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REMINDER: LIVE WEBCAST from WORLD BANK: Global Dialog Workshop on Public Private Partnerships in e-Government Projects (June 25, 4:00pm)
by Harry Hare 25 Jun '08

25 Jun '08

Dear Colleagues, For those who will not make it to the World Bank offices for the session today and still want to participate, you can join us through a live webcast on http://www.worldbank.org/edevelopment/live Attached is the programme for your use. The slides can also be downloaded from http://go.worldbank.org/R8MULFAQQ0 Kindest Regards Harry African eDevelopment Resource Centre eDevelopment House 604 Limuru Road, Old Muthaiga PO Box 49475 00100 Nairobi, Kenya Cel +254 725 650044 Land +254 20 3741646/7 <http://www.africanedevelopment.org> www.africanedevelopment.org June/July 2008 Training Opportunities VSAT Feild Eng. 18-20 June Supply Chain Management 24-27 June Fibre Optic Technician 1-4 July Knowledge Management 8-11July Space is limited Book Now! P Please consider the environment before printing this e-mail

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Job vacancies Computer Aid Nairobi
by alice wanjira 24 Jun '08

24 Jun '08

Job vacancies Computer Aid Nairobi *Assistant Director: Africa Programme (based in Nairobi)* The Assistant Director of the Africa Programme will be the senior member of staff heading Computer Aid's growing team of ICT4D professionals in Africa. To receive a job description and application form send a blank email to assist(a)computeraid.org *Projects Manager: (based in Nairobi)* The Projects Manager will manage the full project cycle of a range of Computer Aid ICT4D projects from project design and fundraising through implementation to monitoring and evaluation. To receive a job description and application form send a blank email to projects(a)computeraid.org The deadline for the receipt of application forms is 5pm on Thurday July 10th. ======================================= APC Forum is a meeting place for the APC community - people and institutions who are or have been involved in collaboration with APC, and share the APC vision - a world in which all people have easy, equal and affordable access to the creative potential of information and communication technologies (ICTs) to improve their lives and create more democratic and egalitarian societies. _______________________________________________ apc.forum mailing list apc.forum(a)lists.apc.org http://lists.apc.org/cgi-bin/mailman/listinfo/apc.forum

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NEPAD e-Africa Commission aka e-Payment Gateway
by Lucy Kimani 24 Jun '08

