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Nairobi: 2nd Annual "Connecting Rural Communities Africa" Forum (August)/ICT Africa 2007 (October)
by Janet Feldman 29 Jul '07

29 Jul '07

2ND ANNUAL CONNECTING RURAL COMMUNITIES AFRICA FORUM 2007 21st-24th August 2007, Nairobi, Kenya This international event will bring together African government officials, senior figures from African regulatory authorities and international ICT experts who are leading the private sector connectivity drive. At this forum you have the opportunity to discuss and analyse best practices, share case studies, and debate crucial topics. If you would like to register as a delegate, please contact Marco by email: m.dekock(a)cto.int or telephone: 0044 208834 1577 More Info: 2nd Annual Connecting Rural Communities Africa Forum 2007: Bridging the digital divide through sustainable ICT connectivity Take advantage of the opportunity to attend the forum which will enhance your understanding of connecting rural Africa through ICT. If you would like to participate, please contact Marco by email: m.dekock(a)cto.int or telephone: 0044 208834 1577 The Conference In A Nutshell: Pre-conference workshop day: Tuesday 21st August 2007 Main conference: Wednesday 22nd August to Thursday 23rd August 2007 Rural Services & Applications Focus Day: Friday 24th August 2007 Grand Regency Hotel, Nairobi, Kenya Host Organisation: The Communications Commission of Kenya Website: www.cto.int This international event will bring together African government officials, senior figures from African regulatory authorities and international ICT experts who are leading the private sector connectivity drive. At this forum you have the opportunity to discuss and analyse best practices, share case studies and debate crucial topics such as: * Optimal regulation strategies to promote rural connectivity * Creating the right environment to attract foreign investment * How to best harness and utilise ICT to deliver socio-economic benefits to rural communities * Analyse current projects which seek to bridge the digital divide * The opportunity to advance rural connectivity through mobile, internet and satellite and enhance access to key services, content and applications How You Can Participate: If you would like to participate as a speaker, contact Mani by email ( m.kaur-rai(a)cto.int) to discuss speaker opportunities. Speakers receive FREE admission to the whole forum Interested in sponsoring or exhibiting? We have limited space available for solution providers, if you have services which you would like to highlight to our large delegation, please email Mani at m.kaur-rai(a)cto.int If you would like to register as a delegate, please contact Marco by email: m.dekock(a)cto.int If you would like to help us create a successful event, please email Andrea: a.hooker(a)cto.int or telephone: 0044 208834 1589 for details of becoming a media partner and receiving your press pass. - ICT AFRICA 2007 October 1-5, 2007, Kenyatta International Conference Centre, Nairobi, Kenya ICT Africa is an annual continental information and communications technology conference addressing all aspects of ICT development in Africa. The conference is convened by NEPAD council in collaboration with the NEPAD Kenya secretariat. The 2007 event will be organized by Global Conferences, Cape Town, South Africa. For further information contact rjacobs(a)globalconf.co.za

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EU to Open Up Mobile Spectrum
by Alex Gakuru 29 Jul '07

29 Jul '07

[BUSINESSWEEK] <http://www.businessweek.com/globalbiz/content/jul2007/gb20070727_798976.htm…> EU to Open Up Mobile Spectrum To encourage innovation in telecommunications, radio spectrum previously reserved for GMS mobile networks may be freed up Tim Ferguson July 27, 2007 The European Commission (EC) has proposed the removal of restrictions on the radio spectrum previously used solely for GSM mobile phone networks. The proposals include the repeal of the 1987 GSM Directive which allocated the 900MHz-1800MHz spectrum to GSM services only. The move is aimed at making it easier and more lucrative for operators to develop innovative wireless technologies such as 3G, mobile data or multimedia services. European telecoms commissioner Viviane Reding said the EU needs to remove regulatory barriers and allow new tech to share the spectrum. This will be a "concrete step" towards a more "flexible market-driven approach" to spectrum management, she said. This should mean a greater choice of wireless services available to European citizens and should also expand the geographical coverage of mobile networks. Another benefit could be reduced network deployment costs for the wireless communications industry as it will remove the need to develop services on other spectrums. It has been estimated that the wireless comms industry could save up to 40 per cent in cumulative capital expenditure over five years if the proposals come to fruition. Mike Grant, head of broadband and media at consultancy Analysys told silicon.com: "This is an interesting move by the Commission. One of the reasons is that technology is now allowing use of spectrum in a way previously not possible." He added the move is "a helpful step forward". Mark Blowers, senior research analyst at the Butler Group, agreed. He said the EC is being more pragmatic: "To my mind, that's a good thing." The European Commission expects the measures to be in place by the end of the year. --- ____________________________________________________________________________________ Got a little couch potato? Check out fun summer activities for kids. http://search.yahoo.com/search?fr=oni_on_mail&p=summer+activities+for+kids&…

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Fwd: [ke-internetusers] ALERT! Storm Worm:Worst Virus Attack In 2 Years
by Alex Gakuru 28 Jul '07

28 Jul '07

[Last week I got quite a number of these messages and I got quite suspicious having read, 3 days earlier, how the FBI planted bugs by tricking users to compromised site.YOU MAY AVOID CLICKING FUNNY ENTICING EMAIL LINKS] [WIRED] http://www.wired.com/politics/law/news/2007/07/fbi_spyware FBI's Secret Spyware Tracks Down Teen Who Made Bomb Threats --Excerpts-- FBI agents trying to track the source of e-mailed bomb threats against a Washington high school last month sent the suspect a secret surveillance program designed to surreptitiously monitor him and report back to a government server, according to an FBI affidavit obtained by Wired News. The court filing offers the first public glimpse into the bureau's long-suspected spyware capability, in which the FBI adopts techniques more common to online criminals. The software was sent to the owner of an anonymous MySpace profile linked to bomb threats against Timberline High School near Seattle... ..the spyware program gathers a wide range of information, including the computer's IP address; MAC address; open ports; a list of running programs; the operating system type, version and serial number; preferred internet browser and version; the computer's registered owner and registered company name; the current logged-in user name and the last-visited URL. The CIPAV then settles into a silent "pen register" mode, in which it lurks on the target computer and monitors its internet use, logging the IP address of every computer to which the machine connects for up to 60 days. ---- [WWWhatsup NYC] http://www.informationweek.com/security/showArticle.jhtml?articleID=2012008… Storm Worm Erupts Into Worst Virus Attack In 2 Years Storm worm authors are blasting the Internet with two types of attacks, and both are aimed at building up their botnet. By Sharon Gaudin InformationWeek July 24, 2007 04:19 PM The Storm worm authors are waging a multi-pronged attack and generating the largest virus attack some researchers say they've seen in two years. "We are basically in the midst of an incredibly large attack," said Adam Swidler, a senior manager with security company Postini. "It's the most sustained attack that we've seen. There's been nine to 10 days straight days of attack at this level." Swidler said in an interview with InformationWeek that the attack started a little more than a week ago, and Postini since then has recorded 200 million spam e-mails luring users to malicious Web sites. Before this attack, an average day sees about 1 million virus-laden e-mails, according to Postini. Last Thursday, however, the company tracked 42 million Storm-related messages in that day alone. As of Tuesday afternoon, Postini researchers were predicting they would see that day between 4 million and 6 million virus e-mails -- 99% of them associated with the Storm worm. While the number of spam e-mails has dropped significantly, it's still far above normal levels, so Swidler isn't ready to say the attack is over. The viruses are not embedded in the e-mails or in attachments. The e-mails, many of them otherwise empty, contain a link to a compromised Web site where machines are infected with a generic downloader. This helps pull the computers into the malware authors' growing botnet, while also leaving them open for further infection at a later date. "This is designed to add computers to the botnet," said Swidler. "That's first and foremost their goal." But the Storm worm authors aren't contenting themselves with this one attack vector. Paul Henry, VP of technologies with Secure Computing, said in an interview that the electronic greeting card spam scam that the Storm worm authors launched early in July is stronger than ever. He noted that a friend of his has a company with 100 users and they're being hit with about 300 e-card spams every day. "Back in December, we saw a huge spike in e-card spams because of the holiday," he added. "We are at the levels we were seeing back in December right now Most security professionals thought it would show up for Independence Day and then fade immediately, but it's been escalating for the last few weeks. It's definitely a pain point." Again, the e-card spam message, which install rootkits in the infected computers, are working to build a botnet. Henry could not say if it's the same botnet as the other messages are building. "I have seen thousands of these e-mails since Independence Day. It's got to be working for them or they wouldn't keep doing it," said Henry. Just a few weeks ago, the Storm worm authors began trying to trick users with fraudulent e-mails warning unsuspecting users about virus or spyware infections. Users around the world were receiving spam messages claiming that viruses or spyware had been detected on the users' systems. It was another attempt to lure users to malicious sites where their computers could be infected. ____________________________________________________________________________________ Park yourself in front of a world of choices in alternative vehicles. Visit the Yahoo! Auto Green Center. http://autos.yahoo.com/green_center/

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Re: [kictanet] [Skunkworks] It's a new twist for Econet Wireless
by Mike Theuri 27 Jul '07

