- KICTANet - KICTANet

FW: Mars Group Kenya Updates - WHAT'S UP WITH THE TANDAA CONFERENCE? THE TRUTH ABOUT WHERE THE GOVERNMENT OF
by P Gitau Githongo 13 Nov '08

13 Nov '08

Different perspectives on the Tandaa conference..... WHAT'S UP WITH THE TANDAA CONFERENCE? THE TRUTH ABOUT WHERE THE GOVERNMENT OF KENYA SITS IN CYBERSPACE. Blue Host dot Com? Why would a Kenya Government Local Content Initiative be hosted on Blue Host (and only for 1 year) I wondered - isn't it one of those cheap web hosting companies - is it dignified for the GOK to be on something as generic as Blue Host? And we are talking about a USD 4 million grant. Moving on, I pondered, are there any other Government Agencies hosted on Blue Host? What I found was far worse than I could possibly have imagined. The Government of Kenya who should be the greatest provider of local content is housed almost 99% on foreign owned servers - albeit less well known than Blue Host. Among these are: The French owned Telkom Hazina.Treasury.Go.Ke (used to be ours - but was sold just before the election) Something called Puck.Nether.Net - which sits on something called Deathstar.Org Very interesting indeed. Both the host of the Kenya Local Content Conference and the Government of Kenya have for whatever reason chosen to place their content on servers which are not Kenyan owned. What a vote of confidence!. You will be shocked to see where Government of Kenya sits in cyberspace.. Read more at... http://blog.marsgroupkenya.org/?p=397 www.marsgroupkenya.org <http://www.marsgroupkenya.org/> Watching Out For You

2 1

KENYA ICT BOARD HOSTS KENYA'S FIRST CONTENT CONFERENCE - TANDAA 08 ON FRIDAY 14TH NOVEMBER 2008
by Lucy Odhiambo 13 Nov '08

13 Nov '08

Dear All, The Kenya ICT Board will be holding the Kenya Content Conference dubbed "TANDAA 2008". Tandaa is Kiswahili for spread or network (verb). Tandaa '08 is to be a platform for Kenyan entrepreneurs, educationists, policy makers and others to discuss the emerging opportunities that are being facilitated by better internet access in Kenya. Tandaa's theme this year is 'Telling our Story. The Kenyan Story'. The Kenya ICT Board will be discussing its Local Content Development programme that is geared towards stimulating the development of Local Content by Kenyans for the Kenyan and global marketplace. This programme is complimentary to the board's rural inclusion programme, the Pasha Centre project, that is going to assist entrepreneurs to set up internet telecentres in all parts of Kenya. The Ministry of Information and Communication has been implementing the development of ICT Infrastructure - including the undersea fibre optic cable that will connect Kenya to the global internet grid and the National Optic Fibre network both of which are expected to be completed by mid-2009. In line with this, the Kenya ICT Board has targeted to grow internet usage by 50% annually from the current 3 Million users to 12 Million users in 2012. Some of the major issues that will be discussed at Tandaa '08 include:- 1. Once the fibre optic cable networks are in place and the question of access to high speed internet is sorted out, what will Kenyans view, read and interact with online? What information, services and goods will they be able to access? The dearth of local content on local web sites to be used for education, entertainment and business presents opportunities for Kenyans of all walks of life. 2. The e-Government secretariat will be presenting the ongoing initiatives by government to provide e-services as well as the opportunities for content developers to interface with government processes to add value to their web content. 3. To encourage entrepreneurs to invest in local content development, there will be a discussion regarding the development and stimulation of a venture capital framework and the strengthening of incubation in Kenya to stimulate entrepreneurship. 4. A number of presentations will also deal with the ways in which Kenyans can identify the opportunities and build viable economic structures for the development of local content. Speakers at Tandaa '08 include:- Dr. Bitange Ndemo, Permanent Secretary, Ministry of Information and Communications; Dr. Juma Oketch, Secretary, eGovernment (Office of the President); Paul Kukubo, CEO, Kenya ICT Board, Patrick Spencer, Cisco IBSG; Joseph Mucheru, Google Kenya; Ian Fernandez, Nation Media Group; Chris Kirubi, MD, Capital Group; Aly-Khan Satchu, RICH.co.ke; Andrew Muigai, africapoint.com; Nik Nesbitt, Kencall Ltd, among others. REGISTRATION All are invited to the conference. Please register on tandaa.co.ke or email: tandaa08(a)ict.go.ke. Lucy Gachui-Odhiambo Communications Manager Kenya ICT Board 12th Floor Telposta Towers Koinange Lane PO Box 27150 - 00100 Nairobi, Kenya Cell 0737- 839047 Tel: 254-020-2093040 www.ict.go.ke ICT-logo-02.jpg