24 Jun '08

We dont seem to learn!!! Why should each country for example Kenya not have its own e-payment gateway? Every time you involve third parties in transactions, you up the prices its basic economics 101 which makes one wonder "that the cost of deploying this e-payment gateway is about US$100 million and is estimated to be more economical than if each country were to design and implement its own gateway." Why is it so hard to get our act together, and amend the necessary laws so that e-transactions are legally recognized, and then let the private sector build the e-payment gateways!! In any case did anybody bother to shop around to find out how much an e-payment gateway actually costs, or was the above accepted as the gospel truth without facts? NEPAD e-Africa Commission project progress is hailed The NEPAD e-Africa Commission Steering Committee held its 9th meeting on 11 June 2008 in Pretoria, South Africa and hailed progress made by the organisation on projects approved by the committee such as UHURUNET submarine cable, UMOJANET terrestrial cable, the Kigali Protocol, the NEPAD e-Schools Initiative and the NEPAD e-2010 Project. The meeting was attended by representatives from Botswana, Egypt, Kenya, Nigeria, Rwanda, Senegal and South Africa. Notable among them were Kenya High Commissioner to South Africa Tom Amolo; Muhammad Zannah, Minister (Political), Nigeria High Commission in South Africa; and Mamadou M. Seck, Director of NEPAD in Senegal. The meeting particularly took note of the NEPAD e-Schools Initiative stakeholders conference organised by the e-Africa Commission in Johannesburg, South Africa in April 2008 and the on-going activities with the various countries and agencies to develop this project. Progress on NEPAD e-2010 project The NEPAD e-2010 Project was approved by the 7th Steering Committee meeting in 2007 and since then progress has been made on development of the website portal, the software for the booking system, and the NEPAD Africa e-Payment Gateway. The Kenya Government, through its Tourist Trust, with which the NEPAD e-Africa Commission has been working closely on this project, provided funds and seconded a person to help with the establishment of the e-payment gateway in Kenya. NEPAD Africa e-Payment Gateway The NEPAD Africa e-Payment Gateway is an e-tourism project intended to benefit the African continent by reducing the costs of doing tourism business. The project will enable African citizens and small and medium sized enterprises (SMEs) of African countries to receive direct payments from anywhere in the world in a more cost effective and efficient way similar to that used in developed economies. The objective is to bring revenue directly into Africa using an African owned and operated infrastructure that will directly impact the GDP of African economies. Dr. Henry Chasia, the NEPAD e-Africa Commission Executive Deputy Chairperson, says that while engaging in this project the commission will seek to enhance policy and regulatory reforms to facilitate and accelerate electronic commerce. Lyndall Shope-Mafole, Director-General in the South African Department of Communications, and one of the executive committee members, emphasised the importance of the project to the South African Government in its efforts to ensure that all African countries participate in and benefit from the FIFA World Cup 2010 which is being hosted by South Africa. Says Ahmed Kassam, the project manager: “The project is intended to provide African businesses, citizens as well as governments with efficient and affordable access to electronic commerce platforms; and provide each country with the ability to increase tourism and SME sector revenues without incurring the high costs charged by existing third party platforms residing outside of Africa. “The project could secure e-tourism transactions by creating an escrow account that would hold the payment until the customer was satisfied.” The project is a joint partnership between African and international investors initially targeting the tourism sector but broad in scope to cater for the SMEs in other non-tourism sectors that do not have the resources to market and conduct electronic commerce through the internet. It is intended that African entities will hold the majority of shares in the venture. The NEPAD e-Africa Commission has already signed a Memorandum of Understanding (MoU) with the Commonwealth Business Council (CBC) to support the design, development and roll-out of the gateway. The cost of deploying this payment gateway is about US$100 million and is estimated to be more economical than if each country were to design and implement its own gateway. The executive committee also resolved to convene an e-Africa Commission meeting in August, 2008. The commission consists of Ministers responsible for ICT, AU Commissioners for Infrastructure and Energy, and Human Resources, Science and Technology, the CEO of the NEPAD Secretariat and the Executive Deputy Chairperson of the NEPAD e-Africa Commission. It will be chaired by the Minister in charge of ICT in the country chairing the NEPAD Heads of State and Government Implementation Committee (HSGIC). For more information, contact: Samuel Mikenga Communications Manager NEPAD e-Africa Commission Email: SMikenga(a)eafricacommission.org Email: SamuelM(a)nepad.org Email: s.mikenga(a)paris.com Tel: +27 12 841 4523 (office) Cell: +27 725 296 769 Fax: +27 12 841 4094 Website: www.eafricacommission.org

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Re: [kictanet] KICTAnet Discussions -who takes the action?
by John Walubengo 24 Jun '08

