January 2017 - KICTANet

Re: [kictanet] Airtel Plans Africa Exit
by hassan abi 28 Jan '17

28 Jan '17

Ahmed, The long queues at Safaricom, shows their dominance and for Airtel lack of customers. I frequently use Safaricom call support and they have been excellent. I have worked with Airtel on bulk payments service and most of there strategies are based on what Safaricom is doing. Offering cheaper prices does not give you dominance but better customer experience and easily accessible services. Airtel money failed to catch up with Mpesa not because of affordable rates but lack of enough agents across the country. Telco's success is defined by it's mobile money services. Safaricom can afford not offer better service sometimes because they lack solid competition. Until then they will keep dominating comfortably. On 28 Jan 2017 10:30 a.m., "Ali Hussein via kictanet" < kictanet(a)lists.kictanet.or.ke> wrote: Ahmed In the land of the blind the one eyed man is king.. *Ali Hussein* *Principal* *Hussein & Associates* +254 0713 601113 Twitter: @AliHKassim Skype: abu-jomo LinkedIn: http://ke.linkedin.com/in/alihkassim "We are what we repeatedly do. Excellence, therefore, is not an act but a habit." ~ Aristotle Sent from my iPad On 28 Jan 2017, at 9:57 AM, Ahmed Mohamed Maawy via kictanet < kictanet(a)lists.kictanet.or.ke> wrote: I was a dual sim person. I have visited both Safaricom and Airtel offices severally. I would: 1. Take at least an hour on Safaricom queues. 2. Take at most 15 minutes on an Airtel queue. And at the end of it I would say I get a more personal feeling from the customer service. But that is just me. Maybe someone else has a bad experience. On Sat, Jan 28, 2017 at 9:43 AM, Tony White via kictanet < kictanet(a)lists.kictanet.or.ke> wrote: > Companies in general are favoured (or not) by their customer service. > While Safaricom's customer service is nothing to write home about, > Airtel's is appalling (this is a personal view, having had issues with > both!). I no longer have an Airtel line. > > If a new company takes over from [ kencell | celtel | zain | airtel ] > then if they can offer first-class customer service, they may succeed > (where the others have failed). > > Cheers, > Tony > > > On 28/01/2017, Job Muriuki via kictanet <kictanet(a)lists.kictanet.or.ke> > wrote: > > This is really sad news. Looking at Kenya's telecommunication market, > > safaricom holds all the cards from coverage to favourable government > backed > > policies. This leaves competition with almost no lifeline. > > Having worked with a company that builds telco's infrastructure I can > > confirm 80% of the job is from safaricom while others just struggle with > > the other 20%. > > > > Am no economist but having one company domineering in any given sector is > > bad for the sector and the economy as the main focus is make money. To do > > this they cut back on employment and squeeze the supplies dry trying to > cut > > on expenditure but if multiple companies operate we get higher employment > > level meaning more revenue to the government and healthy competition. The > > government's technocrats need get ahead of this and correct it otherwise > we > > are not growing as a country or even as continent. > > > > On 28 Jan 2017 08:40, "Ali Hussein via kictanet" < > > kictanet(a)lists.kictanet.or.ke> wrote: > > > > Listers > > > > Another one bites the dust? > > > > I'm really curious as to whats going on in the Telco sector. > > > > Bharti Airtel has announced that it will be exiting 14 African countries > > within a year. The affected countries include: Chad, Congo, Gabon, Ghana, > > Kenya, Madagascar, Malawi, Niger, Nigeria, Rwanda, Seychelles, Tanzania, > > Uganda and Zambia. > > > > The telecom operator is faced with poor performance across those markets. > > Two years ago, when Airtel began talks to sell off its operations in > > Burkina Faso, Chad, Congo Brazzaville and Sierra Leone to Orange > > <http://mobilityarena.com/airtel-not-exiting-africa-despite- > talks-to-sell-4-networks-to-orange/>, > > the company had stated that it wouldn’t be exiting Africa. > > Airtel plans Africa exit > > <http://mobilityarena.com/airtel-exit-nigeria-13-african-countries/> > > > > Is the African market too competitive or is the regulatory environment > > skewed towards a few players? > > > > *Ali Hussein* > > > > *Principal* > > > > *Hussein & Associates* > > > > > > > > Tel: +254 713 601113 > > > > Twitter: @AliHKassim > > > > Skype: abu-jomo > > > > LinkedIn: http://ke.linkedin.com/in/alihkassim > > <http://ke.linkedin.com/in/alihkassim> > > > > > > 13th Floor , Delta Towers, Oracle Wing, > > > > Chiromo Road, Westlands, > > > > Nairobi, Kenya. > > > > Any information of a personal nature expressed in this email are purely > > mine and do not necessarily reflect the official positions of the > > organizations that I work with. > > > > _______________________________________________ > > kictanet mailing list > > kictanet(a)lists.kictanet.or.ke > > https://lists.kictanet.or.ke/mailman/listinfo/kictanet > > Twitter: http://twitter.com/kictanet > > Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/KICTANet/ > > > > Unsubscribe or change your options at https://lists.kictanet.or.ke/ > > mailman/options/kictanet/muriukin%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. > > > > > -- > Tony White > > _______________________________________________ > kictanet mailing list > kictanet(a)lists.kictanet.or.ke > https://lists.kictanet.or.ke/mailman/listinfo/kictanet > Twitter: http://twitter.com/kictanet > Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/KICTANet/ > > Unsubscribe or change your options at https://lists.kictanet.or.ke/m > ailman/options/kictanet/ultimateprogramer%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. > -- *Ahmed Maawy* Principal Product Management Specialist - Al Jazeera Media Network Skype: ultimateprogramer _______________________________________________ kictanet mailing list kictanet(a)lists.kictanet.or.ke https://lists.kictanet.or.ke/mailman/listinfo/kictanet Twitter: http://twitter.com/kictanet Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/KICTANet/ Unsubscribe or change your options at https://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. _______________________________________________ kictanet mailing list kictanet(a)lists.kictanet.or.ke https://lists.kictanet.or.ke/mailman/listinfo/kictanet Twitter: http://twitter.com/kictanet Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/KICTANet/ Unsubscribe or change your options at https://lists.kictanet.or.ke/ mailman/options/kictanet/hassanaire%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.

