- KICTANet - KICTANet

Digital quality of life
by John Maina 03 Oct '08

03 Oct '08

http://www.itif.org/files/DQOL.pdf

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Computer for sale...
by Mike Bullut 02 Oct '08

02 Oct '08

---------- Forwarded message ---------- From: Michael Kipsang Bullut <kipsangb(a)gmail.com> Date: 2008/10/2 Subject: Computer for sale... To: Africa ICT Network <africaICTnet(a)googlegroups.com>, Consolata Youth Group <consolata_youth_group(a)yahoogroups.com>, Jomo Kenyatta University Agriculture & Technology Alumni <jkuatalumni(a)yahoogroups.com>, Keeping It Real <keepingitrealafrica(a)yahoogroups.com>, Kenya Computers < kenya-computers(a)googlegroups.com>, Young Kenyan Talent < young-kenyan-talent(a)googlegroups.com>, Young Professionals Kenya < youngprofessionals_ke(a)googlegroups.com> Cc: mike.bullut(a)gmail.com ---------- Forwarded message ---------- From: Michael Kipsang Bullut <kipsangb(a)iconnect.co.ke> Date: 2008/10/2 Subject: Fw: Re: My e-mail address... To: kipsangb(a)gmail.com -- Original message -- From: "jevis" <jevis(a)iconnect.co.ke> To: "Michael Kipsang Bullut" <kipsangb(a)iconnect.co.ke> Date: Thursday 2 October 2008 07:33:47 Subject: Re: My e-mail address... Hi. compaq monitor - pentium 3. compaq keyboard - ups , cpu, printer Epson LQ870 - dot matrix black & white. all at 12,000/= k.shs. deepti. - Michael Kipsang Bullut wrote: This is Michael from Internet Solutions, we've just spoken on the phone. Please send me the details for the computer you want to sell. Thank you. --- ___________________________________________ Sent with eCorrei - http://ecorrei.sf.net/ -- "To see a world in a grain of sand, and a heaven in a wildflower...hold infinity in the palm of your hand, and eternity in an hour..." ~ William Blakeg. -- -- "The computer programmer . . . is a creator of universes for which he alone is the lawgiver. . . . No playwright, no stage director, no emperor, however powerful, has ever exercised such absolute authority to arrange a stage or a field of battle and to command such unswervingly dutiful actors or troops." ~ Joseph Weizenbaum... --

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Kenya Internet Governance Forum (Kenya IGF): Opening the Internet Governance Debate in East Africa: ³Thinking Globally; Acting Locally²
by Harry Hare 02 Oct '08

02 Oct '08

Dear Colleagues The Kenya ICT Board (KICTB) in conjunction with the Kenya Network Information Centre (KENIC), the Kenya ICT Action Network (KICTANet), the East African ICT for Development Network (EA ICT4D) and other participating organisations are pleased to announce the Kenya Internet Governance Forum (Kenya IGF) to be held on the 14th of October, 2008 at the Jacaranda hotel in Westlands. The Kenya IGF will offer a central forum through which Internet stakeholders in Kenya can contribute to the global Internet Governance Forum. The Kenya IGF is a follow up to the KICTANet mailing list discussions on Internet Governance, which were held in August 2008, and aimed at beginning to identify and explore national level Internet Governance issues. The national forum aims at: · creating awareness on IGF issues, · instituting a consensus building process to develop a common understanding of Kenyan Internet Governance issues and · building policy capacity in order to enable meaningful participation in global Internet policy, governance and development. The outcome of the Kenya IGF will be collated with that from the other national IGF¹s which will take place in Uganda, Tanzania and Rwanda, to form the agenda for the East African IGF (EAIGF) scheduled for 10th-12th November 2008, Nairobi Kenya. As a key player in the Internet industry, it is my pleasure to invite you to the Kenya IGF. Below is a summary of the programme: ++++++++++++++++++++++ 08:45 - 09:00 Registration 09:00 - 09:10 Opening Remarks - Paul Kukubo, CEO, KICTB 09:10 - 09:30 What is internet governance and why should we care? - Brian Longwe/KENIC 09:30 - 10:00 Kenyan stakeholders IG issues: KICTANet Online Discussion Report; validating issues discussed John Walubengo/Mwende Njiraini 10:00 - 10:10 Government & the IGF Charles J. K. Njoroge, Director General, CCK 10:10 - 10:30 Official Launch of Kenya IGF - Dr. Bitange Ndemo, PS, Ministry of Information & Communications 10:30 - 11:00 Coffee Break 11:00 - 11:30 So what are Kenya¹s Priority IG issues? Issue Prioritization & Consensus - KICTANet/KENIC 11:30 - 12:00 What Policy and Technical capacity do we need to engage? Identifying Issues for Capacity Building John Walubengo/Mwende Njiraini 12:00 - 12:30 Closing Remarks/Vote of Thanks - EAICT4D Harry Hare 12:30 Lunch +++++++++++++++++++++++++ Kindly confirm your participation by sending an email to <evelyne(a)kictanet.or.ke> Regards, Harry Hare

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ICANN 10 years old
by alice＠apc.org 01 Oct '08

01 Oct '08

ICANN: 10 Years Old Today A decade of multi-stakeholder decision-making and coordination 30 September 2008 ICANN is ten years old today. On 30 September 1998, ICANN's articles of incorporation were officially filed, recognizing "a nonprofit public benefit corporation...not organized for the private gain of any person." One month later, the first organizational meeting of the Board of Directors was held in New York at the Holiday Inn JFK and named Michael Roberts as the Interim President and CEO, and Esther Dyson as Chairman. Since then there have been two more chairman, two new CEOs, dozens of Board members, Committee members and Advisory Group members, 153 official meetings of the Board, 32 international public meetings, and, of course, thousands of individuals that have all contributed to making ICANN a leading, global, multi-stakeholder organization that runs the domain name system through a process of coordination not control. Current chairman Peter Dengate Thrush reflected today: "Ten years ago, there were 100 million people that used the Internet. Its inventors originally thought the network would only ever have to cater for one million users. But in the creation of ICANN, the Internet community and the US Government recognized they needed to privatize the domain name system to increase competition and international participation. "Thanks to that decision, and with nearly one-and-a-half billion people online, the network goes from strength to strength. And we hope, with the plans we have laid on the table, that the next ten years of extraordinary growth also occurs seamlessly for ordinary Internet user." So, what has ICANN done in the past decade? * Back in 1998, there was a single registrar, charging $50 a year for domain names; now there are over 900 ICANN-accredited registrars 1 and a domain costs from just $6 2 * Helped the domain name system grow from roughly three million domains a decade ago to over 160 million today 3 * Expanded the Internet's generic top-level domains from three (dotcom, dotnet and dotorg) to 16, including .info, .biz, .cat, .asia, .mobi and .name 4 * Seen over 35,000 domains go through the Uniform Dispute Resolution Process 5, a faster, cheaper and more efficient alternative to the law courts for ownership disputes * Developed policies with the full involvement of governments, business, the technical community and individual Net users that make the Internet's addressing system able to adapt to the radical new uses that the network is put to every year President and CEO of ICANN, Paul Twomey, said: "ICANN now represents a truly international organization. We have offices in Los Angeles, Brussels and Washington, as well as presences in a number of other countries. Board and Committee members come from every corner of the planet and the ICANN community is as diverse as the Internet itself. I look forward to seeing ICANN's success continue for the next 10 years and beyond." About ICANN: To reach another person on the Internet you have to type an address into your computer - a name or a number. That address has to be unique so computers know where to find each other. ICANN coordinates these unique identifiers across the world. Without that coordination we wouldn't have one global Internet. 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. ICANN was formed in 1998. It is a not-for-profit public-benefit corporation from all over the world dedicated to keeping the Internet secure, stable and interoperable. It promotes competition and develops policy on the Internet's unique identifiers. ICANN doesn't control content on the Internet. It cannot stop spam and it doesn't deal with access to the Internet. But through its coordination role of the Internet's naming system, it does have an important impact on the expansion and evolution of the Internet. Media Contacts: Jason Keenan Media Advisor, ICANN P: +1 310 382 4004 E: jason.keenan(a)icann.org

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6th Open Acess International Conference
by Boster Sibande 30 Sep '08

30 Sep '08

Dear Colleagues, The Information and Communication Technologies Association of Malawi (ICTAM) in collaboration with The Royal Swedish Institute of Technology (KTH) and The Open Society Initiative for Southern Africa (OSISA) will host the 6th International Conference on Open Access at Crossroads Hotel, Lilongwe, Malawi from 12th to14th November 2008. This will be preceded by the UbuntuNet Alliance Connect Conference: Driving effective Research and Education Networking in Africa at the same venue on 11th November 2008. The workshop on Fiber for Open Access that was supposed to be held in Nairobi, Kenya has also been moved to Lilongwe and will be held as a parallel session to the main Open Access Conference. YOU ARE INVITED. Please register to share experiences, plans or hypotheses under validation on various themes and sub themes. For more information visit http://www.wideopenaccess.net . Thanks, Boster.

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Consultancy Opportunity: Request of Interest
by Brian Longwe 30 Sep '08

30 Sep '08

Dear All, Please find attached the ToRs for the two regional consultancy opportunities for the upcoming East African IGF. We request that you circulate to your networks. The deadline for submission of interest is this coming Friday 3rd October. My apologies for the short notice. Please send your responses to: Harry Hare <harry(a)africanedevelopment.org> Regional Coordinator East African ICT4D Network Regards, Brian -- Brian Munyao Longwe e-mail: blongwe(a)gmail.com cell: + 254 722 518 744 blog : http://zinjlog.blogspot.com meta-blog: http://mashilingi.blogspot.com

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ict@innovation FOSS Certification
by Judy Okite 27 Sep '08

27 Sep '08

FYI, Kind Regards, Today's Topics: 1. ict@innovation FOSS Certification Survey (Andrea Goetzke) ---------------------------------------------------------------------- Message: 1 Date: Fri, 26 Sep 2008 10:33:11 +0200 From: Andrea Goetzke <andrea.goetzke(a)newthinking.de> Subject: [Fossfa] ict@innovation FOSS Certification Survey To: fossfa(a)fossfa.net Message-ID: <48DC9E47.3000503(a)newthinking.de> Content-Type: text/plain; charset=ISO-8859-15; format=flowed Dear FOSSFA members and other mailing list readers, particularly - people with FOSS training and certification experience, greetings from the ict@innovation programme (http://ict-innovation.fossfa.net/) ict@innovation is currently planning an initiative to increase opportunities for certification and related quality trainings in the area of Free/Open Source Software (FOSS) in Africa. Now, we need the help of people with experience in FOSS training and certification and an overview of the ICT market and skills needs in the different countries. Such expertise will help us design the programme with a focus: - on skills that are most needed, - on certification criteria that will be valuable to both the student and employers, - and on schemes that local training organizations, such as yours, would be interested in integrating into their portfolio. Answering this brief set of questions would be a tremendous help for us: 1. YOUR TRAINING + CERTIFICATION EXPERIENCE - Which are the most popular ICT trainings and FOSS trainings that your training institution is currently offering? - Do you get requests for FOSS certifications at your institution? If so, for which type of certificate? - Do you have experience in FOSS certification? If so, please share an advantage and a disadvantage of the type(s) of certification you are offering. - Do you offer your own local certifications or internationally recognised certifications? 2. ICT SKILLS NEEDS IN YOUR COUNTRY - In general, which types of ICT skills are currently most needed in your local/national market? - In particular, which types of FOSS skills are most needed in your local/national market? - Where do the skills needs mostly come up (government, private sector ..) and how are they currently met (local SME, large vendors, foreign or national companies ..) ? - Do you see a skills gap in the near future, and in which area? Suggestions for your answer: ICT skills can be classified in * desktop related skills, * system/network administration skills, * specific application skills, however you can be more specific in your answers. 3. DEMAND FOR FOSS TRAINING + CERTIFICATION IN YOUR COUNTRY - How do you assess the interest for FOSS certification in your country (from the perspective of students, employers, and clients)? And at which level is the interest greatest (desktop, system/network administration, specific applications ..)? 4. YOUR FUTURE ACTIVITIES + POTENTIAL LINK TO ICT@INNOVATION - Would you be interested in integrating further FOSS training and certification in your training portfolio? - Which training + certification would you like to integrate? We have also opened an online discussion space on the FOSS Certification topic on our website, that we encourage you to use to express further views on the topic: < http://ict-innovation.fossfa.net/forum/public-forums/foss-certification-for… > http://ict-innovation.fossfa.net/forum/public-forums/foss-certification-for… . Please send your responses to the questionnaire by reply to this email to andrea.goetzke [at] newthinking.de, by October 6, 2008. If you know others who might be interested in participating in the survey, you are welcome to forward this email. We look forward to hearing from you, best regards, Andrea Goetzke ict@innovation international coordinator on behalf of the ict@innovation team ------------------------------ _______________________________________________ Fossfa mailing list Fossfa(a)fossfa.net http://fossfa.net/mailman/listinfo/fossfa_fossfa.net End of Fossfa Digest, Vol 6, Issue 5 ************************************ -- "Do not go where the path may lead, go instead where there is no path and leave a trail." ~ Ralph Waldo Emerson

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KENYA ICT BOARD LAUNCHES THE KENYA BPO VALUE PROPOSITION AS KENCALL WINS TOP GLOBAL BPO AWARD
by Lucy Odhiambo 26 Sep '08

26 Sep '08

*KENYA ICT BOARD NEWS* KENYA ICT BOARD LAUNCHES THE KENYA BPO VALUE PROPOSITION AS KENCALL WINS TOP GLOBAL BPO AWARD * * *Nairobi, 25th September 2008* The Kenya ICT Board led a delegation of 19 Kenyans comprising BPO Operators, BPO Society, CCK, and government officials to the Birmingham Call Centre Focus Expo September 17th-18th, 2008. *The Kenya Delegation* * * 1. Catherine Ngahu – Chairperson Kenya ICT Board 2. Eunice Kariuki – Deputy CEO Marketing, Kenya ICT Board 3. Cynthia Kahumbura- Marketing Assistant Kenya ICT Board 4. Ernest Kerich –Director, Department of Film Services 5. Peter Alubale – Senior Deputy Secretary – Ministry of Information and Communications 6. Gilda Odera – Chairperson – Kenya BPO&CC Society 7. Peres Were – Marketing – Kenya BPO&CC Society 8. Christopher Wambua CCK – Head of Communications 9. Nik Nesbitt – Kencall 10. Eric Nesbitt – Kencall 11. Pauline Kamande- Kencall 12. Munjal Shah – Kentech Data ( BPO Operator) 13. Evan Mwangi – Kentech Data( BPO Operator) 14. Lucy Mwatibo Kentech ( BPO Operator) 15. Joan Ambutu – Potential investor 16. Aloisius Obare – Consumer Kenya ( BPO Operator) 17. Joe Kigara – Preciss International ( BPO Operator) 18. Bonny Butaji – Department of Film Services 19. Francis Gatho - Databit On Monday 16th September, Kenya ICT Board along with a delegation of Kenyan industry players and stakeholders launched the country's BPO Value proposition to the European market at the Call Centre Expo in Birmingham. Business Process Outsourcing has been identified as the sixth pillar of the economy in Vision 2030, delivering wealth and job creation to Kenyans. The board invested over Ksh 11million to ensure that Kenya's participation was world class. The cost included an impressive stand, a cocktail in Birmingham and another in London for the Diaspora and travel allowances for the delegation. The Deputy CEO marketing ,Eunice Kariuki explained that the Kenya BPO value proposition spells out Kenya's BPO and Off-shoring value Proposition which is summarised under 3 broad areas namely a thriving economy, a growing BPO industry and public sector commitment to the growth of the outsourcing industry. On Tuesday, 16 September 2008, only a day after the launch of the country's BPO value proposition, Kencall, the largest call center in Kenya, bagged the prestigious award of the Non-European Call Centre of the Year at the European Call Center Awards, 2008. The glamorous 2008 European Call Center Awards was held in Birmingham, UK. It was a proud day for Kenya as Kencall emerged the winner after beatingthree others finalists - 24-7 (India) who were also the winners of the award last year, EMP Marketing and Promotion (UAE) and Vodacom (South Africa). Nik Nesbit, CEO Kencall received the award a before a crowd of over 1,000 people drawn from the prestigious European Call Centre Industry, confirming that Kenya is indeed a real contender in this multibillion dollar industry. Nik Nesbitt, Kencall's CEO commented 'This is a milestone for Kencall. We owe this great achievement to the hard work and dedication of our staff at Kencall. Their thorough training and commitment to quality has been recognized as the best in the world. Congratulations to the team!' Catherine Ngahu, Kenya ICT Board's chairperson speaking at the awards dinner commented, "Kencall has outperformed some of the world's top BPO industry players, demonstrating that the Kenya BPO product stands for quality, and excellence. This is a victory for the industry and the country on the whole. We congratulate them for achieving this notable achievement and we would like to reiterate our support for all the industry players.' Business process Outsourcing (BPO) is the contracting of a third party to perform non-core functions e.g. call centre, data entry so as gain some competitive advantage such as cost saving. The main worldwide recognized BPO hubs have traditionally been Asian countries. The expo was an eye opener for BPO Operators exposing them to the international world of outsourcing. They had a chance to meet personnel from BPO companies all over the world, gain an understanding of the investment requirements to compete on a global scale and know what is available in terms of software and hardware to support their business. The Kenya ICT Board launched the Kenya Value proposition to the Diaspora on 19th September, 2008 at a cocktail at the Hilton Kensington, after a successful participation in the 10th annual Call Center Expo in Birmingham. Kenyans in London showed up in the hundreds and were exceedingly interested in BPO in Kenya. Speaking at the Expo, Eunice Kariuki the boards Deputy Managing Director in charge of marketing, reiterated the boards support for the industry saying 'Kenya ICT board is committed to marketing Kenya as an ICT destination - we have a strong value proposition and we call upon the diaspora to take advantage of the enormous opportunity and invest in the sector.' And with the opportunities in the industry explained to them, it is expected that the Diaspora will play a key role in boosting the BPO industry. The Kenya Delegation returned on 23rd September, 2008. We congratulate them on all their great achievements. - ENDS - *Enquiries* Lucy Odhiambo Email: lodhiambo(a)ict.co.ke Tel: +254 20 2093040 / 0737 839047 About Kenya ICT Board: The Kenya ICT Board was established by HE President Mwai Kibaki, as a state corporation under the State Corporations Act Cap. 446 on 19th February 2007. The achievement of an information-based society is one of the main priorities of the Government towards the realization of national development goals and objectives for wealth and employment creation. ICT is one of the fastest growing sectors in the country. Harnessing of ICT will therefore help the Government to realize a number of its key public policy objectives. The objectives of the Kenya ICT Board include: To develop, launch and sustain a globally compelling brand marketing campaign for Kenya ICT, To develop and promote competitive ICT industries in Kenya, To develop world class Kenyan ICT institutions and To increase ICT access. www.ict.go.ke About Call Center Expo, 2008 Call Center Expo has been dubbed Europe's number 1 Exhibition for customer contact solutions. It is held every year at the NEC from 16th -17th Sept in Birmingham, UK from 10.00 a.m. to 5.00 p.m daily. The Expo has four main tracks that run concurrently: Customer Management Expo, CCF Conference, Service Management Expo and European Call Centre Awards. * * This year, KenCall (www.kencall.com) has bagged the Top Non-European Call Centre Award against centers from around the world. www.callcentre-expo.co.uk -- Lucy Gachui Odhaimbo Communications Manager Kenya ICT Board 12th Floor Telposta Towers PO Box 27150 - 00100 Nairobi, Kenya Cell 0722 839049 Tel: 254-020-2093040 www.ict.go.ke

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Acumen Fund Fellow.
by Jose' 25 Sep '08

25 Sep '08

The Acumen Fund Fellows programme is an annual programme that seeks to recruit and post to our investee companies 10-12 talented young professionals. Through the Fellows Programme, Acumen Fund provides an opportunity for young professionals to bring a range of management skills to our investee companies in South Asia and East Africa , introducing them to social investment, and supporting our investment mandate globally. We are now in the process of recruiting the Acumen Fund Fellows Class of 2009-2010. I am especially keen to see applicants from the African diaspora apply to this programme, as it gives our young professionals an opportunity to make a contribution to the development sphere, while introducing them to social investment and entrepreneurship. Please pass around the attached materials to prospectives that you feel would add value to our Fellows Programme. For additional information on the Fellows Programme, visit our website: http://www.acumenfund.org/get-involved/fellows-program/become-a-fellow.html. Please note that the application deadline is October 20, 2008. Thanks very much for your support, and should you have any questions, please do not hesitate to get in touch with me. Best, Nthenya Nthenya Mule| East Africa Manager| Acumen Fund 3rd Floor Scripture Union Centre, Hurlingham off Argwings Kodhek Road P.O. Box49946-00100GPO, Nairobi , Kenya + 254-20-206-9851/9 (t) +254-722-762992 (c) Skype: nthenyam nmule(a)acumenfund.org|www.acumenfund.org| www.acumenfundblog.org Please consider our environment before printing this email… Best Regards, Jose' Njuki-Imwe Ngunjiri | Readiness | Availability | Uptake | Impact |

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Will Africa Ever Own her share of Space??
by alice＠apc.org 25 Sep '08

