June 2019 - KICTANet

Re: [kictanet] New Cabinet - Wish List ?
by Barrack Otieno 18 Jul '24

18 Jul '24

Listers, This is indeed good news. We have a lot of hope in Mucheru and Victor Kyalo industry veterans who have indeed worked their way through the trenches. Most importantly we hope to see the return of a multi stakeholder form of engagement in the sector which we have been yearning for in a while. I think as a sector we might need to prepare a wish list for our new leaders and most importantly commit to work with them towards achieving their mandate. The reshuffle is timely still it comes at the end of the year and will allow us to start 2016 on a new slate. Thank you Best Regards On 11/24/15, GG via kictanet <kictanet(a)lists.kictanet.or.ke> wrote: > +1 Grace. > > Sending them positive energy! And glad that the two were among the KICTANet > founders. > Rgds. > > --- Original Message --- > > From: "Grace Mutung'u (Bomu) via kictanet" <kictanet(a)lists.kictanet.or.ke> > Sent: 24 November 2015 22:35 > To: ggithaiga(a)hotmail.com > Cc: "Grace Mutung'u (Bomu)" <nmutungu(a)gmail.com> > Subject: Re: [kictanet] New Cabinet > > One of the issues (I think issue no.3) in the President's speech was > accessibility of leaders to wananchi. With Joe and Kyalo I think we shall > have better ears. > > Congratulations! > > May they pass the vetting. > > Regards, > On 24 Nov 2015 21:29, "Evans Ikua via kictanet" < > kictanet(a)lists.kictanet.or.ke> wrote: > >> @Ngigi you are right. But in the current dispensation, a CS is still >> expected to be a technocrat, as opposed to the days of yore when minister >> was politician. So they will both be at home in their respective >> positions. >> Especially Victor as the accounting officer with his many years in >> government. That's the right position. >> >> Evans >> On Nov 24, 2015 9:17 PM, "Waithaka Ngigi" <ngigi(a)at.co.ke> wrote: >> >>> Evans, >>> >>> Joe Mucheru & Victor Kyalo are old hands in. KE ICT. Both have been >>> entrepreneurs and then at some point moved on to various ventures. So we >>> shouldn't go wrong ‎with either. >>> >>> However, what's the better fit? Mucheru at CS, Victor at PS or the other >>> way round? Victor CS, Mucheru PS? >>> >>> Waithaka Ngigi >>> >>> Alliance Technologies >>> www.at.co.ke >>> *From: *Evans Ikua via kictanet >>> *Sent: *Tuesday, November 24, 2015 8:50 PM >>> *To: *Ngigi Waithaka >>> *Reply To: *KICTAnet ICT Policy Discussions >>> *Cc: *Evans Ikua >>> *Subject: *Re: [kictanet] New Cabinet >>> >>> Congrats Hon Joe! That's a great choice for the ICT industry. Well out >>> H.E. >>> >>> Ikua >>> On Nov 24, 2015 8:45 PM, "waudo siganga via kictanet" < >>> kictanet(a)lists.kictanet.or.ke> wrote: >>> >>>> Congratulations to Joe Mucheru! >>>> >>>> _______________________________________________ >>>> kictanet mailing list >>>> kictanet(a)lists.kictanet.or.ke >>>> https://lists.kictanet.or.ke/mailman/listinfo/kictanet >>>> >>>> Unsubscribe or change your options at >>>> https://lists.kictanet.or.ke/mailman/options/kictanet/ikua.evans%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 >> https://lists.kictanet.or.ke/mailman/listinfo/kictanet >> >> Unsubscribe or change your options at >> https://lists.kictanet.or.ke/mailman/options/kictanet/nmutungu%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. >> > -- Barrack O. Otieno +254721325277 +254-20-2498789 Skype: barrack.otieno http://www.otienobarrack.me.ke/

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KICTANet Preliminary Observations on Technology Deployment in Kenya’s General Election 2017
by Grace Githaiga 17 Sep '20

17 Sep '20

Listers Greetings. Please find attached an interim report on KICTANet's observation on the technology deployment of the electoral process from a user end perspective. We are working an elaborate report and will share in due course. We thank all our observers and all members who contributed to all the discussions on the topic of technology use in the elections. Best regards Githaiga, Grace Co-Convenor Kenya ICT Action Network (KICTANet) Twitter:@ggithaiga Tel: 254722701495 Skype: gracegithaiga Alternate email: ggithaiga(a)hotmail.com<mailto:ggithaiga@hotmail.com> Linkedin: https://www.linkedin.com/in/gracegithaiga www.kictanet.or.ke "Change only happens when ordinary people get involved, get engaged and come together to demand it. I am asking you to believe. Not in my ability to bring about change – but in yours"---Barrack Obama. ---------------------------------------------------------------------------------- Grace Githaiga Twitter: @ggithaiga Skype: gracegithaiga Linkedin: https://www.linkedin.com/in/gracegithaiga ...the most important office in a democracy is the citizen. So, you see, that’s what our democracy demands. It needs you!----Barrack Obama.

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Mesh Networks in South Africa
by Joash Moitui 17 Sep '19

17 Sep '19

Dear all, Innovative mesh networks in South Africa are connecting the connected for less than $2 a month. https://www.bbc.com/news/av/world-africa-47723967/internet-access-in-africa… Could this be the solution for connecting thousands in rural Kenya? Best, Joash Moitui ~Sent from mobile device. Apologies for brevity and typos ~

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Facebook "Community Standards£.
by Mutemi wa Kiama 09 Jul '19

09 Jul '19

According to Facebook these posts go against "Community Standards"! Why, because they're critical of GoK and it's leadership, advocate for African wokeness, or the kids are in ethnic attire? Whose Community Standards and on what basis? Facebook has taken most of them down today. Could someone please make me understand! Or has Cambridge Analytica taken over Facebook? This is censorship in my book! Warm regards, Edwin Kiama Thoughts become things... choose the good ones! ------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------- Social Innovator, Social Justice Entrepreneur, Catalyst, Human Rights Defender, Social Accountability Champion, Rhize Coach #DevolutionIsRevolution Champion The Wanjiku Agenda Kenya Foundation (WAKenya) Ordinary, Fearless Kenyans. Sauti Ya Wanjiku Social Movement www.sautiyawanjiku.com https://www.facebook.com/wanjikurevolutionkenya https://twitter.com/WanjikuRevolt https://plus.google.com/u/1/+WanjikuMapinduzi/posts http://www.scribd.com/wmkenya "Never doubt that a small group of thoughtful, committed people can change the world. Indeed, it is the only thing that ever has." ~Margaret Mead

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.KE SGR + CNBC - Why The US Has No High-Speed Rail
by S.M. Muraya 08 Jul '19

08 Jul '19

Interesting documentary here.. Why The US Has No High-Speed Rail - https://youtu.be/Qaf6baEu0_w Even with digital transformations, the USA is still creating (service industry jobs) which require movement of people + cargo, not just movement of money (online banking services). MAYBE, the KE SGR will break even in 30 years (serving over 90 Mln Kenyans) if Kenyan SMEs are empowered to create more jobs all over Kenya. http://www.worldbank.org/en/news/opinion/2010/04/28/demographic-transition-… worldpopulationreview.com/countries/kenya-population/

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GSMA The role of privacy frameworks in building trust for digital identity services | Mobile for Development
by Alice Munyua 08 Jul '19

08 Jul '19

Very interesting research focusing on perceptions of and attitudes towards privacy, data sharing and trust in four African countries. Key finding: “Mobile users attitudes to trust, privacy and identity linked services are often independent from the presence or absence of a comprehensive data protection/privacy law” https://www.gsma.com/mobilefordevelopment/blog/50297/

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In Court, Facebook Blames Users for Destroying Right to Privacy
by Alice Munyua 08 Jul '19

08 Jul '19

Still trying to understand perceptions of privacy/data protection. Here is a really interesting coverage of recent Facebook courtroom debates. Face book says they have worked very hard to build privacy into all their products, but once you share information with your friends “you have lost control over the information and it’s subsequent disclosures” Here is the article: https://theintercept.com/2019/06/14/facebook-privacy-policy-court/ Thanks Patrick, Ali, Barrack, Grace, Esther, Poncelet and others for your comments on the Mozilla privacy by default initiative. Very best regards Alice

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Fwd: [AfrICANN-discuss] Remote participation for ICANN DAY @ AIS 2019, Kampala
by Barrack Otieno 08 Jul '19

08 Jul '19

Listers, Might be of interest. Regards ---------- Forwarded message --------- From: Yaovi Atohoun <yaovi.atohoun(a)icann.org> Date: Sun, Jun 16, 2019 at 9:23 AM Subject: [AfrICANN-discuss] Remote participation for ICANN DAY @ AIS 2019, Kampala To: AfrICANN Community List <africann(a)afrinic.net> Hello everyone / Bonjour à tous, FR : Vous pouvez participer à distance à ICANN DAY AIS 2019 ce 16 juin 2019 de 09 :00 à 17 :30 via ZOOM à *https://icann.zoom.us/j/330901182 <https://icann.zoom.us/j/330901182> . *L’audio est en Anglais mais vous pouvez taper vos questions en Français dans le « CHAT ROOM de ZOOM » . Vous pouvez aussi envoyer au besoin un mail à queries.nairobiec(a)icann.org . Notez que le fuseau horaire à Kampala est UTC+3 EN: You can join remotely via ZOOM at https://icann.zoom.us/j/330901182 on June 16, 2019 from 09:00 to 17:30. You can type questions or comments in the CHAT ROOM. Please send any other request to queries.nairobiec(a)icann.org . Please note time the time zone in Uganda is UTC+3 Thanks/Merci -- *Yaovi Atohoun* *Stakeholder Engagement and Operations Manager- Africa*; *ICANN* *Tel. +229 66015649/65209067* *www.icann.org <http://www.icann.org>* *Upcoming events:* *@AIS2019: ** Workshop on June 15 <https://features.icann.org/event/icann-speaking-events/icann-workshop-afric…>; ICANN DAY on June 16 <https://features.icann.org/event/icann-speaking-events/icann-day-ais-2019>* *ICANN65 , 24-27 June 2019 in Marrakech <https://meetings.icann.org/en/marrakech65>* _______________________________________________ AfrICANN mailing list AfrICANN(a)afrinic.net https://lists.afrinic.net/mailman/listinfo/africann -- Barrack O. Otieno +254721325277 +254733206359 Skype: barrack.otieno PGP ID: 0x2611D86A

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Membership Number / Password.
by Muthoni Njogu 08 Jul '19

08 Jul '19

Dear Waudo, My name is Muthoni, Proprietor of Njogu & Associates Advocates. Am very interested in Legal Tech and hence my interest in KICTANet . From your email, I see that there is a Membership Password, I recently subscribed to the emails but not aware that there is a Membership Number or Password. Kindly advice on this. Kind regards I Muthoni Njogu | I +254721281569| I P.O.Box 40493-00100 I I Nairobi, Kenya I *"**"Man's capacity for justice makes democracy possible; but man's inclination to injustice makes democracy necessary" - Reinhold Neibhur*

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KICTANetiquette - The Rules of Engagement on this forum.
by Odhiambo Washington 08 Jul '19

08 Jul '19

As a reminder to fellow listers, The Kenya ICT Action Network (KICTANet) is a multi stakeholder network of members from civil society groups, academia, private and public sectors, development partners and media. The network aims to act as a catalyst for reform in the ICT sector in support of the governments mission to enable Kenyans to gain maximum benefit from the opportunity offered by ICTs The rules on engagement, aka KICTANetiquette, as defined at https://lists.kictanet.or.ke/mailman/listinfo/kictanet for those who haven't had a chance to read them, or those who might have forgotten, are simple: *1: Adhere to the same standards of acceptable behaviors online that you follow in real life* *2: Respect people's times and bandwidth,* *3: Share knowledge* *4: Don't flame or abuse or personalize* *5: Respect privacy* *6: Do not spam, do not market your wares or qualifications.* Let's observe these 6 cardinal rules. We do not want to unsubscribe you from this interesting list, you know! :-) Thank you very much ladies and gentlemen. [From the List Admins] -- Best regards, Odhiambo WASHINGTON, Nairobi,KE +254 7 3200 0004/+254 7 2274 3223 "Oh, the cruft.", grep ^[^#] :-)

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Fwd: [Internet Policy] A summary of the report of the UN High-Level Panel on Digital Cooperation
by Barrack Otieno 08 Jul '19

08 Jul '19

Listers, Might be of interest. Regards ---------- Forwarded message --------- From: Richard Hill <rhill(a)hill-a.ch> Date: Tue, Jun 11, 2019 at 5:45 PM Subject: [Internet Policy] A summary of the report of the UN High-Level Panel on Digital Cooperation To: Internetpolicy@Elists. Isoc. Org <internetpolicy(a)elists.isoc.org> Here is a very short summary of the cited report: http://nissaba.net/tldr/hlpdc-report/ Best, Richard _______________________________________________ To manage your Internet Society subscriptions or unsubscribe, log into the Member Portal at https://admin.internetsociety.org/622619/User/Login and go to the Interests tab within your profile. -- Barrack O. Otieno +254721325277 +254733206359 Skype: barrack.otieno PGP ID: 0x2611D86A

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Fwd: [At-Large] Fwd: Pre-ICANN65 Policy Report
by Barrack Otieno 08 Jul '19

08 Jul '19

Listers, This is for your information and attention. Best Regards ---------- Forwarded message --------- From: Maureen Hilyard <maureen.hilyard(a)gmail.com> Date: Wed, Jun 12, 2019 at 5:59 PM Subject: [At-Large] Fwd: Pre-ICANN65 Policy Report To: At-Large Worldwide <at-large(a)atlarge-lists.icann.org> Report is found here: https://meetings.icann.org/en/marrakech65/pre-icann65-policy-report-11jun19… David A. Olive | Senior Vice President Policy Development Support *ICANN *| Internet Corporation for Assigned Names and Numbers 801 17th Street NW, Suite 400 | Washington, DC 20006 _______________________________________________ At-Large mailing list At-Large(a)atlarge-lists.icann.org https://atlarge-lists.icann.org/mailman/listinfo/at-large At-Large Official Site: http://atlarge.icann.org _______________________________________________ By submitting your personal data, you consent to the processing of your personal data for purposes of subscribing to this mailing list accordance with the ICANN Privacy Policy (https://www.icann.org/privacy/policy) and the website Terms of Service (https://www.icann.org/privacy/tos) You can visit the Mailman link above to change your membership status or configuration, including unsubscribing, setting digest-style delivery or disabling delivery altogether (e.g., for a vacation), and so on. -- Barrack O. Otieno +254721325277 +254733206359 Skype: barrack.otieno PGP ID: 0x2611D86A

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Fwd: [afren] Chief Technology Officer | One Acre Fund
by Barrack Otieno 08 Jul '19

08 Jul '19

Listers, Might be of interest. Regards ---------- Forwarded message ---------- From: Lucy Lynch <llynch(a)civil-tongue.net> Date: Wed, 12 Jun 2019 13:03:23 -0700 Subject: [afren] Chief Technology Officer | One Acre Fund To: afren(a)afnog.org All - Of possible interest here: https://oneacrefund.org/work-with-us/job-openings/g/?gh_jid=1631732 _______________________________________________ afren mailing list afren(a)afnog.org https://www.afnog.org/mailman/listinfo/afren -- Barrack O. Otieno +254721325277 +254733206359 Skype: barrack.otieno PGP ID: 0x2611D86A

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Fwd: [afnog] For two hours, a large chunk of European mobile traffic was rerouted through China
by Barrack Otieno 08 Jul '19

08 Jul '19

Listers, Might be of interest. Regards ---------- Forwarded message ---------- From: *Amreesh Phokeer* <amreesh.phokeer(a)gmail.com> Date: Monday, June 10, 2019 Subject: [afnog] For two hours, a large chunk of European mobile traffic was rerouted through China To: African Network Operators <afnog(a)afnog.org> Some good MANRS required here: <https://www.zdnet.com/article/for-two-hours-a-large- chunk-of-european-mobile-traffic-was-rerouted-through-china/> -- Amreesh Phokeer -- Barrack O. Otieno +254721325277 +254733206359 Skype: barrack.otieno PGP ID: 0x2611D86A

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When it comes to privacy by default, settings matter!
by Alice Munyua 08 Jul '19

08 Jul '19

> https://blog.mozilla.org/blog/2019/06/04/when-it-comes-to-privacy-default-s… > > What if I told you that on nearly every single website you visit, data about you was transmitted to dozens or even hundreds of companies, all so that the website could earn an additional $0.00008 per ad! This is a key finding from a new study on behaviorally targeted advertisements from Carnegie Mellon University and it should be a wake-up call to all of us. The status quo of pervasive data collection in service of ad targeting is untenable. That is why we’re announcing some key changes to Firefox. > > Today marks an important milestone in the history of Firefox and the web. As of today, for new users who download and install Firefox for the first time, Enhanced Tracking Protection will automatically be set on by default, protecting our users from the pervasive tracking and collection of personal data by ad networks and tech companies. > > It seems that each week a new tech company decides to decree that privacy is a human right. They tout how their products provide people with “choices” to change the settings if they wish to opt into a greater level of privacy protection to exemplify how they are putting privacy first. That begs the question — do people really want more complex settings to understand and fiddle with or do they simply want products that respect their privacy and align with their expectations to begin with? > > Privacy shouldn’t be relegated to optional settings > > When thinking about consumer privacy online, I’m reminded of the behavioral economics studies which led to 401K plans (US retirement savings plans) moving from voluntary enrollment to auto-enrollment. Not too long ago most defined contribution retirement savings plans in the US required employees to sign-up and volunteer to start participating. Participation rates were very low. Why was that? Was it because people didn’t care about saving for retirement? Not at all! There were simply too many barriers to aligning with people’s expectations and desires and the benefits of saving for retirement aren’t felt immediately. > > We are in a similar position with respect to software privacy settings. Pervasive tracking is too opaque and potential privacy harms are never felt immediately. The general argument from tech companies is that consumers can always decide to dive into their browser settings and modify the defaults. The reality is that most people will never do that. Yet, we know that people are broadly opposed to the status quo of pervasive cross-site tracking and data collection, particularly when they learn the details on how tracking actually works. > > We also know that traditional privacy features such as Chrome’s Incognito mode are failing to live up to consumer expectations. The feature might keep your spouse from knowing what you’re thinking about getting them for your anniversary by erasing your history, but it does not prevent third-party tracking. Our research shows that Firefox users are seeking out privacy protection, particularly through the use of Firefox’s Private Browsing mode. In fact, nearly 25% of web page loads in Firefox take place in a Private Browsing window. The good news for these users is that Firefox’s Private Browsing mode has long put users first by blocking tracking. The bad news is that this generally isn’t true for many popular browsers, which allow tracking even in private browsing/incognito mode. A recent study found that users don’t understand this and think their data is being protected, when it is actually not. > > As was the case with retirement savings plans, what this shows us is that the burden needs to shift from the consumers to the companies whereby the complexity of privacy settings shouldn’t be placed on users to figure out. The product defaults should simply align with consumer expectations. That is the approach we are taking in Firefox. > > Enhanced Tracking Protection by Default > > As stated above, new Firefox users will have strong privacy protection from the moment they install. We also expect to deliver the same functionality to existing users over the coming months. Because we are modifying the fundamental way in which cookies and browser storage operate, we’ve been very rigorous in our testing and roll-out plans to ensure our users are not experiencing unforeseen usability issues. If you’re already using Firefox and can’t wait, you can turn this feature on by clicking on the menu icon marked by three horizontal lines at the top right of your browser, then Content Blocking. Go to your privacy preferences and click on the Custom option on the right side. Mark the Cookies checkbox and make sure that “Third-party trackers” is selected. To learn more about our privacy and security settings and get more detail on what each section — Standard, Strict, and Custom — includes, visit here. > > > For existing users, go to your privacy preferences and click on the Custom option, ark the Cookies checkbox > > If you are new to Firefox, we’d love for you to give it a try. Download the latest version here. > > When it comes to privacy, default settings matter! We hope that the actions we are taking can ultimately compel change in the industry. Afterall, consumers deserve better.

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Public interest projects, Access to Information
by S.M. Muraya 08 Jul '19

08 Jul '19

Dear Listers, What being done to enable access to information on Public interest (debt) projects? What needs to be constitutionally amended to require parliamentary approval for these public projects? https://twitter.com/ntvkenya/status/1137947611925639169?s=19 In the almost 3 minute clip, Senator Mwaura did not mention, to succeed, compensation fraud required the participation of county authorities.

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Transit Visa through France
by Robert Muthuri 08 Jul '19

08 Jul '19

Hello, Just a quick alert to those going to RightsCon in Tunis next week, it seems there is a new requirement for transit visa through France for Kenyans. You may need to alter arrangements if this was your itinerary. Best, Robert.

