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[Fwd: An educational event to transform your organisation]
by alice 07 Apr '07

07 Apr '07

*Diary Notification* * * *Event: *The African Satellite & Wireless Broadband Conference (SatWiBB Africa) & African VoIP Forum * * *Location: *Safari Park Hotel, Nairobi** *Dates: * 1-8 June 2007 (Exhibition 5-7 June) * * *Description: * Satellites still provide a communications lifeline for a large proportion of Africa’s internal and external traffic. And wireless broadband technologies are increasingly providing the continent’s intermediate and last mile links. SatWiBB Africa is the first conference to cover both ends of this increasingly integrated and converging communications paradigm. Satellite and wireless communications and VoIP are not just IT topics – they go to the heart of every organisation’s culture, processes and productivity. This convergence event brings together the latest in wireless network and mobile device applications that can help enterprises reduce costs and improve business practices. And a three-day specialised exhibition that is part of the event will showcase the latest and demonstrate the best ways to cost, plan and deploy technologies such as Wi-Fi, WiMAX, 3G, and VoIP. * Wireless Cities Masterclass, by Paul Munnery, head of Wireless Digital Cities in the UK; * Wireless Security Strategies, by Maiendra Moodley, Technical Security Advisor at the South African Reserve Bank; * An interactive workshop for corporate users, will provide a detailed introduction to VoIP, by a leading expert from Nigeria, Sunday Folayan, MD of Skannet Nigeria; * Survival strategies for Telcos, ISPs & Cyber Cafes, by Russell Southwood, CEO of Balancing Act, UK. The wide-ranging event programme will be as follows: *Friday * *1 June* *Monday * *4 June* *Tuesday * *5 June* *Wednesday * *6 June* *Thursday * *7 June* *Friday * *8 June* *Morning* Masterclass: Wireless Security Strategies African CDMA Showcase SatWiBB Conference SatWiBB Conference VoIP Forum Workshop: VoIP for Corporate Users *Afternoon* Masterclass: Wireless Cities Workshop: Survival Strategies for Telcos & ISPs EXHIBITION (9am – 6pm) Top-level executives from equipment suppliers, telecom operators and ISPs will share knowledge with delegates as they debate strategy, policies and implementation techniques.** * * *Delegate fees:* SatWiBB Conference $540 CDMA Showcase: Free by invitation Wireless Security Masterclass $350 Wireless Cities Masterclass: $240 VoIP Forum: $450 VoIP for Corporate Users Workshop: $240 Survival Strategies for Telcos & ISPs Workshop: $240 *To register as a delegate, log on to www.aitecafrica.com <http://www.aitecafrica.com/>* I hope you can attend the event and look forward to seeing you there. Sean Moroney Chairman AITEC Africa seanm(a)aitecafrica.com <mailto:seanm@aitecafrica.com> UK Tel: +44-(0)1480-880774 UK Fax: +44-(0)1480-880765 UK Mobile: +44(0)7973-499224 Kenya Mobile: +254(0)721-845674 Nigeria Mobile: +234(0)802--0571766 SA Mobile: +27(0)72-610-7153 Skype: seanmoroney www.aitecafrica.com <http://www.aitecafrica.com/>

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[Fwd: [governance] VeriSign Raises: .com & .net Registry Fees]
by alice 06 Apr '07

06 Apr '07

When VeriSign renegotiated its domain contacts for .com and .net, many feared the company would begin raising rates. It appears as if some of those fears are being realized. The company said later Thursday that it would raise the fees for .com domains to $6.42 from $6, a 7 percent increase, and from $3.50 to $3.85 for .net domains, a 10 percent increase. The changes would take effect on October 15. ... [News Report: http://www.betanews.com/article/VeriSign_Raises_com_net_Registry_Fees/11758… 6 ] -- ____________________________________________________________ You received this message as a subscriber on the list: governance(a)lists.cpsr.org To be removed from the list, send any message to: governance-unsubscribe(a)lists.cpsr.org For all list information and functions, see: http://lists.cpsr.org/lists/info/governance