25 Sep '08

http://www.monitor.co.ug/artman/publish/feature /Will_Africa_ever_own_her_share_of_space_72009.shtml Will Africa ever own her share of space? OTHIENO JOSEPH Over the years, space exploration has yielded diverse interests globally. Now scientists endeavour to bring to earth new findings about the outer space and its untapped potential, which potential has given rise to a debate and scrabble for the real estate in the sky. At the centre of the debate is the geostationary orbit located 35, 900 kilometres directly over the Equator. Because the rotational period here equals that of the earth, objects appear stationary over a fixed point when viewed from the earth?s surface. This property makes this geosynchronous space home to artificial satellites, which to date have found a myriad uses ranging from communication, weather forecasting and navigation to espionage, remote sensing and space sporting and tourism by the developed countries. Equator, the imaginary line dividing the earth equally into the northern and southern hemispheres and which passes through six African nations, is already at the centre of a global scramble. Once again, Africa will be caught at crossroads just as it happened during the First and Second World Wars. Like any natural resource and one up for grabs, the equatorial space territory is limited and therefore can?t accommodate the feet of every nation that wants to leave an imprint. Now, the lack of accompanying rules on such a valuable resource is a recipe for conflict and space analysts fear that it might trigger the next World War. The writing is on the on the wall as China is embroiled in a space conflict with the US. Actually, the competition for the geostatic space isn?t a new phenomenon. It was envisioned in 1967 and a treaty signed which, in summary, said that outer space isn?t subject to national appropriation by claim of sovereignty. As if in protest, nine out of the 12 states lying on the equator (Gabon and Somalia weren?t represented) in 1976 held a conference in Bogota, Colombia, and came up with another declaration that authorised them to exercise national sovereignty over the arcs of the geostationary orbit. However, they cannot enforce this claim due to lack of financial and technical know-how, weakness that will certainly give colonial- era style land-grabs a replay in the space. Borrowed infrastructure The stage is already set because not a single equatorial country in Africa has a satellite to its name ?logically locking them out of the global outer space ownership debate. This is why Kenyans and Ethiopians cheered their long distance runners in the Beijing Olympics via a borrowed infrastructure. In the current information society, communication is a valued global activity and one that Africa has gobbled up in earnest. Almost all African countries have gone, e-governance, e-commerce, e- everything, but on a weak ?foreign? and enslaving foundation by putting their much proclaimed sovereignty at the mercy of their sympathisers. Currently over 80 per cent of Internet communication in Africa is routed through satellite Internet, yet only six out of the 54 countries that make up the continent have their own artificial satellites in space. Of the 3,275 (as of June 2008) artificial satellites 10 are from African countries. The satellite Internet connectivity is relatively expensive considering that most of the countries are poor. High band width fibre optic cable would have been an economical alternative but this is an innovation yet to reach many African countries, as retrogressive politics stand in the way to its use. A timely example is the East African Submarine System, a project sponsored by World Bank and African Development Bank. Upon its completion it is expected to link South Africa, Mozambique, Somalia, Sudan and Djibouti. Dr Othieno is freelance science journalist

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ECONET: Govt transparency and independence of the judiciary
by John Maina 25 Sep '08

25 Sep '08

Guys This is very interesting. I dont know what the PS might say on this Check the story here http://www.wananchiforums.com/showthread.php?p=2738#post2738 John

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Parliament vote paves way for Single Telecoms Market in Europe
by alice＠apc.org 24 Sep '08

24 Sep '08

Today the European Parliament in its plenary session voted on the European Commission's proposals of November 2007 to reform the EU Telecom rules, in place since 2003. The EU Telecoms Reform aims to create a Single EU Telecoms Market with improved rights for consumers and businesses by reinforcing competition and investment and boosting the take-up of cross-border services and wireless high-speed broadband for all. "Today's vote is good news for European consumers," said Viviane Reding, the EU Telecoms Commissioner. "The European Parliament has today voted in favour of a strong and competitive Single Telecoms Market without borders for cross-border services, competition and investment in Europe. This will level the playing field for telecoms operators in Europe, enhance legal certainty, and broaden consumer choice." "Yesterday, the European Commission had to propose new rules to bring down the excessive prices of SMS and data roaming in the EU (IP/08/1386). These proposals will provide a fast cure to one of the most dramatic symptoms of the lack of a single telecoms market under which European companies and consumers are suffering at the moment. Today, the European Parliament has gone an important step further by proposing to tackle once and for all the root of the problem: by paving the way for a single market in regulatory terms. "I welcome in particular the fact that, after an intense debate, the European Parliament today voted in favour of establishing a European telecoms regulator. Although the new body is smaller than proposed by the Commission ? it will not have any responsibility for network security, which I regret ? the Parliament's amendments have made sure that the new European telecoms regulator will be fit for purpose, namely to deal efficiently with the remaining business obstacles and consumer problems in the single market. I welcome in particular that Parliament has confirmed that the new body will be financed from the EU budget in order to strengthen its independence and to ensure equality among national regulators. The European Parliamentarians also ensured that the new European telecoms regulator will be able to operate independently in the interest of everyone in the EU while at the same time being sufficiently close to the market. The proposal that half of the European telecoms regulator's staff should be seconded from national telecoms regulators, thus working alongside experts which the new European body would recruit itself, is a very constructive improvement on the Commission's initial proposal that I fully support." "Although work is still needed on the details, I support the Parliament's proposal to modify the Article 7 procedure. By voting for a system of 'checks and balances' Parliament ensures that measures proposed by a national telecoms regulator ? like market analyses and regulatory remedies ? cannot be adopted when called into question by both the new European telecoms regulator and the European Commission. In so doing, Parliament has found a sound compromise between consistency and subsidiarity in the interest of an efficiently functioning Single Market that I very much appreciate." "I also thank Parliament for its strong support for greater independence of national regulators. Independent national regulators are the backbone of an efficient application of telecoms rules for fair competition and tangible consumer benefits. Despite its importance, in reality it cannot be taken for granted, as seen last week with the surprisingly blunt interference with the independence of the Romanian telecoms regulator." "I strongly welcome the European Parliament's support for adding the new remedy of functional separation ? which requires an incumbent operator to separate its network infrastructure from its services branch ? to the toolbox of national regulators. This last-resort remedy has the capacity to rapidly improve competition in markets while maintaining incentives for investment in new networks, as shown in the UK where it has already been implemented. The Parliament's vote will contribute legal certainty to countries where functional separation is already under discussion, especially Sweden, Poland and Greece." "At the same time, the European Parliament has today opened new opportunities for investment in high-speed fibre optical broadband networks. The Parliament has confirmed and reinforced EU law on this important matter. On the one hand, it has clearly rejected all calls for 'regulatory holidays', as new monopolies would stifle competition and investment into fibre. On the other hand, it wants telecoms operators to receive a fair return on investment for allowing access to new fibre optic networks, including a substantial risk premium. I welcome this, and the Commission intends to give more detailed regulatory guidance on such next generation access networks at the beginning of next year." (IP/08/1370) "Competition brings lower prices, better-quality services and more choice, so consumers are the real winners in today's vote. Increased transparency and information for consumers, better access to services for users with disabilities, a more efficient 112 European emergency number and number portability within one day ? all these Commission proposals have received strong support in Parliament, for which I am very grateful." "Some important questions remain open. On number portability ? the consumer's ability to change their fixed or mobile operator while keeping their phone number ? I welcome the Parliament's overall approach supporting the one-day limit proposed by the Commission. But we need to ensure that the option now given to national regulators to extend the period for number portability will not reduce the benefits of a competitive market where consumers benefit from choosing different operators when they make better offers." "More will also have to be done on spectrum policy if we want to attract investment to new wireless services in Europe. The Commission's proposal to reform the management of radio spectrum intends to facilitate the roll out of such services, especially high speed wireless broadband connections that can reach less populated and rural areas to help achieve 'Broadband for All' in Europe. I welcome the support expressed by the European Parliament for more flexibility and harmonisation in spectrum use, but I hope that even more ambitious solutions can be agreed so that Europe gets the most efficient and consistent management of spectrum possible in order to bring about 'Broadband for All Europeans'. I also support Parliament's intention to increase its involvement in the EU's spectrum strategy, and will continue to work with Parliament and Council to reach a satisfactory solution that provides more certainty for forthcoming EU decisions on distributing the so-called 'digital dividend' - the additional radio spectrum made available as a result of the transition from analogue to digital TV." "I would like to thank the rapporteurs in the ITRE Committee, Catherine Trautmann (France, PSE) and Pilar del Castillo Vera (Spain, EPP-ED) and in the IMCO Committee, Malcolm Harbour (United Kingdom, EPP-ED), for their constructive work. The Parliament's reports, as adopted today by its plenary, are a very solid basis for its negotiations with the Council of Telecoms Ministers." "I will now continue working with the European Parliament and the Council to ensure the adoption of the package before the end of this Parliament's term in 2009. Agreement is needed if consumers are to be adequately protected in a Single EU Telecoms Market and if operators can expect Europe to offer them a level playing field for telecoms investments." Background: The European Commission tabled its proposals for the reform of the Telecoms Reform Package on 13 November 2007 (IP/07/1677). Before the summer, the Council of Telecoms Ministers expressed its views on the Commission proposals (MEMO/07/522, MEMO/08/384) and the European Parliament debated the reform first at Committee level (MEMO/08/491) and then during its plenary session on 2 September. Following today's European Parliament vote, it is again up to the Telecoms Ministers to give their views. For further details, see MEMO/08/551: EU Telecoms Reform: the 6 Most Important Issues Still Open MEMO/08/552: EU Telecoms Reform: 7 Very Concrete Improvements for European Consumers Next steps: 27 November 2008: the Council could reach a first political agreement on the EU Telecoms Reform.

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Parliament vote paves way for Single Telecoms Market in Europe
by alice＠apc.org 24 Sep '08

24 Sep '08

Telecoms Reform: Parliament vote paves way for Single Telecoms Market in Europe Reference: MEMO/08/581 Date: 24/09/2008 http://europa.eu/rapid/pressReleasesAction.do?reference=MEMO/08/581&format=… MEMO/08/581 Brussels, 24 September 2008 Telecoms Reform: Parliament vote paves way for Single Telecoms Market in Europe Today the European Parliament in its plenary session voted on the European Commission's proposals of November 2007 to reform the EU Telecom rules, in place since 2003. The EU Telecoms Reform aims to create a Single EU Telecoms Market with improved rights for consumers and businesses by reinforcing competition and investment and boosting the take-up of cross-border services and wireless high-speed broadband for all. "Today's vote is good news for European consumers," said Viviane Reding, the EU Telecoms Commissioner. "The European Parliament has today voted in favour of a strong and competitive Single Telecoms Market without borders for cross-border services, competition and investment in Europe. This will level the playing field for telecoms operators in Europe, enhance legal certainty, and broaden consumer choice." "Yesterday, the European Commission had to propose new rules to bring down the excessive prices of SMS and data roaming in the EU (IP/08/1386). These proposals will provide a fast cure to one of the most dramatic symptoms of the lack of a single telecoms market under which European companies and consumers are suffering at the moment. Today, the European Parliament has gone an important step further by proposing to tackle once and for all the root of the problem: by paving the way for a single market in regulatory terms. "I welcome in particular the fact that, after an intense debate, the European Parliament today voted in favour of establishing a European telecoms regulator. Although the new body is smaller than proposed by the Commission ? it will not have any responsibility for network security, which I regret ? the Parliament's amendments have made sure that the new European telecoms regulator will be fit for purpose, namely to deal efficiently with the remaining business obstacles and consumer problems in the single market. I welcome in particular that Parliament has confirmed that the new body will be financed from the EU budget in order to strengthen its independence and to ensure equality among national regulators. The European Parliamentarians also ensured that the new European telecoms regulator will be able to operate independently in the interest of everyone in the EU while at the same time being sufficiently close to the market. The proposal that half of the European telecoms regulator's staff should be seconded from national telecoms regulators, thus working alongside experts which the new European body would recruit itself, is a very constructive improvement on the Commission's initial proposal that I fully support." "Although work is still needed on the details, I support the Parliament's proposal to modify the Article 7 procedure. By voting for a system of 'checks and balances' Parliament ensures that measures proposed by a national telecoms regulator ? like market analyses and regulatory remedies ? cannot be adopted when called into question by both the new European telecoms regulator and the European Commission. In so doing, Parliament has found a sound compromise between consistency and subsidiarity in the interest of an efficiently functioning Single Market that I very much appreciate." "I also thank Parliament for its strong support for greater independence of national regulators. Independent national regulators are the backbone of an efficient application of telecoms rules for fair competition and tangible consumer benefits. Despite its importance, in reality it cannot be taken for granted, as seen last week with the surprisingly blunt interference with the independence of the Romanian telecoms regulator." "I strongly welcome the European Parliament's support for adding the new remedy of functional separation ? which requires an incumbent operator to separate its network infrastructure from its services branch ? to the toolbox of national regulators. This last-resort remedy has the capacity to rapidly improve competition in markets while maintaining incentives for investment in new networks, as shown in the UK where it has already been implemented. The Parliament's vote will contribute legal certainty to countries where functional separation is already under discussion, especially Sweden, Poland and Greece." "At the same time, the European Parliament has today opened new opportunities for investment in high-speed fibre optical broadband networks. The Parliament has confirmed and reinforced EU law on this important matter. On the one hand, it has clearly rejected all calls for 'regulatory holidays', as new monopolies would stifle competition and investment into fibre. On the other hand, it wants telecoms operators to receive a fair return on investment for allowing access to new fibre optic networks, including a substantial risk premium. I welcome this, and the Commission intends to give more detailed regulatory guidance on such next generation access networks at the beginning of next year." (IP/08/1370) "Competition brings lower prices, better-quality services and more choice, so consumers are the real winners in today's vote. Increased transparency and information for consumers, better access to services for users with disabilities, a more efficient 112 European emergency number and number portability within one day ? all these Commission proposals have received strong support in Parliament, for which I am very grateful." "Some important questions remain open. On number portability ? the consumer's ability to change their fixed or mobile operator while keeping their phone number ? I welcome the Parliament's overall approach supporting the one-day limit proposed by the Commission. But we need to ensure that the option now given to national regulators to extend the period for number portability will not reduce the benefits of a competitive market where consumers benefit from choosing different operators when they make better offers." "More will also have to be done on spectrum policy if we want to attract investment to new wireless services in Europe. The Commission's proposal to reform the management of radio spectrum intends to facilitate the roll out of such services, especially high speed wireless broadband connections that can reach less populated and rural areas to help achieve 'Broadband for All' in Europe. I welcome the support expressed by the European Parliament for more flexibility and harmonisation in spectrum use, but I hope that even more ambitious solutions can be agreed so that Europe gets the most efficient and consistent management of spectrum possible in order to bring about 'Broadband for All Europeans'. I also support Parliament's intention to increase its involvement in the EU's spectrum strategy, and will continue to work with Parliament and Council to reach a satisfactory solution that provides more certainty for forthcoming EU decisions on distributing the so-called 'digital dividend' - the additional radio spectrum made available as a result of the transition from analogue to digital TV." "I would like to thank the rapporteurs in the ITRE Committee, Catherine Trautmann (France, PSE) and Pilar del Castillo Vera (Spain, EPP-ED) and in the IMCO Committee, Malcolm Harbour (United Kingdom, EPP-ED), for their constructive work. The Parliament's reports, as adopted today by its plenary, are a very solid basis for its negotiations with the Council of Telecoms Ministers." "I will now continue working with the European Parliament and the Council to ensure the adoption of the package before the end of this Parliament's term in 2009. Agreement is needed if consumers are to be adequately protected in a Single EU Telecoms Market and if operators can expect Europe to offer them a level playing field for telecoms investments." Background: The European Commission tabled its proposals for the reform of the Telecoms Reform Package on 13 November 2007 (IP/07/1677). Before the summer, the Council of Telecoms Ministers expressed its views on the Commission proposals (MEMO/07/522, MEMO/08/384) and the European Parliament debated the reform first at Committee level (MEMO/08/491) and then during its plenary session on 2 September. Following today's European Parliament vote, it is again up to the Telecoms Ministers to give their views. For further details, see MEMO/08/551: EU Telecoms Reform: the 6 Most Important Issues Still Open MEMO/08/552: EU Telecoms Reform: 7 Very Concrete Improvements for European Consumers Next steps: 27 November 2008: the Council could reach a first political agreement on the EU Telecoms Reform. _______________________________________________

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Proposed ICANN Bylaws Revision Open For Comment
by alice＠apc.org 24 Sep '08

24 Sep '08

Proposed Bylaws Revision Open For Comment 23 September 2008 Today ICANN is opening a public comment period on a proposed bylaw revision [PDF, 21K] from the ICANN Nominating Committee. The proposed revision would update the diversity requirements for selecting ICANN Board members to include domicile with country of citizenship. Over the past several years, the Nominating Committee has expressed concern that being required to count more than one country of citizenship for diversity purposes often makes it difficult to select the best candidates for the Board seats that the Nominating Committee is mandated to fill. In carrying out its responsibilities to fill Seats 1 through 8, the Nominating Committee shall seek to ensure that the ICANN Board is composed of members who in the aggregate display diversity in geography, culture, skills, experience, and perspective, by applying the criteria set forth in Bylaws. The Nominating Committee also noted that some of the candidates have often lived in a country for many years, and thereby better represent the interests of that country than any country of which the candidates may be citizens. In the proposal, domicile, not just citizenship, is to be considered in the diversity calculation. The Nominating Committee members unanimously agreed that the proposed Bylaws revisions would alleviate the concerns. During the 28 August 2008 meeting of the ICANN Board of Directors, the Board passed the following resolution: Whereas, the Nominating Committee has expressed concern that, pursuant to the Bylaws mandated diversity requirements that no more than five Board members be citizens of any one geographic region, the Nominating Committee is required to count all countries of citizenship for each candidate. Whereas, the Nominating Committee has noted that the requirement to count all countries of citizenship has caused some selection difficulties each year over the past several years. Whereas, the Nominating Committee has also expressed concern that the calculation is presently limited to citizenship given that many people have lived for long periods of time in, and represent the interests of, countries in which they may not be citizens. Whereas, making a diversity calculation pursuant to the ICANN Bylaws as it relates to Board member selection for seats 1 through 14 should be consistent. It is hereby resolved (2008.08.28.03) that the following proposed revisions to Article VI, Sections 2.2 and 2.3, shall be posted for public comment in accordance with ICANN's normal process for proposed Bylaw revisions. Comments on the proposed bylaw revision may be submitted to nomcom-bylaw-revision(a)icann.org will be considered until 23 October 2008 23:59 UTC. Comments may be viewed at http://forum.icann.org/lists/nomcom-bylaw-revision/.

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FW: LINK CENTRE: REMINDER: MM(ICTPR) 2009 - Applications now open
by Edith Adera 23 Sep '08

23 Sep '08

FYI _____ From: link-info-bounces(a)lists.wits.ac.za [mailto:link-info-bounces@lists.wits.ac.za] On Behalf Of Charley Lewis Sent: 23 September 2008 13:01 To: link-info(a)lists.wits.ac.za Cc: Sue-Ellen Donough Subject: LINK CENTRE: REMINDER: MM(ICTPR) 2009 - Applications now open With Heritage Day upon us, the end of the year is just around the corner, and the closing date for MM(ICTPR) applications is equally not far off. What are your plans for 2009? Will you be studying further to grow your skills, enrich your capacity and increase your pay cheque? Look no further than the LINK Centre at the University of the Witwatersrand. Applications are now open for the 2009 intake into Africa's only residential Master's level degree with a dedicated focus on policy and regulation in the ICT sector. See the attached brochure for further information. The sooner you get your application in, the sooner you will receive your notification of acceptance (subject to you meeting the required criteria), and the sooner your future in 2009 will be assured. Please also pass this information on to those of your colleagues and associates who may be planning on further study in 2009. For more information please contact Sue-Ellen Donough on +27 11 717-3698. Charley Lewis Senior Lecturer, LINK Centre URL: http://link.wits.ac.za Mwalimu House, School of Public & Development Management, University of the Witwatersrand 2 St David's Place, Parktown, 2193, SOUTH AFRICA ==> Master of Management in ICT Policy & Regulation: <blocked::http://link.wits.ac.za/training/training4.html> http://link.wits.ac.za/training/training4.html ==> Certificate in Telecomms Policy, Regulation & Management: http://link.wits.ac.za/training/tc1.html This communication is intended for the addressee only. It is confidential. If you have received this communication in error, please notify us immediately and destroy the original message. You may not copy or disseminate this communication without the permission of the University. Only authorized signatories are competent to enter into agreements on behalf of the University and recipients are thus advised that the content of this message may not be legally binding on the University and may contain the personal views and opinions of the author, which are not necessarily the views and opinions of The University of the Witwatersrand, Johannesburg. All agreements between the University and outsiders are subject to South African Law unless the University agrees in writing to the contrary.

