- KICTANet - KICTANet

Fwd: SV: [Fibre-for-africa] Connectivity: What does Africa really need?
by Eric Osiakwan 16 Oct '07

16 Oct '07

Begin forwarded message: > From: "Anders Comstedt" <anders(a)ssvl.kth.se> > Date: 16 October 2007 14:26:53 GMT+03:00 > To: "'APC - Private list for use by EASSY Workshop Participants'" > <fibre-for-africa(a)lists.apc.org> > Subject: SV: [Fibre-for-africa] Connectivity: What does Africa > really need? > Reply-To: APC - Private list for use by EASSY Workshop Participants > <fibre-for-africa(a)lists.apc.org> > > Dear Wakabi and others > > Isn't it difficult to ask for a Marshall plan and at the same time > see how > the sector and, above all, its users are financially drained? > > PROFITABLE TELECOMS > Surprisingly there are higher profit margins in most of the > business that > the mobile phone operators have in Africa, including or excluding the > licence fees, comparing to counterparts in more open and competitive > markets. How is that? Why is competition restricted and prices not > coming > down, in particular considering the low purchase power of the > users? Some > people obviously don't want to change the ball game. > > The combined sector revenues to governments and shareholders make it a > little bit difficult to say that the sector cannot finance its own > investments, expanding footprint and new services. Actually at the > same time > even reduce user prices quite a bit. How come that the users are > not given > more choices from several competing providers? Shifting value to > much to > users, or? > > The typical licensing regime still seems, in general, to serve no > other > purpose but to sell operators a hunting licence on users, > maximising the > government revenues in the process. The scarce spectrum resource is > in many > ways used as an over inflated bogus argument in lack of any better. > True, it > is to some extent an issue and the licensing should focus on it, > skipping > licensing and all other restrictions on open market, free provision of > service. On the contrary, dominant players should be obliged to > interconnect, not being sheltered from competition. > > Why are operator investments taxed, instead of profits, if you like > to drive > investments? > > > SHARING INFRASTRUCTURE > Sharing basic, non-differentiating infrastructure at cost related > prices > turns out to be a good business proposal (like http:// > www.openreach.co.uk ) > as it is always cheaper than do-it-yourself if you have a few service > competitors using it. High utilisation would create a lower cost > base for > all operators. But it requires organisational structure that lowers > operational and political risks. What is done to lower those risks? > > Note, the most important thing in shared infrastructure is TRUST. > > Or, who would like to bet the farm on being depending upon a flimsy > operation controlled by people with no skin in the game? > > > USERS > The most appalling absence in the African telecom policy debate is > the users > and the user agents. True, the telecom sector is dominated by a > producer > perspective globally, but in places where strong user agents are > balancing > these forces we get a more reasonable chunk of the value > distributed to all > parties. How will user agents come forward in the debate? > > > The ITU > Wouldn't it be interesting to put half of all the combined licence > revenues > for the coming two years into an African backbone and global > interconnectivity fund? To create an infrastructure open to all > providers, > new or old, on equal terms. Now that is a task for the ITU! Or is > the ITU > too dominated by folks who don't want to change the ball game to the > advantage of users? > > > The document would benefit from touching the areas above. > > Sincerely > > Anders Comstedt > > > -----Ursprungligt meddelande----- > Från: fibre-for-africa-bounces(a)lists.apc.org > [mailto:fibre-for-africa-bounces@lists.apc.org] För Wairagala Wakabi > Skickat: den 16 oktober 2007 07:17 > Till: APC - Private list for use by EASSY Workshop Participants > Ämne: [Fibre-for-africa] Connectivity: What does Africa really need? > > Netters, > > The ITU is convening the 'Connects Africa' summit in Kigali, Rwanda on > October 29-30. Its main concerns are that Internet services needed for > business, government and consumer applications continue to be > either very > expensive or not available due to limited broadband network > infrastructure; and that rural connectivity and access remain > inadequate > as does the availability of locally relevant content, applications and > services. > > This paper, by the Collaboration on International ICT Policy for > East and > Southern Africa (CIPESA), outlines some of the issues that need to be > addressed for the vision of boosting connectivity in Africa to be > realised. > > > http://fibreforafrica.net/main.shtml?x=5236108&als[MYALIAS6]=Joining > %20the%2 > 0dots&als[select]=4051582 > > > Wakabi > > _______________________________________________ > Fibre-for-africa mailing list > Fibre-for-africa(a)lists.apc.org > http://lists.apc.org/cgi-bin/mailman/listinfo/fibre-for-africa > > _______________________________________________ > Fibre-for-africa mailing list > Fibre-for-africa(a)lists.apc.org > http://lists.apc.org/cgi-bin/mailman/listinfo/fibre-for-africa > Eric M.K Osiakwan Executive Secretary AfrISPA (www.afrispa.org) Tel: + 233.21.258800 ext 2031 Fax: + 233.21.258811 Cell: + 233.244.386792 Handle: eosiakwan Snail Mail: Pmb 208, Accra-North Office: BusyInternet - 42 Ring Road Central, Accra-North Blog: http://blogs.law.harvard.edu/eric/ Slang: "Tomorrow Now"

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[Fwd: [AfrICANN-discuss] My Name, My Language, My Internet]
by alice 15 Oct '07

15 Oct '07

My Name, My Language, My Internet: IDN Test Goes Live ICANN launches global test of Internationalized Domain Names 15 October 2007 <http://www.icann.org/announcements/photos/idn-tshirts-600x430-15oct07.jpg> ICANN is celebrating the ability of people to get "My name, My Language. My Internet" wiki pages with the launch of the IDN evaluation with T-Shirts displaying example.test in the 11 languages. *MARINA DEL REY, Calif.*: Internet users around the globe can now experiment with their name in their language on their Internet with today's launch of the Internet Corporation for Assigned Names and Numbers live testing of Internationalized Domain Names in 11 languages. "This is one of the most exciting times yet in the development of IDNs," said Dr Paul Twomey, ICANN's President and CEO. "Internet users who speak the 11 languages of the test can play a key role in testing how IDNs operate, and help us move toward full implementation for all the languages of the world." Internet users around the globe can now to access wiki pages with the domain name example.test in the 11 test languages -- Arabic, Persian, Chinese (simplified and traditional), Russian, Hindi, Greek, Korean, Yiddish, Japanese and Tamil. The wikis will allow Internet users to establish their own subpages with their own names in their own language -- one suggestion is: example.test/yourname. ICANN has also put a video explaining the evaluation process on YouTube, and available on the ICANN website. The wiki pages can be accessed by typing example.test in the characters of one of the 11 languages, or by going to http://idn.icann.org <http://idn.icann.org/>. "These wikipages are key to the test. We want to know how the URL displays in the Internet browser, if it works when you cut and paste it into the body of an email to a friend, and how all of this impacts the root zone," Dr Twomey added. The 11 evaluation wikis will remain online until IDNs are fully implemented and the first top-level domain is introduced in the evaluation language. The full introduction of IDNs will mean that people can write the whole of a domain name in the characters used to write their own language. Presently you can only use these characters before the dot, so .com, .net, .org and the like can only be written in characters from basic Latin. IDNs will change this so that literally tens of thousands of characters will be available to the world. The "example.test" labels with the associated scripts, the languages that were used for translation of the two terms "example" and "test", and the A-labels for second and top level that are inserted in the IDN TLD zones and DNS respectively. IDNs Part 2: example.test Evaluation Period (3:05) | also available at dotSUB <http://dotsub.com/films/idnspart_1/> IDNs Part One: An Introduction (4:22) | also available at dotSUB <http://dotsub.com/films/idnspart/index.php> * About ICANN: * ICANN is responsible for the global coordination of the Internet's system of unique identifiers like domain names (like .org, .museum and country codes like .uk) and the addresses used in a variety of Internet protocols that help computers reach each other over the Internet. Careful management of these resources is vital to the Internet's operation, so ICANN's global stakeholders meet regularly to develop policies that ensure the Internet's ongoing security and stability. ICANN is an internationally organized, public benefit non-profit company. For more information please visit: www.icann.org <http://www.icann.org/>. * Media Contacts: * Jason Keenan Media Adviser, ICANN (USA) Ph: +1 310 382 4004 E: jason.keenan(a)icann.org <mailto:%20jason.keenan@icann.org> International: Andrew Robertson Edelman (London) Ph: +44 7921 588 770 E: andrew.robertson(a)edelman.com <mailto:%20andrew.robertson@edelman.com> _______________________________________________ AfrICANN mailing list AfrICANN(a)afrinic.net https://lists.afrinic.net/mailman/listinfo.cgi/africann

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Breaking News- Teams Update
by John Walubengo 12 Oct '07

12 Oct '07

Without wishing to interrupt the discussion on the eRegulators, I thought it is good to know the new anticipated operational date for the TEAMS cable: May 2009. Yes, 2009 and NOT next year 2008. I attended the TEAMS public meeting at KCCT this morning and quite alot of info was shared but since I am yet to get the slides, heres is what I could remember offhead and so will stand corrected. 1. That the cable will be operational in 2009. 2. That the Govt will own 40%, Etillsat 15% and the rest is free for grabs from other Interested stakeholders. 3. That unit investment is USD 5million for a gauranteed capacity of Bandwidth. 4. That the deadline for investment is 30th Nov 2007. 5. That it will be operated by an 'Open' consortium under a company called TEAMS ltd. 6. Consortium members will be free to sell off their shares to new comers at prevailing market price. 7. Teams Ltd will be mandated to negotiate access fee for people wishing to connect and transit fees for the upstream providers in Fujiara. 7. That the objective is to deliver the initial Bandwidth at USD 500 (five hundred) per 1Meg. Maybe our local Regulator, CCK should take the initiative to upload the slides presented on their website and we shall still be talking about eRegulation ;-) walu. ____________________________________________________________________________________ Moody friends. Drama queens. Your life? Nope! - their life, your story. Play Sims Stories at Yahoo! Games. http://sims.yahoo.com/

