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Kenya ICT board: What is the real problem?
by Rebecca Wanjiku 08 Feb '10

08 Feb '10

The promise of BPO marketing, digital villages..... www.wanjiku.co.ke Tel. 254 720 318 925 blog: wanjiku.co.ke

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India's Outsourcing Exports at US$50 Billion
by Edwin Onchari 08 Feb '10

08 Feb '10

Hi All, I find this article an incentive in refocusing our energy on the sector (both local and international). All is not lost, and against all critics.we can still get a share of the pie (http://www.pcworld.com/article/188514/indias_outsourcing_exports_at_us50_bi llion.html) India's revenue from exports of IT and BPO (business process outsourcing) services is likely to grow 5.5 percent to US$49.7 billion in the Indian fiscal year to March 31, 2010, according to estimates released Thursday by the country's National Association of Software and Service Companies (Nasscom). The revenue figure includes exports by Indian outsourcers as well as by Indian services and software development subsidiaries of multinational companies including Microsoft, Dell, and Oracle. Nasscom has forecast higher revenue growth in the range of 13 to 15 percent from IT and BPO exports in the next fiscal year to March 31, 2011. India has emerged as a key supplier of IT and BPO services to customers in the U.S., U.K., and other markets. Its business was however hit in the fiscal year to March 31, 2010 by the recession in some of these economies. The growth rate of 5.5 percent estimated by Nasscom for the year ending March 31, 2010 is far lower than the 16 percent estimated by Nasscom for the previous year. The 2009 figure is still an estimate as the results of Satyam Computer Services, a large Indian outsourcer, are still being re-stated, after a financial scandal at the company. Top Indian outsourcing companies like Tata Consultancy Services (TCS), Infosys Technologies, and Wipro said in January that they were seeing an improvement in demand for their services from customers in key markets, including the U.S. Indian outsourcing companies have also started hiring in large numbers again. Wipro's IT services business added 4,855 staff in the quarter ended Dec. 31. The company had cut staff by 630 in its IT services business in the previous quarter. TCS said in January that it is adding about 11,000 staff in the current quarter, including 8,000 trainees. The company added 7,692 staff in the quarter to Dec. 31. Direct employment by the country's IT industry is expected to be 2.3 million by March 31, 2010, with over 90,000 jobs added during the current fiscal year, Nasscom said. A number of new large IT services deals are expected to be signed by the second quarter of this year, Sudin Apte, principal analyst at Forrester Research, said in January. Indian companies are however not likely to achieve soon the revenue growth levels they had before the recession, he added. A lot of the expenditure by customers still falls under the category of necessary expenditure, with discretionary expenditure on IT services likely to start by the middle of this year, according to Diptarup Chakraborti, principal research analyst at Gartner. Besides a pick up in exports revenue for the year ended March 31, 2010, Nasscom is also expecting a growth in the domestic services business. Domestic revenue is expected to grow by 12 percent to Indian rupees 662 billion ($14 billion). In the next fiscal year, revenue growth from the Indian market is expected to pick up by 15 to 17 percent. Kind regards, Edwin M Onchari CEO- Kenya BPO Society +254-(0)720 755 951 eonchari(a)kenyabposociety.or.ke www.kenyabposociety.or.ke Blogs: <http://kenyabposociety.blogspot.com/2010/01/key-to-unlocking-kenyas-outsour cing.html> http://kenyabposociety.blogspot.com/2010/01/key-to-unlocking-kenyas-outsourc ing.html <http://kenyabposociety.blogspot.com/2010/01/discounted-medical-cover-for-in dustry.html> http://kenyabposociety.blogspot.com/2010/01/discounted-medical-cover-for-ind ustry.html

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Fw: Article: Broadband brings hope to Africa's poor, elderly - ITU
by michael Ouma 08 Feb '10

08 Feb '10

Hi All: here's a link to a story from the AU ICT Summit in Addis Ababa published in TheEastAfrican: http://www.theeastafrican.co.ke/business/-/2560/856862/-/item/0/-/krl8swz/-… regards.