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Invitation to the launch of Takwimu, a new African data platform
by Eric Mugendi 08 Jul '19

08 Jul '19

Code for Africa <http://codeforafrica.org>would like to invite you to the launch of Takwimu <https://takwimu.africa/>, a new African data platform, on Tuesday, June 11 at iHub, Senteu Plaza. Takwimu provides users with accurate, up-to-date information about development-focused political decision-making in a select number of countries across Africa including Kenya - combined with a growing body of data on key health, agriculture, education, and financial inclusion metrics. The aim is to provide African development champions and storytellers with the best analysis and data available, supporting their work to educate, influence and advocate for change in their communities. Takwimu is an initiative by Africa Practice <http://www.africapractice.com/>, Code for Africa <https://codeforafrica.org/>, and iHub <https://ihub.co.ke/>, with support from the Bill and Melinda Gates Foundation. [image: image.png] The keynote address will be delivered by Prof. Bitange Ndemo followed by a panel discussion on “the role of data and analysis in shaping policy and development planning in Kenya” moderated by Linet Kwamboka the CEO of Data Science Limited. Also on the panel will be Douglas Waudo- Regional Communications, Advocacy & Media Specialist for East & Southern Africa, PATH; Abraham Rugo- Country Director IBP; Dr. Alex Awiti, Vice Provost Aga Khan University (GSMC) and Juliana Rotich- Technology entrepreneur, Novato Africa. Your presence will be highly appreciated and will go a long way to further the conversation on access to relevant data and its use in development planning. Date: Tuesday 11th June 2019 Time: 4-7 pm Location: iHub, 6th Floor, Senteu Plaza Please RSVP here <https://docs.google.com/forms/d/e/1FAIpQLSfcyc77LbaPOXo3TBFQeZuGK5lEWY2C_bw…> by Friday 7th June 2019 For more information, contact: naima(a)codeforafrica.org Sincerely, Eric Mugendi about.me/mugendi [image: Eric Mugendi on about.me] <http://about.me/mugendi>

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Huawei soldiers on
by Ronald Ojino 08 Jul '19

08 Jul '19

Interesting events continue to unfold in the 5G space. https://edition.cnn.com/2019/06/07/business/huawei-russia-china-splinternet… Regards, Ronald Ojino -- Faith is a living and unshakable confidence. A belief in God so assured that a man would die a thousand deaths for its sake.

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The history and evolution of the motorcycle taxi industry in Africa, and the unseen consequences of its intersection with the internet
by Mbugua Njihia 08 Jul '19

08 Jul '19

*The Subtext* in partnership with Mettā Nairobi is pleased to announce the first edition of the Subtext Sessions event series, where we will discuss the history and evolution of the motorcycle taxi industry in Africa, and the unseen consequences of its intersection with the internet.The conversation will be led by Osarumen Osamuyi <http://twitter.com/skweird>, an Entrepreneur-in-Residence at Africa's Talking Labs, Google Launchpad Africa Accelerator mentor, and the author of *The Subtext*, with participation from the audience, as well as a series of domain experts. Prerequisite Material No materials necessary for the audience to read before coming, but a notepad and an interest in transportation and the business of innovation will help. If interested, they could read the Subtext article about two-wheeled mobility for more context: <https://www.thesubtext.io/marchettis-motorcycles> https://www.thesubtext.io/marchettis-motorcycles *The Subtext* is a web publication about the business of innovation in Africa. It examines the impact of the mobile internet, levers of adoption, and mental models showing how [not what] to think about the industry. Join the conversation about history, competitive strategy, and the causes of success and failure in African technology at <https://thesubtext.io/> https://thesubtext.io Sign Up here - https://www.eventbrite.hk/e/subtextsessions-nairobi-two-wheeled-mobility-ti… ᐧ ᐧ

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Fwd: [i-network] Africa Internet Summit 2019 Kampala
by Barrack Otieno 08 Jul '19

08 Jul '19

Listers, This is for your information. Best Regards ---------- Forwarded message ---------- From: "badru.ntege(a)nftconsult.com" <badru.ntege(a)nftconsult.com> Date: Fri, 07 Jun 2019 05:36:59 GMT Subject: [i-network] Africa Internet Summit 2019 Kampala To: I-Network Uganda <i-network(a)dgroups.org> Good morning all Africa's biggest annual internet summit and gathering kicks off next week with the Africa Network Operating Group's training sessions which will happen from Sunday 9th to Friday 14th. This will then be followed by 3 days of tutorials where i encourage those of you who will not be attending the network and systems training to try and attend. Tuesday 18th to Friday 21st will then be the week of discussions and presentations on internet Policy. I urge all those interested in the current and future of the internet to find time and participate especially in the final week. We have a number of Global internet bodies also holding conferences like ICANN and ISOC among the many. This event was last in Uganda in 2003 and moves to a different African country every year. The Event is hosted by NFT Consult. at Sheraton Kampala Hotel.'' https://www.internetsummit.africa [signature_1765883880] [signature_1529211969] __________ MAILING LIST RULES - http://www.i-network.or.ug/index.php?option=com_content&view=article&id=189… WEEKLY DISCUSSION ROUNDUPS - http://www.i-network.or.ug/index.php?option=com_content&view=category&id=19… QUARTERLY eNEWSLETTERS - http://www.i-network.or.ug/index.php?option=com_content&view=section&id=34&… WEBSITE - www.i-network.or.ug TWITTER - http://twitter.com/inetwork FACEBOOK - https://www.facebook.com/inetwork.ug The I-Network Dgroup is a platform for ICT Knowledge Sharing --------------------------------------------------------------------------------- Visit [web site]( http://dgroups.org/iicd/i-network/ ) Click [here]( mailto:leave.i-network@dgroups.org ) to unsubscribe The email is intended only for the recipients. The owners of the Dgroups cannot be held responsible for the contents of the email message. -- Barrack O. Otieno +254721325277 +254733206359 Skype: barrack.otieno PGP ID: 0x2611D86A

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Fwd: [afnog] Now Open! Submission of Expression of Interest to Host AfPIF-2020
by Barrack Otieno 08 Jul '19

08 Jul '19

Listers, Might be of interest Regards ---------- Forwarded message ---------- From: Betel Hailu <hailu(a)isoc.org> Date: Thu, 6 Jun 2019 08:37:57 +0000 Subject: [afnog] Now Open! Submission of Expression of Interest to Host AfPIF-2020 To: "afnog(a)afnog.org" <afnog(a)afnog.org> Hello everyone- The African Peering and Interconnection Forum (AfPIF) Program Committee in collaboration with the Africa IXP Association (Af-IX) and the Internet Society are looking to partner with institutions or organizations that are keen to host AfPIF-2020. Interested parties can submit their expression of interest to: sec(a)afpif.org For all information and documentations on the application process please go to: https://www.afpif.org/hosting/ The deadline for submissions is 12 July, 2019. Thank you, Betel Hailu AfPIF Comms -- Barrack O. Otieno +254721325277 +254733206359 Skype: barrack.otieno PGP ID: 0x2611D86A

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Fwd: [NRIs List] FW: announcement - HLP Report launch
by Barrack Otieno 08 Jul '19

08 Jul '19

Listers, Might be of interest to those following Internet Governance Developments. Best Regards ---------- Forwarded message ---------- From: Anja Gengo <anja.gengo(a)un.org> Date: Thu, 6 Jun 2019 07:58:47 +0000 Subject: [NRIs List] FW: announcement - HLP Report launch To: "igfregionals(a)intgovforum.org" <igfregionals(a)intgovforum.org> Dear Colleagues, Please see below the announcement from the High Level Panel on Digital Cooperation. Best regards, Anja The High-level Panel on Digital Cooperation will launch its report on Monday 10 June 2019 To mark the occasion, join a live conversation on digital cooperation with: UN Secretary-General António Guterres Melinda Gates Jack Ma Moderated by international broadcast journalist, Femi Oke The live event will begin at 10:45am EST and will be streaming on: UN Web TV:http://webtv.un.org<https://twitter.us18.list-manage.com/track/click?u=7bda30c293b7634877890700…> YouTube:http://youtube.com/unitednations<https://twitter.us18.list-manage.com/track/click?u=7bda30c293b7634877890700…> Facebook:http://facebook.com/UNWebTV<https://twitter.us18.list-manage.com/track/click?u=7bda30c293b7634877890700…> Twitter:http://twitter.com/UNWebTV<https://twitter.us18.list-manage.com/track/click?u=7bda30c293b7634877890700…> This global online event is an opportunity to discuss how the public sector, private sector and civil society can work together to realize the potential of digital technologies for advancing human well-being, while mitigating the risks. Communities, organizations and individuals working on issues ranging from digital inclusion, digital rights & security, governance and more are encouraged to tune in and join the online conversation during the webcast. To send in your questions for the UN Secretary-General, Jack Ma and Melinda Gates, post on social media with the hashtag#digitalcooperation, or email contributions(a)digitalcooperation.org<mailto:contributions@digitalcooperation.org> with the subject line "Webcast Question." About the High-level Panel<https://twitter.us18.list-manage.com/track/click?u=7bda30c293b7634877890700…> Tweet<https://twitter.us18.list-manage.com/track/click?u=7bda30c293b7634877890700…> Forward<http://us18.forward-to-friend.com/forward?u=7bda30c293b7634877890700a&id=66…> Share<https://twitter.us18.list-manage.com/track/click?u=7bda30c293b7634877890700…> Our mailing address is: 220 E 42nd St - 20th floor, New York, NY 10017 You are receiving this message because you have either subscribed to the mailing list directly, or have engaged in an event or consultation. You canupdate your preferences<https://twitter.us18.list-manage.com/profile?u=7bda30c293b7634877890700a&id…> orunsubscribe from this list<https://twitter.us18.list-manage.com/unsubscribe?u=7bda30c293b7634877890700…>. -- Barrack O. Otieno +254721325277 +254733206359 Skype: barrack.otieno PGP ID: 0x2611D86A

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Fwd: Connect Africa : **Internet Society - 2019 IGF Youth Ambassadors Program - Applications Open**
by Barrack Otieno 08 Jul '19

08 Jul '19

Listers, This might be of interest. Regards ---------- Forwarded message ---------- From: Corinne Ogu via Internet Society <Mail(a)connectedcommunity.org> Date: Tue, 4 Jun 2019 18:33:58 +0000 Subject: Connect Africa : **Internet Society - 2019 IGF Youth Ambassadors Program - Applications Open** To: otieno.barrack(a)gmail.com == Please, reply above this line == The Internet Society is now accepting applications for the 2019 IGF Youth Ambassadors Program! We encourage you to apply or share this... **Internet Society - 2019 IGF Youth Ambassadors Program - Applications Open** <https://connect.internetsociety.org/communities/community-home/digestviewer…> <https://connect.internetsociety.org/network/members/profile?UserKey=4b6acb8…> Jun 4, 2019 8:18 AM Alejandra Prieto <https://connect.internetsociety.org/network/members/profile?UserKey=4b6acb8…> The Internet Society is now accepting applications for the 2019 IGF Youth Ambassadors Program! We encourage you to apply <https://www.internetsociety.org/fellowship/igf-youth-ambassadors-program/ > or share this announcement with your communities who are also passionate about empowering the Next Generation of Internet Leaders. Information and links to apply can be found here: www.internetsociety.org/fellowship/... <https://www.internetsociety.org/fellowship/igf-youth-ambassadors-program/> Please, note that the call for applications will close on 25 June 2019. Also, if you are interested in becoming a sponsor of the Internet Society IGF Youth Ambassadors Program, please contact me. Thank you very much in advance! ------------------------------ Alejandra Prieto prieto(a)isoc.org Program Manager, Internet Leadership Note: replies will be sent to the full discussion group. ------------------------------ Reply to Sender : https://connect.internetsociety.org/eGroups/PostReply/?GroupId=733&SenderKe… Reply to Discussion : https://connect.internetsociety.org/eGroups/PostReply/?GroupId=733&MID=3924… You are subscribed to "Connect Africa" as otieno.barrack(a)gmail.com. To change your subscriptions, go to http://connect.internetsociety.org/preferences?section=Subscriptions&MDATE=…. To unsubscribe from this community discussion, go to http://connect.internetsociety.org/HigherLogic/eGroups/Unsubscribe.aspx?Use…. -- Barrack O. Otieno +254721325277 +254733206359 Skype: barrack.otieno PGP ID: 0x2611D86A

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Re: [kictanet] Digital solutions for Social Good
by Patrick A. M. Maina 07 Jul '19

07 Jul '19

Eric, Not sure if you had noticed but your original message made it appear like *you* were the investor. This is more clear. How you fit in as an intermediary is still not clear however. So how exactly do you tailor these pitches to improve the applicant chances (what's your specific value proposition)? Can you give some examples? Are you offering a free service or do you charge? What is your fee? What are your T&Cs so that those who go thru you know exactly what the relationship between you, them and the accelerator entails? I'm still puzzled as to why the UK visa has been dangled because according to the website, it is not even assured. The BGV website clearly says that you qualify if "You have the right to work in the UK (Unfortunately, you cannot take part in our programme on a tourist visa)" Do you have a confirmation letter from the UK consulate that indicates that it is now not "near impossible" for participants of this initiative to get a visa (provided they are not on a bad-guys watchlist of course)? Also not clear from the website... who pays for Visa, return Airfare & accommodation? The accelerator is charging GBP £20,000 as "training" fees??? They also get a 6% stake. So the "lucky startup" gets no cash (1-1=0) but gives up equity??? Or they get the cash, which is spent where (in kenya or UK?) and come back with £20K debt + still give up 6% equity? This deal is full of red flags IMO. How can they purport to train a Kenyan company to succeed in Kenya yet they don't have any experience or a presence in Kenya? Or do they? Don't they have better odds of offering better value and success if they first come to Kenya, learn about the local business landscape and set up a local chapter here? It doesn't make sense. Even more puzzling, they are asking for already proven business models? How do they advise a company to scale in a market that they barely know (if at all)? What's really going on there? Can you expound on how that works? If the investors saw promising startups at the Nairobi Innovation Week, have they engaged and onboarded them? Doesn't make sense to start from zero when they have already made progress. I know there are those who will ignore these red flags and trust blidly in hope. Good luck to them. I wish them success and I sincerely wish that my instincts are completely wrong about this. Thanks and good evening. Patrick. Patrick A. M. Maina[Cross-domain Innovator | Public Policy Analyst - Indigenous Innovations] On Thursday, June 6, 2019, 9:51:48 AM GMT+3, Erick Mwangi <erick.mwangi(a)gmail.com> wrote: Listers / Patrick A bit of background. The organisation in question is BGV (Bethnal Green Ventures). The premise was from investors asking to look beyond EEA. I advised the partners on E Africa and even attended the Nairobi Innovation week. They were impressed and we identified a number of start ups we could work with, to get Visas was near impossible. From then we have worked tirelessly to lobby UK government and now this is now a reality. Secondly from the initial fillers, our comms are different hence why I was asking interested parties to come through me and we can curate stories better for the partners. However feel free to engage directly. The website is comprehensive and answers the bulk of your questions. But I will not go as far as saying the want to steal IP from us - that's a stretch of imagination. Eric E Njoroge MwangiTechnology| FINTECH | Big Data Cell +44 7539372742Skype: Erick.mwangi On Tue, Jun 4, 2019 at 4:35 PM Patrick A. M. Maina <pmaina2000(a)yahoo.com> wrote: Hi Erick, Which organization is doing this? Is there a website that people can visit for more details? How does the UK visa come into play? Is there a bootcamp in UK or something like that? Where are the details + past bootcamps? How many startups are you looking to invest in? What is the range of investment amount? What kind of deal (debt, equity or convertible notes?) Do you have a portfolio of startups that founders can contact to get independent info about the program? Can you share your list of succesful investments, exits and big wins, including the duration under your portfolio? What are the T&Cs and do they contain robust features (like non-disclosure, non-circumvent & non-compete provisions) to protect our hopeful enterpreneurs / youth from the risk of losing trade secrets and intellectual property that would be critical to their competitiveness and long-term survival? I'm asking the above on behalf of inexperienced founders because there have been numerous cases in the past (in other platforms/fora) where "investors" call for pitches but in reality they are exploiting our policy vacuum to mine for ideas from our hopeful - but sometimes gullible - founders, which they ultimately pass on / sell to other startups (or to "partner" corporations) to avoid R&D costs. GENERAL REMARKS (FROM A POLICY-GAP PERSPECTIVE) Dear Listers, While a "bounty" approach is often pitched to corporations / investors as a smart "cost saving" measure, it is, in reality, an economically destructive, ruthless, and inhumane form of intellectual property transfer because it relies on trickery and false hope to achieve unpublished agendas. It demoralizes our youth and stifles innovation by unfairly misallocating opportunity/reward to the undeserving, whose only advantage is their connection to capital gatekeepers. Bounty programs pervert the idea of enterpreneurship, turning it into an unregulated GAMBLING affair, where for every one "jackpot winner" there are thousands of "losers" who discover that they handed over their IP to future competitors for FREE, and who are not protected from unfair future sale/exploitation of their mined IP. Such programs have led to the rise to serial pitchers, a type of gambler who plays for the bounty, instead of real enterpreneurs who truly want to solve real problems. This has resulted in the rise of "shiny object" enterpreneurship that focuses on impressing ponzi-style investors rather creating value to society. More so when they predate on poor countries, where REAL opportunities are scarce and desperately needed. It is unfortunate that ICT regulators have not yet recognized the real cost of such losses in terms of wealth transfer and destruction of jobs / opportunities. How do you create jobs without sources of sustainable advantage? In a recent media interview, I heard CISCO's CEO say something very powerful when discussing Huawei. He said that if the US didn't care about IP, it would be a "third world country", because third world countries only focus on raw materials instead of innovations. Intellectual property is highly valued in developed economies. Paradoxically, poor countries tend to adopt policies that sustain poverty. These general comments are not meant to cast shade on Erick's initiatives as I have no information to draw any objective conclusions, so I hope my motives will not be misunderstood. I have been consistent on highlighting IP mining risks in the past on this and other forums. Without clear policies and rules, there is no telling what/who is really genuine, and our enterpreneurs remain vulnerabe to predation from within and from without. Our "wild wild west", "every man for himself" business landscape makes it difficult even for the genuine investors to get high quality, diverse pitches because of low trust levels (everyone loses). It's sad to see our Universities and innovative MSMEs struggling to get funding yet they are sitting on billions of shillings in intellectual capital. Hoping the Competition Authority and the Trade, Labor, Education & ICT ministries can team up with stakeholders (not just corporate reps who have a conflict of interest because they fear innovation, but also academia, independent innovators, enterpreneurs and MSME reps) to solve this at policy level. If you need ideas or help in architecting this, feel free to onboard me. Economic prosperity doesn't just happen on its own, or with ad-hoc "spray and pray" policies. It has to deliberately planned for, designed and implemented. Good evening, Patrick. Patrick A. M. Maina[Cross-domain Innovator | Independent Public Policy Analyst - Indigenous Innovations] On Tuesday, June 4, 2019, 2:15:08 PM GMT+3, Erick Mwangi via kictanet <kictanet(a)lists.kictanet.or.ke> wrote: Listers, I am looking for start-ups who fit the below criteria. Investment focus We invest broadly in tech for good, but we are particularly interested in startups that address the following challenges: - Affordable, accessible health and social care - Effective education and employability - Climate change, resource efficiency and conservation of the environment - Civic participation, maintenance and advancement of democracy - Empowering vulnerable young people, improving health and wellbeing and giving them the tools to thrive - Pro-worker innovation for the low-wage economy, solutions that increase bargaining power, boost pay and curb work insecurity Investment criteria At the accelerator stage we select teams based on: The team - A talented team (more than 1 person) of diverse founders with a strong commitment to a shared vision and mission - A strong understanding of the problem and the market they will be operating in - Technical experience within the team The idea - An innovative idea with some evidence of its merits and how it would solve the problem - A clear hypothesis of how to produce, sell and distribute the solution The potential for impact - A strong ambition to scale and positively impact millions of lives. We will provide early stage seed funding as well as apply on your behalf a "start-up visa" to come to the UK for 3-6months. If thats you, please reach me directly with your pitch deck. Best Wishes, E Njoroge MwangiTechnology| FINTECH | Big Data Cell +44 7539372742Skype: Erick.mwangi On Sun, Jun 2, 2019 at 1:40 PM Lydia gachungi via kictanet <kictanet(a)lists.kictanet.or.ke> wrote: Listers, Anyone with an idea of an individual / private sector in Eastern Africa using digital solutions to create impact in the culture industry/ Artistic Freedom (film, music, events, broadcasting, webcasting, anything in that sector)? Please inbox me Lydia Gachungi UNESCO Liaison Office to AU and UNECA _______________________________________________ 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/erick.mwangi%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 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/pmaina2000%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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How Qualcomm shook down the cell phone industry for almost 20 years
by Ali Hussein 07 Jul '19

07 Jul '19

Listers A look at how modern-day monopolies operate and how Systemic Failure in how regulators regulate can cause a player to use heavy-handed tactics to gain and maintain Market Dominance. Is it time to relook at how State Players navigate the increasingly complicated Technology Landscape to ensure Market Driven Monopolies don't abuse their powers? The examples are many but of note are:- 1. Microsoft in the '90s 2. Google and Facebook in the 2010s 3. And now Qualcomm whose bad behaviour is now coming to light in a scathing indictment by Judge Lucy Koh in an Anti-Trust ruling in the US. This latest misbehaviour by #BigTech calls the whole 'Free Market' ethos of the Capitalist System to question. How will the world deal with such Systemic Failure and State Capture by huge multinationals? The Qualcomm Story <https://arstechnica.com/tech-policy/2019/05/how-qualcomm-shook-down-the-cel…> is even more shocking in its scope because it held to ransom some of the biggest players in the Global Telcom sector - From Lenovo, to Apple to Blackberry to Samsung. It is amazing how it took so long to unravel and even now as we speak the game is not over yet. Read on:- In 2005, Apple contacted Qualcomm as a potential supplier for modem chips in the first iPhone. Qualcomm's response was unusual: a letter demanding that Apple sign a patent licensing agreement before Qualcomm would even consider supplying chips. How Qualcomm shook down the cell phone industry for almost 20 years! <https://arstechnica.com/tech-policy/2019/05/how-qualcomm-shook-down-the-cel…> *Ali Hussein* *Principal* *AHK & 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.