2 1

Re: [kictanet] Can the Trump Administration increase it's powers over ICANN?
by Bonface Witaba 28 Jan '17

28 Jan '17

Dear Listers, An interesting read: http://domainincite.com/21443-trump-nominee-open-to-retaking-icann-oversigh… Kind regards Bonface Witaba Sent from Yahoo Mail on Android On Fri, 27 Jan 2017 at 17:19, kictanet-request(a)lists.kictanet.or.ke<kictanet-request(a)lists.kictanet.or.ke> wrote: Send kictanet mailing list submissions to kictanet(a)lists.kictanet.or.ke To subscribe or unsubscribe via the World Wide Web, visit https://lists.kictanet.or.ke/mailman/listinfo/kictanet or, via email, send a message with subject or body 'help' to kictanet-request(a)lists.kictanet.or.ke You can reach the person managing the list at kictanet-owner(a)lists.kictanet.or.ke When replying, please edit your Subject line so it is more specific than "Re: Contents of kictanet digest..." Today's Topics: 1. Re: The KINGS of Africa's Digital Economy (Eric M K Osiakwan) (June Tessy) 2. Governments Websites under Maintenance (Ali Hussein) ---------------------------------------------------------------------- Message: 1 Date: Fri, 27 Jan 2017 12:28:44 +0300 From: June Tessy <june.tessy(a)gmail.com> To: kictanet(a)lists.kictanet.or.ke Subject: Re: [kictanet] The KINGS of Africa's Digital Economy (Eric M K Osiakwan) Message-ID: <CAPK9L3kFr9qxOnmtW6R_DC=J+XmF4W2QMe--aQ5PzajRJ9ddZw(a)mail.gmail.com> Content-Type: text/plain; charset="utf-8" Eric, Will this talk be based on the Chapter in the Digital Kenya book? We look forward to watching the footage afterwards, but before then can we send in questions and/or comments? Kind Regards, June Tessy LinkedIn Profile <http://ke.linkedin.com/in/juneokal> On 27 January 2017 at 12:00, <kictanet-request(a)lists.kictanet.or.ke> wrote: > Send kictanet mailing list submissions to > kictanet(a)lists.kictanet.or.ke > > To subscribe or unsubscribe via the World Wide Web, visit > https://lists.kictanet.or.ke/mailman/listinfo/kictanet > or, via email, send a message with subject or body 'help' to > kictanet-request(a)lists.kictanet.or.ke > > You can reach the person managing the list at > kictanet-owner(a)lists.kictanet.or.ke > > When replying, please edit your Subject line so it is more specific > than "Re: Contents of kictanet digest..." > > > Today's Topics: > > 1. The KINGS of Africa's Digital Economy (Eric M K Osiakwan) > 2. The Emergence of Big Data (Timothy- Coach- Oriedo) > > > ---------------------------------------------------------------------- > > Message: 1 > Date: Thu, 26 Jan 2017 14:09:14 -0800 > From: Eric M K Osiakwan <ericosiakwan(a)me.com> > To: kictanet(a)lists.kictanet.or.ke > Subject: [kictanet] The KINGS of Africa's Digital Economy > Message-ID: <A9729AE5-6E3D-4CFC-B8EB-04C2FA9F604D(a)me.com> > Content-Type: text/plain; charset="us-ascii" > > https://cyber.harvard.edu/events/2017/02/Osiakwan < > https://cyber.harvard.edu/events/2017/02/Osiakwan> > > Eric here > > > Eric M.K Osiakwan > "Accraboy" 4 Skype > @eosiakwan 4 Twitter > about.me/ericosiakwan <http://about.me/ericosiakwan> > +233244386792 4 WhatsApp > >