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Local Content: Cost of Local Hosting
by wesley kirinya 08 Feb '10

08 Feb '10

Bandwidth costs seem to be coming down and that's welcome news. However an important area seems to be largely ignored and that's the cost of hosting locally. A Dedicated server in the U.S/Europe (8 Core Processor, 6GB RAM, 3,000GB Bandwidth, 500GB disk space, ...) costs about $500/month. I believe in Kenya that would cost about 8-10 times more and that's without the 3,000GB bandwidth. With bandwidth becoming cheaper and better quality, it's far cheaper to host the local content internationally, and end-users might not feel a big difference in speed and quality. Factors leading to high hosting cost might be cost of physical space and electricity (highly priced and unstable). If these are the major reasons why hosting costs are high, then we cannot expect the cost to come down any sooner no matter how many fibres are coming to Kenya. Local companies (e.g. BPOs dealing with large volumes of data) and local branches of international companies looking for secure off-site back up might also do it from internationally located servers, where the companies running those servers not only offer lower cost but also more experience which leads to better service. As one of such companies puts it ,"98% of replies within 30 mintues, 99.9% Network Uptime Guarantee, ...". Therefore we are looking at a situation where local content might be hosted internationally. 8~!

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Request for input IGF Geneva open meeting 9th February
by waudo siganga 07 Feb '10

07 Feb '10

Dear IGF Colleagues, The agenda for next weeks open session in Geneva has been posted by the IGF secretariat http://www.intgovforum.org/cms/Contributions2009/Agenda.Consultat ions.09.02.2010.pdf One can see that a substantive agenda item is the Regional/National meetings. Please give me the input that I or MAG colleague Katundu can relay, such as activities planned for the year. Other useful input: 1. Your thoughts about the theme for Vilnius meeting. Last year it was "IG: Opportunities for All". In that meeting there was emphasis on development and capacity building for 2010 meeting so perhaps the theme can reflect that, plus some indirect suggestions that the IGF should continue. If the theme from Vilnius comes from EA that will be great! 2. Your thoughts on agenda item "Taking stock of the 2009 meeting – lessons learned" - give your views even if only a paragraph. 3. Your thoughts about the main sessions for 2010 and whether we should also keep the progam format or make changes from what we had in Sharm. After the MAG meeting 10-11th Feb. I will be able to share information on the final agreed program format for Vilnius as well as information for those interested in holding workshops. Kind Regards, Waudo "Those who say it cannot be done should not interrupt the ones doing it." -old proverb

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Re: [kictanet] Local Content: Cost of Local Hosting
by wesley kirinya 06 Feb '10

06 Feb '10

Yeah you're right, KDN's virtual server costs are close to overseas costs. (Open question) In Kenya, what would be the monthly price range for the following dedicated (not virtual/shared) server (no setup costs, no service charge, no bandwidth, no taxes, etc) If the price is at least 3 times compared to what I listed below, what factors lead to the price (high energy costs, ...)?: 8 Core Processor, 6GB RAM, 500GB disk space. Crucual Paradigm: About $470 including 3000GB bandwidth Alentus: About $450 including 1000GB monthly bandwidth Lunar Pages Dedicated; Rough estimate of $350 Mocha Host: Rough estimate of $300 including 'Unlimited' bandwidth. o_O? --- On Sat, 2/6/10, Kai Wulff <kai.wulff(a)kdn.co.ke> wrote: From: Kai Wulff <kai.wulff(a)kdn.co.ke> Subject: AW: [kictanet] Local Content: Cost of Local Hosting To: "'wesley kirinya'" <kiriinya2000(a)yahoo.com> Date: Saturday, February 6, 2010, 6:21 AM I guess you have never asked us … Kai Von: kictanet-bounces+kai.wulff=kdn.co.ke(a)lists.kictanet.or.ke [mailto:kictanet-bounces+kai.wulff=kdn.co.ke@lists.kictanet.or.ke] Im Auftrag von wesley kirinya Gesendet: Friday, February 05, 2010 23:31 An: kai.wulff(a)kdn.co.ke Cc: KICTAnet ICT Policy Discussions Betreff: [kictanet] Local Content: Cost of Local Hosting Bandwidth costs seem to be coming down and that's welcome news. However an important area seems to be largely ignored and that's the cost of hosting locally. A Dedicated server in the U.S/Europe (8 Core Processor, 6GB RAM, 3,000GB Bandwidth, 500GB disk space, ...) costs about $500/month. I believe in Kenya that would cost about 8-10 times more and that's without the 3,000GB bandwidth. With bandwidth becoming cheaper and better quality, it's far cheaper to host the local content internationally, and end-users might not feel a big difference in speed and quality. Factors leading to high hosting cost might be cost of physical space and electricity (highly priced and unstable). If these are the major reasons why hosting costs are high, then we cannot expect the cost to come down any sooner no matter how many fibres are coming to Kenya. Local companies (e.g. BPOs dealing with large volumes of data) and local branches of international companies looking for secure off-site back up might also do it from internationally located servers, where the companies running those servers not only offer lower cost but also more experience which leads to better service. As one of such companies puts it ,"98% of replies within 30 mintues, 99.9% Network Uptime Guarantee, ...". Therefore we are looking at a situation where local content might be hosted internationally. 8~!