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Kenya Industry & Entrepreneurship Project Beneficiaries
by Kentice Tikolo 07 Jul '19

07 Jul '19

Listers, The Ministry of Industry, Trade & Cooperatives (MoITC), in partnership with the World Bank Group, launched the Kenya Industry and Entrepreneurship Project (KIEP), on 4th June 2019. The USD 50 million project aims to increase innovation and productivity in select private sector firms in Kenya over the next six years (2019-2024). KIEP highlights the importance of technology and innovation to the development of industries and recognizes the centrality of firm-level support to Kenya’s industrialization. KIEP will be implemented through the following components: Component 1: Strengthening the innovation and entrepreneurship ecosystem Component 2: SME linkages and upgrading The target beneficiaries are: - Accelerators/Incubators - Technology Bootcamp Providers - Startups - SMEs - Students - Corporates The project aims to have a countrywide presence. Kindly share (inbox) ideas on how best to create interest and demand among the beneficiaries, that will encourage them to apply. I have attached a fact sheet for more information, which can also be found on www.kiep.go.ke. Best regards, Kentice Tikolo, MScPR, FPRSK *Strategic PR & Communication Consultant* *Life isn't tied with a bow, but it's still a gift. Regina Brett*

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Data Scientists Kaggle Meet Up In Nairobi
by Timothy- Coach- Oriedo 07 Jul '19

07 Jul '19

Thank you Listers for following our Journey in bridging the Data Science Talent gap in the country. We are pleased to welcome you to our very first meet up of our Predictive Analytics Lab partnership with Kaggle, the leading Global community of Data Scientists. This evening we are privileged to hold our inaugural to be hosting Saikumar Allaka, Senior Analytics Manager Equity Bank and a master Kaggler. The event is free and shall also be live streamed please register on this link https://events.predictiveanalytics.co.ke/ Because we believe the best way to learn is learning through practice and through meeting people. Creating a connected and well-knit Data Science community will enable participants to motivate each other to learn more, and inspire to do great things. What is more, the aim of creating this community is for its participants to have fun together and make new friends with common passion - Data Science. To sum up, we create this community for 3 things. NETWORKING, EDUCATION and ENTERTAINMENT See online and Poster for more details and stay tuned for future events. Timothy Oriedo Founding Data Scientist Predictive Analytics Lab

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Digital solutions for the Culture industry/ Art
by Lydia gachungi 07 Jul '19

07 Jul '19

Listers, Anyone with an idea of an individual / private sector in Eastern Africa using digital solutions to create impact in the culture industry/ Artistic Freedom (film, music, events, broadcasting, webcasting, anything in that sector)? Please inbox me Lydia Gachungi UNESCO Liaison Office to AU and UNECA

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Five Things to Know
by Alice Munyua 07 Jul '19

07 Jul '19

> > > > > 5 Things to Know in Less Than Five Minutes > > 1. Block "Fingerprinting" & Increase Privacy with Firefox > Fingerprinting is a type of online tracking that's different from cookies or ordinary trackers. Companies use it to make a unique profile of your computer, software, add–ons, and even preferences. Settings like the screen you use, the fonts installed on your computer, and even your choice of a web browser can all be used to create a fingerprint. The latest Firefox has a new feature to help you block fingerprinting coming from many ad trackers. Learn how » > > > 2. Mozilla Brings Ethics to Computer Science Curriculum > Mozilla joined with others to award funding to 17 initiatives that integrate ethics into undergraduate computer science courses. "Today's computer scientists write code with the potential to affect billions of people's privacy, security, equality, and well–being," says Mozilla Fellow, Kathy Pham. Check out the winning initiatives, and learn more about this important work » > > > 3. "Deepfakes" are Here. Now What? > Mozilla's 2019 Internet Health Report digs into "deepfakes." Deepfakes are photos, videos or audio clips manipulated using artificial intelligence to depict a person saying something that they have never said, or doing something they have never done. See the report to learn more about what deepfakes are, how they've been used, and what strategies might work to deal with them. > > > 4. The Latest Firefox Release is Faster than Ever > Firefox has gotten up to 80% faster than a year ago (and still going) by making improvements at an average of 1% faster every week all while protecting your privacy online. Learn more about how we made such huge gains » > > > 5. We're Making Virtual Reality Available to Everyone > Even though virtual reality (VR) has been in the mainstream for several years now, it's still not very accessible. It often takes trained engineers to create, release and distribute VR content. That could soon change, however, thanks to a new project built on top of the WebVR platform that Mozilla has pioneered. Read more » > > > Bonus Content! > Get more power and privacy. Sign up for your free Firefox account » > > Access your passwords across devices for free with Firefox Lockwise » > > Firefox Send just launched — a free way to share files safely and privately. > > Sign up for Firefox Monitor. Recieve alerts if your data is involved in data breaches — and it's free! > > > Thanks for reading! > You're receiving this email because we think you're neat, AND you subscribed to hear from us. > If our emails aren't sparking joy, we'll understand if you unsubscribe. > > You can also update your email preferences at any time. > > > > Donate to Mozilla | Download Firefox > > > 331 E. Evelyn Avenue Mountain View CA 94041 > Legal • Privacy

4 5

Raising money for your startup
by Eric Osiakwan 07 Jul '19

07 Jul '19

Sent from my iPhone

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Information Controls Cocktail
by Robert Muthuri 07 Jul '19

07 Jul '19

Dear Listers, First, apologies, I've just been alerted my email from earlier in the week may not have been delivered here. CIPIT is holding a cocktail tomorrow afternoon - program attached - to reflect on the question: what have we learnt from 3 years of information controls research? We will share the key learnings and recommendations from the related project and hope to have a lively discussion with you ranging from online censorship and digital rights to Cambridge Analytica and elections security. As always, we very much look forward to welcoming you to Strathmore. Kindly register so we can cater for you in the best way possible: https://bit.ly/2YSHlJ8 [image: InformationControl-01.png] Best, Robert.

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Babusi Nyoni TownHall Meetings Tour , 5 days, 6 Towns Across Kenya
by alfred＠kenya.ai 07 Jul '19

07 Jul '19

Dear Listers, Ai Kenya in partnership with Majadiliano is proud to bring you a series of town hall meetings across 6 different locations: Kisumu, Kakamega, Siaya, Miwani, Nairobi and Mombasa. Our first guest is a brilliant self-taught Artificial Intelligence (AI) innovator & speaker from the Netherlands. He has never been to University. He is a high school graduate who schooled and grew up in Bulawayo, Zimbabwe. Babusi Nyoni, a 31 year old Zimbabwean and a self-taught emerging technology pundit will be sharing how he began his journey leaving Zimbabwe as an economic refugee, entering South Africa, where he lived for 5 years before moving to the Netherlands. In 2016 he created what Forbes magazine described as "the world's first Artificial intelligent football commentator" for the UEFA Champions League final. In the same year, he created a prototype for the prediction of human displacement in Africa using artificial intelligence & thereafter worked with UNHCR to actualize a pilot project in the same field. He founded the Ulwazi Accelerator in 2018 to equip young Zimbabweans with the skills needed to contribute to the global digital economy. In 2019 he created an app for the early diagnosis of Parkinson's disease & presented his findings at Oxford University on the Skoll Foundation stage. Babusi has a strong passion for fresh new ideas that will change the lives of those around him and is a firm believer that AI is shaping the technological zeitgeist worldwide. Join us for an informative session as Babusi shares on his innovation journey and the work he has done in the artificial intelligence space. Event Venues are as follows: Kisumu, 3rd June - University of Nairobi Auditorium Kakamega, 3rd June - Masinde Muliro University of Science and Technology (MMUST) , MCU hall Siaya, 4th June - Jaramogi Oginga Odinga University of Science and Technology Miwani, 5th June - Nyakoko High school Nairobi, 6th June - Daystar University Mombasa 7th June - Swahili Pot Hub To be a part of the event(s), ensure you REGISTER FOR YOUR TICKET(s) on http://bit.ly/majadiliano Full event details and schedules can be obtained on the same link Kind regards, Alfred Ongere Team lead, Founder www.kenya.ai <http://bit.ly/AIKPODYTB> Watch Ai Kenya Podcast | <http://bit.ly/2vRuV7Y> World Ai Show Nairobi 2019 Keynote

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Grant Funding: £50,000 - £500,000 / Mobile Innovation Fund
by Philip Adar 07 Jul '19

07 Jul '19

Dear listers, I found this interesting and felt to share. GSMA is promoting innovation in use of mobile technology to address humanitarian challenges, with a focus on developing countries – particularly in Sub Saharan Africa. Grant Funding: £50,000 - £500,000 More details in the link: Mobile for Humanitarian Innovation Fund <https://www.gsma.com/mobilefordevelopment/mobile-for-humanitarian-innovatio…> Kindly, please feel free to share within your networks Kind regards, -- Philip Adar

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Re: [kictanet] Vacancy announcements for Article 19 Eastern Africa
by Ephraim Percy Kenyanito 07 Jul '19

07 Jul '19

*Dear All,* *Please find below links to job openings at the Article 19 Eastern Africa. Kindly circulate widely through your networks. You can copy the link to your browser in order to access the vacancy notice.* *SPO - Civic Space:*https://article.peoplehr.net/Pages/JobBoard/Opening.aspx?v=ba671488-… *SPO - Media and Protection:*https://article.peoplehr.net/Pages/JobBoard/Opening.aspx?v=ca54… *Best regards,* *Ephraim *

2 1

Huawei interview on China-Africa Podcast
by Adam Lane 07 Jul '19

07 Jul '19

For anyone with 50 minutes to spare and interested to listen to this podcast interview I did... Eric and Cobus do go for the fairly tough questions. https://chinaafricaproject.com/podcast-china-africa-huawei-adam-lane/ [AUDIO] Like it or Not, Huawei is the Indispensable Tech Company in Africa [EDITOR'S NOTE: This episode was recorded before the United States government announced that it would blacklist Huawei and blocked the company from using Google's Android operating system and other apps.] It is hard to overstate Huawei's singular importance in the development of Africa's information technology sector. Over the past ten years the company, often armed with state-backed loans from China, has built significant portions of Africa's IT infrastructure, everything from networking to broadband connectivity to new cloud data centers in places like Egypt and South Africa. 70% of all 4G networks across the continent were reportedly built by Huawei. But while Huawei's presence in Africa is pervasive it's also controversial. Allegations that Huawei was involved in Chinese spying efforts against the African Union prompt similar questions like those being raised by the United States who challenge the company's independence from both the Chinese Communist Party and the Chinese government. "The U.S. is going to have to be strategic about how they approach this challenge. You can't just blunder in and say, 'It's us or them.' China does provide things that the continent needs." - Joshua Meservey, Heritage Foundation senior analyst<https://foreignpolicy.com/2019/03/19/for-africa-chinese-built-internet-is-b…> Although African stakeholders contend that security and privacy concerns surrounding Huawei are important, most do not believe they are paramount issues. Instead, access to affordable, high-quality telecommunications infrastructure is much more important. But now that the United States is closing in on the company, blocking Huawei from using the Android operating system, African telecom operators are likely starting to worry about what happens if Washington similarly blacklists Huawei's use of components that are used in all that networking gear now running their phone and data networks. If Huawei is forced out of those markets, it could be cataclysmic for African telcos who would find it difficult, if not impossible, to switch to American, Korean or European vendors. The bottom line is that African telecommunications operators now rely on Huawei gear, making the Chinese company truly indispensable in the operation of their networks. Huawei, like almost every Chinese company, is notoriously averse to interacting with the media and rarely grants extended, on the record interviews with no pre-conditions. So, it was a bit of a surprise when Adam Lane, senior public affairs director for Huawei Kenya, offered to appear on the podcast. He joins Eric & Cobus for a wide-ranging discussion on all aspects of the company's operations in Africa and what the mood is like inside the firm. Show Notes: * IT Web Africa: Safaricom describes Huawei issue as 'worrying'<http://www.itwebafrica.com/kenya/245917-safaricom-describes-huawei-issue-as…> by Vincent Matinde * Daily Nation: What Huawei restriction means for Kenya and Africa<https://www.nation.co.ke/news/What-Huawei-restriction-means-for-Kenya-/1056…> by Aggrey Mutambo * Business Insider South Africa: If you own a Huawei phone in South Africa, here is everything you need to know about the Google crisis<https://www.businessinsider.co.za/huawei-news-in-south-africa-what-is-happe…> by Phillip de Wet * Foreign Policy: For Africa, Chinese-Built Internet Is Better Than No Internet<https://foreignpolicy.com/2019/03/19/for-africa-chinese-built-internet-is-b…> at All by Amy Mackinnon About Adam Lane:<https://www.africahealthbusiness.com/speakers/adam-lane/> At Huawei since 2014, and based in Nairobi since 2016, Adam is currently responsible for working with governments, intergovernmental organizations, NGOs, the media and other stakeholders with a focus on the Kenya and East Africa region. Adam helps these groups understand how to use ICT for Development in their strategies, policies and programs; as well as developing partnerships and cross-sector collaboration with various actors in the ICT ecosystem including social enterprises. Adam has a strong focus on digital health in the region and is also actively engaging with those in the Internet of Things space. Previously, Adam was based in Huawei's HQ as a Director for Corporate Sustainable Development responsible for Huawei's global flagship project to bridge the digital divide as well as thought leadership on the digital divide. In 2015 after an extensive research effort around the world, Adam published Huawei's white paper on Digital Enablement summarizing the challenges and solutions to bridging the digital divide (www.huawei.com/minisite/digital-enablement) He then set-up a new digital divide project related to e-health in Kenya building on the findings from this white paper working with a Kenyan social enterprise and helping them scale up their e-health project.

5 13

(no subject)
by DANIEL MECHA 07 Jul '19

07 Jul '19

Ttyyyyyyyyyyyyyyyyyytr

2 1

Facebook plans to launch 'GlobalCoin' currency in 2020 - BBC News
by Timothy- Coach- Oriedo 07 Jul '19

07 Jul '19

https://www.bbc.com/news/business-48383460

2 1

Google has revoked Huawei's Android license
by Kelvin Kariuki 07 Jul '19

07 Jul '19

Dear Listers, I hope this email finds you well, this is the current trending topic, I'd like to here your views on this topic from a Policy Perspective. Are we overrelying on Global Techs? What are the possible repercussions if they pull out on us? Should Global Techs be declared Dominant to balance the market and reduce the risks of a failure? Feel free to add more questions. Looking forward to your views on this. -- Best Regards, Kelvin Kariuki Assistant Lecturer Multimedia University of Kenya Faculty of Computing and Information Technology Twitter Handle: @teacherkaris Alt email: kkariuki(a)mmu.ac.ke Mobile: +2547 29 385 557 The Lord is my Shepherd

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[Leadership & Corporate Governance] Succession Planning - Lessons from Jack Ma
by Patrick A. M. Maina 07 Jul '19

07 Jul '19

Dear Listers, In a letter to Alibaba’s customers and shareholders (see link #1), Jack Ma announced his successor and mapped his own exit as CEO. A few excerpts: "This transition demonstrates that Alibaba has stepped up to the next level of corporate governance from a company that relies on individuals, to one built on systems of organizational excellence and a culture of talent development. A sustainable Alibaba would have to be built on sound governance, culture-centric philosophy, and consistency in developing talent. No company can rely solely on its founders. Of all people, I should know that. Because of physical limits on one's ability and energy, no one can shoulder the responsibilities of chairman and CEO forever. We asked ourselves this question 10 years ago - how could Alibaba achieve sustainable growth after Jack Ma leaves the company? We believed the only way to solve the problem of corporate leadership succession was to develop a system of governance based on a unique culture and mechanisms for developing consistent talent and successors. For the last 10 years, we kept working on these ingredients.” DISCUSSION: Visionary leaders develop other leaders because they see the company's vision and mission as bigger than themselves (see link #3). Jack Ma's star is even brighter because he allowed his juniors to shine. Do you agree that the presence (or absence) of succession planing can be an indicator of leadership caliber? How does private sector Africa fare when it comes to succession planning and local talent development? Good day. Links: 1. Jack Ma's Succession letter to customers and shareholders https://asia.nikkei.com/Business/Companies/Alibaba-s-Jack-Ma-reveals-succes… 2. Alibaba profits jump under Jack Ma's successor https://techcrunch.com/2019/05/15/alibaba-2019-annual-earnings/ 3. Deloitte: How to overcome the succession planning paradox https://www2.deloitte.com/insights/us/en/topics/leadership/effective-leader… Brgds,Patrick. Patrick A. M. Maina[Cross-domain Innovator | Public Policy Analyst - Indigenous Innovations]

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Facebook: Another three billion fake profiles culled
by Victor Kapiyo 07 Jul '19

07 Jul '19

Facebook has published its latest "enforcement report" <https://transparency.facebook.com/community-standards-enforcement>, which details how many posts and accounts it took action on between October 2018 and March 2019. During that six-month period, Facebook removed more than three billion fake accounts - more than ever before. More than seven million "hate speech" posts were removed, also a record high. For the first time, Facebook also reported how many deleted posts were appealed, and how many were put back online after review. Read more: https://www.bbc.com/news/technology-48380504 *Victor Kapiyo* Partner | *Lawmark Partners LLP* *Suite No. 8, Centro House, Westlands, Nairobi | **Web: www.lawmark.co.ke <http://www.lawmark.co.ke> * ==================================================== *“Your attitude, not your aptitude, will determine your altitude” Zig Ziglar*

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FW: Apply for the Africa Digital Rights Fund (ADRF)
by Grace Githaiga 07 Jul '19

07 Jul '19

Listers This might be of interest to some of you. Rgds. ---------------------------------------------------------------------------------- Grace Githaiga Twitter: @ggithaiga Skype: gracegithaiga Linkedin: https://www.linkedin.com/in/gracegithaiga ...the most important office in a democracy is the citizen. So, you see, that’s what our democracy demands. It needs you!----Barrack Obama. ________________________________ ---------- Forwarded message --------- From: CIPESA <media(a)cipesa.org<mailto:media@cipesa.org>> Date: Wed, May 22, 2019 at 11:03 AM Subject: Apply for the Africa Digital Rights Fund (ADRF) To: <compsoftnet(a)gmail.com<mailto:compsoftnet@gmail.com>> Apply for a grant to support an initiative that advances digital rights in Africa View this email in your browser<https://mailchi.mp/6aff78f010ab/apply-for-the-africa-digital-rights-fund-ad…> [https://gallery.mailchimp.com/d80a8e0082e29ffa0986bfd77/images/210d06fc-63f…] Call For Applications: Africa Digital Rights Fund With a quarter of Africa’s population using the internet and with 76 mobile phone connection for every 100 individuals, Information and Communications Technology (ICT) has become pivotal to improving livelihoods and promoting human rights on the continent. However, with rising digital rights violations such as arrests and intimidation of internet users, network shutdowns<https://cipesa.us8.list-manage.com/track/click?u=d80a8e0082e29ffa0986bfd77&…>, and a proliferation of laws and regulations that hamper internet access and affordability<https://cipesa.us8.list-manage.com/track/click?u=d80a8e0082e29ffa0986bfd77&…>, the potential of digital technologies to catalyse free expression and civic participation or to drive innovation is under threat in Africa. Yet many organisations working to defend and promote digital rights face limitations of reach, skills, resources, and consistency in engagement in this area. To address this, the Collaboration on International ICT Policy for East and Southern Africa (CIPESA)<https://cipesa.us8.list-manage.com/track/click?u=d80a8e0082e29ffa0986bfd77&…> has established the Africa Digital Rights Fund (ADRF) to offer flexible and rapid response grants to select initiatives in Africa to implement activities that advance digital rights, including advocacy, litigation, research, policy analysis, digital literacy and digital security skills building. Assessments have found that whereas digital rights advocacy in the region has a large pool of interest, ”it is very shallow, spread very thinly and difficult to sustain”. The policy and practice developments in the region, coupled with the challenges faced by civil society organisations, necessitate partnerships that bring together various competences for advancing digital rights. The ADRF has been developed to strengthen local capacity in evidence-based research, collaborative advocacy and impactful policy engagements responsive to regulatory and practice developments that affect internet freedom in the region. The ADRF grant amounts will range between US$ 1,000 and US$ 10,000 based on the need and scope of the proposed intervention. The grant period will not exceed six months with an average of 15 grants to be awarded per year. The Fund will benefit small organisations, including those that do not qualify for support from most funders for lack of registration and institutional capacity to develop applications and manage big projects. It will also benefit organisations and initiatives that need rapid response support to respond swiftly to emerging issues that can not wait for many funders’ lengthy application procedures. Applications are now open for the period July-December 2019. The deadline for submissions is Friday May 31, 2019. Read more about the Fund and the eligibility criteria here<https://cipesa.us8.list-manage.com/track/click?u=d80a8e0082e29ffa0986bfd77&…>. The application form can be accessed here.<https://cipesa.us8.list-manage.com/track/click?u=d80a8e0082e29ffa0986bfd77&…> [https://cdn-images.mailchimp.com/icons/social-block-v2/color-twitter-48.png]<https://cipesa.us8.list-manage.com/track/click?u=d80a8e0082e29ffa0986bfd77&…> [https://cdn-images.mailchimp.com/icons/social-block-v2/color-facebook-48.png]<https://cipesa.us8.list-manage.com/track/click?u=d80a8e0082e29ffa0986bfd77&…> [https://cdn-images.mailchimp.com/icons/social-block-v2/color-link-48.png]<http://www.cipesa.org> [https://cdn-images.mailchimp.com/icons/social-block-v2/color-forwardtofrien…]<mailto:media@cipesa.org> [https://cdn-images.mailchimp.com/icons/social-block-v2/color-linkedin-48.png]<https://cipesa.us8.list-manage.com/track/click?u=d80a8e0082e29ffa0986bfd77&…> Want to change how you receive these emails? You can update your preferences<https://cipesa.us8.list-manage.com/profile?u=d80a8e0082e29ffa0986bfd77&id=8…> or unsubscribe from this list<https://cipesa.us8.list-manage.com/unsubscribe?u=d80a8e0082e29ffa0986bfd77&…>. This email was sent to compsoftnet(a)gmail.com<mailto:compsoftnet@gmail.com> why did I get this?<https://cipesa.us8.list-manage.com/about?u=d80a8e0082e29ffa0986bfd77&id=87c…> unsubscribe from this list<https://cipesa.us8.list-manage.com/unsubscribe?u=d80a8e0082e29ffa0986bfd77&…> update subscription preferences<https://cipesa.us8.list-manage.com/profile?u=d80a8e0082e29ffa0986bfd77&id=8…> CIPESA · Plot 157 - 159, Mutesa II Road · Ntinda · Kampala · Uganda [Email Marketing Powered by Mailchimp]<http://www.mailchimp.com/monkey-rewards/?utm_source=freemium_newsletter&utm…> -- [https://thumbs.about.me/thumbnail/users/p/e/t/petertaiwoakinremi_emailsig.j…] <https://about.me/petertaiwoakinremi?promo=email_sig&utm_source=product&utm_…> Peter Taiwo Akinremi about.me/petertaiwoakinremi <https://about.me/petertaiwoakinremi?promo=email_sig&utm_source=product&utm_…> -- Vous recevez ce message, car vous êtes abonné au groupe Google Groupes "acsis_info". Pour vous désabonner de ce groupe et ne plus recevoir d'e-mails le concernant, envoyez un e-mail à l'adresse acsis_info+unsubscribe(a)googlegroups.com<mailto:acsis_info+unsubscribe@googlegroups.com>. Pour envoyer un message à ce groupe, envoyez un e-mail à l'adresse acsis_info(a)googlegroups.com<mailto:acsis_info@googlegroups.com>. Cette discussion peut être lue sur le Web à l'adresse https://groups.google.com/d/msgid/acsis_info/CAGK4d09%3DRAjdmxkWyBc4j7T4QgZ…<https://groups.google.com/d/msgid/acsis_info/CAGK4d09%3DRAjdmxkWyBc4j7T4QgZ…>. Pour obtenir davantage d'options, consultez la page https://groups.google.com/d/optout.

