate to the 'King is Dead, Long Live the King' reference to this story.We we can have a long debate about how that analogy could have been best used in the context of that particular story. My suggestion would be that the headline should have said. "The Mainframe is dead, long live the Mainframe." The issue of the headline has been clarified. Some clarification is needed based on a few comments. There does not exist a prevailing sentiment that IBM is struggling as some imply here. The list is divided into two strands. Those reacting to the substance of the article (no controversy here really), and others reacting to the idea that Robert has the right to use dramatic effect to get the attention to the issue. The challenge of Kictanet lies here. The issue is that if you don't read the story and jump to conclusions you can miss the point. A few reactions suggest that some did not and have further not read it and are using the discourse to further the argument that we can express ourselves as we see fit because the end justifies the means. The drama trumps the substance. In forums such as this which are largely professional groupings, this should not be the case. Professional Journals, forums, groupings thrive because they provide professionals with safe space away from popular, headline driven media. In forums like this we should dig deep into issues if we so please and feel professional protected. I would agree that a healthy dose of drama and substance is good. Professionals have a responsibility to dig deep. This forum it flows freely. Some feel some arguments are too personal, too opinionated and some have too much conjecture. Others feel that when facts and serious issues are presented, they are seen as boring. We get the headlines we deserve and the blame the media. There are many who won't come out of the "closet" and just say, sometimes they think kictanet can be a big vendetta machine driven by established groupings who pre-agree attacks on individuals and agree to prop up others. These individuals you can call fearful lurkers. My view is that they are a substantial group. kictanet has improved a lot in recent months and continues to be an important forum. We need to get wider opinion and so move the platform onto wider areas, Facebook, twitter, a public blog. It will not take away the controversy but it will get us fresh ideas as well. we need to drive up the numbers. As an example, I don't allow my staff to post any official comments on this forum. we hardly get contributions from the leading technology voices. we learn more things outside this forum. The #140Friday meetings and discussions are taking place outside this forum. The Connected Kenya summit attended by over 400 people this year was highly successful and not discussed here. The CIO forum in South Africa that I have just attended, The global meeting on Open Government. The moderator should be given information that feeds discussion and information. The list format does not work for all information types and it is time to put this on a portal. A few more facts on IBM to enrich the substantive discussion. 1. IBM is now primarily a services company ( http://www.ibm.com/annualreport/2011/ghv/) In 2000 the revenue composition was 35% Hardware/Financing, 38% Services, 27% Software. in 2011 it was 16% Hardware/Financing, 41% Services, and 44% Software. Big change of strategy over the years that saw it dispose of its desktop business to Lenovo during that period. Anyone ever read their former CEO's book "who said elephants can't dance?" about their shift of strategy from hardware to consulting and services as a long term strategy. 2. 2011 revenue was 110 USD Billion and it had grown 10 consecutive years. 3. If anyone can remember, last year, Warren Buffet the world's leading investor bought IBM stock, his first technology stocks ever. 4. Of particular note is how some of that growth is achieved. "the beginning of 2000, [IBM] have acquired 130 companies in strategic areas including analytics, cloud, security and Smarter Commerce. IBM expect to spend $20 billion in acquisitions over the 2015 Road Map period to support growth initiatives". This should excite well positioned Kenyan firms whose investors need an exit strategy. As a matter of interest there are certain other thematic areas that are worth studying, tracking understanding as part of understanding this sector. These discussions can enrich a list of this nature 1. How Kenyan Telco companies make strategic shifts in a market in which voice revenues will continue to be less significant. 2. Apple's history and its impact on the whole tech sector. Steve Jobs Biography is an excellent read in this respect. 3. How Yahoo which pioneered the search sector will manage its current turnaround. 4. how HP another global giant will manage is strategic issues in the context of its announcement by the immediate past CEO that it would sell of its hardware business. 5. How our emerging tech business leaders (Seven Seas, Cellulant, Alliance technologies, Verve, Kencall, Pespal,Ushahidi to name a few ) drive their growth, develop strategy and the role of venture capital and the supporting ecosystem. and their relationship to multinationals and the more relatively established older tech companies (Copy Cat, Technology Associates, Lantech, Symphony, Fintec, Jamii). 6. The role of regional opportunity, south Africa (partnerships,JV), East Africa,( markets growth, scale) West Africa (Huge market). etc Part of positioning a country is business owners alignment to opportunity. These sorts of discussions are certainly value adding asante Paul Kukubo Chief Executive Officer, Kenya ICT Board PO Box 27150 - 00100 Nairobi, Kenya 12th Floor, Teleposta Towers Koinange Street Tel +254 20 2089061, +254 20 2211960 Fax: +254 20 2211962 website: www.ict.go.ke local content project: www.tandaa.co.ke, www.facebook.com/tandaakenya twitter:@tandaaKENYA BPO Project: www. doitinkenya.co.ke Digital Villages Project: www.pasha.co.ke personal contacts _______________ Cell: + 254 717 180001 skype: kukubopaul googletalk: pkukubo personal blog: www.paulkukubo.co.ke personal twitter: @pkukubo ____________________ Vision: Kenya becomes a top ten global ICT hub Mission: To champion and actively enable Kenya to adopt and exploit ICT, through promotion of partnerships, investments and infrastructure growth for socio economic enrichment On Fri, Apr 20, 2012 at 9:55 AM, <dmbuvi(a)gmail.com> wrote: > There is sarcasm and irony. When it gets used in public , majority don't > get it. Where did our literature teachers fail ? > > Many have been saying IBM is dead, and this prompted Yawe to post an > article that shows this is far from the truth , though using the popular > thought , IBM is dead. > > The reactions in this list are similar to the many amusing and angry > letters that follow many a Kwamchetsi Makokha's piece . > > Sent from my BlackBerry® > > -----Original Message----- > From: Barrack Otieno <otieno.barrack(a)gmail.com> > Sender: kictanet-bounces+dmbuvi=gmail.com(a)lists.kictanet.or.keDate: Fri, > 20 Apr 2012 07:17:35 > To: Dennis Kioko Mbuvi<dmbuvi(a)gmail.com> > Cc: KICTAnet ICT Policy Discussions<kictanet(a)lists.kictanet.or.ke> > Subject: Re: [kictanet] IBM is dead! > > _______________________________________________ > kictanet mailing list > <kictanet(a)lists.kictanet.or.ke>kictanet(a)lists.kictanet.or.ke > http://lists.kictanet.or.ke/mailman/listinfo/kictanet > > Unsubscribe or change your options at > http://lists.kictanet.or.ke/mailman/options/kictanet/dmbuvi%40gmail.com > > The Kenya ICT Action Network (KICTANet) is a multi-stakeholder platform > for people and institutions interested and involved in ICT policy and > regulation. The network aims to act as a catalyst for reform in the ICT > sector in support of the national aim of ICT enabled growth and development. > > KICTANetiquette : Adhere to the same standards of acceptable behaviors > online that you follow in real life: respect people's times and bandwidth, > share knowledge, don't flame or abuse or personalize, respect privacy, do > not spam, do not market your wares or qualifications. > _______________________________________________ > kictanet mailing list > kictanet(a)lists.kictanet.or.ke > http://lists.kictanet.or.ke/mailman/listinfo/kictanet<kictanet(a)lists.kictanet.or.ke> > > Unsubscribe or change your options at > http://lists.kictanet.or.ke/mailman/options/kictanet/pkukubo%40ict.go.ke > > The Kenya ICT Action Network (KICTANet) is a multi-stakeholder platform > for people and institutions interested and involved in ICT policy and > regulation. The network aims to act as a catalyst for reform in the ICT > sector in support of the national aim of ICT enabled growth and development. > > KICTANetiquette : Adhere to the same standards of acceptable behaviors > online that you follow in real life: respect people's times and bandwidth, > share knowledge, don't flame or abuse or personalize, respect privacy, do > not spam, do not market your wares or qualifications. >

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Fw: [AfriNIC-rpd] Call for Public Comments on AfriNIC Board Candidates
by Walubengo J 20 Apr '12

20 Apr '12

Hi Listers, The AfriNIC board elections this time around look quite competitive with worthy nominees from .UG and .TZ. However, feel free to visit https://meeting.afrinic.net/afrinic-16/?q=content/john-walubengo and like, tweet or comment on my page. all the best. walu. --- On Thu, 4/19/12, Ernest - (AfriNIC) <ernest(a)afrinic.net> wrote: From: Ernest - (AfriNIC) <ernest(a)afrinic.net> Subject: [AfriNIC-rpd] Call for Public Comments on AfriNIC Board Candidates To: announce(a)afrinic.net Date: Thursday, April 19, 2012, 8:59 PM Dear Colleagues We are pleased to announce the following final candidate slate for the Eastern and Southern Sub-Region seats on the AfriNIC Board. https://meeting.afrinic.net/afrinic-16/?q=content/board-elections-candidates The community is hereby invited to view candidate details and provide comments on the candidates, all at URL above. The public comment period will close on 03 May 2012 at 2000UTC. During this period, the community is requested to evaluate each candidate's suitability for the position and to provide comments in the section provided for this purpose. For any queries or clarification, please contact the committee by email at: nomcom2012(a)afrinic.net Regards, Ernest (On behalf of the 2012 Nominations Committee) _______________________________________________ rpd mailing list rpd(a)afrinic.net https://lists.afrinic.net/mailman/listinfo.cgi/rpd

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Re: [kictanet] KICTAnet history and Strategic positioning 2007
by alice＠apc.org 20 Apr '12

20 Apr '12

Thank you Matunda. See attached, organizational structure that has been operational since 2007. Essentially, the secretariat is responsible for implementation of most recommendations/activities including convening meetings. Alice > Insightful document Alice. > Just wondering: what's kictanet's governance model/approach? > I ask because in the recent past we have received some very useful recommendations. It is not clear who takes responsibility/accountability to make them happen? > Baadaye. > > ---------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------- > 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.

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How much do firms pay as bribes...
by S.M. Muraya 19 Apr '12

19 Apr '12

Interesting read. HOW MUCH DO FIRMS PAY AS BRIBES AND WHAT BENEFITS DO THEY GET? EVIDENCE FROM CORRUPTION CASES WORLDWIDE http://www.nber.org/papers/w17981.pdf Note that most of the named Multi-National Organizations are (Information, Communication, Construction, Energy [Oil] or Weapons) Technology Firms.

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Re: [kictanet] KICTAnet history and Strategic positioning 2007 (alice@apc.org)
by Matunda Nyanchama 19 Apr '12

19 Apr '12

Insightful document Alice. Just wondering: what's kictanet's governance model/approach? I ask because in the recent past we have received some very useful recommendations. It is not clear who takes responsibility/accountability to make them happen? Baadaye. ---------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------- 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.

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Re: [kictanet] KICTAnet history and Strategic positioning 2007
by alice＠apc.org 19 Apr '12

19 Apr '12

Walu and all Attached. These documents can also be found here: http://bit.ly/Jej5YN Best Alice > @Alice, > > what Francis says is true. Looks like the document has only 13pages agains the 53pages as per the Table of Contents. > > Meanwhile we also did a review titled "KICTAnet Institutional Review" sometime back in 2008/9? This exercise was led by Dr. F. Omosa (now a Commissioner at CIC but do I say ;-) > > I cant trace the final report and if you have it, float it since it could provide some good input. > > regards. > > walu. > > > --- On Thu, 4/19/12, Francis Hook <francis.hook(a)gmail.com> wrote: > > > From: Francis Hook <francis.hook(a)gmail.com> > Subject: Re: [kictanet] KICTAnet history and Strategic positioning 2007 > To: jwalu(a)yahoo.com > Cc: "KICTAnet ICT Policy Discussions" <kictanet(a)lists.kictanet.or.ke> > Date: Thursday, April 19, 2012, 2:35 PM > > Hi Alice > The attachment appears to have 13 pages (contrary to the TOC). > Rgds > F > > On 19 April 2012 11:12, <alice(a)apc.org> wrote: > > Dear all > > > > Please find attached a one pager about KICTANet and a study conducted in > > 2007 by Summit Strategies that looked at positioning KICTANet. > > > > Hope this is useful as we continue discussions on the future of the network > > > > Best > > Alice > > > > _______________________________________________ > > kictanet mailing list > > kictanet(a)lists.kictanet.or.ke > > http://lists.kictanet.or.ke/mailman/listinfo/kictanet > > > > Unsubscribe or change your options at http://lists.kictanet.or.ke/mailman/options/kictanet/francis.hook%40gmail.c… > > > > The Kenya ICT Action Network (KICTANet) is a multi-stakeholder platform for people and institutions interested and involved in ICT policy and regulation. The network aims to act as a catalyst for reform in the ICT sector in support of the national aim of ICT enabled growth and development. > > > > KICTANetiquette : Adhere to the same standards of acceptable behaviors online that you follow in real life: respect people's times and bandwidth, share knowledge, don't flame or abuse or personalize, respect privacy, do not spam, do not market your wares or qualifications. > > > > -- > Francis Hook > +254 733 504561 > > _______________________________________________ > kictanet mailing list > kictanet(a)lists.kictanet.or.ke > http://lists.kictanet.or.ke/mailman/listinfo/kictanet > > Unsubscribe or change your options at http://lists.kictanet.or.ke/mailman/options/kictanet/jwalu%40yahoo.com > > The Kenya ICT Action Network (KICTANet) is a multi-stakeholder platform for people and institutions interested and involved in ICT policy and regulation. The network aims to act as a catalyst for reform in the ICT sector in support of the national aim of ICT enabled growth and development. > > KICTANetiquette : Adhere to the same standards of acceptable behaviors online that you follow in real life: respect people's times and bandwidth, share knowledge, don't flame or abuse or personalize, respect privacy, do not spam, do not market your wares or qualifications. > > _______________________________________________ > kictanet mailing list > kictanet(a)lists.kictanet.or.ke > http://lists.kictanet.or.ke/mailman/listinfo/kictanet > > Unsubscribe or change your options at http://lists.kictanet.or.ke/mailman/options/kictanet/alice%40apc.org > > The Kenya ICT Action Network (KICTANet) is a multi-stakeholder platform for people and institutions interested and involved in ICT policy and regulation. The network aims to act as a catalyst for reform in the ICT sector in support of the national aim of ICT enabled growth and development. > > KICTANetiquette : Adhere to the same standards of acceptable behaviors online that you follow in real life: respect people's times and bandwidth, share knowledge, don't flame or abuse or personalize, respect privacy, do not spam, do not market your wares or qualifications.

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Report Shows How ICT is Aiding Citizen Participation in Uganda
by Lillian Nalwoga 19 Apr '12

19 Apr '12

Hello listers, This is to share with you a new report by the Collaboration on International ICT Policy in East and Southern Africa (CIPESA), which illustrates how Information and Communication Technologies (ICT) are aiding citizen participation in Uganda. It also points to the challenges that need to be overcome for these technologies to have a wider impact on governance. The,report can be downloaded from our website at http://www.cipesa.org/news/1-latest-news/142-new-report-shows-how-ict-is-ai… Enjoy, -- Lillian

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KICTAnet history and Strategic positioning 2007
by alice＠apc.org 19 Apr '12

19 Apr '12

Dear all Please find attached a one pager about KICTANet and a study conducted in 2007 by Summit Strategies that looked at positioning KICTANet. Hope this is useful as we continue discussions on the future of the network Best Alice

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Kictanet alive.. kickin, or kicked into the dustbin...!
by Harry Delano 19 Apr '12

19 Apr '12

I'm not sure which is which, until I see some response on whether we might just as well happen to be drifting along rudderless.!! Harry

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Re: [kictanet] Kictanet alive.. kickin, or kicked into KICTAnet 2.0
by Matunda Nyanchama 18 Apr '12

18 Apr '12

Friends Newspaper folks know the art: capture someone attention and s/he may buy the paper. And yes, sometime the headlines scream more than (and even opposite stuff to) the story itself. Yet, they would have succeeded in us reading the story. If the intention was to communicate, they would have succeeded in their objective. There is also a quote (don't recall by who?) to the effect that "any publicity is good publicity"; and that it gives an opportunity for the subject to communicate their message. It has just happened here. With that headline many now know about IBM's cloud services and innovation thereof; and it has given a chance to Paul Kukubo to enunciate more on how IBM re-seller model has benefited local ICT firms. .... All these: things we would not have known. Gilda is on the money about stereotyping, pigeon-holing and paint-brushing entire populations. It is a dangerous proposition that may work in a comedy club versus being the basis of policy and action. And it could become self-fulfilling prophecy for reasons of what psychologists term Pygamilion Effect (people live up to the expectations of others and their environment). Good evening.! ---------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------- 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.