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Consumer Affairs: Call Drops/Call Fails
by Eric Aligula 20 Sep '08

20 Sep '08

All: Over the last six months I have experienced a number of call fails/call drops on the Safaricom network. Or you call, the line goes through and there is no reception of voice from the person being called? I would like to know whether there are consumers out there on this list or elsewhere on the local networks who have experienced the same? What solutions have been proffered? Are there any financial implications related to these call fails or call drops? In other words, am I charged for a call fail or call drop? What remedies they may have applied and what recourse consumers would have in respect of the various providers? Kind regards Eric Aligula Magolo, PhD Senior Analyst Infrastructure and Economic Services Division Kenya Institute for Public Policy Research and Analysis (KIPPRA) P.O. Box 56445, 00200 Nairobi, Kenya Telephone: +254-20-2719933/4 Fax: +254-20-2719951 E-mail: jairah(a)kippra.or.ke <mailto:jairah@kippra.or.ke> URL: www.kippra.org <http://www.kippra.org/> Proudly Kenyan "In the long history of the world, only a few generations have been granted the role of defending freedom in its hour of maximum danger. I do not shrink from this responsibility..........I welcome it." John F. Kennedy "All that is necessary for evil to triumph is for good men to do nothing." Edmund Burke "Far better to dare mighty things, to win glorious triumphs, even though checkered by failure, than to take rank with those poor spirits who neither enjoy much nor suffer much, because they live in the gray twilight that knows not victory, nor defeat." Theodore Roosevelt "Ex Africa semper aliquid novi"

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Review, identify gaps and enhance the quality of the Certificate of ICT (CICT) qualification
by Al Kags 20 Sep '08

20 Sep '08

The Kenya ICT Board and KASNEB have formed a partnership to review, identify gaps and enhance the quality of the Certificate of ICT (CICT) qualification that is managed by KASNEB and offered by various ICT institutions in Kenya. This collaboration will cover, among other areas:- - Working together towards enhancing quality ICT skills in the country - Marketing CICT to get industry buy in and endorsement at the same level as CPA. - Collaborate in conducting a baseline study/survey to determine the deficiency of ICT skills and type of skills required. - Collaborate to lobby for appropriate legal provisions for the establishment of an Institute for the CICT graduates, recognizing KASNEB as the examining and the certification body for ICT graduates. - Work to gain industry acceptance of CICT certification on same quality rating as CPA. The Kenya ICT Board wishes to convene an ICT Public Panel to develop industry and stake holder input into the review. We invite the participation of key sector players in the industry on a voluntary basis, as represented below:- - Industry players (IT products and services suppliers/manufactures including Developer Community, Skunkworks etc) - 5 representatives - Business Process Outsourcing and Call Centres - 2 representatives - Colleges representatives - 3 representatives - University representatives - 3 representatives - Student representatives – 5 - Related government ministry's representatives - 3 - Multinational Corporations - 2 TORs of the Panel. To review the state of ICT skills in Kenya with a view to identifying gaps and therefore make recommendations for addressing those gaps as seen in a global context. The Public Panel deliberations will be made out of a maximum of three meetings at the Kenya ICT Board Offices on Waiyaki way specifically on: - - Tuesday, September 9, 2008 at 10 am - Tuesday, September 16, 2008 at 10 am - Tuesday, September 23, 2008 at 10 am The recommendations will be presented to KASNEB for the review of the Certification Curriculum, on September 26, 2008 at a venue to be communicated closer to the date. This initiative is guided by the Kenya ICT Board's Strategic Objectives, mainly: - To develop and promote competitive ICT Institutions in Kenya - To develop and promote competitive ICT industries in Kenya TO PARTICIPATE To participate, kindly contact the Public Panels team on publicpanels(a)ict.go.ke . Please attach a brief profile of yourself and the sector that you represent. The Board will then formally invite you to participate in the Panel. While the formal invitations will be issued entirely at the discretion of the board, the broad criteria for participation is as follows:- - Demonstrated experience and knowledge in the sub-sector - Expressed willingness to serve pro bono - Demonstrated general understanding of the educational offering in the sector. We also welcome via email to publicpanels(a)ict.go.ke written submission on this topic, representations and opinions from the sector towards this important exercise and they will also be collated with the report.

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Advanced FOSS E-Learning portal
by Gakuru Alex 19 Sep '08

19 Sep '08

"Open Source & More IT for African Business" - release of advanced e-learning courses on Information Technology InWEnt/it@ab releases a series of advanced e-learning courses on Information Technology (IT)- "Open Source & More IT for African Business" focussing on the needs of business related IT consultancy in Africa. "Open Source & More IT for African Business" has been developed by it@ab, the Southern African Network on "Information Technology in African Business", a project of InWEnt - Capacity Building International, Germany, funded by the German Federal Ministry for Economic Cooperation and Development (BMZ). For more information on it@ab, please see: http://www.it-ab.org. Learning "Open Source & More IT for African Business" is a compilation of advanced e-learning courses covering six topics related to business & IT consultancy in an African context. The courses introduce relevant and adapted key concepts and applications such as 1. E-Business Applications & Architecture 2. IT Security 3. Open Source IT (including lessons on Ubuntu Linux Installation, Multimedia, Web Server, Groupware, Network Printing) 4. Web Publishing 5. E-Learning as well as 6. Zope & the Collaborative Learning Environment CLE2. The focus lies on "Free and Open Source Software" (FOSS) as a key technology to drive innovation, add local value and create sustainable and affordable ICT-solutions. The courses are organized as online modules for self-study and include lessons, tests and selected references. They provide an overview of and introduction to important concepts from intermediate to advanced level. This way, they address a wide range of potential users. These include both IT specialists and executive staff from IT businesses in Africa and beyond, technology-savvy development practitioners as well as power users of IT. The courses are available at: - http://cle2.it-inwent.net/LearningSpace/osam/ (CLE) or at - http://gc21.inwent.org/OpenSource (Global Campus 21, Login and password: "guest"). <http://ict-innovation.fossfa.net/blog/petra/open-source-more-it-african-bus…>

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Application Round Opens for ICANN Mexico City Meeting Fellowships
by alice 19 Sep '08

19 Sep '08

Application Round Opens for Mexico City Meeting Fellowships Program supports global representation at ICANN's International Public Meetings 18 September 2008 *MARINA DEL REY, Calif.*: The Internet Corporation for Assigned Names and Numbers has launched its latest round of fellowship program applications for its 34th International Public Meeting to be held in Mexico City from 1-6 March 2009. "ICANN is a global organization and our work touches every country on the planet," said Theresa Swinehart , ICANN's Vice President, Global and Strategic Partnerships. “Our fellowship program ensures that as many countries as possible can take part in the ICANN meeting and in the variety of public forums that will be held.” An example of the diversity supported by the Fellowship program is the upcoming meeting in Cairo. At that meeting there will be 30 fellows from 25 countries, chosen from 89 applications received. There are 12 fellowship alumni, 11fellows are first-time attendees to an ICANN meeting and the remaining 7 have attended past meetings, but are first time fellows. Priority is given to applicants who are current residents of developing and least developed nations and interested in participating in ICANN and its supporting organizations, such as the Governmental Advisory Committee, the Country Code Names Supporting Organization, and the Generic Names Supporting Organization. The fellowship will assist in covering airfare, hotel and a stipend. Recipients will be expected to actively participate in and contribute to ICANN processes. As always, registration for ICANN's meetings is free for anyone wanting to attend. Applications for Mexico City will be accepted from now until 1200 PDT (UTC -7) on 27 October. More information, as well as a link to the application for a fellowship, is available online at: http://www.icann.org/en/fellowships/ <http://www.icann.org/en/fellowships> -30- *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> --- You are currently subscribed to aisi-l as: [alice(a)apc.org] To unsubscribe, forward this message to leave-aisi-l-84914M(a)lyris.bellanet.org

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ICT Legislation In Kenya: Mukimwo or Buffet?
by Brian Munyao Longwe 18 Sep '08

18 Sep '08

Hi all, We at a workshop in Mombasa to look at the "Mukimwo" that has been made in the form of the Communications Amendment Bill. What is "mukimwo" some of you might ask? Also known as "Kienyeji" - it is a mix of maize corn, potatoes, green leaves (mchicha?) and often a variety of other things including meat, tomatoes, bananas, onions, cabbage etc...the thoroughly mashed together. Well, this - in my view - is kind of what we are looking at here. A single bill which combines many different issues in an attempt to satisfy the deep hunger in the ICT sector with one meal. Well, some of us are of the opinion that it is better to have a buffet of ICT legislation. Separate, discrete laws that deal to the necessary depth with issues as diverse as cybercrime, computer misuse/fraud, electronic transactions, digital signatures, privacy and personal information etc. Without trying to mash them all together as the current draft does. So my question is, do you prefer Mukimwo or Buffet? Brian Sent from my iPhone

3 2

Not Mukimwo after all
by Brian Munyao Longwe 18 Sep '08

18 Sep '08

Hi all, Seems I had my meals mixed up. We are actually discussing electronic transactions. Regards, Brian Sent from my iPhone

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IFIP Technical Committee on Human Computer Interaction
by waudo siganga 18 Sep '08

18 Sep '08

Dear Colleagues, Prof. Annelise Mark Pejtersen, the Chair of the IFIP Technical Committee on Human-Computer Interaction -TC.13 - ([1]http://csmobile.upe.ac.za/ifip/) has asked me to appoint a Kenyan for that Committee. Please visit the link if you are interested to learn more about that TC or [2]www.ifip.org to learn generally about IFIP and its other committees. The work will include one annual physical meeting with possibility of travel support. TC.13 is also responsible for the annual conference INTERACT, of which the next one will be held in Uppsala, Sweden in 2009. IFIP work will suit those with a Scientific/Academic/Research/Application bias. If you are interested please drop me a one-paragraph note indicating how you fit into the area of Human-Computer Interaction. Kind Regards, Waudo References 1. http://csmobile.upe.ac.za/ifip/ 2. http://www.ifip.org/ Life is but a series of decisions and consequences therefrom

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Fwd: [Physical] Vodacom Launches Three New Exciting "Speaking Phones" for Persons with Visual Impairment
by Judy Okite 18 Sep '08

18 Sep '08

FYI I think this is the coolest thing...its a high time we saw more initiatives like this! Media Release for Immediate Publication Nikki van der Westhuizen [mailto:nikkivdw@meropa.co.za] *Vodacom Launches Three New and Exciting "Talking Phones" for Persons with Special Needs, Especially those who are Blind or Partially Sighted* * * *18 September 2008* * * Vodacom has launched three new Vodacom Speaking Phones as part of its drive to make cellular communication accessible to people with specific needs, specifically customers who are blind or partially sighted. "Vodacom is proud to be the first operator in South Africa to increase accessibility to cellular communication products and services in line with our Specific Needs Initiative launched in 2004," says Dot Field, Chief Communications Officer, Vodacom Group. Text-to-speech software is loaded onto the Vodacom Speaking Phones that converts the information displayed on the cellphone screen to speech, including text messages and contacts. This software also enables the user to check other information, including battery life and signal strength. Speaking phones are available on Vodacom Contract-, Top Up- and Prepaid packages and are available at participating Vodacom approved outlets. "Vodacom Speaking Phone users will not pay extra for the text-to-speech software as Vodacom has subsidised this cost," says Field. The focus of the Specific Needs Initiative is accessibility: access to the company, access to information and access to Vodacom's products and services for all. Karen Smit, Senior Specialist for Specific Needs and Employment Equity at Vodacom Group and a disabled Vodacom employee herself, highlights the need for such products and services within the cellular industry, "We are proud to be the pioneers of this service in South Africa, and on the continent as a whole. At Vodacom, accessibility is always top of mind and as a disabled person I understand how important independence, accessibility and mobility is." Vodacom will continue to offer the "voice bill" service which allows visually impaired or blind customers access to their itemised billing electronically through reader software on their computers. For more information on Vodacom Speaking Phones, customers can contact Vodacom's dedicated Specific Needs Contact Centre, which aims to provide information and assistance on their products and services to customers with disabilities. The Specific Needs Contact Centre can be reached on 12580, free from a Vodacom cellphone, or on 082 12580 from any other phone (standard rates apply). Customers can also send an SMS to 12580 (free from a Vodacom cellphone) or email to 12580(a)vodacom.co.za. Information is available on the Vodacom website: www.vodacom.co.za, under the Specific Needs section. Ends Issued on behalf of: Dot Field Chief Communications Officer Vodacom Group ##### For Further Information, Please Contact: Nikki van der Westhuizen Meropa Communications +27 11 772 1029 * * __________ Information from ESET NOD32 Antivirus, version of virus signature database 3450 (20080918) __________ The message was checked by ESET NOD32 Antivirus. http://www.eset.com _______________________________________________ Physical mailing list Physical(a)napsa.org.za http://lists.napsa.org.za/mailman/listinfo/physical -- "Do not go where the path may lead, go instead where there is no path and leave a trail." ~ Ralph Waldo Emerson

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FW: announced: MacArthur Foundation Competition on Participatory Learning (US$2m in awards, international applicants now eligible)
by Edith Adera 18 Sep '08

18 Sep '08

FYI -----Original Message----- From: mtrucano(a)worldbank.org [mailto:mtrucano@worldbank.org] Sent: 18 September 2008 01:30 To: mtrucano(a)worldbank.org Subject: announced: MacArthur Foundation Competition on Participatory Learning (US$2m in awards, international applicants now eligible) INFORMATIONAL ONLY -- NO NEED TO RESPOND In case it might be of interest to you or someone you know ... -M http://www.dmlcompetition.net/ (Embedded (Embedded image image moved moved to file: to file: pic07950.jpg) pic27594.gif) (Embedded image moved to file: pic16343.gif) $2 Million Digital Media & Learning Competition The MacArthur Foundation, the University of California, Irvine, Duke University, and the virtual network HASTAC announced today a second $2 million competition that focuses on participatory learning, creates an award category for Young Innovators aged 18-25, and for the first time extends eligibility to international applicants. The competition is part of MacArthur's $50 million digital media and learning initiative that aims to help determine how digital technologies are changing the way young people learn, play, socialize, and participate in civic life. Competition winners will join an existing community of awardees that convenes regularly online to participate in webinars on new technology, novel approaches to social networking, and other issues pertinent to participatory learning. They will be invited to showcase their work at an annual conference to include venture capitalists, entrepreneurs, educators, and new media experts seeking the best ideas about digital media and learning. Visit the competition's website for more information on how to apply. (Embedded image moved to file: pic00754.gif) (Embedded image moved to file: pic02481.jpg) (Embedded image moved to file: pic01012.gif) (Embedded image moved to file: pic11672.gif) (Embedded image moved to file: pic23439.jpg) www.macfound.org Connie Yowell Director, Education MacArthur Foundation www.spotlight.macfound.org

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Re: [kictanet] [Skunkworks] Big Bang Replay
by Mike Bullut 17 Sep '08

17 Sep '08

David et al., If I may ask you: *What is the significance of research? *Or more deeply: *What is the purpose of meaning?* I'll leave you to answer the latter question for yourselves. I'm a staunch advocate of research for the reason being most of mankind's greatest advancements wouldn't have seen the light of day if a certain man/woman hadn't taken the initiative to investigate better ways on how to execute certain/everyday tasks. Here are a few of them: - *Alexander Graham Bell & his invention of the telephone. [Communication] * - *Alexander Flemming & his discovery of penicillin. [Medicine]* - *Thomas Edison & his invention of the electric bulb. [Engineering?] * In the advancement of knowledge: - *Albert Einstein & his theory of relativity. [Physics] * - *Alfred Wegner & his theory of continental drift. [Geology, Geography]* - *Charles Darwin & his theory of evolution. [Biology] * - *Nicolaus Copernicus & his theory of heliocentric cosmology. [Astronomy] * Onto the subject of the experiments being conducted at the *Large Hadron Collider <http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Large_Hadron_Collider>* situated at * CERN, <http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/CERN>* their raison d'être is to scrutinize The Big Bang Theory. One of science's (& life's) greatest mysteries is the origin of everything (the universe, life itself etc). There are two schools of thought that try to illustrate this: Religion & Science. The former explains that the universe was created by a supreme being, God, at the beginning of time & took six days with our Heavenly Father resting on the seventh day. The latter explains that the universe was created in a cataclysmic explosion originating from the most infinitesimal particle of matter which has expanded (over the course of fifteen billion years & counting) to what we observe today through telescopes. Of course, these schools of thought have their respective weaknesses. Religion can't describe how God executed the creation process e.g. did he just snap his fingers when an idea came to mind or did he follow a procedure which culminated in an entity (star, planet, black hole etc)? Forgive me for offending/insulting my fellow Christians but what most of them don't understand is that the Bible is just a chronological series of events & not a biographical-like text. Picture this: the book of Genesis tells us the world was created in six days. How supremely confident are we that these are six *Earth days?* My quagmire is this: *Does time pass at the same rate between us & God?* My answer: *Time Dilation,* i.e. from the perspective of any observer within the same frame of reference & without reference to another frame of reference, time always passes at the same rate. *"According To The Evidence" * <http://www.legendarytimesbooks.com/product.php?productid=179> by Erich Von Daniken gives a good case of this. Science, on the other hand, explains how matter operates (from the atomic level) which answers questions as how the ozone layer is depleted, how the sun creates its energy that sustains life on Earth (though partly) etc though it can't explain who kick-started creation. My school of thought combines both religion & science to explain the origin of everything. My proposition is this: *Science explains how God created & Religion explains why God created.* God used science to create the universe & religion explains why we are here in the first place. Peter, understand why the physicists are conducting these experiments. They just want to find answers to questions that have plagued us since time immemorial. Whether or not they succeed, they'll definitely uncover knowledge that could be beneficial in our comprehension of the universe. Mike. *My blog: http://kipsang.wordpress.com/ * 2008/9/11 David Kago <kago(a)ultimate-security.net> > I have been watching the big bang experiment with interest and was amazed > when they finally announced on the media that they have been able get the > proton beam to go all the way into the supercooled (-273C) 27km tunnel. > While this is a scientific and engineering marvel, the sums spent to set up > the largest machine on earth together are stupendous, $10 billion is not > your everyday lump of cash, that's kenya's 2008/2009 budget; all in the name > of proving a theory... Of whose benefit will it be if they finally prove > that antimatter and dark energy exists... what will quark gluon plasma and > bosons mean to the everyday earthling. I believe science should be used for > the betterment of the human race, not to prove a theory that is infinitely > larger than us. I can see all those suffering masses in the third world who > would have benefited greatly from such funds... > > On a side note, the data produced in the experiment is being channeled > through the other internet (the Grid). Who wouldnt want to download > whole hard disks from halfway around the globe in a few seconds...!!! > > _______________________________________________ > skunkworks mailing list > skunkworks(a)my.co.ke > http://ole.kenic.or.ke/mailman/listinfo/skunkworks > Blog http://skunkworks-ke.blogspot.com > Beta Blog http://blog.my.co.ke > Get Skunkworks RSS Feeds: http://www.jahazi.com/rss/ > * -- "The computer programmer . . . is a creator of universes for which he alone is the lawgiver. . . . No playwright, no stage director, no emperor, however powerful, has ever exercised such absolute authority to arrange a stage or a field of battle and to command such unswervingly dutiful actors or troops." ~ Joseph Weizenbaum... --*

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Contacts for mpesa / sokotele service
by Patrick Mburu 16 Sep '08

16 Sep '08

Dear good people, Would anyone have contacts for the developers of these services? Or perhaps they r part of this list? Best! Patrick Sent from my iPhone

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Fwd: United States Peace Corps looking for ICT trainer and others...
by waudo siganga 16 Sep '08

16 Sep '08

Hello All - Could interest someone. Sorry if any crosspost. On Mon, 15 Sep 2008 17:14:33 +0300, "Othieno, Louis" <LOthieno(a)ke.peaceco rps.gov> said: Hello all, Pardon me for emailing without your consent. I need your assistance in getting the information in the attachment to people you might know that are qualified and interested in a short term assignment to train American ICT professionals -mostly context stuff related to application of ICT in developing country situations in general, and Kenya in particular. The job of these Volunteers numbering about 10 will be to locate in a rural setting and use their knowledge of ICT to bring the benefits of ICT to the population within which they are living. This requires them to understand intimately the barriers between people and information technology in rural developing country contexts - and appreciate how they can use their generic knowledge of the technology within our technical context to harness ICT for the benefit of the communities to which the Peace Corps will assign them. If you know someone who is able to engage effectively at these three levels i.e * Moving the technology to the people * Moving the people to the technology * Kenya's technical and policy context with regards to ICT Kindly encourage them to apply before the 24th of September, 2008. I appreciate it. Peruse also the e-leaflet I attach for a quick understanding of what these American Volunteers do. (The leaflet covers business Volunteers as well). If you know of any social-benefit projects needing programmers, computer graphics people, web designers, computer maintenance or plain IT teachers etc - to work for them while located away from Nairobi - send them to me... I appreciate it Cheers all Louis Othieno Associate Director Small Enterprise Development and ICT U.S. PEACE CORPS IN KENYA "The cost of everything has to be paid for somehow. Our human travails, most of the time, avail only in changing who pays, when and how" <<ICT TTF VACANCY ANNOUNCEMENT 2008 Sept 09.doc>> <<PROMOTION FLYER.doc>> People make a plan work, a plan alone seldom makes people work (Confucius).