27 Jul '07

Joram, Your intuition is right, there are heavily vested interests, though I believe not in the sense that Econet is coming in late but in the sense that Econet is coming in now. It is apparent that there may be multiple vested and opposing interests gunning for control of the licence, whether true or not, it can be concluded that where there is smoke the likelihood of finding a fire is high: === SPECIAL REPORT | Page 9 SUNDAY STANDARD MARCH 19 2006 No end in sight to Econet intrigues "In April last year, our officers investigating the case were told to stop with immediate effect." says a senior Kacc official. Kacc spokesman Nicholas Simani however declined to comment on the matter." ==== There is a plethora of hundreds perhaps thousands of pages of documents (some attached) on these matters available from courts in Nairobi, London, Lagos, Papua New Guinea, Botswana and Johannesburg including affidavits by the foreign entity's executives that tell a shockingly different story from the often one sided pompous story told in the media. KNFC has a valid case, Econet too had to raise money (there is evidence supporting how this was done and why Econet took their former top level executive (also after he refused to co-operate in disenfranchising KNFC) to court in Johannesburg in a bid to gag him from spilling the beans, beans which a VP of the telecom vendor at the center of the unorthodox financing arrangement feared would rile Vodafone/Safaricom, Celtel, MTN etc). Why would anyone touch KNFC with a long pole when there are vested interests intent on derailing KNFC at every turn and corner while a PR machine touts the other party as the credible and righteous party with stories of "success and triumph" in other countries citing billions of profits in Zimbabwean dollars Z$ ambigiously as touted as $ "US dollars" yet it is no secret that Zimbabwe is a nation of poor millionaires where the average price of a home starts in the billions http://www.fingaz.co.zw/fingaz/2005/February/February24/7816.shtml If you were a financier who would you work with? The hapless KNFC you read about in the press or the over "glorified" entity (minus its unknown mishaps) that you read about in the press? Even then according to the attached advertisement that was published in the Nation on April 12 2004 by KNFC's lead financier, the regulator is said to have refused to accept the replacement bid bond from KNFC and further to that KNFC's financier confirms in the ad as having raised the requisite licence fee but the regulator was not willing to issue the licence to them. The Econet PR machine that has its team of dedicated journalists in various newsrooms went to work to tout KNFC as having no funds or in the alternate of having failed to raise funds for the licence. Those in doubt do not need to look very far, the Co-operative bank is one such example of success from the co-operative sector. As always the PR machinery works overtime to paint KNFC as the impoverished villians and Econet as the righteous party with money overflowing from its pockets. Unfortunately the truth should be told, contrary to what the Kenyan media reports, Econet has not won any of its huge and highly publicized endlessly filed legal battles. Where it was not likely to win it settled. Econet Wireless Nigeria is no more, it is now Celtel and NOT because Econet sold it to Celtel but because the Nigerian shareholders choose to do so. Econet simply got a taste of its own medicine when it was bundled out of Econet Wireless Nigeria and when it seemed Econet could retain its 5% shareholding + more, it was unable to match Celtel's superior offer for the shares at stake. As Business Day in South Africa and other Nigerian media reported on and around 30 June 2006 regarding the saga (contrary to Kenyan media reports indicating the opposite). Thus there is no West African battle that Econet has won except through its disinformation campaign: ---------------- http://mybroadband.co.za/nephp/?m=show&id=3368 ECONET's battle for control of Nigeria's cellular network, V Mobile, has been massively undermined by a court verdict damning Econet for misleading a judge and failing to admit it was $90m short of the cash needed to buy the business. The Nigerian court will be presented with the UK verdict showing that Econet had withheld evidence and failed to raise the cash. Econet CEO Strive Masiyiwa claimed to have raised $1,5bn to buy V-Mobile entirely, but accused the Nigerians of refusing to hand over the documents to conclude the deal. The court found that was not true. When Econet sought an order to block V-Mobile's sale to Celtel, it told the court it had more than enough funds to make the payment. "That was not the true position," Judge Morison said in his ruling. "There was serious nondisclosure or misrepresentation of the true position as to Econet's access to funds." The court was "seriously misled by evidence as to Econet's access to funds," Morison said. He ended the injunction so Celtel could buy V Mobile as Econet lacked cash. Celtel CEO Marten Pieters said the ruling confirmed Celtel's purchase of V- Mobile was a professional and transparent process. ------------------ http://www.pacificmagazine.net/issue/2005/02/01/business-briefs The Papua New Guinea government has terminated the proposed sale of 51 percent of Telikom (PNG) Ltd to African telecommunications giant Econet Wireless Group. Bowing to criticism in Parliament and public outcry, Prime Minister Sir Michael Somare announced the PNG Cabinet's decision and said the sale process would be looked at again this year. "Given the debate from various sectors of the community and the parliamentary resolution not to proceed with the sale under its current structure, the Cabinet has decided the most logical step is to cancel current attempts to sell this important State asset," Sir Michael said. ------------------- Anywhere Econet goes, there are problems, the modus operandi is the same, when they are exposed turn around and sue Governments and their partners for the favored value of $1bn or issue legal threats only later to settle after having succeeded in intimidating the intended victims to agree to their demands or in the event they loose, their PR machine goes to work touting their "victory" or the fact that the matter is far from over. It is a pity that the Kenyan media is far from professionally telling the truth that is already in the public domain in such enormous and overwhelming terms. On 7/25/07, Joram Mwinamo <joram.mwinamo(a)gmail.com > wrote: > > I also have a feeling there could be vested interests in Econet not coming > in as the 4th mobile operator in this country as competition will seriously > harm the mega profits being made right now. Im not saying anything but for > people who couldnt raise the money,i dont see why their case was being heard > even when econet offered to put up the capital. There is definitely more > than meets the eye here and I dont see why things go in favour of the > Cooperative that doesnt have cash.We want competition so that i can call > at 2 bob a minute > > However econet has had a few victories to similar battles in west africa > where they were clearly the underdogs,im holding my breath > > On 7/25/07, David Kiania | Asentric Consulting Ltd < kianiadee(a)gmail.com> > wrote: > > > > > > Herein lies poignant lessons for anyone looking to partner for whatever > > reason. First avoid Farmers and amorphous bodies their interests are as > > diverse as their membership. KNFC nees to tell us since EWK will be > > settling the legal costs of the suits that they have terminated, what % > > of the legal bills will they foot. Secondly can they or can't they raise > > > > their portion of license fee which was a point of contention ab initial. > > > > >From what I gather, they are broke and are not in a position to so of > > the US$ 27m license fee, Econet International has already paid $12M > > being the majority shareholder can KNFC raise $15M or are they seeking > > to auction their shareholding and have and pocket the surplus. Me thinks > > they want to cash out and pocket something. > > > > Last but not least, the outcome will also be influenced by their > > shareholders' agreement on liquidation and ownership transfer. Herein > > lies the other lesson, during incorporation get a good lawyer, not a pal > > because they will cost you nothing. From my experience get a lawyer (in > > their personal capacity) with one of the big firms (K&S, HHM, etc) they > > have great incorporation templates and are thorough not to mention they > > know how to get things done right. > > > > I have a feeling that EW Kenya may carry the day, after all the govt > > needs to fund the Kshs 400 billion budget deficit and are in not > > position to refund the $12M already paid, it's an election year :) Watch > > what happens carefully . > > > > Kiania D. > > > > > > > > Mike Theuri wrote: > > > It's a new twist for Econet Wireless as it prepares to roll out its > > > services > > > Written By:Emmanuel Toili , Posted: Tue, Jul 24, 2007 > > > > > > It's a new twist for the third mobile service provider Econet Wireless > > > > > International after the Kenya National Federation of Co-operatives > > > limited- > > > KNFC > > > threatened to take a court injunction to stop the rolling out of the > > > mobile > > > services. > > > > > > Interim Chairman Stanley Muchiri said the Federation had neither > > > withdrawn > > > two > > > court cases that prevented Econet Wireless International from > > > providing the > > > mobile services. > > > > > > The government and Econet Wireless International had last week signed > > a > > > settlement agreement and agreed to settle the contentious issues out > > of > > > court. > > > > > > KNFC who are allegedly the majority shareholders of Econet Wireless > > > Consortium, > > > want the Communications Commission of Kenya - CCK, to issue them a > > > license > > > as a > > > partner. > > > > > > http://www.kbc.co.ke/story.asp?ID=43974 > > > > > > > > ------------------------------------------------------------------------ > > > > > > _______________________________________________ > > > skunkworks mailing list > > > skunkworks(a)my.co.ke > > > http://ole.kenic.or.ke/mailman/listinfo/skunkworks > > > Blog http://skunkworks-ke.blogspot.com > > > > _______________________________________________ > > skunkworks mailing list > > skunkworks(a)my.co.ke > > http://ole.kenic.or.ke/mailman/listinfo/skunkworks > > Blog http://skunkworks-ke.blogspot.com > > > > > > -- > Our greatest fear is not that we are inadequate,but that we are powerful > beyond measure.It is our light, not our darkness, that frightens us.Thereis nothing enlightened about shrinking so that other people won't feel > insecure around you.As we let our own light shine, we consciously give > other people permission to do the same. > As we are liberated from our fear,our presence automatically liberates > others.

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KICTANet Institutional Assessment
by Rebecca Wanjiku 26 Jul '07

26 Jul '07

The Kenya ICT Action Network (KICTANet) is a multi-stakeholder network with members from the private sector, civil society, media, academia and government. It is a network of committed volunteers from organizations, networks and groups, who believe in collaborative policy advocacy activities and the sharing of resources and skills. The advocacy activities are focused on the development and use of ICT to support poverty reduction and the transformation of livelihoods. Recognizing this important role of ICT in our society, KICTANet is conducting two studies. One to assess the network as an institution (institutional assessment) to establish ways to engage the stakeholders more, how it can build on successes and incorporate other issues and methods, the other is a case study of the network , which is being conducted by Muriuki Mureithi. In this respect, the lead consultant for the institutional assessment will be conducting interviews expected to last about 30 minutes. While, Muriuki Mureithi has already sent questionnaires to a number of network members. Because KICTANet is committed to ensuring information-sharing as well as cooperative and collaborative advocacy to maximize outreach and impact, it is hoped that all members in the mailing list will actively participate in the interviews, and will attend the validation of data collected as well as dissemination workshops. The main objective of the assessment is to establish KICTANets organizational strengths and weaknesses, and to develop specific recommendations of areas that will require institutional strengthening, while the case study will assist in collection of lessons learnt in MSP. The lead consultant for the institutional assessment will be meeting with a number of the members for a one on one interview after as well as a questionnaire, which will assist in getting the findings and backing them up with required scientific explanations. The secretariat therefore kindly requests all members to assist the two consultants with the data collection phase. regards Tel. 254 720 318 925 blog:http://beckyit.blogspot.com/ --------------------------------- Need a vacation? Get great deals to amazing places on Yahoo! Travel.

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FW: Your Complimentary Report from Gartner
by Kagwe James 26 Jul '07

26 Jul '07

Good afternoon all. I think you will find the attached interesting reading, enjoy. Best Regards, James Kagwe ************************************************************************ ********** Alexander Forbes Financial Services (EA) Ltd 10th floor, Landmark Plaza Argwings Kodhek Road Opposite Nairobi Hospital P. O. Box 52439 - 00200 Nairobi, Kenya Tel: (254) 20 - 2710722, 2710775, 2710779, 2710782, 2710751, 2710725 Fax: (254) 20 - 2710721 Confidentiality Warning ======================= The contents of this e-mail and any accompanying documentation are confidential and any use thereof, in what ever form, by anyone other than the addressee is strictly prohibited. If you have received this e-mail in error, please notify actuaries(a)aforbes.co.ke or benefits(a)aforbes.co.ke and delete it immediately from your system.. Alexander Forbes Financial Services (EA) Limited from whom this e-mail originates accepts no responsibility for losses or damage as a result of any viruses and it is your responsibility to check attachments (if any) for viruses.

