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Smart Cities Books - Free Downloads
by Bitange Ndemo 26 Apr '19

26 Apr '19

Here are two books from UNESCO on Smart Cities - Very good reads and available for free. https://netexplo.com/notebooks/ Ndemo.

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Huduma Namba Questions
by Grace Bomu 25 Apr '19

25 Apr '19

Listers, There are reports that huduma number data in Machakos County has gone missing. See http://dailyactive.info/2019/04/22/huduma-namba-data-go-missing-in-machakos/ and subsequent reports of arrests and investigations on the matter https://www.kahawatungu.com/2019/04/23/machakos-huduma-namba-registration-a… On asking around, it appears that huduma namba kits use micro SD cards which when full are taken to the Assistant or County Commissioners Office for copying (onto NIIMS?). Got me wondering whether use of SD cards is the practice across the country and the implications for data security and integrity with this method. Other questions I still have from observing the exercise is what the real objective of data collection is. It appears that most adults (with ID cards) may already have had their data in different registries related. I am assuming that this is how eCitizen and IPRS works. And then the question of integrity/accuracy of data when a person gives data about other people eg spouses. Will there be opportunity to know what data is held about me? Would be great to have this explained. Regards, -- Grace Mutung'u Skype: gracebomu @Bomu PGP ID : 0x33A3450F

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Christchurch Call
by Alex Comninos 25 Apr '19

25 Apr '19

Dear All I am wondering lister thoughts on the "Christchurch Call” Where does Africa and the South stand in these processes, how will it affect us? What principles would we like to see in such a call? (If we would like to see it at all) This is happening in the midst of so many other global events, many tragic, as well as legislative and regulatory processes/calls on/for social media platform moderation and regulation. [article pasted below] its worth following the link to watch the video too. The devil will be in the detail of the 'Christchurch Call’ By Tom Pullar, Stuff New Zealand https://www.stuff.co.nz/business/112230966/the-devil-will-be-in-the-detail-… ANALYSIS: World leaders and technology companies will probably reach some sort of accord on social media and online extremism when they meet in Paris next month. But the devil will be in the detail of the agreement they reach, suggests Colin Gavaghan, director of the Centre for Law and Policy in Emerging Technologies at Otago University. Normally, when politicians attend international summits, the text of the agreements they sign is agreed beforehand and then ratified at the meeting, rather than actually being negotiated there. The summit in Paris on May 15 hosted by Prime Minister Jacinda Ardern and French President Emmanuel Macron will be a little different from most, in that representatives from many the world's biggest technology companies, Google, Microsoft, Facebook and Twitter will be among the participants. There are clues as to what it will contain. A spokesman for Ardern said the Government wanted the text to set out "parameters or actions where countries and companies agree to take action". He also said the Government wanted the agreement to be "reasonably specific rather than too high level". But Ardern cautioned that the Christchurch Call would not amount to a "draft set of regulations" that social media companies would need to follow. She also suggested that the focus would be on trying to prevent footage from terrorist attacks being shared online, rather than on the distribution of extremist content more generally. "This is not about freedom of expression. This is about preventing violence and extremism and terrorism online," she explained. "I don't think anyone would argue the terrorist on March 15 had a right to live stream the murder of 50 people. That is what this call is very specifically focused on." Agreeing concrete steps to achieve even that narrow goal would be incredibly hard. Technology experts appear in agreement that the technology does yet not exist that could have automatically identified the live stream of Christchurch shootings as a terrorist atrocity while it was taking place and being streamed live online. There is also no need to use a large social media service, or even live-streaming at all, to distribute a video. While Facebook, YouTube and Twitter have used video and audio-matching technology to gradually rid their websites of copies of the Christchurch video, it was also being distributed by people who simply posted links to it – hosted on nefarious websites – in their social media posts. Just so long as people can set up websites and post content to the internet anonymously, it is hard to see how that could be prevented. Gavaghan cautions the more people that are brought to the table, the more "general and vague" international agreements tend to be. The risk, he argues, is you can end up with texts that are pitched at such a level that "no-one could disagree with them" but which don't tend to mean anything in practice. The role, if any, of the United States in the summit will be something to watch for, he says. "They take their First Amendment considerations very seriously indeed, and that has been a real bone of contention between the EU and US-based companies." But Ardern said the fact that the problem was "extremely difficult" was not a reason not try to find a solution and many would agree with that. Sensibly, she has also made it clear upfront that she believes the summit should be the start of a conversation rather than the end of one. The fact that it appears representatives from Google, Facebook, Microsoft and Twitter will attend the summit is also encouraging. That may be partly because they want to shift responsibility for solving the Christchurch-shooting problem from their businesses to governments and regulators. But they do appear to have recognised that the game has changed. The sheer novelty of the summit hosted by the two young politicians should save it from any risk of obscurity. If they do look at the broader issue of social media platforms being used to propagate extremist views more generally, then the practical challenges are likely to multiply. Material promoted by terrorist organisations would already be illegal in most countries, Gavaghan says. "They are quite an easy target to identify and get shot of." But the boundary between less extremist content and legitimate political views would inevitably be hard to define, he argues. "A lot of the casual everyday normalisation of racism and extremist views comes in at a level probably far below anyone's hate speech laws. "The daily output from the Daily Mail and the Express and the Sun probably does a lot more to normalise racism and anti-immigrant views than some of the really extremist stuff, but what can you do? It is not plausible to ban that.” That doesn't mean the landscape facing social media isn't, or should change, he believes. "The days when the likes of YouTube and Facebook could take the view that they are simply a neutral platform for other's people content and not a publisher – that has gone. "But the question is, what is it reasonable to expect them to do?" Stuff -- Alex Comninos