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Kenyan gov't sets up $39 million venture capital fund
by Rebecca Wanjiku 15 Sep '08

15 Sep '08

In case you are interested in daily roundups of tech news, please subscribe to the daily newsletter on the site. Its coming daily. http://computerworld.co.ke/articles/2008/09/15/kenyan-govt-sets-39-million-… Tel. 254 720 318 925 blog:http://beckyit.blogspot.com/

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Software procurement in kenya
by Evans Ikua 14 Sep '08

14 Sep '08

Interesting what Google can come up with: http://www.linuxworld.com/news/2008/052308-kenya-linux-group-challenges-pro… We finally got to meet with the PPOA on Friday, 5th September. We had a very fruitful discussion on the Public Procurement and Disposal Act 2005, whose provisions are being ignored by Government procurement agents: https://ict-innovation.fossfa.net/taxonomy/blog-tags/kenya This good law stipulates that procuring agents should not mention any trade marks, companies or product names when requesting for quotations. They are required to just give the specs of what they need to accomplish. But how many times do we see these RFQs with brand names such as Microsoft *?. This has got to stop and nobody has any excuse to break the law with impunity. We will be putting details of the proceedings on our website soon, and also in the media. -- Evans Ikua Linux Professional Association of Kenya Tel: +254-20-2250381, Cell: +254-722 955 831 Eagle House, 2nd Floor Kimathi Street, Opp. Corner House www.lpakenya.org

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Re: [kictanet] Rwanda Gets Localls Made/Assemled Handset
by Dan Njiriri 12 Sep '08

12 Sep '08

Dear Dr Ndemo, We are pleased that you are leading the way in ensuring that our analogue TV sets do not become e-waste as we migrate to digital signals. Kenyas are very enterprising and many will pick up the assembling of the top box once it is out of the incubator. Thank you. Dan Njiriri --- On Wed, 9/10/08, bitange(a)jambo.co.ke <bitange(a)jambo.co.ke> wrote: From: bitange(a)jambo.co.ke <bitange(a)jambo.co.ke> Subject: Re: [kictanet] Rwanda Gets Localls Made/Assemled Handset To: njiris2000(a)yahoo.com Cc: bitange(a)jambo.co.ke, "KICTAnet ICT Policy Discussions" <kictanet(a)lists.kictanet.or.ke>, "Robert Onyango-Alai" <alai.robert(a)gmail.com> Date: Wednesday, September 10, 2008, 10:11 PM Dear Njiriri, Thanks for supporting Madaraka PC. We are just about to finish the prototype set top box for converting analogue signals to digital. This needs an entrepreneur to take it up from the incubator. You must have read yesterday how South Africa is planning their migration to digital by locally assembling the required set top boxes. Asante. Ndemo. > Dear Dr Ndemo, > > Thank you for your kind clarification on steps taken by Kenya on assembled > electronics in Kenya. > I am a strong bealiver in local industries and happy to let you know I > have bought twenty Madaraka PCs from JKUAT Enterprises for our Tracom > college teaching lab. They however need to develop local materials for the > industry as oppossed to assembly only. Anyone can do that. > > The Gilgil Telecommucations Industry should be nurtured and it is a pity > what you have explained on someone turning it to posts treatment. What a > shame and waste of developing industrial capacity! May the good Loard see > the case to logical conclusion. > > I fully agree with you that the private sector and the academia must > wake-up and create the necessary industries and hence wealth. > Once again thank you. > Dan Njiriri > > --- On Mon, 9/8/08, bitange(a)jambo.co.ke <bitange(a)jambo.co.ke> wrote: > > From: bitange(a)jambo.co.ke <bitange(a)jambo.co.ke> > Subject: Re: [kictanet] Rwanda Gets Localls Made/Assemled Handset > To: njiris2000(a)yahoo.com > Cc: bitange(a)jambo.co.ke, "KICTAnet ICT Policy Discussions" > <kictanet(a)lists.kictanet.or.ke>, "Robert Onyango-Alai" > <alai.robert(a)gmail.com> > Date: Monday, September 8, 2008, 7:24 AM > > Dear Njiriri, > There is nothing wrong with policy and we should not benchmark Kenya with > Rwanda because the differences between the two countries are just too > many. Compared to Kenya, Rwanda is where Kenya was in the 80's, centrally > planned economy where the Government interferes with everything including > the private sector. Granted there is virtually no private sector in > Rwanda. We have spent most of the 90's privatizing that which was created > by Government. The economy and more specifically the communication sector > is fully liberalised. The opportunities for the private sector are > therefore enormous and we should not blame the Government. > > It is in this forum that we recently discussed Madaraka PC and it was > dismissed as unworkable. We did not bother to ask especially JKUAT where > they have reached in developing components locally for the PC. Kenya has > been in the forefront producing telephone equipment including switches at > the Gilgil plant for the region. Indeed we have several firms seeking to > start local production of mobile handsets at the facility but have been > frustrated by a nother Kenyan who wanted to manufacture poles at the plant > (The perils of Democracy). The case is still in court that we cannot > discuss it here. > > We must be proud of our human resources for what they have done in the > region. What we need to do now is to vigorously utilize this resources to > exploit the opportunities - this if Adam Smith was a life will tell you > that - let the private sector wake up. This is the pattern that the Newly > Industrialized Nations of Asia followed. The Indians are going home from > many countries to create real wealth. > > Regards > > > Ndemo. > > > > >> Thanks Dr Ochuodho for sharing this new development in Rwanda. >> Unfortunately, Kenya is once again beaten at our own game, not becaurse >> we >> lack, excellent technical manpower and facilities.., but becaurse we are >> too slow in policy development! Rwanda has carried the day, yet all the >> production parts pass through Kenya to Rwanda! >> We should learn to be fast in what we want to achieve, and not take >> years >> back and forth in board rooms. >> Dan Njiriri >> >> --- On Sat, 9/6/08, Shem Ochuodho <shemochuodho(a)yahoo.com> wrote: >> >> From: Shem Ochuodho <shemochuodho(a)yahoo.com> >> Subject: [kictanet] Rwanda Gets Localls Made/Assemled Handset >> To: njiris2000(a)yahoo.com >> Cc: "Robert Onyango-Alai" <alai.robert(a)gmail.com>, > "KICTAnet ICT Policy >> Discussions" <kictanet(a)lists.kictanet.or.ke> >> Date: Saturday, September 6, 2008, 6:08 AM >> >> >> >> >> >> >> >> Quoting: Rwanda ICT4D Community Network >> >> Rwanda get locally made handset -Network World 02/09/2008 >> >> A-Link Technologies, a Chinese electronics company, has unveiled its >> first >> mobile phone handsets manufactured in Rwanda. This makes Rwanda the >> first >> country in the region to sell locally manufactured mobile phones. >> >> The manufacturing of the handsets follows a memorandum of understanding >> signed in 2006 between A-Link and the Rwanda Information Technology >> Authority, the country's telecom regulator. >> Read the latest WhitePaper - Monitor the core and troubleshoot the >> access >> layer with integrated network analysis solutions >> >> The company plans to start selling the phones, called "Alira," > in the 21 >> countries of the Common Market for Eastern and Southern African after >> they >> are officially launched in October and once production is stepped up, >> said >> A-Link CEO Yin Quing Ri. >> >> "One of the phone models has been programmed with Kinyarwanda > software so >> the Rwandese who uses their mother language can communicate easily," > Ri >> said. >> >> So far, the company has produced three models -- the A100, A200 and A300 >> -- and promises that several other models are in the works. >> >> The phones feature color screens and radios, among other amenities. >> >> The plant is manufacturing 100 handsets per day, though it has the >> capacity to produce 700 phones per day. >> >> A-Link began operating in Rwanda last year, as the country is >> positioning >> itself to be an ICT hub in East Africa. >> _______________________________________________ >> kictanet mailing list >> kictanet(a)lists.kictanet.or.ke >> http://lists.kictanet.or.ke/mailman/listinfo/kictanet >> >> This message was sent to: njiris2000(a)yahoo.com >> Unsubscribe or change your options at >> > http://lists.kictanet.or.ke/mailman/options/kictanet/njiris2000%40yahoo.com >> >> >> >> >> ---------------------------------------------- >> This message has been scanned for viruses and >> dangerous content by Jambo MailScanner, and is >> believed to be clean. >> --------------------------------------------- >> "easy access to the world" >> >> _______________________________________________ >> kictanet mailing list >> kictanet(a)lists.kictanet.or.ke >> http://lists.kictanet.or.ke/mailman/listinfo/kictanet >> >> This message was sent to: bitange(a)jambo.co.ke >> Unsubscribe or change your options at >> http://lists.kictanet.or.ke/mailman/options/kictanet/bitange%40jambo.co.ke >> > > > > ---------------------------------------------- > This message has been scanned for viruses and > dangerous content by Jambo MailScanner, and is > believed to be clean. > --------------------------------------------- > "easy access to the world" > > > > > > ---------------------------------------------- > This message has been scanned for viruses and > dangerous content by Jambo MailScanner, and is > believed to be clean. > --------------------------------------------- > "easy access to the world" > > ---------------------------------------------- This message has been scanned for viruses and dangerous content by Jambo MailScanner, and is believed to be clean. --------------------------------------------- "easy access to the world"

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Fwd: [ke-internetusers] For the Ladies in Business
by Gakuru Alex 12 Sep '08

12 Sep '08

Gilda? ---------- Forwarded message ---------- From: Alex Gakuru <gakuru(a)gmail.com> Date: Fri, Sep 12, 2008 at 9:07 AM Subject: [ke-internetusers] For the Ladies in Business To: ke-users <ke-internetusers(a)bdix.net> Diana, et. al.? ---forwarded message--- CNBC Africa has a daily newspaper review where we take a look at all the stories that are making news in the business world. We would like to add more value to this show by involving ladies who are good in business analysis and also has a good TV persona as well. I would like to request you if you could ask the members if there is anyone willing to be part of this show. Kindly let us know as soon as you have this details. Kind Regards, Rachel Munene Video Editor P:254 (20) 225 2150/1 M:+254 728 202 051 F: 254 (20) 225 2280 E: RachelMunene(a)cnbcafrica.com Physical Address: University Way AmBank House- 19th Floor. www.cnbcafrica.com _______________________________________________ ke-internetusers mailing list ke-internetusers(a)bdix.net http://www.bdix.net/mailman/listinfo/ke-internetusers

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Re: [kictanet] Software procurement in kenya
by James Kagwe 12 Sep '08

12 Sep '08

I got the below from our PO and thought it fair to share. ________________________________ From: Peter Munene Sent: Friday, September 12, 2008 9:38 AM To: James Kagwe Subject: RE: [kictanet] Software procurement in kenya Thanks for your comments on whether you can procure using brand name or not. However seem to miss the point! Please refer to "The Public Procurement and Disposal Act, 2005" Section 34 paragraph 4 (a) and (b). Using brand name is not breaking the law (am assuming we are talking about Kenya law) as long as you follow the prescribed regulations in the Act. Thanks and study the Act! James, You may forward my comments to the origin. ________________________________ From: James Kagwe Sent: Friday, September 12, 2008 8:46 AM To: Peter Munene Subject: FW: [kictanet] Software procurement in kenya This might be of interest to you ________________________________ I had a chance to attend the presentations by Alex and Evans to PPOA and I think they did a very good job articulating issues faced in Government ICT Procurement. In addition to procuring agents not following the law (e.g. mentioning brands in tenders) it also appears that they are not aware of International Best Practices such as those advocated by WITSA (http://www.witsa.org/papers/BestPracticesWhitePaper-final.pdf) Those best practices are meant to ensure competition is not precluded. Maybe these IBPs require to be incorporated into the PPOA regulations. I reproduce a portion of the IBPs below: The Government ICT Procurement Process The procurement process consists of a number of steps: * Needs Definition / Requirements * Request for Information (RFI) * Request for Comments * Request for Proposal * Proposal * Live Test and Demonstration * Best and Final Offer * Award * Protest Procedures Depending on the size and complexity of the procurement, a given acquisition may contain some or all of these stages. Need The acquisition process begins with the recognition of a need by a governmental department for a capability or a service. This need must then be translated into a set of requirements so that eventually a Request for Proposal (RFP) may be issued. The scope of this effort is generally invisible to potential bidders. Request for Information (RFI) During this phase of the procurement, government actively pursues business input in the form of recommendations and presentations. The input is generally solicited by the means of an RFI that describes the government's needs and perceived requirements. If done in a manner other than an RFI, governments should be careful that their solicitation does not have the effect of precluding competition. Business thus has the opportunity to better understand the requirements and the true needs of the end user. During this stage, communication is open, and both industry and the government are exploring needs and possible relevant technologies. If it has not already done so, business is also beginning to assess potential partners. Request for Comments (RFC) An RFC on a draft Request for Proposals (RFP) is generally the next document that the government issues. It is based on the input that the government has gathered during the RFI stage and is based on a refinement of their needs and available technologies. Again, governments should ensure that the RFC is issued in an open and transparent manner so that it does not have the effect of precluding competition. In addition, if governments use a contractor to help in writing an RFC, or later the actual RFP, that contractor should be precluded from bidding either alone or as a partner in the actual procurement, Ideally the RFC is a complete document outlining not only the agency's needs but also the proposed terms and conditions for the contract. While it takes considerable effort for the governmental entity to produce a complete document at this stage, it ultimately saves considerable time and effort for both parties later on. In addition, a complete document sends a signal to industry that the government is serious and that the acquisition is for "real". Unavailability of information at this stage, and the inability to comment on it, often causes misunderstandings and delay later on in the procurement process. Request for Proposal (RFP) Ideally, the acquiring governmental entity will have indicated in the RFC a proposed schedule for the release of the RFP, and they will adhere to it. As the proposed release date draws near, potential bidders will firm up bidding partners and will begin to staff their proposal efforts. In order to keep ultimate costs down, government needs to adhere to their proposed timeframes because delays and/or extensions at this point become quite expensive for industry, and those costs are ultimately passed on to the government. It is important that governments allow ample time for firms to prepare their proposals and also take into consideration that foreign bidders may need additional time than would a national entity. Proposal The proposal contains the bidder's proposed technical solution, management approach, and cost. Proposals usually contain very sensitive, and often confidential, commercial information. It is important that proposals be treated carefully by governments to insure that this sensitive information is not released to competitors. While often delivery of the technical, management and cost proposals are requested simultaneously, government could save money, and often time, by requiring the cost proposal two to three weeks after the others. Late changes by bidders to their technical proposals are often not adequately incorporated into the cost proposal causing later disagreements and delays. As the government reviews the proposals, they may request clarifications or additional information from bidders. Due to the sensitivity of interactions with bidders at this stage, it is important that this be done formally in writing and with good documentation maintained. Live Test and Demonstration (LTD) On very large and/or complex procurements, the government may require that a Live Test and Demonstration or Operational Capability Demonstration (OCD) be performed to demonstrate and validate the proposed technologies. Governments should provide bidders selected for an LTD as much time as possible to prepare. Bidders must obtain appropriate space, bring in required hardware and equipment, assemble the right software and assemble staff for the LTD. LTDs and OCDs are very expensive efforts for the bidders and for the government that sometimes must assemble large, skilled evaluation teams. Thus they should be required sparingly and in very select situations. Best and Final Offer (BAFO) Once the proposal has been submitted and the LTD, if required has been performed, bidders begin to finalize the prices from their vendors, subcontractors and bidding partners and to fine-tune their own costs. The BAFO will also incorporate any changes indicated by the LTD and any clarifications that may have been requested from the government during their review of the technical and management proposal. Award The award process consists of informing the selected bidder of their success, and, more importantly, informing the losing bidders of the reasons they were not selected. Being open and sensitive during this process is important and can help avoid later problems and protests. Losing bidders want to understand in as much detail as possible areas where their proposals were deficient. Providing the information at this time will allow them to improve their processes for their next effort and also assures them that the process was transparent and fair. If bidders feel information is being withheld, it raises their suspicions about the entire process and may lead to a formal Protest simply as a means of acquiring more information. Protest A formal protest procedure to higher authority and ultimately to an independent authority is important to providing an open, accessible, fair, transparent and documented procurement process. This provides an opportunity for bidders to be heard and to receive an explanation of why a given bid was turned down. Protesting is a significant event that bidders do not take lightly. The process is expensive for both the bidder and the government, ties up critical resources, and potentially negatively impacts the image of the bidder in the eyes of the government. However, an effective protest process will help maintain competition in current and future procurements. On Thu, 11 Sep 2008 01:57:15 -0700 (PDT), "wesley kiriinya" <kiriinya2000(a)yahoo.com> said: I think there are two things in this argument. First when a company/gvmnt is buying the back end/base software e.g. a database/operating systems. I agree that "...procuring agents should not mention any trade marks, companies or product names when requesting for quotations..." Second when a company/gvmnt is buying middle level software that should operate with the back end software and in this case I think that the procuring agents should atleast mention what the back end software is. This is useful information to anyone willing to submit a quotation. Regards. 8~) I don't want to go to Hell, I don't want to stay on Earth, but what I'm I going to do in Heaven. --- On Wed, 9/10/08, Liko Agosta <likoa(a)verviant.com> wrote: From: Liko Agosta <likoa(a)verviant.com> Subject: Re: [kictanet] Software procurement in kenya To: kiriinya2000(a)yahoo.com Cc: kictanet(a)lists.kictanet.or.ke Date: Wednesday, September 10, 2008, 10:09 AM Evans ... We are a services company that provides both Closed Source and Open Source Consulting to clients .... We build on what clients have already paid for... We can discuss TCO ... Liko Agosta, CEO Verviant Consulting Services. www.verviant.com Phone : 1-919-341-1820 Fax : 1-978-268-8403 Toll Free: 1-866-551-4935 Pager: 9193891551(a)txt.att.net -----Original Message----- From: Evans Ikua [mailto:ikua@lpakenya.org] Sent: Wednesday, September 10, 2008 2:48 AM To: Liko Agosta Cc: kictanet(a)lists.kictanet.or.ke Subject: RE: [kictanet] Software procurement in kenya Liko, There is nothing wrong with the Law. It only needs to be followed. It actually has very good intentions of making sure that all (technology) suppliers get an equal opportunity to tender for a whatever it is. Mind you, once the tenders have been received and opened, the client is under no obligation to buy from anyone, not even the lowest price. Our argument is this; say a ministry wants to buy a SQL DB Server. They advertise this without mentioning MS SQL Server anywhere (that's what the law says). You quote your SQL Server at KSh 5.6m (you are a MS Gold Partner), and I quote my Open Source SQL server at 0.5m (I am only selling my services and not licenses). The tendering committee now has two options and the guys in IT can defend their choice of technology, and the TCO that goes with it, all the way from having to buy upgrade licenses a year later or so. Then the decision is made. At this point, nobody can come and tell them that they must buy this or that, its their decision. Important thing is that the management has seen all the options available. If this law is broken in your favour, I don't expect you to have a problem with it. You are happy. No? It is this that will raise management questions about the cost of license upgrades vis a vis the cost of migrating to FOSS products. A Ministry would save more by migrating to Scalix than upgrading to MS Exchange in the long term. But how does the accounting officer get to know this if the IT guy only requests a particular brand name, leaving out everyone else? For public institutions that are running on our taxes, we want to know that they are spending money prudently. They cant be given a blank cheque. -- Evans Ikua Linux Professional Association of Kenya Tel: +254-20-2250381, Cell: +254-722 955 831 Eagle House, 2nd Floor Kimathi Street, Opp. Corner House www.lpakenya.org Quoting Liko Agosta <likoa(a)verviant.com>: > Evans, > > That law should be changed :) > > If a government agency has already invested in some technology stack, they > should have the right to say they want a solution that ran's on that > technology stack ....lets says Microsoft SQL Server .. > > Why ... The license for SQL server will be a sunk cost at that point and > getting different technology is making a bigger financial commitment and > raising project risk .... also .. if the customers programmers/admins know > C# and SQL Server or Websphere and DB2, the client has the right to pick > that platform ... > > We have ran into this with our clients. Whenever we are doing project > discovery, we will find out which technologies they currently have/support > ... if a client has SQL Server, we will typical ask for usage reports for > that SQL server box and in most cases, we have been able to save money by > "adding to" their existing infrastructure ... or tuning their existing > infrastructure to take more load. > > Many organizations we have worked with tend to buy a servers/software > licenses for each project ... we advice against this and are usually for > consolidation and better management. That way a 4 CPU license for SQL Server > Enterprise Edition (approx USD 80,000) will be apportioned to the 20 systems > or projects that will use a well tuned 4CPU SQL server .... > > So .. good intentions... bad law ... why enforce or spend time on it > > My 2 cents > > Liko Agosta, CEO > Verviant Consulting Services. > > www.verviant.com > Phone : 1-919-341-1820 > Fax : 1-978-268-8403 > Toll Free: 1-866-551-4935 > Pager: 9193891551(a)txt.att.net > > > -----Original Message----- > From: kictanet-bounces+likoa=verviant.com(a)lists.kictanet.or.ke > [mailto:kictanet-bounces+likoa=verviant.com@lists.kictanet.or.ke] On Behalf > Of Evans Ikua > Sent: Tuesday, September 09, 2008 1:34 PM > To: Liko Agosta > Cc: kictanet(a)lists.kictanet.or.ke > Subject: [kictanet] Software procurement in kenya > > Interesting what Google can come up with: > > http://www.linuxworld.com/news/2008/052308-kenya-linux-group-challenges- proc > urement.html?fsrc=rss-linux-news > > > We finally got to meet with the PPOA on Friday, 5th September. We had > a very fruitful discussion on the Public Procurement and Disposal Act > 2005, whose provisions are being ignored by Government procurement > agents: > > https://ict-innovation.fossfa.net/taxonomy/blog-tags/kenya > > This good law stipulates that procuring agents should not mention any > trade marks, companies or product names when requesting for > quotations. They are required to just give the specs of what they need > to accomplish. But how many times do we see these RFQs with brand > names such as Microsoft *?. This has got to stop and nobody has any > excuse to break the law with impunity. > > We will be putting details of the proceedings on our website soon, and > also in the media. > > > -- > Evans Ikua > Linux Professional Association of Kenya > Tel: +254-20-2250381, Cell: +254-722 955 831 > Eagle House, 2nd Floor > Kimathi Street, Opp. Corner House > www.lpakenya.org > > > > > > > _______________________________________________ > kictanet mailing list > kictanet(a)lists.kictanet.or.ke > http://lists.kictanet.or.ke/mailman/listinfo/kictanet > > This message was sent to: likoa(a)verviant.com > Unsubscribe or change your options at > http://lists.kictanet.or.ke/mailman/options/kictanet/likoa%40verviant.co m > > > _______________________________________________ kictanet mailing list kictanet(a)lists.kictanet.or.ke http://lists.kictanet.or.ke/mailman/listinfo/kictanet This message was sent to: kiriinya2000(a)yahoo.com Unsubscribe or change your options at http://lists.kictanet.or.ke/mailman/options/kictanet/kiriinya2000%40yaho o.com People make a plan work, a plan alone seldom makes people work (Confucius).