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Country Business Manager - South Africa
by Michael Kipsang Bullut 25 Jul '07

25 Jul '07

A great opportunity not to be missed! ---------- Forwarded message ---------- From: Robert Alai <alai.robert(a)gmail.com> Date: 15-Jul-2007 00:19 Subject: Country Business Manager - South Africa To: kaziafrica(a)googlegroups.com *Country Business Manager - South Africa* *Position available in Cape Town or Johannesburg, South Africa* Google is looking for a seasoned professional to lead Google's sales and operations within South Africa. The ideal candidate will have deep sales experience, demonstrated general management capability, and a proven ability to build a team. The country business manager is responsible for developing and executing on the overall market strategy within the country. This responsibility includes determining the appropriate channel strategy, support model, staffing requirements, target advertisers, and coordinating with functional teams to achieve desired goals. The primary focus will be on top tier client and agency opportunities, as well as regional business development. This position will report to the Regional Director. Responsibilities: - General management of South Africa operations including the development and execution of the overall country strategy. - Build a sales organization to call upon leading advertisers within South Africa. - Build a regionalized advertising sales operations capability to provide premium service to Google's top advertisers. - Build and maintain relations with key agencies and Search Engine Marketers (SEMs). - Drive revenue growth across all verticals. - Define the appropriate sales channel for all advertisers. - Build and develop partnerships that will grow the marketplace in South Africa and the Southern Africa region as a whole. - Coordinate closely with centralized sales operations to ensure the needs of the market are being met. - Contribute strategically to the growth and direction of Google products and services. - Ensure new product launches are successfully communicated to the local market. - Collaborate with other Country Business Managers to provide broad support to EMEA sales as a whole. - Provide support to the Regional Director as required. Requirements: - BA/BS or equivalent; MBA preferred. - Minimum 8+ years advertising sales and general management experience. - Proven record of strategic development of Fortune 1000 client base. - 5+ years of Internet sales. - 5+ years sales management experience in a technology related field. - Strong relationships within the advertising and technology spaces in the region. - Experience in building strategic partnerships and track record of growing a market is preferred - Fluency in English required For immediate consideration, please send a text (ASCII) or HTML version of your resume in English to jobs(a)google.com. Important: The subject field of your email must include *Country Business Manager - South Africa.*. -- -------------------------------------------------------------------- Life's most urgent question is: What are you doing for others? .........Martin Luther King, Jr. -------------------------------------------------------------------- --~--~---------~--~----~------------~-------~--~----~ You received this message because you are subscribed to the Google Groups "KAZI-AFRICA" group. Email to kaziafrica(a)googlegroups.com Subscribe , send email to kaziafrica-subscribe(a)googlegroups.com Unsubscribe, send email to kaziafrica-unsubscribe(a)googlegroups.com Visit this group at http://groups.google.com/group/kaziafrica?hl=en www.kazi-africa.com kazi-africa.blogspot.com biashara-africa.blogspot.com -~----------~----~----~----~------~----~------~--~--- -- "To see a world in a grain of sand, and a heaven in a wildflower...hold infinity in the palm of your hand, and eternity in an hour..." ~ William Blakeg.

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new/please post/forward: Oxford Internet Institute (University of Oxford) Civil Society Practitioners Programme (information society)
by Wanjira, Alice Munyua 25 Jul '07

25 Jul '07

Civil Society Practitioners Programme http://www.oii.ox.ac.uk/microsites/cspp/ Invitation to apply The Oxford Internet Institute (University of Oxford) invites applications from the global South to fill two places in its Civil Society Practitioners Programme. This visitor programme is intended for Civil Society Practitioners of distinction or outstanding promise who wish to visit the Institute for a period of six weeks between February and December 2008, to undertake research concerning the social impact of the Internet and related ICTs. Visitors are expected to reside in Oxford during their stay, and to participate fully in the intellectual life of the Institute. The successful applicants will receive: * A subsistence allowance of 3800 GBP (7500 USD) to cover research expenses and living costs during their stay in Oxford * A travel grant of up to 1000 GBP (2000 USD) for travel to and from the UK Applications will ideally be submitted by Civil Society Practitioners in or from the global South, active in the areas of freedom of expression, media reform, media justice, and communications and information policy in the globalized context of the Internet. You may also request to have this information emailed to you in plain text form. The deadline for completed applications to reach the OII Academic and Student Affairs Officer (by post or email: contact details below) is 26 September 2007. Please note that incomplete applications cannot be considered. Final notification of an award will occur in November 2007. Successful candidates will be expected to take up their six week residency in Oxford at any time between February and December 2008. Contact Laura Taylor Academic and Student Affairs Officer Oxford Internet Institute University of Oxford 1 St Giles, Oxford OX1 3JS United Kingdom Tel: +44 (0)1865 287222 Fax: +44 (0)1865 287211 Email: recruit(a)oii.ox.ac.uk This programme has been made possible by funding from the electronic media policy portfolio in the Media, Arts and Culture unit of the Knowledge, Creativity and Freedom Program of the Ford Foundation.

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BROADBAND BALONEY
by Alex Gakuru 25 Jul '07

25 Jul '07

[Congratulations Skunkworks for the ongoing visible work "Skunkworks gets African roots as techies bond" http://www.bdafrica.com/index.php?option=com_content&task=view&id=2110&Item…] ---------- Forwarded message ---------- From: WWWhatsup <joly(a)punkcast.com> Date: Jul 25, 2007 5:21 AM Subject: [isoc-ny] BROADBAND BALONEY To: isoc-ny(a)yahoogroups.com, discuss(a)isoc-ny.org BROADBAND BALONEY [SOURCE: Wall Street Journal, AUTHOR: Robert McDowell] [Commentary] Federal Communications Commission Commissioner Robert McDowell writes that American consumers are poised to reap a windfall of benefits from a new wave of broadband deployment. But you would never know it by the rhetoric of those who would have us believe that the nation is falling behind, indeed in free fall. Looming over the horizon are heavy-handed government mandates setting arbitrary standards, speeds and build-out requirements that could favor some technologies over others, raise prices and degrade service. This would be a mistaken road to take -- although it would hardly be the first time in history that alarmists have ignored cold, hard facts in pursuit of bad policy. When it comes to broadband policy, let's put aside flawed studies and rankings, and reject the road of regulatory stagnation. In the next few years, we will witness a tremendous explosion of entrepreneurial brilliance in the broadband market, if the government doesn't micromanage. Belief in entrepreneurs and a light regulatory touch is the right broadband policy for America. http://online.wsj.com/article/SB118524094434875755.html?mod=todays_us_opini… (requires subscription) * Are the numbers flawed? See http://www.freepress.net/docs/shooting_the_messenger.pdf ---------------------------------------------------------- WWWhatsup NYC http://pinstand.com - http://punkcast.com http://isoc-ny.org "The Internet is for Everyone!" -- Vint Cerf ____________________________________________________________________________________ Choose the right car based on your needs. Check out Yahoo! Autos new Car Finder tool. http://autos.yahoo.com/carfinder/

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It's a new twist for Econet Wireless
by Mike Theuri 25 Jul '07

25 Jul '07

It's a new twist for Econet Wireless as it prepares to roll out its services Written By:Emmanuel Toili , Posted: Tue, Jul 24, 2007 It's a new twist for the third mobile service provider Econet Wireless International after the Kenya National Federation of Co-operatives limited- KNFC threatened to take a court injunction to stop the rolling out of the mobile services. Interim Chairman Stanley Muchiri said the Federation had neither withdrawn two court cases that prevented Econet Wireless International from providing the mobile services. The government and Econet Wireless International had last week signed a settlement agreement and agreed to settle the contentious issues out of court. KNFC who are allegedly the majority shareholders of Econet Wireless Consortium, want the Communications Commission of Kenya - CCK, to issue them a license as a partner. http://www.kbc.co.ke/story.asp?ID=43974

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kenyan techies headed to jail
by Rebecca Wanjiku 23 Jul '07

23 Jul '07

Kenyan techies headed to jail... By Rebecca Wanjiku If the new Kenya Communications Amendment bill becomes law, all Kenyan techies and computer owners with pay a fine of shs 1 million, or risk a jail term or both. Why? Section 86 of the KCA bill states that... No person shall Operate an electronic Certification system Update a repository Administer a sub-domain in the ccTLD To do the above one requires a license, or face the penalties. Michuki Mwangi, the chief executive officer of KENIC, reckons that there are many Kenyan techies who have been infringing on this rule and will face the full force of the law once its assented. In interrogating these issues, Michuki asks, what is a repository? He argues that a repository could constitute a computer hard disk, mainly because the bill has not defined what a repository is. I have a self signed certificate, I create sub-domains and so many other Kenyans do. The government will have to give 32million potential sub-domain users. Thats a whole load of licenses to issue, said Michuki. Section 87 and 88 provides that: The dot KE registry and the Digital Certificate Registry need a license Michuki reckons that .KE model is globally recognized and in deed South Africa wants to follow up but adds that the new law will open room for subdivision of the registry, provided one can pay the license. For instance in south Africa, the .CO.ZA , .AC.ZA and other domains were operated by different entities and this is the time they are trying to integrate registry operations under one registry. It has the right intentions but just needs a bit of tweaking and rewording. The bill could have captured other areas of IT like local content matters were not well addressed, said Michuki. Ends Tel. 254 720 318 925 blog:http://beckyit.blogspot.com/ --------------------------------- Choose the right car based on your needs. Check out Yahoo! Autos new Car Finder tool.

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Police excuse angry computer user for outburst
by Alex Gakuru 23 Jul '07

23 Jul '07

Humor a cold quiet afternoon! http://today.reuters.com/news/articlenews.aspx?type=oddlyEnoughNews&storyid… BERLIN (Reuters) - A German man who startled his neighbors when he hurled his computer out of the window in the middle of the night, was let off for disturbing the peace by police who sympathized with his technical frustrations. Police in the northern city of Hanover said they would not press charges after responding to calls made by residents in an apartment block who were woken by a loud crash in the early hours of Saturday. Officers found the street and pavement covered in electronic parts and discovered who the culprit was. Asked what had driven him to the night-time outburst, the 51-year-old man said he had simply got annoyed with his computer. "Who hasn't felt like doing that?" said a police spokesman. While escaping any official sanction the man was made to clear up the debris. © Reuters 2007. All Rights Reserved. ____________________________________________________________________________________ Boardwalk for $500? In 2007? Ha! Play Monopoly Here and Now (it's updated for today's economy) at Yahoo! Games. http://get.games.yahoo.com/proddesc?gamekey=monopolyherenow

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Fwd: [ke-internetusers] CCK Preaching Wine & Drinking Water
by Alex Gakuru 23 Jul '07