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Day 3 of 10: What threats would face Regulators as they adopt service provision over the web
by John Walubengo 12 Oct '07

12 Oct '07

....just opening up day 3. hope all the silent participants can say something today, particularly those outside .KE, plse share your experiences... Back to the thread. It is important to say that this thread is not there to dissuade Regulators going online but rather to ensure that they would do so after taking the necessary precautions. I would imagine that once the Regulators put their services onine, they would face the same challenges or threats as any other entity that gets online. Security books would tell you that the threats would revolve around the following: Confidentiality: restricting data to the authorised person/entity Integrity: ensuring that the stored data in not illegally modified Availability: ensuring that online services are operational as required by the customers/stakeholders Non-repudiability: ensuring that e-Transactions can be tracked back to the originator We need to think like hackers here. Assuming you had the time, the motive and the skill, what would you want to lay your hands on from the e-Regulators? 1 -day on this thread. Keep your comments coming and fear not since we are yet to have e-Legislation in this part of world ;-). walu. ____________________________________________________________________________________ Fussy? Opinionated? Impossible to please? Perfect. Join Yahoo!'s user panel and lay it on us. http://surveylink.yahoo.com/gmrs/yahoo_panel_invite.asp?a=7

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Firm to build undersea cable picked
by Dorcas Muthoni 12 Oct '07

12 Oct '07

The winner of a tender to construct an undersea fibre optic cable linking Kenya and the Arabian city of Fujairah will be known today ............... http://www.bdafrica.com/index.php?option=com_content&task=view&id=3581&Item… -- Muthoni My Blog: http://rugongo.blogspot.com/ -------------------------------------------- Mahatma Gandhi once said:- First they ignore you, Then they laugh at you, Then they fight you, AND THEN YOU WIN!!!

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Re: [kictanet] Day 2 of 10: What are the Internet Opportunities for provisioning Regulatory Services?
by John Walubengo 12 Oct '07

12 Oct '07

mmhh. Not much response on opportunities apart from Nancy B. I would have imagined many of us would have something to say about how the Regulator could serve is better using the web. My thinking follows: 1. Market Penetration: The Regulator could open up an e-forum where stakeholders could openly discuss industry issues. The Regulator can then harvest alot of industry thinking from those discussion-logs and use them appropriately. They would therefore get to 'know' their customers better in order to serve them better (ofcourse some Regulators do feel they need NOT know their customers and so may not consider this a bright idea ;-) 2. Market Development: Most ICT players and consumers are concentrated in urban centers. It would be interesting to see Regulators reaching new players and consumers in the rural centers using the web. Routine services like license applications, renewals and payments could be completed without visiting the capital cities where most Regulators are domesticated. 3. Product Development: New Regulatory e-Services may arise from the web. I am thinking that there could be ways new regulatory functionalities such as monitoring ISP/ASP webographics (e.g. their bandwidth provisioning and utilization, the amount of spamming they generate or simply mapping out the internet traffic patterns in the country) So this thread like the others shall remain open for more contributions as we head towards Day 3 of 10, where we review the threats that may face Regulators adopting internet technologies in their service provision. walu. --- nancy bosire <bozaya(a)gmail.com> wrote: > 1. Market Penetration: how can the Regulator use the > Internet to be closer to you (customer)? - almost the > same as what we have > here, mailing lists and/or forums > > 2. Market Development: how can the Regulator best reach > thier EXCLUDED or ignored customers - decentralization of > their > offices/services. > > > > On 10/11/07, John Walubengo <jwalu(a)yahoo.com> wrote: > > > > Now that we have an idea of the Role of Regulators and > > their target Customers, we can begin to think about the > > Opportunites that the Internet presents for delivering > > their services. > > > > Assuming the Regulator was a business and wanted to > give > > value to their customer using the Internet, how would > they > > do it? Alternatively, you as a customer to the > Regulator > > (Operator, Consumer, Government, etc), how do you think > the > > Regulator can best serve you, using the internet? > > > > Think along these lines. > > > > 1. Market Penetration: how can the Regulator use the > > Internet to be closer to you (customer)? > > 2. Market Development: how can the Regulator best reach > > thier EXCLUDED or ignored customers > > 3. Product Development: are there new ways the > Regulator > > can deliver their old services (functions) over the > web? > > > > We have 1day to hear more contributions from your > various > > perspectives (Consumers, Operators, Individuals, etc). > > > > walu. > > > > > > > > > > > ____________________________________________________________________________________ > > Tonight's top picks. What will you watch tonight? > Preview the hottest > > shows on Yahoo! TV. > > http://tv.yahoo.com/ > > > > > > _______________________________________________ > > kictanet mailing list > > kictanet(a)lists.kictanet.or.ke > > http://lists.kictanet.or.ke/mailman/listinfo/kictanet > > > > This message was sent to: bozaya(a)gmail.com > > Unsubscribe or change your options at > > > http://lists.kictanet.or.ke/mailman/options/kictanet/bozaya%40gmail.com > > > > > > -- > Sincerely yours, > > > > > Secretariat Manager > Kenya ICT Federation > Tel: 020 4440102 > Mobile: 0721907995 > secretariat(a)kif.or.ke, info(a)kif.or.ke > http://www.kif.or.ke > > > Mahatma Gandhi once said:- > > First they ignore you, > Then they laugh at you, > Then they fight you, > AND THEN YOU WIN!!! > ____________________________________________________________________________________ Moody friends. Drama queens. Your life? Nope! - their life, your story. Play Sims Stories at Yahoo! Games. http://sims.yahoo.com/

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CALL FOR PAPERS - the 3rd annual Digital Broadcasting Switchover Forum 2008, 29 Jan - 1 Feb 2008, Johannesburg, South Africa]
by alice 11 Oct '07

11 Oct '07

Dear Colleague, It is my pleasure to announce the dates for the 3rd annual Digital Broadcasting Switchover Forum 2008, which again will be held in the week of 29 Jan - 1 Feb 2008 in Johannesburg, South Africa. The organisation of the conference has now started and we are currently looking for broadcasting experts to contribute presentations. The key areas for discussion this year include: 1) National switchover frameworks and planning 2) Dual illumination 3) Financing the switchover 4) The digital dividend, spectrum allocation and the results of WRC 07 5) Infrastructure upgrading and its implications 6) Consumer aspects subsidising set top boxes, switchover awareness, the switchover as a means of reducing the digital divide 7) Charting the future of African broadcasting including IPTV, mobile TV, high definition television 8) Overcoming the shortage of broadcasting skilled workforce 9) Digital radio technology evaluation, implications for local and national stations, 10) Protecting cultural and linguistic diversity through local content production 11) Infotainment 12) Encouraging locally produced content 13) How international financing can be increased 14) Broadcasting liberalisation in Africa I would like to encourage you to contribute to this forum by participating as a speaker, therefore please reply to this mail, including the perspective that you would like to cover at the event. I am particularly keen to have case studies as these are excellent ways of spreading information and experiences. Furthermore if you would like to support the event by becoming an official sponsor then I would be delighted to organise a sponsorship package for you, exhibition booths are available for £3000/US$6000/R42000. I look forward to hearing back from you and to building on the huge success of last years forum. Yours sincerely Matthew Matthew Dawes Commonwealth Telecommunication Organisation Direct Tel: 0044 20 8834 1575 Main Tel: 0044 870 7777 697 Fax: 0044 870 0345 626 Email: m.dawes(a)cto.int <http://mailer.eddiction.co.uk/_webscripts/emaillog.php?789c2dcbcd0a80201004…>

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Content - Regulatory, Legal and Jurisdiction issues
by Brian Longwe 11 Oct '07