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Re: [kictanet] The 21st Century Workplace; September 17th Leadership Forum (Reminder)] its Joe Mucheru of Google Kenya presenting
by John Maina 12 Sep '08

12 Sep '08

Alice How do I access the archive I have tried using my login without success Robert ----- Original Message ---- From: alice <alice(a)apc.org> To: j.maina(a)ymail.com Cc: KICTAnet ICT Policy Discussions <kictanet(a)lists.kictanet.or.ke> Sent: Thursday, September 11, 2008 8:46:29 PM Subject: [kictanet] The 21st Century Workplace; September 17th Leadership Forum (Reminder)] its Joe Mucheru of Google Kenya presenting LEADERSHIP FORUM *‘The 21st Century Workplace’* With the world becoming a global village, the workplace is changing….. fast! Get to know how to make the best of it. * Date:* Wednesday 17th^th September 2008 *Presenter:** Mr. Joseph Mucheru**,** Business Lead East Africa (Google Kenya)* * Venue:* The Stanley Hotel- Ball Room Time: 6.00 pm *Charges:* Leadership Forum members – Free Non-Leadership Forum Members – Kshs 5,000 p.a. membership or Kshs 1000 per session Confirm your attendance by email to. _information(a)britishcouncil.or.ke_ <mailto:information@britishcouncil.or.ke> Please note that the Leadership forum membership and gate fees have been revised upwards effective from 1^st September 2008. If your membership expired in July or August 2008, you can renew annual membership at Ksh 3,000 only during the month of September. Attached is Mr. Mucheru’s bio-data.. The British Council is committed to promoting equality and eliminating discrimination in the areas of gender, race and disability. <<Joseph Mucheru.doc>> Best Regards, Linet Otibine Customer Service Officer British Council Upper Hill Road Pilot Line: 2836000 Fax No: 2836500 _Linet.otibine(a)britishcouncil.or.ke_ <mailto:Linet.otibine@britishcouncil.or.ke>__ *Organisational change for less than you think* This message is for the use of the intended recipient(s) only. If you have received this message in error, please notify the sender and delete it. The British Council accepts no liability for loss or damage caused by software viruses and you are advised to carry out a virus check on any attachments contained in this message. The British Council is a registered charity 209131 (England and Wales) SC037733 (Scotland). Our purpose is to build mutually beneficial relationships between people in the UK and other countries and to increase appreciation of the UK's creative ideas and achievements.

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The 21st Century Workplace; September 17th Leadership Forum (Reminder)] its Joe Mucheru of Google Kenya presenting
by alice 11 Sep '08

11 Sep '08

LEADERSHIP FORUM *‘The 21st Century Workplace’* With the world becoming a global village, the workplace is changing….. fast! Get to know how to make the best of it. * Date:* Wednesday 17th^th September 2008 *Presenter:** Mr. Joseph Mucheru**,** Business Lead East Africa (Google Kenya)* * Venue:* The Stanley Hotel- Ball Room Time: 6.00 pm *Charges:* Leadership Forum members – Free Non-Leadership Forum Members – Kshs 5,000 p.a. membership or Kshs 1000 per session Confirm your attendance by email to. _information(a)britishcouncil.or.ke_ <mailto:information@britishcouncil.or.ke> Please note that the Leadership forum membership and gate fees have been revised upwards effective from 1^st September 2008. If your membership expired in July or August 2008, you can renew annual membership at Ksh 3,000 only during the month of September. Attached is Mr. Mucheru’s bio-data. The British Council is committed to promoting equality and eliminating discrimination in the areas of gender, race and disability. <<Joseph Mucheru.doc>> Best Regards, Linet Otibine Customer Service Officer British Council Upper Hill Road Pilot Line: 2836000 Fax No: 2836500 _Linet.otibine(a)britishcouncil.or.ke_ <mailto:Linet.otibine@britishcouncil.or.ke>__ *Organisational change for less than you think* This message is for the use of the intended recipient(s) only. If you have received this message in error, please notify the sender and delete it. The British Council accepts no liability for loss or damage caused by software viruses and you are advised to carry out a virus check on any attachments contained in this message. The British Council is a registered charity 209131 (England and Wales) SC037733 (Scotland). Our purpose is to build mutually beneficial relationships between people in the UK and other countries and to increase appreciation of the UK's creative ideas and achievements.

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Re: [kictanet] BPO STUDY LAUNCH PRESENTATIONS
by David Otwoma 11 Sep '08

11 Sep '08

Thank you so much Evelyne. What MM saved for me on my flashdisk is not accessible but now I have what was presented. On Thu, Sep 11, 2008 at 12:41 PM, Evelyne Majale <evelyne(a)kictanet.or.ke> wrote: > Dear all > > > > Attached are the presentations of the BPO Study Launch that took place > yesterday at KICC. > > > > > > > > Evelyne > > _______________________________________________ > kictanet mailing list > kictanet(a)lists.kictanet.or.ke > http://lists.kictanet.or.ke/mailman/listinfo/kictanet > > This message was sent to: otwomad(a)gmail.com > Unsubscribe or change your options at > http://lists.kictanet.or.ke/mailman/options/kictanet/otwomad%40gmail.com > >

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BPO STUDY LAUNCH PRESENTATIONS
by Evelyne Majale 11 Sep '08

11 Sep '08

Dear all Attached are the presentations of the BPO Study Launch that took place yesterday at KICC. Evelyne

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Re: [kictanet] Rwanda Gets Localls Made/Assemled Handset
by Dan Njiriri 10 Sep '08

10 Sep '08

Dear Dr Ndemo, Thank you for your kind clarification on steps taken by Kenya on assembled electronics in Kenya. I am a strong bealiver in local industries and happy to let you know I have bought twenty Madaraka PCs from JKUAT Enterprises for our Tracom college teaching lab. They however need to develop local materials for the industry as oppossed to assembly only. Anyone can do that. The Gilgil Telecommucations Industry should be nurtured and it is a pity what you have explained on someone turning it to posts treatment. What a shame and waste of developing industrial capacity! May the good Loard see the case to logical conclusion. I fully agree with you that the private sector and the academia must wake-up and create the necessary industries and hence wealth. Once again thank you. Dan Njiriri --- On Mon, 9/8/08, bitange(a)jambo.co.ke <bitange(a)jambo.co.ke> wrote: From: bitange(a)jambo.co.ke <bitange(a)jambo.co.ke> Subject: Re: [kictanet] Rwanda Gets Localls Made/Assemled Handset To: njiris2000(a)yahoo.com Cc: bitange(a)jambo.co.ke, "KICTAnet ICT Policy Discussions" <kictanet(a)lists.kictanet.or.ke>, "Robert Onyango-Alai" <alai.robert(a)gmail.com> Date: Monday, September 8, 2008, 7:24 AM Dear Njiriri, There is nothing wrong with policy and we should not benchmark Kenya with Rwanda because the differences between the two countries are just too many. Compared to Kenya, Rwanda is where Kenya was in the 80's, centrally planned economy where the Government interferes with everything including the private sector. Granted there is virtually no private sector in Rwanda. We have spent most of the 90's privatizing that which was created by Government. The economy and more specifically the communication sector is fully liberalised. The opportunities for the private sector are therefore enormous and we should not blame the Government. It is in this forum that we recently discussed Madaraka PC and it was dismissed as unworkable. We did not bother to ask especially JKUAT where they have reached in developing components locally for the PC. Kenya has been in the forefront producing telephone equipment including switches at the Gilgil plant for the region. Indeed we have several firms seeking to start local production of mobile handsets at the facility but have been frustrated by a nother Kenyan who wanted to manufacture poles at the plant (The perils of Democracy). The case is still in court that we cannot discuss it here. We must be proud of our human resources for what they have done in the region. What we need to do now is to vigorously utilize this resources to exploit the opportunities - this if Adam Smith was a life will tell you that - let the private sector wake up. This is the pattern that the Newly Industrialized Nations of Asia followed. The Indians are going home from many countries to create real wealth. Regards Ndemo. > Thanks Dr Ochuodho for sharing this new development in Rwanda. > Unfortunately, Kenya is once again beaten at our own game, not becaurse we > lack, excellent technical manpower and facilities.., but becaurse we are > too slow in policy development! Rwanda has carried the day, yet all the > production parts pass through Kenya to Rwanda! > We should learn to be fast in what we want to achieve, and not take years > back and forth in board rooms. > Dan Njiriri > > --- On Sat, 9/6/08, Shem Ochuodho <shemochuodho(a)yahoo.com> wrote: > > From: Shem Ochuodho <shemochuodho(a)yahoo.com> > Subject: [kictanet] Rwanda Gets Localls Made/Assemled Handset > To: njiris2000(a)yahoo.com > Cc: "Robert Onyango-Alai" <alai.robert(a)gmail.com>, "KICTAnet ICT Policy > Discussions" <kictanet(a)lists.kictanet.or.ke> > Date: Saturday, September 6, 2008, 6:08 AM > > > > > > > > Quoting: Rwanda ICT4D Community Network > > Rwanda get locally made handset -Network World 02/09/2008 > > A-Link Technologies, a Chinese electronics company, has unveiled its first > mobile phone handsets manufactured in Rwanda. This makes Rwanda the first > country in the region to sell locally manufactured mobile phones. > > The manufacturing of the handsets follows a memorandum of understanding > signed in 2006 between A-Link and the Rwanda Information Technology > Authority, the country's telecom regulator. > Read the latest WhitePaper - Monitor the core and troubleshoot the access > layer with integrated network analysis solutions > > The company plans to start selling the phones, called "Alira," in the 21 > countries of the Common Market for Eastern and Southern African after they > are officially launched in October and once production is stepped up, said > A-Link CEO Yin Quing Ri. > > "One of the phone models has been programmed with Kinyarwanda software so > the Rwandese who uses their mother language can communicate easily," Ri > said. > > So far, the company has produced three models -- the A100, A200 and A300 > -- and promises that several other models are in the works. > > The phones feature color screens and radios, among other amenities. > > The plant is manufacturing 100 handsets per day, though it has the > capacity to produce 700 phones per day. > > A-Link began operating in Rwanda last year, as the country is positioning > itself to be an ICT hub in East Africa. > _______________________________________________ > kictanet mailing list > kictanet(a)lists.kictanet.or.ke > http://lists.kictanet.or.ke/mailman/listinfo/kictanet > > This message was sent to: njiris2000(a)yahoo.com > Unsubscribe or change your options at > http://lists.kictanet.or.ke/mailman/options/kictanet/njiris2000%40yahoo.com > > > > > ---------------------------------------------- > This message has been scanned for viruses and > dangerous content by Jambo MailScanner, and is > believed to be clean. > --------------------------------------------- > "easy access to the world" > > _______________________________________________ > kictanet mailing list > kictanet(a)lists.kictanet.or.ke > http://lists.kictanet.or.ke/mailman/listinfo/kictanet > > This message was sent to: bitange(a)jambo.co.ke > Unsubscribe or change your options at > http://lists.kictanet.or.ke/mailman/options/kictanet/bitange%40jambo.co.ke > ---------------------------------------------- This message has been scanned for viruses and dangerous content by Jambo MailScanner, and is believed to be clean. --------------------------------------------- "easy access to the world"

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Help Define ICANN's Future
by alice 09 Sep '08

09 Sep '08

Help Define ICANN's Future By Kieren McCarthy Mention ICANN in Internet circles and you will always find a multitude of views of what the organization should do, needs to do, and should have done; how it has to change, and why; and what it needs to focus on. Well, the time has come to make those views known and to try to persuade the rest of the community that they represent the best step forward. ICANN is running a special consultation called "Improving Institutional Confidence". It comprises of three main documents, developed by the President's Strategy Committee (PSC) from input received through the Midterm Review of the Joint Project Agreement, and the other consultations the PSC has held over the years. Those documents outline a range of suggested changes and alterations to the ICANN model of decision-making. Everything is available online in multiple languages, and revised versions of the documents will this week go out to a second public comment period, to which you are all, of course, encouraged to respond. It is not just an online consultation, however. We are running a number of regional consultative meetings across the globe to let you provide your input in person. There has already been one meeting at a Latin American and Caribbean Internet Addresses Registry (LACNIC) conference in Montevideo in August, and a second took place at the Asia-Pacific Network Information Centre (APNIC) meeting in Christchurch, also last month. The next meeting is next week in Geneva, the day before the Internet Governance Forum (IGF) preparatory meeting. It will be held at 8am on Monday 15 September at the Hotel Royal on Rue de Lausanne. And another will be held in Washington on Wednesday 1 October at the National Press Club. If you can come, please register online. Staff and PSC members will be there and you will be able to provide your input directly and in person. All the information you could need on these meetings and the Improving Institutional Confidence Consultation (IIC) consultation itself is available. Please do get involved. And if you have any questions, either contact me, or email iic(a)icann.org. Cheers, and I hope to see you all there Written by Kieren McCarthy, General manager of public participation, ICANN See related topics: Domain Registries, Internet Governance, Policy & Regulation, Top-Level Domains --- You are currently subscribed to aisi-l as: [alice(a)apc.org] To unsubscribe, forward this message to leave-aisi-l-84914M(a)lyris.bellanet.org

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Re: [kictanet] [Skunkworks] Runway inflation?
by aki 09 Sep '08

09 Sep '08

Jazz, Phares, Many thanks for your inputs so far. It been great reading. The government has do something about the inflation or face a situation where we just became a very expensive country on the continent. It will then have to deal with a roller-coaster effect , that is price increase means less revenue as people will stop buying. So the revenue being collected so far will further reduce with a NEGATIVE TREND. Electricity costs sky rocket, a negative trend to come? There will be millions of people looking for alternate energy to cutting costs or just use electricity for bare essentails. This will cause a shortfall in collection targets. Will the power company be back in square one, i.e price increase leads to more lost revenue? So what excatly is the government doing about it? What measures has it put in place? Whether bad policies or bad decisions, the current state of inflation is un-acceptable. Passing the buck to citizens is not an option or asking citizens to dig deeper into their pockets is not a solution.

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First steps towards a global ICT profession
by waudo siganga 09 Sep '08

09 Sep '08

Dear All - attachment from IFIP/Australia Computer Society for your interest. On Tue, 9 Sep 2008 10:35:22 +0200, "Eduard Dundler" <eduard.dundler@ifip. org> said: Dear IFIP members, may I ask you to release the attached Press Release about the latest development in IP3 to your PR contacts. Best regards Eduard Dundler ========================================= Eduard Dundler Head of IFIP Secretariat International Federation for Information Processing Tel.: +43 2236 73 616 10 Fax: +43 2236 73 616 e-mail: [1]eduard.dundler(a)ifip.org ========================================= References 1. mailto:eduard.dundler@ifip.org People make a plan work, a plan alone seldom makes people work (Confucius).

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[Fwd: [Aaw-network] The Info-Activism Camp]
by alice 09 Sep '08

09 Sep '08

========== Are you interested in using mobile phones to reach out to your community but don't know how? Do you produce reports full of crucial data but feel like the right people aren't reading them? Do you know that using the internet and mobile phones for your advocacy work can create security vulnerabilities but don't know how to protect yourself against them? Do you want to learn how to use digital advocacy to create change? If your answer is yes, then read on....and be a participant at our Info-Activism Camp! The Info-Activism camp will bring together 120 rights advocates from the global South with technologists, designers and activists for a week long hands-on workshop to share skills, tools and tactics in digital advocacy. Info-Activism is an approach to advocacy that recognises the artful use of information and communications as a primary tactic in successful campaigns. The camp provides a space for intensive learning and doing, a structured 'skill-share' environment for experienced advocates that will give them the confidence and know-how to leverage the limited resources they have to create greater impact. During the week, participants will learn how to creatively integrate new technologies in to their advocacy and create long lasting connections with other advocates and tech-activists. The camp will give rights advocates the practical skills, tools and techniques to use technology to: * Gather and analyse information and facilitate evidence- based campaigning * Create and disseminate targeted, accessible and engaging information for advocacy efforts that have impact on targets and mobilise support * Increase participation from affected communities * Enable cooperation and coordination with allies * Minimise security and privacy vulnerabilities The Info-Activism Camp is organised by Tactical Tech and will be held in India, February 2009. Tactical Tech is an international NGO helping rights advocates use information, communications and digital technologies to maximise the impact of their advocacy work. We provide advocates with guides, tools, training and consultancy to help them develop the skills and tactics they need to increase the impact of their campaigning. Read more about our work at http://www.tacticaltech.org More details along with the application form will be available by end of September 2008. The working language of the camp will be English. If you want to learn more about the camp in the meantime or sign up to get an application form, please write to infoactivism(a)tacticaltech.org

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[Fwd: [Fibre-for-africa] A report that focuses on the lack of high-capacity backbone networks in Africa]
by alice 08 Sep '08

08 Sep '08

Hi All FYI -------- Original Message -------- Subject: [Fibre-for-africa] A report that focuses on the lack of high-capacity backbone networks in Africa Date: Mon, 8 Sep 2008 19:47:20 +0100 From: abi.jagun(a)gmail.com Reply-To: APC - Private list for use by EASSY Workshop Participants <fibre-for-africa(a)lists.apc.org> To: APC - Private list for use by EASSY Workshop Participants <fibre-for-africa(a)lists.apc.org> Dear All I came across the following article recently which might be of interest to the list. It canbe downloaded at http://www.infodev.org/en/Publication.526.html Broadband for Africa: Policy for Promoting the Development of Backbone Networks A report that focuses on the lack of high-capacity backbone networks in Africa Many countries in Sub-Saharan Africa see ICT as a foundation of long-term economic development. The region has been very successful in increasing access to basic voice communications but there has been no comparable improvement in broadband connectivity. The broadband access gap between Sub-Saharan Africa and the rest of the world is getting wider, just as the gap in basic voice communications is getting smaller. Increasing access to broadband connectivity is therefore emerging as a high priority for policymakers across the continent. This report focuses on one important part of the challenge – the lack of high-capacity backbone networks. It addresses three specific questions: What role do backbone networks play in the provision of broadband services, what is the current state of backbone network development in Sub-Saharan Africa (and why) and, what can be done to promote the development of backbone networks and thereby stimulate the take-up of broadband services? By Mark Williams. Published August 2008. _______________________________________________ Fibre-for-africa mailing list Fibre-for-africa(a)lists.apc.org http://lists.apc.org/cgi-bin/mailman/listinfo/fibre-for-africa

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Rwanda Gets Localls Made/Assemled Handset
by Shem Ochuodho 08 Sep '08

08 Sep '08

Quoting: Rwanda ICT4D Community Network Rwanda get locally made handset -Network World 02/09/2008 A-Link Technologies, a Chinese electronics company, has unveiled its first mobile phone handsets manufactured in Rwanda. This makes Rwanda the first country in the region to sell locally manufactured mobile phones. The manufacturing of the handsets follows a memorandum of understanding signed in 2006 between A-Link and the Rwanda Information Technology Authority, the country's telecom regulator. Read the latest WhitePaper - Monitor the core and troubleshoot the access layer with integrated network analysis solutions The company plans to start selling the phones, called "Alira," in the 21 countries of the Common Market for Eastern and Southern African after they are officially launched in October and once production is stepped up, said A-Link CEO Yin Quing Ri. "One of the phone models has been programmed with Kinyarwanda software so the Rwandese who uses their mother language can communicate easily," Ri said. So far, the company has produced three models -- the A100, A200 and A300 -- and promises that several other models are in the works. The phones feature color screens and radios, among other amenities. The plant is manufacturing 100 handsets per day, though it has the capacity to produce 700 phones per day. A-Link began operating in Rwanda last year, as the country is positioning itself to be an ICT hub in East Africa.