24 Jun '08

Hey Waudo in Paris, You raise some interesting questions - which i had answered before but since the list has grown a lot in recent times, i can repeat. Your key question is whether the ideas, discussions and/or opinion shared in this space have any impact and more specifically if action is taken arising from the same. KICTAnet is a non-binding ICT Policy discussion platform for Academia, Media, Telcos, ICT Practitioners, Regulators, Government, etc. In other words, members are at liberty to float ideas, recommendations, promises, complaints without the risk of being crucified for it (only requirement being diplomacy ofcourse). Some may then argue, that the platform becomes a waste of time but the truth of the matter is that the non-binding nature presents opportunities to challenge status-quo and explore new thinking and opportunities in a non-formal (read constrained) environment. The ideas arising often stimulate self-declared action from members- some of which we never get to know about since by then the objective of 'sharing' would have been met. Nevertheless, I can tell you for sure that most of the recent activities within the ICT domain have been picked or sounded off the list. You may come across an article in the media that sprung off from the list - the user/beneficiary was a member within the Media category. Or you may find that a decision of a Telco or Regulator has been delayed/accelerated/modified after picking intelligence off the list, or a new training course or curricula created/modified arising from ideas from the list- the beneficiary ofcourse being Academia. More than that, I think it is just a great networking opportunity where new contacts are created leading to new opportunities that KICTAnet will never get to know about. That's the way I found KICTAnet when I registered 3years ago, and that's how I have been seeing it. walu, in Rongai, Kajiado ;-). --- On Tue, 6/24/08, waudo siganga <emailsignet(a)mailcan.com> wrote: > From: waudo siganga <emailsignet(a)mailcan.com> > Subject: Re: [kictanet] Budget & ICT > To: "John Walubengo" <jwalu(a)yahoo.com> > Cc: "KICTAnet ICT Policy Discussions" <kictanet(a)lists.kictanet.or.ke> > Date: Tuesday, June 24, 2008, 2:03 PM > Hello Walu - When will you have the report of your last > discussion on > PPP? And will that be used somewhere and by who? My > experience with > discussions (and this is from a number of lists) is that > some people > with possible good ideas may not be motivated to > contrribute if they > feel their views have no chance of changing anything or > making any > difference. > > Waudo > > > > > On Tue, 24 Jun 2008 01:55:32 -0700 (PDT), "John > Walubengo" > <jwalu(a)yahoo.com> said: > > hi Bill, > > > > i owe u and others this belated reply. we have in > store quite a number of > > suggested discussions planned as per the last > communication - eCommerce > > (or now ICT?) Bill, Internet Governance, Kenyan ICT > indicators, etc. > > > > the truth of the matter is that we need more > moderators so that we can > > share out this load. Any interested/prospective > e-moderator is asked to > > email me their expression of interest (forward to > jwalu(a)yahoo.com and NOT > > the list i.e dont jst hit reply since that will > broadcas/spam your > > interest). > > > > walu. > > > > > > --- On Fri, 6/13/08, Bill Kagai > <billkagai(a)gmail.com> wrote: > > > > > From: Bill Kagai <billkagai(a)gmail.com> > > > Subject: [kictanet] Budget & ICT > > > To: jwalu(a)yahoo.com > > > Cc: "KICTAnet ICT Policy Discussions" > <kictanet(a)lists.kictanet.or.ke> > > > Date: Friday, June 13, 2008, 10:35 AM > > > Walu, > > > Why don't you start a debate on the budget > and ICT; > > > vs. Education > > > vs Business > > > vs Roads/Constructions...basically ICT in all > sectors of > > > the economy. > > > > > > Any new opportunities??? at least to help us set > benchmarks > > > for 2008/9 we > > > can use to measure if we succeeded or not... > > > > > > -- > > > Bildad Kagai > > > MD - MediaCorp Limited > > > Nairobi Stock Exchange Authorised Information > Vendor > > > Suite B2, Tetu Apartments, State House Avenue > > > P. O. Box 20311 - 00200 > > > Nairobi, Kenya > > > Tel. 254 20 272 8332 > > > Fax. Rendered Obsolete > > > S - 1°17'13.8" > > > E - 36°48'22.7" > > > www.mediacorp.co.ke > > > > ---_______________________________________________ > > > kictanet mailing list > > > kictanet(a)lists.kictanet.or.ke > > > > http://lists.kictanet.or.ke/mailman/listinfo/kictanet > > > > > > This message was sent to: jwalu(a)yahoo.com > > > Unsubscribe or change your options at > > > > http://lists.kictanet.or.ke/mailman/options/kictanet/jwalu%40yahoo.com > > > > > > > > > > _______________________________________________ > > kictanet mailing list > > kictanet(a)lists.kictanet.or.ke > > http://lists.kictanet.or.ke/mailman/listinfo/kictanet > > > > This message was sent to: emailsignet(a)mailcan.com > > Unsubscribe or change your options at > > > http://lists.kictanet.or.ke/mailman/options/kictanet/emailsignet%40mailcan.… > People make a plan work, a plan alone seldom makes people > work (Confucius).