11 Oct '07

Let me post an interesting case there - both to challenge our thinking as well as highlight various regulatory and legal issues surrounding content. Movie studios to judge: TorrentSpy defies court order CNet.com, October 11, 2007 By Greg Sandoval http://www.news.com/8301-10784_3-9795571-7.html To avoid having to turn over user information to the motion picture industry, BitTorrent indexing service TorrentSpy cut off access to its site in the United States. Apparently, that wasn't enough to satisfy Hollywood. According to documents filed with the court last week and reviewed by CNET News.com on Wednesday, the studios still want to see information about the site's visitors. Lawyers representing the studios--armed with a court order--say TorrentSpy has refused to hand over the data. Because of that, the movie sector wants the judge to throw the book at the company. "(TorrentSpy) took steps to make the Server Log Data unavailable for the express purpose of avoiding compliance with the (court) order," the movie studios said in their filing. "(The) conduct amounts to willfulness and bad faith." The lawsuit, first filed a year ago, accuses TorrentSpy of encouraging copyright violations. On May 29, Jacqueline Chooljian, a federal magistrate judge in Los Angeles, ordered TorrentSpy to hand over information about user activity. Part of what the judge wanted was to identify the BitTorrent files that visitors requested and the dates and times of those requests. TorrentSpy executives told the judge that they never tracked visitors' activity. She responded by telling them to retrieve the information from their servers' random-access memory, or RAM. In an unprecedented decision that drew plenty of media attention, the judge ruled that data found in RAM is a tangible document that can be stored and must be turned over in civil litigation. TorrentSpy argued that RAM is far too ephemeral to be considered "stored data." In August, TorrentSpy appealed the decision but lost. The company then shut down access to U.S. residents. If TorrentSpy had no U.S. users, then there wouldn't be any information stored in the company's RAM under the judge's purview, legal experts said. Only data on International users would be logged and U.S. courts don't have authority over them. But the studios didn't go away. The film companies have asked the judge to impose evidentiary sanctions against TorrentSpy for not complying with the court order, according to the court filings. As part of the sanctions, the studios want the judge to establish for the record that the movies belonging to the studios found on TorrentSpy's site infringed on their copyright, and also find that the site has no "substantial noninfringing uses." Should the judge agree to the sanctions she would effectively label TorrentSpy a pirate site. That would make it very difficult for TorrentSpy to prevail in its civil trial. TorrentSpy executives said in court documents filed late Tuesday that the company's reasons for not turning over information are pegged to a few tweaks made to the site while the company's appeal was being heard. Chief among the changes are that TorrentSpy stopped providing users with cached downloads of BitTorrent files, the technology favored by many for file sharing, according to court documents. This means that searches for BitTorrent files at TorrentSpy would return only links to third-party sites. Clicking on those links would not ping TorrentSpy's servers, and as a result, none of the data that the film companies are after can be found in the company's RAM. To the studios, TorrentSpy is trying to duck the judge's order. "This claim should be seen for what it is: another illegitimate attempt by defendants to evade authority of this court and the May 29 order," the film companies said in their filing with the court. Rothken denied the allegation. "The primary reason for the changes was to protect end-user privacy worldwide," Rothken said. "Web sites are allowed to evolve their technology during litigation especially if they evolve to protect user privacy. The irony here is that studios are blowing hot and cold. On one hand they asked in their lawsuit for TorrentSpy in essence to shut down U.S. traffic. When the company did, the plaintiffs complained that TorrentSpy is in violation for not supplying information under the log file order. They're never satisfied." Just how long it will take for the judge to rule on the studios' application for sanctions is unclear. Rothken said he expects that the judge will call for more briefings.

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Fwd: [AfrICANN-discuss] [Questions on the Introduction of ccTLD Internationalised Domain Names]
by Vincent Ngundi 11 Oct '07

11 Oct '07

Dear Colleagues, FYI. In line with the Internet's bottom-up policy development process (PDP), please send in your comments on the fast-track/interim approach to delegating some IDN ccTLD's (see more on this below). KENIC can then collate the input (from the local Internet community) and send to the ccNSO. Regards, Vincent Ngundi KENIC Begin forwarded message: > -----Original Message----- > From: "Mohammed EL Bashir" <admin(a)isoc.sd> > To: "africann(a)afrinic.net" <africann(a)afrinic.net> > Sent: 08/10/07 01:02 > Subject: [AfrICANN-discuss] [Fwd: Questions on the Introduction of > ccTLD Internationalised Domain Names] > > Dear All, > > FYI ccNSO is asking for input from ccTLD Registries on considering > Fast Track/Interim approach for the launch of IDNs on Global DNS, > this could happen while IDNs policy development process continue . > > Can you please encourage your ccTLD Registries to respond and > comment on the issue . > > Regards, > Mohamed EL Bashir > .SD Registry - ccNSO Council > > -------- Original Message -------- > Subject: Questions on the Introduction of ccTLD > Internationalised Domain Names > Date: Fri, 5 Oct 2007 16:12:30 +0200 > From: Gabriella Schittek <gabriella.schittek(a)icann.org> > <mailto:gabriella.schittek@icann.org> > Reply-To: <gabriella.schittek(a)icann.org> > <mailto:gabriella.schittek@icann.org> > To: <admin(a)isoc.sd> <mailto:admin@isoc.sd> , <tech(a)isoc.sd> > <mailto:tech@isoc.sd> > > > Dear ccTLD Manager, > > Below you will find a letter from the ccNSO Chair Chris Disspain. > > Please, reply to ccnsosecretariat(a)icann.org or directly to Chris at > ceo(a)auda.org.au. > > Kind regards, > > Gabriella Schittek / ccNSO Secretariat > > --- > > > Dear ccTLD Manager, > > I am writing to you, in my capacity as Chairman of the Country Code > Names > Supporting Organisation (ccNSO), about the introduction of ccTLD > Internationalised Domain Names (IDN ccTLDs). The input I am > requesting from > you is very important and your response will be much appreciated. > > At the end of this email is a Background and References section that > provides some background information and links to various documents. > > Based on work done by the ccNSO and discussions amongst ccTLD > managers in > all regions the ccNSO has taken the first step to launching a Policy > Development Process to set the overall policy for IDN ccTLDs. > > At this stage, the ccNSO is also discussing whether or not to > recommend that > the ICANN Board consider a fast track/interim approach under which > some IDN > ccTLDs could be delegated while the overall policy is being > developed. To > help with those discussions we need to find out the level of > interest in > your territory and that is why I am writing to you. > > While community feedback has encouraged the ccNSO to explore levels of > interest in a fast-track/interim approach to IDN ccTLDs, this is > the first > of many steps that would have to be carefully and successfully > taken towards > that end and it is generally accepted that any implementation would > have to > be in compliance with current policies and procedures. Some of > these that > may be relevant are set out in the Background and References > section below. > > I would be grateful if you would answer the following questions: > > 1. Do you believe that the local community in your territory has a > pressing > need for an IDN ccTLD? > 2. If so, is there yet agreement in your territory on the scripts > and the > string within the script(s) for which delegation of an IDN ccTLD > would be > sought, and could you indicate which strings and scripts are of > interest? > 3. Do you believe the delegation of an IDN ccTLD under a fast track/ > interim > approach would be of interest to your community? > > The fast track/interim approach will be discussed by ccTLD managers > at the > ICANN meeting in Los Angeles. So, it would be most helpful if you > could > respond by 26 October 2007. > > > Background and References > > In the Domain Name System, a ccTLD string (like .jp, .uk) has been > defined > to represent the name of a country, territory or area of geographical > interest, and its subdivisions as identified in ISO 3166-1, and is > represented by 2 US-ASCII characters > (http://www.iso.org/iso/country_codes/iso_3166_code_lists/ > english_country_na > mes_and_code_elements.htm). > This method of identification was adopted for use in the Internet > through > RFC 920, dated October 1984, and reaffirmed through RFC 1591, dated > March > 1994. All ccTLDs in use today are taken directly from the ISO > 3166-1 list or > from the list of exceptionally reserved code elements defined by > the ISO > 3166 Maintenance Agency. > > The implementation of IDN ccTLDs introduces the (apparent) use of > characters > outside the US-ASCII character set (for example characters in > Cyrillic, > Chinese, Arabic, and other scripts) for domain name strings. > > In initial discussions by the ccNSO members, other ccTLD managers and > ICANN's Governmental Advisory Committee (GAC) a number of policy > questions > were identified and a "Questions and Issues Paper" was submitted to > the > ICANN Board of Directors > (http://www.icann.org/topics/idn/ccnso-gac-issues-report-on- > idn-09jul07.pdf) > . > It became clear that the development of the required policy for IDN > ccTLDs > to resolve the issues raised was likely to take a minimum of 2 > years. It > also became clear that such a time frame was a major concern for a > number of > ccTLD managers who have expressed there is a pressing need for an > IDN ccTLD > in their territory. Because of this, the concept of a fast track/ > interim > approach began to be discussed. In those discussions it was thought > that it > might be possible to find a method to allow the introduction of a > limited > number of IDN ccTLDs while the overall policy was being developed. > > Policies and procedures that may be relevant to the delegation of > an IDN > ccTLD under a fast track/interim approach include: > > the IDNA protocol standards > (http://icann.org/announcements/announcement-2-11may07.htm) > RFC 3454 (http://www.ietf.org/rfc/rfc3454.txt) > RFC 3490 (http://www.ietf.org/rfc/rfc3490) > RFC 3491 (http://www.ietf.org/rfc/rfc3491.txt) > RFC 3492 (http://www.ietf.org/rfc/rfc3492.txt) > RFC 1591 and associated procedures for delegation of a country code > top > level domain (http://www.isi.edu/in-notes/rfc1591.txt) > The GAC principles http://gac.icann.org/web/home/ccTLD_Principles.rtf. > > Following consideration of the "Questions and Issues Paper", and > statements > of the GAC and ccTLD managers on a fast track/interim approach the > ICANN > Board has requested the ccNSO to explore both an interim and an > overall > approach to IDN ccTLDs associated with the ISO 3166-1 two-letter > codes and > to recommend a course of action to the Board taking the technical > limitations and requirements into consideration > http://www.icann.org/minutes/resolutions-29jun07.htm#m. > > At its meeting on 2 October 2007, the ccNSO Council launched a Policy > Development Process (ccPDP) by requesting a PDP Issues Report and > appointing > an Issues Manager. This ccPDP has been launched to develop an overall > approach, which includes finding solutions for the matters raised > in the > "Questions and Issues Paper". > > > > -- > > > Best Regards, > > > > > Mohamed El Bashir > > President, Sudan Internet Society > > .SD Domain Name Registry > > > > > Vice President, Communications & Out-Reach "African Top Level > Domains Organization-AfTLD" > > ICANN ccNSO Council Member > > > > > Personal Web : www.mbash.net > > > > > ""Life lies not in never falling, but in rising when you fall." > Nelson Mandela 1995, Easten Cape. > > -- KeNIC - The Kenya Network Information Center http://www.kenic.or.ke