4 4

Fw: [DigAfrica] Zanzibar aims for digital voters ID cards in 2010
by John Maina 12 Nov '08

12 Nov '08

----- Forwarded Message ---- From: Chifu <chifu2222(a)gmail.com> To: DigAfrica(a)yahoogroups.com Sent: Wednesday, November 12, 2008 12:51:47 PM Subject: [DigAfrica] Zanzibar aims for digital voters ID cards in 2010 Zanzibar aims for digital voters ID cards in 2010 2008-11-12 11:24:58 By Guardian Reporter, Zanzibar The Zanzibar Electoral Commission has unveiled plans to digitise voters` identity cards before the next general election. ZEC Director Salum Kassim Ali said at a press briefing here yesterday that the aim was to modernise and generally improve the electoral process. He was speaking on preparations for the updating of the permanent voters` register before the 2010 election. The plan would involve the changing of all voters` identity cards and the encoding of information in the computer system to be used in the election, he said. Ali explained that an Israeli company, Ontract Innovation Limited, had been commissioned to do the job. He noted that ZEC officials were being lined up ``through special training aimed at acquainting them with the technology to be used`` so that they assist Israeli experts in the work for greater efficiency. According to the director, the updating of the voters` register would start in January next year in Pemba and run for six months. The exercise is expected to be implemented using the new digital system. He added that, in line with the Zanzibar Constitution, the registration of Isles residents who had reached voting age would run from April to May 2010. SOURCE: Guardian __._,_.___ Messages in this topic (1) Reply (via web post) | Start a new topic Messages | Links | Polls Dig Africa site welcomes you to join us at http://www.yahoogroups.com/group/Digafrica on IT in Africa Feel free to join at our google group digital africa http://groups.google.com/group/digitalafrica Thanks. Chifu Moderator MARKETPLACE ________________________________ >From kitchen basics to easy recipes - join the Group from Kraft Foods Change settings via the Web (Yahoo! ID required) Change settings via email: Switch delivery to Daily Digest | Switch format to Traditional Visit Your Group | Yahoo! Groups Terms of Use | Unsubscribe Recent ActivityVisit Your Group New web site? Drive traffic now. Get your business on Yahoo! search. Moderator Central An online resource for moderators of Yahoo! Groups. Yahoo! Groups Going Green Zone Save the planet. Your resources to go green. .. __,_._,___

1 0

Kenya yet to fully address Internet governance issues By Rebecca Wanjiku,
by alice＠apc.org 12 Nov '08

12 Nov '08

http://computerworld.co.ke/articles/2008/10/16/kenya-yet-fully-address-inte… Kenya yet to fully address Internet governance issues By Rebecca Wanjiku, IDG News Service\Nairobi Bureau 16 Oct, 2008 Kenya has yet to fully address its legal, infrastructure, access, content and security issues, according to a report released Tuesday at the Kenya Internet Governance Forum (IGF). There are gaps in policy and legislative drafting and the general development of regulatory framework as it relates to e-commerce, said Mwende Njiraini, a telecommunications engineer who co-authored the report with John Walubengo, a security expert. Njiraini and Walubengo presented their report, "Online Deliberations on Internet Governance," at the meeting in Nairobi after two weeks of online discussions with ICT sector representatives. The report identifies Kenya's position in relation to issues addressed by the KICTANet mailing list discussions, which took place online in August as a precursor to the IGF. These issues will be raised again at the East Africa IGF meeting in November and the international IGF meeting in India in December. On security, the report recommends national or regional certification for Internet security experts who handle corporate security issues. Currently, certification is handled by international bodies. It also suggests that ISPs (Internet service providers) be generous in allocating IP (Internet Protocol) space. Organizations like Google monitor Internet points, and the IPs determine the level of reported Internet penetration, the report noted. Njiraini added that there is a need to address multilingualism and the use of local languages on the Internet, as well as rural access to wireless technologies. "Kenya has 2.5 million Internet users, and we would like to see constructive use of the Internet and engagement of stakeholders to better address the industry," said Charles Njoroge, director general of the Communications Commission of Kenya.