23 Jul '07

--- robert yawe <robertyawe(a)yahoo.co.uk> wrote: > Date: Thu, 5 Jul 2007 06:37:41 +0100 (BST) > From: robert yawe <robertyawe(a)yahoo.co.uk> > To: Internet user group <ke-internetusers(a)bdix.net> > Subject: [ke-internetusers] CCK Preaching Wine & > Drinking Water > > Hi All, > > Here is a trick question, where is the > Communications Commission of Kenya's (CCK) web site > is hosted? > > Wrong it is not at Telkom or at their headquarters, > it seats in a foreign land, from the routing seems > like the UK. Evidence provided below. > > C:\>tracert www.cck.go.ke > > Tracing route to meru1.africaonline.co.ke > [216.251.32.98] > over a maximum of 30 hops: > > 1 <1 ms <1 ms <1 ms 192.168.0.1 > 2 36 ms 37 ms 42 ms 212.49.74.1 > 3 37 ms 36 ms 34 ms 196.202.200.193 > 4 37 ms 37 ms 36 ms 62.24.96.131 > 5 37 ms 37 ms 38 ms 192.168.2.2 > 6 636 ms 607 ms 637 ms > t3a2-h12-0-0.uk-goo.eu.bt.net [166.49.213.137] > 7 602 ms 698 ms 612 ms > t2c1-p3-2.uk-lon2.eu.bt.net [166.49.163.21] > 8 619 ms 699 ms 638 ms > t2c2-ge6-2.uk-lon2.eu.bt.net [166.49.164.170] > 9 1188 ms 1271 ms 706 ms > t2c1-ge5-1.uk-lon1.eu.bt.net [166.49.208.242] > 10 1106 ms 1137 ms 675 ms > t2a5-ge2-1.uk-lon1.eu.bt.net [166.49.135.115] > 11 * 651 ms 648 ms > 166-49-214-130.eu.bt.net [166.49.214.130] > 12 690 ms * 721 ms 217.239.40.78 > > > > So when the regulator has no faith in the > infrastructure he is meant to regulate and monitor > how are the mortals like us supposed to have faith > in the infrastructure. > > > > Robert Yawe > KAY System Technologies Ltd > Phoenix House, 6th Floor > P O Box 55806 Nairobi, 00200 > KEnya > > Tel: +254722511225 > > --------------------------------- > Inbox full of unwanted email? Get leading > protection and 1GB storage with All New Yahoo! Mail.> _______________________________________________ > ke-internetusers mailing list > ke-internetusers(a)bdix.net > http://www.bdix.net/mailman/listinfo/ke-internetusers > ____________________________________________________________________________________ Yahoo! oneSearch: Finally, mobile search that gives answers, not web links. http://mobile.yahoo.com/mobileweb/onesearch?refer=1ONXIC _______________________________________________ ke-internetusers mailing list ke-internetusers(a)bdix.net http://www.bdix.net/mailman/listinfo/ke-internetusers

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eGovernment for Development
by Alex Gakuru 22 Jul '07

22 Jul '07

http://www.egov4dev.org/indonesiatender.htm eTransparency Case Study No.8 More Transparent Tendering for Infrastructure Development in Indonesia More Transparent Tendering for Infrastructure Development in Indonesia Case Study Authors Anonymous Application In 2001, the Department of Settlement and Regional Infrastructure in Indonesia introduced an online information system to support the process of tendering. Application Description The Department of Settlement and Regional Infrastructure is responsible for public infrastructure in Indonesia (particularly transport, water and housing infrastructure), with a budget of more than US$100m annually, much of which is dispersed through a system of tenders, bids and contracts. The new information system provides information about all aspects of the procurement process: · Details of projects to be tendered, including their content, duration and budget allocation. · Tendering process details including dates, value, details of the pre-qualification process and information regarding the tender winner. · Contact details for the relevant procurement officer that enable queries or inputs into the process. Armed with this information, citizens and citizen groups could then identify cases where tendering procedures have not been followed properly, or where contractors with close relations to government have received many contracts, or where infrastructural deliverables have not been constructed. Contractors themselves can also benefit from the information provided by the system. It helps them to know what to bid for. They can also use e-tendering components within the system in order to submit their bids online. However, full e-procurement is not yet possible because electronic documents are yet to be given legal status in the Indonesian courts. Thus all key documents must still be handled in the conventional manner. There are no specific technical standards or benchmarks for the transparency of tendering in Indonesia, nor is there any law regarding freedom of information. Normal government regulations apply to the actual tendering/procurement processes. Role of ICT The e-tendering system is Web-based, and made available to citizens and businesses via the Internet in Bahasa Indonesia (the national language). The system uses ASP for scripting, with My-SQL for the underlying database. Application Drivers/Purpose President Suharto ruled Indonesia from 1965 until his resignation in 1998. His rule is typically seen as autocratic and as fostering corruption. The e-tendering application was introduced as part of post-Suharto reform in Indonesia. One main focus of this reform has been good governance, including an attempt to address widespread corruption and to reduce the costs of government. Another has been more balanced regional development, which has sought to redress earlier distortions between the disadvantaged Eastern and better-developed Western parts of the country, and to devolve decision-making powers away from a small Jakarta-based clique. All elements came together in the development of the e-tendering/procurement system, which aims to improve the transparency and efficiency and costs of tendering/procurement. A key driving force for the application in practice is seen to be external pressure from international donor organisations. Stakeholders Senior officials and staff of the Department of Settlement and Regional Infrastructure are key internal stakeholders for this new system. Consultants and businesses are stakeholders since their approach to bidding has been affected. Finally, citizens and NGOs are stakeholders since they have a general interest in improvements in both the efficiency and effectiveness of government infrastructural contracting. Transparency and the Poor There has been no direct support for transparency to the poor, since the service is primarily targeted at government-to-business links. There is also little or no ICT infrastructure in most poor communities, especially outside Jakarta. Impact: Costs and Benefits Project costs are unknown. The main system benefits seem to be: a) Increased awareness about tendering processes among some citizens. There have been a few queries about tenders from members of the public and NGOs. This may have a knock-on impact to make contractors and government officials feel they are under greater scrutiny than previously. It may help to create some groundswell of demand for more freedom of information and greater transparency. b) Benefits of reduced costs for contractors who wish to participate in the bidding process. Although this has no direct transparency benefit, it may help broaden the range of contractors who participate. In general, contractors have been supportive of the system. There is a perception that, before the system's introduction, most tender winners had a close relationship with government officials, whereas perhaps 25% fewer do after system introduction. What is not clear is the extent to which this can be attributed to the e-tendering system, or to broader changes in the post-Suharto era. Other benefits are, at present, more a potential than a reality. For example, there is still confusion about the way in which evidence derived from the Web site could be used in a legal context. Thus, there are no actual cases of the system having been used to seek redress against possible wrongdoing in procurement, and so there is as yet no clear way in which this system can be used to move beyond mere reporting to actual accountability and control of the procurement process. Government officials perceive that the system thus far has had no significant impact on levels of corruption. It is still the norm that contractors would find themselves paying 20-40% of the overall tender value to members of the tender committee and, in some cases, to higher-level officials who have oversight of the committee's work. Some of this corruption can be attributed to greed, but much can be attributed to need: the need to recover money paid out to get project budgets agreed in the first place (see below), and the need to supplement low public sector wages. Breaking this cycle of need, and institutionalised processes of corruption set in place during the Suharto era, is not going to be easy. The system ought to make the tendering process easier and quicker for government officials (indeed, this benefit is identified by the Department's own evaluation). However, informal feedback from government officials is not particularly positive. Those procurement officials who have computer expertise feel that the e-tendering system is creating additional work for them, yet for no additional income. They prefer to use their computing skills and what should be their government work time to earn money undertaking unofficial outside consultancy work; they then pay a small amount to more junior government staff to do the tendering data entry for them. Procurement officials without computer expertise, despite their training, feel the e-tendering system is something they do not understand. In both cases the result coupled with general absence of a culture of transparency has meant officials have little to do with the system, getting more junior staff to actually interact with it. This has tended to undermine both the perceived value and usage of the system. Evaluation: Failure or Success? The system won first prize in 2002 in the e-government category of a competition held by the Indonesian magazine "Warta Ekonomi". A formal evaluation of the project has been conducted by the Department of Settlement and Regional Infrastructure. On the technical side, the main concerns arising from the evaluation were access difficulties, particularly caused by ICT infrastructural constraints. On the non-technical side, contractors supported the system but wanted full e-procurement to be introduced. Issues identified by independent evaluations are described above in the Impact section and below in the Challenges section. Overall, the e-tendering system at present can be given the category of partial success/partial failure overall and as largely unsuccessful so far in addressing corruption, though the Department does appear committed to trying to improve the system. One additional concern remains the fact that, by turning the spotlight on tendering, the system may be reducing the attention paid to a major source of corruption: the budgeting process. In order to get local projects agreed for funding, money passes upwards to bribe both executive and legislative officials at first provincial and then national level. That money has then somehow to be recouped at the local level, which may explain the lack of progress to date against corruption in tendering and procurement. Enablers/Critical Success Factors 1. Political support. Although this e-transparency system has met with indifference or resistance from a number of middle-level officials, it has been pushed along by support from a number of key groups senior officials in the Department of Settlement and Regional Infrastructure who needed to show support for the good governance agenda; public groups who lobby for greater transparency; and some fraction of contractors who felt their business opportunities would be enhanced by a more transparent system. 2. ICT awareness. It only needed a small cadre of staff in the Department to be aware of the potential role of ICTs in supporting transparency to help get the ball rolling on this type of e-transparency project. Constraints/Challenges 1. Lack of legal infrastructure. This e-transparency system is limited in a number of ways by legal constraints. The operation of the e-tendering system is constrained by the absence of "cyber-laws" that would recognise the legitimacy of electronic documents and electronic transactions. The transparency aspects of the system are constrained by the lack of freedom of information and transparency laws that could give legal 'teeth' to attempts to use the system to hold government officials to account. 2. Staff resistance. This arises from a variety of causes. Some officials are resentful or fearful about the potential loss of bribe income the system could entail; they tend to manipulate what data goes into the system to their own advantage. Others lack the skills to use the system and so tend to ignore it. Others still are resentful of what they see as an additional workload without any commensurate additional reward; as noted above, they pay juniors to do that work for them. 3. Lack of broader engagement/awareness. Even as it currently stands, the e-tendering system could be used by citizen groups and other NGOs to maintain pressure on government to deliver on infrastructural commitments, and to reduce corruption in the tendering process. NGOs and academic groups could also help spread awareness about the system, and disseminate information drawn from the system. As yet, though, few NGOs or academic groups are engaged or involved with the e-tendering system. Recommendations 1. Involve citizen groups. Although citizens as individuals can play a role in transparency, that role is better taken on by representative groups such as NGOs or academic organisations. Such groups should be involved in both the design and implementation of e-transparency systems if those systems are credibly to affect the accountability of government officials. 2. Don't just focus on technical skills. Lack of technical skills is still an issue for this e-transparency system, both inside and outside government. However, the 'transparency' aspects of the system are more important than that 'e' aspects, and training and change management should thus also focus on introducing more transparent procedures, systems and culture into government. 3. Don't just focus on digital ICTs. Digital ICTs only penetrate so far. To really reach out to a developing country's citizens, e-transparency systems must either a) make use of more pervasive technologies such as radio or television, and/or b) make active use of ICT-owning intermediaries who can then trickle-down information and services by non-ICT means. Further Information http://www.kimpraswil.go.id/publik/proyek/semieproc/index.asp Case Details Case Editor: Richard Heeks. Author Data Sources/Role: Web Site, Documents and Interviews; No Direct Role. Centrality of Transparency: Mixed. Type: Transaction. Audience: External. Content: Contractual. Sector: Economic Services. Outcome: Largely Unsuccessful. Region: South-East Asia. Start Date: 2001. Submission Date: December 2003. The "eGovernment for Development Information Exchange" project is coordinated by the University of Manchester's Institute for Development Policy and Management. The project is funded and managed by the Commonwealth Telecommunications Organisation as part of the UK Department for International Development's "Building Digital Opportunities" programme. ____________________________________________________________________________________ Get the free Yahoo! toolbar and rest assured with the added security of spyware protection. http://new.toolbar.yahoo.com/toolbar/features/norton/index.php