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Fwd: [afnog] Application for fellowship- 2019 Hackathon@AIS
by Barrack Otieno 24 Apr '19

24 Apr '19

Listers, Might be of interest. Regards ---------- Forwarded message --------- From: Betel Hailu <hailu(a)isoc.org> Date: Tue, Apr 23, 2019 at 9:50 AM Subject: [afnog] Application for fellowship- 2019 Hackathon@AIS To: afnog(a)afnog.org <afnog(a)afnog.org> ============ FRANCAIS PLUS BAS ============ Hello everyone, The Hackathon@AIS is an event aimed at exposing engineers from the African region to Open Internet Standards development and is co-organized by the Internet Society and AFRINIC. This will be the third event in the series following successful events held in Nairobi (2017) and Dakar (2018). Please look at https://bit.ly/2Gp8uMa to see the topics that will be covered this year. Network/System engineers, software developers, and or computer science students are encouraged to apply as engagement in open Internet standards development can help further their careers. *The event will be held on the 19th and 20th of June 2019 in Kampala, Uganda*. If you are interested in participating AND can commit to being available over the 2 days, please fill the application form. Space is limited and successful applicants will be notified and then be enrolled in various online training sessions in the build up of the event. Fellowships will be awarded to strong applicants where possible. Click here to apply: https://internetsociety.wufoo.com/forms/sspq7xj1p17m0n/ *Applications close on the 19th of May 2019.* ====================================================== Bonjour à tous, Le Hackathon@AIS est un événement visant à exposer les ingénieurs de la région africaine au développement des standards Internet ouverts et est co-organisé par Internet Society et AFRINIC. Ce sera le troisième événement du genre après les événements réussis de Nairobi (2017) et de Dakar (2018). Veuillez regardez https://bit.ly/2Gp8uMa afin de voir les sujets qui seront couverts cette année. Ingénieurs Systèmes / Réseaux, développeur d'applications, et ou étudiants en informatique sont encouragés à postuler étant donné que l'engagement dans le développement des standards ouvert de l'Internet peut aider au futur de leur carrière. *L'événement aura lieu le 19 et 20 juin 2019 à Kampala, Uganda*. Si vous êtes intéressé à participer ET que vous pouvez vous engager à être disponible pendant les 2 jours, veuillez remplir le formulaire. Les places sont limité et les candidats retenus seront informés et seront ensuite inscrits à diverses sessions de formation en ligne en vue de l'événement. Des bourses de participations seront accordées aux meilleurs candidats dans la mesure du possible. *Important : Les documents et travaux de l’IETF étant exclusivement en anglais, une bonne compréhension de la langue est essentielle. * Cliquez ici pour postuler: https://internetsociety.wufoo.com/forms/sspq7xj1p17m0n/ *La date limite pour les candidatures est le 19 mai 2019.* Thank you, *Betel Hailu *| *Communications Coordinator – Africa Regional Bureau *|* Internet Society* skype: betty.hailu | www.InternetSociety.org | *Follow Us * [image: iption: Macintosh HD:Users:betelhailu:Desktop:facebook.png] <https://www.facebook.com/ISOCAfrica>[image: iption: Macintosh HD:Users:betelhailu:Desktop:twitter.png] <https://twitter.com/ISOC_Africa> _______________________________________________ afnog mailing list https://www.afnog.org/mailman/listinfo/afnog -- Barrack O. Otieno +254721325277 +254733206359 Skype: barrack.otieno PGP ID: 0x2611D86A