3 2

Re: [kictanet] Airtel Plans Africa Exit
by Job Muriuki 28 Jan '17

28 Jan '17

This is really sad news. Looking at Kenya's telecommunication market, safaricom holds all the cards from coverage to favourable government backed policies. This leaves competition with almost no lifeline. Having worked with a company that builds telco's infrastructure I can confirm 80% of the job is from safaricom while others just struggle with the other 20%. Am no economist but having one company domineering in any given sector is bad for the sector and the economy as the main focus is make money. To do this they cut back on employment and squeeze the supplies dry trying to cut on expenditure but if multiple companies operate we get higher employment level meaning more revenue to the government and healthy competition. The government's technocrats need get ahead of this and correct it otherwise we are not growing as a country or even as continent. On 28 Jan 2017 08:40, "Ali Hussein via kictanet" < kictanet(a)lists.kictanet.or.ke> wrote: Listers Another one bites the dust? I'm really curious as to whats going on in the Telco sector. Bharti Airtel has announced that it will be exiting 14 African countries within a year. The affected countries include: Chad, Congo, Gabon, Ghana, Kenya, Madagascar, Malawi, Niger, Nigeria, Rwanda, Seychelles, Tanzania, Uganda and Zambia. The telecom operator is faced with poor performance across those markets. Two years ago, when Airtel began talks to sell off its operations in Burkina Faso, Chad, Congo Brazzaville and Sierra Leone to Orange <http://mobilityarena.com/airtel-not-exiting-africa-despite-talks-to-sell-4-…>, the company had stated that it wouldn’t be exiting Africa. Airtel plans Africa exit <http://mobilityarena.com/airtel-exit-nigeria-13-african-countries/> Is the African market too competitive or is the regulatory environment skewed towards a few players? *Ali Hussein* *Principal* *Hussein & Associates* Tel: +254 713 601113 Twitter: @AliHKassim Skype: abu-jomo LinkedIn: http://ke.linkedin.com/in/alihkassim <http://ke.linkedin.com/in/alihkassim> 13th Floor , Delta Towers, Oracle Wing, Chiromo Road, Westlands, Nairobi, Kenya. Any information of a personal nature expressed in this email are purely mine and do not necessarily reflect the official positions of the organizations that I work with. _______________________________________________ kictanet mailing list kictanet(a)lists.kictanet.or.ke https://lists.kictanet.or.ke/mailman/listinfo/kictanet Twitter: http://twitter.com/kictanet Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/KICTANet/ Unsubscribe or change your options at https://lists.kictanet.or.ke/ mailman/options/kictanet/muriukin%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.