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Invitation for Web design PHP/MYSQL Training
by Martin Njuguna-Digital Vision 08 Sep '08

08 Sep '08

Dear all, We would like to invite the people interested in Hands on Web design,PHP/MYSQL training to join us during our 4 days hands on training seminar between *29th September to 2nd October 2008.* For more details, please check out http://digitalvision.co.ke/training/ You can also request for the full course outline for the 4 days by writing to us on training(a)digitalvision.co.ke Thank you in advance. -- Martin S. Njuguna Digital Vision Limited Plot number 72/688 Kitengela Road, Langata, Nairobi Maasai Shopping complex 1st floor ,room 4 P.O Box 40721 00100 t:+254-20-21 33 865 c:+254 721 440 543 c:+254 733 440 543 e:martin@digitalvision.co.ke <e%3Amartin(a)digitalvision.co.ke> w: http://www.digitalvision.co.ke

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Re: [kictanet] [Skunkworks] Runway inflation?
by Phares Kariuki 08 Sep '08

08 Sep '08

Hi, I agree with you in the most part, just that there are a couple of issues I've found. ECONOMICS; An observation. Economics observes what happens in economies. It does not come up with the rules. The whole point of the study of economics is to better understand how transactions etc function. Now, when I say that a farmer in Dundori is hurt by low pricing, that is reality. His is a low value transaction. It is unfortunate, but if 70% of the transactions (numerically) are low value, then they can be financially worth less than the remaining 30%, which accounts for more, financially. The problem then is how to get the Farmers out of Farmland trading and into the mainstream market (given that if they do that, they will increase competition, thereby reducing pricing, while gaining more money in the same breath). The policy is left to someone else. I disagree with the thought that inflation causes rural to urban migration to recede. Actually, it increases it. The problem is, the guy at Dundori is so poor that the instant school fees and transport costs rise, he can no longer afford to make ends meet, so he moves, He's hardest hit by inflation. He suddenly can no longer afford to buy bread (which has risen, and his income is still the same paltry amount). It's the same as migration to foreign nations, once a comfortable life is easily accessible in Nairobi, then Greencard applications will go down. The sad thing is people from the citys/towns tend to portray and image of doing well, so the farmer figures the fortune lies in Nairobi. In economics, its said that prices are sticky downwards, meaning that an upsurge in pricing is easy, but an adjustment downwards is almost impossible. An example? Global crude prices have come down. Fuel stations will keep the pump prices at that level, and unfortunately, the trend is to maintain that as their new profit margin. The same can be said about the matatu industry. Once they increase their fare, they have a new profit margin, which they will not go below. UNEMPLOYMENT For a developing nation such as ours, studies show that a certain level of unemployment (not the level we have though) is good for the nation, as it keeps competition for jobs high, making labour cheap, and hence keeping our goods more competitive globally, and it also spurs entrepreneurship, as people are now forced to start businesses when they cannot find jobs. CAUSE OF INFLATION IN KENYA Inasmuch as it is popular to blame the government, this particular situation is largely caused by government. It has made a series of misinformed policy decisions which are to blame for the situation at hand. 1. Separation of Kengen & KPLC - This was a case of blindly copying what happens in other nations without looking at our situation in particular. This is normally done when the logistics of managing the two becomes too difficult. Kenya is still a young nation, at most they should have created two smaller entities, each mandated with a different objective, in line with what Kengen did with Geothermal power generation. For example, having KPLC (Mother Company), Kengen and Kenya Power Distributors Limited. 2.Lack of capacity building; Throwing money to fix the problem - When Kenya first experienced power rationing, the government started buying diesel generators and installed them at the now popular Kipevu Power Station. Now, Kenya is one of the countries with the largest capacities for geothermal energy in Africa, instead of tapping on this, the government spent money on diesel generation. As a stop gap measure, this was OK, the problem is, someone realised that this was a way to cover the capacity problems, to meet the shortfall. That is why the projects to build new power stations take too long. Now, the global price of petroleum has gone up, we have to pay more for power, simply because it is becoming a larger percentage of our power generation. This also increases diesel prices locally, as the demand has increased. You will have noticed that diesel fuel has increased in price more than standard Super/Regular, when looked at as a percentage. 3. Poor Transport Infrastructure & Taxes - Our road infrastructure is dilapidated. This makes transport expensive, however, the tax regime makes it too expensive. Now fuel is at European prices. Our rail infrastructure is poor. Transporting milk/bread etc, will cost more for this simple reason. When matatus increase the fare, this affects the ordinary mwananchi, who most feels the pain. Women selling goods in markets have to pay more to get their goods there, and will charge more, increasing cost of food. It is the same on all basic goods that rely on transport. The handcarts/mkokotenis realise increased demand, and will increase their pricing as well. This price will not go down easily. 4. Listing of Kengen & KPLC. While a good decision financially speaking, as the bearer of policy, the government flopped in this regard. Given that the companies have been separated, each now has profit targets to meet. The government had earlier subsidized cost on both Kengen & KPLC's part. Now, had they not been listed, this would not have been a problem, as the government would not need them to make profits, however, as things are, being a listed company, if the stock price falls, the CEO loses his job, as he has an angry AGM to contend with. Now, we have two companies, each with a huge profit target to meet, and a government that can no longer afford to subsidize power. Now the result is, with their new profit regimes neatly tucked in their pockets, they increase the cost of power, thereby increasing production of goods. So, the manufacturers raise their prices, the transporters raise their prices, the farmer, having to contend with rising prices, raises his prices. Leaving the citizens digging deeper into their pockets. Kijiji, we agree in principle, the difference is that you are not content with the situation. The poverty Kenyans face is real. And I agree, more SACCOs and other such groups should be created, to allow the farmers to bargain for better pricing. Ill give an example, I was recently in Dundori (hence the several inferences), where I saw an old grandmother feed one of the healthiest and largest batch of cabbages Ive seen yet to her cows. Now, I asked why? Well, the cabbage (which retails in NBI for 40-60 shillings, in a market, the price increase, as I pointed out earlier, is due to transport problems (15 odd km of dirt road + tonnes of middlemen) is bought from her at 3 shillings a piece. She at least has a cooperative for milk, so they buy the milk at 23 shillings a litre. She figures, the cows tend to produce better milk when fed with cabbages, and they will rot, waiting for someone to collect... And we complain about food shortages? Now, Kijiji, we cannot say that 10 cabbages are worth 400 shillings. They have retailed at 3 shillings each, meaning that they are worth 30 shillings. That's the farmers buying power. Anyway, my two pence, as the tradition is, feel free to punch holes in my argument... On Mon, Sep 8, 2008 at 8:21 AM, Kijiji Jazz <kijijijazz(a)gmail.com> wrote: > Hi Aki,Skunks, > > > Energy runs the economy, it greatly determines the cost of production. > What this means is that bottom lines for companies will be greatly > affected and small companies wont be able to manage. It basically means > that small is being redefined especially in urban areas. > > For me to answer your question effectively, i have to put some things in > context. Firstly in the CNBC thread what you and Phares said about > price and salaries was on point but. Salaries or wages are a different > INDEX from GDP. They are defined as Yp or {Income per Capita}. Thus my > contention that he was right on YP and wrong on GDP Why is this > important? Their are two kinds of economies really. LDC {Low Developed > Countries and Medium Developed Countries}. > > This brings me to the issue PHARES raised of the JAPAN economy. > Developed Countries primarily suffer from problems of Devlopment not > Problems of Growth. Low developed countries {LDC} or 3rd world > countries suffer from from problems of growth. > > WHAT IS A PROBLEM OF GROWTH? > > In Kenya's case a problem of Growth would be retrenchment, high costs of > living etc. When an economy is growing it leaves some people behind as > it grows. This are the people who do not adapt to the growth. For > example 10 years ago a person who had a certificate in Secretarial > studies could get a job, in Nairobi. Now their skill set is largely > irrelevant. A degree is a prerequisite for a job now. And the > situation will get worse. Thus the argument by Karl Maxx in his book > "Das Kapital" that " Capitalism results in a reserve army of unemployed > workers." He was right!! as we can see from the retrenchments at Telkom > Kenya etc. However i am a firm believer in Capitalism. > > WHAT IS A PROBLEM OF DEVELOPMENT? > > A problem of development is more societal in nature. They say that > money only makes you more of what you already are. Thus crime goes up > in urban areas in terms of drug use and prostitution etc. > > INFLATION IS A PROBLEMS OF GROWTH > > We all know that property prices in Nairobi have gone in some instances > by up to 4 times in the last 10 years. What this means is that urban > areas are getting expensive to live in. That has led to increased rents > etc. Power is also largely expensive due to the demand for oil from the > East with their quickly expanding middle class. > > This means that small business and low skilled people will eventually be > unable to survive in Nairobi and relocate to rural areas. Their are > already reported cases of people in banks asking for transfers to rural > areas where life is cheaper. > > WHAT DOES THAT MEAN > > That then means that rural areas will start to grow and expand into > urban centres in the long term. This is because while a person with > secretarial skills in Nairobi is irrelevant. Their skill set is needed > in Homa Bay. It could also be argued that people will not move to rural > areas but will stay and engage in crime. Which is also true but unless > crime is organised it isn't profitable. > > HOW WILL RURAL AREAS DEVELOP > > Business works in terms of willing buyer, willing seller. That means > that the business that succeed will need to be where their are high > populations to improve their chances of getting more willing buyers. > Thus when people relocate companies will have to roll out into rural > areas. This will stimulate growth and development as seen by Equity > banks expansion drive, and By OneComms focus on rural areas in terms of > selling internet access. > > > INFLATION IS THUS GOOD IN THE LONG TERM > > This is rather ruthless to say. However it is true. Inflation reduces > rural to urban migration and reduces informal settlements in urban > areas. By keeping people in rural areas inflation fosters growth in > those areas. > > However inflation is bad if people who are forced to stay in rural areas > by it have no fallback option. That means that governments must relax > regulation of businesses and make it easy for them to expand to rural > areas. Kudos to CCK for the converged licence. > > Banks are also a big culprit. At any one time Banks in Kenya are > holding reserves of up to 60 billion shillings. Thus Michael Josephs > statement in the news recently when launching MPESA on PESA POINT where > he said. "Banks always have money, at least Kenyan Banks" In developed > economies banks dont hold vast reserves of cash they lend. Money should > be in the economy producing more not in banks. > > The more entrepreneurs have access to cash, the more they can do. thus > lending should be long term and flexible to foster economic growth. > > Therefore what Kenya is experiencing is problems of growth. As Phares > pointed out. It will harm some people but in the long term it will be > good for the economy. > > Small companies will close or change their structure to survive e.g. > remove permanent employees and higher contract ones or freelancers. For > example KQ has frozen employment for the next two years, hiring us > strictly contractual. Informal industries such as matatus will have to > formalise into Saccos or Bus companies or risk closure. > > DISCLAIMER: Our inflation is also artificial due to OPEC. It is also > brought about by America and its bloated middle class and Chinas ever > growing middle class and their demand for oil. However this is the > general trend of the economy. I hope that clarifies stuff for you. > > I invite Phares and others to Critic and contribute to this. > > > Kjaz > > On Thu, 2008-09-04 at 13:07 +0300, aki wrote: > > At this stage I wish I knew more about economics than ICT! > > > > While these lists are ICT based, if we have an economist on board, it > > would be a great help to some of us if the person can do some analysis > > and share it on this list. > > > > Some points to consider ( my amatuer input ) : > > > > - Electricity runs the economy. At 100% or more increase, what will it > > mean in the long term, say 3-12months from now? > > > > - Closure of businesses, loss of employment, eroded spending power by > > the consumers or businesses? > > > > - How much of the increased costs will affect property business > > rental prices ? > > > > - How will the informal sector handle this? > > > > - How will ICT companies fare in this scenario? > > > > - Price increases of products, solutions etc lead to a negative market > > trend? > > > > My apology for posting these issues here. > > > > Aki. > > > > > > > > > > _______________________________________________ > > skunkworks mailing list > > skunkworks(a)my.co.ke > > http://ole.kenic.or.ke/mailman/listinfo/skunkworks > > Blog http://skunkworks-ke.blogspot.com > > Beta Blog http://blog.my.co.ke > > Get Skunkworks RSS Feeds: http://www.jahazi.com/rss/ > > > > _______________________________________________ > skunkworks mailing list > skunkworks(a)my.co.ke > http://ole.kenic.or.ke/mailman/listinfo/skunkworks > Blog http://skunkworks-ke.blogspot.com > Beta Blog http://blog.my.co.ke > Get Skunkworks RSS Feeds: http://www.jahazi.com/rss/ >

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BPO STUDY LAUNCH
by Evelyne Majale 08 Sep '08

08 Sep '08

Dear people Another reminder of the BPO STUDY LAUNCH Please note: Venue: KICC Date: Wednesday 10th September, 2008 Time: 8.30 a.m. 1 p.m. Attached, please find the programme Please send your confirmations to me off line. Evelyne

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ITXC judgement lifts the carpet on bribes to seven African telcos for contracts
by Eric M.K Osiakwan 08 Sep '08

08 Sep '08

Everyone knows it happens but the conclusion of the trial of three former ITXC employees has aired publicly how it is done. Employees of seven African telcos – all state owned with one exception – were given bribes to obtain wholesale VoIP voice contracts. The sums involved were not large but court documents reveal how it was done and some interesting incidental detail about its pitfalls as a way of approaching sales acquisition. Founded in1997 by Tom Evslin, a former Vice President at AT&T, ITXC was one of the new breed of VoIP based carriers that set out to conquer the world. One of its key markets was Africa because of the plentiful arbitrage opportunities offered by the extremely high costs of international calling. ITXC sold low-cost international wholesale minutes to incumbents who were therefore able to either lower their prices or (as was often the case) simply increase their margins. The company was sold to Teleglobe and it was during that process that the bribery allegations first emerged. ITXC’s in-house attorney asked its sales department to provide a list of ITXC agents who also worked for telcos. On 27 October 2003, this person sent the following list: Sonatel, Nitel (through Standard Digital), Telkom Kenya (through Adwest), Ghana Telecom and Angola Telecom. Subsequently Teleglobe was sold to Tata’s VSNL. Three former ITXC employees were charged under the US Foreign Corrupt Practices Act: former Managing Director Roger Young, former Vice President Steven J. Ott, and Yaw Osei Amoako. Other co-conspirators were named but not charged as some were not US citizens. Young and Ott received reduced sentences because they co-operated with the investigation which is “on-going” according to the Department of Justice statement. Young was fined US$7,000 and Ott US$10,000, with latter also getting five years probation, six months community confinement and six months home imprisonment. A third defendant in the case, Ghanaian Yaw Osei Amoako (a US citizen), pleaded guilty on Sept. 6, 2006, and was sentenced on Aug. 1, 2007, to 18 months in prison, a $7,500 fine and to serve two years of supervised release following release from prison. The carriers named in the court case were: Nigeria’s Nitel: “On or about October 25 2002, ITXC and Nitel executed a VoIP Network Services Agreement…” In November ITXC then entered into a sales agreement with Standard Digital International, an agreement that was signed by Nitel’s General Director of International Relations, a member of the committee that reviewed the bids of those companies competing for the contract. On or about 10 October 2003 prior to ITXC signing with Nitel sent an e-mail saying:”I was able to get (the person at Nitel) to chat with (defendant Ott) in my hotel room and he poured out what we have to do to get the deal through with (sic) getting him in trouble favouring ITXC.” The following day he wrote:”Prior to sending real traffic, Nitel is ready to sit down and give ITXC special rates. Do I trust them on this? Yes. The Agents are the negotiators but is (sic) afraid of other operators (sic) actions and political contacts with Ministers, President and Vice President.” In 2003 there was a “cost dispute” which required payment of a further approximately US$150,000 to the sales agent. ITXC agreed to pay Standard Digital a retainer fee of US$10,000 and a commission of 12% of ITXC’s profits from these service agreements. Between November 2002 and May 2004 ITXC wired approximately US $166,541.31 to Standard Digital. Rwandatel: The contract between ITXC and Rwandatel was entered into at the end of February 2002. ITXC made the Rwandatel employee negotiating the agreement its sales agent and agreed to pay him “one cent per minute for certain traffic to Uganda, Burundi and Rwanda terminated through Rwandatel. The sum sent in this instance was approximately US$26,155.11. By the end of 2002, a dispute arose between the Managing Director of Rwandatel and the bribed employee over the latter’s failure to share the money. There was then an e-mail exchange as to whether the size of the sum could be revealed to which “co-conspirator 2” replied:”…we can reveal the information, although in the ordinary case, we shouldn’t (but this doesn’t seem to be an ordinary case).” Subsequently they met the Managing Director who wanted to change the agent receiving the commissions to someone nominated by him. As a result the process became more complicated:”We also agree the current agent must not be informed of the meeting and of the new arrangement.” But they were happy with is complication:”The way I see it, (the original employee bribed) cannot cause any trouble to ITXC as the Managing Director is in charge. He cannot sue because he would be arrested for receiving kickbacks.” Senegal’s Sonatel: The contract was signed in February 2001 and the following month the employee negotiating the contract entered into a “Non-Exclusive Regional Agency Agreement” which offered commission on revenues earned by ITXC. Between March 2001 and October 2003 US $74,772.06 was paid to this Sonatel employee. But there were problems as France Telecom, the private shareholder in Sonatel could clearly see all was not right. An e-mail in September 2002 was sent to Ott stating:”(The bribed employee) is the only one defending us in (the Sonatel monthly Board meetings) and he tells me (France Telecom) is becoming very suspicious. We need to get him out of the spotlight asap.” The problem continued as an e-mail in May 2003 makes clear:”Sonatel is not an easy organization to deal with. France Telecom is gripping them pretty tight. (The bribed employee) is not the force he used to be – but we still need him and he can still do good. Just be prepared not to get the most complete or direct answers to your questions.” Ghana Telecom: The ITXC agreement was signed in February 2001 but came to grief in December 2002 when Ghana Telecom disconnected its link to ITXC over a “cost dispute”. ITXC then offered to retain a General Manager in the International Department as ITXC’s sales agent and pay him commissions “in exchange for his assistance in settling this dispute.” Mali’s Sotelma: The contract was negotiated in 2002 and in order to conclude the negotiations ITXC signed the overall boss of Sotelma, its Director-General as its sales agent and paid commissions on traffic generated. E-mails about the arrangement stated that:”I have the Director General in the deal as an agent who is been (sic) fronted by his lieutenants.” It will be clear from the summary of the available public documents that this approach to business has a number of pitfalls. The bribed employees in two instances subsequently had to sort out “cost disputes” which were the pretext for asking for more bribes. In one instance, the bribed employee failed to share his gains with the managing director. In the only company with a private shareholder (which also sells wholesale minutes), the bribed employee became isolated under commercial questioning: this provides a strong if not always decisive argument for privatisation. From the telco side, what has been known privately for years is now revealed clearly and publicly by the Rwandatel and Sotelma examples. Corruption is systemic and goes right to the top and bribes are expected to be shared with the boss of the organisation and woe betide anyone who tries to keep the money to themselves. NB: Sory for crossposting.. Eric M.K Osiakwan ICT Integrator Internet Research www.internetresearch.com.gh emko(a)internetresearch.com.gh 42 Ring Road Central, Accra-North Tel: +233.21.258800 ext 2031 Fax: +233.21.258811 Cell: +233.24.4386792

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Stakeholder Queries:
by Patrick Mburu 08 Sep '08