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What ALA's “The Young Entrepreneurs Fund” means for African entrepreneurship
by Eric M K Osiakwan 24 Apr '19

24 Apr '19

https://digestafrica.com/young-entrepreneurs-fund-african Eric here Sent from my iPad

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Online discussion on social-economic impact of broadband in Kenya
by Mwendwa Kivuva 18 Apr '19

18 Apr '19

Dear Listers, IDC is conducting an assessment on the state of play and impact of broadband in Kenya, broadly looking at the socio-economic impact on consumers, businesses and various sectors like agriculture, education, healthcare, finance and government. This assessment has been commissioned by Huawei in collaboration with Ministry of ICT and the Communications Authority. It has the overarching objective of supporting the policy making process to develop broadband services and infrastructure throughout Kenya and achieve substantial economic impact in the economy. Other partners in the study include the ICT Authority and the National Communications Secretariat. The assessment will involve a review of the current state of play in the sector as well as gaining insights from a wide range of stakeholders on the barriers and recommendations to increasing the impact of broadband. Among the key stakeholders identified include KICTANET, from whose members IDC will seek to gain civil society and other stakeholder perspectives including real life examples of impact of broadband, challenges we face in increasing impact of broadband and recommendations on interventions needed to address the challenges identified. This will be conducted as an online debate facilitated and moderated by KICTANET from 23rd to 26th April 2019. Through the online discussion, we will also seek to understand the current state of play of broadband in Kenya, including: 1. What barriers are there in increasing impact of broadband? 2. What recommendations can counter the barriers in increasing impact of broadband? 3. How is the sector regulated and what policies are in place? How is the business environment for those who want to venture into provision of broadband services? 4. How do we create the skills and demand and use cases for broadband? 5. What local content is there and is it having an impact or not? What type of local content are we lacking? 6. How are users and businesses benefiting from broadband? 7. Any other issues. Please note that lister may add any other issue on broadband that come to mind. After the discussion, a summary report will be developed by KICTANET which will subsequently be validated during a face to face meeting. IDC will incorporate relevant findings into the broadband market assessment. Sincerely, ______________________ Mwendwa Kivuva.

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Invitation to Ai Kenya Show and tell event : Building Secure Voice Biometrics with Ryan Roberts
by alfred＠kenya.ai 18 Apr '19

18 Apr '19

Dear Kictanet members! On Behalf of the Ai Kenya Events team, I would like to invite you for the following event happening on Saturday 27th April from 9.30 am to 12.30pm: "My Voice is my password" is a term that you might be familiar with. Voice biometrics adoption is experiencing strong growth, driven by the need for foolproof security methods for technology-driven systems and the popularity of voice assistants such as Alexa, Google Assistant, and Siri. In the second Ai Kenya Show and tell event, we will be hosting Ryan Roberts, Principal Software Engineer at <https://www.cirrus.com/> Cirrus Logic, who will provide insight into the approach used to systematically train and test voice biometrics, one of the forms of Narrow AI(Artificial Intelligence). Join is for a session of discovery, demos and Q&A. Is your company offering services powered by Voice Biometrics? Are you curious to find out more on how voice biometrics algorithms work? Book your free ticket and check the full event details on <http://bit.ly/voiceAIK> http://bit.ly/voiceAIK About Ai Kenya Ai Kenya is a community of enthusiasts and practitioners in the field of machine learning and data science. We invite you to come to some of our events and see the work that we are doing. To understand us better, please have a look at this <https://drive.google.com/open?id=1BvGr3dSsshV50YxCZbnDwXUpD1s9y-Io> introduction deck that details our origin, objectives and previous work. We are fully open to any collaborative efforts that can help us achieve our goal of democratizing artificial intelligence in the East African Ecosystem. Looking forward to seeing you at at the event! Kind regards, Alfred Ongere +254705882004 Team lead, Founder www.kenya.ai <http://bit.ly/AIKPODYTB> Watch Ai Kenya Podcast <https://t.sidekickopen75.com/s1t/o/5/f18dQhb0S7kC8dDMPbW2n0x6l2B9gXrN7sKj6v 46g14W56Dx2l7fcxHKW16gGz793K_hD101?si=8000000000133214&pi=f0ec6675-7afc-4d37 -9def-1e621c6c596e>

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Dialogue on Digital Cooperation in Africa Dialogue Series
by Bob Ochieng 17 Apr '19