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Autoreply: Re: Tom Friedman
by kfourati＠idrc.ca 06 Apr '07

06 Apr '07

I am currently traveling. I will not have access to emails between the 9th and 15th of april and will have limited access to emails after that. It may take me sometime to reply. I will be back to the office on the 30th. Je suis actuellement en déplacement et je n'aurais pas accès à mon courriel entre le 9 et le 15 avril. je ne pourrais pas consulter mon courriel fréquemment après le 15. Il se peut que je ne puisse pas vous répondre rapidement. Je serais de retour au bureau le 30 avril

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2007 Economic Report on Africa
by Rebecca Wanjiku 05 Apr '07

05 Apr '07

Dear Sir/Madam, I am pleased to forward you an electronic copy of the newhttp://www.uneca.org/era2007/ , along with some updated information. The report was officially launched on 3rd April 2007 at the headquarters of the UN Economic Commission for Africa in Addis Ababa , Ethiopia . If you have any questions please contact me. Regards J.Max Bankole Jarrett OIC, Information and Communication Service Office of the Executive Secretary Economic Commission for Africa 00 2511 1 5 516294 ____________________________________________________________________________________ Finding fabulous fares is fun. Let Yahoo! FareChase search your favorite travel sites to find flight and hotel bargains. http://farechase.yahoo.com/promo-generic-14795097

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of ICANN and acronyms
by Rebecca Wanjiku 05 Apr '07

05 Apr '07

this is for all those who dont speak the foreign language of ICANN and the acronymsread on... Domains Explained, Part 1: Registrants, Registries, Registrars and Resellersby Joey deVilla on Fri 30 Mar 2007 03:49 PM EDT | Permanent Link In Monday's article -- Questions to Ask Before You Pick Your Domain Name Registrar -- Elliot covered a lot of ground in his list of things you should know about when picking a domain name registrar. In this series of articles, I'll expand on what he wrote and explain some of the finer points of domain names that you might not be aware of. Registrants, Registries, Registrars and ResellersThe last question in Elliot's list was Are you a registrar or a reseller? If these terms, along with registry and registrant are unfamiliar to you, read on -- I'm going to explain what each one means. Let me begin with the diagram below. It provides a brief description of each of these terms... RegistrantRegistryRegistrarReseller...and also illustrates the relationships among them. I'll explain each of these terms in greater detail after the diagram: RegistrantThe registrant is the easiest one to explain. The registrant for a domain name is the person or organization who registered and owns the domain name. If you've ever registered a domain name, you're its registrant. RegistryBefore I can talk about registries, I need to talk about top-level domains first. A top-level domain -- often shortened to TLD -- is the last part of any domain name. You're probably familiar with the generic TLDs .com, .org and .net and country code TLDs such as .ca, .de, .eu and .jp. Each top-level domain is managed by an organization called a registry, which is responsible for: Managing the domain names within its assigned top-level domain.Maintaining the WHOIS database for that domain, which stores information on each domain name in the top-level domain, such as the domain's registrant, registrar and expiry date.Maintaining the root servers for that top-level domain, which act as an "address book" for all nameservers responsible for the top-level domain. I'll cover root servers and other parts of the domain name system in a later article.RegistrarIn order to keep the domain name system working and stable, only organizations accredited by ICANN (the Internet Corporation for Assigned Names and Numbers, one of whose jobs is to manage the assignment of domain names and IP addresses) can register domain names. If you're curious about what sort of process an organization has to go through to become an accredited registrar, ICANN has a page that describes it in detail. There are a few hundred ICANN-accredited registrars worldwide; Tucows is just of them. One way for you to register a domain name is to select one of these registrars, who will electronically make the appropriate arrangements with the registry and activate your domain name. There's another way for you to register a domain name: through a reseller. ResellerIn the previous section, I mentioned that Tucows is a registrar. However, we're a little unusual. We don't directly register domain names on behalf of registrants. Instead, we sell our capability to register domain names to other companies, who then resell this capability to registrants. Hence the name reseller. You're probably wondering why you'd want to go through a reseller rather than a registrar. Two very important reasons are: Most of the time, you don't buy just a domain name by itself. You also buy services that the domain name points to, such as a website, a blog, email mailboxes and so on. A good reseller will often offer package deals or bundles comprising what they feel are the best services, just as a good retail store will carry a selection of what they feel are the best brands.Customer service. By reselling our domain name registration service, a reseller can spend less time worrying about the technical and regulatory issues that registrars face and spend more time on what's really important: their customers.One thing to keep in mind when registering domain names through a reseller: they're bound by the policies of the registrar whose services they resell. Make sure you know which registrar your reseller uses and what their domain name policies are. Rebecca Wanjiku, journalist, p.o box 33515, Nairobi.00600 Kenya. Tel. 254 720 318 925 blog:http://beckyit.blogspot.com/ ____________________________________________________________________________________ Get your own web address. Have a HUGE year through Yahoo! Small Business. http://smallbusiness.yahoo.com/domains/?p=BESTDEAL