4 3

go.ke "Digital Duo"... Some Gov.UK. plans
by S.M. Muraya 28 Jan '17

28 Jan '17

*@PresidentKE ... The "Digital Duo" is working hard on delivering electricity but subsidies for "URBAN" power connections are no more. * *More electricity, more connectivity, more online content exposing fraud, increasing intelligence to improve service delivery in every ward.* *More transparency needed to **build up and contract, decent local talent. * http://www.computerweekly.com/news/450401508/Interview-Kevin-Cunnington-dir… *Interview: Kevin Cunnington, director general, Government Digital Service * Bryan Glick | Editor in chief 21 Oct 2016 16:45 *The government’s new digital chief talks about his plans for the future and the challenges of transforming public services* On the wall behind Kevin Cunnington, a poster proclaims: “The challenge is service transformation. Not website redesign.” [image: Inline image 1] The Government Digital Service (GDS), of which Cunnington became director general in a controversial appointment over the summer of 2016 <http://www.computerweekly.com/news/450301575/DWP-director-Kevin-Cunnington-…>, has long been fond of its motivational posters. On either side of its new chief are two others – “Show the thing” and “Be bold”, they state. In many respects, those three statements represent the three ages of GDS. Under its inaugural leader, Mike Bracken, it was all about “showing the thing” – a plan to redevelop 20 high-profile government transactions as new digital services <http://www.computerweekly.com/blog/Computer-Weekly-Editors-Blog/Would-GDS-l…>, thereby demonstrating the potential of “digital” to improve public services. Bracken left in September 2015 <http://www.computerweekly.com/news/4500251662/Interview-Government-digital-…>, with some Whitehall departments seething at what they saw as an attempt by the centre to dictate to them, embodied in Bracken being unafraid, sometimes aggressively, to tackle entrenched interests – the “mandarin-led lands” as he called them. His supporters will say such an approach was absolutely necessary, and fully endorsed by his boss, then Cabinet Office minister Francis Maude <http://www.computerweekly.com/blog/Computer-Weekly-Editors-Blog/Even-GDS-cr…>, himself happy to bang a few heads together to bring about change. Bracken’s successor, Stephen Foreshew-Cain <http://www.computerweekly.com/news/450301616/Stephen-Foreshew-Cain-confirms…>, brought a more conciliatory approach – “We’ve got your back,” he would say. One of his closest lieutenants, Janet Hughes, coined the phrase “Be bold” in a blog post <https://medium.com/public-innovators-network/what-if-boldness-were-an-expli…> exhorting the civil service to be braver and take more risks – with a clear subtext that “bold” implied “digital”. Hughes followed Foreshew-Cain out of the door <http://www.computerweekly.com/news/450302605/GDS-loses-another-senior-exec-…> soon after Cunnington took over. Now, if there’s one, lingering criticism of GDS that Cunnington needs to address, it’s the perception that it’s nothing more than a bunch of website developers with little understanding of the complexity of big government IT. He came into the role having led the business transformation function for the Department for Work and Pensions (DWP) <http://www.computerweekly.com/news/2240235159/CIO-interview-Kevin-Cunningto…>. His GDS tenure, therefore, will stand or fall on his ability to genuinely transform how public services are delivered. “Our mission statement is transforming the relationship between citizen and state, and that sounds good,” he told journalists in his first meeting with the press since taking over. Cunnington’s aim is to focus GDS around what it can achieve by the end of this Parliament in 2020. “What I’m trying to create is a narrative where the Cabinet Office minister [Ben Gummer] can say to people that Britain will be very different in 2020 because we’ll be a much more digital government,” he said at the meeting. “What could the prime minister say in 2020 about how UK life or the interaction between a UK citizen and the state would have transformed that relationship?” *“Our mission statement is transforming the relationship between citizen and state”* *Kevin Cunnington, GDS* He says the core focus for GDS remains around the three major programmes that attracted a £450m budget award <http://www.computerweekly.com/news/4500258241/GDS-aims-for-35bn-savings-usi…> in the spending round in November 2015. The new chief’s initial task is producing a new plan for GDS – dubbed the government digital transformation strategy <http://www.computerweekly.com/blog/Computer-Weekly-Editors-Blog/The-all-new…>. The question everyone around the Whitehall digital community is asking is, how different will it be to what has gone before? In terms of what GDS is expected to deliver, the answer, according to Cunnington, is not very. These are: Common Technology Services (CTS), a programme to roll out new technology for civil servants and support the exit of the many big outsourcing deals due to expire by 2020; government as a platform <http://www.computerweekly.com/news/4500273435/Single-departmental-plans-aff…>, developing common services for use across Whitehall, in particular for payments <http://www.computerweekly.com/news/4500255549/GDS-payments-platform-Govuk-P…> and status notifications <http://www.computerweekly.com/news/450301079/Govuk-Notify-notifications-sys…>; and Gov.uk Verify, the identity assurance service <http://www.computerweekly.com/news/450296664/Govuk-Verify-to-go-live-24-May…> that is proving to be complex and controversial. *We need to do more* “All of those big three programmes have business cases associated with them,” says Cunnington. “I’m not planning on stopping anything we’re doing today. We said pretty clearly that the stuff we’ve been doing has been right. But as part of recognising GDS is transforming government, we need to do a bit more – so we do more, not less, going forward.” “More” means the sometimes nebulous concept of transformation. “Getting into the transformation game [is something] that we still need to set some targets for – that’s all part of the plan to be developed,” says Cunnington. “We’re working up to it. We started in a sensible place, which was to design services and get the hang of that. When you look at it, almost every department has a whole raft of citizen-facing services live already or becoming live that genuinely make a difference. Some of the stuff is really making a