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Re: [kictanet] [Skunkworks] Kenya's state-owned telecoms operator goes mobile
by Mike Theuri 22 Jul '07

22 Jul '07

Telkom is a licenced operator using fixed wireless technology. The key word here is fixed. On the same argument if the 'true mobile' operators want to obtain 3G and 3.5G frequencies the regulator has a duty to ensure that the government is not deprived of much needed revenue by holding a competitive tender or auction for the 3G frequencies which have fetched hundreds of millions of dollars in other African countries. ---------- https://www.ntra.gov.eg/english/News_NewsDetails.asp?PID=36&ID=94 Vodafone Egypt have agreed to pay LE3.34bn (US$584m) + 2.4% of total revenues as a licence fee for 3G spectrum. Vodafone Egypt recently declared an annual turnover of LE6.8bn and revealed that approximately 22% (LE1.5bn) of this will be Free Cash Flow. However, it is not as much as the third player, Etisalat, agreed to pay LE16.7bn (US$2.9bn) for a 2G/3G licence which was equivalent to 3.4% of Egypt GDP. ---------- It is indicative that at least one mobile provider has indicated that it is already using such technology, which per their original GSM license (Annex A) is not catered for. What payment if any has been received by the commission on behalf of the government for these frequencies by the mobile operator and for the issuance of a new 3G licence? I am certain that TKL has met its licence obligations and thus is a bonafide operator, secondly TKL holds a licence that allows it to provide these services nationwide in addition to its basket of licences. If the TKL's competitors want to demand that TKL pay fees for a licence (which it already has) then they should similarly be prepared to pay licence fees after competing in a tender to be able to operate 3G networks. Mike On 7/20/07, Joseph Okech <okechukwu(a)gmail.com> wrote: > > I don't think Telkom goes mobile is a problem & its never about > competition, > the problem is with the regulatory infrastructure in place to be honored, > that is if all mobile operators have to pay a mobile license, then all > have > to pay a mobile license without any exceptions. If all mobile service > providers are to pay VAT and exercise duty, then this has to be across the > board. > > rgds, > Okech > > > > On Thursday July 19 2007 21:38:48 Mike Theuri wrote: > > "Competition is healthy. If other people complain, they should know that > > Kenyans > > now have a choice," Telkom Kenya Chief Market Officer Bernard Rubia told > > Reuters > > in an interview. > > > > Rubia says it was "debatable" whether partnering with an outside > investor > > was > > necessary for Telkom to turn a profit. Job cuts that will downsize > Telkom > > to > > > > 4,000 employees from 18,000 by September are already realising savings > of > > 250 > > million shillings ($3.7 million) a month against 1.2 billion in > billings. > > "We should be given a five-year window to prove ourselves," he said, > adding > > shares should be sold to the public in the meantime. > > > > ================ > > > > http://africa.reuters.com/wire/news/usnL19935122.html > > > > Kenya's state-owned telecoms operator goes mobile > > Thu 19 Jul 2007, 13:40 GMT > > > > By C. Bryson Hull > > > > NAIROBI, July 19 (Reuters) - State-owned Telkom Kenya is making an > > aggressive > > foray into the east African country's wireless mobile and data markets, > > aiming > > for rebirth as a sleek operator before privatisation due to start later > > this > > > > year. > > > > The loss-making state company, which has a monopoly on landlines, > earlier > > this > > month rolled out the lowest mobile phone tariff in Kenya and stepped up > > advertising to bring in customers to its brand-new wireless network. > > > > That has sparked complaints from the other two mobile operators in > Kenya, > > market > > leader Safaricom and Celtel Kenya, who say the state company has an > unfair > > regulatory advantage. > > > > "Competition is healthy. If other people complain, they should know that > > Kenyans > > now have a choice," Telkom Kenya Chief Market Officer Bernard Rubia told > > Reuters > > in an interview. > > > > "And they will choose based on reliability, consistency and > affordability." > > > > Telkom may seem an unlikely choice -- customers have long complained > that > > inefficiency, corruption and monopoly control of landlines have kept > > Telkom's > > prices high and service poor, but it is now in the middle of a major > > restructuring. > > > > And Kenyans are quick to go for the best deal. It is not uncommon for > > someone to > > have multiple phone lines to take advantage of the cheapest rate or to > > avoid the > > steep expense of calling from one network to the other. > > > > On a trial run since September, the company's mobile subsidiary Telkom > > Wireless > > so far has 150,000 subscribers and is adding an average of 1,000 per > day, > > Rubia > > said. > > > > "Our target is by the end of June next year we will have hit our 1 > million > > mark," he said adding the average customers spends 800 Kenya shillings > > ($11.92) > > a month. > > > > That is dwarfed by the 6.8 million Safaricom has out of an estimated 8-9 > > million > > users in the nation of 36 million people. > > > > > > BANKING ON CDMA > > > > Telkom has rolled out a CDMA network to about 70 percent of the country > to > > compete with Safaricom and Celtel, which operate a GSM network like most > > mobile > > companies in Africa. > > > > Rubia says the choice of CDMA was to lure Kenyan customers who get > > irritated by > > congestion on the GSM networks. > > > > "One of our towers is equivalent to four of theirs in terms of > capacity," > > he > > > > said. > > > > A second benefit is to cash in on its data capabilities, which are > faster > > than > > GSM. By September, Rubia says Telkom will offer EVDO, a mobile broadband > > data > > technology. > > > > But like other Internet data providers in Kenya, they will not be able > to > > use > > the maximum capacity until the country gets a fibre optic connection to > the > > Internet backbone. > > > > Currently it gets it via expensive satellite links that limit bandwidth > and > > market growth. Rubia says he expects at least one of two projects to > give > > Kenya > > a wired link to the outside world to be ready by "the back end of next > > year." > > > > Telkom Wireless customers will be able to access EVDO via mobile > handsets > > and > > also wireless desktop phones. > > > > The latter often serve as Internet links in rural areas where there is > > little or > > no infrastructure -- and where mobile operators say there are still huge > > untapped profits in Africa. > > > > The government wants to sell a 51 percent stake in Telkom to a strategic > > partner, with an eye on an IPO that would eventually sell 30 percent to > the > > public. Proposals are due to be opened by early November. > > > > Rubia says it was "debatable" whether partnering with an outside > investor > > was > > necessary for Telkom to turn a profit. Job cuts that will downsize > Telkom > > to > > > > 4,000 employees from 18,000 by September are already realising savings > of > > 250 > > million shillings ($3.7 million) a month against 1.2 billion in > billings. > > > > "We should be given a five-year window to prove ourselves," he said, > adding > > shares should be sold to the public in the meantime. > > >

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Re: [kictanet] [Skunkworks] Kenya's state-owned telecoms operator goes mobile
by Mike Theuri 21 Jul '07