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On Its Way: One of the Biggest Changes to the Internet] Internet users have key role in testing the operation of example.test in 11 languages
by alice 11 Oct '07

11 Oct '07

On Its Way: One of the Biggest Changes to the Internet Internet users have key role in testing the operation of example.test in 11 languages 9 October 2007 * MARINA DEL REY, Calif.*: The Internet Corporation for Assigned Names and Numbers will launch an evaluation of Internationalized Domain Names next week that will allow Internet users to test top-level domains in 11 languages. "This evaluation represents ICANN's most important step so far towards the full implementation of Internationalized Domain Names. This will be one of the biggest changes to the Internet since it was created," said Dr Paul Twomey, ICANN's President and CEO. "ICANN needs the assistance of users and application developers to make this evaluation a success. When the evaluation pages come online next week, we need everyone to get in there and see how the addresses display and see how links to IDNs work in their programs. In short, we need them to get in and push it to its limits." The evaluation is made possible by today's insertion into the root of the 11 versions of .test, which means they are alongside other top-level domains like .net, .com, .info, .uk, and .de at the core of the Internet. Next Monday, 15 October 2007, Internet users around the globe will be able to access wiki pages with the domain name example.test in 11 test languages — Arabic, Persian, Chinese (simplified and traditional), Russian, Hindi, Greek, Korean, Yiddish, Japanese and Tamil. The wikis will allow Internet users to establish their own subpages with their own names in their own language. The evaluation is being done in the 11 languages of the Internet communities that have shown the most interest in moving IDNs from concept to reality. The full introduction of IDNs will mean that people can write the whole of a domain name in the characters used to write their own language. Presently you can only use these characters before the dot, so .com, .net, .org and the like can only be written in characters from basic Latin. IDNs will change this so that literally tens of thousands of characters will be available to the world. "Right now only the ASCII characters a through z are available for use in top level labels — the part of the address after the dot," Dr Twomey added. "Users will be able to have their name in their language for their Internet when full IDN implementation makes available tens of thousands of characters from the languages of world." More information on the IDN program is available at: http://icann.org/topics/idn/ <http://www.icann.org/topics/idn/> Links to the wikis will be available on ICANN's website starting 15 October 2007. * About ICANN: * ICANN is responsible for the global coordination of the Internet's system of unique identifiers like domain names (like .org, .museum and country codes like .uk) and the addresses used in a variety of Internet protocols that help computers reach each other over the Internet. Careful management of these resources is vital to the Internet's operation, so ICANN's global stakeholders meet regularly to develop policies that ensure the Internet's ongoing security and stability. ICANN is an internationally organized, public benefit non-profit company. For more information please visit: www.icann.org <http://www.icann.org/>. *Media Contacts: * Jason Keenan Media Adviser, ICANN (USA) Ph: +1 310 382 4004 E: jason.keenan(a)icann.org <mailto:jason.keenan@icann.org> International: Andrew Robertson Edelman (London) Ph: +44 7921 588 770 E: andrew.robertson(a)edelman.com <mailto:andrew.robertson@edelman.com> _______________________________________________ AfrICANN mailing list AfrICANN(a)afrinic.net https://lists.afrinic.net/mailman/listinfo.cgi/africann

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Consolidation in Kenyan ISP sector
by Eric Osiakwan 10 Oct '07

10 Oct '07

Consolidation in Kenyan ISP sector The Kenyan ISP sector is consolidating, with many companies buying up their competitors and new foreign owners entering the market. Pressure on margins from the switch to DSL broadband has been one of the key drivers of consolidation. Gateway Online, ISP Kenya, Nairobinet and Net2000 were a few of the casualties of the consolidation movement taking place in the market, with most of them either running out of steam in the rapidly competitive market or being bought by larger Kenyan operations. And then, late last year, the buying started again. This time, the bigger boys who managed to survive the rout of the earlier buying spree were the target, and the buyers were not Kenyan. In 2006, a South African firm acquired a controlling stake in Interconnect, a local Internet service provider. As part of the deal, IS injected Sh300 million in fresh capital in to the ISP. "There was no way we could have continued on our own. For many Kenyan grown ISPs, getting access to cheap bandwith and financing makes it harder to survive in the market," said Tejpal Bedi, Managing Director of IS Kenya. Much of the investment, Sh100 million, was set aside to upgrade systems. The company planned to roll-out new technologies and services, hoping to maintain its share of the corporate market by offering cost effective virtual private networks to organisations. "The only way we could maintain our market was by partnering with the South Africans and diversifying our product line, which costs money," said Mr Bedi. The acquisition was touted as part of the South African company's growth strategy to gain a footprint in the local and the greater Eastern and Central African market. "We will ensure the product mix is right for the Kenyan market, by deploying our proven services in Kenya," said IS business development director Ermano Quartero, at a function to announce the deal. The company that bought Bedi's company is one of the leading converged communications service providers in South Africa, boasting a client base at the time of the Interconnect aquisition that included 80 per cent of South Africa's top 250 listed companies. A few months later, the industry was abuzz with the biggest acquisition yet. The target was Africa Online, one of the largest ISPs in sub-Saharan Africa - and the South Africans were after it again. Telkom South Africa eventually won what was an acrimonious battle for the Kenyan-born company. "With the decline of the voice market we are extending and defending our core profitable services. This acquisition fits that objective," said Africa Online's new Chief Executive Officer John Joseph. Telkom SA has plans to invest Sh300 billion over the next five years in projects aimed at gaining the company a foothold in key African markets. Formerly the giant of the Kenyan ISP industry, the South Africans took on a company that was cash-strapped and had struggled with periods of losses over the last few years under it ownership by London firm African Lakes. The situation may get worse for the few small ISPs still fighting for market share. Smaller ISPs have traditionally been dial-up providers, an industry currently being affected by a shift in consumer preference. Although over 50 per cent of users still use dial-up access, use of the service is estimated to be decreasing by 30 per cent while mobile and wireless Internet access is increasing by 40 per cent annually. Up from just under 4,000 users in 1996, Kenya's Internet market grew by its largest margins last year, and now includes 200,000 users. The cost of international bandwidth, still expensive and accounting for most of ISPs' operating costs, has largely limited more rapid growth. (source: Business Daily) Eric M.K Osiakwan Executive Secretary AfrISPA (www.afrispa.org) Tel: + 233.21.258800 ext 2031 Fax: + 233.21.258811 Cell: + 233.244.386792 Handle: eosiakwan Snail Mail: Pmb 208, Accra-North Office: BusyInternet - 42 Ring Road Central, Accra-North Blog: http://blogs.law.harvard.edu/eric/ Slang: "Tomorrow Now"

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.asia regional internet domain has officially opened for business
by Dorcas Muthoni 09 Oct '07

09 Oct '07

http://news.bbc.co.uk/2/hi/technology/7033924.stm i remember someone talking of .eac regional internet domain a while back, not a bad idea -- Muthoni -------------------------------------------- Mahatma Gandhi once said:- First they ignore you, Then they laugh at you, Then they fight you, AND THEN YOU WIN!!!

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AFNOG 2008 ANNOUNCEMENT & WORKSHOP APPLICATION
by Dorcas Muthoni 08 Oct '07