difference," he says. “The reason why we’re not seeing lots of these services go live is because they’re quite hard and it takes a long time. That’s part of where government is getting good enough to have a go at some of these things with GDS’s help. But we won’t see lots of massive transformation programmes starting soon and finishing quickly because they are hard things to do.” GDS has existed for six years to reach this point, so Cunnington only has three years left to effect the scale of transformation by 2020 that his boss Gummer <http://www.computerweekly.com/news/450303856/Government-must-be-servant-of-…>, and prime minister May <http://www.computerweekly.com/blog/Computer-Weekly-Editors-Blog/How-digital…>, are apparently expecting. That’s no simple task. Furthermore, he reveals there is already a list of additional major transformation programmes that departments are considering that may start by 2020 but will not deliver until the next parliamentary cycle. And don’t forget – the civil service has to administer leaving the European Union (EU) while all this is going on. *A national approach* So while the “what” for GDS is challenging enough, it’s the “how” that seems to be where Cunnington hopes to make the most immediate impact. An early priority is to make GDS more of a nationwide operation <http://www.computerweekly.com/news/450401445/GDS-goes-nationwide-to-ease-re…> – it has often been accused of being too London-centric, especially for big departments with much of their work taking place in the regions. Cunnington plans to open four locations for his digital academy – a civil servant training initiative he launched in the Department of Work and Pensions (DWP) and brought with him to GDS <http://www.computerweekly.com/news/450304317/GDS-takes-over-DWP-Digital-Aca…>. He’s also taking GDS on a UK roadshow to talk to departmental staff outside London. “The real work is going on in [places such as] Leeds and Manchester, as well as London. We need to be part of that,” he says. “The example I use is where DWP now runs a whole set of disability benefits. It would be incredibly helpful if DWP had selected and consensual access to some of [those people’s] medical data. “Right now, NHS Digital and DWP are having that conversation in Leeds and we’re not in the conversation. Why wouldn’t GDS be in a conversation like that? If we’re going to be, we’ve got to be in Leeds – we can’t do that from here.” *Relations with departments* The rationale for a national approach touches on the thorny topic of GDS’s relations with those big government departments. It’s common knowledge that there have been significant tensions, with departments <http://www.computerweekly.com/news/450301278/Revealed-The-battle-for-GDS-ho…> unhappy to be told what to do by the centre. Big departments such as DWP and HM Revenue & Customs (HMRC) have lobbied against GDS <http://www.computerweekly.com/news/450301278/Revealed-The-battle-for-GDS-ho…>, wanting to take back powers and budget from the central operation, and bypassing some of GDS’s controls over their digital projects. Coming from a departmental background himself, Cunnington acknowledges that some departments’ relationship with GDS has been “adversarial” at times. But he insists the situation is nothing like the way it has been widely perceived. When asked by Computer Weekly how he intends to change that relationship, he says simply: “We’ll just play nicely.” He immediately acknowledges that such an answer “sounds a bit trite”, but admits that GDS needs to spend more time listening and being “more discursive”. “There’s no need for departments or GDS to take these adversarial positions. Most of us have the same view of where we need to get to and the same kind of plan to get there. So part of it is that we need to spend more time talking to each other,” he says. “I think GDS having a national footprint will really help because we’ll be in the conversations from the get-go. Most of us get on perfectly well. Love and peace is there, really. Love is in the air.” However, he later says that he wants GDS to be “much more involved in the minutiae of the work that departments are doing” – an idea that seems anathema to some outside GDS. Cunnington insists not. “In truth, they quite like us. We’ve got some good people. You [can] use the word adversarial, but we don’t spend most of our time fighting with each other in the civil service,” he says. “Oddly enough, we get on quite well with each other, and it’s just a case of keeping that going. I’m pretty sure departments do not object to GDS helping them with their difficult problems,” he says. *Spending controls* One particular area of contention for departments is GDS’s spending controls <https://www.gov.uk/service-manual/agile-delivery/spend-controls-check-if-yo…> – rules laid down under former Cabinet Office minister Francis Maude that meant departments needed GDS approval for any IT contracts worth more than £100m, or digital services worth more than £100,000. Having been on the receiving end of such controls, Cunnington says they need to change. “In the past, GDS legitimately had to police some things that were going on. If you go back to the original spend controls when they were set, permanent secretaries will tell you that it was quite useful having GDS saying no to some of their plans, because their plans weren’t as well formed as they could have been, based on the fact they didn’t have the experience to put them together,” he says. “But nowadays we are more comfortable that departments have created their own capability. It’s about having a proper grown-up discussion around roadmaps in the future. We’ll get much more comfortable, so the relationship is changing.” In particular, the £100,000 limit on digital projects is likely to be increased. “£100,000 now for a digital programme is just too low. So we’re looking at two things. One is, what is the right level of control? The controls themselves have been a bit of a proxy for saying, ‘are you doing the right work?’ They tend to go a little bit adversarial if you’re using financial controls to get people to a design you’re comfortable with,” he says. “We’ve taken a different approach now and are sitting down with departments every month to review their six-month, one-year, five-year plans and say are we all going in the same, right direction. From GDS’s perspective, if we are prepared to be a lot more collaborative about the use of controls, it’s just really a change of approach.” That new approach is being piloted with three departments already <http://www.computerweekly.com/blog/Public-Sector-IT/GDS-of-the-future-chang…> – Cunnington cites DWP, Home Office and Ministry of Justice (MoJ) – to help determine where to set the levels of control going forward. “Thresholds are more likely to be a sensible discussion about money, rather than one size fits all, because we know that big departments spend a lot of money on technology and programmes, but some of the smaller departments spend less. It’s not a one-size-fits-all model going forward, but we haven’t decided yet exactly where to set them,” he says. *Gov.uk Verify* Another area of contention is around Gov.uk Verify, the identity assurance service that is meant to become the default way in which citizens interacting with government online prove they are who they say they are. Roll-out of Verify has been slow <http://www.computerweekly.com/news/450295372/Govuk-Verify-misses-April-go-l…>, with technical issues to overcome and challenges around sourcing sufficient data to be able to assure everyone’s identity on application. Currently, barely 70% of people <https://www.gov.uk/performance/govuk-verify> using the service are able to verify their identity, and only 35% of visits <https://www.gov.uk/performance/govuk-verify> to the service result in a completed transaction. HMRC has been particularly reluctant to use Verify <http://www.computerweekly.com/news/4500247745/HMRC-denies-reports-of-Verify…>, and is developing its own alternative for the digital tax accounts <http://www.computerweekly.com/news/4500260634/HMRC-launches-digital-persona…> service. DWP was initially reluctant to adopt Verify, but is using it in the new digital version of Universal Credit <http://www.computerweekly.com/news/4500260299/National-roll-out-of-Universa…>, although that system is in very limited use as part of trials. The NHS is cautious too <http://www.computerweekly.com/news/4500279751/Govuk-Verify-not-secure-enoug…> . Cunnington, however, says he is “very bullish” about Verify, while acknowledging that GDS’s advisory board of external experts told him to prioritise “sorting out Verify” and getting it adopted at scale. *“You have to expect [GDS] to change as we learn what's been working well and what needs to happen differently”* *Kevin Cunnington, GDS* He says that GDS is “internally looking at all the things we now need to do to make Verify a success”, with that review concluding at the end of November 2016. We are actively working with the departments on their internal roadmaps for how they adopt Verify. There are some big potential uses of Verify – NHS would be one and the DVLA and MoJ could do more. DWP does quite a lot. It’s just a case of putting a proper plan together that frees up some of the learnings we’ve had over the past year or so,” he says. On HMRC, he says the issue is simple. HMRC requires a lower level of assurance than Verify currently offers – DWP, by comparison, needs a high level of assurance because it pays money out to people. HMRC, however, receives payments, so is less worried about potentially onerous identity checks. “The HMRC issue isn’t an issue. HMRC has a different means of verifying people that it has had for a while. We are talking to HMRC about how we could merge these things eventually, but HMRC isn’t against it. It is all for it, but it’s just the wrong hammer for the wrong nail,” he says, adding: “We are looking at potentially lowering the level of authorisation required so HMRC can use it.” Meanwhile, HMRC continues with its own development, which involves adding extra features to the existing Government Gateway identity portal. Gateway also supports assurance of companies – something Verify is not designed to do. Computer Weekly did not have time to ask about Verify Basic Accounts, a cut-down service developed previously to address the same issue – little has been said publicly about this alternative since trials concluded a year ago <https://identityassurance.blog.gov.uk/2015/10/09/basic-identity-accounts-tr…> . Cunnington was, however, keen to discuss the potential for Verify to be used beyond government, highlighting talks with banks <http://www.computerweekly.com/news/4500247996/Government-preparing-to-let-p…> and online gambling companies about using the service for identity checks. “We are actively looking at whether we can change our business model for Verify. Candidly, a number of banks have said to us they’re in the business of identifying people for money laundering regulations – they could see themselves moving to Verify rather than continuing to do that for themselves,” he says. It’s the same for gamblers as well – gambling organisations have the same legal requirement to know their customer, which could be solved using Verify.” *Ambitious targets* With ambitious targets for 2020 ahead, Cunnington has to get up and running quickly – but let’s not forget he has been in the job for less than two months. He faced the personal challenge of stepping into the shoes of a popular leader in Stephen Foreshew-Cain, as well as the fact that Cunnington came from a department in DWP whose senior executives are known to have been antagonistic towards GDS. “People are giving me a chance to prove whether I’m good or not. To be honest, if people applauded when I walked in I’d have been surprised,” he says. “They don’t really know me, so they’re giving me a chance. I get the sense that people are warming to me. I think they’re pleased with the plan.” GDS staffers will be relieved to hear that Cunnington expects the team to be the same size by 2020 as it is now – around 650 people – but with a burst of recruitment in between to take the team temporarily to 800 as extra bodies are needed for current projects before they go live and settle down. He also says that – contrary to widespread rumours – GDS is not cutting back on doing software development <http://www.computerweekly.com/blog/Computer-Weekly-Editors-Blog/GDS-Will-th…> . But the devil is in the detail. His strategy is still being written, and many people are keen to see the detail therein. Certainly, changes are ahead. “GDS was set up to be disruptive – revolution not evolution. What I’m saying to people is we should celebrate that and we should celebrate all the good work that we’ve done,” says Cunnington. “But also, we need to recognise that GDS is, in and of itself, a transformation programme. So you have to expect it to change as we learn what’s been working well and what needs to happen differently.”