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Budget & ICT
by Bill Kagai 24 Jun '08

24 Jun '08

Walu, Why don't you start a debate on the budget and ICT; vs. Education vs Business vs Roads/Constructions...basically ICT in all sectors of the economy. Any new opportunities??? at least to help us set benchmarks for 2008/9 we can use to measure if we succeeded or not... -- Bildad Kagai MD - MediaCorp Limited Nairobi Stock Exchange Authorised Information Vendor Suite B2, Tetu Apartments, State House Avenue P. O. Box 20311 - 00200 Nairobi, Kenya Tel. 254 20 272 8332 Fax. Rendered Obsolete S - 1°17'13.8" E - 36°48'22.7" www.mediacorp.co.ke ---

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Kenya BPO Society Launches Standards and Ethics Guidelines
by Rebecca Wanjiku 24 Jun '08

24 Jun '08

http://www.cio.com/article/407415/Kenya_BPO_Society_Launches_Standards_and_… Tel. 254 720 318 925 blog:http://beckyit.blogspot.com/

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Nairobi BarCamp a resounding success
by Brian Longwe 23 Jun '08

23 Jun '08

It happened last Saturday at the Jacaranda. I arrived late (7pm) and so missed all the good stuff, but was able to catch up with some of the organisers and a few of the bloggers and techies who had stayed behind. Reading up on the updates on the skunkworks blog - http://skunkworks-ke.blogspot.com/2008/06/digesting-barcamp-nairobi-2008-ju… we have some huge potential and creativity in our midst. Of particular interest to me is the suggestion/proposal to bring a similar grouping together and gather views that will form the basis for a position paper targetting government. It would be even better if we can get some of Kenya's budding Venture Capital / Private Equity community in on the action so that they can begin to learn and understand more about the ICT/tech space.... -- Brian Munyao Longwe e-mail: blongwe(a)gmail.com cell: + 254 722 518 744 blog : http://zinjlog.blogspot.com meta-blog: http://mashilingi.blogspot.com

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Strathmore University ICT Conference 2008 call for papers
by John Matogo 23 Jun '08

23 Jun '08

Dear colleagues and friends, For your information in case you had not seen it, do take note of the call for papers at this link: http://www.strathmore.edu/ictconference/2008/index.html Pass this on to others who may be interested. Regards, John Matogo Strathmore University Nairobi, KENYA ________________________________ Strathmore University provides all-round education in an atmosphere of freedom and responsibility. This email and any files transmitted with it are intended solely for use by the recipient(s) to whom it is addressed and may contain confidential information. If you have received this email in error please notify the sender immediately and permanently delete this email and/or any files attached to it from your computer. Please note that any views or opinions presented in this email are solely those of the author and do not necessarily represent those of Strathmore University. The University accepts no liability whatsoever for any loss or damages incurred, or suffered, resulting, or arising, from the use of this email and/or its attachments. The University warrants neither the integrity of the e-mail nor its freedom from errors, viruses, interception or any other form of interference.

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Policy Issue Briefs: Key activities the ICANN community will be working on during the Paris meeting
by alice wanjira 22 Jun '08