08 Oct '07

AFNOG & AFRINIC JOINT ANNOUNCEMENT, MAY/JUNE 2008 9th AfNOG MEETING AfriNIC-8 MEETING The African Network Operators' Group (AfNOG) and the African Network Information Centre (AfriNIC) are pleased to announce that the 9th AfNOG Meeting and the AfriNIC-8 Meeting will be held Rabat, Morocco, in May /June 2008. ABOUT THE ENTIRE EVENT AfNOG and AfriNIC are jointly organising a two-week event that includes the AfNOG Workshop on Network Technology (offering advanced training in a week-long hands-on workshop), several full-day Advanced Tutorials, a one-day AfNOG Meeting, and a two-day AfriNIC Public Policy Meeting and Annual General Meeting. In addition, several side meetings and workshops will be hosted in collaboration with other organizations such as the AAU and ISOC. Further information about the event may be found at < http://www.afnog.org/afnog2008/> and <http://www.afrinic.net/meeting/>. TIMETABLE Unix Boot Camp 24 - 25 May 2008 (Saturday - Sunday) AfNOG Workshop 26 - 30 May 2008 (Monday - Friday) AfriNIC IPV6 W/shop 31 May - 1 June 2008 (Saturday - Sunday) AfREN Meeting 31 May - 1 June 2008 (Saturday - Sunday) AfNOG Tutorials 1 - 2 June 2008 (Sunday - Monday) AfriNIC LIR W/shop 2 June 2008 (Monday) AfNOG Meeting 3 June 2008 (Tuesday) AfriNIC-8 Meeting 4 - 5 June 2008 (Wednesday - Thursday) Africa INET Day 6 June 2008 (Friday) VENUE The Workshop, Tutorials, AfREN Forum, IPv6, LIR (24 May - 2nd June 2008) will be held at Mohammadia Engineering Institute, Rabat. All Conferences (3 - 6 June 2008) will be held at the Golden Tulip Farah, Rabat, Morocco. ABOUT AfNOG AfNOG (see <http://www.afnog.org/>) is a forum for cooperation and the exchange of technical information between operators of Internet-connected networks in Africa. AfNOG has organised an event like this one every year since 2000. ABOUT AFRINIC AfriNIC (see < http://www.afrinic.net/>) is a Regional Internet Registry (RIR), responsible for Internet resources Mangement in Africa region. AfriNIc organises two Public Policy meetings every year (see <http://www.afrinic.net/meeting/>). AfNOG WORKSHOP ON NETWORK TECHNOLOGY The AfNOG Workshop on Network Technology aims to offer advanced training to people who are in the process of developing and enhancing an Internet-connected network with regional and international connectivity. The target audience includes senior and mid-level technical staff of commercial Internet service providers (ISPs), academic networks, government networks, or NGO networks. This workshop builds on the experience of previous AfNOG workshops held annually from 2000 to 2007 in eight different African countries, and also the Internet Society's INET workshops, held annually from 1993 to 2000 at eight locations around the world. The workshop's instructors are an international team with many years of experience operating large networks and teaching about network operations. The workshop is divided into four parallel tracks: SA-E - Unix System Administration (in English), focused on using a Unix-like operating system as a platform for delivery of Internet services. SS-E - Scalable Internet Services (in English), focused on the design and operation of email, web, and other Internet services, in ways that can scale to handle large numbers of end users. SI-E - Scalable Network Infrastructure (in English), focused on the design and operation of networks using routers and switches, in ways that can scale to handle large numbers of interconnected sites. SI-F - Infrastructure Reseaux IP (en francais), similar to SI-E, but given in French. Further information and online application form for the workshop can be found at <http://www.afnog.org/afnog2008/workshop/online_application.html> AfREN MEETING The Africa Research and Education Networking community will be holding a two-day meeting on 31 May and 1 June 2008. The meeting will discuss issues of interest to the NREN community such as coordination on activites in the region, advocacy, bandwidth consortia, regional RENs etc AfNOG TUTORIALS AfNOG will offer 1 to 2 full-day(s) tutorials on advanced topics. Tutorials take place in a classroom-style environment, and may include a hands-on practical component. Tutorials are non-commercial in nature, and most are technically oriented. They are intended to offer advanced training on technology already deployed or soon to be deployed on networking and related services provisioning for ISP operations. 9th AfNOG MEETING The 9th AfNOG meeting will be held in Rabat, Morocco, on 3 June 2008. AfNOG conferences provide a forum for the coordination and dissemination of technical information related to backbone/enterprise networking technologies and operational practices. The meetings are informal, with an emphasis on relevance to current and future African backbone engineering practices. The AfNOG 2007 conference in Abuja, Nigeria, drew over 165 participants, mainly consisting of network engineering staff from national service providers, and members of the research and education community. People interested in making a presentation or chairing a panel discussion at the AfNOG meeting are invited to to submit a proposal, following the instructions at <http://www.afnog.org/afnog2008/conference/ > AfRINIC-8 MEETING The AfriNIC-8 meeting will be held in Rabat, Morocco, on 4 and 5 June 2008. AfriNIC Meetings are open to everyone and provide an excellent opportunity to take part in Internet policy discussions. These policies, which describe how Internet Number Resources should be managed and distributed, are developed by the community. The meeting will include tutorials, presentations, update on the various working groups and the AfriNIC Public Policy Meeting. The two day meeting will be preceeded by a two-day IPv6 training. The meeting will focus on the IPv6 protocol and its deployment, especially in Africa and the issue of the exhaustion of the IPv4 pool of address space. There will be an opportunity to discuss the challenges which our region will be facing with the exhaustion. Further information is available at < http://www.afrinic.net/meeting/>. ISOC - INET AfRICA MEETING The Internet Society will be organizing an INET Africa Conference on 6 June 2008 in conjunction with the AfriNIC 8 and AfNOG 9 meetings in Rabat, Morocco. This meeting will focus on technical as well as policy aspects surrounding Internet standards development and applications, with special attention on localisation and education initiatives, and efforts to further internationalise the Internet. The meeting is also expected to open discussion on Internet governance issues of importance to the continent. Issued jointly by AfNOG and AfriNIC ------ AfNOG 2008 WORKSHOP ON NETWORK TECHNOLOGY - APPLICATION FOR ADMISSION Please see < http://www.afnog.org/afnog2008/workshop/> for information about the AfNOG 2008 Workshop on Network Technology. If you have questions regarding this announcement and application, they may be addressed to: < workshopinfo08(a)afnog.org <http://mail.openworld.co.ke/src/compose.php?send_to=workshopinfo08%40afnog.…>> WHERE TO APPLY - You can fill in an application on line, at < http://www.afnog.org/afnog2008/workshop/online_application.html> - You can download a copy of the application form from < http://www.afnog.org/afnog2008/workshop/application-form.txt>, or request a copy via email to <applications08(a)afnog.org <http://mail.openworld.co.ke/src/compose.php?send_to=applications08%40afnog.…>>. Then fill it in off-line, and email it to <workshop-apply08(a)afnog.org <http://mail.openworld.co.ke/src/compose.php?send_to=workshop-apply08%40afno…>>. The "Subject" line of the message should contain your surname or family name in the following format: Subject: AfNOG Workshop Application: <your-family-name> WHEN TO APPLY Application forms must be submitted no later than 7 December 2007. Applicants will be notified of their acceptance to the program and the amount of financial aid available (if any) on or about 31st January 2008. INFORMATION TO BE INCLUDED ON YOUR APPLICATION Please ensure that all of the contact information you submit is and accurate, or we will not be able to contact you. Please give detailed answers to the questions about your work and your experience. If your are applying for financial assistance from AfNOG, please do not forget to answer the questions about other funding sources available to you. A. PERSONAL DATA FAMILY NAME (LAST NAME, SURNAME) ONLY: Full Name: Employer/Organization Position/Title: Business Address: Business Telephone: Alternate Telephone: E-mail address: Fax: Date of birth: Nationality: Name as it appears on passport or other travel document: Passport number: Country issuing passport: Date passport was issued: Date of passport expiration: Knowledge of English /French: Please rate your knowledge in these categories: Listening/comprehension: minimal / fair / good / excellent Reading: minimal / fair / good / excellent Speaking: minimal / fair / good / excellent Writing: minimal / fair / good / excellent Please indicate with an asterisk (*) the most reliable addresses and telephone/fax numbers above which can be used to reach you. B. COURSE OF INSTRUCTION Instructional track applied for (Please select only one track; the tracks will run concurrently): [ ] SA-E - UNIX SYSTEM ADMINISTRATION [ ] SS-E- SCALABLE INTERNET SERVICES [ ] SI-E - SCALABLE NETWORK INFRASTRUCTURE [ ] SI-F - INFRASTRUCTURE RESEAUX (French Track - equivanent to SI-E) Please indicate your specific interests within the area you have chosen: C. TECHNICAL SKILLS 1. Are you a UNIX user? How much have you used it? 2. Have you been a UNIX system administrator? Describe your experience (length of time, versions, etc.). 3 Have you used/administered TCP/IP networks? Describe. 4. Have you set up and/or administered any of the following? Please give details. - bind or any other nameservers - sendmail/smail/exim/postfix - majordomo/mailman or other list manager - apache/IIS web systems 5. Have you configured or otherwise managed any of the following? Details, please. - routers - switches - network monitoring - noc D. DESCRIPTION OF ROLE IN NATIONAL NETWORKING ACTIVITIES Bearing in mind that this information will be used to determine whether to admit you to the workshop, please provide in the format of your choice the following information about yourself. Please be sure that it is sufficiently clear, well organized and adequate for this purpose. 1. A description of your current employer, your position, your duties and responsibilities, and how they relate to current and future data networking activities in your country. 2. A brief description of your computing and networking environment (operating systems, networking software, modems, etc.), including the connectivity of your organization to the Internet and your country's connectivity to the international Internet. 3a. Scope of your institution (check all categories that apply): [ ] Commercial Network Provider [ ] Academic Network Provider [ ] NGO Network Provider [ ] Other (Specify)______________ 3b. Approximate number of full time staff at your institution:________ 4. How your training and current work prepare and qualify you for the track you wish to attend. 5. How you expect to use the knowledge you gain at the workshop after you return to your country. 6. If you have previously attended AfNOG/INET Workshops for Developing Countries, a. Year and track you attended: b. A precise description of how you have used the training you have received in the past: c. The significant advances in networking which have occurred in your country specifically because of your knowledge and effort: E. FINANCIAL INFORMATION Your application must contain the following complete information if you wish to be considered for financial support to attend the workshop. The Workshop fee is US$1,600. This includes accommodation and meals. Applicants are usually expected to provide their own funding (from whatever sources). However AfNOG or its sponsors may make a limited financial assistance available to deserving candidates. Even if you request financial assistance you might not receive any, and your acceptance into the Workshop will be conditional on your ability to provide all or most of the funding yourself. Although you may be well qualified and in great need of financial assistance, the maximum funds AfNOG or its sponsors may provide is US$1,000 in financial assistance for BOTH WORKSHOP FEES AND AIRFARE. Payment for the workshop may be made by funds transfer, bank / certified cheque or in cash. Further details will be provided in the admission letter to successful candidates. NOTE : YOUR ACCEPTANCE INTO THE WORKSHOP MAY BEPEND ON YOUR ABILITY TO PROVIDE SOME OR ALL THE WORKSHOP FEES. 1. Are you are requesting financial aid from the AfNOG Workshop for attending the workshop and meetings? [ ] Yes [ ] No 2. If you are requesting financial aid to cover the workshop fee, please provide a complete list of funding sources in the following form. The list should contain all sources of funds that are available to you for payment of the workshop fee. The amounts should total U.S.$1,600. 1. Your Institution -- U.S.$ __________ 2. Your Government -- U.S.$ __________ 3. From international organizations -- U.S.$ __________ 4. Your personal contribution -- U.S.$ __________ 5. Amount you ask from AfNOG -- U.S.$ __________ (less than $1,000) _________________________________ TOTAL Income = U.S.$1,600.00 (PLEASE SELECT ONLY ONE - WORKSHOP FEES OR AIRFARE) 3. Will you need financial assistance for airfare? If so, how much will you or your institution be contributing? [ ] No, assistance for airfare not needed. [ ] Yes, assistance needed. (less than $1,000) Amount of your contribution: U.S.$_________ 4. If you are requesting financial support for airfare, please provide a good estimate of round trip, lowest economy excursion airfare between your place of residence and Cassablanca, Morocco, in May 2008. (Flights from Africa terminate at Cassablanca, connection to Rabat can be made by bus or train). 1. Airfare: 2. Airline: 3. Type of fare: 4. City of departure: 5. Source of your estimate: Signature (your name as you would sign it): __________________________ Date:___________________ _______________________________________________ afnog mailing list http://afnog.org/mailman/listinfo/afnog