21 Jul '07

As much as I would want to, I cannot tell you when or how Telkom paid the license fees, what I can tell you instead is that upon meeting the requisite requirements, one can seek a license from CCK employing the use of various fixed wireless technologies, however unlike Telkom, coverage would be limited as the applicant would not be licensed as a national operator. Additionally Telkom Kenya is duty bound to pay a revenue based annual license fee to CCK for its licenses. In Kenya there are certain licenses available only through the auction process and several others available 'over the counter'. Telkom licenses are mostly 25 year licenses dated from 1999 and renewable for another 15 years after that period. The most accurate answers to your questions can be best obtained from the regulator or in the alternate the Ministry. Other key references would be the Kenya Communications Act of 1998 which set up the legal framework for the establishment of Telkom Kenya. Regards, Mike On 7/21/07, Joseph Okech <okechukwu(a)gmail.com> wrote: > > Please I beg tell me when Telkom paid the license fees and how the bidding > was > done? Simply because their former MD was appointed into CCK does not give > them the right to ALL telco licenses in the country, every single license > has > to be auctioned or awarded openly with full license fees paid. > > rgds, > Okech > > > > On Saturday July 21 2007 02:45:20 Mike Theuri wrote: > > Telkom is a licenced operator using fixed wireless technology. The key > word > > here is fixed. On the same argument if the 'true mobile' operators want > to > > obtain 3G and 3.5G frequencies the regulator has a duty to ensure that > the > > government is not deprived of much needed revenue by holding a > competitive > > tender or auction for the 3G frequencies which have fetched hundreds of > > millions of dollars in other African countries. > > > > ---------- > > https://www.ntra.gov.eg/english/News_NewsDetails.asp?PID=36&ID=94 > > > > Vodafone Egypt have agreed to pay LE3.34bn (US$584m) + 2.4% of total > > revenues as a licence fee for 3G spectrum. Vodafone Egypt recently > declared > > an annual turnover of LE6.8bn and revealed that approximately 22% ( > LE1.5bn) > > of this will be Free Cash Flow. > > > > However, it is not as much as the third player, Etisalat, agreed to pay > > LE16.7bn (US$2.9bn) for a 2G/3G licence which was equivalent to 3.4% of > > Egypt GDP. > > ---------- > > > > It is indicative that at least one mobile provider has indicated that it > is > > already using such technology, which per their original GSM license > (Annex > > A) is not catered for. What payment if any has been received by the > > commission on behalf of the government for these frequencies by the > mobile > > operator and for the issuance of a new 3G licence? I am certain that TKL > > has met its licence obligations and thus is a bonafide operator, > secondly > > TKL holds a licence that allows it to provide these services nationwide > in > > addition to its basket of licences. If the TKL's competitors want to > demand > > that TKL pay fees for a licence (which it already has) then they should > > similarly be prepared to pay licence fees after competing in a tender to > be > > able to operate 3G networks. > > > > Mike > > > > On 7/20/07, Joseph Okech <okechukwu(a)gmail.com> wrote: > > > I don't think Telkom goes mobile is a problem & its never about > > > competition, > > > the problem is with the regulatory infrastructure in place to be > honored, > > > that is if all mobile operators have to pay a mobile license, then all > > > have > > > to pay a mobile license without any exceptions. If all mobile service > > > providers are to pay VAT and exercise duty, then this has to be across > > > the board. > > > > > > rgds, > > > Okech > > > > > > On Thursday July 19 2007 21:38:48 Mike Theuri wrote: > > > > "Competition is healthy. If other people complain, they should know > > > > that Kenyans > > > > now have a choice," Telkom Kenya Chief Market Officer Bernard Rubia > > > > told Reuters > > > > in an interview. > > > > > > > > Rubia says it was "debatable" whether partnering with an outside > > > > > > investor > > > > > > > was > > > > necessary for Telkom to turn a profit. Job cuts that will downsize > > > > > > Telkom > > > > > > > to > > > > > > > > 4,000 employees from 18,000 by September are already realising > savings > > > > > > of > > > > > > > 250 > > > > million shillings ($3.7 million) a month against 1.2 billion in > > > > > > billings. > > > > > > > "We should be given a five-year window to prove ourselves," he said, > > > > > > adding > > > > > > > shares should be sold to the public in the meantime. > > > > > > > > ================ > > > > > > > > http://africa.reuters.com/wire/news/usnL19935122.html > > > > > > > > Kenya's state-owned telecoms operator goes mobile > > > > Thu 19 Jul 2007, 13:40 GMT > > > > > > > > By C. Bryson Hull > > > > > > > > NAIROBI, July 19 (Reuters) - State-owned Telkom Kenya is making an > > > > aggressive > > > > foray into the east African country's wireless mobile and data > markets, > > > > aiming > > > > for rebirth as a sleek operator before privatisation due to start > later > > > > this > > > > > > > > year. > > > > > > > > The loss-making state company, which has a monopoly on landlines, > > > > > > earlier > > > > > > > this > > > > month rolled out the lowest mobile phone tariff in Kenya and stepped > up > > > > advertising to bring in customers to its brand-new wireless network. > > > > > > > > That has sparked complaints from the other two mobile operators in > > > > > > Kenya, > > > > > > > market > > > > leader Safaricom and Celtel Kenya, who say the state company has an > > > > > > unfair > > > > > > > regulatory advantage. > > > > > > > > "Competition is healthy. If other people complain, they should know > > > > that Kenyans > > > > now have a choice," Telkom Kenya Chief Market Officer Bernard Rubia > > > > told Reuters > > > > in an interview. > > > > > > > > "And they will choose based on reliability, consistency and > > > > > > affordability." > > > > > > > Telkom may seem an unlikely choice -- customers have long complained > > > > > > that > > > > > > > inefficiency, corruption and monopoly control of landlines have kept > > > > Telkom's > > > > prices high and service poor, but it is now in the middle of a major > > > > restructuring. > > > > > > > > And Kenyans are quick to go for the best deal. It is not uncommon > for > > > > someone to > > > > have multiple phone lines to take advantage of the cheapest rate or > to > > > > avoid the > > > > steep expense of calling from one network to the other. > > > > > > > > On a trial run since September, the company's mobile subsidiary > Telkom > > > > Wireless > > > > so far has 150,000 subscribers and is adding an average of 1,000 per > > > > > > day, > > > > > > > Rubia > > > > said. > > > > > > > > "Our target is by the end of June next year we will have hit our 1 > > > > > > million > > > > > > > mark," he said adding the average customers spends 800 Kenya > shillings > > > > ($11.92) > > > > a month. > > > > > > > > That is dwarfed by the 6.8 million Safaricom has out of an estimated > > > > 8-9 million > > > > users in the nation of 36 million people. > > > > > > > > > > > > BANKING ON CDMA > > > > > > > > Telkom has rolled out a CDMA network to about 70 percent of the > country > > > > > > to > > > > > > > compete with Safaricom and Celtel, which operate a GSM network like > > > > most mobile > > > > companies in Africa. > > > > > > > > Rubia says the choice of CDMA was to lure Kenyan customers who get > > > > irritated by > > > > congestion on the GSM networks. > > > > > > > > "One of our towers is equivalent to four of theirs in terms of > > > > > > capacity," > > > > > > > he > > > > > > > > said. > > > > > > > > A second benefit is to cash in on its data capabilities, which are > > > > > > faster > > > > > > > than > > > > GSM. By September, Rubia says Telkom will offer EVDO, a mobile > > > > broadband data > > > > technology. > > > > > > > > But like other Internet data providers in Kenya, they will not be > able > > > > > > to > > > > > > > use > > > > the maximum capacity until the country gets a fibre optic connection > to > > > > > > the > > > > > > > Internet backbone. > > > > > > > > Currently it gets it via expensive satellite links that limit > bandwidth > > > > > > and > > > > > > > market growth. Rubia says he expects at least one of two projects to > > > > > > give > > > > > > > Kenya > > > > a wired link to the outside world to be ready by "the back end of > next > > > > year." > > > > > > > > Telkom Wireless customers will be able to access EVDO via mobile > > > > > > handsets > > > > > > > and > > > > also wireless desktop phones. > > > > > > > > The latter often serve as Internet links in rural areas where there > is > > > > little or > > > > no infrastructure -- and where mobile operators say there are still > > > > huge untapped profits in Africa. > > > > > > > > The government wants to sell a 51 percent stake in Telkom to a > > > > strategic partner, with an eye on an IPO that would eventually sell > 30 > > > > percent to > > > > > > the > > > > > > > public. Proposals are due to be opened by early November. > > > > > > > > Rubia says it was "debatable" whether partnering with an outside > > > > > > investor > > > > > > > was > > > > necessary for Telkom to turn a profit. Job cuts that will downsize > > > > > > Telkom > > > > > > > to > > > > > > > > 4,000 employees from 18,000 by September are already realising > savings > > > > > > of > > > > > > > 250 > > > > million shillings ($3.7 million) a month against 1.2 billion in > > > > > > billings. > > > > > > > "We should be given a five-year window to prove ourselves," he said, > > > > > > adding > > > > > > > shares should be sold to the public in the meantime. > > >

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Re: [kictanet] Fwd: [Fwd: Safaricom intimidating media...]
by Alex Gakuru 21 Jul '07

21 Jul '07

Further Walubengo, Unlike "political" politicians who regularly complain of being mis-quoted by the media, now telcos intimidate the media, the government will "regulate" the media, consumers love the media for encouraging us that we are not alone in telcos exploitaion. Mexicans are faced by the same problem see attached "Billion Dollar Baby" story. The media respond even to a child's cry but politicians... unless there are votes at stake? The real losers of media gagging by government and corporate intimidation will be consumers. I state that add was totally and properly quoted here http://www.bdafrica.com/index.php?option=com_content&task=view&id=363&Itemi… Which is why the ICT Bill must facilitate widespread Community Telcos in the WiFi range to legally reinforce and strengthen this most welcome CCK intervention. It a sure way out of the current high communication costs misery and consumer lock in that affects everybody else except these telcos. Follow the ICT Bill and note anti-media, anti-consumer, anti-expression MPs and "revenge" in December elections. They will know the tariffs pain we suffer as soon as they lose those Parliamentary allowances. ____________________________________________________________________________________Ready for the edge of your seat? Check out tonight's top picks on Yahoo! TV. http://tv.yahoo.com/

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Re: [kictanet] Fwd: [Fwd: Safaricom intimidating media...]
by bitange＠jambo.co.ke 21 Jul '07

21 Jul '07

Dear Mr. Theuri, Your allegations: "That foreign entity is again in the news as a mysterious deal has been worked out with the regulator and the government disregarding a court ruling" These are sereous allegations implying irregularity on our part when the facts are that it was prudent to extricate the Government out of the many legal battles by Econet that could potentially cost the Kenyan tax payer an enormous amount. There cannot be a court rulling baring the Government from making prudent decisions. In my view you are mixing issues of Econet vs KNFC and Econet vs CCK. FYI there is no matter in court yet this issue continue to hurt our image as an investment destination. What we dealt with yesterday were two cases instituted by Econet against the Government and the then Minister for Communications. If you read carefully the Times story you are referring to, it has nothing to do with the actions we took. Econet still has to contend with the shareholding issue and meet CCK conditions. Whatever the background of Econet, we must follow the law and it cannot be right that we see that law through your lenses. Have a nice day. Regards Bitange Ndemo. which one can > read about > below. > Walu, > > Actually the story came from the Media Institute and was shared on various > Kenyan > discussion groups and I was only passing it on. I'm not related to Alex > Gakuru but > its likely we may find ourselves working on the same or similar issues or > we > may > even have differing views. > > Some of these corporates have been harassing members of the media. It was > only a > year or two ago where a corporate entity was noted by a Minister for > passing > brown > envelopes in return for favorable stories or wielding influence in such a > way that a journalist > who had exposed the entity's activities was summarily dismissed by his > boss > via sms when > he was away on leave. Fortunately the journalist was vindicated when his > boss got the boot > and he was reinstated. > > That foreign entity is again in the news as a mysterious deal has been > worked out with > the regulator and the government disregarding a court ruling which one can > read about > below. It was the ---------------------------------------------- This message has been scanned for viruses and dangerous content by Jambo MailScanner, and is believed to be clean. --------------------------------------------- "easy access to the world"

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Vodafone Greece:Death muddies Greek spy probe
by Alex Gakuru 21 Jul '07

21 Jul '07

[In case you missed it last year, below illustrates Privacy dangers underscoring the need for Legal and Privacy Protection to consumers--read everyone! Dr. Ndemo at least assure us the government is safe] "Death muddies Greek spy probe" <http://news.bbc.co.uk/2/hi/europe/4838552.stm> [BBC] By Richard Galpin BBC News, Athens A senior aide to the Greek prime minister is expected to be the next person to testify before a parliamentary committee investigating what is believed to be the worst espionage scandal in the country's history. Last month, the government admitted that the mobile phones of the prime minister, the most senior members of the cabinet and top security officials had all been tapped in 2004 - the year Athens hosted the Olympic Games. The committee in Athens has been questioning executives from two of the world's leading mobile phone companies, Vodafone and Ericsson, about the scandal. But attention is also increasingly focusing on the alleged suicide of a senior Vodafone manager just after the phone-tapping operation was discovered on the Vodafone network last year. In a serene but cramped graveyard in the western suburbs of Athens, lies the body of Costas Tsalikidis, a network manager for Vodafone Greece. He is buried with other members of his family. But his gravestone shows he died aged just 38. He was found hanged in his apartment on the morning of 9 March last year. The next day, the head of Vodafone Greece walked into the office of one of the prime minister's top aides to inform the government that its phones had been bugged for at least eight months. The official verdict was that Mr Tsalikidis had committed suicide. Suspicions In a statement issued last month, just after the story about the phone-tapping operation first broke, Vodafone categorically denied there was any connection between his death and the scandal. "Any attempt to connect these two is, to say the least, irrelevant," it said. But his family believe his death is suspicious and are calling for his body to be exhumed so a second post-mortem can be carried out by one of the world's leading forensic pathologists, Dr Michael Baden of the United States. "They believe they will find new evidence," says the family lawyer, Themis Sofos. Dr Sofos adds that other parts of the original investigation were weak. "No one went to the house of Costas, no one took photos and to see the circumstances of his death... no one took fingerprints." Official inquiry Mr Tsalikidis' family recently took matters into their own hands, filing a lawsuit against "persons unknown" for complicity in his murder or suicide. They allege that even if he was not murdered, he may have faced threats which left him with no choice but to take his own life. Meanwhile, their lawyer has been handing evidence to a prosecutor in Athens, who is now carrying out an official inquiry into the death of Mr Tsalikidis. The prosecutor is expected to announce his conclusion within the next few weeks. Family and friends of Costas Tsalikidis believe there are strong indications he was the person who first discovered that highly sophisticated software had been secretly inserted into the Vodafone network in 2004, enabling at least 100 phone lines to be constantly tapped. "The end of January or early February (2005) I think is the time Costas had access or took knowledge of the interception system and he (re)searched about its function and origin," says lawyer Themis Sofos. "He was not the kind of man to keep secret about something. He would not have co-operated with criminals or criminal acts." Text messages According to Dr Sofos, Mr Tsalikidis told his fiancee at this time that it was a "matter of life and death" that he leave his job. The lawyer also says they have looked at text messages he received on his mobile from colleagues in early February 2005, including one which apparently urges him to keep working and offers him support. But there is another theory about Costas Tsalikidis: that he was allegedly the person who actually inserted the software setting up the phone-tapping operation. "It is possible," says Themis Sofos. "I cannot exclude anything." The theory is put forward by John Brady Kiesling a former American diplomat who worked at the US embassy in Athens until resigning in 2003 over the US-led invasion of Iraq. He is convinced American intelligence agents were behind the whole bugging operation and he says it is possible they used Mr Tsalikidis to install the software. "I believe he committed suicide to protect his professional honour," says Mr Kiesling. As for why the Americans would tap the phones of the political and security elite of a country regarded as an ally, Mr Kiesling says there is a simple answer. Trust He argues American intelligence agencies would not have trusted the Greeks with the massive security operation surrounding the Athens Olympics in August 2004 set up to counter any potential terrorist threat. "They believe you cannot trust foreigners, that foreigners are incompetent and of dubious trustworthiness," he says. "You owe it to yourself if you have the capability, to have an independent ear listening to them and I think that is what this was." This might also explain why the Greek government kept silent about the scandal for almost a year from March 2005 when it was informed about it, until last month when it finally held a news conference detailing what had happened. The news conference took place shortly after a Greek newspaper had broken the story. Despite repeated requests, no-one from the government was willing to give an interview to the BBC about the scandal. The US embassy also refused to comment and the Vodafone Greece press office would only refer us to statements on its website. ---ends--- ____________________________________________________________________________________ Choose the right car based on your needs. Check out Yahoo! Autos new Car Finder tool. http://autos.yahoo.com/carfinder/