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Re: [kictanet] KDN Unveils Broadband for SMEs and SOHOs
by S.Murigi Muraya 05 Feb '10

05 Feb '10

Zuku does @ KShs 4,500 (VAT Inclusive). Was surprised to experience up to 800 kbs on Zuku this week. It is shared bandwith so that was a treat that should be more consistent. Zuku also seems to have a problem (possibly due to their server side configurations) which register only one MAC (pc hardware) address to connect to to their side. Could be wrong but this locks out other PC's on a LAN. It does not seem intentional as they are willing to rectify the problem when it is brought to their attention. Is KDN's KShs 4,000 offer VAT inclusive? Customer service is very poor in all our ISP's so individuals would be wise to expect worse than Corporates experience. KDN never responded with a (Site Survey) to mail, phone calls and a visit to their offices so Zuku is better for individuals and SME's that have 2 or 3 weeks to wait for them to set you up. This is better than no response at all. Zuku have the best offers in the market and are flooded with more installations than they can handle. This means getting support can be a 2 to 3 week issue but their connection (connectivity) is not too bad where they have good signals. Orange EVDO (Internet Everywhere 3+) is stable if one is not too far from their BTS. Zuku is a much better deal for unlimited downloads but gets slower or faster than EVDO depending on Network conditions. Orange ADSL has been messed up (limited) by the Orange 'Fair Use Policy'. Their Livebox modem leaves a lot to be desired and needs to be continually reset as it keeps dropping signals. It also often does not pick up signals which are restored after fiber & copper cuts. Suprisingly Orange is improving their Customer Service to follow up on their degrading ADSL Internet Service. Limiting Kenyans to 2GB (256kbs @ 3K), 4GB (512kbs @5K) and 8GB (1 Mbs @3K). Looks like the GoK sold our infrastructure to foreigners who limit their bandwidth usage in other nations (including their UK neighbours) except in France. Orange is least stingy in France. For data avoid Safaricom if you can. They use more expensive technology than EVDO (which performs as well HSPA but Orange limits bandwidth) so we have to pay Safaricom more.-----Original Message----- From: Kevin <wanjalak(a)gmail.com> Sent: Friday, February 05, 2010 11:33 To: murigi.muraya(a)gmail.com Cc: KICTAnet ICT Policy Discussions <kictanet(a)lists.kictanet.or.ke> Subject: [kictanet] KDN Unveils Broadband for SMEs and SOHOs I hear KDN has launched a new product for small businesses, 1Mbps for 4,000/=. Is there anything in the market that can rival this? Will this spur the market for broadband uptake?

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Software Certification Kenya. ICT Board Project to support the BPO/ITES sector
by S.Murigi Muraya 05 Feb '10