22 Jun '08

Posted on ICANN's website at <http://www.icann.org/policy/briefs/> are /Policy Issue Briefs/ <http://www.icann.org/policy/briefs/> about some of the key activities the ICANN community is working on in Paris and beyond: Domain Name Monetization <http://www.icann.org/policy/briefs/domain-name-monetization-jun08.pdf> Internationalized Domain Names (IDNs) <http://www.icann.org/policy/briefs/internationalized-domain-names-jun08.pdf> New gTLDs <http://www.icann.org/policy/briefs/new-gtlds-jun08.pdf> WHOIS <http://www.icann.org/policy/briefs/whois-jun08.pdf> /Policy Issue Briefs/ <http://www.icann.org/policy/briefs/> are basic introductions to important areas of Internet policy development that are being addressed by the ICANN community's bottom-up, consensus based, policymaking structure. They are designed and written by ICANN Policy Staff to accommodate newcomers to ICANN, as well as ICANN issue veterans who may desire basic information on an unfamiliar issue. Translated versions of all /Issue Briefs/ will be available soon online. We would appreciate your suggestions of additional topics for future /Policy Issue Briefs <http://www.icann.org/policy/briefs/> -- /please send them to /policy-staff(a)icann.org <mailto:policy-staff@icann.org>. /Comments on the substance of these /Issue Briefs/ is also welcome and should be sent to the same email address. We encourage people to go beyond these brief introductions (if they are not involved in these issues) and learn more about the work of the ICANN community. To facilitate this, links to information on current Policy development activities are provided in the left side-bar of this webpage <http://www.icann.org/policy/briefs/>, and we have included in each /Issue Brief/ URLs to additional information. We also invite you to receive regular updates on ICANN policy development activities via e-mail by subscribing to the monthly / //Policy Updates <http://www.icann.org/topics/policy/>/ (previous /Updates/ <http://www.icann.org/topics/policy/> can be found at <http://www.icann.org/topics/policy/>). To subscribe, simply visit the ICANN Subscription page <http://www.icann.org/newsletter/> at <http://icann.org/newsletter/>, enter your e-mail address, and then click on /ICANN Policy Update/. Thank you for your interest and participation in ICANN policy development. Regards, Denise Michel ICANN VP, Policy policy-staff(a)icann.org <mailto:policy-staff@icann.org>

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Re: [kictanet] kictanet Digest, Vol 13, Issue 37
by Gilda Odera 20 Jun '08