08 Sep '08

Hi Brian, Thanks very much for the response, this does help for sure put things in perspective which is great and point well received. I'm not new to volunteering capacity and well... we all have to make sacrifices for a greater good at some point in our time. *Hat's* off to the team voluntering, I look forward to contributing. Looking forward to hearing of opportunities to contribute in my capacity, and also looking forward to answers on the questions asked before. (perhaps the title of the email needed to change :-).. so hope it wont get lost soemwhere.. Best Regards, Patrick 2008/8/29 Brian Munyao Longwe <brian(a)caret.net> > Hi PAtrick, > Very good points raised. I will not try to answer any of them directly - > but will make a few suggestions. > > I personally feel that it is quite interesting to note your (and many > others previously) open expression of interest in "getting involved" - this > is excellent! > > However, the sad fact is that very often when the rubber hits the road and > people need to selflessly dedicate personal time (almost always on a > voluntary basis) - they simply don't. Some of us (and as I look around the > room at the 12 odd people sitting here) have been volunteering our time > constantly and consistently for many years, going out of our way, both to > find out what is happenning and to offer our (free time and input) towards > helping govt better understand and work with "stakeholders" in defining the > ways of moving forward. A lot of this has happened through our personal > involvement in organisations such as KICTANET, TESPOK, KENIC, KIF, KEPSA, > EAIA, CSK, etc... > > As a result of these largely voluntary participations I think Govt has > realised that there are people who are willing to set aside their personal > and commercial interests and help out of their hearts. > > My two pence and probably not very clearly expressed but I hope you get my > point. > > For those who *genuinely* want to be of service, there comes a high price > in terms of personal commitment and sometimes it takes years before one is > recognised as being a consistent and reliable resource. > > In my personal experience my first major engagement in a national process > was during the drafting, review and enactment of the Communications Act in > 97/98 which I pursued because I had a passion to see transformation within > the industry and genuinely felt that this was an opportunity - now 10 years > later I am the one being chased by various committees/panels for my > input...... > > Hope this helps, > > B > > On Aug 29, 2008, at 12:43 PM, Patrick Mburu wrote: > > Good afternoon, > > Perhaps a few questions to be asked (not directed at Brian only) if some > others may be interested in knowing is... > > 1. Who qualifies as a stakeholder (individual and company?) > 2. How can one qualify as a stakeholder? and contribute to be > considered as a voice being heard: > 1. Perhaps as members of this list for example; can questions / > suggestions regarding certain issues be solicited through the online > discussion fora or through directed workshops... be collected and presented > on behalf for those unable to attend various events? > 3. How can one be nominated to participate at these venues be it > retreats and or missions overseas as indicated in the document? > > I apologise if this has been already discussed at length..however a quick > recap can't hurt. > > Perhaps these are best directed to the ICT board directly? however, it may > benefit others curious on this list as well... > > On another note... I found the document rather interesting as this is > response to the much awareness requested on this list : *information* ..* > information*...*information*... > Kudos to the ICT board on making efforts to dissemniate this info. and hope > to see further publishes and eventual invites. > > To move forward collectively..collaboration is key... > > Wishing a good friday. > > Asante, > > Patrick > 2008/8/29 Brian Longwe <blongwe(a)gmail.com> > >> FYI Listers >> >> ---------- Forwarded message ---------- >> From: Brian Longwe <blongwe(a)gmail.com> >> Date: Aug 29, 2008 9:31 AM >> Subject: Re: [kictanet] ICT Board Strategy a Farce >> To: wambuiwakarema(a)yahoo.co.uk >> >> Very strong language - but I think you should relax as your concerns are >> unfounded. >> >> I am at the Strategic retreat. Unfortunately Gilda Odera - Chairperson of >> BPO, who was supposed to be present had to cancel at the last minute. >> >> Brian >> >> On 8/29/08, Wambui Wakarema <wambuiwakarema(a)yahoo.co.uk> wrote: >> >>> >>> >>> I have read with surprise the Kictanet mailout from the ICT Board claiming they are going for a stakeholders strategy workshop in Naivasha. >>> >>> Who are these stakeholders? Are there any representing the BPO sector?? I ask this because I have contacted the industry association and they dont seem >>> >>> to be in the know either. This is quite bizarre, especially since BPO is a key sector of the ICT Board's mandate. >>> >>> Who are the stakeholders from the other ICT sectors? Shouldnt the Board be getting input from key stakeholders at this workshop. >>> >>> They are wasting government resources going to write strategies and then 'presenting' to stakeholders, yet stakeholders should have been involved from the word go. >>> >>> The >>> current management of the ICT Board performance is well under par. Recently I called up their >>> >>> offices wanting to engage with the management on a number of issues. Alas! I was informed that they were all on leave at the same time! >>> >>> The ICT Board cant seem to function properly due to sheer incompetence. >>> >>> Dr Ndemo I want a response from you since the buck stops with you! >>> >>> Wakarema >>> >>> >>> Send instant messages to your online friends >>> http://uk.messenger.yahoo.com >>> _______________________________________________ >>> kictanet mailing list >>> kictanet(a)lists.kictanet.or.ke >>> http://lists.kictanet.or.ke/mailman/listinfo/kictanet >>> >>> This message was sent to: blongwe(a)gmail.com >>> Unsubscribe or change your options at >>> http://lists.kictanet.or.ke/mailman/options/kictanet/blongwe%40gmail.com >>> >>> >> >> >> -- >> Brian Munyao Longwe >> e-mail: blongwe(a)gmail.com >> cell: + 254 722 518 744 >> blog : http://zinjlog.blogspot.com >> meta-blog: http://mashilingi.blogspot.com >> >> -- >> Brian Munyao Longwe >> e-mail: blongwe(a)gmail.com >> cell: + 254 722 518 744 >> blog : http://zinjlog.blogspot.com >> meta-blog: http://mashilingi.blogspot.com >> _______________________________________________ >> kictanet mailing list >> kictanet(a)lists.kictanet.or.ke >> http://lists.kictanet.or.ke/mailman/listinfo/kictanet >> >> This message was sent to: patrick.mburu(a)gmail.com >> Unsubscribe or change your options at >> http://lists.kictanet.or.ke/mailman/options/kictanet/patrick.mburu%40gmail.… >> >> > _______________________________________________ > kictanet mailing list > kictanet(a)lists.kictanet.or.ke > http://lists.kictanet.or.ke/mailman/listinfo/kictanet > > This message was sent to: brian(a)caret.net > Unsubscribe or change your options at > http://lists.kictanet.or.ke/mailman/options/kictanet/brian%40caret.net > > > > -- > This message has been scanned for viruses and > dangerous content by *MailScanner* <http://www.mailscanner.info/>, and is > believed to be clean.

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Re: [kictanet] BPO Industry Review (was Re: Stakeholder Queries:)
by Justin Mburu 07 Sep '08