1 0

Re: [kictanet] The KINGS of Africa's Digital Economy (Eric M K Osiakwan)
by June Tessy 27 Jan '17

27 Jan '17

Eric, Will this talk be based on the Chapter in the Digital Kenya book? We look forward to watching the footage afterwards, but before then can we send in questions and/or comments? Kind Regards, June Tessy LinkedIn Profile <http://ke.linkedin.com/in/juneokal> On 27 January 2017 at 12:00, <kictanet-request(a)lists.kictanet.or.ke> wrote: > Send kictanet mailing list submissions to > kictanet(a)lists.kictanet.or.ke > > To subscribe or unsubscribe via the World Wide Web, visit > https://lists.kictanet.or.ke/mailman/listinfo/kictanet > or, via email, send a message with subject or body 'help' to > kictanet-request(a)lists.kictanet.or.ke > > You can reach the person managing the list at > kictanet-owner(a)lists.kictanet.or.ke > > When replying, please edit your Subject line so it is more specific > than "Re: Contents of kictanet digest..." > > > Today's Topics: > > 1. The KINGS of Africa's Digital Economy (Eric M K Osiakwan) > 2. The Emergence of Big Data (Timothy- Coach- Oriedo) > > > ---------------------------------------------------------------------- > > Message: 1 > Date: Thu, 26 Jan 2017 14:09:14 -0800 > From: Eric M K Osiakwan <ericosiakwan(a)me.com> > To: kictanet(a)lists.kictanet.or.ke > Subject: [kictanet] The KINGS of Africa's Digital Economy > Message-ID: <A9729AE5-6E3D-4CFC-B8EB-04C2FA9F604D(a)me.com> > Content-Type: text/plain; charset="us-ascii" > > https://cyber.harvard.edu/events/2017/02/Osiakwan < > https://cyber.harvard.edu/events/2017/02/Osiakwan> > > Eric here > > > Eric M.K Osiakwan > "Accraboy" 4 Skype > @eosiakwan 4 Twitter > about.me/ericosiakwan <http://about.me/ericosiakwan> > +233244386792 4 WhatsApp > >