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Software development companies
by John Gitau 07 Jul '19

07 Jul '19

Good day Is there a list of local software development companies with at least 5 years experience with some regional experience somewhere I can just go pick 10 and send to companies that ask for this information - some sort of directory where I can direct inquiries to? Meantime if you are such a company please direct message me your contact details. With thanks JGitau

2 1

After Access report launch
by Margaret Nyambura Ndung'u 07 Jul '19

07 Jul '19

Listers, the attached after access report by Research ICT Africa was launched today at the Stockholm Internet forum. "A comparative analysis of demand-side view of mobile Internet from 10 African countries². As noted at the broadband meeting last Friday, available demand side data on Internet and mobile use in Kenya and many other countries is insufficient. The report attempts to bridge that gap. Interesting statistics with Internet penetration in Kenya at 26% in line with ITU statistics. Differences are noted in other countries highest being in Rwanda with an 11% difference (See table 3). Rgrds, Nyambura

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Re: [kictanet] [AI-IoT-BD] Survey announcement BPF IoT-BigData-AI
by Alex Comninos 07 Jul '19

07 Jul '19

Dear Listers, The IGF Best Practice Forum on Internet of Things, Big Data, and Artificial Intelligence launched a survey to get insight in the community’s views on the use of IoT-Big Data-AI applications to address societal challenges. The survey can be answered online or via email. (instructions below) Input received before 30 June 2019 will be used for the first draft of the BPF output document. ******************************************************************* Survey BPF IoT, Big Data, AI reply by 30 June 2019 Reply online: https://forms.gle/7nYdrFhXa4o8Lbqt5 <https://forms.gle/7nYdrFhXa4o8Lbqt5> <https://forms.gle/7nYdrFhXa4o8Lbqt5 <https://forms.gle/7nYdrFhXa4o8Lbqt5>> Reply via email: Download the questionnaire here http://bit.ly/2JVwnOP <http://bit.ly/2JVwnOP> <http://bit.ly/2JVwnOP <http://bit.ly/2JVwnOP>> , and submit to bpf-IoT-BD-AI(a)intgovforum.org <mailto:bpf-IoT-BD-AI@intgovforum.org> <mailto:bpf-IoT-BD-AI@intgovforum.org <mailto:bpf-IoT-BD-AI@intgovforum.org>> . ******************************************************************* Please share the survey invitation with colleagues and your networks. Thank you for your cooperation !!! More on the IGF 2019 BPF IoT-Big Data-AI on the IGF website at https://www.intgovforum.org/multilingual/content/bpf-internet-of-things-iot… <https://www.intgovforum.org/multilingual/content/bpf-internet-of-things-iot…> <https://www.intgovforum.org/multilingual/content/bpf-internet-of-things-iot… <https://www.intgovforum.org/multilingual/content/bpf-internet-of-things-iot…>> . _______________________________________________ Aiiotbd mailing list Aiiotbd(a)intgovforum.org <mailto:Aiiotbd@intgovforum.org> To subscribe, unsubscribe or manage your options please go to http://intgovforum.org/mailman/listinfo/aiiotbd_intgovforum.org <http://intgovforum.org/mailman/listinfo/aiiotbd_intgovforum.org>

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Fwd: [Internet Policy] Finland is winning the war on fake news
by Barrack Otieno 07 Jul '19

07 Jul '19

Listers, Might be of interest to some. Regards ---------- Forwarded message ---------- From: Richard Bennett <richard(a)bennett.com> Date: Sun, 19 May 2019 14:48:29 -0600 Subject: [Internet Policy] Finland is winning the war on fake news To: ISOC Internet Policy <internetpolicy(a)elists.isoc.org> Sharing this good article from CNN on Finland’s approach to fake news: https://edition.cnn.com/interactive/2019/05/europe/finland-fake-news-intl/ <https://edition.cnn.com/interactive/2019/05/europe/finland-fake-news-intl/> TL;DR: Finland has long been a target of Russian disinformation campaigns; it combines media literacy training with reliable media and regulation. Its defenses are so strong that Russia has turned to softer targets. RB — Richard Bennett High Tech Forum <http://hightechforum.org/> Founder Ethernet & Wi-Fi standards co-creator Internet Policy Consultant -- Barrack O. Otieno +254721325277 +254733206359 Skype: barrack.otieno PGP ID: 0x2611D86A

5 9

Preliminary Analysis - After Access report launch
by Jimmy Gitonga 07 Jul '19

07 Jul '19

Patrick! I have nothing to add. You are my hero on this issue. Thank you for the excellent “initial thoughts”. Best Regards, Jimmy Gitonga Web Software Design and Development LinkedIn: Jimmy Gitonga | Twitter: @Afrowave ______________________________________ Web: afroshok.com <http://afroshok.com/> > On 18 May 2019, at 9:41 PM, kictanet-request(a)lists.kictanet.or.ke wrote: > > Message: 2 > Date: Sat, 18 May 2019 18:38:43 +0000 (UTC) > From: "Patrick A. M. Maina" <pmaina2000(a)yahoo.com <mailto:pmaina2000@yahoo.com>> > To: KICTAnet ICT Policy Discussions <kictanet(a)lists.kictanet.or.ke <mailto:kictanet@lists.kictanet.or.ke>>, > Barrack Otieno <otieno.barrack(a)gmail.com <mailto:otieno.barrack@gmail.com>> > Subject: Re: [kictanet] [preliminary analysis] After Access report > launch > Message-ID: <43006288.2640308.1558204723308(a)mail.yahoo.com <mailto:43006288.2640308.1558204723308@mail.yahoo.com>> > Content-Type: text/plain; charset="utf-8" > > Hi Barrack, > I'm still studying it but can share my initial thoughts... I had a quick look at GSMA's mobile economy report 2019 (link #5 below) and it pegs Kenya's internet penetration number at ~24% up from 16% based on lagging indicators (2014-2017). It also says 3G coverage was 85% as at 2017 with 4G reaching more than a third of the population (~16.7 Million people assuming ~50M total). > > The GSMA report is alluding to a high supply - low demand situation (high network coverage and low internet uptake) which is congruent with Research ICT Africa's findings. > > The data (and economic theory - see link #1 below) is telling us not to focus on supply side but to develop the demand side - because supply is abundant - but there is something that is impeding demand. > > This means looking at whether internet pricing (a factor of value perception) or internet quality (or both) are impeding penetration. It's hard to argue that QoS is a significant factor with 85% 3G coverage - because 3G internet is pretty good (even for compressed video 240-480p which is adequate for budget phones). > > The more credible explanation for low demand is affordability - and this has been alluded in several studies - including Research ICT Africa's study. Majority of Kenyans are poor - yet mobile service pricing is inequitably skewed in favor of the urban middle-class or higher who comprise < 12% of our 26.8Million (~57%) labor force, say ~3.2 million people filing tax returns as a rough indicator (see link #3 for Kenya's demographic profile). > > So ~88% of the work-capable population gets to pay a significantly higher premium per MB, as well as for voice and SMS. > > The poorer you are the heavier you are penalized. A 6MB for 3/- offer bundle with 24hr validity works out to 2MB per shilling. But if you can afford to pay 50/- for an hour you get ~40MB per shilling. The poor person pays 20 times more for the same commodity than the wealthier person. This is penalizing poverty - and quite ruthless, considering the essential nature of the services. > > Economic theory says that when supply is high and the pricing is uncompetitive in a market characterized by low disposable incomes, it can be expected that the demand would be low (unless some coercive factors exist e.g. for utilities like Kenya Power). The data supports this. > > The data is also challenging the procurement driven narrative that internet coverage is driven by technical gaps (coverage and capacity), rather than underlying economic issues (lack of quality jobs and stifled opportunities). So what should be examined instead is the relationship between disposable income, bundle pricing and internet uptake. > > Although one service provider in Kenya is making super profits, and has been growing in double digits, the broader economy does not reflect their vibrancy (the disparity is so wide, it is like the company exists in another dimension or on another planet) - which is a compelling indicator of serious market dysfunction e.g. unfair competition, excessive market power by one player, economically risky dominance and/or predatory practices (see link #4). > > When market dysfunction persists for long it can be an indication of regulatory capture or excessively high economic dependency, such that regulator is afraid to interfere - which severely degrades economic resilience via single point of failure scenario, and allows the problem to baloon to catastrophic levels over time (see link #2). > > More telling is the fact that we don't have a "number two" in terms of profits. So the demand/supply data is supporting the oft posited assertion that there is an unfair competitive landscape and monopolistic practices in the Telecomms sector (e.g. customer lock-in via network effects thus high switching costs / stifled innovations when the leader wants to get involved in everything - from taxi services to selling vegetables online etc).?? > What the data is telling us is that initiatives like the National Broadband Strategy should focus more on addressing demand side factors (e.g. deploying USF towards local content production, seed funding for startups and so on). Increasing supply at this time will be inefficient and wasteful (only a few will benefit at the expense of majority). > > Good evening. > > Links / References: > 1. Market gap analysishttp://www.consumerpsychologist.com/dist_Gap_Analysis.html <analysishttp://www.consumerpsychologist.com/dist_Gap_Analysis.html> > 2. Regulatory Capture: A reviewhttps://www.jstor.org/stable/23606888?seq=1#metadata_info_tab_contents <reviewhttps://www.jstor.org/stable/23606888?seq=1#metadata_info_tab_contents> > 3. Kenya Demographic Profile 2018 > https://www.indexmundi.com/kenya/demographics_profile.html <https://www.indexmundi.com/kenya/demographics_profile.html> > 4. Market Failure > https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Market_failure <https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Market_failure> > 5. GSMA Mobile economy 2019 > https://www.gsma.com/r/mobileeconomy/ <https://www.gsma.com/r/mobileeconomy/> > Brgds,Patrick. > [Cross-domain Innovator | Independent Public Policy Analyst - Indigenous Innovations] >

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Finally we have a Digital Economy Blueprint! But now the real work of IMPLEMENTATION begins.
by Patrick A. M. Maina 07 Jul '19

07 Jul '19

Dear listers, What are your thoughts on the Digital Economy Blueprint? My first impressions are that the document is comprehensive and inclusive. It does a good job of balancing a complex landscape of diverse interests - while maintaining focus on Kenya's prosperity as an overarching goal. Stakeholders now have common reference point for shared understanding on how public and private sector initiatives fit into the bigger picture; and the 5 Pillars approach, if well implemented, should lead to an optimal balance of initiatives and outcomes. Kudos to NCS, MoICT and all (public/private sector) stakeholders who were involved for doing a great job! But even as we celebrate, let us remind each other that "the map is not the territory". Kenya is renowned for world-class documents, blueprints, strategies and policies which are launched with pomp and color, only to be carefully shelved after the excitement is over (and then everyone goes back to the chaos that we are used to). A document is only a map; it is not the goal. Real success comes with implementation; hence the focus now should be on getting things done in the real world and striving for real measurable results. Here are some ideas for implementation: 1. Set up a website for the Digital Economy Blueprint to bring the document to life. 2. Develop a Visual Traceability Map (hopefully interactive - but can be static to begin with) showing: a. How the blueprint maps to Big 4 and Vision 2030 b. How all recent, ongoing and planned initiatives (including tenders) link back to the five pillars - to help improve visibility on whether resources allocation is optimally and sensibly balanced across all pillars - in order to avoid the trap of sub-optimization. 3. Enhance the map by adding the ability to switch the view according to different perspectives (e.g. budget / expenditure / new revenues / number of startups / jobs / investments / acquisitions / PPP projects / project status overviews / vendor distribution / counties etc) to give fairly precise indicators of where we are and where we are going as a country. 4. Develop a ROI Linkage Map that associates expenditure initiatives with benefit generating initiatives (including forward looking - ahead of demand, but time-bound projections - which would then be compared to actuals over time). The questions to answer include: are we optimally allocating capital and are investments yielding the promised benefits? This way we can learn about what works and what doesn't - and build confidence and competence across the board. 5. Blueprint implementation should look beyond tenders and spending: Our government needs new diversified sources of revenues - and pillars 2 and 4 are about developing new revenue streams for the country by establishing Kenya as a leading exporter of digital products and services in Africa and beyond. Hopefully these crucial pillars will get strong attention and financial targets will be set for implementation teams, against which performance should be measured. If done well, it should help reduce our country's reliance on debt for budget support. Implementation is the only way to bring a great plan / vision to life. Have a great day! Link: http://www.ict.go.ke/wp-content/uploads/2019/05/Kenya-Digital-Economy-2019.… Brgds,Patrick. Patrick A. M. Maina[Cross-domain Innovator | Independent Public Policy Analyst - Indigenous Innovations]

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[cyber risk management opportunity for Africa] Huawei willing to sign "no-spy" "no backdoor" agreements with governments: Chairman
by Patrick A. M. Maina 07 Jul '19

07 Jul '19

Good morning Listers, It is my hope that Kenya government and other African countries will move swiftly to take advantage of Huawei's "no spy" "no backdoor" agreement offer (and then push for similar agreements from other manufactures like CISCO, Intel as well as OS and DB providers like Microsoft, IBM, and Google - among others) because once international pressure is off, it will be very difficult (if not impossible) to get such deals on win-win terms. This is a rare and time-bound window of opportunity for African countries because we seldom have real international negotiation leverage and we do need affordable technologies (and supplier diversity) so hopefully it will not be wasted! Huawei can benefit by using Africa as a PR model to assure Europe and other regions where its technologies are popular. This can also turn the PR tables and put the spotlight on other global manufactures who are also known to offer undocumented backdoor access to their technologies. In the long run, this could lead to higher levels of trust within global markets - a win for everyone. Kenya can also leverage such agreements as a basis for B2G partnerships in cyber-defense to help Kenya develop indigenous technical capabilities for improved Cyber Resilience. Not just relying on imported (opaque - and probably trojan ridden) tools - as is currently the case - but being able to write our own low-level quality assurance tools for example. Data has no value if you can't protect it (from risks like theft / corruption / destruction / hijack etc). ------ Excerpt: “We are willing to sign no-spy agreements with governments, including the UK government, to commit ourselves to making our equipment meet the no-spy, no-backdoors standard,” Huawei chairman Liang Hua told reporters in London via an interpreter. https://www.reuters.com/article/us-huawei-security-britain-chairman/huawei-… Have a great day, Brgds,Patrick. Patrick A. M. Maina[Cross-domain Innovator | Independent Public Policy Analyst - Indigenous Innovations]

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Fwd: [afnog] Application for AfPIF-2019 fellowship is now open/ L'inscription au programme de bourses AfPIF-2019 est ouverte
by Barrack Otieno 07 Jul '19

07 Jul '19

This might be of interest to some. Regards ---------- Forwarded message ---------- From: Betel Hailu <hailu(a)isoc.org> Date: Tue, 14 May 2019 06:05:48 +0000 Subject: [afnog] Application for AfPIF-2019 fellowship is now open/ L'inscription au programme de bourses AfPIF-2019 est ouverte To: "afnog(a)afnog.org" <afnog(a)afnog.org> VERSION FRANCAISE CI-DESSOUS ============================== Hello everyone- Application for AfPIF-2019 fellowship is now open! Looking for fellowship to attend AfPIF-2019? There is limited fellowship opportunity - see if you qualify. #WomeninTech who have an interest in peering and interconnection are also encouraged to apply. Applications will close on May 29 2019 ============================== Bonjour à toutes et à tous- L’inscription au programme de bourses AfPIF-2019 est ouverte ! Vous cherchez des bourses pour participer à AfPIF-2019 ? Les places sont limitées, cependant vérifiez si votre profil correspond aux critères. #LesFemmesTech qui sont intéressées autour des concepts de peering et de transit sont également invitées à soumettre leurs candidatures. Dernier délai pour déposer les candidatures: le 29 Mai, 2019 Betel Hailu For AfPIF Comms -- Barrack O. Otieno +254721325277 +254733206359 Skype: barrack.otieno PGP ID: 0x2611D86A

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Government AI Readiness Index Launch - May 15th 1400 UTC
by Alex Comninos 07 Jul '19

07 Jul '19

Dear All, I Invite you to the launch of the Oxford Insights Government AI Readiness Index (a webinar) tomorrow May15th 1400 UTC If you would like to attend please register at https://www.eventbrite.com/e/ai4d-knowledge-webinar-introducing-the-2019-go… Description Technologies have had an undeniable impact on improving living standards, connecting us together, and increasing productivity. With the right policies and institutional arrangements, governments can ensure that the benefits of artificial intelligence are shared broadly. This one-hour webinar will introduce and ignite a dialogue on this year’s Government AI Readiness Index and its implications on various regions. The dialogue will draw on the knowledge of leading regional experts who penned this report. The Panelists • Hannah Miller, Report Lead Author from Oxford Insights, UK • Isaac Rutenberg, Director of the Centre for Intellectual Property and Information Technology Law, Kenya • Fabrizio Scrollini, Executive Director of the Latin American Open Data Initiative, Uruguay • Alex Comninos, AI4D Policy & Regulation Focal Point, Research ICT Africa, South Africa This webinar will be moderated by Robert Muthuri, AI4D Policy & Regulation Focal Point, Centre for Intellectual Property and Information Technology, Kenya When • Wednesday, May 15, 2019, from 16h-17h PM Nairobi Time | 14h-15h PM London -GMT | 9h-10h AM ET - Ottawa Time • This webinar will be hosted on Webex We look forward to your participation in this webinar. For more information visit our website: https://ai4d.ai/project/ai-index/ The 2019 Government AI Readiness Index was produced by Oxford Insights with support from the International Development Research Centre (IDRC). Kind regards, Alex Comninos Alex Comninos Researcher | Research ICT Africa acomninos(a)researchictafrica.net | twitter: @alexcomninos @RIAnetwork 409 Old Castle Brewery, 6 Beach Road, Woodstock, Cape Town, 7925, South Africa +27 21 447 6332 | researchictafrica.net | facebook.com/researchICTafrica.net

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Annual ICT conference
by Fiona Makaka 07 Jul '19

07 Jul '19

Good morning Listers, Do we have a representative participating in this conference? Regards, Fiona Makaka Associate - Telecommunications, Media and Technology T: +254 (709) 830 100 | E: fmakaka(a)tripleoklaw.com A: 5th Floor, Block C, ACK Garden House, 1st Ngong’ Avenue, off Bishops Road, Nairobi, Kenya | View MapDownload contact details | View Disclaimer

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[team up & bid] CA's Tender for Consultancy Ser- vices For The Study On Over-The- Top (OTTS) Technologies/Services In Kenya
by Patrick A. M. Maina 07 Jul '19

07 Jul '19

Dear listers, This might be of interest to some listers. The above tender by CA is reserved for local 100% owned consultancies. Deadline is 22nd May (~8 days). Do you own or know an eligible consultancy that could be interested in bidding? Or you can team up with others to meet the requirements? If you need an extra hand (I qualify for "other consultant") I can be of service. Just inbox me. OTT is an area that I have researched on quite deeply and accumulated a lot of insights (as well as broad hands-on experience). Good day,Patrick. Patrick A. M. Maina[Cross-domain Innovator | Public Policy Analyst - Indigenous Innovations]

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KRA targets online businesses in tax evasion crackdown
by Victor Kapiyo 07 Jul '19

07 Jul '19

The Kenya Revenue Authority (KRA) has set sights on businesses using the Internet to market and sell products in a renewed bid to reduce revenue leakage through tax evasion. The taxman says some of the businesses, which have invested in online channels to provide services and drive sales were neither paying taxes nor filing annual returns. https://mobile.nation.co.ke/business/KRA-targets-online-businesses-in-tax-e…

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Re: [kictanet] [the CNBC report supports SGR idea] .KE SGR + CNBC - Why The US Has No High-Speed Rail
by Patrick A. M. Maina 07 Jul '19