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W111q1q
by Snehar Shah 18 Apr '12

18 Apr '12

Sent from my iPhone ############################################################################################################################################################################# IMPORTANT. This e-mail message and any attachments are strictly confidential and may be protected by law. This message is intended only for the named recipient(s) above. If you have received this message in error, or are not the named recipient(s), please immediately notify the sender and delete this e-mail message. Any unauthorized view, usage or disclosure of this message is prohibited. Since e-mail messages may not be reliable, France Telecom Group shall not be liable for any message if modified, changed or falsified. Additionally the recipient should ensure they are actually virus free. #############################################################################################################################################################################

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Open data blog by Ushahidi
by Paul Kukubo 18 Apr '12

18 Apr '12

Listers I share here a link http://t.co/OyGiQPo to a blog from Ushahidi co-founder Juliana Rotich on Open Data and open government. It is a great read on the importance of open data and particularly relevant as PS Ndemo leads Kenya's delegation that is currently in Brasilia for the 2nd Annual Open Government Partnership Meeting. It is a great read and helps create understanding on the subject. Paul Kukubo CEO, Kenya ICT Board -- Paul Kukubo Chief Executive Officer, Kenya ICT Board PO Box 27150 - 00100 Nairobi, Kenya 12th Floor, Teleposta Towers Koinange Street Tel +254 20 2089061, +254 20 2211960 Fax: +254 20 2211962 website: www.ict.go.ke local content project: www.tandaa.co.ke, www.facebook.com/tandaakenya twitter:@tandaaKENYA BPO Project: www. doitinkenya.co.ke Digital Villages Project: www.pasha.co.ke personal contacts _______________ Cell: + 254 717 180001 skype: kukubopaul googletalk: pkukubo personal blog: www.paulkukubo.co.ke personal twitter: @pkukubo ____________________ Vision: Kenya becomes a top ten global ICT hub Mission: To champion and actively enable Kenya to adopt and exploit ICT, through promotion of partnerships, investments and infrastructure growth for socio economic enrichment

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Re: [kictanet] IBM leads cloud innovation
by Paul Kukubo 18 Apr '12

18 Apr '12

Robert's headline contradicts the articles actual substance and may send the wrong tone. And if as some on this forum would suggest he did it to be sensational then it is unfortunate that we must be negatively sensationalist or dramatic for effect. Perhaps a factual sensationalistion would better deserved. What the article details is innovation that makes it possible for business to deploy cloud better. IBM have been in cloud for a long time. Indeed our government data centre is an IBM machine and the efforts are now about how to make that a true cloud offering for government. (a discussion for another day). The facts as I read them in the article are that it will be easier to provision cloud services via this model that IBM proposes. Also one interesting fact that comes through is how IBM works with ISVs, essentially channel partners with specialist expertise, as part of its delivery of services. Something they and other multinationals are doing in Kenya and one way for local companies to leverage international Global R&D companies to create jobs and provide services. I happen to know Rod Atkins quoted in the article from his visit to Kenya last year and our subsequent visit to IBM. It is prudent to suggest that we need to stand on the shoulders of these global companies for our local firms to deepen skills and expertise and dominate Africa. There are many emerging Kenyan firms that have skilled up to be channel partners for global firms across various areas. Indeed many of our largest ICT firms are large because of this reseller model. ICT investors both local and international must get the right messages about this market. And sentiment is part of messaging and is a very strong driver of investment decision making especially in Africa. For those who may not read the article (and I suspect some will not have), it not as it is stated in Robert's headline, about the demise of the company. Paul Kukubo CEO Kenya ICT Board http://www.opengovpartnership.org/On Wednesday, April 18, 2012, Odhiambo Washington wrote: > Hi Robert > > I personally believe in freedom of expression. This forum, IMHO, is open > to all members to express their views/opinions by way of proposition, > opposition and support of views expressed - but within the confines of this > very platform/forum. Whoever called you is some coward who is afraid of > expressing himself publicly. > > Oh, just tell the person they are burrreeeeeeee kabisa! :-) > > On Wed, Apr 18, 2012 at 08:49, robert yawe <robertyawe(a)yahoo.co.uk<javascript:_e({}, 'cvml', 'robertyawe(a)yahoo.co.uk');> > > wrote: > >> Hi Listers, >> >> I have just received a phone call from a very respected member of this >> community, who shall remain unnamed for purposes of his reputation as in >> this case he is acting as a gun for hire. >> >> He indicated that the post below is negative and I need to have a more >> positive approach to my posts. >> >> Mine is to present my case and accept judgement in the court of peer >> opinion, so I ask is this post negative? >> >> In the conversation it was said that most list members avoid contributing >> for fear of being flamed mainly by me, to encourage all to participate I >> promise not to respond to any post that relates to this issue either now or >> in the future. >> >> Moderator, in the event that the majority indicate my post of the >> successful launch of a cloud solution by IBM is negative please delete the >> post and suspend my posting privileges for 1 month or any other period >> deemed appropriate to the extent of cancelling my membership. >> >> Regards >> >> >> Robert Yawe >> KAY System Technologies Ltd >> Phoenix House, 6th Floor >> P O Box 55806 Nairobi, 00200 >> Kenya >> >> Tel: +254722511225, +254202010696 >> ------------------------------ >> *From:* robert yawe <robertyawe(a)yahoo.co.uk> >> *To:* robertyawe(a)yahoo.co.uk >> *Cc:* KICTAnet ICT Policy Discussions <kictanet(a)lists.kictanet.or.ke> >> *Sent:* Wednesday, 18 April 2012, 8:19 >> *Subject:* [kictanet] IBM is dead! >> >> Hi All, >> >> I always said that my short lived mini computer skills will serve me >> again soon, the big boys are back in the game and at the front of the pack >> is old Blue. >> >> http://www.informationweek.com/news/hardware/data_centers/232900099 >> >> Cloud is the death knell for the PC Servers and the rebirth of the >> mainframe team, it is good to be back home with total and absolute control. >> >> Regards >> >> Unsubscribe or change your options at >> http://lists.kictanet.or.ke/mailman/options/kictanet/odhiambo%40gmail.com >> >> The Kenya ICT Action Network (KICTANet) is a multi-stakeholder platform >> for people and institutions interested and involved in ICT policy and >> regulation. The network aims to act as a catalyst for reform in the ICT >> sector in support of the national aim of ICT enabled growth and development. >> >> KICTANetiquette : Adhere to the same standards of acceptable behaviors >> online that you follow in real life: respect people's times and bandwidth, >> share knowledge, don't flame or abuse or personalize, respect privacy, do >> not spam, do not market your wares or qualifications. >> > > > > -- > Best regards, > Odhiambo WASHINGTON, > Nairobi,KE > +254733744121/+254722743223 > _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ > I can't hear you -- I'm using the scrambler. > Please consider the environment before printing this email. > > -- Paul Kukubo Chief Executive Officer, Kenya ICT Board PO Box 27150 - 00100 Nairobi, Kenya 12th Floor, Teleposta Towers Koinange Street Tel +254 20 2089061, +254 20 2211960 Fax: +254 20 2211962 website: www.ict.go.ke local content project: www.tandaa.co.ke, www.facebook.com/tandaakenya twitter:@tandaaKENYA BPO Project: www. doitinkenya.co.ke Digital Villages Project: www.pasha.co.ke personal contacts _______________ Cell: + 254 717 180001 skype: kukubopaul googletalk: pkukubo personal blog: www.paulkukubo.co.ke personal twitter: @pkukubo ____________________ Vision: Kenya becomes a top ten global ICT hub Mission: To champion and actively enable Kenya to adopt and exploit ICT, through promotion of partnerships, investments and infrastructure growth for socio economic enrichment

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e-Pharmacist
by Edwin Onchari 18 Apr '12

18 Apr '12

Hi Listers, Does anyone have an idea if there is a portal/mobile APP where I can check which Chemist is stocking a certain medicine at a particular price? Best Regards, Edwin

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Someone explain this in black and white
by Collins Areba 18 Apr '12

18 Apr '12

http://www.businessdailyafrica.com/Corporate+News/Safaricom+cries+foul+over… Are we now saying its ok for companies providing essential service to sit together over coffee and charge whatever they deem favourable across the board is acceptable? someone with deeper grounding in economics please help me. -- *“The twentieth century has been characterized by three developments of great political importance: the growth of democracy, the growth of corporate power, and the growth of corporate propaganda as a means of protecting corporate power against democracy”*

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eLimu
by Francis Hook 18 Apr '12

18 Apr '12

Good to see such things happening in the education sector. http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=3kKd8VnY0-I&feature=relmfu -- Francis Hook +254 733 504561

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Has Yahoo been hacked?
by robert yawe 18 Apr '12

18 Apr '12

Hi All, A few days ago I raised the fear that my posts were being censored an issue that was put to rest by Walu when he indicated that the Kictanet systems were blocking mail from Yahoo servers, I have noted the same issue when sending mail to various other domains from my yahoo account. Remote host said: 554 5.7.1 Service unavailable; Client host [77.238.189.23] blocked using dnsbl.sorbs.net; Currently Sending Spam See: http://www.sorbs.net/lookup.shtml?77.238.189.23 [RCPT_TO] So I ask, has Yahoo's systems finally been hacked into and could this mean the end of free email as we know it? 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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all that was hidden
by Daniel Waweru 18 Apr '12

18 Apr '12

* > > Thousands of documents detailing some of the most shameful acts and crimes > committed during the final years of the British empire were systematically > destroyed to prevent them falling into the hands of post-independence > governments, an official review has concluded. > > Those papers that survived the purge were flown discreetly to Britain > where they were hidden for 50 years in a secret Foreign Office archive, > beyond the reach of historians and members of the public, and in breach of > legal obligations for them to be transferred into the public domain. * http://www.guardian.co.uk/uk/2012/apr/18/britain-destroyed-records-colonial… See also: http://www.guardian.co.uk/uk/2012/apr/18/barack-obama-father-colonial-list, follow the live blog at: http://www.guardian.co.uk/uk/blog/2012/apr/18/national-archives-release-col…, and Caroline Elkins' argument that the Foreign (and Colonial, as was) Office's reputation for transparency is a complete myth. Daniel Waweru www.kenyaimagine.com Art and analysis; debate and opinion.

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Fwd: [Afpif] Fwd: NEWS RELEASE: New Study Reveals How Internet Exchange Points (IXPs) Spur Internet Growth in Emerging Markets
by Michuki Mwangi 18 Apr '12

18 Apr '12

<Apologies for cross posting> -------- Original Message -------- New Study Reveals How Internet Exchange Points (IXPs) Spur Internet Growth in Emerging Markets Internet Society report demonstrates the significant cost and performance gains in Kenya and Nigeria with IXP development [Washington, D.C. USA and Geneva, Switzerland – 17 April 2012] – The Internet Society today published the results of a study that demonstrates the far-reaching economic and societal benefits of establishing Internet Exchange Points (or IXPs) in emerging markets. The study, commissioned by the Internet Society and conducted by independent strategy and research consultancy, Analysys Mason, examined the critical cost and performance benefits of IXPs in Kenya and Nigeria – two sub-Saharan countries that have been on the leading edge of Internet growth in Africa. Analogous with the role that international airports play in airline traffic, IXPs serve as critical hubs for data traffic exchange in the global Internet infrastructure. Over 350 IXPs around the world enable local Internet Service Providers (ISPs) and Internet backbone carriers to efficiently and cost effectively exchange Internet traffic between them. Many emerging markets do not have well-established IXPs, forcing domestic Internet traffic onto long-distance international links, resulting in significantly higher costs and latency. The new study quantifies for the first time how IXPs enable Kenya and Nigeria to save millions in telecommunications costs and raise additional revenues in these countries while simultaneously speeding local data exchange, and encouraging the development of locally hosted content and services. For example: *The Kenya Internet Exchange Point (KIXP) has dramatically reduced latency of local traffic, speeding data from 200-600ms to 2-10ms on average, while saving local ISPs nearly US$1.5 million per year on international connectivity charges. *In Nigeria, the Internet Exchange Point of Nigeria (IXPN) has experienced a similar reduction in latency while currently saving operators over US$1 million in connectivity costs per year. *In Nigeria, the presence of the IXP has encouraged the repatriation of financial platforms for online banking that were previously hosted overseas, while in Kenya the IXP has helped speed citizens’ access to online tax and customs services offered by the Kenya Revenue Authority. *The presence of effective IXPs induced Google to place a cache in both countries in Spring 2011, which has significantly increased the amount of locally distributed content (notably YouTube videos) at faster speeds. *Improved access to local content has increased usage, helping to increase the mobile data market by at least US$6 million per year in Kenya. “This study puts into clear context the commonly accepted but seldom quantified proposition that IXPs are essential for any country aspiring to tap into the global Internet economy,” said Karen Rose, senior director of development strategy at the Internet Society. “Offering more than just cost and performance benefits, well-run IXPs serve as a catalyst to dramatically enrich a country’s Internet ecosystem, opening a new world of possibilities with comparably minimal investment. We hope that this study will help inform the dialogue among government, business, and technology leaders of emerging countries still struggling with cost and bandwidth issues to show them, in no uncertain terms, the benefits IXPs can yield for developing the most fertile ground possible for Internet growth.” Michael Kende, Analysys Mason partner and lead author on the study, said, “Thanks to the leadership of the Internet Society, this is a unique study that documents and quantifies the benefits of two growing and regionally important IXPs in sub-Saharan Africa. It demonstrates the central role these IXPs have had in developing the Internet ecosystems in each country and how they are paving the way for future growth, including for advanced services such as cloud applications.” Commenting on the study and the growth of the Internet in Africa, Fiona Asonga, chief executive officer of the Telecommunications Services Providers Association of Kenya (TESPOK), stated, "This year marks the 10th anniversary of KIXP and we are proud to have contributed to the tremendous growth of the Internet in Africa during that time. We are pleased that this independent study illustrates the practical value that KIXP currently brings to its members, as well as the important contributions it is making to the broader Internet economy in Kenya." Muhammed Rudman, chief executive officer of the Internet Exchange Point of Nigeria (IXPN), shared his thoughts on the future of the Internet in the region. He commented, "The mission of IXPN is to localize Internet traffic and reduce routing costs, thereby improving the efficiency and effectiveness of the Internet in Nigeria. At the same time, our eyes are very much set towards the future of the Internet in the region. I believe we have only scratched the surface of what IXPN will be able to do for the growth of the Internet in Africa." The study was conducted as part of the Internet Society’s Interconnection and Traffic Exchange Programme, which aims to foster robust, efficient, and cost-effective Internet interconnection environments in emerging economies, and in furtherance of the Internet Society’s overall mission to promote the open development, evolution, and use of the Internet for the benefit of all people throughout the world. The full study is available for download at http://www.internetsociety.org/ixpimpact About the Internet Society The Internet Society is the trusted independent source for Internet information and thought leadership from around the world. With its principled vision and substantial technological foundation, the Internet Society promotes open dialogue on Internet policy, technology and future development among users, companies, governments, and other organizations. Working with its members and Chapters around the world, the Internet Society enables the continued evolution and growth of the Internet for everyone. For more details, visit http://www.internetsociety.org Media Contact: Wende Cover, cover(a)isoc.org, +1-703-439-2773 About Analysys Mason (www.analysysmason.com) Analysys Mason is a global consultancy and research company specializing in telecoms, media and technology (TMT). Our clients in the TMT sectors operate in dynamic markets where change is constant. We help shape their understanding of the future so they can thrive in these demanding conditions. To do that, our consultants have developed rigorous methodologies that deliver real-world results for clients around the world. Media Contact: Gina Ghensi, press(a)analysysmason.com, +44-1223-460-600 _______________________________________________ Afpif mailing list Afpif(a)afpif.org http://lists.afpif.org/mailman/listinfo/afpif

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New Study Reveals How Internet Exchange Points (IXPs) Spur Internet Growth in Emerging Markets
by alice＠apc.org 18 Apr '12

18 Apr '12

Dear all, Very interesting and important study Best Alice http://www.marketwatch.com/story/new-study-reveals-how-internet-exchange-po…

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Safaricom inter-university online customer care competition
by George Nyabuga 17 Apr '12

17 Apr '12

Dear Listers, Safaricom, a Kenyan mobile service provider initiated an inter-university competition for university students pursuing journalism as their future career. The initiative required Journalism students from the different universities to form groups of a maximum of 5 individuals and come up with a Video advert that would promote the Safaricom online customer care services. Some of the Universities participating in the competition include our very own, The University of Nairobi, Daystar University, Kenyatta University, USIU among others. Out of a total number of 42 groups competing for the top slots, the University of Nairobi emerged among the top ten. A group of five students, SAFARIZ aka BIG 5, from the University of Nairobi School of Journalism were honored to have their video selected to get to the next stage of the competition. The group that consists of two men and 3 ladies- Eric Ndungu, Collins Kemboi, Yvonne Ogwang, Maimuna Chuba and Joy Wahome, all 2nd Year students of the School of Journalism were the brains behind the idea and comprised the cast aided by some of their colleagues. In this second part of the competition, the group that gets the highest number of views of their video emerges victorious .The students from the School of Journalism request for your support by viewing their video on you tube by following this link: http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=pJJLSfiJ3xE, or search for SAFARIZ AKA BIG 5 on You Tube. Kindly support them by viewing this video that showcases the students creative capabilities and will also motivate them to be more innovative, creative and independent. http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=pJJLSfiJ3xE -- Dr George Nyabuga Associate Director School of Journalism & Mass Communication University of Nairobi Education Building Harry Thuku Road PO Box 30197 - 00100 Nairobi, Kenya Tel: +254(0)20 318262 Fax: +254(0)20 2229168 Mobile: +254 (0)72151 6573 Email: gnyabuga(a)uonbi.ac.ke, gnyabuga(a)yahoo.co.uk www.uonbi.ac.ke ----------------------------------------- This message has been scanned for viruses and dangerous content by MailScanner, and is believed to be clean. +++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++ UNIVERSITY OF NAIROBI IS ISO CERTIFIED The University of Nairobi is committed to providing quality services to all its clients. The University will monitor and review its quality performance from time to time through an effective implementation of the Quality Management System based on ISO 9001:2008 standard. University of Nairobi Website: http://www.uonbi.ac.ke/ +++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++

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A lurker crawls out of his hole and back
by Chaacha Mwita 16 Apr '12

16 Apr '12

Listers, Did you see this? How can we commercialize this technology? Apparently its been around since the 70s. I swear I could get rich "summoning dead relatives" through this to settle land matters etc. http://venturebeat.com/2012/04/16/tupacs-rapping-hologram-at-coachella-hera… Chaacha.