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Business Daily - Kenya edges into open source software
by Bill Kagai 05 Apr '07

05 Apr '07

Kenyan companies have been slow to warm to open source software – the free software built by boffins who believe the world's software knowledge should be a free resource. http://bdafrica.com/index.php?option=com_content&task=view&id=498&Itemid=27…

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Africa joins thousand voices at ICANN
by Rebecca Wanjiku 05 Apr '07

05 Apr '07

Thousands of Voices Get Direct Say At ICANN 29 March 2007 Internet users from three of ICANN's five global regions will now have direct input to the organization thanks to the creation of three Regional At-Large Organisations (RALOs). Memorandums of Understanding creating RALOs for Africa and Europe were signed today by ICANN and member groups of the RALOs in a special ceremony at ICANN's 28th Public Meeting in Lisbon. The third RALO — Asia-Australia-Pacific — was announced and will be formally signed at the 30th Public Meeting to be held later this year. “This is a fantastic day for Internet users in Africa, in Europe, and in the Asia-Australia-Pacific region. The creation of RALOs gives average Internet users the chance to influence decisions that shape the security and stability of the Internet,” said Dr Paul Twomey, President and CEO of ICANN. The At-Large Advisory Committee (ALAC) of ICANN represents Internet users in ICANN. "ICANN deals with issues that are technical but hugely important to Internet users. At-Large is the place to be if you want to participate — and RALOs provide direct input to us," said Jacqueline Morris, ALAC Chair from Trinidad and Tobago. The first RALO, the Latin America - Caribbean Regional At-Large Organization was created at the 27th ICANN public meeting held in São Paulo in December 2006. Today's announcement means four of ICANN's five global regions have RALOs. The people who RALOs represent are incredibly diverse. For example, groups from Africa taking part in today include a network of journalists based in Tanzania reporting on Internet issues (JUSTA-AFRICA), and Internet Society chapters from countries as diverse as Mali, Benin, South Africa, and the Democratic Republic of Congo. European user groups participating include Internet Society chapters throughout Eastern and Western Europe, a network of science and Information and Communications Technology professionals in Germany, and academic professionals. More information on the creation of RALOs is available at http://alac.icann.org/applications/ Rebecca Wanjiku, journalist, p.o box 33515, Nairobi.00600 Kenya. Tel. 254 720 318 925 blog:http://beckyit.blogspot.com/ ____________________________________________________________________________________ Looking for earth-friendly autos? Browse Top Cars by "Green Rating" at Yahoo! Autos' Green Center. http://autos.yahoo.com/green_center/

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spanish IDN update
by Rebecca Wanjiku 05 Apr '07