07 Jul '19

For those who haven't watched it (see link #4 below), the video posted by Mr. Muraya supports the idea of a rail system like SGR and discusses how past US administrations' mistake of pandering to corporate interests (like car manufacturers, road contractors and petroleum barons) led to sub-optimal infrastructural decisions which will be very costly to undo, if at all possible, and which inadvertently created a niche for other countries, like China, to establish technological leadership in Rail innovations, that is now being used for geopolitical advantage against US interests. This is an excellent case study of how short-term oriented corporate lobbyists push for policies that sabotage governments and public interest in the long term. It also makes an interesting point: that high quality public infrastructure decisions are best driven by public interest and long term strategic planning (i.e. master-plan design instead of a haphazard "lets please the deepest pockets" approach). The politics around our SGR makes it a tricky and sensitive topic. It is very difficult to have a sober debate on such topics because positions are so deeply entrenched and heavily reliant on deep personal convictions (rather than rational thought or evidence), as well as undisclosed political motivations, that it sometimes looks like a religious debate. A key sign of entrenched positions is when sweeping statements are articulated as absolute and irrefutable "truths", applicable to ALL scenarios, no matter what, often with no supporting evidence or data, but even when confirming evidence or data exists, there is little if any interest in looking for, or entertaining, contradictory evidence or data. You can't establish an "absolute truth" by inductive reasoning (see links #1 & #2 below). No wonder at the end of every debate on such hot topics, each side becomes more entrenched in their previous beliefs and absolutely no learning takes place, because in reality, it is not the issue itself being debated or defended, but the normative (right/wrong/good/bad) connotations around the issue - which significantly raises the personal stakes among participants leading to a natural defensive reaction. There are scientific explanations for this i.e. cognitive dissonance and confirmation bias - so irrational positions are not just about "tribe" or political affiliations but how our brains are fundamentally wired to operate when we are in real/perceived groups. (see link #3 below) Even as I write this, I can't help but feel like a fly walking into the spider's den... Still, let me muster some courage and try tiptoe around the political minefield, so as to offer an intellectual perspective to those who may be receptive to a rational discussion on the topic of investment appraisal for public infrastructure. To begin, two interesting phrases have been made by fellow listers, which I think are not as congruent as they may appear. The phrase "ahead of demand" makes more sense to me than "not really supposed to break even". The former considers or recognizes the question of demand. The latter dispenses with it completely. I believe that SGR is an "ahead of demand" project that makes a lot of sense - just like Thika Superhighway and the various city bypass roads. The government is just not articulating its position well because it seemingly does not have a technocratic communication team (or Think Tank) that can engage ,non-politically, with opposing intellectuals to offer robust rebuttals to (real/purported) intellectual arguments, whilst educating the public on complexities and nuances around public interest projects. This failure to offer a robust articulation of net gains has a negative impact on trust - which creates room for toxic politics (propaganda). SGR is a component of a continent-wide master-plan. If you consider developments like AfCFTA and continent-wide infrastructure projects, the SGR starts to make a lot of sense. Most arguments against it try to limit the scope of benefit to tangible aspects (direct revenue) strictly within the local context - but holistic business cases will also consider the intangible benefits (e.g. opening up the economy for MSMEs) as well as broader contexts (e.g. AfCFTA, strategic geopolitical gains etc). So the business case for SGR (and it's payback period) largely depends the methodology and inputs used to calculate it - and this is why it is so vulnerable to politics. Sadly, Wanjiku doesn't know this - and Government has, so far, been doing a poor job of articulating it (as well as losing out of the benefits of teaching citizens how to think critically and independently - such as, lowering susceptibility of general population to geopolitical subversion. But these weaknesses can be addressed at any time by the relevant decision makers, if they wish to do so. Is it pedantic to examine the difference between "ahead of demand" vs "not really supposed to break even"? Well, if you believe resources are unlimited, that any debt is better than smart debt, and that there are no competing alternatives where allocation of capital would yield better returns, then, yes, you will assert pedantry. But if you take the view that resources are indeed scarce, that we are a poor country that relies on debt to provide even basic services like healthcare and/or education for our children, that we need to accumulate smart debt - not any debt, and you recognize the need to strike a balance between immediate needs (economic pain relief) and long term gains, you will see value in considering the demand-side and a culture that strives to focus on projects that have a clear and high value proposition for the country (the SGR being one of them, IMO). Perhaps Isiolo Airport would be an example of Ali's "not really supposed to break even" project, if recent media reports are anything to go by (see link #5). I don't have data to make any definitive conclusions on it as yet so I reserve my opinion. In order to establish a robust counter-narrative to that posed by economists and intellectuals (so that Wanjiku doesn't fall for intellectual dishonesty) the government should consider setting up "think tank" agencies or workgroups, in collaboration with entrepreneurs, TVETs and Universities, to offer intellectually robust thought leadership on national discourse; taking in the good ideas and offering robust counter-narratives to politically motivated intellectual arguments. We need a culture of low-stakes debate, where we people can talk to each other about things/perspectives that we disagree on, with the goal of educating ourselves as curious individuals, and as a collective that desires to make the right choices for our, and our children's long term benefit. Good evening. Links / References: 1. The Problem of Induction https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Problem_of_induction 2. Deeper discussion on Inductive reasoning https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Inductive_reasoning 3. Confirmation Bias And the Power of Disconfirming Evidence https://fs.blog/2017/05/confirmation-bias/ 4. CNBC Report - Why The US Has No High-Speed Rail https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Qaf6baEu0_w 5. https://www.businessdailyafrica.com/corporate/shipping/Isiolo-Airport-mostl… Brgds,Patrick. Patrick A. M. On Friday, May 10, 2019, 8:54:24 PM GMT+3, Eng. Dr. Zaipuna O. Yonah via kictanet <kictanet(a)lists.kictanet.or.ke> wrote: I concur! I consider Infrastructure projects as investments AHEAD of demand, not where there is demand. RegardsZaipuna On Fri, 10 May 2019, 19:16 Ali Hussein via kictanet <kictanet(a)lists.kictanet.or.ke wrote: Interesting take. Just one thing. Infrastructure projects are not really supposed to break even. This is not a Profit and Loss situation. The ramifications of great infrastructure supersede the profit motive. Regards AliHussein Principal AHK & Associates Tel: +254 713 601113 Twitter: @AliHKassim Skype: abu-jomo LinkedIn: 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. On Fri, May 10, 2019 at 11:20 AM S.M. Muraya via kictanet <kictanet(a)lists.kictanet.or.ke> wrote: Interesting documentary here..Why The US Has No High-Speed Rail - https://youtu.be/Qaf6baEu0_w Even with digital transformations, the USA is still creating (service industry jobs) which require movement of people + cargo, not just movement of money (online banking services). MAYBE, the KE SGR will break even in 30 years (serving over 90 Mln Kenyans) if Kenyan SMEs are empowered to create more jobs all over Kenya. http://www.worldbank.org/en/news/opinion/2010/04/28/demographic-transition-… worldpopulationreview.com/countries/kenya-population/ _______________________________________________ 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/engyonah%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 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/pmaina2000%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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Re: [kictanet] State of Broadband in Kenya - breakfast meeting
by nzambi kakusu 07 Jul '19

07 Jul '19

Thanks, I will be there. On Thu, 9 May 2019 11:05 am Mwendwa Kivuva, <lordmwesh(a)gmail.com> wrote: > You can just come. You are welcomed > > On Thu, May 9, 2019, 07:21 nzambi kakusu via kictanet < > kictanet(a)lists.kictanet.or.ke> wrote: > >> Good morning, I had been asked to confirm to Mwara about the attendance. >> Can I still register? >> >> >> On Wed, 8 May 2019 4:11 pm Mwendwa Kivuva via kictanet, < >> kictanet(a)lists.kictanet.or.ke> wrote: >> >>> We still have some slots remaining for the breakfast meeting on Friday. >>> Apply here on Eventbrite >>> >>> >>> https://www.eventbrite.com/e/state-of-broadband-in-kenya-breakfast-meeting-… >>> >>> >>> Warm Regards >>> ______________________ >>> Mwendwa Kivuva, >>> >>> >>> On Tue, 7 May 2019 at 01:28, Mwendwa Kivuva <Kivuva(a)transworldafrica.com> >>> wrote: >>> >>>> KICTAnet conducted an online debate on the state of play and impact of >>>> broadband in Kenya, broadly looking at the socio-economic impact on >>>> consumers, businesses and various sectors like agriculture, education, >>>> healthcare, finance and government; looking at real life examples of impact >>>> of broadband, challenges we face in increasing impact of broadband and >>>> recommendations on interventions needed to address the challenges >>>> identified. >>>> >>>> >>>> The results of the discussion will be shared in a face to face >>>> breakfast meeting to be held on Friday 10th May 2019 at Sarova >>>> Panafric hotel, Nairobi from 7.30am >>>> >>>> >>>> Below is the eventbrite link for registration to participate in the >>>> event. >>>> >>>> >>>> https://www.eventbrite.com/e/state-of-broadband-in-kenya-breakfast-meeting-… >>>> >>>> >>>> >>>> ______________________ >>>> Mwendwa Kivuva >>>> >>>> _______________________________________________ >>> 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/kakusuj7%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 >> 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/kivuva%40transworldaf… >> >> 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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State of Broadband in Kenya - breakfast meeting
by Mwendwa Kivuva 07 Jul '19

07 Jul '19

KICTAnet conducted an online debate on the state of play and impact of broadband in Kenya, broadly looking at the socio-economic impact on consumers, businesses and various sectors like agriculture, education, healthcare, finance and government; looking at real life examples of impact of broadband, challenges we face in increasing impact of broadband and recommendations on interventions needed to address the challenges identified. The results of the discussion will be shared in a face to face breakfast meeting to be held on Friday 10th May 2019 at Sarova Panafric hotel, Nairobi from 7.30am Below is the eventbrite link for registration to participate in the event. https://www.eventbrite.com/e/state-of-broadband-in-kenya-breakfast-meeting-… ______________________ Mwendwa Kivuva

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Webinar Invitation: Evolving ICANN’s Multistakeholder Model
by Bob Ochieng 07 Jul '19

07 Jul '19

Dear listers, Let me share details of the above webinar here: https://www.icann.org/news/announcement-2019-05-07-en <https://www.icann.org/news/announcement-2019-05-07-en> You are all invited if you can find time. Thank you. Bob.

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Fwd: [afnog] NOMINATIONS FOR THE 2019 JONATHAN B. POSTEL SERVICE AWARD NOW OPEN
by Barrack Otieno 07 Jul '19

07 Jul '19

Listers, This is for your information and action. Best Regards ---------- Forwarded message --------- From: Betel Hailu <hailu(a)isoc.org> Date: Wed, May 8, 2019 at 10:13 AM Subject: [afnog] NOMINATIONS FOR THE 2019 JONATHAN B. POSTEL SERVICE AWARD NOW OPEN To: afnog(a)afnog.org <afnog(a)afnog.org> Hi everyone- Each year, the Internet Society awards the Jonathan B. Postel Service Award to an individual or an organization that has made outstanding contributions in service to the data communications community. The award committee places particular emphasis on candidates who have supported and enabled others in addition to their own specific actions. Nominations may be submitted by self-nomination or by a third party. The deadline for nominations is *15 May 2019*. For more information, see: https://www.internetsociety.org/postel Thank you, *Betel Hailu *| *Communications Coordinator – Africa Regional Bureau *|* Internet Society* skype: betty.hailu | *www.InternetSociety.org <http://www.InternetSociety.org> *| *Follow Us * [image: iption: Macintosh HD:Users:betelhailu:Desktop:facebook.png] <https://www.facebook.com/ISOCAfrica>[image: iption: Macintosh HD:Users:betelhailu:Desktop:twitter.png] <https://twitter.com/ISOC_Africa> _______________________________________________ afnog mailing list https://www.afnog.org/mailman/listinfo/afnog -- Barrack O. Otieno +254721325277 +254733206359 Skype: barrack.otieno PGP ID: 0x2611D86A

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Crowd Sourced Citizen Report Cards + strategic inefficiency is what creates a large number jobs
by Jimmy Gitonga 07 Jul '19

07 Jul '19

This is what I think about the two issues. We need Citizen Report Cards. We need to find a way to do this by crowd sourcing not just the information, but the funding as well. At some point, Kenyans who are wealthy enough to offer patronage to citizen worthy causes and projects. This is the same for the seed funding required to develop local, indigenous ideas that have a potential to benefit all of us. The first obstacle we must get rid of is the “get rich quick” mentality in the “startup" fad. Sadly, we are mostly suspicious of one another in this country so few are willing to give money to a visibly worthy cause because the said startup entrepreneurs will probably line their pockets and not succeed in fulfilling the “social contract”. But if we went past these small issues, we can build web portals that visualise a lot of public data such as the KNBS census and household data. I did some work with Mzalendo Trust where a report was done on the Women representatives in the 11th Parliament. It was released as an infographic that really was a score card - http://info.mzalendo.com/media_root/file_archive/WP-Contributions_11th_Parl… <http://info.mzalendo.com/media_root/file_archive/WP-Contributions_11th_Parl…>. We did some research on what the baseline issues should be in the counties these women represent. We found the Kenya Socio-economic Atlas invaluable - https://www.kenya-atlas.org/ <https://www.kenya-atlas.org/>. We were able to see that Kenya should really be divided around its climatic predispositions and state funding should flow with these conditions in mind. I asked myself, why can’t the Kenya Atlas be made interactive and up-to-date? As it is, it is a fantastic source of data for socio-economic policy development. After talking to the program manager at CETRAD and remembering some conversations with a commissioner at the Commission on Revenue Allocation, I think that this is a worthwhile thing to pursue. This then informs and frames the issue of strategic inefficiency. Just by looking at the Kenya Atlas, one could quickly understand why sugar cane growing in Kenya will never be sustainable compared to the COMESA region. The inefficiencies in the sugar sector do keep a lot of farmers busy but these jobs are not sustainable. We have a lot of the information and most of the tools that we can use to make Kenya strategically efficient in this region for our benefit. If sugar from Sudan and maize from Malawi are cheaper to buy than to grow and the fact that we have a larger source of educated human resource and are leading in financial services means we have things we can trade in with our neighbours, to our benefit. The cheap and unnecessary political animosity we seem to encourage with our COMESA exemptions would be dissipated. These types of information can be disseminated as Citizen Report Cards with the added benefit of civic education that would result from discussions around the reports. After the Women Representatives report card, Parliamentarians began using the Mzalendo score cards in their re-election material. Best Regards, Jimmy Gitonga Web Software Design and Development LinkedIn: Jimmy Gitonga | Twitter: @Afrowave ______________________________________ Web: afroshok.com <http://afroshok.com/> > Indeed, Crowd Sourced Citizen Report Cards could lead to increased public sector accountability. Currently this gap is being filled by Twitter, in a crude way, but the potential is clear.? > > How do you see the PPP arrangement with MSMEs looking like conceptually? Hopefully not to be financially sustained by Government, keeping in mind the reality of cartels / MNC lobbyists / tenderpreneurs who will quickly hijack it, establish themselves as gatekeepers and turn it into a rent seeking charade? > I am of the view that the data should be provided for free to anyone (e.g. via secure government APIs) and MSMEs should find their own ways of "monetizing" it by creating innovative value-add propositions e.g. unique methods of analysis to yield forensic or predictive insights, independent content publishing or journalism. > > Crowd funding via voluntary donations could also come into play to provide additional financial sustenance and maximize public ownership/goodwill around the initiative. > > The open model will keep cartels away because there is real work and real value creation involved with no "assured income" and no gatekeepers to collect rent. Incidentally, these difficulties will attract real entrepreneurs, so it's a great way of screening. > > I think the idea (or different flavors of it) is worth piloting e.g. at a progressive County or Ministry (perhaps in partnership with a local University or TVET institution). Let's see what happens, now that the idea is in the public domain. Great potential for creating new jobs and for inspiring an R&D culture that focuses on solving real-world problems. > > Have a great evening! > > Brgds,Patrick. > > Patrick A. M. Maina[Cross-domain Innovator | Public Policy Analyst - Indigenous Innovations] > > On Fri, May 3, 2019 at 5:13 PM Patrick A. M. Maina <pmaina2000(a)yahoo.com <mailto:pmaina2000@yahoo.com>> wrote: > > Noted Muraya & thanks for clarifying. > True. Public projects should have public oversight unless there are clear compelling reasons, in public interest, to the contrary. > So, if I understand you correctly, the role of MSMEs would be to: > 1. Create public information web portals and keep them updated regularly. > 2. Collect accurate updates on government projects (e.g. go to project sites take photos and conduct contractor interviews every month; also collect data from relevant agencies) and update the data to the portal. > 3. Conduct analyses on data and publish fairly objective scorecard/dashboard reports for all eligible government projects.? > Is that similar to what you had in mind?? > What would the SME business model look like to avoid a rent-seeking type arrangement that in itself would be subject to corruption (which would turn the whole idea into a big mess)? > Though I support the idea of initial seed capital from gov, I think the SMEs would have to sustain themselves independently afterwards for it to make sense e.g. through ads or some indirect synergies where the portal adds value to their core business. > New Media businesses (independent publishers) for example might use this to boost their traffic/engagement (and advertising revenues). > Govenment could spice it up by creating a whistleblower bounty program where people who help identify corruption are paid x% of funds recovered (a graduated scale can be used, with hard capping). There would of course be need for smart rules to ensure the bounty program itself is not turned by cartels into a racket to fleece the gov. > I think you're on to something... > Brgds,Patrick.

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Fixing Africa's zig zag investment ecosystem
by Eric M K Osiakwan 07 Jul '19

07 Jul '19

https://www.africa.com/fixing-africas-zig-zag-investment-ecosystem/ <https://www.africa.com/fixing-africas-zig-zag-investment-ecosystem/> Eric here

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draft_declaration_of_principles_on_freedom_of_expression_in_africa_eng.pdf
by Lydia gachungi 07 Jul '19

07 Jul '19

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Public Consultation on the Draft Principles on Freedom of Expression and Access to Information in Africa
by Lydia gachungi 07 Jul '19

07 Jul '19

Public Consultation on the Draft Principles on Freedom of Expression and Access to Information in Africa The Special Rapporteur on Freedom of Expression and Access to Information in Africa (the Special Rapporteur), one of the special mechanisms of the African Commission on Human and Peoples’ Rights (the African Commission), is undertaking an initiative to revise the Declaration of Principles on Freedom of Expression in Africa (the Declaration), which was adopted during the 32nd Ordinary Session in October 2002. This initiative is being undertaken in pursuance of Resolutions 362, 350 and 222 of the African Commission, which mandated the Special Rapporteur, in conjunction with State Parties, civil society and other stakeholders, to revise and/or expand the Declaration to cover freedom of expression and access to information issues that may have been only part-included or not included at all in the Declaration, including by taking account of developments in the internet age. The draft Declaration on Principles of Freedom of Expression and Access to Information in Africa (Draft Declaration) has been developed under the leadership of the Special Rapporteur. As part of the consultative process, the Special Rapporteur invites all state and non-state stakeholders to forward their inputs on the draft Declaration, by close of business on 01 July 2019. The Draft Declaration can be found using the link above, to the English, French and Portuguese versions. Contributions should be sent to the Secretariat of the African Commission on the following email address: au-banjul(a)africa-union.org. Done in Sharm el Sheikh, Egypt, 30 April 2019 http://www.achpr.org/news/2019/04/d375/

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Go big or Go Home: Money Matters
by Mbugua Njihia 07 Jul '19

07 Jul '19

Sometimes, deep pockets are needed to power through long-term opportunities; providing runway and capital for physical infrastructure and ‘plumbing’ before technology can stitch it all together - http://www.mbuguanjihia.com/business/gobigorgohome.html *Regards,* Mbugua Njihia ᐧ

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Fwd: [AfrICANN-discuss] Alert: Phishing Scam Email From "sales@icann.org"
by Barrack Otieno 07 Jul '19

07 Jul '19

---------- Forwarded message ---------- From: Yaovi Atohoun <yaovi.atohoun(a)icann.org> Date: Sun, 5 May 2019 21:13:33 +0000 Subject: [AfrICANN-discuss] Alert: Phishing Scam Email From "sales(a)icann.org" To: AfrICANN Community List <africann(a)afrinic.net> Hello everyone / Bonjour à tous EN: Please read more at https://www.icann.org/news/announcement-2-2019-05-02-en FR : Alerte hameçonnage : escroquerie par message électronique depuis « sales(a)icann.org ». Plus d’information à https://www.icann.org/news/announcement-2-2019-05-02-fr Thanks / Merci -- Yaovi Atohoun Stakeholder Engagement and Operations Manager- Africa; ICANN Tel. +229 66015649/65209067 www.icann.org -- Barrack O. Otieno +254721325277 +254733206359 Skype: barrack.otieno PGP ID: 0x2611D86A

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Twitter Kenya, Twitter Policy/Support
by Mutemi wa Kiama 07 Jul '19

07 Jul '19

Dear all, Are there individuals who work for Twitter Public Policy or Twitter Support on this list? Warm regards, Edwin Kiama Thoughts become things... choose the good ones! *-------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------* *Social Justice & Social Accountability Entrepreneur, Facilitator, Movements' Coach, Human Rights Defender, * *#DevolutionIsRevolution Champion* *The Wanjiku Agenda Kenya Foundation (WAKenya)*Ordinary, fearless Kenyans. Sauti Ya Wanjiku Social Movement www.sautiyawanjiku.com https://www.facebook.com/wanjikurevolutionkenya https://twitter.com/WanjikuRevolt https://plus.google.com/u/1/+WanjikuMapinduzi/posts http://www.scribd.com/wmkenya "Never doubt that a small group of thoughtful, committed people can change the world. Indeed, it is the only thing that ever has." *~Margaret Mead*

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Fwd: Invitation to join the Africa Youth IGF session planning working group
by Keith Andere 07 Jul '19