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WiMAX vs. 3G cellular showdown
by Dorcas Muthoni 08 Oct '07

08 Oct '07

Will WiMAX be a 3G killer, or is it vice versa? Take a look at this nice article: http://blogs.techrepublic.com.com/hiner/?p=556&tag=nl.e101 -- Muthoni -------------------------------------------- Mahatma Gandhi once said:- First they ignore you, Then they laugh at you, Then they fight you, AND THEN YOU WIN!!!

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lunch is free
by Rebecca Wanjiku 08 Oct '07

08 Oct '07

just to be clear, lunch is on KICTANet, you dont have to worry about costs, but you must confirm with me if planning to come, regards Tel. 254 720 318 925 blog:http://beckyit.blogspot.com/ ____________________________________________________________________________________ Pinpoint customers who are looking for what you sell. http://searchmarketing.yahoo.com/

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lunch today
by Rebecca Wanjiku 08 Oct '07

08 Oct '07

hi, just to remind you about the lunch today, Jacaranda at 12.30, it will be served at the Gazebo banda regards Tel. 254 720 318 925 blog:http://beckyit.blogspot.com/ ____________________________________________________________________________________ Pinpoint customers who are looking for what you sell. http://searchmarketing.yahoo.com/

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Fwd: Invitation to the World Bank Public Forum
by Edith Adera 05 Oct '07

05 Oct '07

FYI >X-SBRS: None >X-IronPort-AV: E=Sophos;i="4.21,236,1188792000"; > d="jpg'145?scan'145,208,145";a="249671832" >Subject: Invitation to the World Bank Public Forum >X-Mailer: Lotus Notes Release 6.5.4 CCH5 September 12, 2005 >From: kmuthembwa(a)worldbank.org >Date: Fri, 5 Oct 2007 16:29:17 +0300 >Disposition-Notification-To: kmuthembwa(a)worldbank.org >X-MIMETrack: Serialize by Router on WBLN0014/Facility/World Bank(Release >7.0.2 HF82|November > 07, 2006) at 10/05/2007 09:31:11 AM >Bcc: eadera(a)idrc.or.ke > > >Apologies for cross posting > > (Embedded image moved to file: pic13694.jpg) > >

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FW: [fyi] infoDev Releases Survey of ICT Use in Education in Africa
by Edith Adera 05 Oct '07

05 Oct '07

>You may find this of interest > >FYI > > infoDev Releases 'Survey of ICT Use in Education in Africa' > http://www.infodev.org/en/Article.136.html > > (more information below) > >Regards, > -Mike Trucano, infoDev > > > >[ http://www.infodev.org/en/Article.136.html ] > >==================== >Highlight >==================== > >infoDev Releases Survey of ICT Use in Education in Africa >Results from 53-country research project highlight 'new phase' of >activity, from >pilot projects to government policy development > >1 October 2007 | Washington, DC, United States > >Landmark research project documents technology use in the education sector all >53 African countries, identifies new trends and old challenges. > >infoDev has released initial results from a landmark Survey of ICT and >Education >in Africa, which seeks to gather together in a single resource the most >relevant >and useful information on ICT in education activities in Africa. > >During the first half of 2007, a research team supported by infoDev and >coordinated by the Commonwealth of Learning (COL) sought to document the major >developments in each African country related to technology use in education in >order to create the first consolidated look at this fast-changing sector >and provide preliminary answers to three broad questions: > 1. How are ICTs currently being used in the education sector in Africa, >and what are the strategies and policies related to this use? > 2. What are the common challenges and constraints faced by African >countries in this area? > 3. What is actually happening on the ground, and to what extent are > donors >involved? > >infoDev and its partners hope that this publication is a first step in a >larger, >on-going, systematic, coordinated initiative to track developments in >technology >use in the education sector to help inform a wide variety of stakeholders >interested in the topic as they seek solutions to larger, more fundamental >educational and development challenges in the years ahead. > >==================== >Report Highlights >==================== > >The Summary Report from this research initiative notes that "The process of >adoption and diffusion of ICT in education in Africa is in transition", >finding >that: > > "There appears to be the beginnings of a marked shift from a decade of > experimentation in the form of donor-supported, NGO-led, small-scale, > pilot > projects towards a new phase of systemic integration informed by national > government policies and multi-stakeholder-led implementation > processes," remarking that "this shift from projects to policies, and the > more systematic development that that implies, would not be possible > without > the growing commitment to ICT in education on the part of government > leaders > across the continent". > >While implementation varies widely throughout the continent, and with a >country >like South Africa, with its extant infrastructure and more mature economy a >clear outlier in terms of being able to implement its ICT in education agenda, >the report finds that "all but a handful of countries surveyed already have a >national ICT policy in place or under development", concluding that a "new >phase >of ICT for education in Africa is occurring within national, and emerging >regional, policy frameworks that are providing the basis for partnerships and >donor participation." Over three hundred notable ICT in education >initiatives on >the continent are included in the survey. > >======================================== >ICT and Education in Africa: > Some notable "macro trends" >======================================== > > *Public-private partnerships* are important mechanisms enabling the > implementation of ICT in national education systems in > Africa. These PPPs > take many forms: from complex partnerships between companies (Typcially > involved in IT), goverment ministries, development agencies, > schools and > civil society organizations more straight forward bilaterla > partnerships > between IT companies and national ministries of education. > The need for *digital content development* relevant to local > curricula is > becoming more urgent as ICT use becomes more widespread. > Interest in *open source software* and operating systems is growing > rapidly in Africa, but this growth is constrained by a lack of > sufficient > human resource capacity to support such systems and applications. > A number of prominent *regional initiatives* have emerged (with varying > degrees of success) explicitly focused on ICT use in education, > including > NEPAD e-Schools, SchoolNet Africa, and the African Virtual University, > complemented by increasing African participation in global ICT in > education programmes. > *National Research and Education Networks (NRENs)* are slowly emerging, > especially in North, East and Southern Africa, to enable collaboration > between universities. > *Internet connectivity* remains a major challenge, both within > countries, > and between Africa and the rest of the world, and several major > initiatives are emerging to help address this issue. > *Wireless networks* are developing rapidly throughout the > continent, and > of increasing relevance to the education sector. > >======================================== >Coming Soon: 53 Country Reports >======================================== > >infoDev will also be releasing the working versions of 53 individual Country >Reports developed as a result of this survey process. These reports should be >seen as ?snapshots? that were current at the time they were taken during the >first half of 2007. It is expected that certain facts and figures presented in >some of the Country Reports may become dated very quickly; ICT use in >education >is at a particularly dynamic stage in Africa, and there are new >developments and >announcements happening on a daily basis somewhere on the continent. > >The country reports pay particular attention to the following themes: > ICT Policies for Education > ICT Infrastructure for Education > ICT Activities and Initiatives in Higher Education > ICT Activities and Initiatives in Primary and Secondary Schools > ICT Activities and Initiatives in Non-formal Education > Gender Equity and ICT in Education > Factors Enabling and Constraining ICT Use in Education > >It is anticipated that these reports will serve as the building block for an >on-line database (in a wiki format) that will be updated collaboratively over >time, to be released later in the year. As such, all individual country >reports >are considered to be evolving "works-in-progress". > >======================================== >For more information >======================================== > > The full version of the Survey of ICT and Education in Africa: A Summary > Report Based on 53 Country Surveys, is available at > infodev.org/en/Publication.353.html. > The working versions of the Survey of ICT and Education in Africa: 53 > Country > Reports will be available in one consolidated document at > infodev.org/en/Publication.354.html. Individual versions of the country > reports will appear in wiki format later this year on the infoDev web > site. > infoDev and COL recently released The NEPAD e-Schools Demonstration > Project: > A Work in Progress (A Public Report), which highlights lessons learned to > date from the pan-African, public-private partnership to introduce ICTs in > education and is available for download at > infodev.org/en/Publication.355.html > infoDev is completing a similar survey of ICT use in education in > the Caribbean; background information on this project can be found at > infodev.org/ict4edu-Caribbean. > > Survey of ICT and Education in Africa > A Summary Report, Based on 53 Country Surveys