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Sega Silicon Valley in the News
by Edith Adera 16 Apr '12

16 Apr '12

Listers The attached newspaper article in Today's Business Daily on Sega Silicon Valley may be of interest as Kenya goes the County way! Edith ________________ Edith Ofwona Adera Senior Program Specialist Climate Change and Water Program Agriculture and Environment International Development Research Centre Regional Office for Eastern and Southern Africa Liason House 2nd floor, State House Avenue, Nairobi, Kenya +254-20-2713160/1 | Fax: +254-20-2711063 | Mobile: +254-733-624345 eadera(a)idrc.ca | www.idrc.ca | www.crdi.ca

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Re: [kictanet] Fwd: Your confirmation is required to leave the kictanet mailing list
by robert yawe 16 Apr '12

16 Apr '12

Thanks, I am very humbled? Robert Yawe KAY System Technologies Ltd Phoenix House, 6th Floor P O Box 55806 Nairobi, 00200 Kenya Tel: +254722511225, +254202010696 ________________________________ From: Ali Hussein <ali(a)hussein.me.ke> To: robert yawe <robertyawe(a)yahoo.co.uk> Cc: "info(a)alyhussein.com" <info(a)alyhussein.com>; KICTAnet ICT Policy Discussions <kictanet(a)lists.kictanet.or.ke> Sent: Monday, 16 April 2012, 14:23 Subject: Re: [kictanet] Fwd: Your confirmation is required to leave the kictanet mailing list Robert Sage is a more appropriate word for you... :) Ali Hussein Managing Partner Telemedia Africa Azania Technology Group +254 773/713 601113 "You generally hear that what a man doesn't know doesn't hurt him, but in business what a man doesn't know does hurt.". - E. St. Elmo Lewis, member, Advertising Hall of Fame On Apr 16, 2012, at 2:22 PM, robert yawe <robertyawe(a)yahoo.co.uk> wrote: Hi, > > >Thanks for the reassurance. > > >@Brian, seems you have now been initiated into the secret society of Market Madmen, nobody likes them but everybody needs them > > >Regards > >Robert Yawe >KAY System Technologies Ltd >Phoenix House, 6th Floor >P O Box 55806 Nairobi, 00200 >Kenya > > >Tel: +254722511225, +254202010696 > > >________________________________ > From: S.M. Muraya <murigi.muraya(a)gmail.com> >To: robertyawe(a)yahoo.co.uk >Cc: KICTAnet ICT Policy Discussions <kictanet(a)lists.kictanet.or.ke> >Sent: Saturday, 14 April 2012, 9:33 >Subject: Re: [kictanet] Fwd: Your confirmation is required to leave the kictanet mailing list > > >Could be an error. It happens to me also. You & Yawe should stay put. Diversity of opinion is what sharpens us. >On Apr 14, 2012 9:28 AM, "Brian Munyao Longwe" <blongwe(a)gmail.com> wrote: > >Hmm....seems like someone wants me to leave the list? >> >> >>Hehehehe, >> >> >>Mblayo >> >> >>---------- Forwarded message ---------- >>From: <kictanet-confirm+b5f3e3b40f5c530aef3fc1250890c06439b5326a(a)lists.kictanet.or.ke> >>Date: Fri, Apr 13, 2012 at 9:02 PM >>Subject: Your confirmation is required to leave the kictanet mailing list >>To: blongwe(a)gmail.com >> >> >>Mailing list removal confirmation notice for mailing list kictanet >> >>We have received a request from 62.24.111.251 for the removal of your >>email address, "blongwe(a)gmail.com" from the >>kictanet(a)lists.kictanet.or.ke mailing list. To confirm that you want >>to be removed from this mailing list, simply reply to this message, >>keeping the Subject: header intact. Or visit this web page: >> >> http://lists.kictanet.or.ke/mailman/confirm/kictanet/b5f3e3b40f5c530aef3fc1… >> >> >>Or include the following line -- and only the following line -- in a >>message to kictanet-request(a)lists.kictanet.or.ke: >> >> confirm b5f3e3b40f5c530aef3fc1250890c06439b5326a >> >>Note that simply sending a `reply' to this message should work from >>most mail readers, since that usually leaves the Subject: line in the >>right form (additional "Re:" text in the Subject: is okay). >> >>If you do not wish to be removed from this list, please simply >>disregard this message. If you think you are being maliciously >>removed from the list, or have any other questions, send them to >>kictanet-owner(a)lists.kictanet.or.ke. >> >> >> >> >>-- >> >>Brian Munyao Longwee-mail: blongwe(a)gmail.com >>cell: +254715964281 >>blog : http://zinjlog.blogspot.com >>meta-blog: http://mashilingi.blogspot.com >> >> >>"Give us clear vision that we may know where to stand and what to stand for, because unless we stand for something, we shall fall for anything." >> >>_______________________________________________ >>kictanet mailing list >>kictanet(a)lists.kictanet.or.ke >>http://lists.kictanet.or.ke/mailman/listinfo/kictanet >> >>Unsubscribe or change your options at http://lists.kictanet.or.ke/mailman/options/kictanet/murigi.muraya%40gmail.… >> >>The Kenya ICT Action Network (KICTANet) is a multi-stakeholder platform for people and institutions interested and involved in ICT policy and regulation. The network aims to act as a catalyst for reform in the ICT sector in support of the national aim of ICT enabled growth and development. >> >>KICTANetiquette : Adhere to the same standards of acceptable behaviors online that you follow in real life: respect people's times and bandwidth, share knowledge, don't flame or abuse or personalize, respect privacy, do not spam, do not market your wares or qualifications. >> >_______________________________________________ >kictanet mailing list >kictanet(a)lists.kictanet.or.ke >http://lists.kictanet.or.ke/mailman/listinfo/kictanet > >Unsubscribe or change your options at http://lists.kictanet.or.ke/mailman/options/kictanet/robertyawe%40yahoo.co.… > >The Kenya ICT Action Network (KICTANet) is a multi-stakeholder platform for people and institutions interested and involved in ICT policy and regulation. The network aims to act as a catalyst for reform in the ICT sector in support of the national aim of ICT enabled growth and development. > >KICTANetiquette : Adhere to the same standards of acceptable behaviors online that you follow in real life: respect people's times and bandwidth, share knowledge, don't flame or abuse or personalize, respect privacy, do not spam, do not market your wares or qualifications. > > _______________________________________________ >kictanet mailing list >kictanet(a)lists.kictanet.or.ke >http://lists.kictanet.or.ke/mailman/listinfo/kictanet > >Unsubscribe or change your options at http://lists.kictanet.or.ke/mailman/options/kictanet/info%40alyhussein.com > >The Kenya ICT Action Network (KICTANet) is a multi-stakeholder platform for people and institutions interested and involved in ICT policy and regulation. The network aims to act as a catalyst for reform in the ICT sector in support of the national aim of ICT enabled growth and development. > >KICTANetiquette : Adhere to the same standards of acceptable behaviors online that you follow in real life: respect people's times and bandwidth, share knowledge, don't flame or abuse or personalize, respect privacy, do not spam, do not market your wares or qualifications.

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Re: [kictanet] Kictanet alive.. kickin, or kicked into KICTAnet 2.0
by Matunda Nyanchama 16 Apr '12

16 Apr '12

Friends, Great discussion, taking stock of kictanet. Personally, I have found discussions here most informative; in a way, kictanet offers the idealism (free ideas sharing, focus on problem-solving and openness to new ideas, etc.) Adapting to the changing times in terms of how we communicate, issues of the day, changing attitudes, and the like is key. I found the following interesting; written in 1995 as the Internet was about to take off in earnest, it is worth reading and consideration. I am sure the kictanet (in one form or other) is one of those that would live "happily hereafter". Enjoy. ----------- The Natural Life Cycle Of Mailing Lists, revisited Online tools and places have changed enormously over the past ten years, not least with the development of personal blogs to complement community forums... to the extent that these have been labelled 'old skool'. One old tool that has survived and grown is the mailing list, with systems like Yahoogroupsand Smartgroups offering anyone free add-on facilities far more sophisticated than we enjoyed in 1994 (calendars, file stores, polls, picture galleries and so on). I'm finding lists less inviting these days, with more than enough mail, and the shift of many hitherto list contributors to blogging. I'm unsubscribing, or checking the web interface occasdionally. But what new? Enthusiasms wax and wane. Here's a reminder from that earlier age. The Natural Life Cycle Of Mailing Lists by Kat Nagel, December 1994 Every list seems to go through the same cycle: Initial enthusiasm (people introduce themselves, and gush a lot about how wonderful it is to find kindred souls). Evangelism (people moan about how few folks are posting to the list, and brainstorm recruitment strategies). Growth (more and more people join, more and more lengthy threads develop, occasional off-topic threads pop up). Community (lots of threads, some more relevant than others; lots of information and advice is exchanged; experts help other experts as well as less experienced colleagues; friendships develop; people tease each other; newcomers are welcomed with generosity and patience; everyone -- newbie and expert alike -- feels comfortable asking questions, suggesting answers, and sharing opinions). Discomfort with diversity (the number of messages increases dramatically; not every thread is fascinating to every reader; people start complaining about the signal-to-noise ratio; person 1 threatens to quit if *other* people don't limit discussion to person 1's pet topic; person 2 agrees with person 1; person 3 tells 1 & 2 to lighten up; more bandwidth is wasted complaining about off-topic threads than is used for the threads themselves; everyone gets annoyed). Finally: Smug complacency and stagnation (the purists flame everyone who asks an 'old' question or responds with humor to a serious post; newbies are rebuffed; traffic drops to a doze- producing level of a few minor issues; all interesting discussions happen by private email and are limited to a few participants; the purists spend lots of time self-righteously congratulating each other on keeping off-topic threads off the list). OR Maturity (a few people quit in a huff; the rest of the participants stay near stage 4, with stage 5 popping up briefly every few weeks; many people wear out their second or third 'delete' key, but the list lives contentedly ever after). ---------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------- 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.

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Fwd: Your confirmation is required to leave the kictanet mailing list
by Brian Munyao Longwe 16 Apr '12

16 Apr '12

Hmm....seems like someone wants me to leave the list? Hehehehe, Mblayo ---------- Forwarded message ---------- From: < kictanet-confirm+b5f3e3b40f5c530aef3fc1250890c06439b5326a(a)lists.kictanet.or.ke > Date: Fri, Apr 13, 2012 at 9:02 PM Subject: Your confirmation is required to leave the kictanet mailing list To: blongwe(a)gmail.com Mailing list removal confirmation notice for mailing list kictanet We have received a request from 62.24.111.251 for the removal of your email address, "blongwe(a)gmail.com" from the kictanet(a)lists.kictanet.or.ke mailing list. To confirm that you want to be removed from this mailing list, simply reply to this message, keeping the Subject: header intact. Or visit this web page: http://lists.kictanet.or.ke/mailman/confirm/kictanet/b5f3e3b40f5c530aef3fc1… Or include the following line -- and only the following line -- in a message to kictanet-request(a)lists.kictanet.or.ke: confirm b5f3e3b40f5c530aef3fc1250890c06439b5326a Note that simply sending a `reply' to this message should work from most mail readers, since that usually leaves the Subject: line in the right form (additional "Re:" text in the Subject: is okay). If you do not wish to be removed from this list, please simply disregard this message. If you think you are being maliciously removed from the list, or have any other questions, send them to kictanet-owner(a)lists.kictanet.or.ke. -- Brian Munyao Longwe e-mail: blongwe(a)gmail.com cell: +254715964281 blog : http://zinjlog.blogspot.com meta-blog: http://mashilingi.blogspot.com "Give us clear vision that we may know where to stand and what to stand for, because unless we stand for something, we shall fall for anything."