05 Feb '10

Walu / Alice, Please make sure Emmanuel is enlisted on KICTANET. Thanks SMM ---------- Forwarded message ---------- From: Emmanuel Birech <birech(a)hotmail.com> Date: Thu, Feb 4, 2010 at 1:24 PM Subject: [Fwd: Re: [kictanet] Software Certification Kenya. ICT Board Project to support the BPO/ITES sector] To: ke-internetusers(a)bdix.net, kictanet(a)lists.kictanet.or.ke, kkobia(a)ict.go.ke, murigi.muraya(a)gmail.com, agostal(a)gmail.com, pkukubo(a)ict.go.ke Hi Paul & Liko, It is the availability of a critical mass of software development skills that’s going to allow software companies to have resources when they need them, and the same skilled individuals can start their own firms if they are entrepreneurial. The skilled individuals can be both certified or not certified at first, but if targeting outsourcing, it is preferable that they are. So, I fully support what the ICT board is trying to do to encourage certification, but would also like to share the following comments around some of the scope of service initiatives that have been highlighted: *Content development for certification:* I don’t think there is sufficient value for *local* content development as there are various certification tracks already existing for various software certification areas. I see no mention of .NET (C#, Visual Basic, F#) in the email though, but including the other languages you mentioned, there exist globally trusted and recognized certification tracks for these programming languages and also relevant and widely used training content. Why would a Kenya developer or software company want to sit the Kenyan track when they can certify in the world wide recognized one? This Kenya one may actually limit their horizon to Kenya. Certification should not be the only drive. We should encourage people to take up software development as a career up to and including in high schools. The fundamental blocks here are the access to the developer tools and training manuals / e-learning material. Certification can happen later for most, but key is to be able to write software, and this will get them a leg in a software company after which they can pursue certification. *Certification Process Development**:* Paul’s discussion touches on working with leading IT companies and academic institutions and this is the best way for creating that critical mass of skills. For established local software companies that want to showcase their maturity in the full Application Life Cycle Management, there are also international certification programs available. A well adopted one is the Capability Maturity Model Integrated (CMMI). In fact there are studies showing that this is the reason that India has been quite successful (see article http://archives.infotech.indiatimes.com/articleshow/836340.cms) even though they are no longer a cheap destination. This certification acts like a guarantee for quality, which is critical in this industry. I see the ICT Board’s value here as making CMMI or similar level certification available locally at a much reduced cost (It is expensive currently as the consultants to evaluate are not based here and could involve several trials and getting to CMM level 5 could cost upwards of USD 50K currently). So I support the boards drive to have a local center in the same line as Joburg Centre for Software Engineering to help with this. The number of companies with this certification will increase with the right support and that can be used to start branding Kenya as a software outsourcing destination that has software quality in mind. No need to create anything local; just to make what is internationally available is cost friendly and accessible. Finally, I think one other thing the ICT Board could try to do is to support with connections to venture capital. I feel it may be a challenge for most software entrepreneurs to access capital (and most times not much capital is needed as this is people business) to grow and expand or even start operations, and even though we may have the youth fund locally, The fund is not IT Specific and software entrepreneurs compete with many other business, probably putting them at a disadvantage. IT Specific funds can help especially if they can be disbursed with the advice of the ICT board. Regards, Emmanuel Birech ------------------------------ Agosto I think this has been misunderstood or perhaps it is not clear. we are actually on the same page. This is to enable us to adopt a globally certified software development methodology and certification for generic software development. This is Most software developers in this country would benefit from the establishment of a higher standard of code development. Most software firms would benefit from access to international certification in process and methodology which is otherwise very expensive. Good example is the project in South Africa at the University of Wits with the Joburg Centre for Software Engineering. http://www.jcse.org.za/. We had spoken to them about partnering as well, but opted for this option. The suggestion you make is not an alternative, but another important strategy for achieving a more enhanced IT services sector and it is actually one that we have given much thought too. We are seeking the funding to do as well. Just this morning I have had a meeting with Symantec who are beefing up their presence in Kenya. Some of the discussions we have had go along the same them as I have had with many other multinationals who visit us often. 1. Many Kenyan business owners in IT services are afraid to make the investment in top talent certification despite the obvious returns because the certified employees often flee and are 'unbondable'. As an example it costs close to 10,000 USD to certified a top Cisco engineer who can then earn that in a month with some experience in any market in the world. 