1 0

East Africa prepares for global Internet Governance Forum By Rebecca Wanjiku.
by alice＠apc.org 12 Nov '08

12 Nov '08

http://computerworld.co.ke/articles/2008/11/10/east-africa-prepares-global-… East Africa prepares for global Internet Governance Forum By Rebecca Wanjiku, IDG News Service\Nairobi Bureau 10 Nov, 2008 Representatives from Kenya, Rwanda, Tanzania and Uganda gathered in Nairobi to discuss common issues regarding Internet governance in preparation for next month's global Internet Governance Forum. The discussions began at the national level, with each country identifying its unique issues with a view toward developing a regional position, explained Alice Munyua, coordinator of the Kenya ICT Action Network. "The country networks collected and collated the salient issues, which will be presented to the regional forum," she said. "The regional report will be presented to the leaders attending the IGF forum in India as the governance issues concerning the region." Developing countries are under-represented in Internet governance, according to Edith Adera from the International Development Research Council, who provided financial support for the regional event. Meeting participants identified the major issues affecting East Africa as high connectivity costs, lack of ICT infrastructure, cybersecurity, privacy, data protection, management of country code top-level domains, presence of local root servers and lack of enhanced legislation In regard to infrastructure, East African governments have demonstrated commitment by investing in submarine cables and terrestrial fiber, noted Bitange Ndemo, Kenya's permanent secretary in the Ministry of Information and Communication. By next November, he said, countries should be debating issues of too much bandwidth and the darker issues of the Internet, such as cybercrime. Participants from the four countries voiced their concerns over the consistency and reliability of technology, arguing that system failures cause a loss of business for which business owners are not compensated. Ndemo, however, challenged participants to first address issues of online content, adding that the cost of Internet will only fall if people can access local, as opposed to international, content. "It will be criminal for Google.com to come all the way from California to digitize our books while we have unemployed graduates in the streets," Ndemo said. "We have so much knowledge to convert to digital format."

1 0

East Africa prepares for global Internet Governance Forum By Rebecca Wanjiku.
by alice＠apc.org 12 Nov '08

12 Nov '08

East Africa prepares for global Internet Governance Forum By Rebecca Wanjiku, IDG News Service\Nairobi Bureau 10 Nov, 2008 Representatives from Kenya, Rwanda, Tanzania and Uganda gathered in Nairobi to discuss common issues regarding Internet governance in preparation for next month's global Internet Governance Forum. The discussions began at the national level, with each country identifying its unique issues with a view toward developing a regional position, explained Alice Munyua, coordinator of the Kenya ICT Action Network. "The country networks collected and collated the salient issues, which will be presented to the regional forum," she said. "The regional report will be presented to the leaders attending the IGF forum in India as the governance issues concerning the region." Developing countries are under-represented in Internet governance, according to Edith Adera from the International Development Research Council, who provided financial support for the regional event. Meeting participants identified the major issues affecting East Africa as high connectivity costs, lack of ICT infrastructure, cybersecurity, privacy, data protection, management of country code top-level domains, presence of local root servers and lack of enhanced legislation In regard to infrastructure, East African governments have demonstrated commitment by investing in submarine cables and terrestrial fiber, noted Bitange Ndemo, Kenya's permanent secretary in the Ministry of Information and Communication. By next November, he said, countries should be debating issues of too much bandwidth and the darker issues of the Internet, such as cybercrime. Participants from the four countries voiced their concerns over the consistency and reliability of technology, arguing that system failures cause a loss of business for which business owners are not compensated. Ndemo, however, challenged participants to first address issues of online content, adding that the cost of Internet will only fall if people can access local, as opposed to international, content. "It will be criminal for Google.com to come all the way from California to digitize our books while we have unemployed graduates in the streets," Ndemo said. "We have so much knowledge to convert to digital format."

1 0

Internet challenges, day two blog
by Rebecca Wanjiku 11 Nov '08

11 Nov '08

It was supposed to be the forum where Kenya demonstrated we can get the internet working for all conference users but the internet provider, a big company that prides itself in extensive infrastructure could not get the wireless up and running its day two and no internet still... How embarrassing! liveblog will be up in 2 min Tel. 254 720 318 925 blog:http://beckyit.blogspot.com/

1 0

PROGRAM - TANDAA 08
by Lucy Odhiambo 11 Nov '08

11 Nov '08

Dear All, Please find herewith the program for Tandaa 08. The program is herewith. Venue: Kenyatta International Conference Centre - TSAVO conference room Date: Friday 14th November 2008 Time: 8.30am to 4.30pm We look forward to seeing you there! Regards, Lucy Gachui-Odhiambo Communications Manager Kenya ICT Board 12th Floor Telposta Towers Koinange Lane PO Box 27150 - 00100 Nairobi, Kenya Cell 0737- 839047 Tel: 254-020-2093040 www.ict.go.ke ICT-logo-02.jpg

1 0

EA IGF forum live blog
by Rebecca Wanjiku 10 Nov '08

10 Nov '08

Follow the sessions online..... beckyit.blogspot.com Tel. 254 720 318 925 blog:http://beckyit.blogspot.com/

1 0

ITU and ICANN – a loveless forced marriage: ITU & ICANN in Cairo
by alice 10 Nov '08