5 4

Kictanet spam settings: Delivery Status Notification (Failure)
by Kivuva 14 Apr '12

14 Apr '12

I also tried to respond to an email and my response was categorized as spam. Something wrong with the list settings? ---------- Forwarded message ---------- From: Mail Delivery Subsystem <mailer-daemon(a)googlemail.com> Date: Wed, 11 Apr 2012 10:57:25 +0000 Subject: Delivery Status Notification (Failure) To: lordmwesh(a)gmail.com Delivery to the following recipient failed permanently: kictanet(a)lists.kictanet.or.ke Technical details of permanent failure: Google tried to deliver your message, but it was rejected by the recipient domain. We recommend contacting the other email provider for further information about the cause of this error. The error that the other server returned was: 550 550-Blacklisted URL in message: kictanet.or.ke. See 550 http://www.spamhaus.org/lookup.lasso?dnsbl=domain. (state 18). ----- Original message ----- DKIM-Signature: v=1; a=rsa-sha256; c=relaxed/relaxed; d=gmail.com; s=20120113; h=mime-version:sender:in-reply-to:references:from:date :x-google-sender-auth:message-id:subject:cc:content-type; bh=hlJQShqfvSXD3ZTGHCk8rqpU8mYzSh7oSDmfpm2Lkso=; b=dbNSYcF5jDKg/z+iiMxswo2LuiZ5Mj9W0RfgwZNqV7E/I/uXVEizKc7fy1xIfRF3Lb lY1MrB07uP1v47iDScuPkKXdCOoimrOEk6BcKSxhpCTuSRSSxphrG9h+TRJJBidKkgJH GBIxY14vaIx0q0k/644zT1Ba5VeQ+H5ya6dy8afJYJIoUKDhID99Ld8sArkKCMk9RgZO 6K/BkauxkNqxZuSmN1mAvd3ue2BYyEo4mYBvefaNIQjGgRb8MIXeaOBkoyb+uViJAZC3 0qRy8LT4nm4ef/QI2OJWmqEF3tRklXd8OPRCvRWMpLGOQFU6eDa6u+1IEPPMPfozro3Z msvA== Received: by 10.112.85.230 with SMTP id k6mr2721191lbz.49.1334141808275; Wed, 11 Apr 2012 03:56:48 -0700 (PDT) MIME-Version: 1.0 Sender: lordmwesh(a)gmail.com Received: by 10.152.145.133 with HTTP; Wed, 11 Apr 2012 03:56:28 -0700 (PDT) In-Reply-To: <1334078971.15402.YahooMailClassic(a)web161702.mail.bf1.yahoo.com> References: <1334078971.15402.YahooMailClassic(a)web161702.mail.bf1.yahoo.com> From: Kivuva <Kivuva(a)transworldafrica.com> Date: Wed, 11 Apr 2012 13:56:28 +0300 X-Google-Sender-Auth: 2SczzVfAM9w9noxnWaGty2gHZUE Message-ID: <CAEhPqwqtVFRZLKnuT497XWRkGOteD0QR3r5i7G-quXqqn1AxTg(a)mail.gmail.com> Subject: Re: [kictanet] Fw: [AfriNIC-rpd] AfriNIC-16 Fellows/Scholarships Cc: KICTAnet ICT Policy Discussions <kictanet(a)lists.kictanet.or.ke> Content-Type: multipart/alternative; boundary=f46d0401fa118ff23e04bd6518e8 Thanks Walubengo, I will represent. Regards On 10 April 2012 20:29, Walubengo J <jwalu(a)yahoo.com> wrote: > Looks like one of our own is one of the succesfull chaps who got a > scholarship to attend the upcoming AfriNIC-16 meeting in Gambia. Congrats > are in order for Kivuva Mwendwa. Hope u learn something to keep the > internet fire burning in Africa. > > walu. > > --- On *Tue, 4/10/12, Babusha Radhakissoon <babusha(a)afrinic.net>* wrote: > > > From: Babusha Radhakissoon <babusha(a)afrinic.net> > Subject: [AfriNIC-rpd] AfriNIC 16 Fellows > To: rpd(a)afrinic.net > Date: Tuesday, April 10, 2012, 9:00 AM > > Dear Colleagues, > > AfriNIC is pleased to announce that the fellowship selection process is > now complete and the following applicants (from 67 applications > received) were selected to receive a fellowship to attend the AfriNIC-16 > Public Policy Meeting which will be held from 12 to 18 May 2012, The > Gambia. > > The fellows are: > 1. Rising Osazuwa from Nigeria > 2. Mathias Hougbo from Benin > 3. Mwendwa Kivuva from Kenya > 4. Alex Kisakye from Uganda > 5. Towela Jere from Malawi > > Congratulations to the winners and we look forward to collaborating with > you in Internet development initiatives in the African Region. > > We wish to thank you all for your applications and interest in attending > AfriNIC events and we look forward to your participation! > > Please be advised that fellowships will also be offered for AfriNIC-17 > and the community will be informed when the application period opens. > > There will be remote participation for those who will not be able to > join us in The Gambia, further details will be available on our > website shortly. > > Additional information regarding the meeting is available on the > following URL:https://meeting.afrinic.net/afrinic-16/ > > > Regards, > > AfriNIC Meeting Team > > > _______________________________________________ > rpd mailing list > rpd(a)afrinic.net <http://mc/compose?to=rpd@afrinic.net> -- ______________________ Mwendwa Kivuva For Business Development Transworld Computer Channels Cel: 0722402248 twitter.com/lordmwesh transworldAfrica.com | Fluent in computing kenya.or.ke | The Kenya we know

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FW: Kictanet alive.. kickin, or kicked into KICTAnet 2.0
by Grace Githaiga 13 Apr '12

13 Apr '12

Sharing this with all of you. From Former PS Stanley Murage. ----------------------------------------------------------------------------------- If you have the strength to survive, you have the power to succeed. Life is all about choices we make depending upon the situation we are in. Go forth and rule the World! > Subject: Re: [kictanet] Kictanet alive.. kickin, or kicked into KICTAnet 2.0 > To: ggithaiga(a)hotmail.com > From: stanley_murage(a)yahoo.com > Date: Fri, 13 Apr 2012 13:25:46 +0000 > > Dear madam, > My name is Stanley Murage and I am one of those present on the list in an unobtrusive way. This way, we so called lurkers, facilitate open and free discussion without officialdom, exercise of privilege, and duress. KICTAnet, alive this way and with its lurkers, influences national policy more than is known or appreciated. Most lists like this will, necessarily have their key players, but invariably, will have their lurkers nationally and internationally. > > I tried to have a list like this in the late nineties (as PS for Transport and Communications) for public responses on Kenya's first Internet Policy, and could only raise a few commentators like Eng Rege (then not a honourable but a wonderful professional), Dr Ochuodo, and a few others. See where we are today. We are interpreting and concluding ad we listen unobtrusively. > > KICTAnet should therefore, in my view, soldier on but, of course, with innovation, vision, and relevance to the challenges of the times. > > Hope my views help. > > Stanley Murage > Sent from my BlackBerry® > > -----Original Message----- > From: Grace Githaiga <ggithaiga(a)hotmail.com> > Sender: kictanet-bounces+stanley_murage=yahoo.com(a)lists.kictanet.or.ke > Date: Fri, 13 Apr 2012 12:36:29 > To: <stanley_murage(a)yahoo.com> > Cc: <kictanet(a)lists.kictanet.or.ke> > Subject: Re: [kictanet] Kictanet alive.. kickin, or kicked into KICTAnet 2.0 > > _______________________________________________ > kictanet mailing list > kictanet(a)lists.kictanet.or.ke > http://lists.kictanet.or.ke/mailman/listinfo/kictanet > > Unsubscribe or change your options at http://lists.kictanet.or.ke/mailman/options/kictanet/stanley_murage%40yahoo… > > The Kenya ICT Action Network (KICTANet) is a multi-stakeholder platform for people and institutions interested and involved in ICT policy and regulation. The network aims to act as a catalyst for reform in the ICT sector in support of the national aim of ICT enabled growth and development. > > KICTANetiquette : Adhere to the same standards of acceptable behaviors online that you follow in real life: respect people's times and bandwidth, share knowledge, don't flame or abuse or personalize, respect privacy, do not spam, do not market your wares or qualifications.

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Fwd: Anita Borg Change Agent Awards 2012 nominations now open – Deadline is May 15, 2012
by Alice Munyua 12 Apr '12

12 Apr '12

Dear All, Thousands of women throughout the world are leading technological innovation. They often go unnoticed and unrewarded. The Anita Borg Institute <http://anitaborg.org/> has created a set of awards to honor these distinguished women and those who are working towards the recruitment, retention and advancement of women in technology. *Please review this brief summary of the awards currently open and nominate a deserving team or candidate or forward this information to someone who might be interested.* Anita Borg Change Agent Awards <http://anitaborg.org/initiatives/awards/change-agent-awards/> *2012 nominations now open ? Deadline is May 15, 2012* /The Change Agent Awards honor technical women that live and work outside the United States. They are change agents in their community ? working to attract and support women in technology in their region. Recipients are recognized for their technical leadership and advocacy work. The award recipients will be honored at the Grace Hopper Celebration of Women in Computing in Baltimore, Maryland in October 2012./ /Please let me know if you have questions about the /Anita Borg Change Agent Awards <http://anitaborg.org/initiatives/awards/change-agent-awards/>. /Thank you,/ /Muthoni /

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Opendata dataset access
by David Lemayian 12 Apr '12

12 Apr '12

Hello Robert, I've been working with the Opendata platform for a while now and I could be of assistance. Kind regards, David Lemayian. ---------- Forwarded message ---------- 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> Date: Thu, 12 Apr 2012 05:57:14 +0100 (BST) Subject: [kictanet] Opendata dataset access Hi, I requested for a data set on the Opendata platform and received an email confirming that the dataset was now available unfortunately no instructions where given on how to access it and I have finally given in. Is there anyone out there who is familiar with accessing specific data sets, any assistance at this stage will definitely reduce my hair loss. Regards Robert Yawe KAY System Technologies Ltd Phoenix House, 6th Floor P O Box 55806 Nairobi, 00200 Kenya Tel: +254722511225, +254202010696 -- David Lemayian E: dlemayian(a)gmail.com | T: +254721107650 | Skype: David.Lemayian | Twitter: @DavidLemayian <http://twitter.com/DavidLemayian> | W: www.davidlemayian.com Techpreneur . Hiker . Photographer . Tech Consultant . Developer . Winner Google ADC Sub-Saharan Africa

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Re: [kictanet] Opendata dataset access
by robert yawe 12 Apr '12

12 Apr '12

Hi Linet, Here is a link to the request that we made on Opendata https://kenya.socrata.com/nominate/197 Regards Robert Yawe KAY System Technologies Ltd Phoenix House, 6th Floor P O Box 55806 Nairobi, 00200 Kenya Tel: +254722511225, +254202010696 ________________________________ From: Linet Kwamboka <lkwamboka(a)ict.go.ke> To: Paul Kukubo <pkukubo(a)ict.go.ke> Cc: robert yawe <robertyawe(a)yahoo.co.uk>; KICTAnet ICT Policy Discussions <kictanet(a)lists.kictanet.or.ke> Sent: Thursday, 12 April 2012, 10:01 Subject: Re: [kictanet] Opendata dataset access Robert, Please let me know which datasets you are looking for and i will be of assistance. Thanks On Wed, Apr 11, 2012 at 10:41 PM, Paul Kukubo <pkukubo(a)ict.go.ke> wrote: Robert > > >Linet Kwamboka the open data coordinator will be in touch with you about this shortly. Normally the data sets you see on the site at www.opendata.go.ke are all that's available online for download. > > >Let us know if the issue is unresolved. > > >Paul Kukubo >CEO, Kenya ICT Board > >On Thursday, April 12, 2012, robert yawe wrote: > >Hi, >> >> >>I requested for a data set on the Opendata platform and received an email confirming that the dataset was now available unfortunately no instructions where given on how to access it and I have finally given in. >> >> >>Is there anyone out there who is familiar with accessing specific data sets, any assistance at this stage will definitely reduce my hair loss. >> >> >>Regards >> >>Robert Yawe >>KAY System Technologies Ltd >>Phoenix House, 6th Floor >>P O Box 55806 Nairobi, 00200 >>Kenya >> >> >>Tel: +254722511225, +254202010696 > >-- >Paul Kukubo >Chief Executive Officer, Kenya ICT Board >PO Box 27150 - 00100 >Nairobi, Kenya > >12th Floor, Teleposta Towers Koinange Street > >Tel +254 20 2089061, +254 20 2211960 >Fax: +254 20 2211962 >website: www.ict.go.ke >local content project: www.tandaa.co.ke, www.facebook.com/tandaakenya >twitter:@tandaaKENYA >BPO Project: www. doitinkenya.co.ke >Digital Villages Project: www.pasha.co.ke > > >personal contacts >_______________ > >Cell: + 254 717 180001 > > >skype: kukubopaul >googletalk: pkukubo >personal blog: www.paulkukubo.co.ke >personal twitter: @pkukubo > > >____________________ >Vision: Kenya becomes a top ten global ICT hub > >Mission: To champion and actively enable Kenya to adopt and exploit ICT, through promotion of partnerships, investments and infrastructure growth for socio economic enrichment > -- -- Linet Kenya Open Data Initiative. Open Government Partnership. Kenya ICT Board

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Opendata dataset access
by robert yawe 12 Apr '12

12 Apr '12

Hi, I requested for a data set on the Opendata platform and received an email confirming that the dataset was now available unfortunately no instructions where given on how to access it and I have finally given in. Is there anyone out there who is familiar with accessing specific data sets, any assistance at this stage will definitely reduce my hair loss. 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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Startup Genome Project
by robert yawe 12 Apr '12

12 Apr '12

Hi, I have just finished using the startupcompass benchmarking tool for an incubatee that I also mentor and the results are just mind blowing. This tool is what all those agencies running around giving away money and awards to technology startups need to use to separate the chuff from the grain. The report is critical for the country as a whole to ascertain if we have the right ecosystem for the nurturing of technology startups. Here is the link to the report http://blog.startupcompass.co/pages/startup-genome-report-1, the link to the survey tool is https://www.startupcompass.co/survey. I strongly recommend that everyone out there working on a startup or providing services to the sector should carry out the survey for the organisations. 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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Media and Local Content
by Barrack Otieno 11 Apr '12

11 Apr '12

Guys, I think media houses are doing a good job promoting local content, today i actually watched a translated Kikuyu Sitcom featuring one Githendu on Kiss TV from start to finish, despite a few grammatical errors the message was quite clear, natulenge juu. Best Regards -- Barrack O. Otieno +254721325277 +254-20-2498789 Skype: barrack.otieno http://www.otienobarrack.me.ke/

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Fw: [Apcwomen-meet] GRANTS FOR HACKER SCHOOL
by Florence Etta 11 Apr '12

11 Apr '12

FYI Sorry for cross posting! --------------------------------------------- Women, want to sharpen your computer & internet skills? Etsy offering 20 grants to "Hacker School" for women: http://d.pr/3KYC Today, in conjunction withHacker School, Etsy is announcing a new scholarship and sponsorship program for women in technology: we’ll be hosting the summer 2012 session of Hacker School in the Etsy headquarters, and we’re providing ten Etsy Hacker Grants of $5,000 each — a total of $50,000 — to women who want to join but need financial support to do so. Our goal is to bring 20 women to New York to participate, and we hope this will be the first of many steps to encourage more women into engineering at Etsy and across the industry. Hacker School Hacker School is a New York-based project described by its founders (David Albert, Nicholas Bergson-Shilcock, and Sonali Sridhar) as “a three-month, immersive school for becoming a better programmer. It’s like a writers’ retreat for hackers.” I love their focus on open-source software, on coding over building a startup, and especially on having a productive classroom environment that’s free from the negative conversational habits that all nerds sometimes fall into. They establish rules such as, “No feigning surprise — ‘You don’t know who RICHARD STALLMAN is!?’” Working to make a comfortable and supportive classroom environment is a great example of their educational insight and approach, and helps to address one of the big points of dissatisfaction female computer science students tend to experience. In Hacker School’s current batch, however, there is only one female student out of 20 (and yes, I am working on hiring her). Talking with them, they said all the same things I Read more at link: http://d.pr/3KYC _______________________________________________ Apcwomen-meet mailing list Apcwomen-meet(a)lists.apcwomen.org http://lists.apcwomen.org/cgi-bin/mailman/listinfo/apcwomen-meet

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AfriNIC is now hiring an IP Number Analyst (Hostmaster) .
by Alice Munyua 11 Apr '12

11 Apr '12

This might be of interest to some. Best Alice http://www.afrinic.net/job/jobs2012/afjob_ia201204.htm About AfriNIC AfriNIC is the Registry for Internet Number Resources for Africa, and the Indian Ocean region. AfriNIC is a non-governmental, and not for profit organisation registered in Mauritius to provide Internet number resource management and some coordination services to ISP in Africa and Indian Ocean. AfriNIC also develops and operates user services for its members across the continent, and serves the Internet community as a whole by providing registration services for number resources allocated in its service region.

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Re: [kictanet] [Skunkworks] Even Safaricom these days thinks KIXP is non-existent!
by Michuki Mwangi 11 Apr '12

11 Apr '12

Hi Prof, Very good points you raise. Please see my comments inline. On 4/11/12 6:35 AM, Meoli Kashorda wrote: > Dear John G and Michuki, > > Why are we not using traffic statistics to answer all these questions? > How much traffic are the different ASes at KIXP generating or picking? > Give us the statistics in the last one month then we shall know if they > are really at KIXP! How much of the traffic is due to Google or Akamai > caches? > Majority of the networks connected at KIXP are eyeball networks. The only content based networks being KRA and KENIC. By extension Google Cache is available via KDN. Of these the Google cache is responsible for at least 80% of the aggregate traffic at KIXP. The rest of the traffic is split across http and email access between the different ASN's with KRA being the largest generator of http traffic. Akamai traffic is not yet finalized therefore no measurements are available at the moment. We however estimate that it will equal to the current 600 - 800mbps of traffic generated by the Google cache. > The real problem in Kenya is not at the KIXP, it is in the ASes and user > network that are not hosting or generating much local traffic. Well observed. The challenge is attracting International content providers by leveraging the large eyeball network at KIXP. > Who is > really promoting local content and local hosting? That is the area that > needs to be regulated not IXP - read about I-Node in Japan to see how to > support the SMEs that will generate content. I predict that the Kenyan > data centers will soon start offering IXP services without further > regulation. > This is where KIXP plans to be at every carrier neutral data center in Kenya. However, as your rightfully observe content development and hosting is something that needs strategic engagement. The bit i like is that hosting has acquired a new buzz word aka "cloud". If only all those taking the cloud services would settle for Kenyan based cloud solutions. FYI, Africa has an estimated 84,000 square meters of raised floor data center capacity or 39% of London’s capacity is 215,000 square meters (by end 2011). Most of the space/capacity being located in South Africa. This means that we need to look at hosting from a strategic point of view if we are remain competitive in the region. The probable place to start is by repatriating the "local content" thats hosted abroad. But this will require incentives for the content owners to consider the option. > By the way, the Gambia is very far and it is very expensive to get > there! Start by visiting the 10 top ASes or the ASes that seem to be > having problems - not hard since over 90% of Internet traffic generated > by mobile operators according to CCK. > This is an ongoing process and we are in constant communications with the members. For instance, what we observed is that the routing issues experienced are as a result of the changes implemented during the submarine cable cuts. It is evident that training needs to be done to resolve the technical issues. For the next phase, the issue is how to grow content and that is not just a policy issue but a business consideration as well. Regards, Michuki.