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Fwd: [Fwd: Safaricom intimidating media...]
by Mike Theuri 21 Jul '07

21 Jul '07

---------- Forwarded message ---------- From: The Media Institute <mediainst(a)wananchi.com> Date: Jul 18, 2007 2:12 PM Subject: [africa-oped] [Fwd: Safaricom intimidating media...] To: africa-oped(a)yahoogroups.com ---------------------------- Original Message ---------------------------- Subject: [Fwd: Safaricom intimidating media...] From: "Editor" <info(a)eastafricapress.com <info%40eastafricapress.com>> Date: Wed, July 18, 2007 7:02 pm To: kodi(a)kodibarth.com <kodi%40kodibarth.com> ---------------------------------------------------------- We thought you might want to read this... Safaricom intimidating media ahead of IPO http://eastafricapress.net/f.php?sp=81 Also: The price the Aga Khan paid to have NTV back on air http://eastafricapress.net/f.php?sp=85 What Monitor journalist Andrew Mwenda thinks about the Aga Khan and The Monitor http://eastafricapress.net/f.php?s=63 Dar newspaper infuriates government with defense expose http://eastafricapress.net/f.php?s=66 Special Report: Who owns the media in East Africa? http://eastafricapress.net/f.php?sp=88 And many more on the state of East African media and freedom of expression. ___________________ The Media Institute PO Box 46356 00100 Nairobi Kenya Tel: +254 20 253 372 Fax: +254 20 252 373 Cell: +254 720 103 693 Director: +254 722 517 540 ———————— "If I had the choice of knowing the truth or searching for the truth, I'd take the search." — Walker Percy, Writer __._,_.___ Messages in this topic <http://groups.yahoo.com/group/africa-oped/message/24804;_ylc=X3oDMTM2ZnA0dm…> (1) Reply (via web post) <http://groups.yahoo.com/group/africa-oped/post;_ylc=X3oDMTJxa3FxczNwBF9TAzk…>| Start a new topic <http://groups.yahoo.com/group/africa-oped/post;_ylc=X3oDMTJlbTd1N2llBF9TAzk…> Messages<http://groups.yahoo.com/group/africa-oped/messages;_ylc=X3oDMTJlZ2s0YTI1BF9…>| Files<http://groups.yahoo.com/group/africa-oped/files;_ylc=X3oDMTJmamZvbXMwBF9TAz…>| Photos<http://groups.yahoo.com/group/africa-oped/photos;_ylc=X3oDMTJlMWkzb2ZjBF9TA…>| Links<http://groups.yahoo.com/group/africa-oped/links;_ylc=X3oDMTJmdGQ4MTJqBF9TAz…>| Calendar<http://groups.yahoo.com/group/africa-oped/calendar;_ylc=X3oDMTJkYnFnZ280BF9…> Africa-oped welcomes opinions & analysis on African issues. A short essay of 400-1500 words is preferable: Africa-oped is world readable at http://www.egroups.com/group/africa-oped. Coming soon: www.africa-oped.org that will carry the "best of Africa-Oped" Share and obtain business information: http://www.aganoconsulting.com. Contribute Africa-related business articles and get paid; send your articles to: info(a)aganoconsulting.com. - [image: Yahoo! Groups]<http://groups.yahoo.com/;_ylc=X3oDMTJkNDhqbmMxBF9TAzk3MzU5NzE0BGdycElkAzc4N…> Change settings via the Web<http://groups.yahoo.com/group/africa-oped/join;_ylc=X3oDMTJmbW1sOXRmBF9TAzk…>(Yahoo! ID required) Change settings via email: Switch delivery to Daily Digest<[email protected]?subject=Email+Delivery:+Digest>| Switch format to Traditional<[email protected]?subject=Change+Delivery+Format:+Traditional> Visit Your Group <http://groups.yahoo.com/group/africa-oped;_ylc=X3oDMTJkcDg1NjkyBF9TAzk3MzU5…>| Yahoo! Groups Terms of Use <http://docs.yahoo.com/info/terms/>| Unsubscribe <africa-oped-unsubscribe(a)yahoogroups.com?subject=> Recent Activity - 1 New Members<http://groups.yahoo.com/group/africa-oped/members;_ylc=X3oDMTJmczJmdmtwBF9T…> Visit Your Group <http://groups.yahoo.com/group/africa-oped;_ylc=X3oDMTJlcXJ2ZjhjBF9TAzk3MzU5…> SPONSORED LINKS - African<http://groups.yahoo.com/gads;_ylc=X3oDMTJjZWFiNmlrBF9TAzk3MzU5NzE0BF9wAzEEZ…> - African american christian dating<http://groups.yahoo.com/gads;_ylc=X3oDMTJjMXAxNDFnBF9TAzk3MzU5NzE0BF9wAzIEZ…> - African american christian dating single<http://groups.yahoo.com/gads;_ylc=X3oDMTJjaHAwNjNkBF9TAzk3MzU5NzE0BF9wAzMEZ…> - African american christian single<http://groups.yahoo.com/gads;_ylc=X3oDMTJjc2pva2MwBF9TAzk3MzU5NzE0BF9wAzQEZ…> - African safari<http://groups.yahoo.com/gads;_ylc=X3oDMTJjNzV1b2pzBF9TAzk3MzU5NzE0BF9wAzUEZ…> Yahoo! Music Check Who's Next<http://us.ard.yahoo.com/SIG=12jej1j0e/M=493064.10729670.11333360.8674578/D=…> Discover new bands before anyone else Y! Messenger Group get-together<http://us.ard.yahoo.com/SIG=12jovcf3c/M=493064.10729668.11333359.8674578/D=…> Host a free online conference on IM. Yahoo! Mail You're invited!<http://us.ard.yahoo.com/SIG=12jj6vslp/M=493064.10729665.11333356.8674578/D=…> Try the all-new Yahoo! Mail Beta . __,_._,___

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Re: [kictanet] Fwd: [Fwd: Safaricom intimidating media...]
by Mike Theuri 20 Jul '07