07 Jul '19

Dear Listers, This might of interest to some of you. Regards, Keith. ---------- Forwarded message --------- From:SILLAH Kawsu <kawsu.sillah(a)gmail.com> Date: Thu, 2 May 2019, 22:47 Subject: Invitation to join the Africa Youth IGF session planning working group To: KAWSU ESSA SILLAH <kawsu.sillah(a)gmail.com> Cc: Keith Andere <kephand(a)gmail.com> Dear All, I am transmitting this message on behalf of my colleague Mr. Keith Andere, Youth Representative at African Internet Governance Forum <https://afigf.africa/>'s Multi Advisory Group <https://afigf.africa/sites/default/files/2018/Composition%20of%20African%20…> (AfIGF MAG) for 2019-2020. Mr. Andere is currently working on planning the Youth session at upcoming 8th session of African Internet Governance Forum to be held in September 2019 in a location to be determined. Accordingly, Mr. Andere is inviting young people active in the field of ICT/Internet policy related discussions to join the African YouthIGF Working Group. Interested candidates should be between the age of 18-35, and resident in African continent. To join, register your details from this link HERE. <https://docs.google.com/spreadsheets/d/1L-XdZ_A1221TrMzzkZ35vU0e1jCb0Ts7KZv…> Also to a WhatsApp Group. Find link HERE. <https://chat.whatsapp.com/BFHCoywlZOM1kT2KY0rfoT> Kind regards, Kawsu <https://docs.google.com/spreadsheets/d/1L-XdZ_A1221TrMzzkZ35vU0e1jCb0Ts7KZv…> -- Best Regards, [image: --]SILLAH Kawsu [image: https://]about.me/ksillah Website <http://www.auyc.org/> | Twitter <https://twitter.com/AYCommission> | Facebook <https://www.facebook.com/AYCommission/> | LinkedIn <https://www.linkedin.com/company/african-youth-commission/about/> M/WhatsApp: +2209865300 Skype: profkawsu

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[strategic inefficiency is what creates a large number jobs] Jobs fall to 6 year low despite GDP "boom".
by Patrick A. M. Maina 07 Jul '19

07 Jul '19

Dear listers, In order to create jobs, the government should move away from policies that focus on increasing efficiency to those that are strategically inefficient. Examples: 1. SMEs, e. g. cottage industries, are inefficient - compared to larger factories, but they can create exponentially more jobs with less tax breaks. Most SMEs also spend all their revenues in Kenya, while promoting other dependent MSMEs.. unlike large corporations which tend to move funds abroad for different reasons (tax, asset protection, hedging, dividends etc). 2. We always see donors (especially, I believe, WB & IMF if I recall correctly) always pushing govt to redirect expenditure from recurrent/wages to "development"/infrastructure (clearly in their own interest as assets can be securitized for their own peace of mind, and more debt can be incurred in dev projects). So they push developing countries to reduce manpower in critical strategic sectors of the economy (less teachers, doctors etc) or to pay below-market wages. What is the impact of such financial efficiency measures? Do they not care that the employees they keep asking to be retrenched are real people with families? Do they not care that manpower reduction means our children get the worst teacher:pupil or doctor:patient or police:civillian ratios? Such recommendations lead to massive hidden costs downstream that cannot be attributed (e.g. low quality education, poor healthcare, increased insecurity due to overloaded+underpaid workers). It just looks like we have endless problems of incompetence but it is not by accident... we follow "weaponised advice", designed to keeps us poor. Efficiency efforts should be limited to enabling high impact service delivery (optimized processes) not financial efficiency. Government should find ways/tactical excuses to ignore callous and unethical requests/pressures for cold blooded fiscal efficiency. Public sector Performance Contract targets need to be linked to a basket of grassroots metrics that reflect the general quality of life for the ordinary population (besides GDP, Inflation, NSE Index & exchange rate). This can be presented in dashboard format on eCitizen so that wanjiku can see what is happening, hold officials to account for not delivering and be motivated to support such initiatives (but the data must be *real* to avoid risk of future backlash). Our "missing middle" problem (i.e. a tiny middleclass) needs to be addressdd. It exists because government incentives for business have focused mainly on Micro enterprises which are too inefficient to be sustainable, and large corporations that are too efficient to fill the jobs gap (and too demanding - always asking for endless concessions just to maintain status quo). If you track current incentives given to large corporations and account for all outflows and hidden costs (many of these corporations are the architects of grand corruption in the country) - you will see a MASSIVE NET LOSS / WEALTH EXTRACTION directly attributable to corporate activities (e.g. encouraging harphazard spending, lobbying for bad laws or poor incentives).. despite the appearance of "gains" on simplistic paper reports that ignore the full impact. A thriving middle class (people who are not rich and not poor - with ability to buy a car, spend regularly on mid-level leisure and even save for luxury spending) is what ends poverty and drives a strong economy. Small and Medium-sized Enterprises SME are the key to a thriving middle class and rapid, large scale jobs creation. They tend to lean towards formality, will often have more educated founders, are inefficient because of scale - but not overly so as to be unsustainable like Micro enterprises, and a few will have potential to grow into mega corporations. De-risked MSEs are what attracts high quality FDI in the form of venture capital. So rather than pitch tax breaks to global investors, the government should pitch de-risked high potential small enterprises (the way Israel and some EU countries are doing) whose business model has been proven in order to attract capital to scale up the businesses. The reality of Tax incentives to big corporations is that they only cannibalize the treasury - and these same corporations will do everything they can to minimize local expenditure (even furniture is imported yet we have skilled carpenters), and extract wealth in all manner of ways (e.g. transfer pricing). Most jobs offered by large factories are low level, while skilled jobs (r&d, conceptualization, design, development) will be outsourced with the (false) excuse that Kenyans are not competent. In reality they just want to prevent HIGH VALUE KNOWLEDGE TRANSFER so that locals don't build indigenous alternatives. I know some of the things I write are not supposed to be said because it will spoil some lucrative plunder parties.. but I alsonknow many of you know what I am saying is TRUE because you have seen it being done, heard about it or (God forbid) participated in it . This habit of taming monsters by feeding them with our kids is becoming too much and has to be called out for what it is. The youth are our children. It is our duty to create an enabling ecosystem framework that attracts opportunities and truly rewards them for innovation. We need a Kenyan Steve Jobs or Bill Gates who own their own companies - rather than have them and their ideas gobbled up by monopolistic dinosaur corporations that want to suppress their enterpreneurial dreams supressed in order to delay, the next wave of disruptive innovations. We need hundreds of winning case studies - not tens of mostly foreign owned startups (not that it's a bad thing to have foreign ownership, the key thing is that, given our history of suppressed esteem, our youth desperately need role models they can relate to so that they can start BELIEVING in themselves). We can't just tell youth to be job creators.. that's like telling a starving person to go find food. If they knew how - or where, they would not be starving. The REAL reason we tell the youth to employ themselves - yet we have not created an enabling framework - is because they have caught us napping and we want to deflect responsibility. "We" means anyone over 35 years old whether in privage sector or Government. Our parents didn't give us a gift to keep (the opportunities we enjoyed), they gave us a BATON to pass on in a long term RELAY RACE. Did you drop your baton (I did too)? Pick it up. Ignore the naysayers. Start running. Link: https://www.businessdailyafrica.com/news/Formal-jobs-fall-to-6-year-low-des… Warmest regards,Patrick. Patrick A. M. Maina[Cross-domain Innovator | Public Policy Analyst - Indigenous Innovations]

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Fwd: [AfrICANN-discuss] [OT] Invitation RightsCon-Tunez: Roundtable discussion about biometrics
by Barrack Otieno 07 Jul '19

07 Jul '19

Listers This is for your information and attention. Best Regards ---------- Forwarded message --------- From:Katitza <katitza(a)eff.org> Date: Fri, 3 May 2019 00:40 Subject: [AfrICANN-discuss] [OT] Invitation RightsCon-Tunez: Roundtable discussion about biometrics To: <africann(a)afrinic.net> Cc: Jennifer Lynch <jlynch(a)eff.org> Dear friends: My colleague Jennifer Lynch, EFF Surveillance Litigation Director,[1] is organizing a strategic roundtable at RightsCon to discuss biometric surveillance. If you are working on the issue and also going to RightsCon, would be great if you can join this conversation. If that's the case, could you please let Jennifer lynch(a)eff.org <jlynch(a)eff.org> knows directly that you’re interested in participating? [1] https://www.eff.org/about/staff/jennifer-lynch <https://www.eff.org/about/staff/jennifer-lynch> Thanks so much! Looking forward to seeting you at RightsCon! Katitza *Session Title: You're Not Just a Pretty Face: Biometric Surveillance Has Moved Beyond Face Recognition - How Do We Stop It?* Session Description: Every day we hear about new developments in face recognition in China, Israel, the US, and other countries - face recognition accuracy has improved exponentially; cameras are being deployed in more and more places; and face recognition is used for more and more services. However, by focusing solely on face recognition, activists, NGOs and lawyers are missing the forest for the trees. Face recognition is now just one of the many technologies incorporated into vast surveillance systems and used to track people. Other technologies in these systems - like object recognition, license plate and text recognition, voice recognition, and gait recognition - combined with cheap cloud storage and machine learning are allowing for tracking on a never-before-seen scale. This session will provide a space to discuss these topics. It will bring in experts to explain how technologies are working and how they are being deployed around the world. It will also encourage interactivity by asking all participants to share stories and contribute ideas for change. Main Goal of Session: The main goal of this session will be to share knowledge about the biometric technologies that governments are using or planning to use to surveil and track their citizens - what are the capabilities of these surveillance systems; which are the companies designing the technologies; what activism has worked to limit the reach of these systems; and how can we strategize and work together to stop them. Translate to Post-Conference Action: This session will translate to a post-conference action by building a community of lawyers and activists who are working together to share knowledge about and fight biometric surveillance. It may also develop principles for companies that are working on these technologies. _______________________________________________ AfrICANN mailing list AfrICANN(a)afrinic.net https://lists.afrinic.net/mailman/listinfo/africann

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In America’s indictment of Huawei some conversations...
by Ali Hussein 02 Jul '19

02 Jul '19

Listers As an ICT Policy practitioner and avid follower of #GeoPolitics the #HuaweiDebacle has great interest to me. Recently our CS ICT, Joseph Mucheru tasked ATU to probe alleged security risks on Huawei and ZTE Equipment. In America’s indictment of Huawei Technologies some interesting conversations:- 1. The Global Cop routine is sort of wearing thin and portraying it not as a force for good but as a bully. 2. Are Chinese companies so dependent on America that a ban by America can kill them? The case of the almost collapse of ZTE Corporation is instructive.. Only a surprise last minute reprieve from #TheDonald saved it from total collapse. 3. Could Huawei Technologies survive a ban by America? Intel Corporation, Seagate Technology and Qualcomm are major suppliers to Huawei Technologies. How will this affect their ability to deliver cutting edge technology to their customers? This last point brings me to wonder how much of the Chinese Technology renaissance is dependent on America? Read on and follow the conversation on LinkedIn. https://www.linkedin.com/feed/update/urn:li:activity:6496196045268090880 Ali Hussein Principal AHK & 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

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Financial transactions should be private by default
by Alice Munyua 01 Jul '19

01 Jul '19

> > > > > > > > Hey, > > 🍕🥓🍩 = 💸 > > What if all your guilty pleasures were on display for the whole world to see? If you use Venmo, a popular app that lets people send and collect money, there's a good chance they already are. > > Venmo's settings are public by default, so millions of transactions are available for anyone on the web to find. > > Everyone knowing who you shared pizza with last week might seem innocuous enough, but with millions of transactions publicly available there is a huge risk that this data could be used for nefarious purposes. Venmo has transformed the way Americans settle personal debts, and with as many as an estimated 10 million monthly users, how it handles privacy could be the standard for other financial apps.1 > > Sign our petition to tell Venmo that financial transactions should be private. > > Last year, researcher and Mozilla Fellow Hang Do Thi Duc exposed the serious implications of Venmo's settings by uncovering how countless Venmo users' drug habits, junk food vices, personal finances, and fights with significant others are available for all to see.2 > > Under pressure from the slew of news covering Do Thi Duc's work and a Mozilla campaign calling for the company to change its public by default setting, Venmo made a few small changes and restricted the rate at which information could be pulled from its public database of transactions (called an API).3 This change means that sensitive data about your transactions can still be extracted exactly the same way, it will just take a bit longer.4 > > This is not a fix. The privacy of Venmo users remains at risk. Last week, news surfaced that one researcher was able to collect data on 7 MILLION new transactions.5 With this renewed focus again exposing Venmo's terrible privacy practices, we have the opportunity to push the company to finally fix the problem and make privacy its default setting. > > Will you join 25,000 privacy advocates who have already signed our petition telling Venmo to make financial transactions private? Click here to add your name. > > Thank you for helping hold Venmo accountable, > The Mozilla Team > > References: > > Kaya Yurieff, "A researcher studied a year of public Venmo transactions. Here's what she learned," CNN Money, July 17, 2018. > Olivia Solon, "Venmo: how the payment app exposes our private lives," The Guardian, July 17, 2018. > Sarah Perez, "Mozilla pushes PayPal to make Venmo transactions private by default," TechCrunch > Dell Cameron, "Millions of Transactions Scraped in Latest Demonstration of Venmo's Absurd Privacy Policy," Gizmodo, June 17, 2019. > Ibid. > > > > > > Connect with us > > > > Thanks for reading! > You're receiving this email because we think you’re neat, AND you subscribed to hear from us. If our emails aren’t sparking joy, we’ll understand if you unsubscribe. > > You can also update your email preferences at any time. > > > > Donate to Mozilla | Download Firefox > > 331 E. Evelyn Avenue Mountain View CA 94041 > Legal • Privacy

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[ideas] Is there a way we can use our skills/talents to try and help turn our local politics into something more healthy and inclusive?
by Patrick A. M. Maina 29 Jun '19

29 Jun '19

Dear listers, Is there a way we can use our skills/talents to try and help turn our local politics into something more healthy and inclusive? Somalia's 20+ years of lawlessness is a grim reminder that toxic politics can backfire massively in an unpredictable and uncontrollable way that does not yield any winners over very long periods of time. There is no human society that is immune to the dangers of toxic politics, therefore it is important for stakeholders (be they professionals, business people, politicians and/or intellectuals) to voice their good-faith concerns against toxic politics, ideally in good time - when there is still a good chance for the country/leaders to change course, because ultimately we all get to bear the heavy socioeconomic costs associated with political uncertainty and volatility. To quote UNDP (see link #1): "Societies whose political institutions are more inclusive and participatory tend to be more peaceful and resilient, just as societies practicing exclusion tend to be more vulnerable to fragility and conflict." As long as leadership and/or resource/opportunity allocation is associated with ethnic identity, and/or an exclusive mindset, there will always be discontent among the have-nots, which leads to aggressive political competition as different ethnic communities clamor for their "turn to eat". It is therefore in our best interest, as a country that desires stability and prosperity, to push towards inclusive and participatory frameworks of governance (see link #2). Let me open the floor with some ideas / suggestions based on the above-mentioned themes. Hoping we can have a non-partisan idea-focused discussion in the spirit of searching for creative solutions to a shared problem. IDEAS / SUGGESTIONS:-------------------------------- 1. Our country needs moments of guaranteed pause in our politics where everyone (including media) gets to take a break from elective politics and focus on development: doing things that create opportunities and prosperity for all. What if election laws were amended to make campaigning illegal unless it occurs within 18 months prior to an election? 2. What if promises for maendeleo (development) were limited to election time only - and required in writing (lodged at the registrar), with measurable pledges and indicators (e.g. x number of jobs annually) such that the promises form a performance contract between the (winning) politician and voters across the whole country? 3. What if politicians agreed that failure to achieve x% of the committed pledges/targets, without credible extenuating circumstances, would be deemed a fair and reasonable ground for impeachment/recall. This would help minimizefalse/unrealistic promises and help reshape the perceptions of leadership from the more toxic "opportunity to rule", into the healthier opportunity to serve the country. 4. What if politician salaries were pegged to the median salary in the country - and any extra perks (e.g. performance bonus) to be linked, via a tiered system, to the delivery of agreed socio-economic performance targets and paid lumpsum at the end of the political term? This would incentivize a growth mindset and also minimize the perception that politics is a shortcut to easy wealth (meaning politics would attract people who truly want to make a difference; stakes would be lower during elections and we would have more of in-touch leadership styles). 5. What if political leaders and senior administrators were offered actual housing (instead of a monetary allowance) in median level neighborhoods (e.g. Eastlands) - to avoid their developing the out-of-touch elitism that seems to comes with moving to places like Karen or Muthaiga? What if government only offered them cover limited to public health services (I've seen this being discussed in the news)? Perhaps our country will be transformed much faster if our leaders lived among the median demographics and had a personal stake in improving the median standards of living? 6. What if political campaigns were about winning support for a written socio-political strategy and plan; i.e. a competition of ideas - instead of personalities? What if elections were about perceived merits of ideas, implementation strategies or preferred economic direction that the country should take - instead of identities and/or unrealistic promises? 7. All Kenyans have common problems that they would like to hear politicians talking about all the time such as JOBS CREATION and ABUNDANT OPPORTUNITIES for ENTREPRENEURSHIP. I think ICT, manufacturing and agriculture are high-potential drivers where quick results can be attained. How can we encourage politicians to focus on these issues within a nationally inclusive framework? 8. Can/should advertisers influence the News Media to stop fanning divisive narratives, mediocrity, ethnic chauvenism, identity politics and other banal inanities - and focus instead on responsibly shaping the national agenda towards issues that bring growth and prosperity? Can media self-regulate and refocus the Kenyan masses towards sustainable agendas (like entrepreneurship and excellence)? If our media moguls are in doubt about the business case of responsible journalism, I would urge them to study how Somalia's media industry has been performing over the last ~28 years. I think if the clock was pulled back, Somalia's media would think very carefully about the narratives that they want to shape their national discourse. Short term profits can come with a heavy long-term cost. Please consider this. 9. Serializing national goals to maximize focus, prioritize and leverage the domino effect of cumulative wins: Do we really have the capacity to make massively bold and audacious goals that are to be implemented concurrently or are we setting ourselves - and our leaders - up for failure by overreaching far beyond our realistic capabilities and stretching ourselves way too thin? Our economic/policy advisors need to accept the reality - that we are a poor, debt ridden country with crippling levels of corruption, institutionalized mediocrity, short sighted orientation and greater levels of incompetence than competence; a country that seems to be always tittering on the edge of a precipitous political/economic cliff - thus urgently in need of credible stabilizing plans and strategies. I would like to propose the idea of a serial, bite-sized approach to strategic national initiatives, where the main goals (which can still be big and audacious) are smartly serialized for domino effect and pursued, with laser focus, one at a time. For example we can have the entire nation's development agenda focus on creating jobs and opportunities - and nothing else - for the first 5 years, then in the subsequent 5 years the focus can change to boosting growth and efficiency, say via infrastructure upgrades/enhancements. This makes it easy for political manifestos to be guided by realistic 20-30 year economic master-plans (that already have national concensus), rather than arbitrary perceptions about what is popular at election time. It can also help decouple the economy from political transition cycles which would attract high quality FDI. Attempting very wide scope goals in parallel significantly increases costs - without giving the economy time to catch up and create domino effects; it compounds complexity - yet we have limited capacity to manage significant complexity; it increases the likelihood of mega corruption due to greater ambiguity + an overstretched Monitoring and Evaluation framework; it consumes a counterproductive amount of leadership bandwidth - such that unexpected events become more of a challenge than would otherwise be; and it magnifies risk of failing to attain ALL the audacious goals to near certainty levels. CONCLUSION: If we serialize our national goals, we will avoid biting more than we can chew and stretching our resources (or bandwidth) too thin. Being focused will minimize the risk of goal-capture by corruption cartels. By prioritizing wealth creation initiatives, we will give our economy a chance to develop domino effects - building a viable case for increasing capacity via infrastructure enhancements. A period of guaranteed pause in politics will allow the country to focus on development. Elections should be about issues - rather than identity. Performance-linked manifestos will encourage politicians to make realistic promises that they intend (and are able) to keep and be held accountable for their attainment. Media is key to ending negative/exclusive ethnicity as it can shape the national discourse towards less toxic narratives. Research suggests that inclusive, participatory governance models are superior to exclusive ones. Inclusivity creates the right socio-political conditions for sustainable stability and prosperity. Welcoming your thoughts / more ideas on the same. My only request, please, is that we try to have a non-partisan, intellectually honest exchange of creative ideas. Good evening. Brgds,Patrick. Patrick A. M. Maina[Cross-domain Innovator | Independent Public Policy Analyst - Indigenous Innovations] Links / References: 1. Inclusive political processes https://www.undp.org/content/undp/en/home/2030-agenda-for-sustainable-devel… 2. Sustainability and Public Participation: Toward an Inclusive Model of Democracy on JSTOR https://www.jstor.org/stable/25610875?seq=1#metadata_info_tab_contents

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Fwd: [At-Large] GDPR A Year Later in European Jurisdictions
by Barrack Otieno 26 Jun '19

26 Jun '19

Might be of interest. Regards ---------- Forwarded message ---------- From: *Carlton Samuels* <carlton.samuels(a)gmail.com> Date: Tuesday, June 25, 2019 Subject: [At-Large] GDPR A Year Later in European Jurisdictions To: At-Large Worldwide <at-large(a)atlarge-lists.icann.org>, " lac-discuss-en(a)atlarge-lists.icann.org" < lac-discuss-en(a)atlarge-lists.icann.org>, CPWG <cpwg(a)icann.org> The Eurobarometer 487a report offers insight on citizen awareness of the GDPR, individuals’ rights under it, their perception of their ability to control their personal data and their sense of and understanding of the enforcement mechanisms and actors. Read it here: http://ec.europa.eu/commfrontoffice/publicopinion/ index.cfm/ResultDoc/download/DocumentKy/86886 Carlton ============================== *Carlton A Samuels* *Mobile: 876-818-1799Strategy, Process, Governance, Assessment & Turnaround* ============================= -- Barrack O. Otieno +254721325277 +254733206359 Skype: barrack.otieno PGP ID: 0x2611D86A

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Data Visualization through the Use of Excel
by Tracy Nyatoro Weru 26 Jun '19

26 Jun '19

@LabAfrica,Strathmore university in partnership with Sunesis Consulting Limited is organizing a 3-day training course on Excel as a Business Intelligence Tool (Dashboard Reporting). The program will take place @iLabAfrica on 17th - 19th July 2019 at 9:00 am to 4:00 pm. This is a 3-day training that aims at providing business personnel with skills to transform data into decisions using a cost effective tool. The training course is open to all personnel in business related fields who want to leverage on the power of Excel as a Business Intelligence tool. We would be honored to have you participate in this training. If you have further queries, please do not hesitate to contact the event coordinator Getrude on her email address: ggichuhi(a)strathmore.edu <https://link.aeusercontent.com/mt/lt/D355BBBAC67B2DCE36571561528960260/1?ta…> The course will help you to: - Explore top 15 advanced data analysis functions that will save your report generation turn-around time! - Move from static, dull reports to interactive and insightful dashboards -learn to apply form controls, slicers, pick lists, and camera tool to create interaction - Show top performers using formulas and YoY% by a click of a mouse - Achieve more with advanced analytical charts -Pareto chart, Scrolling charts, Gauge Charts - Easily spot trends and patterns in your data by using icon sets, traffic lights, Sparklines and Custom Number formats - Creating a dashboard in Excel step-by-step Suitability: - This course is definitely NOT for you if locking cells ($ sign), VLOOKUP & PivotTables are news to you! - You need to have been a regular user of Excel (at least 40% usage in a week), and are comfortable with creating simple lookup formulas and charts, as well as customizing them. - *This course is not suitable for Absolute Beginners in Microsoft Excel.* If you are a beginner, we recommend that you start with less advanced Excel courses. You send an email to Getrude on ggichuhi(a)strathmore.edu <https://link.aeusercontent.com/mt/lt/D355BBBAC67B2DCE36571561528960260/2?ta…> with your inquiry. Fee information: Ksh 66,500 which covers the training fee, lunch and refreshments for the three days, as well as the certificate.. -- *Kind Regards,* Tracy Weru Program Manager @iLabAfrica Research Centre Email: tweru(a)strathmore.edu <https://link.aeusercontent.com/mt/lt/D355BBBAC67B2DCE36571561528960260/3?ta…> Direct Line: +254 (0) 703 034 621 Ext: 2621 Cell: +254 (0) 724239020 Enquiries: +254 (0) 703-034000/200/300 www.strathmore.edu <https://link.aeusercontent.com/mt/lt/D355BBBAC67B2DCE36571561528960260/4?ta…> <https://link.aeusercontent.com/mt/lt/D355BBBAC67B2DCE36571561528960260/5?ta…> <https://link.aeusercontent.com/mt/lt/D355BBBAC67B2DCE36571561528960260/6?ta…> <https://link.aeusercontent.com/mt/lt/D355BBBAC67B2DCE36571561528960260/7?ta…> <https://link.aeusercontent.com/mt/lt/D355BBBAC67B2DCE36571561528960260/8?ta…> <https://link.aeusercontent.com/mt/lt/D355BBBAC67B2DCE36571561528960260/9?ta…> <https://link.aeusercontent.com/mt/lt/D355BBBAC67B2DCE36571561528960260/10?t…> <https://link.aeusercontent.com/mt/lt/D355BBBAC67B2DCE36571561528960260/11?t…> -- *Note: *All emails sent from Strathmore University are subject to Strathmore’s Email Terms & Conditions. Please click here <http://www.strathmore.edu/en/email-policy> to read the policy. * * "Visit our Facebook <https://www.facebook.com/StrathmoreUniversity>Page and Twitter <https://twitter.com/StrathU>Account".