17 Apr '19

Dear All, As part of its global engagement process, the UN Secretary-General’s High-level Panel on Digital Cooperation, will work with partners to hold a series of in-person and online dialogues aimed at addressing African priorities in digital cooperation in the Spring of 2019. The public dialogues will be conducted through a multi-stakeholder collaboration of organizations including the African Union Commission, the UN Economic Commission for Africa, the International Telecommunication Union (ITU), the Internet Governance Forum, the Internet Corporation for Assigned Names and Numbers (ICANN), the Association for Progressive Communication (APC), and Diplo Foundation. https://digitalcooperation.org/regionaldialogues/ [digitalcooperation.org] <https://urldefense.proofpoint.com/v2/url?u=https-3A__digitalcooperation.org…> The dialogue series includes: an in-person session with members of the Policy and Regulation Initiative for Digital Africa (PRIDA) on March 29th, an in-person session at the World Summit on the Information Society (WSIS) Forum on April 10th, and two online sessions on April 18th and April 25th. Please register for the online sessions via the following links: Thursday 18 April [intgovforum.webex.com] <https://urldefense.proofpoint.com/v2/url?u=https-3A__intgovforum.webex.com_…> (14-15:30h West Africa, GMT+01:00) Thursday 25 April [intgovforum.webex.com] <https://urldefense.proofpoint.com/v2/url?u=https-3A__intgovforum.webex.com_…> (14-15:30h West Africa, GMT+01:00) Thanks and regards B.

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Vodacom, Tala bosses charged with economic sabotage in Dar
by Barrack Otieno 15 Apr '19

15 Apr '19

Listers, seems as a region we still have a long way to go doing Tech business across the borders. I hope the Kenyan High Commissioner in Tanzania who is a techie intervenes since i can see one of our home grown techies in the thick of things. Let us not wait for a repeat of what happened in Ethiopia. https://www.theeastafrican.co.ke/business/Vodacom-tanzania-tala-bosses-char… In summary - The companies and their staff face 10 charges of contravening the Economic and Organised Crime Control Act, 2002. - They were remanded, as the crimes they are accused of are not bailable. Best Regards -- Barrack O. Otieno +254721325277 +254733206359 Skype: barrack.otieno PGP ID: 0x2611D86A

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UN IGF Best Practice Forum on IoT, Big Data and AI - Virtual Meeting Today 15 April 12:00 UTC
by Alex Comninos 15 Apr '19

15 Apr '19

Dear All, I would like to urge you all to take part in the Internet Governance Forum IoT, Big Data, and AI Virtual Meeting (webinar) today the 15th of April at 12:00 UTC. The Virtual Meeting link is here: https://intgovforum.webex.com/intgovforum/j.php?MTID=m8018d13f801dfcb5ef0ce… We would love to multistakeholderise participation from diverse communities outside of the traditional IGF community. If you have no ideas what a BPF is or what the IGF is - thats completely understandable, and we aim to rectify that! More info can be found here https://www.intgovforum.org/multilingual/content/bpf-internet-of-things-iot… The 2019 edition of the Best Practice Forum on IoT, Big Data and AI will focus on trust in these concepts and their utilization for addressing identified societal challenges. Within the IGF’s remit, the BPF intends to continue to limit its scope to the growing area where IoT, Big Data and AI meet in an Internet context. Building on this BPF’s 2018 work as a starting point, the BPF proposes for 2019 to: * Challenge and review the identified best practices and complete the report with concrete and practical examples. (e.g. in the field of healthcare, environmental protection, e-commerce, public safety, cybersecurity, and infrastructure; * Identify existing and new ways to enhance trust in IoT, Big Data, AI applications and technologies in an Internet context; * Identify how AI can affect outcomes both in terms of social justice and in terms of the allocation of societal resources; * Identify how AI can complement or pose challenges to privacy and data protection as well as transparency and good governance; * Identify how IoT, Big Data, AI can contribute to achieving the UN SDGs and * Identify the impact on policies and regulations, including policy making processes of the application of IoT, Big Data, AI applications. The Virtual Meeting will require WebEX software which can be downloaded at https://www.webex.com/downloads.html. It should work on all Desktops (Mac, Windows, and Linux with some luck) as well as on mobile phones. One should also be able to phone into the meeting with a phone and the info provided here: https://intgovforum.webex.com/intgovforum/j.php?MTID=m8018d13f801dfcb5ef0ce…. If any of you have any questions about what the IGF is, what BPFs are, or how to use WebEx, please do not hesitate to contact me. Best, Alex -- Alex Comninos http://alex.africa -- Alex Comninos http://alex.africa I am transitioning to a new email address: hello(a)alex.africa -- Alex Comninos http://alex.africa I am transitioning to a new email address: hello(a)alex.africa

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