20 Jul '07

Dear Bwana Ndemo, Thank you for your and the Ministry's attention to the issue. I hope that it will be resolved soon. A free and responsible media is important to ensure that Kenyans are kept informed and aware of matters affecting the nation. Regards, Mike Theuri On 7/19/07, bitange(a)jambo.co.ke <bitange(a)jambo.co.ke> wrote: > > Dear Mr. Theuri, > Thank you for your concern. The Ministry had already taken up this matter > and hopefully we shall have it sorted out. > > > Regards > > > Bitange Ndemo. > > > > > > > ---------- Forwarded message ---------- > > From: The Media Institute <mediainst(a)wananchi.com> > > Date: Jul 18, 2007 2:12 PM > > Subject: [africa-oped] [Fwd: Safaricom intimidating media...] > > To: africa-oped(a)yahoogroups.com > > > > > > > > ---------------------------- Original Message > ---------------------------- > > Subject: [Fwd: Safaricom intimidating media...] > > From: "Editor" <info(a)eastafricapress.com <info%40eastafricapress.com>> > > Date: Wed, July 18, 2007 7:02 pm > > To: kodi(a)kodibarth.com <kodi%40kodibarth.com> > > > > ---------------------------------------------------------- > > > > We thought you might want to read this... > > > > Safaricom intimidating media ahead of IPO > > http://eastafricapress.net/f.php?sp=81 > > > > Also: > > > > The price the Aga Khan paid to have NTV back on air > > http://eastafricapress.net/f.php?sp=85 > > > > What Monitor journalist Andrew Mwenda thinks about the Aga Khan and The > > Monitor > > http://eastafricapress.net/f.php?s=63 > > > > Dar newspaper infuriates government with defense expose > > http://eastafricapress.net/f.php?s=66 > > > > Special Report: > > Who owns the media in East Africa? > > http://eastafricapress.net/f.php?sp=88 > > > > And many more on the state of East African media and freedom of > > expression. > > > > ___________________ > > The Media Institute > > PO Box 46356 > > 00100 Nairobi > > Kenya > > Tel: +254 20 253 372 > > Fax: +254 20 252 373 > > Cell: +254 720 103 693 > > Director: +254 722 517 540 > > ———————— > > > > "If I had the choice of knowing the truth or searching for the truth, > I'd > > take the search." — Walker Percy, Writer > > > > __._,_.___ Messages in this topic > > < > http://groups.yahoo.com/group/africa-oped/message/24804;_ylc=X3oDMTM2ZnA0dm… > > > > (1) Reply (via web post) > > < > http://groups.yahoo.com/group/africa-oped/post;_ylc=X3oDMTJxa3FxczNwBF9TAzk… > >| > > Start a new topic > > < > http://groups.yahoo.com/group/africa-oped/post;_ylc=X3oDMTJlbTd1N2llBF9TAzk… > > > > Messages< > http://groups.yahoo.com/group/africa-oped/messages;_ylc=X3oDMTJlZ2s0YTI1BF9… > >| > > Files< > http://groups.yahoo.com/group/africa-oped/files;_ylc=X3oDMTJmamZvbXMwBF9TAz… > >| > > Photos< > http://groups.yahoo.com/group/africa-oped/photos;_ylc=X3oDMTJlMWkzb2ZjBF9TA… > >| > > Links< > http://groups.yahoo.com/group/africa-oped/links;_ylc=X3oDMTJmdGQ4MTJqBF9TAz… > >| > > Calendar< > http://groups.yahoo.com/group/africa-oped/calendar;_ylc=X3oDMTJkYnFnZ280BF9… > > > > Africa-oped welcomes opinions & analysis on African issues. A short > essay > > of > > 400-1500 words is preferable: Africa-oped is world readable at > > http://www.egroups.com/group/africa-oped. > > > > Coming soon: www.africa-oped.org that will carry the "best of > Africa-Oped" > > > > Share and obtain business information: http://www.aganoconsulting.com. > > Contribute Africa-related business articles and get paid; send your > > articles > > to: info(a)aganoconsulting.com. > > - > > [image: Yahoo! > > Groups]< > http://groups.yahoo.com/;_ylc=X3oDMTJkNDhqbmMxBF9TAzk3MzU5NzE0BGdycElkAzc4N… > > > > Change settings via the > > Web< > http://groups.yahoo.com/group/africa-oped/join;_ylc=X3oDMTJmbW1sOXRmBF9TAzk… > >(Yahoo! > > ID required) > > Change settings via email: Switch delivery to Daily > > Digest<[email protected]?subject=Email+Delivery:+Digest > >| > > Switch > > format to > > Traditional< > [email protected]?subject=Change+Delivery+Format:+Traditional > > > > Visit Your Group > > < > http://groups.yahoo.com/group/africa-oped;_ylc=X3oDMTJkcDg1NjkyBF9TAzk3MzU5… > >| > > Yahoo! Groups Terms of Use <http://docs.yahoo.com/info/terms/>| > > Unsubscribe > > <africa-oped-unsubscribe(a)yahoogroups.com?subject=> > > Recent Activity > > > > - 1 > > New > > Members< > http://groups.yahoo.com/group/africa-oped/members;_ylc=X3oDMTJmczJmdmtwBF9T… > > > > > > Visit Your Group > > < > http://groups.yahoo.com/group/africa-oped;_ylc=X3oDMTJlcXJ2ZjhjBF9TAzk3MzU5… > > > > SPONSORED LINKS > > > > - > > African< > http://groups.yahoo.com/gads;_ylc=X3oDMTJjZWFiNmlrBF9TAzk3MzU5NzE0BF9wAzEEZ… > > > > - African american christian > > dating< > http://groups.yahoo.com/gads;_ylc=X3oDMTJjMXAxNDFnBF9TAzk3MzU5NzE0BF9wAzIEZ… > > > > - African american christian dating > > single< > http://groups.yahoo.com/gads;_ylc=X3oDMTJjaHAwNjNkBF9TAzk3MzU5NzE0BF9wAzMEZ… > > > > - African american christian > > single< > http://groups.yahoo.com/gads;_ylc=X3oDMTJjc2pva2MwBF9TAzk3MzU5NzE0BF9wAzQEZ… > > > > - African > > safari< > http://groups.yahoo.com/gads;_ylc=X3oDMTJjNzV1b2pzBF9TAzk3MzU5NzE0BF9wAzUEZ… > > > > > > Yahoo! Music > > > > Check Who's > > Next< > http://us.ard.yahoo.com/SIG=12jej1j0e/M=493064.10729670.11333360.8674578/D=… > > > > > > Discover new bands > > > > before anyone else > > Y! Messenger > > > > Group > > get-together< > http://us.ard.yahoo.com/SIG=12jovcf3c/M=493064.10729668.11333359.8674578/D=… > > > > > > Host a free online > > > > conference on IM. > > Yahoo! Mail > > > > You're > > invited!< > http://us.ard.yahoo.com/SIG=12jj6vslp/M=493064.10729665.11333356.8674578/D=… > > > > > > Try the all-new > > > > Yahoo! Mail Beta > > . > > > > __,_._,___ > > > > ---------------------------------------------- > > This message has been scanned for viruses and > > dangerous content by Jambo MailScanner, and is > > believed to be clean. > > --------------------------------------------- > > "easy access to the world" > > > > _______________________________________________ > > kictanet mailing list > > kictanet(a)lists.kictanet.or.ke > > http://lists.kictanet.or.ke/mailman/listinfo/kictanet > > > > This message was sent to: bitange(a)jambo.co.ke > > Unsubscribe or change your options at > > > http://lists.kictanet.or.ke/mailman/options/kictanet/bitange%40jambo.co.ke > > > > > > ---------------------------------------------- > This message has been scanned for viruses and > dangerous content by Jambo MailScanner, and is > believed to be clean. > --------------------------------------------- > "easy access to the world" > >

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Cable Watch
by Alex Gakuru 20 Jul '07

20 Jul '07

[Business Daily] "Battle for optic fibre cable tender starts next week Written by Okuttah Mark 20-July-2007 "The Communications Commission of Kenya (CCK), the telecoms sector regulator that is managing the process.." "The East Africa Marine system (TEAMS) is a joint venture of the Kenya government and the government of the United Arab Emirates." "The $110 million project is owned by Kenya government has formed a Special Purpose Vehicle (SPV) TEAMs Limited through Telkom Kenya Limited, which has a 40 per cent stake while UEA government holds a 20 per cent stake through a telecom company known as Etisalat. The remaining 40 per cent shares have been reserved for private investors in East Africa. Standard Chartered Bank, the lead financial arranger, is working on the modalities of bringing private investors on board." "The team is composed of experts from the Ministry of Finance, the Attorney Generals Office and the Ministry of Information." <http://www.bdafrica.com/index.php?option=com_content&task=view&id=2028&Item…> ____________________________________________________________________________________ Pinpoint customers who are looking for what you sell. http://searchmarketing.yahoo.com/

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NSE Real-Time Data
by Bill Kagai 20 Jul '07

20 Jul '07

Just to inform you that we are now authorised to stream NSE real-time trading data. Beta tests going on here; http://www.mediacorpafrica.com/live/ If you click on the [+] sign next to the listed stock you should get the bids/asks and settled trades on both the normal and prompt boards. -- -- Bildad Kagai MD - MediaCorp Limited Nairobi Stock Exchange [NSE] - Authorised Information Vendor Suite B2 Tetu Apartments StateHouse Avenue P. O. Box 20311-00200 Tel. 254 20 272 8332 Fax. Rendered Obsolete URL. www.mediacorp.co.ke --

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Kenya's state-owned telecoms operator goes mobile
by Mike Theuri 19 Jul '07

19 Jul '07

"Competition is healthy. If other people complain, they should know that Kenyans now have a choice," Telkom Kenya Chief Market Officer Bernard Rubia told Reuters in an interview. Rubia says it was "debatable" whether partnering with an outside investor was necessary for Telkom to turn a profit. Job cuts that will downsize Telkom to 4,000 employees from 18,000 by September are already realising savings of 250 million shillings ($3.7 million) a month against 1.2 billion in billings. "We should be given a five-year window to prove ourselves," he said, adding shares should be sold to the public in the meantime. ================ http://africa.reuters.com/wire/news/usnL19935122.html Kenya's state-owned telecoms operator goes mobile Thu 19 Jul 2007, 13:40 GMT By C. Bryson Hull NAIROBI, July 19 (Reuters) - State-owned Telkom Kenya is making an aggressive foray into the east African country's wireless mobile and data markets, aiming for rebirth as a sleek operator before privatisation due to start later this year. The loss-making state company, which has a monopoly on landlines, earlier this month rolled out the lowest mobile phone tariff in Kenya and stepped up advertising to bring in customers to its brand-new wireless network. That has sparked complaints from the other two mobile operators in Kenya, market leader Safaricom and Celtel Kenya, who say the state company has an unfair regulatory advantage. "Competition is healthy. If other people complain, they should know that Kenyans now have a choice," Telkom Kenya Chief Market Officer Bernard Rubia told Reuters in an interview. "And they will choose based on reliability, consistency and affordability." Telkom may seem an unlikely choice -- customers have long complained that inefficiency, corruption and monopoly control of landlines have kept Telkom's prices high and service poor, but it is now in the middle of a major restructuring. And Kenyans are quick to go for the best deal. It is not uncommon for someone to have multiple phone lines to take advantage of the cheapest rate or to avoid the steep expense of calling from one network to the other. On a trial run since September, the company's mobile subsidiary Telkom Wireless so far has 150,000 subscribers and is adding an average of 1,000 per day, Rubia said. "Our target is by the end of June next year we will have hit our 1 million mark," he said adding the average customers spends 800 Kenya shillings ($11.92) a month. That is dwarfed by the 6.8 million Safaricom has out of an estimated 8-9 million users in the nation of 36 million people. BANKING ON CDMA Telkom has rolled out a CDMA network to about 70 percent of the country to compete with Safaricom and Celtel, which operate a GSM network like most mobile companies in Africa. Rubia says the choice of CDMA was to lure Kenyan customers who get irritated by congestion on the GSM networks. "One of our towers is equivalent to four of theirs in terms of capacity," he said. A second benefit is to cash in on its data capabilities, which are faster than GSM. By September, Rubia says Telkom will offer EVDO, a mobile broadband data technology. But like other Internet data providers in Kenya, they will not be able to use the maximum capacity until the country gets a fibre optic connection to the Internet backbone. Currently it gets it via expensive satellite links that limit bandwidth and market growth. Rubia says he expects at least one of two projects to give Kenya a wired link to the outside world to be ready by "the back end of next year." Telkom Wireless customers will be able to access EVDO via mobile handsets and also wireless desktop phones. The latter often serve as Internet links in rural areas where there is little or no infrastructure -- and where mobile operators say there are still huge untapped profits in Africa. The government wants to sell a 51 percent stake in Telkom to a strategic partner, with an eye on an IPO that would eventually sell 30 percent to the public. Proposals are due to be opened by early November. Rubia says it was "debatable" whether partnering with an outside investor was necessary for Telkom to turn a profit. Job cuts that will downsize Telkom to 4,000 employees from 18,000 by September are already realising savings of 250 million shillings ($3.7 million) a month against 1.2 billion in billings. "We should be given a five-year window to prove ourselves," he said, adding shares should be sold to the public in the meantime.

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Useful information on your response to earthquakes
by Fatma Bashir 19 Jul '07

19 Jul '07

You may find this useful. <<TRIANGLE OF LIFE.doc>> ---------------------------------------------- This message has been scanned for viruses and dangerous content by Jambo MailScanner, and is believed to be clean. --------------------------------------------- "easy access to the world"

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