2. To develop Kenya's ICT credentials we will need to develop more certified engineers and experience consultants across the board, and across various technology platforms. We need technical implementation people, but we also need systems architects and experienced solution designers who can interpret business problems and convert them into an IT specification. Those who have been the industry for a while will attest to the fact that although we have a growing Kenyan pool, still many large IT systems in banks, major multinationals and other large organizations have substantial input from consultants from outside Kenya. This is for various reasons and is not unique to Kenya. At the very top level of talent in IT, there is a global shortage. 3. To build Kenya IT properly, the investments in all the right places need to be made. As we spend more on IT as a country, the demands becomes even more sophisticated. For example, with the current connectivity transformation, there is need for security, network, data center engineers and consultants. Without any research, one can attest to the frustrations experienced by some on their networks even currently. This is an opportunity for entrepreneurs. 4. When we sell the country as an outsourcing destination, all these things matter, the whole ecosystem including marketing, training, depth of experience, breadth of experience, industry culture, government policy, legislation, peer recommendations by companies based here, and indeed the nightlife. The reason why we think it important to provide the software sector with greater tools is because this sector is often made up of young brilliant entrepreneurial individuals who leave college sub-optimally equipped for commercial application of their craft. They then have to fend foe themselves and then some of them will develop into good engineers while many other others will pick up bad habits in who they write software. These bad habits become the industry norm and then define our sector. Standards are critical. Paul Kukubo Chief Executive Officer, Kenya ICT Board PO Box 27150 - 00100 Nairobi, Kenya 12th Floor, Teleposta Towers Koinange Street Tel +254 20 2089061, +254 20 2211960 Fax: +254 20 2211962 Cell: + 254 735 180001 website: www.ict.go.ke skype: kukubopaul googletalk: pkukubo ____________________ Vision: Kenya becomes a top ten global ICT hub Mission: To champion and actively enable Kenya to adopt and exploit ICT, through promotion of partnerships, investments and infrastructure growth for socio economic enrichment Sent from Nairobi, Kenya On Tue, Feb 2, 2010 at 1:31 PM, Agosta Liko <agostal(a)gmail.com> wrote: Paul for this software certification program .... how much will be spent ? instead of creating a Kenyan cert that will have no global value or that will not make sense to any international employer why dont you just give a 50% coupon to enable Kenyans to sit their linux, Microsoft, Oracle, SAP Certifications ? or even better, you can refund 80% when a Kenyan techie passes a cert exam {I learnt that people were complaining about cost of international certs} this is where am coming from - Kenyan Drs usually have to resit exams etc etc to practice in other countries ... IT is a good area because certs are global (CCIE is known worldwide) ... why cant we stick to what works Again ... maybe other software outsourcing operators have been asked for certs ... but am sure they were asking for the globally recognized ones Can we just cancel this one ? its too much work for nothing ... {a Kenyan Cert in software development} ... and if you go ahead {which is most likely the case} .. please make it optional ? my two cents On Tue, Feb 2, 2010 at 11:26 AM, Paul Kukubo <pkukubo(a)ict.go.ke> wrote: Thank you for your questions. many have written to me directly to seek clarification. I have received a flurry of questions on the status report and I will respond to those that are of a recurring nature directly on this list while pointing listers to the website www.ict.go.ke for more information and updates on aspect of the projects. *Objective of the assignment* The objective of this assignment is to recruit a leading international academic institution or standards body to develop and implement an internationally recognized and sustainable software developer certification program (Certification Program) for Kenya. The Certification Program will have multiple components, including content and processes for local software developers to prepare, register and be certified; an Internet enabled credentialing program; and an initial pilot testing, evaluation and fine tuning of the Certification Program. The program should be underpinned by a sustainable business model. * Scope of services* i. *Inception Report and Business Plan:* Provide an Inception Report that contains a description of start-up activities, the detailed work plan, methodologies, and an estimate of the time allocation for involved personnel from both the Government of Kenya and the organization’s team. In addition, to provide a business plan that spells out the resources to be deployed and the results proposed to be achieved. The business plan should also propose long term, sustainable business model options for the Certification Program. ii. *Content Development:* Develop appropriate content for certification in close collaboration with relevant partners; including leading international and local IT companies, academic institutions, governments, international standards bodies and industry/trade associations. The developed content should have their explicit support in terms of relevance and quality, be based on the latest technologies and extensible to address the major languages (C, C++, Java), operating systems, language combinations, and software