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Re: [kictanet] [Fair Competition Laws will Promote Innovation and Reduce Unfair Market Practices - the bill is not targeting a particular company or product] Safaricom to be compelled to split m-pesa business in new bill
by Patrick A. M. Maina 25 Jun '19

25 Jun '19

Hi Ali, Here we go again... My comment was fair because your points appear to be contradicting themselves - which suggests a limited understanding, either of the overall topic or of the point(s) that you are making. If this is not an accurate assessment, I invite you please to rephrase and present your ideas more congruently to avoid being misundersood. Taking note of past interactions, I am detecting a pattern where you repeatedly claim, without substantiating, to be offended or attacked by intellectually fair comments (e.g. when sincerely called out for contradicting your own points or for demolishing your own arguments) and that makes it quite challenging to debate with you with intellectual candor. Your decision to draw conclusions about a particular entity based on ONE WORD on the subject line does not make sense to me because my plain language *insertions* and use of plural terms in the message body (including the section you quoted) clearly suggests a general discussion. Latching onto one word or phrase while completely ignoring the overall context is not an intellectually honest way to debate. So Ali, the onus is still on you to offer a more substantive substantiation as to why you chose to associate one specific entity with what is clearly a general paragraph, and which you excerpted from what is clearly a general discussion. Debating experts generally advise that participants who take diversionery paths instead of focusing on robust, congruent ideas have no intention to engage in genuine debate but just want create certain perceptions for the moderator/observers or create a dramatic distraction so that important ideas are hidden (muzzled) by the noise. Rather than prevail with the strength of their ideas, intellectually dishonest (or unskilled) debaters try to "win" by muzzling or supressing opposing ideas. This is a troubling pattern that I am detecting in your debating style Ali. Productive mature debating is a skill that can be learned. To learn more about how to have an intellectually honest debate, please read the following articles as a starting point, and then search online for more. https://hbr.org/2019/01/how-to-debate-ideas-productively-at-work https://shane.substack.com/p/how-to-stop-being-intellectually Hope that helps. :-) Please let us be open to diverse opinions, fresh ideas and new ways of thinking. Suppressing ideas when discussing public-interest policy issues is counterproductive because it leads to sub-optimal outcomes. Try not to take an intellectual challenge as a personal affront, or use victimhood as a tactic, otherwise you will miss valuable opportunities to engage in, and learn from, high-quality intellectually honest debates on complex, public-interest topics. Enjoy your day. Brgds,Patrick. Patrick A. M. Maina[Cross-domain Innovator | Independent Public Policy Analyst - Indigenous Innovations] On Tuesday, June 25, 2019, 8:37:45 AM GMT+3, Ali Hussein <ali(a)hussein.me.ke> wrote: Patrick Do you always have to turn a conversation into a personal affront/attack? My limited understanding of State Capture? I will not deign to respond to personal attacks because in my responding I will be making an assumption that you are an expert in the subject of State Capture. Let me instead respond to your question below:- "Perhaps Ali, you can shed more light as to why the name of a particular company - and not any other(s) - came into your mind after reading my general comments about ruthless anti-competitive, anti-poor practices by monopolistic entities. Is there something you have observed or heard about their activities and/or practices?" Simple Patrick. The title of this email thread specifically mentions Safaricom and so the assumption is understandable that you are singling them out. Perhaps you care to respond to that instead of deflecting? I asked a specific question on this. Focus on that, perhaps? AliHussein Principal AHK & Associates Tel: +254 713 601113 Twitter: @AliHKassim Skype: abu-jomo LinkedIn: 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. On Mon, Jun 24, 2019 at 9:36 PM Patrick A. M. Maina <pmaina2000(a)yahoo.com> wrote: Greetings Ali, and many thanks for your thoughts. One key attribute of high value debates is the presence of two (or more) opposing perspectives because diversity of thought often leads to a multi-dimensional understanding of complex issues, which (if leveraged with good intentions) can lead to high quality inputs for policies, strategies, regulations and/or decisions. So I truly welcome and appreciate your counter-perspective and rebuttal efforts. :-) Let me start with an African saying made famous by Chinua Achebe: "An elderly person is always uneasy when dry bones are mentioned in a proverb." Perhaps Ali, you can shed more light as to why the name of a particular company - and not any other(s) - came into your mind after reading my general comments about ruthless anti-competitive, anti-poor practices by monopolistic entities. Is there something you have observed or heard about their activities and/or practices? Why would public-interest regulation be interpreted as targeting specific companies - unless it is some kind of admission or assertion that those companies could indeed be acting (or causing negative externalities) against public interest? Retrogressive externalities could be an unforeseen and/or unintentional by-product of a sub-optimized network-effects success model and poor economic master-planning (see links #1-7). Furthermore corporations, in different parts of the world, have also been known for purposeful malevolent activities when they fear of competition/disruption especially when operating within a weak / outdated institutional / antitrust framework. Specifics would need to be studied on a case by case basis. Have you considered the timing of the bill (in context of recent industry developments)? The proposed rules could actually *benefit* the very local corporate entities that would supposedly be motivated to resist them. In the global scale, our "tech giants" are like MSMEs and they get to be on the receiving end of mega-scale cross-border corporate tyranny. There is an interesting story of certain well known CEO's visit to Africa. A lot of people thought he was coming to look for investment opportunities and they cheerfully welcomed him (full VVIP+ treatment), took him on tours, demoed innovations, snapped selfies and eagerly answered his questions - hoping to dazzle, awe and impress him. Kumbe he was on a mission to gather economic intelligence - and he openly stated so (meaning you can't claim illegality) - leaving people to form their own self-deluded conclusions as to why he was doing it. Several years later, his company launches a product that will directly compete with ours at an unprecedented game-changing scale! There are so many stories like this in Africa, the script remains the same, only the actors, props and victims keep changing. It is quite embarrassing just how easy we make it for others to *repeatedly* plunder our ideas/insights or compete with us unfairly - to our own collective detriment - yet we always speak of a "knowledge economy" without taking time to understand what that *really* means. "Fool me once, shame on you; fool me twice, shame on me." - old proverb. Africa's centuries-old commitment to gullibility and ignorance is unparalleled and quite disturbing (see links #8-15). We are among the very few (if not the only) modern-day societies that never seem to learn from history. We welcome plunderers / economic spies with pomp, ceremony and color, and we happily give them everything they need to subjugate and impoverish us. Like little children, we accept sweet words as proof of benevolent intent and our shallow vanity makes us take pride that everyone is interested in learning from us (surely that means we are very important and smart - if others want to study us and everything we know, right?), yet we don't take as much - or more - interest in learning from them or asking ourselves uncomfortable questions, such as: "why is the student always teaching the teacher?"... and most worryingly, we see voices of reason, desperately scrambling to wake us up - as party-pooping troublemakers. Quite depressing, but I digress.. Ali, your argument on state capture suggests a limited understanding on how state capture comes about or what really it is (see links #8-15). Essentially you are contradicting yourself because it is good (uncorrupted) public-interest regulations, strong government institutions (not beholden to a few private interests) and a socio-political commitment to fair and sensible rules - motivated by public-interest - that minimize the risk of state capture. State capture is enabled by corruption, unchecked corporate power and corporate lobbying against public interest, which leads to regulatory (and market) failure e.g. due to bad laws that have loopholes purposefully designed in to them - or good laws getting blocked from enactment. I urge you to read more on the topic if you are interested in it (there are some good links below that you can start with) to gain a better understanding so you can offer more robust arguments/rebuttals without unwittingly demolishing or contradicting your main argument. Have a great evening. Brgd,Patrick Patrick A. M. Maina[Cross-domain Innovator | Independent Public Policy Analyst - Indigenous Innovations] Links / References: 1. Understanding Network Effects https://saylordotorg.github.io/text_information-systems-a-managers-guide-to… 2. The Dangers of Platform Monopolies https://knowledge.insead.edu/blog/insead-blog/the-dangers-of-platform-monop… 3. UNCTAD: Why competition and consumer protection matter https://unctad.org/en/Pages/DITC/CompetitionLaw/why-competition-matters.aspx 4. Apr. 2016: MIT News: How network effects hurt economieshttp://news.mit.edu/2016/network-effects-hurt-economies-0406 5. Regulating Anticompetitive Behavior – Principles of Economics https://opentextbc.ca/principlesofeconomics/chapter/11-2-regulating-anticom… 6. Monopolies are Destroying our Economy (US centric - but contains valuable insights) https://intpolicydigest.org/2018/05/23/monopolies-are-destroying-our-econom… 7. Apr. 2019: IMF warns that tech giants stifle innovation and threaten stability https://www.theguardian.com/business/2019/apr/03/imf-warns-that-tech-giants… 8. 2017: UN Speakers Stress Need to Address Exploitation of Africa’s Resources, Urging Paradigm Shift, as Economic and Social Council Concludes Segment | Meetings Coverage and Press Releases https://www.un.org/press/en/2017/ecosoc6831.doc.htm 9. Why the richest continent is the poorest https://edition.cnn.com/2016/04/18/africa/looting-machine-tom-burgis-africa… 10. Culture and social environment in the pre-colonial era http://www.scielo.org.za/scielo.php?script=sci_arttext&pid=S0041-476X200900… 11. Why no African country is truly free or independent - THE AFRICAN COURIER. Reporting Africa and its Diaspora! https://www.theafricancourier.de/opinion-analysis/neo-colonialism-in-africa… 12. Exploiting gullible people is a modern form of mininghttps://www.theguardian.com/lifeandstyle/2015/aug/07/exploiting-gulli… 13. Universities and the “democracy of the gullible” https://en.unesco.org/courier/2018-1/universities-and-democracy-gullible 14. The Age of Gullibility https://www.psychologytoday.com/us/blog/one-among-many/201806/the-age-gulli… 15. The Science Of Gullibility: Why We Get Duped https://www.npr.org/templates/transcript/transcript.php?storyId=99160094 16. Corporations and Regulators: The Game of Influence in Regulatory Capture https://www.researchgate.net/publication/257246830_Corporations_and_Regulat… 17. Corruption, Lobbying and State Capture https://www.researchgate.net/publication/304479012_Corruption_Lobbying_and_… 18. Rent-Seeking and Regulatory Capture https://www.e-education.psu.edu/ebf200/book/export/html/160 On Monday, June 24, 2019, 7:57:38 AM GMT+3, Ali Hussein <ali(a)hussein.me.ke> wrote: Patrick >From the context of this headline, I'm curious to see how Safaricom contributes to your quote below:- "...OK to drive mama mbogas (small vegetable sellers), youth-founded startups, indigenous innovators and other MSMEs out of business, by leveraging legal/regulatory loopholes that allow them to distort market forces using their mass-scale market power. " Whilst I generally agree with your thesis below I think it's fair that when we make such accusations in relation to a specific company we quote specific examples. I'm all for ensuring a level playing field across the board and contend that this is a collective effort of Good Citizenry by corporates (which by the way is good for business long term) and robust but fair policies and regulation by government. The world is full of examples where breaking up companies has never achieved the desired effect of creating a level playing field (Standard Oil is probably the best example. Years later these baby Standard Oils are mostly back together in the form of Exxon Mobil. And by the way, the breakup may have made the Rockefellers even more fabulously wealthy). Rather than breaking up companies, the world should address the elephant in the room. State Capture. Boeing is probably the most current example of how government regulation was completely corrupted by a company, resulting in a colossal loss of life. One of my best examples of how governments can reign in bad players is how the fear of breaking up Microsoft and other tech giants in the 90s contributed to the rise of the current #BigTech companies. Maybe the cycle needs to be repeated? Let me reiterate. I'm in general agreement with your post, I'm just concerned we don't specifically target an organization without specific evidence to back it up. Regards AliHussein Principal AHK & Associates Tel: +254 713 601113 Twitter: @AliHKassim Skype: abu-jomo LinkedIn: 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. On Sun, Jun 23, 2019 at 1:14 AM Patrick A. M. Maina via kictanet <kictanet(a)lists.kictanet.or.ke> wrote: Fair competition laws are long overdue and should be very welcome because, if properly formulated and implemented, such laws will rapidly stimulate economic growth and create millions of new jobs. An objective observer will agree that there is something fundamentally wrong about billion-dollar-revenue companies operating in poverty-ridden low-income countries that find it OK to drive mama mbogas (small vegetable sellers), youth-founded startups, indigenous innovators and other MSMEs out of business, by leveraging legal/regulatory loopholes that allow them to distort market forces using their mass-scale market power. Instead of celebrating a few concentrated pockets of super-profits - we should be concerned as to why such "stellar" performance does not match the overall sector's competitive landscape (especially if everyone else in the sector is making losses) - as well as, the general state of the rest of the economy. Hopefully the relevant parties in legislature will do the right thing for opportunities-starved wananchi and for the struggling economy by passing fair competition laws (I am also hoping that wananchi, politicians, public interest NGOs and activists will add weight to such beneficial initiatives as/when necessary). There is still room for more to be done, however, especially in the six areas below (which if addressed, will create an environment that is even more conducive for prosperity and growth): 1. Contextualized Intellectual Property Protection: This area needs urgent attention to address rampant theft of IP due to obsolete, non-contextualized laws that favor corporate tyranny and plunder. Compelling data-based evidence (see link #1-2) shows that a laissez faire attitude to IP is a top contributor to poverty and low quality FDI in low income countries. Wealthy nations zealously defend their indigenous IP as a critical economic resource that is part of their national security (equivalent importance to oil, mining and financial sectors). Did you know that the top 10 most valuable companies in the world are IP-based (see link #3) and none of them is in oil / gas /precious stones or minerals? Extraction is no longer the secret to prosperity (in fact it only attracts chaos instead nowadays)! Did you know that Apple, the world's most valuable company overall, does not own a single factory (see link #4)? Apple is an IP and distribution company (not a manufacturer) - it is in the business of selling ideas! This should be very interesting for Africa, the fact that high value ICT corporations can be based on ideas, IP and distribution networks alone. Wake up brothers and sisters. We don't have to build physical factories to plug into the global ecosystem. We just need a good framework for monetizing great ideas! Even if we are to choose the harder 19th/20th Century path of traditional own-factory manufacturing (instead of the easier and more profitable logistics-driven 21st Century alternative) path, a conducive IP protection framework still remains an essential must-have prerequisite. Global clients will need strong credible guarantees that there wont be leakage of their designs / prototypes / proprietary tooling etc. 2. Preventing Deceptive PR and Marketing Practices: Weak regulation/enforcement encourages corporations to engage in deceptive PR campaigns (e.g. fake partnership offers or deceptive innovation "competitions" / "boot-camps" / "demo-day" events whose purpose is to facilitate the theft/plunder of IP. We also have anti-poor / anti-socialcompanies which brazenly deceive the public by masquerading as pro-poor / pro-social via dishonest marketing and CSR.). 3. Fast-tracked MSME friendly dispute resolution: Judiciary should consider a dedicated court to handle and fast-track commercial disputes that involve MSMEs v/s large corporations with affirmative action in favor of MSMEs (e.g. state provides litigation assistance and cushions the MSME from legal fees). Currently corporations use their resource-power to bully and steal from MSMEs because the current legal framework has loopholes which allows corporations to subvert justice (e.g. companies steal BILLIONS by delaying MSME invoices to accumulate debt then they declare bankruptcy. This is theft - plain and simple - but the law does not treat it as such. Other corporations use legal technicalities to unjustly drag court proceeding for years - hoping that litigants will run out of resources or give up even if they have a strong case. These kind of dispute resolution loopholes cause great harm to MSMEs. 4. Anti-Price Gouging regulations: Companies that provide essential services to the public (e.g communication / data / e-money) should not price them exorbitantly in order to exploit the must-have nature of the product. This should especially apply when there is limited / ineffective competition or indicators of cartel-like collusion within an industry. Dominant / monopolistic entities that offer essential services to the public should be compelled to publish their audited pricing methodologies every month in a way that shows the profit margin percentage for each product line (after factoring in scale and piggybacking advantages). 5. Anti-predation, anti-usury laws: I believe there are ongoing efforts in this area. The public should not be enticed into odious debt or induced to take on debt that they cannot manage; and the CRB should not be used as a financial weapon for oppressing the poor or entrenching poverty. Maintaining a record for 5 years after someone has cleared a loan is disproportionately punitive and shows a lack empathy with the ordinary mwananchi's economic struggles. CRB rules are anti-poor and punish people for lack of opportunity and a poor education - i.e. things that are not wholly of their own making, in favor of predatory corporations. The financial sector needs more empathy and less greed. By punitively and unreasonably denying people access to opportunities, they unwittingly limit their own growth potential. 6. Regulating non-profit foundations associated with for-profit companies: to limit conflicts of interest. Many (if not all) of these companies are covert vehicles for corruption, lobbying and influence peddling. They subvert agendas in sectors like education, finance, agriculture and health with the goal of creating new markets for affiliated corporations, winning government tenders or creating rent seeking avenues contrary to public interest. Ultimately the country loses because the net effect is wealth extraction. The left hand gives with a big show, and pompous ceremony where everyone is invited, but then, once the lights and cameras go off, the right hand quietly takes it all back, and then takes a lot more (leading to a net-loss). Economic analysts should start conducting net-effect analysis of charitable/donor activities to confirm the growing sense of awareness across Africa that something is not right with the charity/donor model. How can we receive so much "assistance" and yet we never seem to take off? How can countries that literally know everything important that happens within our territory (even before it happens) be completely inept and clueless when it comes to preventing proceeds of corruption from being laundered in their countries? Their economies benefit greatly from our fatuous practices.. could it be that some of them actually want us to stay corrupt? Food for thought. Modern day monopolies do not have to overtly abuse their dominance in order to damage the economy. Any mass-scale business model that is based on network effects is inherently anti-competitive because it locks-in millions of customers to one brand and its associated platforms or products - thereby severely limiting choice, stifling competition and blocking startups with better solutions from gaining market traction due to gatekeeper-effect (which prevents the rise of new ICT-related industries). This has a cascading effect of blocking TRILLIONS in high quality FDI that would have eventually come in via Venture Capital; it also limits the ability of the economy to create an export market - to beef up foreign reserves; limits the number of high-value formal jobs; reduces opportunities to lower government's reliance on debt for budget support; and suppresses the growth of a healthy middle class that is essential for economic and political stability. Anti-competitive practices also contribute to increased economic hardships for citizens (by limiting opportunities to a few connected individuals) and prevent governments from fulfilling their campaign promises to the people (thereby stirring dissent and political volatility risks). Products from dominant companies are priced using anti-poor (zero empathy) methodologies which makes them disproportionately expensive to the poor who comprise the majority (and who often have to make food v/s airtime decisions on a daily basis). The same companies offer exponentially better value for money to the rich (less than 1% of the population) to whom the discount has minimal life impact and who can afford to pay a premium anyway! Yet these companies brand themselves as pro-poor and pro-wananchi (which is evidence of a loophole in advertising regulations that allows for deceptive PR practices). Having concentrated points of failure in critical applications, like Mobile Money, puts our increasingly digital economy at significant risk. There needs to be innovations that decentralize mobile money and disrupt the current rent-seeking / price gouging model which offers ridiculous and unjust margins to companies that are already wealthy anyway. Money is not a product - even in digital form. Exchange of digital cash should be 100% free, with no rent-seeking intermediaries taking an undeserved "private tax" cut off every transaction; money should serve its proper purpose as an economic store of value and trade enabler. With the right framework, such socially beneficial innovations will have room to emerge. Economies grow when innovative MSMEs are given room to bloom, grow and thrive without being crushed by anti-competitive dinosaurs who themselves had benefited from state protection and preferential regulation when they were startups e.g. telecomms operators initially benefited legal limits on the number of competing mobile operator licenses - which gave them breathing room to reach scale and discover a working business model. Dominant corporations have highly competent teams that (ought to) understand the cyclical nature of markets and innovation. They are therefore not sincere when they play "victim" to block public-interest regulation that would be exceedingly beneficial to the overall economy. A big THANK YOU to all government stakeholders who are committed to doing the right (and smart) things for the economy and for wananchi in general. You are the true heroes that our country needs and your efforts are truly appreciated! Brgds,Patrick. Patrick A. M. Maina[Cross-domain Innovator | Independent Public Policy Analyst - Indigenous Innovations] References / Links: 1. Nunnenkamp P, Spatz J; 2004: Intellectual Property Rights and Foreign Direct Investment: A Disaggregated Analysis https://www.jstor.org/stable/40283951?seq=1#metadata_info_tab_contents 2. Contribution of IP in growth of FDI's in India https://www.lexology.com/library/detail.aspx?g=fa4da9e0-029d-4f0a-9f61-bf42… 3. The World's Most Valuable Brands https://www.forbes.com/powerful-brands/list/ 4. Apple's Supply Chain From the Factory Floor to Retail Stores http://s354933259.onlinehome.us/mhi-blog/apples-supply-chain-factory-floor-… On Saturday, June 22, 2019, 5:08:51 PM GMT+3, Mwendwa Kivuva via kictanet <kictanet(a)lists.kictanet.or.ke> wrote: The Kenya Information and Communications (Amendment) Bill 2019, which is sponsored by Gem MP Elisha Odhiambo, is seeking to compel mobile phone companies to form separate arms to manage any other business they engage in outside telecommunications services. They will also be required to "legally split or separate the telecommunciations business from such other business. Besides separating the revenue streams, telcos will also be required to compensate consumers for dropped calls at the rate of Sh10 for every call dropped for up to three dropped calls a day. https://www.businessdailyafrica.com/news/MPesa-Airtel-Money-set-for-split/5… _______________________________________________ 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/pmaina2000%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 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.