2 1

Anyone can build an app, but of what use is it if it can’t make you money?
by Eric M K Osiakwan 27 Jan '17

27 Jan '17

http://www.nation.co.ke/lifestyle/myNetwork/Find-out-what-it-takes-to-build… Eric here Eric M.K Osiakwan "Accraboy" 4 Skype @eosiakwan 4 Twitter www.ericosiakwan.com +233244386792 4 WhatsApp

1 0

The Emergence of Big Data
by Timothy- Coach- Oriedo 27 Jan '17

27 Jan '17

http://www.businessdailyafrica.com/Opinion-and-Analysis/Big-Data-the-new-na… Timothy Oriedo about.me/Timoriedo

1 0

The KINGS of Africa's Digital Economy
by Eric M K Osiakwan 27 Jan '17

27 Jan '17

https://cyber.harvard.edu/events/2017/02/Osiakwan <https://cyber.harvard.edu/events/2017/02/Osiakwan> Eric here Eric M.K Osiakwan "Accraboy" 4 Skype @eosiakwan 4 Twitter about.me/ericosiakwan <http://about.me/ericosiakwan> +233244386792 4 WhatsApp

1 0

Fwd: Facebook gets real on Fake News
by Ali Hussein 26 Jan '17

26 Jan '17

Listers Interesting development. We must applaud Facebook for taking concrete action in addressing this phenomenon. See thread below. Ali Hussein Principal Hussein & Associates +254 0713 601113 Twitter: @AliHKassim Skype: abu-jomo LinkedIn: http://ke.linkedin.com/in/alihkassim "We are what we repeatedly do. Excellence, therefore, is not an act but a habit." ~ Aristotle Sent from my iPad Begin forwarded message: > From: "FORTUNE Data Sheet" <fortune(a)email.fortune.com> > Date: 26 January 2017 at 5:51:02 PM EAT > To: <ali(a)hussein.me.ke> > Subject: Facebook gets real > Reply-To: "Fortune" <reply-febe1676756d0d7a-20_HTML-56937916-7213333-12(a)email.fortune.com> > > > > > > > > FOLLOW > SUBSCRIBE > SEND TIP > JANUARY 26, 2017 > Facebook has been blamed by many for its complicity in the explosion of “fake news” during the recent election campaign, a phenomenon that some say helped Donald Trump take the Oval Office. After initially dismissing the issue, Mark Zuckerberg has talked more recently about taking concrete steps to attack the problem. > > One step that Facebook is taking is to alter the way its “Trending Topics” section works in order to try and keep fake news items from moving up that leaderboard, which sits in the upper right-hand section of every user’s page. The change was announced on Wednesday in a blog post. > > Instead of ranking topics based purely on the number of people sharing, liking, or commenting on them, Facebook says it will now look at whether those topics or stories are also being covered by a wide range of other publishers and media outlets. The company said it hopes this will reduce the likelihood of having an article from a fake-news website dominating the trending topics. > > In addition to some of the fact-checking features that Facebook announced recently—which include integrating with the work being done by organizations like Politifact—this is a good step towards improving the environment for news on the social network. > > To Facebook CEO Mark Zuckerberg’s credit, once he agrees that something is a problem, he usually moves swiftly to try and fix it. Let’s hope that he intends to follow through on his promises as far as fake news goes, because we will all be better off. And with Google also taking action to cut off advertising access for such sites, things may be looking up on the fake news front. > > Mathew Ingram > @mathewi > mathew.ingram(a)fortune.com > > . > > BITS AND BYTES > Apple takes dispute with Qualcomm to China. The iPhone maker filed two lawsuits against the giant wireless chip company, accusing it of abusing its market dominance when setting prices and criticizing it for not licensing its patents more broadly. Apple filed a similar complaint last week in the U.S. Qualcomm executives hinted at retaliation during the company's earnings call on Wednesday. (Fortune, Reuters, Wall Street Journal ) > > It looks like Snapchat has huge ad deals in the works. The messaging service wants some of the biggest names in advertising—like WPP, Omnicom, Publicis, and Interpublic—to commit between $100 million and $200 million this year, reports The Wall Street Journal. Those sorts of contracts will be crucial as parent Snap plans its initial public offering. (Wall Street Journal) > > Former Xiaomi global exec is heading to Facebook's VR team. Hugo Barra resigned his post at the Chinese smartphone maker earlier this week so he could return to Silicon Valley, citing homesickness and health concerns. It turns out that Barra, who previously ran Google's mobile business, will now lead strategy for the Oculus virtual-reality goggles team. (Reuters, New York Times) > > Uber is handling an appreciable chunk of corporate travel business. The ride-hailing app accounted for more than half of the transactions for ground transportation arrangements handled last quarter by Certify, the expense management service. That's the first time this has happened. (Bloomberg) > > The holiday season was kind of a bust for wearable technology. Fewer than 16% of Americans owned a smartwatch or fitness band by the end of 2016, up a smidge from about 12% at the beginning of the year, according to new data from researcher Kantar Worldpanel ComTech. Buying plans for 2017 aren't aggressive, with just 8% planning a purchase. (Fortune) > > 3D printing startup seeks to disrupt automotive manufacturing. Divergent 3D on Wednesday disclosed a $23 million early-stage round of funding. While other companies are working on technology for creating vehicle parts, Divergent is working on alternatives for creating lightweight vehicle chassis. (Fortune) > > Here's why the U.S. should spend more on robotics research. Even if President Trump succeeds in pressuring companies to build more U.S. factories, the irony is that it's highly likely that many of those jobs will be handled by industrial robots manufactured in China, argues The New York Times' Farhad Manjoo. One solution: more government investments in robotics, akin to the billions of yuan that China has poured into this field over the past five years. (New York Times) > > . > > WATCH FOR IT > So, how are the Pixel smartphone and Google Assistant doing? Alphabet is set to report fourth-quarter financials after the stock market close on Thursday, with analysts forecasting $25.2 billion in revenue. Naturally, most of that will come from Google's mobile search and advertising businesses, but Wall Street is also looking for more hints about how its hardware investments are paying off. (Recode) > > . > > THE DOWNLOAD > The new Cisco is all about software, software, software. Why would Cisco, one of Silicon Valley's old guard data center and networking hardware companies, buy a software maker used by businesses to monitor the performance of their apps? > > Software apps like the one for ride-hailing service Uber don't seem like they have anything in common to the switches and routers that Cisco sells, but it hopes software services like data and security analytics can pick up the slack from its weakening hardware business. As Fortune's Jonathan Vanian reports, the move sets the stage for Cisco to compete more rigorously with traditional tech giants IBM and Hewlett Packard Enterprise, as well as cloud computing services powerhouse Amazon. (Fortune) > > . > > IN CASE YOU MISSED IT > A Silicon Valley Lifer Talks Diversity in Tech, by Ellen McGirt > > How the Last Minute, $3.7 Billion AppDynamics Deal Went Down, by Erin Griffith > > Starbucks Wants Microsoft Chief Satya Nadella on Its Board, by Barb Darrow > > Dropbox Didn't Actually Delete Your Deleted Files, by Robert Hackett > > Are Apple's iPhone 6 Battery Problems Grounds for a Recall? by Jeff John Roberts > > Ford Hires Former Apple Executive to Lead Branding Effort, by Kirsten Korosec > > Billionaire Richard Branson Really, Really Likes Video Doorbell Startup Ring, by Polina Marinova > > . > > . > > ONE MORE THING > Surprise? Middle-aged Americans are more obsessed with social media than millennials. People between the ages of 35 to 49 spend almost seven hours a week on Twitter, Facebook, and other outlets. That compares with about six hours for those aged between 18 and 34. (Fortune) > > This edition of Data Sheet was curated by Heather Clancy. > Find past issues. Sign up for other Fortune newsletters. > > . > EMAIL ADAM LASHINSKY > > SUBSCRIBE > > SHARE: > . > This message has been sent to you because you are currently subscribed to Data Sheet > UNSUBSCRIBE HERE > > Please read our Privacy Policy, or copy and paste this link into your browser: > HTTP://WWW.FORTUNE.COM/PRIVACY > > All products and services featured are based solely on editorial selection. FORTUNE may receive compensation for some links to products and services on this website. > > For Further Communication, Please Contact: > FORTUNE Customer Service > 3000 University Center Drive > Tampa, FL 33612-6408 > > ADVERTISING INFO | SUBSCRIBE TO FORTUNE

1 0

US STRATEGIC PRINCIPLES FOR SECURING THE INTERNET OF THINGS (IoT)
by WANGARI KABIRU 26 Jan '17

26 Jan '17

https://www.dhs.gov/sites/default/files/publications/Strategic_Principles_f… "The growth of network-connected devices, systems, and services comprising theInternet of Things (IoT)1 creates immense opportunities and benefits for our society.IoT security, however, has not kept up with the rapid pace of innovation anddeployment, creating substantial safety and economic risks. This document explainsthese risks and provides a set of non-binding principles and suggested best practicesto build toward a responsible level of security for the devices and systems businessesdesign, manufacture, own, and operate." "Internet-connected devices enable seamless connections among people, networks, andphysical services. These connections afford efficiencies, novel uses, and customizedexperiences that are attractive to both manufacturers and consumers. Network-connecteddevices are already becoming ubiquitous in, and even essential to, many aspects of day-to-daylife, from fitness trackers, pacemakers, and cars, to the control systems that deliver water andpower to our homes. The promise offered by IoT is almost without limit." Connecting policy and the innovation, building into a great discourse. Read on. Blessed day. Regards/Wangari--- Pray God Bless. 2013Wangari circa - "Being of the Light, We are Restored Through Faith in Mind, Body and Spirit; We Manifest The Kingdom of God on Earth".

1 0