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Safaricom share sale on as court case flops
by alice 05 Oct '07

05 Oct '07

Safaricom share sale on as court case flops Published on October 4, 2007, 12:00 am By Evelyn Kwamboka The public sale of Sh30 billion worth of Safaricom shares is on after a judge dismissed a case seeking to block it. Three MPs allied to the Orange Democratic Movement had sought to stop the initial public offer (IPO) of the leading mobile telephone provider until the Privatisation Act 2005 is enforced. The MPs also wanted the court to allow them to file an application seeking to compel Finance minister, Mr Amos Kimunya, to appoint a date for coming into force the Privatisation Act. But on Wednesday, the judge said the case was incompetent after it failed to enjoin Telkom-Kenya, which owns 60 per cent stake in the company, and Treasury Permanent Secretary, Mr Joseph Kinyua, as parties in the suit. "Even if I were to toss a coin, it would be improper to exercise the court's discretion in favour of granting a temporary stay (stoppage)," High Court judge, Mr Justice Joseph Nyamu, said. The judge indicated that just like in the referendum case of 2005, the court would not restrain the public participation in the largest public offer. "The case before me has no legs and it cannot lift itself from the threshold stage and crawl to the next stage for the above reasons," the judge ruled. The MPs are Prof Anyang' Nyong'o (Kisumu Rural), Mr Omingo Magara (South Mugirango) and Mr Mwandawiro Mghanga (Wundanyi). But immediately after the ruling was delivered, the MPs' advocate, Mr James Orengo, told the court he would appeal the decision. MPs did not disclose material facts The Safaricom IPO is expected to be the largest in local history. The Government has said it would sell it next month to raise about Sh30 billion to help plug a Sh110 billion budget deficit for the current financial year. "It is not therefore in dispute that the IPO has serious financial implications for the country," the court said. The MPs had sought orders quashing the Government's decision, through the Finance ministry, to offer to the public 25 per cent of Safaricom shares, through an IPO at the Nairobi Stock Exchange until the Privatisation Act 2005 is enforced. They also wanted the court to allow them to file an application seeking to compel Finance minister, Mr Amos Kimunya, to appoint a date for the coming into force of the Privatisation Act. The Government, through Telkom — where it owns 100 per cent stake — has 60 per cent shares in Safaricom. The court upheld that Safaricom was not a public entity only as regards the Procurement and Disposal of Assets, but a corporate body. Justice Nyamu said he could not grant the MPs any orders because they were guilty of delaying the commencement of the proceedings against Kimunya without explanation. This, he said, was because the Privatisation Act 2005 was assented to on October 13, 2005, yet the MPs were commencing the suit only two months to the sale. "Courts of law are not involved in policy and governance issues and cannot hold to ransom public authorities and other bodies who must be allowed to undertake their duties of good public administration without undue delay," the judge said. The case was also dismissed on the grounds that the MPs did not disclose material facts despite the fact that one source of the undisclosed information was available in Parliament. The information touches on Kimunya's request to Parliament for the approval of the list of the Privatisation Commission directors. "There was nothing to stop the applicants from seeking an order for the information to be provided at the threshold stage," said the judge. No foul play Justice Nyamu took issue with the MPs, saying some of them served in parliamentary committees that must have taken part in the passage of the Privatisation Act 2005. "In a rigid separation of powers regime, they should not be allowed to again have a second bite at the sherry," he said in a 69-page ruling. He said it was absurd for the MPs to suggest that public companies be restrained from selling their shares. He saw no problem with this provided the sale complied with the Memorandum of Articles of Association and other provisions of the Companies Act. On the issue of the minister refusing to appoint a date when the Act would be enforced, the court said Parliament gave Kimunya the discretion to determine or appoint a commencement date. "What the minister has done or is in the process of doing cannot be said to be unreasonable and in my finding, it is well within his discretion," said Justice Nyamu. By way of an affidavit, Kimunya demonstrated to the court that he was trying to put in place the necessary structures before commencement of the Act. The court said since the Act had not commenced, its provisions would not regulate the sale of Safaricom shares. "The minister is only concerned with policy and the necessary on the issues of policy is done by Parliament," he said. The court observed that as per the evidence before it, the issue of accountability and transparency was well taken care of by the Procurement Act and Regulations. The court said there was no evidence of any foul play in the share sale or undervaluation, and that the intention to offload the stock at the bourse would be managed by experts. Through its advocate, Prof Githu Muigai, Safaricom had argued that the decision to list the shares was a policy decision with merit and the court had no jurisdiction to intervene. He said there was no connection between the alleged failure by Kimunya to appoint a commencement date for the Privatisation Act 2005 and the Safaricom IPO. Muigai said there was also no legal basis for stopping the sale of shares. "The applicants, as MPs, helped in incorporating transitional provisions and having made their bed, they must lie on it," he argued. On the State's part, Deputy-Solicitor General, Ms Muthoni Kimani, told the court that Kimunya had not disregarded the law in disposal of public assets. http://www.eastandard.net/news/?id=1143975467 <http://www.eastandard.net/news/?id=1143975467>

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African Connectivity Statistics update]
by alice 04 Oct '07

04 Oct '07

some interesting statistics - follow the link > > Interesting updated list of African Internet user figures for 2007. > > http://www.internetworldstats.com/stats1.htm#africa > > Note it shows South Africa has the slowest growth in > number of internet users of all countries in Africa except > Liberia! (barring a couple of tiny countries/territories > for which there is no data).. > > >

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further info about EA telecoms
by Rebecca Wanjiku 04 Oct '07

04 Oct '07

The East African Community, in its current form, was established as a partnership between Kenya, Tanzania and Uganda in 2001. Burundi and Rwanda joined the Community in 2007. The purpose of the Community is "to widen and deepen economic, political, social and cultural integration in order to improve the quality of life of the people of East Africa through increased competitiveness, value added production, trade and investment." This includes a process of integration beginning with customs union (established in 2005), moving through the creation of a common/single market, then to monetary union and finally to political federation. Harmonisation is crucial to this process. Harmonisation does not necessarily mean that arrangements in all three countries must be the same, but that they must work together in a way which promotes cooperation and cross-border trade, and which does not favour one country or its businesses/citizens over another. The EAC Strategic Plan proposes harmonisation in many areas of economic and other activity - from fiscal and trade policy to legal and judicial processes. Harmonisation of policies and regulations relating to communications is also proposed within the EAC. Harmonisation was an important part of the development of a single market in communications within the European Union - in which communications businesses from any one country can compete on equal terms with those in any other country within the Union. The regulatory frameworks associated with harmonisation have been very important in liberalisation within the EU. The study which I am presently working on focuses on options for harmonisation of communications policy and regulation within the EAC. It is primarily (but not exclusively) concerned with telecommunications and with services that depend on telecommunications. At this stage, it is also primarily concerned with the three founder members of the EAC (Kenya, Tanzania and Uganda). Important questions raised by harmonisation include the following: 1. What differences are there at present between the communications markets in the different EAC countries? What effect do these have? What would be the effect of removing them? 2. What are the main problems with current policy and regulatory arrangements in each country - particularly where business development and consumer services are concerned? 3. What effect would the development of a single market in the EAC region have on communications businesses and on consumers? For example: a. What would businesses be able to do that they cannot do at present? b. What difference would it make to consumers? c. Would it facilitate more transactions across national borders - in ICT and other sectors? d. Would it lead to the development of more EAC-wide ICT businesses? 4. What are the main (economic, social, political) drivers for harmonisation of communications policy and regulation? What are the main constraints? 5. What priority issues need to be addressed in the first stage of harmonisation? (In other words, what major problems faced by businesses or consumers should be addressed first on a cross-border basis?) 6. Should arrangements for market structure and regulation eventually be the same in all EAC countries? If so, over what timescale? If not, why not? 7. What institutional arrangements would be appropriate for harmonising communications policy and regulation in the region? What would be the right timescale for doing this? Tel. 254 720 318 925 blog:http://beckyit.blogspot.com/ ____________________________________________________________________________________ Check out the hottest 2008 models today at Yahoo! Autos. http://autos.yahoo.com/new_cars.html

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Telkom seeks mobile licence
by alice 03 Oct '07