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Save the Date: the Kenya Internet Governance Forum 2018 (July 19, 2018)
by Grace Githaiga 25 Jun '19

25 Jun '19

Listers Greetings! This is to let you know that the Kenya Internet Governance Forum 2018 is planned to take place on Thursday July 19, 2018. I will send a call shortly to invite volunteers to help in organizing the forum. The organising committee lead by Victor Kapiyo (he will Chair for the 2nd term) will share further details on venue, topics, speakers with us as the process evolves. Looking forward to seeing as many of you on that day. Best regards Githaiga, Grace Co-Convenor Kenya ICT Action Network (KICTANet) Twitter:@ggithaiga Tel: 254722701495 Skype: gracegithaiga Alternate email: ggithaiga(a)hotmail.com Linkedin: https://www.linkedin.com/in/gracegithaiga www.kictanet.or.ke "Change only happens when ordinary people get involved, get engaged and come together to demand it. I am asking you to believe. Not in my ability to bring about change – but in yours"---Barrack Obama.

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Safaricom to be compelled to split m-pesa business in new bill
by Mwendwa Kivuva 25 Jun '19

25 Jun '19

The Kenya Information and Communications (Amendment) Bill 2019, which is sponsored by Gem MP Elisha Odhiambo, is seeking to compel mobile phone companies to form separate arms to manage any other business they engage in outside telecommunications services. They will also be required to "legally split or separate the telecommunciations business from such other business. Besides separating the revenue streams, telcos will also be required to compensate consumers for dropped calls at the rate of Sh10 for every call dropped for up to three dropped calls a day. https://www.businessdailyafrica.com/news/MPesa-Airtel-Money-set-for-split/5…

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Re: [kictanet] Fair Competition Laws will Promote Innovation and Reduce Unfair Market Practices
by Jimmy Gitonga 25 Jun '19

25 Jun '19

Greetings Patrick, Thank you for the robust and thoroughly enlightening discussion / writeup. I have been schooled anew. One day, when (not if) Kenya comes out of this period of blatant state capture, you will be of great use to us. Best Regards, Jimmy Gitonga Web Software Design and Development LinkedIn: Jimmy Gitonga | Twitter: @Afrowave ______________________________________ Web: afroshok.com <http://afroshok.com/> > On 24 Jun 2019, at 9:39 PM, kictanet-request(a)lists.kictanet.or.ke wrote: > > From: "Patrick A. M. Maina" <pmaina2000(a)yahoo.com <mailto:pmaina2000@yahoo.com>> > To: KICTAnet ICT Policy Discussions <kictanet(a)lists.kictanet.or.ke <mailto:kictanet@lists.kictanet.or.ke>>, > Ali Hussein <ali(a)hussein.me.ke <mailto:ali@hussein.me.ke>> > Subject: Re: [kictanet] [Fair Competition Laws will Promote Innovation > and Reduce Unfair Market Practices - the bill is not targeting a > particular company or product] Safaricom to be compelled to split > m-pesa business in new bill > Message-ID: <244168600.1182915.1561401395341(a)mail.yahoo.com <mailto:244168600.1182915.1561401395341@mail.yahoo.com>> > Content-Type: text/plain; charset="utf-8" > > Greetings Ali, and many thanks for your thoughts. > > One key attribute of high value debates is the presence of two (or more) opposing perspectives because diversity of thought often leads to a multi-dimensional understanding of complex issues, which (if leveraged with good intentions) can lead to high quality inputs for policies, strategies, regulations and/or decisions. So I truly welcome and appreciate your counter-perspective and rebuttal efforts. :-) > > Let me start with an African saying made famous by Chinua Achebe: "An elderly person is always uneasy when dry bones are mentioned in a proverb."? > > Perhaps Ali, you can shed more light as to why the name of a particular company - and not any other(s) - came into your mind after reading my general comments about ruthless anti-competitive, anti-poor practices by monopolistic entities. Is there something you have observed or heard about their activities and/or practices? > > Why would public-interest regulation be interpreted as targeting specific companies - unless it is some kind of admission or assertion that those companies could indeed be acting (or causing negative externalities) against public interest? > > Retrogressive externalities could be an unforeseen and/or unintentional by-product of a sub-optimized network-effects success model and poor economic master-planning (see links #1-7). Furthermore corporations, in different parts of the world, have also been known for purposeful malevolent activities when they fear of competition/disruption especially when operating within a? weak / outdated institutional / antitrust framework. Specifics would need to be studied on a case by case basis. > > Have you considered the timing of the bill (in context of recent industry developments)? The proposed rules could actually *benefit* the very local corporate entities that would supposedly be motivated to resist them. In the global scale, our "tech giants" are like MSMEs and they get to be on the receiving end of mega-scale cross-border corporate tyranny. > > There is an interesting story of certain well known CEO's visit to Africa. A lot of people thought he was coming to look for investment opportunities and they cheerfully welcomed him (full VVIP+ treatment), took him on tours, demoed innovations, snapped selfies and eagerly answered his questions - hoping to dazzle, awe and impress him. Kumbe he was on a mission to gather economic intelligence - and he openly stated so (meaning you can't claim illegality) - leaving people to form their own self-deluded conclusions as to why he was doing it. Several years later, his company launches a product that will directly compete with ours at an unprecedented game-changing scale! There are so many stories like this in Africa, the script remains the same, only the actors, props and victims keep changing. > > It is quite embarrassing just how easy we make it for others to *repeatedly* plunder our ideas/insights or compete with us unfairly - to our own collective detriment - yet we always speak of a "knowledge economy" without taking time to understand what that *really* means. > > "Fool me once, shame on you; fool me twice, shame on me." - old proverb. > > Africa's centuries-old commitment to gullibility and ignorance is unparalleled and quite disturbing (see links #8-15). We are among the very few (if not the only) modern-day societies that never seem to learn from history. We welcome plunderers / economic spies with pomp, ceremony and color, and we happily give them everything they need to subjugate and impoverish us. Like little children, we accept sweet words as proof of benevolent intent and our shallow vanity makes us take pride that everyone is interested in learning from us (surely that means we are very important and smart - if others want to study us and everything we know, right?), yet we don't take as much - or more - interest in learning from them or asking ourselves uncomfortable questions, such as: "why is the student always teaching the teacher?"... and most worryingly, we see voices of reason, desperately scrambling to wake us up - as party-pooping troublemakers. Quite depressing, but I digress.. > > Ali, your argument on state capture suggests a limited understanding on how state capture comes about or what really it is (see links #8-15). Essentially you are contradicting yourself because it is good (uncorrupted) public-interest regulations, strong government institutions (not beholden to a few private interests) and a socio-political commitment to fair and sensible rules - motivated by public-interest? - that minimize the risk of state capture. > > State capture is enabled by corruption, unchecked corporate power and corporate lobbying against public interest, which leads to regulatory (and market) failure e.g. due to bad laws that have loopholes purposefully designed in to them - or good laws getting blocked from enactment. > > I urge you to read more on the topic if you are interested in it (there are some good links below that you can start with) to gain a better understanding so you can offer more robust arguments/rebuttals without unwittingly demolishing or contradicting your main argument. > Have a great evening. > > Brgd,Patrick > > Patrick A. M. Maina[Cross-domain Innovator | Independent Public Policy Analyst - Indigenous Innovations] > Links / References:

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Fwd: [Internet Policy] Is Facebook's proposed cryptocurrency a bad idea?
by Barrack Otieno 20 Jun '19

20 Jun '19

Listers, Might be of interest. Regards ---------- Forwarded message --------- From: Richard Hill via InternetPolicy <internetpolicy(a)elists.isoc.org> Date: Thu, Jun 20, 2019 at 9:43 AM Subject: [Internet Policy] Is Facebook's proposed cryptocurrency a bad idea? To: <internetpolicy(a)elists.isoc.org> Here is the white paper explaining Facebook’s cryptocurrency: https://libra.org/en-US/white-paper/. Here is an article criticising it: https://www.nytimes.com/2019/06/19/opinion/facebook-currency-libra.html : ‘Launching a Global Currency Is a Bold, Bad Move for Facebook The way we structure money and payments is a question for democratic institutions, not technology companies. *By Matt Stoller* Mr. Stoller is a fellow at the Open Markets Institute. · June 19, 2019 · _______________________________________________ To manage your Internet Society subscriptions or unsubscribe, log into the Member Portal at https://admin.internetsociety.org/622619/User/Login and go to the Interests tab within your profile. - View the Internet Society Code of Conduct: https://www.internetsociety.org/become-a-member/code-of-conduct/ -- Barrack O. Otieno +254721325277 +254733206359 Skype: barrack.otieno PGP ID: 0x2611D86A

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Call for volunteers- 2019 KeSIG steering committee
by Grace Bomu 20 Jun '19

20 Jun '19

Afternoon listers, KICTANet wishes to invite volunteers to the steering committee of the Kenya School of Internet Governance (KeSIG). Now in its fourth edition, KeSIG takes place prior to the Kenya IGF, with the aim of introducing beginners in internet governance to basic concepts in internet policy making. This is with the goal of creating and increasing the available expertise for participation in local and global internet governance processes. KeSIG is slotted for 29th to 31st July 2019. Please write to info(a)kictanet.or.ke , with the subject *2019 KeSIG steering committee* if interested in collaboratively organising the school, explaining your interest. Membership to the team is on volunteer basis and we aim to have representation of diverse groups. Find more information on KeSIG <https://kigf.or.ke/kesig/> here. KeSIG Steering Team TORs <https://docs.google.com/document/d/1-TzXUlOI6gIeTK4_fhpzanb6Y8Y-B1rmibSEFfG…> Looking forward to collaboration, Grace B -- Grace Mutung'u Skype: gracebomu @Bomu PGP ID : 0x33A3450F

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Fwd: IGF 2019 Call for Travel Support
by Barrack Otieno 20 Jun '19

20 Jun '19

Dear Listers, This is for your information, attention and action. Best Regards ---------- Forwarded message --------- From: Secretariat AfIGF <africanigf(a)gmail.com> Date: Mon, Jun 10, 2019 at 1:08 PM Subject: Fwd: IGF 2019 Call for Travel Support To: Dear Stakeholders, Below kindly find a call for travel support from the Internet Governance Forum Secretariat to take part in IGF 2019 to be held in Berlin, Germany from 25-29 November 2019. Deadline is fast approaching. Kind regards, ------------------------------------------- The African Internet Governance Forum (AfIGF) Secretariat, African Union Le Secrétariat du Forum sur la Gouvernance de l'Internet (AfIGF), Union Africaine Email: Africanigf(a)gmail.com *From:* IGF Secretariat Date: Fri, May 31, 2019 at 7:46 AM *Subject:* IGF 2019 Call for Travel Support Dear All, The 14th annual IGF meeting will be hosted by the Government of Germany in Berlin from 25 – 29 November 2019. With this email, the IGF Secretariat would like to inform that the Call for Travel Support to attend the 14th annual IGF meeting <https://www.intgovforum.org/multilingual/content/supporting-participation-a…> is open until 30 June 2019: https://www.intgovforum.org/multilingual/content/supporting-participation-a… Supporting participation at the IGF 2019 annual meeting Call for Travel Support to attend the 14th annual meeting of the IGF The mandate of the Internet Governance Fo... <https://www.intgovforum.org/multilingual/content/supporting-participation-a…> *Background* During the IGF 2018 meeting in Paris, the United Nations Secretary-General has called for action to increase inclusiveness in the IGF processes. Specifically, it was called for a* ‘dedicated effort to include and amplify the weak and missing voices’*, as well as for the IGF to evolve toward a more multidisciplinary framework (see full speech <http://www.intgovforum.org/multilingual/content/igf-2018-address-to-the-int…> ). IGF 2018 Address to the Internet Governance Forum by UN SG António Guterres Mesdames et Messieurs, Nous sommes réunis aujourd’hui à Paris, en France, où la créativité et le génie humains... <http://www.intgovforum.org/multilingual/content/igf-2018-address-to-the-int…> Historically, the IGF community has also advised to increase diversity in the IGF processes. For these reasons, the IGF 2019 Host Country, Government of Germany, will support eligible stakeholders to participate at the 14th annual IGF meeting in Berlin, from 25 – 29 November 2019. *Application and Selection Process* All interested stakeholders are invited to submit their expressions of interest through a dedicated form <https://www.intgovforum.org/multilingual/content/igf-2019-call-for-travel-s…> on the IGF website by 30 June 2019. The IGF Secretariat/UNDESA will collaborate with the multistakeholder organizing committees of the national, regional and youth IGF initiatives (NRIs) in order to identify the most suitable candidates that will enrich the IGF 2019 processes, but also bring long-term benefits to their respective communities from gained experience. Potential applicants are kindly advised to consult the IGF website and review all information about the application and evaluation procedure, before submitting requests. Best regards, IGF Secretariat -- Barrack O. Otieno +254721325277 +254733206359 Skype: barrack.otieno PGP ID: 0x2611D86A

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Enter Libra; new rails for value movement
by Mbugua Njihia 20 Jun '19

20 Jun '19

Open source roots to support inclusive innovation, a strong viral coefficient, trusted partner framework, stable coin model, wide base of possible interoperable utility and an ambitious shared roadmap point to a strong transformative offering - http://www.mbuguanjihia.com/business/enter-libra-new-rails-for-value-moveme… ᐧ

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Call for Volunteers for the 2019 Kenya IGF Steering Team
by Victor Kapiyo 20 Jun '19

20 Jun '19

Good morning listers, KICTANet wishes to invite volunteers from the different stakeholder groups to assist in the preparation of the *Kenya Internet Governance Forum (KIGF) 2019*, which will be held on *Thursday, 1 August 2019. * The Kenya Internet Governance Forum (KIGF) is an annual meeting that brings together various stakeholder groups to dialogue on ICT and Internet policy. The Steering Team otherwise known as the Multistakeholder Advisory Group ( MAG) role is to assist in convening the Kenya IGF by preparing the programme and schedule and to improve the IGF process through community consultations, outreach and stakeholder engagement. MAG members volunteer and serve in their personal capacity, and are expected to have established linkages with their respective stakeholder groups. Please review the MAG TOR <https://docs.google.com/document/d/1npYjF9XHg79tWL24krEkaRZL9bNpCzV-TIpa0tR…> . To express interest, please send an email to *info(a)kictanet.or.ke <info(a)kictanet.or.ke>* with the subject line "*Kenya IGF 2019 MAG*" indicating your stakeholder group, expertise and why you are interested in joining the steering committee of KIGF 2019 by* Tuesday, June 25 2019. * Membership to the steering team is voluntary and all materials produced by KICTANet are published under creative commons licenses. Organisations from various stakeholder groups are encouraged to nominate representatives. For more information or clarification, feel free to get in touch. Best regards, *Victor Kapiyo*

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Fwd: [afnog] UCC Licensing Framework for IXPs
by Barrack Otieno 20 Jun '19

20 Jun '19

I hope this doesn't become a Regional Trend. Regards ---------- Forwarded message ---------- From: Mike Barnard <mike.barnardq(a)gmail.com> Date: Mon, 17 Jun 2019 17:09:10 +0300 Subject: [afnog] UCC Licensing Framework for IXPs To: Afnog Mailing List <afnog(a)afnog.org> The Uganda IXP (https://uixp.co.ug) recently received a letter from the government (UCC) which announces that they intend to establish a licensing framework for IXPs. The letter includes a detailed draft of the proposed framework text (see attached). While we think it is wise for the government to continuously reconsider its role in this evolving industry in order to support its development, the UCC's proposed licensing framework would ironically prohibit further market development by effectively nationalizing the network interconnection service. As written, the framework: 1) Establishes a government controlled monopoly IXP called the “Designated National Internet Exchange Point” and requires all other IXPs to function as edge nodes for it. The framework accomplishes this by requiring all IXPs to connect to the DNIXP, and by giving government control over the contracts between IXPs and their members. See 7.4.b; 8.2.a; 9.e.iii; 9.j. 2) Includes vague language which could lead to problematic interpretations. For example: Clause 9.h could mean that the government intends for the DNIXP to establish itself by expropriating the UIXP’s infrastructure. 3) Allows the government to inspect, copy, or remove any data related to any IXP without a court order. This could include proprietary information. See 7.5.b.ii. 4) Turns IXPs into potential surveillance hubs by requiring them to report any unlawful activity observed in member networks to the government. See 7.3.e.iv. 5) Introduces other significant barriers to entry for new market entrants. Our view is that this licensing framework should either be (a) scrapped entirely, as it can be argued that it is counterproductive to license IXPs in the first place or (b) significantly revised such that it no longer includes any language which would create a monopoly or otherwise hinder the emergence of true competition in this industry. The UCC has called for written feedback to be submitted by July 5th, 2019 and we need your help to avoid disaster. Please take a few minutes to review the attached document and submit your comments in writing before the deadline. If you cannot submit feedback to the UCC directly, please send it to us (board(a)uixp.co.ug) and we will ensure that it gets delivered to the UCC in writing. Thank you. -- Barrack O. Otieno +254721325277 +254733206359 Skype: barrack.otieno PGP ID: 0x2611D86A

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Israel lessons on how to fund profitable start-ups
by S.M. Muraya 19 Jun '19

19 Jun '19

Dear Listers, December 2017, there was no comment on KICTANET for this article. Singapore vs. Israel: Who’s the better role model? https://www.kictanet.or.ke/?p=36145 Like we have said on this list, KES 100 Bln, per annum, can do wonders in Kenya.. https://www.kictanet.or.ke/?p=37640 Now that a foreign diplomat has spoken on how they (Israel) fuelled start ups, will this particular go.ke respond & provide budgetary support next year? https://www.businessdailyafrica.com/markets/marketnews/Israel-lessons-on-ho… *Israel lessons on how to fund profitable start-ups* By JAMES KARIUKI, THURSDAY, JUNE 13, 2019 19:20 SUMMARY - Kenya must generate internal funds that startups can draw from in order to thrive. - Israeli is closely working with Kenya to formulate a partnership deal that will see Kenyan and Israeli companies collaborate in trade. An Israeli diplomat has advised Kenya to provide seed capital to startups to ignite a culture of innovation. Speaking in Nairobi, Israel Embassy head of economic mission, Arnon Abel said Kenya must generate internal funds that startups can draw from in order to thrive. “In the nineties, the Israeli government injected Sh100 billion which helped many startups implement their ideas. In some cases, the government suffered losses but in other projects that succeeded, the government got back its money,” he said. He told a Startup Ecosystem Forum held in Nairobi that emergence of a vibrant startups ecosystem attracted multinational players that established research and development centres across Israel, which serve as incubation hubs for startups. Israeli is closely working with Kenya to formulate a partnership deal that will see Kenyan and Israeli companies collaborate in trade. “In Israel, the military, government, private businesses, academia and multinationals among other entities actively fund startups as a way of seeking new strategies to improve their businesses and be ahead of the pack. “The research and development centres (Cyberhubs) enjoy funding from global multinationals keen on learning firsthand how to improve their products or service delivery channels,” he said. Finland ambassador for innovations, Jarmo Sareva said failure of startup projects should not lead to despair in funding new enterprises. “Governments and companies must support startup forums to spur networking among innovators. Companies use the forums to present problems that startups spend time seeking commercial solutions,” he said.

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