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Re: [kictanet] [Skunkworks] Even Safaricom these days thinks KIXP is non-existent!
by Michuki Mwangi 10 Apr '12

10 Apr '12

Hi Brian, et al, See my comments inline. On 4/10/12 2:32 PM, Brian Munyao Longwe wrote: > 1. Tom Omariba (MTN Business)- Chairman > > 2. Chris Senanu (Access Kenya)– Vice Chairman > > 3. Kenneth Munyi (Iway Africa)- Treasurer > > 4. Michuki Mwangi (Internet Society) – Chief Technical Officer > > 5. Tejpal Bedi (Chair,Kenya IT and Outsourcing Society)- Director > > 6. Michael Terik (Kenyaweb.Com)- Director > > 7. Beatrice Mudhune (Internet Solutions)- Director > > 8. Abduaziz Osman (Sahannet Ltd.)- Director > > 9. Laurnet Giraud (Orange Kenya)– Director > > > > This is the crux of the matter. Anyone familiar with company law knows > that the directors and shareholders of the company can elect at any time > to amend the articles and memorandum (within the confines of the Company > Act). If TESPOK really wanted KIXP Ltd to be independent they would have > taken this action ages ago. Which brings me back to my original point - > KIXP Ltd is captive to TESPOK whims. It might be difficult to unentangle > the two now that their fortunes have been so closely mixed up. All of > KIXPs income is paid into TESPOK accounts, and thereby subject to > discretionary use by TESPOK. Is there a governance problem here? I think > so... for years the dust has been swept under the carpet, can we grow up > and make sure that our institutions, especially those as critical as > KIXP have the right structures in place? > > Brian, considering that you were involved in the process of setting up TESPOK and KIXP, and in understanding of the list of members (that connect to or get services from KIXP) help me understand the following. 1. What was the objective of TESPOK at setup?. 2. Why was TESPOK involved in the setup of KIXP - what was the objective then. Does it mean that if CCK did not pose a license requirement then KIXP Ltd would not have been setup? 3. What would be the objective of changing this TESPOK/KIXP model today - what has changed?. 4. What would be different about the board of the KIXP from the current TESPOK board. (see 2 above). 5. In your earlier post you referred to KIXP as "weak KIXP that cannot seem to consistently engage newcomers to the industry with the benefits of local traffic exchange." Could you please substantiate your comments. In your earlier post "how many of the TEAMs/SEACOM/EASSY bandwidth-holders are peering at KIXP?". I think a more appropriate question would be what percentage of Kenyan Networks (ASN's according to AfriNIC) are visible at KIXP. To this i can answer. We have over 80% of Kenya's ASNs. 52 of the 62 allocated by AfriNIC are visible at KIXP (as at Jan 2011). Though its 90% since some of the ASNs are of companies that have been acquired, closed shop or using satellite only, etc. In addition, there were 55 ASN's from outside Kenya visible from the KIXP of which >30 were from East African countries and 13 from US. In summary there are 107 ASNs from 17 countries reachable via KIXP. Therefore and selectively quoting your earlier email "KIXP would become the de-facto facility for providing industry actors with data interconnection and interchange." and i will add "not just for Kenya but the entire African Region." quoting your earlier post "KIXP be given full autonomy ....be run as a business, similar to LINX in the UK, and other successful IXPs around the world." You will be surprised to know the extent at which the TESPOK Board has gone to learn from LINX, AMSIX and other IXPs in the world. For your information, KIXP is a member of the European-IXP Association - https://www.euro-ix.net/news-and-events and the objective is to learn. In this regard, we are well aware of the models used by LINX and others. The fundamental components being that; 1. They all remain non-for-profit entities like TESPOK/KIXP 2. They opened their IXPs to non-ISPs for services. Same for KIXP. 3. They have a business model which bills on port speed. Same for KIXP 4. They are virtual IXPs located in more than one site - KIXP has started this as well (few carrier-neutral data centers in Nairobi). 5. Routers not required at IXP locations (remote peering) - Started since Jan 2012 to reduce entry and operating overheads. 6. LINX has a policy engagement model with Govt. A role played by TESPOK 7. etc. I believe this gives a good overview of the Governance of TESPOK/KIXP in comparison with others. Remember the IXPs and ccTLDs alike are very contentious on governance model since one size doesnt fit all. It is however clear that a successful governance model is what works best for the local Internet community. Our current model is inherent of legacy issues that are still present to date i.e a license from CCK amongst others. However, it has not restrained us from growth, ability to collaborate with stakeholders or deliver on the objective compared to other IXPs setup at the same time in the region. We are the 2nd largest IXP in Sub-sahara Africa after JINX. So my question and its of particular interest to me since am on the board. 1. What would you like to see different with respect to the Governance of TESPOK/KIXP?. 2. What would be the objective and goals of the proposed model? my 2 cents. Regards, Michuki.

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Fw: [AfriNIC-rpd] AfriNIC-16 Fellows/Scholarships
by Walubengo J 10 Apr '12

10 Apr '12

Looks like one of our own is one of the succesfull chaps who got a scholarship to attend the upcoming AfriNIC-16 meeting in Gambia. Congrats are in order for Kivuva Mwendwa. Hope u learn something to keep the internet fire burning in Africa. walu. --- On Tue, 4/10/12, Babusha Radhakissoon <babusha(a)afrinic.net> wrote: From: Babusha Radhakissoon <babusha(a)afrinic.net> Subject: [AfriNIC-rpd] AfriNIC 16 Fellows To: rpd(a)afrinic.net Date: Tuesday, April 10, 2012, 9:00 AM Dear Colleagues, AfriNIC is pleased to announce that the fellowship selection process is now complete and the following applicants (from 67 applications received) were selected to receive a fellowship to attend the AfriNIC-16 Public Policy Meeting which will be held from 12 to 18 May 2012, The Gambia. The fellows are: 1. Rising Osazuwa from Nigeria 2. Mathias Hougbo from Benin 3. Mwendwa Kivuva from Kenya 4. Alex Kisakye from Uganda 5. Towela Jere from Malawi Congratulations to the winners and we look forward to collaborating with you in Internet development initiatives in the African Region. We wish to thank you all for your applications and interest in attending AfriNIC events and we look forward to your participation! Please be advised that fellowships will also be offered for AfriNIC-17 and the community will be informed when the application period opens. There will be remote participation for those who will not be able to join us in The Gambia, further details will be available on our website shortly. Additional information regarding the meeting is available on the following URL:https://meeting.afrinic.net/afrinic-16/ Regards, AfriNIC Meeting Team _______________________________________________ rpd mailing list rpd(a)afrinic.net https://lists.afrinic.net/mailman/listinfo.cgi/rpd

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Censorship & Independence
by robert yawe 10 Apr '12

10 Apr '12

Hi listers, I have noticed that sometimes posts do not appear but when someone responds you notice that their are posts one did not get. My response to Brian Longwe did not appear on the list but when he responded I noticed that he had received it most likely because I had copied the mail directly to him. This issue has come up before and I believe it needs to be put to rest, is there censorship of posts being done and if so how independent then is KICTANET? 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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VoIP Legal Question-set-Assistance please
by Musya Michael 10 Apr '12

10 Apr '12

I am appealing for help in answering the Attached questions based on our(Kenya) regulations. -- Regards, Michael Musya. I can do all things through Christ who strengthens me. Philippians 4:13

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Bye bye SOPA/PIPA, welcome CISPA
by Odhiambo Washington 10 Apr '12

10 Apr '12

http://www.digitaljournal.com/article/322396 -- Best regards, Odhiambo WASHINGTON, Nairobi,KE +254733744121/+254722743223 _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ I can't hear you -- I'm using the scrambler. Please consider the environment before printing this email.

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Re: [kictanet] [Skunkworks] Even Safaricom these days thinks KIXP is non-existent!
by Brian Munyao Longwe 08 Apr '12

08 Apr '12

Well Peter, As mentioned, about 7 or 8 years ago, when I was still on the board of directors of TESPOK, I suggested a governance structure that gave KIXP independence from TESPOK, it's 'mother' institution. The main rationale here was to ensure that KIXP maintains a separate, independent existence, regardless of what happened to TESPOK. This was during a TESPOK strategy meeting where the key message was "The African ISP is dead, long live the African ISP" based on a paper by Russell Southwood of Balancing Act Africa. The essence of which was that with the onslaught of mobile operators going into internet access provision, the only way that ISPs would survive would be through consolidation via mergers/acquisition or a complete redefinition of business focus and strategy. What was evident to me (but seemingly not to others) was that as the ISP industry transformed, there would be fewer players, and thus, less democracy - especially with regards to governance issues. At the same time, KIXP was attracting plenty of interest from non-ISPs and already had non-ISP members such as KENIC, KRA and others - it was evident that the interest would continue, especially as the sector evolved with greater participation from content creators, hosting companies, data-centres etc... KIXP would become the de-facto facility for providing industry actors with data interconnection and interchange. For those of you unfamiliar with KIXP's history - we had to register a company KIXP Ltd, and file for an IXP license from CCK, in order to become operational after the forced closure of the IXP in 2000. My proposal was that KIXP be given full autonomy, have a board of directors appointed by members in full standing, and be run as a business, similar to LINX in the UK, and other successful IXPs around the world. As part of my proposals I shared the attached diagram (which I have just found in my archives). The Board would identify and appoint a CEO, who would then identify suitable staff to meet organisational growth. Being a business, some implied issues were self-sustainability, a business plan with clear growth, and social or financial returns for the 'shareholders'. My proposals fell upon deaf ears and it is sad for me now to see a frail and seemingly weak KIXP that cannot seem to consistently engage newcomers to the industry with the benefits of local traffic exchange. A simple question - how many of the TEAMs/SEACOM/EASSY bandwidth-holders are peering at KIXP? As mentioned by someone else, some of our traffic is being exchanged in exotic places like Mumbai, London etc... So, I continue shaking my head... Brian On Sun, Apr 8, 2012 at 6:33 PM, Peter Karunyu <pkarunyu(a)gmail.com> wrote: > @Brian, would you mind sharing these recommendations? It doesn't hurt to > know :-) > > > On Sun, Apr 8, 2012 at 4:32 PM, Brian Munyao Longwe <blongwe(a)gmail.com>wrote: > >> I had a conversation a couple of weeks ago with some folk about the >> governance of KIXP. I made some recommendations about 8yrs ago regarding >> the setup of a structure that would allow for the unfettered growth and >> resilience of the exchange. It is sad that individuals at that time who >> wanted to control the exchange resisted these. Now, when we are faced with >> these, and other symptoms of the root cause, some of us can only shake our >> heads. (Yes, I am doing a lot of that lately) >> >> Pole kwetu, >> >> Mblayo >> >> On Sun, Apr 8, 2012 at 1:31 PM, Kinuthia Ngugi <kinuthia.ngugi(a)gmail.com>wrote: >> >>> I think this is problem is recent and serious! all this easter weekend >>> i've been having timeouts while browsing local sites, yet sites outside .ke >>> are loading normally.... >>> >>> >>> >>> >>> On Sat, Apr 7, 2012 at 9:42 PM, Odhiambo Washington <odhiambo(a)gmail.com>wrote: >>> >>>> Okay. In the same breath, would you be able to fix the routing of the >>>> 197.x.x.x towards 196.200.26.x, please?? >>>> >>>> >>>> >>>> On Sat, Apr 7, 2012 at 19:49, John Gitau <jgitau(a)gmail.com> wrote: >>>> >>>>> I think we can easily fix this. >>>>> >>>>> Sent from my iPad >>>>> >>>>> On 7 Apr 2012, at 18:41, Brian Ngure <brian(a)pixie.co.ke> wrote: >>>>> >>>>> I think I mentioned this some time ago. Kenyan ISPs don't know KIXP >>>>> exists. >>>>> >>>>> Or maybe they get more $$ by not using KIXP somehow? >>>>> >>>>> Regard's >>>>> >>>>> Brian Ngure >>>>> >>>>> On 7 Apr 2012 14:14, "Odhiambo Washington" <odhiambo(a)gmail.com> wrote: >>>>> >>>>>> WAN Configuration Type >>>>>> Connection Type 3G/UMTS >>>>>> Login Status Connected >>>>>> Signal Status -40 DBm >>>>>> Connection Uptime 17:19:48 >>>>>> IP Address* 41.81.20.209 * >>>>>> Subnet Mask 255.255.255.255 >>>>>> Gateway 10.64.64.64 >>>>>> DNS 1 196.201.208.2 >>>>>> DNS 2 209.244.0.3 >>>>>> DNS 3 >>>>>> >>>>>> >>>>>> >>>>>> C:\Users\Washington>tracert 196.200.26.114 >>>>>> >>>>>> Tracing route to 196.200.26.114.accesskenya.com [196.200.26.114] >>>>>> over a maximum of 30 hops: >>>>>> >>>>>> 1 <1 ms <1 ms 2 ms DD-WRT [192.168.1.1] >>>>>> 2 * * * Request timed out. >>>>>> 3 66 ms 78 ms 68 ms 196.201.217.2 >>>>>> 4 66 ms 78 ms 108 ms 196.201.217.3 >>>>>> 5 107 ms 68 ms 78 ms 192.168.161.110 >>>>>> 6 137 ms 229 ms 138 ms 192.168.128.134 >>>>>> 7 108 ms 70 ms 77 ms 192.168.128.5 >>>>>> 8 145 ms 78 ms 78 ms 192.168.128.5 >>>>>> 9 159 ms 78 ms 78 ms 192.168.153.13 >>>>>> 10 78 ms 78 ms 78 ms 192.168.128.77 >>>>>> 11 158 ms 158 ms 148 ms if-4-2-2.core1.MLV-Mumbai.as6453.net >>>>>> [209.58.105.25] >>>>>> 12 98 ms 128 ms 168 ms 196.201.208.43 >>>>>> 13 158 ms 148 ms 148 ms TenGE-2-1-BP_CORE01.accesskenya.com[196.207.31.146] >>>>>> 14 210 ms 217 ms 218 ms ix-4-1-1.core1.MLV-Mumbai.as6453.net[209.58.105.142] >>>>>> 15 1178 ms 196 ms 158 ms 196.200.26.114.accesskenya.com[196.200.26.114] >>>>>> >>>>>> Trace complete. >>>>>> >>>>>> >>>>>> >>>>>> -- >>>>>> Best regards, >>>>>> Odhiambo WASHINGTON, >>>>>> Nairobi,KE >>>>>> +254733744121/+254722743223 >>>>>> _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ >>>>>> I can't hear you -- I'm using the scrambler. >>>>>> <image001.png>Please consider the environment before printing this >>>>>> email. >>>>>> >>>>>> >>>>>> _______________________________________________ >>>>>> Skunkworks mailing list >>>>>> Skunkworks(a)lists.my.co.ke >>>>>> ------------ >>>>>> List info, subscribe/unsubscribe >>>>>> http://orion.my.co.ke/cgi-bin/mailman/listinfo/skunkworks >>>>>> ------------ >>>>>> >>>>>> Skunkworks Rules >>>>>> http://my.co.ke/phpbb/viewtopic.php?f=24&t=94 >>>>>> ------------ >>>>>> Other services @ http://my.co.ke >>>>>> >>>>> _______________________________________________ >>>>> Skunkworks mailing list >>>>> Skunkworks(a)lists.my.co.ke >>>>> ------------ >>>>> List info, subscribe/unsubscribe >>>>> http://orion.my.co.ke/cgi-bin/mailman/listinfo/skunkworks >>>>> ------------ >>>>> >>>>> Skunkworks Rules >>>>> http://my.co.ke/phpbb/viewtopic.php?f=24&t=94 >>>>> ------------ >>>>> Other services @ http://my.co.ke >>>>> >>>>> >>>>> _______________________________________________ >>>>> Skunkworks mailing list >>>>> Skunkworks(a)lists.my.co.ke >>>>> ------------ >>>>> List info, subscribe/unsubscribe >>>>> http://orion.my.co.ke/cgi-bin/mailman/listinfo/skunkworks >>>>> ------------ >>>>> >>>>> Skunkworks Rules >>>>> http://my.co.ke/phpbb/viewtopic.php?f=24&t=94 >>>>> ------------ >>>>> Other services @ http://my.co.ke >>>>> >>>> >>>> >>>> >>>> -- >>>> Best regards, >>>> Odhiambo WASHINGTON, >>>> Nairobi,KE >>>> +254733744121/+254722743223 >>>> _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ >>>> I can't hear you -- I'm using the scrambler. >>>> Please consider the environment before printing this email. >>>> >>>> >>>> _______________________________________________ >>>> Skunkworks mailing list >>>> Skunkworks(a)lists.my.co.ke >>>> ------------ >>>> List info, subscribe/unsubscribe >>>> http://orion.my.co.ke/cgi-bin/mailman/listinfo/skunkworks >>>> ------------ >>>> >>>> Skunkworks Rules >>>> http://my.co.ke/phpbb/viewtopic.php?f=24&t=94 >>>> ------------ >>>> Other services @ http://my.co.ke >>>> >>> >>> >>> _______________________________________________ >>> Skunkworks mailing list >>> Skunkworks(a)lists.my.co.ke >>> ------------ >>> List info, subscribe/unsubscribe >>> http://orion.my.co.ke/cgi-bin/mailman/listinfo/skunkworks >>> ------------ >>> >>> Skunkworks Rules >>> http://my.co.ke/phpbb/viewtopic.php?f=24&t=94 >>> ------------ >>> Other services @ http://my.co.ke >>> >> >> >> >> -- >> Brian Munyao Longwe >> e-mail: blongwe(a)gmail.com >> cell: +254715964281 >> blog : http://zinjlog.blogspot.com >> meta-blog: http://mashilingi.blogspot.com >> >> "Give us clear vision that we may know where to stand and what to stand >> for, because unless we stand for something, we shall fall for anything." >> >> >> _______________________________________________ >> Skunkworks mailing list >> Skunkworks(a)lists.my.co.ke >> ------------ >> List info, subscribe/unsubscribe >> http://orion.my.co.ke/cgi-bin/mailman/listinfo/skunkworks >> ------------ >> >> Skunkworks Rules >> http://my.co.ke/phpbb/viewtopic.php?f=24&t=94 >> ------------ >> Other services @ http://my.co.ke >> > > > > -- > Regards, > Peter Karunyu > ------------------- > > > _______________________________________________ > Skunkworks mailing list > Skunkworks(a)lists.my.co.ke > ------------ > List info, subscribe/unsubscribe > http://orion.my.co.ke/cgi-bin/mailman/listinfo/skunkworks > ------------ > > Skunkworks Rules > http://my.co.ke/phpbb/viewtopic.php?f=24&t=94 > ------------ > Other services @ http://my.co.ke > -- Brian Munyao Longwe e-mail: blongwe(a)gmail.com cell: +254715964281 blog : http://zinjlog.blogspot.com meta-blog: http://mashilingi.blogspot.com "Give us clear vision that we may know where to stand and what to stand for, because unless we stand for something, we shall fall for anything."