03 Oct '07

Telkom seeks mobile licence Published on October 1, 2007, 12:00 am By Alari Alare and Agencies Any party opposed to the granting of a mobile cellular operator licence to Telkom Kenya has less than 60 days to lodge objections to the Communications Commission of Kenya (CCK). In a Kenya Gazette notice issued on Friday, CCK Director-General, Mr John Waweru, said that Telkom had made application to the regulator for the licence. "Any public or local authority, company, person or body of persons desirous of making any representation on or objection to the grant of such licence must do so by a letter addressed to the commission on or before the expiry of 60 days, effective from September 21 this year", said Waweru, in the gazette notice. Telkom Kenya has rolled out a CDMA-based network that has drawn criticism from GSM operators. Competitors argue the Telkom network works in the same way as theirs and should therefore be subject to the $55 million licence fee they paid. Telkom did not have to pay for the CDMA service as the regulator considered it a landline service, since it was originally designed to roll out fixed services in remote areas, which are cheaper to reach with wireless infrastructure. But it aggressively entered the mobile market earlier this year with cheap rates, shaking up the competition and creating a potentially lucrative business Telkom executives say make it more attractive to outside investors. "The reason for granting the licence is to enable the applicant to provide and operate mobile cellular services," said Waweru. There are about 9.5 million mobile subscribers with Safaricom laying claim to 6.3 million customers while Celtel Kenya, has about three million. The third GSM operator, Econet Wireless is yet to roll out, after being licensed and allocated frequencies. http://www.eastandard.net/news/?id=114397529 <http://www.eastandard.net/news/?id=1143975293>

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Telecoms harmonisation lunch at 12.30
by Rebecca Wanjiku 03 Oct '07

03 Oct '07

hi lunch starts at 12.30 to 2pm, jacaranda on monday oct. 8th----please confirm attendance, email me directly The main focus of this working lunch will be the harmonization of communications regulation which is envisaged in the East African Community strategic plan. What are your views on the issues surrounding harmonization of regulation in East Africa region? Regional harmonization is particularly concerned with increasing trade within the EAC, so What are the perceptions of this within the Kenyan telecoms business community? What are the best ways in which harmonization might be effected in practice. Rebecca Wanjiku wrote: > hi, > > KICTANet invites you to a working lunch to meet with David Souter, who > is in kenya to discuss various ways of Telecoms harmonisation in East > Africa. > > lunch will be at Jacaranda on October 8. > > the meeting will be ideal for representatives from private sector, > government, civil society, and academia, to interrogate all attendant > issues, > > please confirm directly with me.....off list, > > regards > > becky > > ------------------------------------------------------------------------ > Yahoo! oneSearch: Finally, mobile search that gives answers > <http://us.rd.yahoo.com/evt=48252/*http://mobile.yahoo.com/mobileweb/onesear…>, > not web links. _______________________________________________ kictanet mailing list kictanet(a)lists.kictanet.or.ke http://lists.kictanet.or.ke/mailman/listinfo/kictanet This message was sent to: rebeccawanjiku(a)yahoo.com Unsubscribe or change your options at http://lists.kictanet.or.ke/mailman/options/kictanet/rebeccawanjiku%40yahoo… ____________________________________________________________________________________ Check out the hottest 2008 models today at Yahoo! Autos. http://autos.yahoo.com/new_cars.html

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Small Internet firms struggle not to fall to the big players... and what about KDN????
by alice 03 Oct '07

03 Oct '07

Small Internet firms struggle not to fall to the big players Written by Kui Kinyanjui October 03 2007: Broke A$$?" asked an aging billboard along Nairobi's Argwings-Kodhek Road. Get connected to the cheapest ISP." Apart from its corny use of language, the billboard was fairly nondescript. It's symbolism as a monument to the evolving Internet industry was more apparent. The ancient billboard belonged to Bidii.com, an up-start of an Internet Service Provider (ISP) that challenged the both the norms of advertising and the ISP business. In its short-lived existence in 2001, the ISP managed to gain a notable share of the lower-end Internet market. It was later swallowed up by Africa Online, a much larger ISP, in a tale that is familiar to many of the service providers who existed during the heady years when acquisitions and mergers were the catch-words of the Kenyan ISP market. Gateway Online, ISP Kenya, Nairobinet and Net2000 were a few of the casualties of the consolidation movement taking place in the market, with most of them either running out of steam in the rapidly competitive market or being bought by larger Kenyan operations. And then, late last year, the buying started again. This time, the bigger boys who managed to survive the rout of the earlier buying spree were the target, and the buyers were not Kenyan. In 2006, a South African firm acquired a controlling stake in Interconnect, a local Internet service provider. As part of the deal, IS injected Sh300 million in fresh capital in to the ISP. "There was no way we could have continued on our own. For many Kenyan grown ISPs, getting access to cheap bandwith and financing makes it harder to survive in the market," said Mr Tejpal Bedi, Managing Director of IS Kenya. Much of the investment, Sh100 million, was set aside to upgrade systems. The company planned to roll-out new technologies and services, hoping to maintain its share of the corporate market by offering cost effective virtual private networks to organisations. "The only way we could maintain our market was by partnering with the South Africans and diversifying our product line, which costs money," said Mr Bedi. The acquisition was touted as part of the South African company's growth strategy to gain a footprint in the local and the greater Eastern and Central African market. "We will ensure the product mix is right for the Kenyan market, by deploying our proven services in Kenya," said IS business development director Ermano Quartero, at a function to announce the deal. The company that bought Bedi's company is one of the leading converged communications service providers in South Africa, boasting a client base at the time of the Interconnect aquisition that included 80 per cent of South Africa's top 250 listed companies. A few months later, the industry was abuzz with the biggest acquisition yet. The target was Africa Online, one of the largest ISPs in sub-Saharan Africa – and the South Africans were after it again. Telkom South Africa eventually won what was an acrimonious battle for the Kenyan-born company. "With the decline of the voice market we are extending and defending our core profitable services. This acquisition fits that objective," said Africa Online's new Chief Executive Officer John Joseph. Telkom SA has plans to invest Sh300 billion over the next five years in projects aimed at gaining the company a foothold in key African markets. Formerly the giant of the Kenyan ISP industry, the South Africans took on a company that was cash-strapped and had struggled with periods of losses over the last few years under it ownership by London firm African Lakes. The situation may get worse for the few small ISPs still fighting for market share. Smaller ISPs have traditionally been dial-up providers, an industry currently being affected by a shift in consumer preference. Although over 50 per cent of users still use dial-up access, use of the service is estimated to be decreasing by 30 per cent while mobile and wireless Internet access is increasing by 40 per cent annually. Up from just under 4,000 users in 1996, Kenya's Internet market grew by its largest margins last year, and now includes 200,000 users. The cost of international bandwidth, still expensive and accounting for most of ISPs' operating costs, has largely limited more rapid growth. Still, Kenya's Internet industry is set to grow more rapidly than ever in the next five years according to new research from Frost and Sullivan. In order to tap into that growth, Frost predicts small companies will fall to larger Internet firms. "Consolidation is likely to increase on the market between the smaller market players in order to gain market competitiveness as the Internet markets are currently dominated by a few major players," says the report. A large number of African ISPs are now controlled by large international organisations, with a few "for Africa, by Africa" ISPs. This is attributed to the high operating costs associated with ISPs in the market. "It is true that many of the ISPs are foreign owned however other major firms are still Kenyan owned. By market share it is probably 50/50," said Mr David Somen, of Access Kenya. His firm broke with tradition and sought local investment funds through a listing on the Nairobi Stock Exchange earlier this year – raising Sh800 million to fund its growth. Access has since bought two Kenyan IT firms and is said to be on a major spending spree. "We believe that with the correct incentives there is no reason why large ISPs should not remain Kenyan. There are great opportunities in the ISP industry and Kenyans continue to invest in this business," said Mr Somen. ISPs in Kenya still face three major challenges. They have limited access to investment and venture capital; there is still a shortage of skilled ICT personnel especially at management level; and Kenyans themselves need to see more local content on the net to for demand for Internet services to go up. But allowing more foreign investment is often the only recourse many ISPs have to keep their businesses running. As a result, the industry regulator, the Communications Commssion of Kenya (CCK) is said to be revising its rules to allow for Kenyan ISPs to have more foreign ownership. Also looming on most providers' radar screens is the increasingly urgent need to own their infrastructure. "My prediction is that East Africa will become a global top ten ICT hub within 10 years – we're betting the farm on the fact that this will be the case," said Richard Bell, whose largely locally owned venture capital firm, East Africa Capital Partners, took on Telkom SA in the recent Africa Online buyout saga. "The ISP industry is a "non industry". Any ISPs that aren't dead already will die – it's just a matter of time. The only business model with any legs on it is that of being an Infrastructure provider," said Mr Bell, who firm has already made three Kenyan acquisitions and one Tanzanian in that line. Infrastructure ownership issues have also driven the latest purchase by a South African firm of a Kenyan business. Technology company Altech is said to be willing to pay nearly Sh5 billion for a 51 per cent stake in the Sameer Group's ICT division. http://www.bdafrica.com/index.php?option=com_content&task=view&id=3383&Item… <http://www.bdafrica.com/index.php?option=com_content&task=view&id=3383&Item…>

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Re: [kictanet] [Kictanet] Call for Participation: AITEC's Wireless BroadbandAfrica conference 29Nov-1Dec 2006 Hilton Hotel
by Sean Moroney 03 Oct '07

03 Oct '07

Dear Colleagues, I'm sorry there is low Kenyan attendance here at our Outsourcing & Contact Centre Conference here in Mauritius, opeing today. But as you can see from my Welcome Speech, attached, I'm doing my best to fly the Kenyan flag. Brian Longwe is also here to support me, so I hope we can attract participation in the East African Outsourcing & Contact centre Conference in Nairobi over 21-22 November. Regards, Sean Sean Moroney Chairman AITEC Africa seanm(a)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 Registered as:AITEC Conferences Ltd at Companies House, No. 4698475. Address: Cromer House, Caxton Way, Stevenage, Herts SG1 2DF, UK

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