development tools and environments. iii. *Certification Process Development: *Develop an internationally recognized, authentic, secure and valid process for software developer certification. This process should be developed in consultation with leading IT companies and academic institutions as well as have the buy-in of at least two industry associations of established countries in the area of BPO, and two countries aspiring to establish themselves in this domain. Countries should be chosen to be representative of at least three regions out of the following: Latin America and the Caribbean, Europe and Central Asia, Middle East and North Africa, South Asia, East Asia and other parts of Sub Saharan Africa. In addition, the processes should be based on proven experiences in similar certification programs. The testing process should be representative of real-life, professional software development. The examinations should also be refreshed annually; and extendable to address the full software development life cycle (including post-deployment maintenance) and modern issues (including the development of secure software systems). The examination must be developed using recognized techniques for validation and verification of quality. Linkages may be established with one or more organizations with leading testing and certification mechanisms to ensure that the certification will be conducted in a secure and proctored setting. iv. *Provision of Internet-Enabled Credentialing Program:*Provide a web-enabled credentialing program, including functions for online registration, preparation and certification. v. *Piloting:* To pilot the Certification Program with an initial batch of at least 50 enrollees, comprising of local software developers who should be benchmarked against a control group. vi. *Evaluation Reports:* Conduct an evaluation of the pilot to prepare a detailed report to recommend strategies and action plans for improving the Certification Program. An evaluation should also be conducted on gaps and weaknesses in software development skills, so as to recommend changes in curriculum and pedagogy required as part of broader education reforms in Kenya. vii. *Program Refinement and Local Capacity Building:* Refine the Certification Program based on the agreed recommendations of the Evaluation Report, and develop capacity within the country to conduct the assessments for certification. viii. *‘Live’ Rollout:* Commence ‘live’ rollout of the Certification Program with assessment of certification by local institutions, with the target of testing at least 200 local software developers. In addition, to obtain the commitment of leading companies operating globally and locally to use the results as a necessary pre-requisite for their hiring decisions. ix. *Mass Rollout and Marketing, and Business Model Implementation: *Implement mass rollout and marketing campaign for the Certification Program across Kenya, with a target to test at least 500 local software developers. In addition, to implement a business model for the Certification Program that is internationally recognized, financially self-sustaining and affordable for local software developers by the end of this consultancy service (24 months after contract signature). A final report is to be prepared to highlight the next steps to be taken by Kenya for the Certification Program, including future steps on training content development, certification process and local capacity building. Paul Kukubo Chief Executive Officer, Kenya ICT Board PO Box 27150 - 00100 Nairobi, Kenya 12th Floor, Teleposta Towers Koinange Street Tel +254 20 2089061, +254 20 2211960 Fax: +254 20 2211962 Cell: + 254 735 180001 website: www.ict.go.ke skype: kukubopaul googletalk: pkukubo ____________________ Vision: Kenya becomes a top ten global ICT hub Mission: To champion and actively enable Kenya to adopt and exploit ICT, through promotion of partnerships, investments and infrastructure growth for socio economic enrichment Sent from Nairobi, Kenya _______________________________________________ kictanet mailing list kictanet(a)lists.kictanet.or.ke http://lists.kictanet.or.ke/mailman/listinfo/kictanet This message was sent to: agostal(a)gmail.com Unsubscribe or change your options at http://lists.kictanet.or.ke/mailman/options/kictanet/agostal%40gmail.com<http://lists.kictanet.or.ke/mailman/options/kictanet/agostal@gmail.com> ------------------------------ Hotmail: Trusted email with powerful SPAM protection. 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NAIROBI MOTORISTS ALERT
by Dorcas Muthoni 05 Feb '10

05 Feb '10

*I have received this alert, can anyone verify if it is from the Police. It refers to **(4&5 Feb 2010)* * ----------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------- Subject:* NAIROBI MOTORISTS ALERT *KINDLY CIRCULATE THIS POLICE ALERT TO AS MANY DRIVERS IN NAIROBI AS POSSIBLE* *Police are warning of a gang initiation that is to take place on the roads of Nairobi, indications are that this will be on Thursday & Friday night.* *The initiates are to drive after dark with their headlamps off in the company of other gang members, they are to shoot dead everyone in the first car that flashes them to alert them that their headlamps are off. After successfully accomplishing the task the will be recruited into the gang.* *Kindly alert all motorist and stay off the road if possible in as much as the police are doing everything to stop them the safety of all cannot be guaranteed.*

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Is this the beginning of the end of ISPs?
by Zachary Ochieng 05 Feb '10

05 Feb '10

FYI http://www.cio.co.ke/index.php/view-all-main-stories/565-kdn-unveils-cheap-… Zachary. --- Be the change you want to see in the world.

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