10 Nov '08

(Apologies for cross posting) Hi all At the just ended ICANN meeting in Cairo, the ITU Secretary General spoke very provocatively about ICANN, ITU and the global IGF and the relationship/s or lack thereof. See his statement attached and below a press article on the same. best alice -------- Original Message -------- --------------------------------- http://www.heise-online.co.uk/news/print/111914 7 November 2008, 12:30 ITU and ICANN – a loveless forced marriage ITU Secretary General Hamadoun Touré has called for better collaboration between the *International Telecommunication Union[1]* (ITU) and the *Internet Corporation for Assigned Names and Numbers[2]* (ICANN). "Our members have unnecessarily attacked and criticised each other and I think we should put an end to that," said Touré on Thursday at the 33rd ICANN meeting in Cairo. According to Touré, the two organisations need to get to know each other better and learn to love each other, as telecommunications and the internet are ultimately condemned to a "forced marriage". Despite the outstretched hand, the ITU Secretary General did not spare the criticism in his first appearance at an ICANN meeting. Touré made it clear to the assembled experts that he saw his organisation as playing the dominant role in the forced marriage and made his opinion of the other party clear – provocatively describing ICANN's Governmental Advisory Committee as purely cosmetic. The depth of the chasm between the two – the UN organisation, which has its roots in the telecommunications world, and the quasi-internet-regulator ICANN – was stressed by a series of further statements in the half-hour talk given by the head of the ITU. Touré repeatedly spoke of the "war" between the two organisations. According to Touré, who was elected in 2006, "The best way to win a war, is to prevent it." In the course of his 'marriage proposal', he referred extensively to the ITU's outstanding role. Key topics for his organisation, he noted, include the internationalisation of domains, something with which ICANN is currently engaged, the *transition to IPv6[3]*, standardisation for the all-IP *Next Generation Network[4]* (NGN), cyber-security, the fight against online terrorism and child protection online. Touré rejected concerns that the ITU was appointing itself as global regulator of internet resources and processes, "The ITU has clear boundaries. We do not perform the operative business." However, he underlined the organisation's demand, set out in its *Cybersecurity Agenda[5]*, to be responsible for a global framework in the fight against online terrorism and criminality. He also defended the controversial *IP traceback[6]* standard proposal. "There is not one country which isn't doing it, it's just that each country is doing it differently," said Touré. Touré also rejected criticism that the ITU operates behind closed doors. He stated that the organisation has around 700 sector members from the telecommunications industry and also admits NGOs as members. Touré also praised the ITU's openness – a nod to the *World Summit on the Information Society[7]* (WSIS). The summit, organised under ITU auspices, is, according to Touré, the first UN summit at which civil society has also been invited to sit at the table, rather than demonstrating outside. In the same breath, Touré expressed strong criticism of the *Internet Governance Forum[8]* (IGF), which was called into being by the WSIS, "I am personally of the opinion that the IGF is continuously going round in circles and avoiding issues – it is becoming more and more a waste of time." Therefore, the ITU is planning a global forum for internet policy next year as a rival event. Touré also fired a further undiplomatic broadside at the work performed by governments within ICANN. "The Governmental Advisory Committee is ICANN's weak point," said Touré. His criticism was directed at the advisory function of the Governmental Advisory Committee (GAC) in developing rules for the domain name system. "If someone gives me advice, I am free to take it or leave it." The ICANN's GAC is therefore nothing more than "cosmetic", noted Touré forthrightly. In a short statement following Touré's speech, the Brazilian government representative on the GAC demanded, in the name of his and the Argentinian government, the "strengthening of the GAC". Latvian diplomat Janis Karklins, re-elected as GAC chairman, by contrast noted that the ITU and ICANN operated according to very different political models, "From the viewpoint of an international organisation, the ICANN model may appear weak, because governments are merely advisory, whilst in an international organisation they run the show." ICANN is, he opined, based on the novel idea of collaboration between interested parties. He noted that both models have their advantages and disadvantages, and that governments need to learn to operate within both models. (/Monika Ermert/) (*lghp[9]*) ------------------------------------------------------------------------ *URL of this Article:* http://www.heise-online.co.uk/news/111914 *Links in this Article:* [1] http://www.itu.int/ [2] http://www.icann.org [3] http://www.heise-online.co.uk/news/OECD-member-states-throw-their-weight-be… [4] http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Next_Generation_Networking [5] http://www.itu.int/osg/csd/cybersecurity/gca/ [6] http://news.cnet.com/8301-13578_3-10040152-38.html [7] http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/WSIS [8] http://www.intgovforum.org/ [9] mailto:lghp@heise-online.co.uk ____________________________________________________________ You received this message as a subscriber on the list: governance(a)lists.cpsr.org To be removed from the list, send any message to: governance-unsubscribe(a)lists.cpsr.org For all list information and functions, see: http://lists.cpsr.org/lists/info/governance

3 3