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DOMAIN NAMES AND COPYRIGHT
by Moses Muya 07 Apr '12

07 Apr '12

All, Do we have any provisions in our laws that allow for copyrighting of domain names. I know domains like facebook.com or amazon.com are protected by copyright. Is it possible to register a company that is primarily based on a domain name - like in the case where there is only an online store and no 'Brick and Mortar' shop? -- Kind Regards, Moses Muya.

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(no subject)
by alice＠apc.org 05 Apr '12

05 Apr '12

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Connected.Go.Ke - Appreciation & Questions
by S.M. Muraya 05 Apr '12

05 Apr '12

Anyone who tried to communicate with the Kenyan government in the 90's or earlier will appreciate what connected.go.ke is trying to do. Some questions under #connectedke went unanswered. Here are two. (i) Can IT firms which win go.ke automation tenders, report, without losing out, bad public officials who obstruct go.ke automation? The late John Michuki prove, you will have quicker implementation of solutions where less corruption & more ethics are practiced. ERP's may improve revenue collection, but without CRM's, poor citizen service will continue. ERP's / CRM's will help gauge organizational performance - who or what is promoting or hindering integrity, efficiency, liquidity, courtesy, etc. (ii) How much $$ do we need on average, per annum, per police station, to provide working transport & technology to make Kenyan police more accessible? With increasing threats to national security, this is no doubt a pressing issue. For a Peaceful Easter Weekend.

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An Easter weekend read
by robert yawe 05 Apr '12

05 Apr '12

Hi, The following is a good read for the forthcoming long weekend http://paulgraham.com/ambitious.html#f4n 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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Voice over Internet Protocol Re-defined!
by Edith Wanjiku 05 Apr '12

05 Apr '12

The Kenyan corporate world needs a telecommunications company like Enterprise Data Freedom Limited to revolutinalise the way business communicate. Read http://www.facebook.com/l.php?u=http%3A%2F%2Fgrassroots.co.ke%2Fbusiness%2F…

2 1

Fw: [afgwg-discuss] Local consultation on .MU management structure
by Walubengo J 05 Apr '12

05 Apr '12

Mauritius is undergoing a review of its ccTLD (their dot.KE equivalent) structures and operations. perhaps something for us to read through before the KENIC AGM? walu. --- On Wed, 4/4/12, Adiel Akplogan <adiel(a)afrinic.net> wrote: From: Adiel Akplogan <adiel(a)afrinic.net> Subject: [afgwg-discuss] Local consultation on .MU management structure To: afgwg-discuss(a)afrinic.net Date: Wednesday, April 4, 2012, 6:45 PM ==== [French below] ==== Dear colleagues, During our past meetings and discussion within this group the topic of ccTLDs management has come-up frequently. I would like to share with you this call for public comment of the Government of Mauritius that is going through a process of restructuring its ccTLD management. I know some of you on this list are going through similar issue and looking at what other are doing in the region may give you ideas and insight on how to manage you own process locally. You can access the document from http://telecomit.gov.mu/or directly have a look at the new structure proposal at:http://www.gov.mu/portal/goc/telecomit/file/ProposedModel.pdf AfriNIC wil provides its input to this as we have been formally consulted the MCIT and also for being hosted in the country. Kind regards. ===================== French =====================Chers collègues, Durent les précédentes réunions et discussions de ce groupe de travail, le débat sur la gestion des ccTLD est revenu plusieurs fois. J'aimerais partager avec vous cet appel à commentaire du Gouvernement de l'Ile Maurice qui est actuellement en cours de restructuration de la gestion de son ccTLD (.MU). Je sais que certain sur cette liste ont à gérer une situation similaire, et savoir ce qui se passe ailleurs dans notre région peut donner des idés sur la marche à suivre localement et les options qui existent. Vous pourriez accéder au document (en Anglais) à partir du sitedu ministère des TIC: http://telecomit.gov.mu/ (en haut à droite)ou accéder directement aux nouvelles propositions a: http://www.gov.mu/portal/goc/telecomit/file/ProposedModel.pdf AfriNIC soumettra son avis sur la nouvelle proposition ayant étéformellement contacte par le Ministère Mauricien et aussi du fait que nous opérons à partir de Maurice. Cordialement. ______________________________________________________________________Adiel A. Akplogan Tel. +230 403 51 00Chief Executive Officer, AfriNIC Fax: +230 466 67 58adiel(a)afrinic.net - www.afrinic.net sip: adiel(a)voip.afrinic.net -----Inline Attachment Follows----- _______________________________________________ afgwg-discuss mailing list afgwg-discuss(a)afrinic.net https://lists.afrinic.net/mailman/listinfo.cgi/afgwg-discuss

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World War 3.0
by Alice Munyua 04 Apr '12