20 Jun '08

Hi, Did I miss an email giving details of where to access the Master Plan or has it not been availed? Kind regards, Gilda Odera Managing Director Skyweb Technologies Ltd Tel: 254-20-2711446/2711760 Fax: 254-20-2713934 URL:www.skyweb.co.ke ----- Original Message ----- From: <kictanet-request(a)lists.kictanet.or.ke> To: "Gilda Odera" <godera(a)skyweb.co.ke> Sent: Friday, June 20, 2008 12:00 PM Subject: kictanet Digest, Vol 13, Issue 37 > Send kictanet mailing list submissions to > kictanet(a)lists.kictanet.or.ke > > To subscribe or unsubscribe via the World Wide Web, visit > http://lists.kictanet.or.ke/mailman/listinfo/kictanet > or, via email, send a message with subject or body 'help' to > kictanet-request(a)lists.kictanet.or.ke > > You can reach the person managing the list at > kictanet-owner(a)lists.kictanet.or.ke > > When replying, please edit your Subject line so it is more specific > than "Re: Contents of kictanet digest..." > > > Today's Topics: > > 1. Re: Kenya's new registry system (wesley kiriinya) > 2. Re: ICT Master Plan debate (pwere(a)cascadegl.com) > 3. Policy Issue Briefs: Key activities the ICANN community will > be working on during the Paris meeting (alice wanjira) > > > ---------------------------------------------------------------------- > > Message: 1 > Date: Thu, 19 Jun 2008 07:26:46 -0700 (PDT) > From: wesley kiriinya <kiriinya2000(a)yahoo.com> > Subject: Re: [kictanet] Kenya's new registry system > To: KICTAnet ICT Policy Discussions <kictanet(a)lists.kictanet.or.ke> > Cc: KICTAnet ICT Policy Discussions <kictanet(a)lists.kictanet.or.ke> > Message-ID: <575580.74948.qm(a)web34701.mail.mud.yahoo.com> > Content-Type: text/plain; charset="us-ascii" > > Security was 1 of the items I talked about. There is a thin line between > security being used as a wrong excuse not to implement a system and where > it's a real concern. > > Anyway if all appropriate measures have been taken then it's OK. As I > said, I appreciate that effort by the Gvmnt. > > --- On Thu, 6/19/08, Brian Longwe <blongwe(a)gmail.com> wrote: > From: Brian Longwe <blongwe(a)gmail.com> > Subject: Re: [kictanet] Kenya's new registry system > To: kiriinya2000(a)yahoo.com > Cc: "KICTAnet ICT Policy Discussions" <kictanet(a)lists.kictanet.or.ke> > Date: Thursday, June 19, 2008, 11:48 AM > > I would like to balance this discussion by pointing out a historical > fact..... > > Due to "security" concerns our country was held back from a liberalised > telecoms industry for years. > > There were a lot of misplaced fears which originated from blanket > generalisations of new technology and a fear of loss of control by the > powers that be. > > > When I set up KIXP at the end of 2000, it was shut down within two weeks > because Telkom Kenya insinuated that it presented a national security > risk. It took us one whole year to educate, enlighten and lobby almost > every component of the Executive in order to get KIXP re-opened. > > > Today it is considered a 'national resource' and KRA even wants to have it > gazetted so that it can receive 24-hour physical security since it plays > such an integral part of Kenya's economy. > > I am not saying that we should blind ourselves to the consideration of > security concerns, just that it is very easy to further delays innovation > and development with hyped up discussions about security (or more > appropriately insecurity). > > > best, > > Brian > > -- > Brian Munyao Longwe > e-mail: blongwe(a)gmail.com > cell: + 254 722 518 744 > blog : zinjlog.blogspot.com > > > On Wed, Jun 11, 2008 at 11:40 PM, Judy Okite <judyokite(a)gmail.com> wrote: > > Gentlemen, > > all your arguments are in place.....unfortunately we do not have a cyber > crime law in place nor a data privacy law...(subject to be > corrected)....so before we go very far.....we need to make Kenyans > understand.... > > > > 1. What is personal/private data?....very few understand that and why it > may need to be protected... > > 2. what are the implications of the data,that this, system will hold, in > the hands of a third party?...from here...we can ask for a document for > public scrutiny.....what security measures...are in place...etc > > > > > Kind Regards, > > > On Wed, Jun 11, 2008 at 1:06 PM, <tyrus(a)icsit.jkuat.ac.ke> wrote: > > > Wesley, > > I totally agree with you on this point. > > > > Its one thing to set up a system where you will have citizens access their > > details and its another entirely different thing to ensure its security is > > not compromised. Even as these guys come up with this revolutionary > > system, am sure they have security in mind and even more importantly have > > taken the necessary steps to ensuring that its not compromised. What I > > always have qualms with as you are well aware of in skunkworks, is the > > reluctance by the developers or system operators to provide room for > > Independent Penetration Testing. Granted this is not a panacea for > > hack-proofing the system but will make the system devoid of common > > vulnerabilities like what we saw in the ipo website. > > > > In America, identity theft has occurred even on their secure servers alike > > but if you look at the frequency, its relatively low since tests are > > carried out on the system very often and when loop holes are discovered > > relevant authorities are informed. > > > > > > Its a very novel idea the Government is pursuing but even as we speak > > there are notable Govt bodies whose IT infrastructure's security is very > > sketchy. If there was a dedicated body in the ICT Board to dedicatedly > > look into security issues regarding IT growth and implementation, I guess > > there would be standards set even when putting a very basic implementation > > like a web-site. > > > > Regards, > > > > "fyodor" > > > > > > _______________________________________________ > > kictanet mailing list > > kictanet(a)lists.kictanet.or.ke > > http://lists.kictanet.or.ke/mailman/listinfo/kictanet > > > > This message was sent to: judyokite(a)gmail.com > > Unsubscribe or change your options at > http://lists.kictanet.or.ke/mailman/options/kictanet/judyokite%40gmail.com > > > > > > > -- > > 'Our lives begin to end the day we become silent about things that matter. > ' > Martin Luther King, Jr. > > _______________________________________________ > > kictanet mailing list > > kictanet(a)lists.kictanet.or.ke > > http://lists.kictanet.or.ke/mailman/listinfo/kictanet > > > > This message was sent to: blongwe(a)gmail.com > > Unsubscribe or change your options at > http://lists.kictanet.or.ke/mailman/options/kictanet/blongwe%40gmail.com > > > > > > > _______________________________________________ > kictanet mailing list > kictanet(a)lists.kictanet.or.ke > http://lists.kictanet.or.ke/mailman/listinfo/kictanet > > This message was sent to: kiriinya2000(a)yahoo.com > Unsubscribe or change your options at > http://lists.kictanet.or.ke/mailman/options/kictanet/kiriinya2000%40yahoo.c… > > > >

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