05 Apr '07

Spanish .ORG IDNs Registrations Available March 3rdFeb 21, 2007 | Inside: IndustryBy PIRPrint | Email As part of its ongoing efforts to improve the Internet and ensure access for users worldwide, Public Interest Registry (PIR), the .ORG registry, will make available Spanish Internationalized Domain Names (IDNs) on 03 March 2007. The Domain Name System originally was limited largely to the characters used in English and the ASCII character set. Technical standards will now enable the registration of Spanish IDNs that use specific characters (e.g., á, é, í, ñ, ó). These characters are created using Punycode, a simple and efficient way to translate non-ASCII characters into a string of characters allowed in host name labels (ASCII letters, digits and hyphens) and back again. Spanish .ORG IDN registrations will be handled on a first-come, first-served basis. Spanish IDNs registered during the first 30 days of operation—specifically between 19:00 UTC, 03 March 2007 and 19:00 UTC, 02 April 2007—will be placed on Server Delete Prohibited, Server Transfer Prohibited, Server Update Prohibited, Server Renew Prohibited and Server Hold. These statuses will remain in effect until 02 May 2007 to allow intellectual property interests to file dispute resolution actions, if warranted. “With more than 100 million Spanish-speaking Internet users in Latin America, enabling IDNs in Spanish will bring .ORG and the power of the Internet to a significant population, especially to the civil sector, that may not have had adequate access before,” says Erick Iriarte Ahon, director of Alfa-Redi and a .ORG Advisory Council member. In addition to Spanish IDNs, PIR allows IDN registrations in several other scripts, including Danish, German, Hungarian, Icelandic, Korean (Hangul), Latvian, Lithuanian, Polish and Swedish. See PIR’s Web site for more information on IDNs and to see the list of .ORG registrars that offer IDN registration. The latest copy of Public Interest Registry’s (PIR) newsletter, “The World of .ORG” and free subscription form is available online. Rebecca Wanjiku, journalist, p.o box 33515, Nairobi.00600 Kenya. Tel. 254 720 318 925 blog:http://beckyit.blogspot.com/ ____________________________________________________________________________________ Looking for earth-friendly autos? Browse Top Cars by "Green Rating" at Yahoo! Autos' Green Center. http://autos.yahoo.com/green_center/

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Internet Market Study -where is it?
by John Walubengo 04 Apr '07

04 Apr '07

The DG (CCK) promised that the above study that was launched last week would be uploaded on the CCK website (www.cck.go.ke) by yesterday. I have looked hard on their site but I am not seeing it. Could someone share an advanced copy with list? We want to start 'hacking' this report ;-) walu. ____________________________________________________________________________________ Don't pick lemons. See all the new 2007 cars at Yahoo! Autos. http://autos.yahoo.com/new_cars.html

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[Fwd: [Fibre-for-africa] Fwd: World Bank Approves US$164.5 Million for Connectivity...]
by alice 03 Apr '07