04 Apr '12

http://www.vanityfair.com/culture/2012/05/internet-regulation-war-sopa-pipa… World War 3.0 When the Internet was created, decades ago, one thing was inevitable: the war today over how (or whether) to control it, and who should have that power. Battle lines have been drawn between repressive regimes and Western democracies, corporations and customers, hackers and law enforcement. Looking toward a year-end negotiation in Dubai, where 193 nations will gather to revise a U.N. treaty concerning the Internet, Michael Joseph Gross lays out the stakes in a conflict that could split the virtual world as we know it. By Michael Joseph Gross <http://www.vanityfair.com/contributors/michael-joseph-gross>Illustration by Stephen Doyle <http://www.vanityfair.com/contributors/stephen-doyle> *TWO FUTURES?* Privacy, piracy, security, sovereignty---the divisions on these issues reflect an even deeper split between those who want tight control and those who want unfettered freedom. I. Time Bomb In 1979 the Dubai World Trade Centre dominated the skyline of Dubai City, on the horn of the Arabian Peninsula. Today, the World Trade Centre looks quaint, like an old egg carton stuck into the ground amid a phantasmagoric forest of skyscrapers. But come December the World Trade Centre will once more be the most important place in Dubai City---and, for a couple of weeks, one of the more important places in the world. Diplomats from 193 countries will converge there to renegotiate a United Nations treaty called the International Telecommunications Regulations. The sprawling document, which governs telephone, television, and radio networks, may be extended to cover the Internet, raising questions about who should control it, and how. Arrayed on one side will be representatives from the United States and other major Western powers, advocating what many call "Internet freedom," a plastic concept that has been defined by Secretary of State Hillary Clinton as the right to use the Internet to "express one's views," to "peacefully assemble," and to "seek or share" information. The U.S. and most of its allies basically want to keep Internet governance the way it is: run by a small group of technical nonprofit and volunteer organizations, most of them based in the United States. On the other side will be representatives from countries where governments want to place restrictions on how people use the Internet. These include Russia, China, Brazil, India, Iran, and a host of others. All of them have implemented or experimented with more intrusive monitoring of online activities than the U.S. is publicly known to practice. A number of countries have openly called for the creation of a "new global body" to oversee online policy. At the very least, they'd like to give the United Nations a great deal more control over the Internet. Mediating these forces in Dubai will be a man named Hamadoun Touré. Charming and wily, he is a satellite engineer who was born in Mali, educated in the Soviet Union, and now lives in Geneva. He serves as secretary-general of the U.N.'s International Telecommunication Union (I.T.U.). Touré abjures pallid diplomatic doublespeak, instead opting for full-on self-contradiction that nonetheless leaves little doubt where his sympathies lie. In one breath Touré says, "The people who are trying to say that I.T.U. has an intention of taking over the management of the Internet simply do not know how the I.T.U. is functioning." In the next, noting that Internet users in America represent only a tenth of the total, he says, "When an invention becomes used by billions across the world, it no longer remains the sole property of one nation, however powerful that nation might be. There should be a mechanism where many countries have an opportunity to have a say. I think that's democratic. Do you think that's democratic?" There is a war under way for control of the Internet, and every day brings word of new clashes on a shifting and widening battlefront. Governments, corporations, criminals, anarchists---they all have their own war aims. In February, the Swedish Supreme Court refused to hear appeals from three founders of the Pirate Bay, the world's largest illegal file-sharing Web site, who had been sentenced to prison for copyright infringement. The same day, one of those men issued an online call to arms, urging users to abandon the entertainment industry: "Stop seeing their movies. Stop listening to their music.... Remix, reuse, use, abuse." Shortly after that, Google was discovered to have been secretly bypassing privacy settings on Apple iPhones and computers that use the Safari browser; the company was monitoring Web activity by people who believed they'd blocked such tracking. Around the same time, the European Union proposed that companies such as Google must obtain explicit consent from individuals for data collection; but these regulations would not take effect for years, by which point digital dossiers on almost every Internet user will have been bought and sold by marketers many times over. Meanwhile, the F.B.I. has been distributing "See something, say something" flyers to Internet-café owners in the U.S., warning that the use of certain basic cyber-security measures could be considered grounds for suspicion of possible terrorist activity. In response to the F.B.I.'s growing preoccupation with virtual insurgents, guerrilla hackers operating under the name Anonymous posted online an audio recording of F.B.I. and Scotland Yard officials discussing how to handle Anonymous attacks. Then Interpol, together with American and European authorities, busted 31 suspected Anonymous hackers---including the one who covertly recorded that conference call---and an F.B.I. official declared victory over LulzSec, one of the most prominent Anonymous splinters, with the boast that "we're chopping off the head" of that faction. The War for the Internet was inevitable---a time bomb built into its creation. The war grows out of tensions that came to a head as the Internet grew to serve populations far beyond those for which it was designed. Originally built to supplement the analog interactions among American soldiers and scientists who knew one another off-line, the Internet was established on a bedrock of trust: trust that people were who they said they were, and trust that information would be handled according to existing social and legal norms. That foundation of trust crumbled as the Internet expanded. The system is now approaching a state of crisis on four main fronts. The first is sovereignty: by definition, a boundary-less system flouts geography and challenges the power of nation-states. The second is piracy and intellectual property: information wants to be free, as the hoary saying goes, but rights-holders want to be paid and protected. The third is privacy: online anonymity allows for creativity and political dissent, but it also gives cover to disruptive and criminal behavior---and much of what Internet users believe they do anonymously online can be tracked and tied to people's real-world identities. The fourth is security: free access to an open Internet makes users vulnerable to various kinds of hacking, including corporate and government espionage, personal surveillance, the hijacking of Web traffic, and remote manipulation of computer-controlled military and industrial processes. There is no agreement about how any of these problems should be solved. There isn't even agreement on how to define the basic terms of debate. "Internet freedom," for instance, is the avowed objective not only of the U.S. secretary of state but also of WikiLeaks, which published hundreds of thousands of classified State Department diplomatic cables. One way to think about the War for the Internet is to cast it as a polar conflict: Order versus Disorder, Control versus Chaos. The forces of Order want to superimpose existing, pre-digital power structures and their associated notions of privacy, intellectual property, security, and sovereignty onto the Internet. The forces of Disorder want to abandon those rickety old structures and let the will of the crowd create a new global culture, maybe even new kinds of virtual "countries." At their most extreme, the forces of Disorder want an Internet with no rules at all. A conflict with two sides is a picture we're used to---and although in this case it's simplistic, it's a way to get a handle on what the stakes are. But the story of the War for the Internet, as it's usually told, leaves out the characters who have the best chance to resolve the conflict in a reasonable way. Think of these people as the forces of Organized Chaos. They are more farsighted than the forces of Order and Disorder. They tend to know more about the Internet as both a technical and social artifact. And they are pragmatists. They are like a Resistance group that hopes to influence the battle and to shape a fitful peace. The Resistance includes people such as Vint Cerf, who helped design the Internet in the first place; Jeff Moss, a hacker of immense powers who has been trying to get Order and Disorder to talk to each other; Joshua Corman, a cyber-security analyst who spends his off-hours keeping tabs on the activities of hackers operating under the name of Anonymous; and Dan Kaminsky, one of the world's top experts on the Internet's central feature, the Domain Name System. Although they may feel a certain kinship with one another, they are not an organized group. Their main point of agreement is that the Internet has changed the world forever, in ways we are only beginning to understand. They know that Order is impossible and that Disorder is unacceptable. They understand that the world is a messy place whose social arrangements come and go. But they are united in the conviction that what must be preserved and promoted at all costs is what the forces of Order and Disorder, in their very different ways, are both intent on undermining: the integrity of the Internet itself as a reliable, independent, and open structure. II. Free-for-All Vint Cerf knew from the start that there was a problem---he just couldn't fix it. The year was 1975, and Cerf was on a team of computer scientists at Stanford University under contract to finish a new communications network for the U.S. military. The goal was full cryptographic capability---a system that allowed all messages to be authenticated from both sides---on a network that could be used anywhere in the world. Two things prevented the scientists from making this network as secure as they would have liked. One obstacle was institutional: "The only technology that would have allowed for such security was still classified at the time," Cerf recalls. The other obstacle was simple momentum. Before the developers could implement truly secure encryption, Cerf explains, "the system kind of got loose," meaning that problems would have to be fixed on the fly. Cerf is frequently referred to as "the father of the Internet." His most celebrated achievement, for which he shares credit with the engineer and computer scientist Robert Kahn, was creating the TCP/IP protocol, the system that allows computers and networks all over the world to talk to one another. He was an early chairman of the Internet Corporation for Assigned Names and Numbers, or icann, which maintains the Domain Name System, the virtual address book that shows your computer where to go when you type the name of a Web site into your browser. He now works as Internet Evangelist---that's his actual title---for Google. Most of the Internet's problems, Cerf believes, stem from the issue of state sovereignty. The Internet was designed to ignore national boundaries. It was designed this way, Cerf says, because "it was intended to deal with a military problem": how could soldiers exchange messages without letting their enemies know where they were? Cerf and others solved that problem by building a decentralized network that routed messages from place to place using addresses that had nothing to do with physical locations. This was something new. International telephone transmissions were marked with country codes that named their origins and end points and had to pass through central switches in the countries at both ends. Radio transmissions, similarly, had to hop from the fixed points of towers. On the Internet, by contrast, traffic skittered from place to place on a network whose shape could be in constant flux. The Internet had no center at all. With one exception. The sole centralized feature of the Internet was the Domain Name System. The United States created that system, which lives on root servers, and Americans maintained it even as the Internet started spreading. The first thing your computer does when you type a Web site or e-mail address into your browser is to ask a local D.N.S. server for the numerical IP address of that destination. Because the D.N.S. servers are the first stop, the D.N.S. is not just the Internet's address book. It's also the corner post office. Whoever runs the D.N.S. system can potentially control whether your browser requests get to the proper place and thus control where you can and can't go online. By the mid-1990s, the Internet was teeming with life, some of it dangerous or unpleasant. Certain aspects of the unpleasantness were inadvertently self-created. Since World War II, the U.S. government had classified cryptography as a munition, subject to stringent export controls. In the Internet's first decades, those restrictions made it difficult to do business securely online. No one liked the prospect of making financial transactions on the Web without strong encryption, and international transactions were impossible unless parties in both countries used the same encryption techniques. So in 1997, President Bill Clinton relaxed export controls on encryption. This had the unintended effect of giving criminals new ways to steal intellectual property: now they could easily encrypt what they took and send it out of the country, to Russia, China, or elsewhere. Those criminals pioneered the systematic exfiltration of intellectual property that plagues American business today. Loosening export controls also had the effect---and this was very much intended---of commercializing the Internet. In fact, the Clinton administration was creating something close to an online free-for-all with its determined efforts to make the Net an engine for business. But even after the encryption export controls were relaxed, businesses outside the U.S. remained wary of the Internet, thinking of it as a de facto American protectorate. Its one centralized feature, the Domain Name System, remained under U.S.-government control. Clinton had seen that problem coming, and had already set out to turn the D.N.S. over to the private sector. The result was icann, a nonprofit body whose advisory committees include representatives of more than 100 countries and scores of corporations. Technically, icannremains under the Commerce Department's authority, but other governments have a meaningful say in the group's decisions. For instance, Xiaodong Lee, one of China's Internet czars, is icann's vice president for Asia. The creation of icann signaled that the Internet would be something akin to global patrimony, not an online version of American soil. This shift helped set the Internet free. But the more the global economy came to depend on the Internet, the harder it was for governments to tame or limit it. This, too, was intentional. To ensure a surge of e-commerce, the administration systematically pushed aside or revised whatever might stand in the way, including taxes, tariffs, regulations, and intellectual-property standards. Grabbing with both hands for the Internet economy meant letting go of old ideals of governance. Whole new problems eventually arose as markets and communications moved online, and as all these online exchanges were preserved digitally and became searchable. Who owned all this data? Who should have access to it? Corporations such as Microsoft, Google, and Facebook began butting heads with the government. They also began butting heads with their own customers. Corporate ambitions are a huge issue, but "the real War for the Net," Cerf believes, "is governments who want to control it, and that includes our own government. If you think about protecting the population and observing our conventional freedoms, the two are really very much in tension." Cerf cites the debate over the U.S.A. Patriot Act, enacted in 2001, which greatly expanded the U.S. government's domestic-surveillance authority. He also cites efforts by Middle Eastern governments to control online communications, particularly as the Arab Spring began to unfold, in 2011. And then there's the vast example of China, whose Great Firewall puts severe limits on what Chinese users can view online. On the Internet, what constitutes a "government" anyway? When Google announced in 2010 that it had fallen victim to Chinese hackers, it chose to publicize the fact that the Gmail accounts of Chinese political dissidents had been compromised. Congressional staffers asked company officials at the time about rumors that Google's data losses were in fact far more extensive. They recall tense conversations with Google executives, who in effect asserted executive privilege. One Hill aide recalls, "Clearly these people are used to having their way with everybody, which pissed us off. Because they are not a state within a state, even though they practically claim sovereignty." III. The Dark Tangent Dead Addict remembers his hand trembling as he dialed the number. What, he wondered, was the point of even making the call? He stopped, reminding himself: the Dark Tangent was counting on him. In 1992, a very young man named Jeff Moss, whose hacker name is the Dark Tangent, wanted to meet some friends he'd made online. So he organized a summer gathering in Las Vegas, which he planned to call "Def Con," short for "defense condition" (defcon), the military's term for its worldwide alert posture. Changes in defcon---a numbered scale from 1 (war) to 5 (peace)---had cued the turning points in /WarGames,/ a movie that made the young Jeff Moss aspire to become a hacker in the first place. Moss had high hopes. For one thing, he wanted Def Con to be a great party. He also wanted to start "building a system of checks and balances" between hackers and law enforcement, two cultures that were becoming bitter adversaries. So when his friend Eli, who goes by the name Dead Addict, volunteered to help Moss plan the gathering, Eli got the job of calling one of the hackers' arch-nemeses, an assistant attorney general in Arizona named Gail Thackeray, and inviting her to come. Two years earlier, Thackeray had helped the U.S. Secret Service run Operation Sun Devil, one of the first crackdowns on illegal computer hacking. A lot of hackers hated Thackeray, and Dead Addict was not surprised when she responded to his invitation with the words "No. I wouldn't go to a convention of car thieves, either." Hackers are nothing if not persistent, and Thackeray was eventually persuaded to spend a few days in the kiln that is Vegas in July. In a fire-engine-red blazer, she listened impassively while hackers as young as 14 described how to crack into every imaginable "secure" computer system. The hackers, for their part, eagerly picked Thackeray's brain, to learn the legal implications of their recent and planned adventures. As Moss remembers, Thackeray frequently interrupted their questions to insert the word "hypothetically" in order to make herself feel a little better about being there. Every summer, Moss uses Def Con to promote conversation between the Internet's forces of Order and Disorder. He has become the go-between who translates his subculture's concerns to the culture at large, and vice versa. Each year, more and more law-enforcement, military, and intelligence personnel go to Def Con. On the cusp of early middle age, Moss remains boyish-looking. He wears rimless oval glasses and favors long, silk-lined Shanghai Tang coats. Moss has become a powerful man. He sits on the U.S. government's Homeland Security Advisory Committee, and he serves as the chief security officer for icann. Where Vint Cerf argues that sovereignty lies at the heart of the War for the Internet, Moss---who as a hacker cut his teeth gaining access to systems and information that belonged to others---argues that the heart of the matter may be intellectual property. As Moss points out, before the Internet, when copyrighted information existed mostly in the form of physical objects, it was inconvenient to violate copyright law, for purely practical reasons. Then the Internet created a giant mashup of Alexandria, the Louvre, the /Times-Herald-News-World-Journal-Tribune,/ and all of television, Hollywood, and the music industry. People started to feel existentially entitled to this wealth of information. As it became normal to post songs, video clips, essays, and stories---all copyrighted by other people---on Web sites, that sense of ownership increased. In many minds, it became not just a convenience but a right. This transformation occurred during the same years the Internet became a place to do business. When social-media sites such as Twitter and Facebook merged those two functions---turning the common person's scrapbook into a cash cow for corporations---they sparked the Internet's next evolutionary adaptation. The consumer and the citizen now combined to form a complicated new species, most of whose members experienced the change as extremely empowering---even as they were also becoming extremely vulnerable. Individuals were using their free access to intellectual property to express themselves to one another---our Facebook "likes" equaled our actual "selves"---creating a phenomenon that is, for governments as well as corporations, the most tempting target imaginable. This trove of information is to an ordinary census database what a super-collider is to a slingshot. Privacy advocates sounded alarms about the problem, but the 2009 Green Revolution protests in Iran were a major turning point. The ease with which the Iranian government spied on its own citizens---using techniques that anyone could deploy, with free and open-source software---showed the fundamental insecurity of all unencrypted data (which is almost all data) on the Internet. Iranian-government authorities were able to read citizens' e-mails, diagram their social networks, and keep watch on almost anything else they wanted to observe. The spectacle of that violation, Moss says, underscored for everyone that the character of the Internet had fundamentally changed. It had evolved from, as he puts it, a place "to put pictures of your cat" to a place where "your liberty's at stake." Even so, the most influential Web sites, such as Google, Facebook, and Twitter, balked at adapting to the new reality they'd helped bring into existence. No communications on any of those sites were fully encrypted yet. Without mockery, Moss recites their arguments in a plain tone, strained only by mild weariness: "It's too expensive. We never designed it to be all encrypted. And, you know, the Net is not a private place anyway. It's not really our problem." His response, in the same tone, is that, since these corporations built their empires by encouraging everybody to share everything, they have a responsibility to provide security. During that violent week in 2009, Iran also blocked its citizens' access to popular dissident Web sites. Government authorities hijacked the Internet's address book---using a technique called D.N.S. blocking---so that when people tried to organize via Facebook or Twitter, they got sent elsewhere. Today, as chief security officer for icann, Moss is implementing a set of technical changes that will eventually make it more difficult for anyone to engage in D.N.S. blocking---difficult, but not impossible. "I'm curious if it's fixable," Moss admits. "Everybody always calls it rebuilding the airplane in flight. We can't stop and reboot the Internet." Technical constraints are complicated by politics. Not everyone approves of the changes Moss promotes. This winter, Congress considered two bills designed to stop online piracy. The Protect Intellectual Property Act (pipa) and the Stop Online Piracy Act (sopa) could have allowed the U.S. government to mandate D.N.S. blocking---the technique that Iran had used---to prevent Americans from seeing unauthorized postings of copyrighted material on social-media or search-engine sites. The bill might also have made those sites responsible for removing links to pirated material. The D.N.S.-blocking provision was dropped from the bills, whose other problematic features were still subject to revision. But a ferocious Web revolt, incited, in part, by Internet giants such as Reddit, Google, and Wikipedia, invoked the specter of censorship. The legislation was effectively killed. According to Moss, people who want more government control of the Internet are saying, "Well, we'll just do this. We'll just do that." He says, "It's like, You just don't /do/ that with the Internet. Don't have the legislator who doesn't understand how anything works make the decisions. The biggest fear is that you'll have governments around the world legislating technical standards. And then everything comes crashing down." Besides, he goes on, "the more government tries to regulate, the more people will try to build an Internet that is uncensorable and unfilterable and unblockable"---with tools such as darknets, which are hidden networks that run on privately owned machines. On the other side, authoritarian governments want to build their own private Internets. The Iranian government has in fact launched a "halal" Internet, cut off from the rest of the world. Even Moss, who participates in the highest-level discussions about global Internet policy, finds himself unable to keep up with all of the efforts to control the Internet that are happening right now. He says, "If you're using an analogy of Internet wars, the battles are coming faster." No sooner had sopa and pipa been scuttled than other legislation sprang up in their place in the U.S., Europe, and elsewhere. In January, after Poland signed an international copyright agreement that included provisions similar to those in sopa and pipa, a group of Polish legislators protested the vote by wearing Guy Fawkes masks---the visual emblem of Anonymous---inside the Polish parliamentary chamber. One thing is clear. After this winter's debates on piracy, it will be difficult for legislators to handle Internet policy the way they've handled so many other issues: by gentlemen's agreements among interested parties. The intensity of protest will make that impossible. And the guerrillas have powerful weapons. IV. The Summer of Lulz The man known as Jericho said, "Raise your hand if you were never an asshole at some point in your career." Not many hands went up. Last August, hundreds of people jammed into a ballroom at the Rio hotel in Las Vegas for a Def Con panel on hackers who operate under the name of Anonymous. The event was called "Whoever Fights Monsters"---a reference to Nietzsche: "Whoever fights monsters should see to it that in the process he himself does not become a monster." Jericho's line was a reference to Aaron Barr, the former C.E.O. of the cyber-security firm HBGary Federal. Several months earlier, Barr had plotted to discredit WikiLeaks by faking documents to make the group look unreliable. Then Barr investigated the Anonymous hackers who were supporting WikiLeaks, and boasted to the/Financial Times/ that he had "collected information on their core leaders, including many of their real names." In retaliation, Anonymous hackers annihilated Barr's Web site, spilled HBGary's archive of 71,000 e-mails onto the Web, raided Barr's Twitter account, and remotely deleted everything from his iPad. Stephen Colbert summarized the event memorably: "Anonymous is a hornet's nest, and Barr said, 'I'm gonna stick my penis in this thing.'" Jericho is known to the outside world as Brian Martin, a Denver cyber-security consultant. The objective of his discussion was to talk about---and to---Anonymous hackers. Some of them were in attendance. Jericho was hoping to nudge them toward using their power in constructive ways that minimize collateral damage. He sat at a table onstage with Joshua Corman, whose day job is as director of security for a firm called Akamai. Corman, a compact, bearded man, tapped his fingers on the table, fiddling with his Starbucks coffee cup. A few months later, in Corman's dining room in the small New Hampshire town where he lives, we watched a video of the discussion. He recalled being almost paralyzed with nerves. After the HBGary hack last February, the public image of Anonymous went split-screen. On the one hand, Anonymous operations supported the Arab Spring (and, later, Occupy Wall Street). On the other hand, a group of hackers identifying itself as a splinter of Anon, called LulzSec ("lulz" means "laughing out loud" at the victim of a prank; "sec" means security), launched a series of attacks that trashed all standards of privacy and security. The attacks, known as "the summer of lulz," were, on the whole, as pathologically anarchic as something the Joker might have done. LulzSec hacked Fox.com and leaked the contestant database for the show /X Factor,/then posted a fake news story about Biggie Smalls and Tupac Shakur on the PBS Web site. When Arizona passed a Draconian immigration bill, LulzSec spilled online the personal contact information of hundreds of the state's policemen. In many cases, Corman recalls, "there was no moral, or righteous, or freedom cause" behind the actions. "It was about having fun and breaking stuff." When he decided to speak publicly, Corman endorsed the goals of using the Web to effect political change and expose corruption, goals that Anonymous hackers sometimes cite. Even so, he could not stop worrying that by doing so he was putting himself and his family in harm's way. Reporters generally refer to Anonymous as a "group" or, somewhat more accurately, as "a loose collective." Anonymous, Corman explains, is not really a group, and it is a "collective" only insofar as there is some overlap among the individuals who perform the deeds attributed to Anonymous. "Anonymous is more like a brand or a franchise," Corman says---it's a term used by many individuals and groups with many ideologies for many kinds of actions. Hacking by Anonymous generally expresses a hunger for the complete transparency of governments and corporations. Anonymous hackers often oppose surveillance and promote self-government. Beyond these principles, there is little consensus. Corman compares Anonymous to a Rorschach blot, in which the forces of Order and Disorder alike see what they want to see. With Jericho, Corman started tracking Anonymous last year. (This effort has nothing to do with his day job at Akamai.) On Corman's blog, the two offer what may be the most clear-eyed analysis of the Anonymous phenomenon available anywhere. Why, given the risks, does Corman pursue it? In some ways, the arc of his life seems to leave him little choice. He became the man of the household at age 14, after his parents' divorce. Like many children who prematurely take on adult responsibilities, he developed a fascination with power. For Corman, that fascination was nourished by the comic-book adventures of Spider-Man, a six-foot plastic statue of whom stands in the foyer of his house. He often quotes a famous Spider-Man line---"With great power comes great responsibility." Corman sometimes escaped from the burdens at home by diving into his computer. He compares his early experiences of programming, and of the Net, to a kind of sorcery. Corman believes that the spread of "hacktivism," which first made mainstream headlines when Anonymous attacked the Church of Scientology in 2008, demonstrates that "those who can best wield this new magic are not nations. They're not politicians. The youngest citizens of the Net don't even recognize allegiance to a country or to a political party. Their allegiance is to a hive. In some ways this is very exciting. In other ways this is terrifying." The terrifying part, for Corman, is that the Web gives individuals immense power without instilling the "compassion, humility, wisdom, or restraint to wield that power responsibly." Corman once jokingly referred to himself as "the guy with the Spider-Man statue who's gnashing his teeth in New Hampshire." Like everyone who understands the decentralized structure of the Internet, he is skeptical of government attempts to control it. He does harbor some hope, and it's partly a legacy of those comic books: "The most badass hackers I know get no satisfaction out of attacking. They prefer defending, because it's harder." He wonders if we're about to see the rise of another form of Internet vigilante, who will create tools to vanquish Anonymous attacks and deliver the miscreants by the scruff of the neck, as Superman would, to the government's doorstep. "Do the Avengers need to rise?" Corman asks. "When do they rise? They rise when the system doesn't sufficiently fight evil." In the meantime, Anonymous has spawned a tiny cottage industry that keeps a very low profile: mercenary fighters hired by major corporations to protect them from attacks. HBGary used to perform this kind of service, until it was ambushed. These mercenaries conduct surveillance on the Internet chat rooms where Anonymous hackers congregate, hoping to warn corporate clients of potential peril. They also develop virtual weapons that companies can buy to defend themselves. It is hard to defend against the media, however, which has mainly served the purposes of Anonymous. One Fortune 100 mercenary I spoke with laid out the typical template in the press: "The stories are: Insert high-value target here; something bad happens; attribute it to Anon. And people are eating that up." At the "Whoever Fights Monsters" panel discussion in Las Vegas last summer, Joshua Corman says, one hacker in the audience asked, "Why doesn't Anonymous do something more discreet instead of these huge attacks that cause collateral damage, and just tell the press what you did?" Another hacker, who is known to participate in Anonymous operations, answered instantly: "They don't cover it. We tried." Listening to that exchange, Corman says, he realized, "The media is a player in this drama. They're not observing or describing. They're being played." And they're being played by all parties. The bust of Anonymous and LulzSec in March was hailed even by many leading cyber-security bloggers as "the end of Anon." The idea that any faction of Anonymous has a "head" that could be chopped off, as the F.B.I. claimed, suggests either a fundamental lack of understanding of the phenomenon or a willful misrepresentation of it. (It may well be the latter. According to the F.B.I., the most prominent among the hackers who were arrested, Hector Monsegur, known as "Sabu," had been an F.B.I. informant since the previous June---a period during which he rallied LulzSec hackers to attack the F.B.I.) Corman says, "Even if every current participant of Anonymous were arrested, someone would take up the design of this activity, if not the mantle." In other words: as an instrument of disruption, Anonymous may be too resilient ever to be killed. V. Organized Chaos Anew telecom treaty is unlikely to result in either side achieving total victory. At the very least, however, the negotiation in Dubai will move countries to put their cards on the table and declare just how much control they want to assert over Internet governance. The Net has given more individuals more power in a shorter period of time than any new technology in history. And unlike many other world-changing technologies, there is no institutional barrier to access. This has made it, on balance, mostly destructive of institutional authority, especially that of nation-states. National sovereignty encompasses many powers, but one of its core elements has been a monopoly on the control of overwhelming force. Now that hackers are able to penetrate any and all computer networks, including military ones, that monopoly no longer exists. Nation-states, not surprisingly, resist the erosion of their power and seek ways to reclaim it. Hamadoun Touré, who will be running the show in Dubai, says he seeks nothing more than a "light touch" on the Internet's operations. He in fact chuckled when he uttered those words in the course of an interview. At least three big issues are very likely to be on the table in Dubai, and there's nothing light about them. One is taxation---a "per click" levy on international Internet traffic. Western countries and business organizations oppose such a tax, as you would expect. China and many Third World countries favor it, saying the funds would help build the Internet in developing countries. A second issue is data privacy and cyber-security. Authoritarian governments want to tie people's real names and identities to online activity, and they want international law to permit national encryption standards to allow government surveillance. The third issue is Internet management. Last year, Russia, China, and some pliant allies jointly proposed a U.N. General Assembly resolution (which failed) suggesting the creation of a global information-security "code of conduct" and---as if declaring open season on icann and the other non-governmental groups currently in charge---asserting that "policy authority for Internet-related public issues is the sovereign right of states." All of these proposals amount to a wish list by the most extreme elements of the forces of Order. The forces of Disorder have no official voice at the negotiations---obviously they're not invited---but they represent a wild card. Although they have thus far shown no apparent interest in Dubai, some of them have announced plans to perform a technical feat beyond anything done so far. In what is being called Operation Global Blackout, they want to bring down the Domain Name System itself---and thus halt all Internet traffic completely---with a springtime attack on the root servers, all in the name of protesting "sopa, Wallstreet, our irresponsible leaders, and the beloved bankers who are starving the world for their own selfish needs out of sheer sadistic fun." Whether that happens (or even could happen), the announcement was an obvious warning flag. Internet experts take the threat seriously. Even if it fails, it presages future attempts. In the War for the Internet, is there a middle way? The forces of Organized Chaos are not an organized group, don't call themselves by any name, and disagree on many points. In what follows, I'm going to try to distill a synthesis of their views. The commitment that unanimously binds them is to make the Internet as reliable as possible. One leading apostle of reliability is Dan Kaminsky, a security analyst and D.N.S. expert and the head of a new stealth start-up. He is a close friend of Jeff Moss's---and, like Moss, a self-appointed ambassador to Washington. He sometimes opens meetings on the Hill by saying, "There are bad guys on the Internet. Unfortunately, you're helping them." He is a serial entrepreneur whose current mission is to augment passwords with other ways for Internet users to prove their identities that are more robust, easier to use, and harder to crack. "The only thing everyone agrees on," says Kaminsky, "is that the Internet is making everyone money now and it's got to keep working." As they devise new systems of authentication, Kaminsky and others are working to be sure that these authentication systems preserve the qualities of privacy and online anonymity---even though anonymity has contributed to, if not created, almost every problem at issue in the War for the Internet. The task at hand is finding some way to square the circle: a way to have both anonymity and authentication---and therefore both generative chaos and the capacity for control---without absolute insistence on either. It is a neat philosophical trick: Sun Tzu meets John Locke meets Adam Smith meets Michel Foucault. No one can say exactly how these sorts of standards would be defined and applied, or who would be their custodians. World governance doesn't work. It has been pursued for eons by hardheaded pragmatists and woolly-brained eccentrics. Time and again it has been defeated by the vagaries of human nature and the opportunistic conflict of competing interests. In the case of the Internet, the number of interested parties runs into the billions, and they come from divergent cultures and pursue irreconcilable objectives. As Vint Cerf points out, this basic reality seeps through every aspect of the War for the Internet. Around the world and across generations, people have different tolerances for civility, incivility, and invasion of privacy. "I think it will be very hard to resolve this in a way that's globally acceptable," he says. Freedom in human society, by definition, includes some concept of boundaries. Freedom on the Internet has, thus far, lacked any real concept of boundaries. But boundaries are being invented. It seems certain that nations, corporations, or both will create more zones on the Internet where all who enter will have to prove their real-world identities. Google and Facebook are already moving in this direction. The most heavy-handed suggestions entail a virtual passport or ID, which could include biometric data. Some see stringent, universal, and mandatory authentication of identity as a commonsense solution to a number of the Internet's biggest problems. If all of our alter egos were brought into line with our analog selves, wouldn't we all behave better? Wouldn't online criminals stop using the cloak of anonymity to steal from and spy on people? Wouldn't people pay for the books, music, movies, and newspapers that many now take for free? The forces of Organized Chaos reject this argument. Vint Cerf says, "When I hear senators and congressmen complaining about anonymous speech, I want to stop them and say, you should read your own history. The anonymous tracts that objected to British rule and rules had a great deal to do with the American Revolution. Weren't you paying attention in civics?" Given the radically decentralized nature of the Internet, the most important thing that anyone can do is to try to make the center hold---but not too tightly. That means protecting the Domain Name System, the Internet's sole central feature, from government control while keeping governments involved in maintaining it. The point is: there is no single "safe pair of hands," whatever the forces of Order might say. Any safe pair of hands is a dangerous pair of hands. At the same time, the security of the D.N.S. itself needs to be radically upgraded, to obstruct hijacking and surveillance. Software-coding languages must become more secure, to make programs more difficult to hack and manipulate. Breach-reporting standards must be established, at least for critical infrastructure, to help corporations and law enforcement share knowledge about hacking threats. Metrics for security and privacy---two qualities that most people value but no one knows how to measure---need to be defined. Finally, "network neutrality" must be preserved. Net neutrality is almost as plastic a concept as Internet freedom, but to the forces of Organized Chaos, it means maintaining the telecommunications infrastructure as a level playing field. The Internet is open to everyone; service providers can't discriminate; all applications and content moves at the same speed. To accomplish any of these things, governments will need to create formal mechanisms to give the people who know the most about the Internet---including computer engineers and hackers---a meaningful voice in making policy. Basic Internet literacy is now as critical to good governance as basic knowledge about economics or public health, yet Washington is still full of what Congresswoman Zoe Lofgren, of California, calls "Wite-Out-on-the-screen people." Dan Kaminsky says that hackers, for their part, have to stop focusing exclusively on "breaking stuff " and also start focusing on "fixing stuff." And if Internet companies do not want intrusive regulation, whether from their own governments or from treaties such as the one to be negotiated in Dubai, they will need to start solving the Internet's problems on their own. Melissa Hathaway, who led cyber-security strategy for Presidents George W. Bush and Barack Obama, points out that "the top 20 Internet service providers in the world carry 90 percent of the Internet traffic. They can see when you're infected by a botnet. They can see when you've been hacked." Hathaway has defined a set of general principles that Internet companies and governments might get behind, such as a "duty to warn if in imminent danger." As she puts it, "It's just like the law of the sea: the duty to assist." Beyond this core agenda, the forces of Organized Chaos, by and large, think that the Internet should be allowed to evolve on its own, the way human societies always have. The forces of Organized Chaos have a pretty good sense of how it will evolve, at least in the short term. The Internet will stratify, as cities did long ago. There will be the mass Internet we already know---a teeming bazaar of artists and merchants and thinkers as well as pickpockets and hucksters and whores. It is a place anyone can enter, anonymously or not, and for free. Travel at your own risk! But anyone who wishes can decide to leave this bazaar for the security of the bank or the government office---or, if you have enough money, the limousine, the Sky Club, the platinum concierge. You will always have to give something up. If you want utter and absolute privacy, you will have to pay for it---or know the right people, who will give you access to their hidden darknets. For some services, you may decide to trade your privacy and anonymity for security. Depending on circumstance and desire, people will range among these worlds. Aside from wealth or arcane knowledge, the only other guarantor of security will be isolation. Some people will pioneer new ways of life that minimize their involvement online. Still others will opt out altogether---to find or create a little corner of the planet where the Internet does not reach. Depending on how things go, that little corner could become a very crowded place. And you'd be surprised at how many of the best-informed people about the Internet have already started preparing for the trip. --

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Interconnection to Other Telcos
by Mwaniki Njoroge 04 Apr '12

04 Apr '12

Dr. Ndemo, Can you or anyone one in the forum please clarify the rules for the Interconnection with other Carriers in Kenya. Especially the 4 Mobile operators and in the case of Orange .... for both. It would appear to me that given the current mode of operation, the Interconnections are handled more like a Catel type of operation. Interconnection to these companies unfornately is like being inducted to some kind of a priveledged members only club yet CCK is proud to offer you a licence to operate. It's similar to being sold Tickets to concert legitimately but when you get to the Concert, you're informed that this is by invitation only. What a Joke! this such failure in policy, and or lack of enforcement of if there is one it goes beyond reason. It shocked me recently when I was talking to one of the Very Senior Executives at Orange, who bluntly told me and I quote.... "We don't listen to them" implying CCK this was after I informed this official our company Enterprise Data Freedom Ltd. (EDF) had filed grievances with the CCK. And I was like sure you don't because its been over a year since we initially complained to CCK and nothing has come out it. What are we paying CCK for I wonder if they can't even safe guard the interests of their stakeholders? I hate to bring this up but I'm left no options, my background in this business has been in the United States and as we may all be able to attest to, they're very advanced when it comes to communications....but this is not because the government incubates some Telcos and turns the face away on the small players....NO! NO! this is simply because they have a government that believes ideas come BIG and SMALL and the environment they create is one that suits all participants regardless of the amount of Taxes they pay to the Govt. It's a great idea for this Goventment to encourage growth in the ICT sector but if field unto which the game is played at is not even, then a lot of those great ideas that come from the small and agile companies. Dr. PS I have had a chat with you on this matter one on one in your office but I cat tell you that even I did all you recommended, nothing has happened. So your comment to the general public on this matter would be very much appreciated. Mwaniki Njoroge, CEO, EDF mwaniki(a)edf.co.ke www.edf.co.ke www.yealink.com

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Customer Service in ICT
by Majala Mlagui {Maarifa} 04 Apr '12

04 Apr '12

Does the ICT Board have a training service on Customer Service ? Client Relations? Some of our companies urgently need the service. A number of web-design / graphic design firms in Nairobi tend to have extremely terrible customer service manners going to the the extent of believing that being rude and hanging up on clients who are asking for clarification of services is an acceptable thing to do. Kehl Design Agency<http://kehldesign.com>is an offending firm. Does anyone know their Directors ? I don't know if this is solely tagged to the fact that creatives are known to be volatile but if we are to create a culture of good customer service within our industry then such instances should have repercussions e.g. #gotissuez #twitterbigstick and more... Majala

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Dr Ndemo - Yawe for Something in Posta
by Agosta Liko 04 Apr '12

04 Apr '12

Dr Ndemo Now that this ( http://bit.ly/HceUMy - Posta board tells minister to sack Hussein Ali ) is happening, how do we lobby for Robert to get his day at Posta. He is Ready, Able and Willing .... Thanks

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Rwanda: Africa's Singapore - The Economist
by Matunda Nyanchama 03 Apr '12

03 Apr '12

Perhaps Kenya needs a strongman like Kagame to transform this country. Read on. http://www.economist.com/node/21548263 ---------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------- 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.

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Connected Kenya Summit
by Harry Hare 03 Apr '12

03 Apr '12

Hello All, If you are not in Diani for Connected Kenya Summit, you can follow the proceedings live through here http://bit.ly/d9p2MQ Harry Hare Director African eDevelopment Resource Centre PO Box 49475 00100 Nairobi, Kenya Tel +254 20 4041646 Cel +254 725 650044

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Khan but closer home
by robert yawe 03 Apr '12

03 Apr '12

Hi, An African solution by an African http://www.afterschoolafrica.com/2012/04/nigerian-internet-entrepreneur-lau… 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: [igf_members] Workshop Proposal Deadline Extension
by waudo siganga 02 Apr '12

02 Apr '12

The information below from the IGF Secretariat could be of interest to some colleagues on the list. ----- Original message ----- From: Chengetai Masango <[1]cmasango(a)unog.ch> To: igf Forum <[2]igf_members(a)intgovforum.org> Subject: [igf_members] Workshop Proposal Deadline Extension Date: Mon, 2 Apr 2012 10:18:43 +0200 Dear All, Due to stakeholder requests the deadline for the submission of workshop proposals has been extended to 20 April 2012. We have also put up a resource person registration form on the website for people who want to be selected as panelists or resource people for workshops. Finally, registration for the May consultations will be the same registration form as the one for the WSIS forum: [3]http://www.itu.int/cgi-bin/htsh/edrs/ITU-SG/meetings/ed rs.registration.form?_eventid=1000065 All this information is up on the IGF Website and I would be grateful if you could also inform your respective stakeholder groups. Best regards Chengetai _______________________________________________ igf_members mailing list [4]igf_members(a)intgovforum.org [5]http://mail.intgovforum.org/mailman/listinfo/igf_members_intgo vforum.org References 1. mailto:cmasango@unog.ch 2. mailto:igf_members@intgovforum.org 3. http://www.itu.int/cgi-bin/htsh/edrs/ITU-SG/meetings/edrs.registration.form… 4. mailto:igf_members@intgovforum.org 5. http://mail.intgovforum.org/mailman/listinfo/igf_members_intgovforum.org

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In pictures: Kenya's mystery murals
by Alice Munyua 02 Apr '12

02 Apr '12

Very interesting <http://www.bbc.co.uk/news/17548225> best Alice

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