03 Apr '07

fyi... -Steve ----------------------------------- World Bank Approves US$164.5 Million for Connectivity to Make Kenya, Burundi and Madagascar More Competitive Up to 25 countries in East and Southern Africa could benefit from the broader US$424 million Regional Communications Infrastructure Program (RCIP) -------------------------------------- WASHINGTON, D.C., April 2, 2007 ¡ª The World Bank Board of Directors approved on March 29, an International Development Association (IDA) financing package of US$164.5 million for Kenya, Burundi and Madagascar as the first tranche of the US$424 million Regional Communications Infrastructure Program (RCIP) for high-speed connectivity in East and Southern Africa. The region is being held back by the prohibitive costs of international connectivity. Businesses are unable to compete in the global economy; university students suffer because they cannot access the Internet; and Government agencies cannot communicate effectively with each other and their citizens because they are not connected. East and Southern Africa is the only region in the world that is not connected to the global broadband infrastructure and accounts for less than one percent of the world¡¯s international bandwidth capacity. Asa result of this ¡®missing link¡¯, the region relies on satellite connectivity, with costs amongst the highest in the world. One Kenyan call-center entrepreneur told the World Bank Board of Directors the region simply cannot compete. ¡°To put 25 agents on the phone, it will cost us close to US$17,000 a month. Elsewhere, it will only cost US$600-900 a month¡± said Nicholas Nesbitt, CEO of KenCall. ¡°It is absolutely imperative that something be done right now to make bandwidth affordable. Otherwise, we¡¯re going to miss a huge opportunity and people are simply going to say that Africa is not ready for these kinds of jobs, is not ready for business.¡± The Board of Directors responded to the appeal and Governments¡¯ requests for assistance by unanimously endorsing RCIP, which will bring affordable high speed connectivity to as many as 25 countries1 in East and Southern Africa. The US$164.5 million first tranche of funding consists of IDA credits in the amount of US$114.4 million to Kenya and US$30 million to Madagascar, and an IDA grant in the amount of US$20.1 million to Burundi. RCIP is an innovative example of the emphasis on regional integration, which accounts for more than 10% of total World Bank support to Africa. ¡°Improving broadband connectivity will add tremendous public value for Africa. Low cost, high quality communications is essential for economic competitiveness¡± said Paul Wolfowitz, President of the World Bank Group. ¡°Africa is becoming more plugged in - this is very encouraging for the continent. Our partner countries are sending a strong signal to the world that they are open for business and ready to leap into the information age.¡± RCIP financing of terrestrial networks will be a catalyst to attract and maximize private sector investment in telecommunications infrastructure. RCIP complements regional undersea cable initiatives, such as the Eastern Africa Submarine Cable System (EASSy) developed by telecommunications operators with support from the International Finance Corporation (IFC) and other development partners. By the end of the Program, it is expected that all capitals and major cities in East and Southern Africa would be linked to competitively priced high-bandwidth connectivity. This will equip Africa to trade on a level playing field, extend education beyond the classrooms, and accelerate good governance. ### To watch the RCIP video presented to the World Bank Board of Directors, visit www.worldbank.org/rcip/video <http://www.worldbank.org/rcip/video> For information on the Africa Regional Communications Infrastructure Program, visit www.worldbank.org/rcip <http://www.worldbank.org/rcip> For more information on the World Bank in Africa, visit www.worldbank.org/africa <http://www.worldbank.org/africa> Background Information The World Bank Group¡¯s Work on Information and Communication Technologies (ICT) The World Bank RCIP initiative to leverage private sector investment in terrestrial networks and the IFC support to the private sector-led EASSy submarine cable are part of a broader joint World Bank/IFC effort to address connectivity issues and promote private sector participation in Africa. For the past decade, the World Bank has focused on partnering with Governments to deepen reforms and improve the investment climate for private sector participation in the telecommunications sector. The World Bank endorses private competition in a level playing field environment, and is currently partnering with 30 countries in Sub-Saharan Africa in this area. The IFC is an early financier and investor in Africa-based telecommunications private sector operators who have now become regional leaders. The IFC is currently a direct or indirect financier for private sector telecommunications operators in 25 countries in Sub-Saharan Africa and has in the recent years mobilized close to US$1 billion for the sector. These efforts have played a role in creatinga demonstration effect, which, coupled with positive changes in the investment environment, has contributed to changing the perception of investors towards Africa, who are now attempting to replicate this success in other infrastructure and business areas. *** NO LONGER INTERESTED IN RECEIVING THESE UPDATES? *** Please reply to this message with 'unsubscribe' in the subject line to be removed from this distribution list. -- Steve Song <ssong(a)idrc.ca> Manager ICT4D Africa Programs http://www.connectivityafrica.org http://www.idrc.ca/acacia International Development Research Centre Tel. +1 613 236 6163 x2268 Mobile: +1 613 302 8233 Skype: steve_l_song _______________________________________________ Fibre-for-africa mailing list Fibre-for-africa(a)lists.apc.org http://lists.apc.org/cgi-bin/mailman/listinfo/fibre-for-africa

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