07 Sep '08

Good day All, This interesting subject on BPO rather caught my attention intensely I must say :-) I have just come from the UK a couple of months back and look to setup a contact center locally, now that the industry has begun to pick up amid the hiccups here and there. And to pick up on some of Sam Regee's points as outlined below, i will also tend to share my findings as well: (My comments are in blue font in commenting to Sam Regee's comments) > 1. That much of the BPO sector has been set up in an uncompetitive framework > that cannot be sustained. Businesses (for this is what they are) have been > set up while factoring heavily the potential government subsidy. --- I have a friend of mine who set up here on Kenya long before the subsidy was in place, and so therefore you cannot base your claims on a few vendors who set up in a rush for the subsidy only to close shop when they realized that the bandwidth wasnt forth-coming at all.Meaning they got in the industry on a wrong foot. There are several which are still operating and have been on since even before the subsidy issue. > 2. That the private sector players in the industry are too dependent on > government (through the Kenya ICT Board) for marketing and business. > Essentially there is too much government in the business of outsourcing here > - not from a legislative perspective but from an operational perspective > This is clearly untenable because, having glanced at the Kenya ICT Board's > strategy as articulated by its officials severally, their mandate goes much > further than BPO - as at the time they were set up, that is. For sure, I > perceive them as a marketing organization but marketing Kenya's overall ICT > rather than just IT enabled services.---- Sam if you look clearly, you will realise private sector are not that dependent on government/ICT Board at all. Have you even walked around the existing centers and seen how developed most are? Did government/ICT Board help them get to the levels of development they are in? I think not. If I were you I would visit existing centers first before I leap to claiming the private sector are dependant on government/ICT Board. Or maybe you can shade some light for us on what exactly you mean by ' too dependent' :-) and also it is obvious government has to be involved because if you have been keen on what has been going on since you arrived in the country, you will realise BPO is one of the 5 pillars of the set Vision 2030 which is a government initiative. So whether we like it or not, government has a major role to play in ensuring this industry picks up here in Kenya. On the note of ICT Board's role in marketing, if you have been keen on all organised BPO/Contact Center events, ICT Board itself has always put itself on the frontline in this events, meaning they themselves are the ones focusing too much on the BPO/Contact center industry and putting so much energy on it, (which is a good thing anyway) , while there are so many ICT things to market on. So I agree with you that ICT Board should focus on marketing Kenya's overall ICT rather than just IT enabled services. > 3. That the private sector umbrella body, the Kenya BPO Society - and I have > read the discussions by the chairman of the Society here - seems to not > articulate well its programmes (at least to my understanding) what they are > about overally.---- From my point, the chairman of the society clearly laid out who they are overally, and what they do. And for such a young society, I say kudos to where they are now. You can visit their offices and I am sure they will be more than glad to tell you on a one-on-one basis what they are all about. For all I know, they are doing a great job, and I wish them all the best as they continue to drwa the industry to high depths. Just to give you a bit of what they have achieved so far, so that you can apprecaiate they are on the right direction, they recently launched the Standards & Ethics guidelines for the industry, which I say is a very brilliant step, considering how young the industry is here in Kenya. So it is with such laid guidelines that the BPO industry in Kenya will be able to be laid in a firm solid foundation that is based on international operation standards in BPO & Contact Center industy. > If I were to turn to the BPO Services Association Unlimited ( > http://www.bsau.org/) I can see a marketing campaign and a marketing > position that they have taken. This came from the outsourcing private sector > - and some of their programmes have support from the Phillipino government > but the drive is from the private sector. If I look at NASSCOM, I can see > that they are private sector led and their main purpose is the promotion of > India as the leader in BPO services globally. In fact, they start by saying > that they are a global organization - which is a position of strength. > Has the BPO Society attained such a level of pedigree - which starts in the > mind with strategy - that would enable them to lead the sector to > prosperity? I have not heard it in their discussions at the few events where > I have had a chance to listen to the Chairperson and other officials of the > society.-----My friend, it seems you have really been behind the screens with the society updates. Next week they will be launching their 3 year marketing strategy plan. This is indeed another brilliant step they will have taken as young an association as they are.From one of their forums, I remember them mentioning that one of their strategies is to join hands with several associations globally. This shows great initiative in making sure the industry gets recognized globaly through such relations. It rather unfortunate that the society did not get to participate at the EXPO ZARAGORA 2008 Spain event which from my research had many international associations attending the event such that it could have been an ideal place to network and form relations with the other international associations. I hear the society was to participate but they got a critical hiccup at the last minute (maybe the society chairman can fill us in on what exactly happened for them to miss such a crucial beneficial event). But I hear the CEO of ICT Board Mr Paul Kukubo and a local call center director,attended the event, maybe they can shed more light for us (if they are in the mailing list) what exactly went on in the Spain event and if they managed to secure any opportunities from the event. It is at such events that the society looks to the government support in ensuring they and also some industry players get to attend such events as Kenyan political figures were also present at the event as well as government officials. Such is where much lobbying can take place and the society can lobby their way to getting in beneficial relations with other international associations as well us get prospective clienst for industry players at some point. Hey and dont you think you are being too harsh on the society by comparing them with giant international BPO industries which definately have giant associations as well? I say give some credit to the Kenya BPO Society this far they have come. So instead of comparing them with big giants, look more into working with them into becoming a giant as well. Kenya BPO society is also private sector led, its only that the ICT Board takes much of the show (and we are not saying this is a bad thing) hence I think this ends up confusing industry players, and it always ends up looking like the industry is government driven, if you get my point. The government should be there just to support maybe in terms of funding society-organsised BPO events, which are beneficial to all industry players for instance in marketing the country as a BPO destination, etc. But what the government/ICT Board should not do is brand all BPO related shows to be government/ICT Board shows, as this is what makes it all look like the industry in Kenya is government/ICT Board-driven and govt/ICT Board dependant, in stead of being private sector-driven. > c) Has the BPO Society (or the Kenya ICT Board since they are so much in the > thick of things here) done a comprehensive marketing plan for the sector - > or do they each have one? ---- For all I know, I hear the Kenya BPO society has a marketing strategy which they are launching some time next week. Maybe you should find our more details about it from the society itself, so that you can be able to attend and maybe you will get your answers there. I will be attending, and would really like to meet you there Sam Regee so that we can chit chat about this industry in a more comprehensive way. What do you say? I sure hope to see you there. I never miss society events as they give me hope that there is a light at the end of the tunnel in this BPO industry here in Kenya. As for ICT Board, I have not heard of any so far. I hope this has helped you gauge the phase we are at now in this new industry in Kenya. On a lighter note, what does the ZBI from you signature stand for? Regards, Justin >Hi all, > > As a recently returned (to Kenya) academic and entrepreneur, with an > interest in the BPO sector - explicitly: I want to set up a legal > transcription facility here. As I go about my research, I have been to see > one or two operations, while I was in my previous engagement a few months > ago and I am saddened to note that quite a number of the BPO operations that > were in existence a few months ago are no more. > > having spoken to a few people in the industry, I am led to form some > preliminary conclusions (which I hope to validate here): I apologise in > advance, if I offend, but it is in a positive spirit, that I advance these > thoughts here. > > 1. That much of the BPO sector has been set up in an uncompetitive framework > that cannot be sustained. Businesses (for this is what they are) have been > set up while factoring heavily the potential government subsidy. > > 2. That the private sector players in the industry are too dependent on > government (through the Kenya ICT Board) for marketing and business. > Essentially there is too much government in the business of outsourcing here > - not from a legislative perspective but from an operational perspective. > > This is clearly untenable because, having glanced at the Kenya ICT Board's > strategy as articulated by its officials severally, their mandate goes much > further than BPO - as at the time they were set up, that is. For sure, I > perceive them as a marketing organization but marketing Kenya's overall ICT > rather than just IT enabled services. > > 3. That the private sector umbrella body, the Kenya BPO Society - and I have > read the discussions by the chairman of the Society here - seems to not > articulate well its programmes (at least to my understanding) what they are > about overally. > > If I were to turn to the BPO Services Association Unlimited ( > http://www.bsau.org/) I can see a marketing campaign and a marketing > position that they have taken. This came from the outsourcing private sector > - and some of their programmes have support from the Phillipino government > but the drive is from the private sector. If I look at NASSCOM, I can see > that they are private sector led and their main purpose is the promotion of > India as the leader in BPO services globally. In fact, they start by saying > that they are a global organization - which is a position of strength. > > Has the BPO Society attained such a level of pedigree - which starts in the > mind with strategy - that would enable them to lead the sector to > prosperity? I have not heard it in their discussions at the few events where > I have had a chance to listen to the Chairperson and other officials of the > society. > > These are preliminary thoughts that I have developed and I would be happy to > see them examined and torn apart and validated as the case may be. > > meanwhile, some pointed questions: > > a) Is there any science to a slice of the $310 Billion opportunity > presented by the society? This is to ask, how many seats would we need to > have to have a 1% slice of the opportunity? > > b) How many BPO operators are there now - and more pointedly - how many are > actually functional? > > c) Has the BPO Society (or the Kenya ICT Board since they are so much in the > thick of things here) done a comprehensive marketing plan for the sector - > or do they each have one? > > This is a very good discussion. > > > ------------------------------- > Dr. Sam Regee > ZBI > > > > ⁣null⁣ > > On 09/04/2008 "Brian Longwe" <blongwe(a)gmail.com> wrote: > >This message bounced back yesterday - seems the listserver is having some > > constipation.... > > > > Brian > > > > ---------- Forwarded message ---------- > > From: Brian Munyao Longwe <blongwe(a)gmail.com> > > Date: Wed, Sep 3, 2008 at 5:35 PM > > Subject: Re: [kictanet] BPO Industry Review (was Re: Stakeholder Queries:) > > To: Liko Agosta <likoa(a)verviant.com> > > Cc: KICTAnet ICT Policy Discussions <kictanet(a)lists.kictanet.or.ke> > > > > > > Hi Liko, > > > > Sorry, I was driving with one hand n texting with the other (usinistaki). > > Thus the v brief response. Pls so feel free to share your views with the > > rest of the list, we NEED to hear from practitioners! As mentioned, this > > discussion should help she'd some light on this relatively 'new' industry > so > > that inner and outer stakeholders can develop a better understanding. > > > > It would also be great to hear from the ICT Board (hint hint) - although > > they're probably a bit gun-shy right because they don't want to be flamed. > > > > On your point regarding the CEO being 'seconded' to the USA for an > extended > > period... Hmmm... Maybe not... BUT.... Your suggestion about high level > > representation makes sense. How about a full fledged office, maybe with > > Dep.CEO ranking.... Dunno...just thoughts.... > > > > Nway, please do share ur thoughts, ideas, suggestions, challenges, > > headaches, the lot! > > > > Brian > > > > Sent from my iPhone > > > > On 03 Sep 2008, at 4:37 PM, "Liko Agosta" <likoa(a)verviant.com> wrote: > > > > Brian > > > > > > > > I don't mind taking a call from you to explain what has happened and where > > Kenya is and some ideas about the best way forward > > > > > > > > Obviously, I will be looking at life from a providers point of view … > > > > > > > > Also, which organization do you represent ? > > > > > > > > Liko Agosta, CEO > > > > Verviant Consulting Services. > > > > > > > > <http://www.verviant.com>www.verviant.com > > > > > > > > Phone : 1-919-341-1820 > > > > Fax : 1-978-268-8403 > > > > > > > > Toll Free: 1-866-551-4935 > > > > > > > > Pager: 9193891551(a)txt.att.net > > > > > > > > *From:* kictanet-bounces+likoa=verviant.com(a)lists.kictanet.or.ke [ > > mailto:kictanet-bounces <kictanet-bounces>+likoa= > > verviant.com(a)lists.kictanet.or.ke] *On Behalf Of *Gilda Odera > > *Sent:* Wednesday, September 03, 2008 4:16 AM > > *To:* Liko Agosta > > *Cc:* 'KICTAnet ICT Policy Discussions' > > *Subject:* Re: [kictanet] BPO Industry Review (was Re: Stakeholder > Queries:) > > > > > > > > Hi Brian, > > > > > > > > If you recall, initially the ICT Board was created mainly " to market > Kenya > > as an outsourcing destination". I think many other things were lumped onto > > the board without putting structures in place ie. personnel and budgets. > > > > > > > > On another note, I am surprised you are still asking about the role and > > obligations of KBPOCCS after the lengthy emails. > > > > Maybe you should re-read them?:) > > > > It is true there is more shouting from BPO players in KICTANET,media, > > everwhere..... maybe the others are content or indifferent.... > > > > That should not stop the BPO Sector from airing views or making demands. > > Remember your ISP days? You and some others in the ISP arena were very > > vocal and that impacted on various other sub-sectors who benefited. > > > > I say, if there is an issue that needs attention, it needs to be known. I > > would suggest that the other sub-sectors also start shouting out their > > issues that they want to see being resolved. We are all inter-connected so > > any gains will benefit all others. > > > > Can someone from the ICT Board please say something? Is it true you are > > being blamed by others for focusing too much on BPO and if so, how are you > > balancing the act? > > > > > > > > Best > > > > > > > > Gilda > > > > ----- Original Message ----- > > > > *From:* Brian Munyao Longwe <brian(a)caret.net> > > > > *To:* Gilda Odera <godera(a)skyweb.co.ke> > > > > *Cc:* 'KICTAnet ICT Policy Discussions' <kictanet(a)lists.kictanet.or.ke> > > > > *Sent:* Wednesday, September 03, 2008 8:55 AM > > > > *Subject:* Re: [kictanet] BPO Industry Review (was Re: Stakeholder > Queries:) > > > > > > > > > > > > Great input Lika. Seems like you have a real handle on this industry. If I > > may recap: > > > > > > > > Clients (I presume these are international) gauge a BPO provider based on > > four main criteria: > > > > a) Capability: This speaks to an area of skillset matching across industry > - > > do we have enough "intel" on the necessary skillsets so that if someone > > wants to outsource their transcription of recorded audio court records or > > psychiatric interviews - the BPO operators personnel understand enough > about > > the subject matter to capture the relevant language (don't know if this is > a > > good example but it's what comes to mind) > > > > b) Cost-cutting potential: If the customer is the one asking this > question, > > then it seems that they expect the BPO operator to have alread studied to > > some extent their business, at` least enough to understand ways in which > > savings can be accrued. > > > > c) Referenceable clients > > > > > > > > If the CEO of the ICT board calls the CEO of ATT he is more likely to get > a > > meeting and business as opposed to the CEO of Kamau Wanjala Outsourcers … > > again, I don't know what the ICT Board has been doing (am sure they have > > done a lot … may be like top secret strategy stuff) but in my opinion the > > CEO of that board should be based in US for like 90% of the year .. talk > to > > clients, be a rain maker, schmooze, play golf and open doors. > > > > > > > > This belies the assumptions and perceptions on which I initiated this > > thread. For some reason there seems to be some kind of implicit > expectation > > that the ICT Board exists to servie the BPO industry - why is that? > Kenya's > > ICT is definitely much more than just BPO (as Gilda clearly pointed out). > > > > > > > > On this list we have heard a lot of complaints (largely from BPO players) > > about the ICT Board's lack of support for the BPO industry, while on the > > other hand other sector players saying that the Board pays too much > > attention to BPO. What should the role and obligation of the board in the > > BPO sector be? Could it be strategic? > > > > > > > > What can we say is the role of the BPO/CC Society and it's obligations > (both > > to internal and external stakeholders) in the larger scheme of things? > > > > > > > > Regards, > > > > > > > > Brian > > > > > > > > On Sep 2, 2008, at 11:07 PM, Liko Agosta wrote: > > > > > > > > All that you guys are talking about is good ... but when I talk to > clients > > they ask the following questions > > > > a. Can you do the job ? > > > > b. How much will you save me ? > > > > c. Have you done this for anyone else (especially in my sector/country) ? > > > > d. Can I talk to references > > > > 1-3 page executive proposals work better than 50 page proposals. C level > > execs never go past page 3 of proposals. They really don't care where I am > > working from > > > > Only 1 client asked about Kenyan copyright laws .. and our lawyer gave a > > sufficient answer... we got the work and have saved them over USD 500,000 > > > > About Safaricom and Land Registry and all this projects that keep breaking > > our hearts and hurting our feelings :) .... > > > > Let's assume Safaricom is has 400 customer services reps .... would they > be > > an ideal client for any BPO in Kenya ? if they pay their employees 50k per > > month .. a BPO would have to charge them 100k per month FOR THE SAME > > EMPLOYEE across town. > > > > Now, maybe I have all this wrong but there are more than 10000 companies > in > > the developed world with over 400 "clerical employees" who they pay an > > average of 3000$ per month. If you went and targeted these companies .... > > you can get 100k per employee, pay the employee 50k etc and the client > will > > be happy, you happy, employee happy ... > > > > Many local clients take 60-90 days to pay invoices. In US for example, > > depending on state, it's illegal to hold a vendors payment when work has > > been done …. > > > > My point ... BPOs, Software Providers have to be willing to ignore the > local > > market and focus on external sources of business. The local market is too > > small, too complicated and the waters are very muddied. > > > > About brokers and "consultants". I have been approached by quite a few. > > People who claim to have connections, venture capital and all that good > > stuff. I learnt early to say no… early. They are a waste of time in my > book > > > > Kenya will not become a better outsourcing destination if we come up with > > ethics guidelines, an act of parliament and the like … now, those will not > > hurt … but we will benefit more if the ICT Board flanked companies when > they > > are pitching their services to potential clients. > > > > By flanking I mean fly to meet the client, do research on financials, help > > with financing - have a conference in US and invite 100 potential and > vetted > > clients to meet Kenyan providers …. This works like a charm here .. (if > GOK > > spends 500k on tickets and 30 Kenyans are hired making 50k … - ROI is > there > > pretty fast) > > > > If the CEO of the ICT board calls the CEO of ATT he is more likely to get > a > > meeting and business as opposed to the CEO of Kamau Wanjala Outsourcers … > > again, I don't know what the ICT Board has been doing (am sure they have > > done a lot … may be like top secret strategy stuff) but in my opinion the > > CEO of that board should be based in US for like 90% of the year .. talk > to > > clients, be a rain maker, schmooze, play golf and open doors. > > > > > > > > I have always felt that the ICT Board should headhunt and hire people with > > C level experience from either US or UK … people from the bigger > consulting > > companies Bain, BCG, Accenture, Avanade, EDS … these guys work on million > > dollar outsourcing deals and have very good contacts. They also would be > > able to come up with a strategy immediately > > > > > > > > As Gilda has shown, the harvest is plentiful … > > > > > > > > Liko Agosta, CEO > > > > Verviant Consulting Services. > > > > www.verviant.com > > > > > > > > > > Phone : 1-919-341-1820 > > > > Fax : 1-978-268-8403 > > > > > > > > > > Toll Free: 1-866-551-4935 > > > > > > > > > > Pager: <9193891551(a)txt.att.net>9193891551(a)txt.att.net > > > > > > > > -----Original Message----- > > > > From: kictanet-bounces+likoa= <verviant.com(a)lists.kictanet.or.ke> > > verviant.com(a)lists.kictanet.or.ke > > [<kictanet-bounces+likoa=verviant.com(a)lists.kictanet.or.ke> > > mailto:kictanet-bounces <kictanet-bounces>+likoa= > > verviant.com(a)lists.kictanet.or.ke] On Behalf Of David Otwoma > > > > Sent: Tuesday, September 02, 2008 11:45 AM > > > > To: Liko Agosta > > > > Cc: KICTAnet ICT Policy Discussions > > > > Subject: Re: [kictanet] BPO Industry Review (was Re: Stakeholder Queries:) > > > > Dear Brian, > > > > Looks like you are fully re-charged after last weeks retreat in > > > > Naivasha on Strategy. Tell us some more of what is not confidential. > > > > Otherwise my wish is to take the baton from my able Chair and respond > > > > on bullet 3 in your beautiful rejoinder. > > > > As Chair of the Standards and Ethics Committee of the KBPOCCS we (are > > > > 7 members) did come up with Standards and Ethics Guidelines which took > > > > over eight (8) months to prepare and on June 22nd 2008 the Permanent > > > > Secretary of the Ministry of Information & Communication led us > > > > (KBPOCCS members, KICTB who graciously sponsored the event at KICC, > > > > CCK, CSK, members of the public who have an interest in BPO&CC pie) > > > > into adopting the S&E Guidelines. > > > > The next milestone we wish to aim for is have the Guidelines upgraded > > > > into a Regulation or an Act of Parliament. Either achievement would be > > > > binding to all and sundry who operate in the BPO&CC world. A world > > > > which is moving the advancement of the human race from industrial age > > > > into information age. Just imagine Kenya having a binding law on > > > > Standards and a slice of the USD$310 Billion industry. It would make > > > > our young people, because they are the future force in the knowledge > > > > economy we keep talking about. > > > > What are the next immediate steps. Cozy relations between the Private > > > > Public Partnership. > > > > Another bullet I will let you peer into what you have been seeing but > > > > refuse to acknowledge is bullet No. 7. It was KPLC who introduced me > > > > to the world of BPO&CC when they sought S. African expertise to deal > > > > with their in-house contact centre better known to the general public > > > > (read Brian et al) as Customer Care Centre or Customer Relations > > > > Management. Ever wondered when power disappears at any time of the day > > > > or night where that 'frustrated' call 'agrily demanding 'where is > > > > power?' goes? Yes to a call center owned and managed > > > > by KPLC. KPLC as of 2005 when we engaged had a call centre running > > > > 24/7 with 210 seats in Nairobi alone. Telecom has a bigger one. > > > > Safaricom is soon overtaking Telecom with that news flash. Water > > > > companies have. So do all the banks, insurance, etc. companies both > > > > private and public owned. > > > > Since we have very able Chairs for Training, Marketing etc. I will > > > > stop there and go for my dear bottle.....tusker. > > > > David > > > > > > > > On Tue, Sep 2, 2008 at 6:12 PM, Brian Munyao Longwe < <brian(a)caret.net> > > brian(a)caret.net> wrote: > > > > > Excellent Feedback Gilda, > > > > > > > > > > So I see a few very clear issues arising out of your response: > > > > > > > > > > 1) There is a distinct global opportunity - but that calls for > > > > > appropriate positioning as well as preparation on Kenya's part > > > > > 2) Capacity issues need to be addressed - knowledge transfer could be > > > > > on way - but that implies finding someone who is willing to impart > > > > > the knowledge - do they come from inside or outside? > > > > > 3) Global standards must be recognised and adhered to in order to > > > > > ensure entry and competitiveness - what are these standards are they > > > > > clearly documented somewhere? > > > > > 4) Many local operations have not had the exposure necessary/needed > > > > > to develop expertise/efficiency/etc - what kind of interventions can > > > > > facilitate this? > > > > > 5) BPO is not the "Holy Grail" as some perceive it, but one piece of > > > > > the ICT puzzle that needs to be solved in order to help Kenya attain > > > > > it's ambitious goal of becoming a global ICT hub > > > > > 6) There is a distinct and precise training need for personnel to > > > > > supply the Kenyan BPO industry with "bodies to put on seats", > > > > > presumably to allow the BPO industry to harness and deliver against > > > > > the global opportunity - what interventions (planned or otherwise) > > > > > are we taking to meet this target? How accurate is this estimate and > > > > > can it be verified? > > > > > 7) Local Players - your website (must say it's very cute) lists quite > > > > > a number (28) - but I must say that I'm quite surprised at some of > > > > > the names I find there - didn't know KPLC was offering BPO services > > > > > for example - but maybe I'm mistaken in my assumptions.... > > > > > 8) Local opportunities: seems many/most local companies are looking > > > > > outside to outsource certain functions or simply "self-provisioning" > > > > > - why would Safaricom claim that it's too expensive to outsource > > > > > locally based on the price estimates that they got from industry. Is > > > > > there a need for our local BPO industry to do some kind of soul > > > > > searching and find ways of making themselves/their services more > > > > > palatable to local companies? > > > > > 9) The industry for some reason seems to have attracted brokers - who > > > > > are watering down/diluting the true opportunity - what kind of > > > > > interventions do we need to "eliminate the middleman" - a seemingly > > > > > consistent argument in many sector e.g. tea, coffee, flowers, tourism > > > > > etc..... > > > > > > > > > > Brian > > > > > > > > > > On Sep 2, 2008, at 4:10 PM, Gilda Odera wrote: > > > > > > > > > >> Hi Brian, > > > > >> > > > > >> You have raised very pertinent questions in your email below. > > > > >> Let me answer your queries. > > > > >> > > > > >> Firstly, it is true that BPO has taken centre stage in many > > > > >> discussions surrounding Kenya's ICT development and growth and it > > > > >> is a good thing, here's why: > > > > >> We are looking at a USD$310 Billion industry by next year, up for > > > > >> grabs for any destinations that get it right. India is currently > > > > >> taking up 45% of the total share and China and Phillipines are > > > > >> steadily growing. And what's more, it can only grow, with the fuel > > > > >> prices soaring each year,what choice is there for the companies out > > > > >> there to look for more affordable means of operating. > > > > >> It is a fact that the western countries are looking for new > > > > >> alternative destinations to Asia so they do not put all their eggs > > > > >> in one basket, not with the terrorism threats all over. Where else > > > > >> but Africa. Why would Kenya not put its house in order to take a > > > > >> piece of this pie? > > > > >> > > > > >> Now in regard to your comment on BPO taking centre stage in ICT > > > > >> development, I would say one thing we need in this country is > > > > >> opportunity for knowledge transfer done right here. We may produce > > > > >> more technology oriented personnel but as long as we operate within > > > > >> the Kenyan way of operating, we are not developing our personnel to > > > > >> the global standards we want them to attain.Not because we are not > > > > >> capable, but because many operations have not had the exposure. > > > > >> > > > > >> I would beg to differ (and government can speak for itself) that we > > > > >> are putting all eggs in one basket. BPO is but one sub-sector in > > > > >> the ICT arena. Many other sub-sectors within the sector are quite > > > > >> active. Software development is coming up and I keep reading > > > > >> debates on KICTANET. There is an interest. > > > > >> Content development is also being encouraged. The > > > > >> telecommunications sector is busy preparing for real competition > > > > >> and we the consumers can't wait for the benefits, they will have to > > > > >> have great value adds and affordable pricing. > > > > >> > > > > >> What steps are we taking to enhance BPO? I leave the ICT Board to > > > > >> answer that although as Kenya BPO and Contact Centre Society, we > > > > >> have presented to them the need to train not less than 10,000 per > > > > >> year, specifically for this sector. Frost and Sullivan who are > > > > >> normally 90% accurate in their new destination analysis says Kenya > > > > >> will by 2012 have a BPO sector employing about 120,000 direct jobs > > > > >> ( you can add indirect by another 3-5) as long as the fibre optic > > > > >> infrastructure is in place on time next year and marketing of the > > > > >> country takes root. > > > > >> > > > > >> Who are the players? Our members are on our website > > > > >> <http://www.kenyabposociety.or.ke>www.kenyabposociety.or.ke . There are > > ofcourse others quietly > > > > >> operating. > > > > >> What are the local opportunities- Our biggest challenge is getting > > > > >> local companies to outsource though some have started. We expected > > > > >> the giants like Safaricom to play a role even if it is a CSR role > > > > >> to demonstrate a level of confidence in the local companies. This > > > > >> is possible, other companies work with those they outsource to for > > > > >> a given period, and leave them running efficiently as they require. > > > > >> All is not lost. Some local companies are outsourcing BPO work and > > > > >> I wish to challenge Safaricom to outsource part of their BPO work > > > > >> if they say local outsourcing is not competitive. > > > > >> > > > > >> The international opportunities are the ones that I have mentioned > > > > >> are worth $310 Billion. The ball is in our court as Kenyans to > > > > >> market Kenya as a destination if we are to make any gains. We need > > > > >> to attract direct clients and not the current brokers who are > > > > >> exploiting the existing centres,much as their contracts are keeping > > > > >> some of the centres going. > > > > >> I hope I have addressed your queries. > > > > >> > > > > >> > > > > >> > > > > >> > > > > >> Gilda Odera > > > > >> Chair, Kenya BPO and Contact Centre Society > > > > >> ----- Original Message ----- From: "Brian Munyao Longwe" > > > > >> < <brian(a)caret.net>brian(a)caret.net> > > > > >> To: "Gilda Odera" < <godera(a)skyweb.co.ke>godera(a)skyweb.co.ke> > > > > >> Cc: "KICTAnet ICT Policy Discussions" < < kictanet(a)lists.kictanet.or.ke> > > kictanet(a)lists.kictanet.or.ke> > > > > >> Sent: Tuesday, September 02, 2008 11:12 AM > > > > >> Subject: [kictanet] BPO Industry Review (was Re: Stakeholder Queries:) > > > > >> > > > > >> > > > > >> Hi All, > > > > >> > > > > >> It is interesting that BPO seems to have taken a centre stage in many > > > > >> discussions surrounding Kenya's ICT development and growth. While I > > > > >> do believe that BPO/KPO has huge potential. I am a bit skeptical > > > > >> about this "silver bullet" approach which might be akin to putting > > > > >> all our eggs in one basket. > > > > >> > > > > >> What if the basket gets stepped on by some giant like Malaysia, South > > > > >> Africa or others? > > > > >> > > > > >> I would be very interested in taking a much closer look at the BPO > > > > >> industry in Kenya. Who are the players? What are the opportunities? > > > > >> What is the potential for growth? What steps are we taking to enhance/ > > > > >> develop/increase capacity in BPO/KPO? What kind(s) of investments are > > > > >> required to make this industry boom? What are the local opportunities > > > > >> for BPO/KPO? What are the international opportunities for BPO/KPO? > > > > >> > > > > >> I think that answers to these and many other questions will help > > > > >> other like me who are a bit unclear in their minds as to how BPO will > > > > >> be our saviour have a clearer view. It might also just show that BPO > > > > >> is a contributing factor and not necessarily the holy grail that at > > > > >> the moment seems to be the general perception. > > > > >> > > > > >> Regards, > > > > >> > > > > >> Brian > > > > >> > > > > >> > > > > >> > > > > >> On Sep 2, 2008, at 8:25 AM, David Otwoma wrote: > > > > >> > > > > >>> Dear All, > > > > >>> > > > > >>> "Comments from BPO operators and of course other Stakeholders" > > > > >>> please. > > > > >>> > > > > >>> Safaricom in Sh1bn customer care plan (see Daily Nation page 28) > > > > >>> > > > > >>> ------------------------------------------------- > > > > >>> > > > > >>> Many companies have been turning to BPOs as the financial benefits of > > > > >>> outsourcing continue to make it compelling, with cost savings and > > > > >>> efficiency improvements being the dominant reasons companies use such > > > > >>> services. However, companies biggest concerns on outsourcing > > > > >>> relate to > > > > >>> data security. > > > > >>> > > > > >>> > > > > >>> ----------------------------------------------------- > > > > >>> > > > > >>> The move, seen a precautionary measure in the face of growing > > > > >>> competition, marks a complete turnaround by the mobile provider which > > > > >>> in July last year had sought quotations from local Business Process > > > > >>> Outsourcing (BPO) firms. > > > > >>> > > > > >>> "Outsourcing the customer care function proved to be too expensive > > > > >>> for > > > > >>> the kind of quality that we required. We will just have to run the > > > > >>> service in-house," said Safaricom chief executive Michael Joseph. > > > > >>> > > > > >>> > > > > >>> <http://www.nation.co.ke/business/news/-/1006/466372/-/jiyt3xz/-/> > > http://www.nation.co.ke/business/news/-/1006/466372/-/jiyt3xz/-/ > > > > >>> index.html > > > > >>> > > > > >>> > > > > >>> On Mon, Sep 1, 2008 at 8:58 PM, Sean Moroney > > > > >>> < <seanm(a)aitecafrica.com>seanm(a)aitecafrica.com> wrote: > > > > >>>> Dear Liko, > > > > >>>> > > > > >>>> > > > > >>>> > > > > >>>> We would like to invite you to make a presentation at the > > > > >>>> forthcoming > > > > >>>> Outsourcing & Contact Centre Conference, which we will be holding > > > > >>>> over 4-5 > > > > >>>> November under the auspices of the Ministry of Information & > > > > >>>> Communications > > > > >>>> and in partnership with the ICT Board. The programme of confirmed > > > > >>>> presentations so far is attached. > > > > >>>> > > > > >>>> > > > > >>>> > > > > >>>> It would be great if you would be willing to share your experience > > > > >>>> with the > > > > >>>> other participants. > > > > >>>> > > > > >>>> > > > > >>>> > > > > >>>> Yours sincerely, > > > > >>>> > > > > >>>> > > > > >>>> > > > > >>>> Sean Moroney > > > > >>>> > > > > >>>> Chairman > > > > >>>> > > > > >>>> AITEC Africa > > > > >>>> > > > > >>>> <seanm(a)aitecafrica.com>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 > > > > >>>> > > > > >>>> Mozambique Mobile: +258-82-6181618 > > > > >>>> > > > > >>>> Nigeria Mobile: +234(0)802-0571766 > > > > >>>> > > > > >>>> SA Mobile: +27(0)724-577887 > > > > >>>> > > > > >>>> Skype: seanmoroney > > > > >>>> > > > > >>>> <http://www.aitecafrica.com>www.aitecafrica.com > > > > >>>> > > > > >>>> Please visit our discussion group on The Banking Technology sector > > > > >>>> in Africa > > > > >>>> at: <http://groups.yahoo.com/group/africanbankingtech> > > http://groups.yahoo.com/group/africanbankingtech > > > > >>>> > > > > >>>> > > > > >>>> > > > > >>>> > > > > >>>> > > > > >>>> AITEC Africa is the trading name of AITEC Conferences Limited > > > > >>>> UK Company registration number: 4698475 > > > > >>>> > > > > >>>> > > > > >>>> > > > > >>>> > > > > >>>> > > > > >>>> > > > > >>>> > > > > >>>> > > > > >>>> > > > > >>>> ________________________________ > > > > >>>> > > > > >>>> From: kictanet-bounces+seanm= <aitecafrica.com(a)lists.kictanet.or.ke > > > aitecafrica.com(a)lists.kictanet.or.ke > > > > >>>> [ <kictanet-bounces>mailto:kictanet-bounces <kictanet-bounces> > > > > >>>> +seanm= <aitecafrica.com(a)lists.kictanet.or.ke> > > aitecafrica.com(a)lists.kictanet.or.ke] On > > > > >>>> Behalf Of Peres Were > > > > >>>> Sent: 01 September 2008 12:23 > > > > >>>> To: <seanm(a)aitecafrica.com>seanm(a)aitecafrica.com > > > > >>>> > > > > >>>> Cc: 'KICTAnet ICT Policy Discussions' > > > > >>>> Subject: Re: [kictanet] Stakeholder Queries: > > > > >>>> > > > > >>>> > > > > >>>> > > > > >>>> Liko, > > > > >>>> > > > > >>>> > > > > >>>> > > > > >>>> It would be great to hear from you and others, your insights into > > > > >>>> sales and > > > > >>>> marketing insights that can benefit the BPO, KPO sector. We can > > > > >>>> continue the > > > > >>>> discussion off the list. > > > > >>>> > > > > >>>> > > > > >>>> > > > > >>>> Kind regards > > > > >>>> > > > > >>>> > > > > >>>> > > > > >>>> Peres Were > > > > >>>> > > > > >>>> > > > > >>>> > > > > >>>> ________________________________ > > > > >>>> > > > > >>>> From: kictanet-bounces+pwere= <cascadegl.com(a)lists.kictanet.or.ke> > > cascadegl.com(a)lists.kictanet.or.ke > > > > >>>> [ <kictanet-bounces+pwere=cascadegl.com(a)lists.kictanet.or.ke> > > mailto:kictanet-bounces <kictanet-bounces>+pwere= > > cascadegl.com(a)lists.kictanet.or.ke] > > > > >>>> On Behalf > > > > >>>> Of Liko Agosta > > > > >>>> Sent: 01 September 2008 10:33 > > > > >>>> To: <pwere(a)cascadegl.com>pwere(a)cascadegl.com > > > > >>>> Cc: KICTAnet ICT Policy Discussions > > > > >>>> Subject: Re: [kictanet] Stakeholder Queries: > > > > >>>> > > > > >>>> > > > > >>>> > > > > >>>> About ICT Board and all these Boards … > > > > >>>> > > > > >>>> > > > > >>>> > > > > >>>> Do they ever have open sessions where stakeholders can review > > > > >>>> strategy, > > > > >>>> advice, brainstorm ? > > > > >>>> > > > > >>>> > > > > >>>> > > > > >>>> As CEO of verviant, I have been able to get business … I feel like > > > > >>>> I have > > > > >>>> insights into the sales and marketing process that can benefit other > > > > >>>> software/ICT providers … > > > > >>>> > > > > >>>> > > > > >>>> > > > > >>>> Thanks > > > > >>>> > > > > >>>> > > > > >>>> > > > > >>>> Liko Agosta, CEO > > > > >>>> > > > > >>>> Verviant Consulting Services. > > > > >>>> > > > > >>>> > > > > >>>> > > > > >>>> <http://www.verviant.com>www.verviant.com > > > > >>>> > > > > >>>> > > > > >>>> > > > > >>>> Phone : 1-919-341-1820 > > > > >>>> > > > > >>>> Fax : 1-978-268-8403 > > > > >>>> > > > > >>>> > > > > >>>> > > > > >>>> Toll Free: 1-866-551-4935 > > > > >>>> > > > > >>>> > > > > >>>> > > > > >>>> Pager: <9193891551(a)txt.att.net>9193891551(a)txt.att.net > > > > >>>> > > > > >>>> ---------- Forwarded message ---------- > > > > >>>> From: Brian Longwe < <blongwe(a)gmail.com>blongwe(a)gmail.com> > > > > >>>> Date: Aug 29, 2008 9:31 AM > > > > >>>> Subject: Re: [kictanet] ICT Board Strategy a Farce > > > > >>>> To: <wambuiwakarema(a)yahoo.co.uk>wambuiwakarema(a)yahoo.co.uk > > > > >>>> > > > > >>>> Very strong language - but I think you should relax as your > > > > >>>> concerns are > > > > >>>> unfounded. > > > > >>>> > > > > >>>> I am at the Strategic retreat. Unfortunately Gilda Odera - > > > > >>>> Chairperson of > > > > >>>> BPO, who was supposed to be present had to cancel at the last > > > > >>>> minute. > > > > >>>> > > > > >>>> Brian > > > > >>>> > > > > >>>> On 8/29/08, Wambui Wakarema < <wambuiwakarema(a)yahoo.co.uk> > > wambuiwakarema(a)yahoo.co.uk> wrote: > > > > >>>> > > > > >>>> > > > > >>>> > > > > >>>> I have read with surprise the Kictanet mailout from the ICT Board > > > > >>>> claiming > > > > >>>> they are going for a stakeholders strategy workshop in Naivasha. > > > > >>>> > > > > >>>> Who are these stakeholders? Are there any representing the BPO > > > > >>>> sector?? I > > > > >>>> ask this because I have contacted the industry association and > > > > >>>> they dont > > > > >>>> seem > > > > >>>> > > > > >>>> to be in the know either. This is quite bizarre, especially since > > > > >>>> BPO is a > > > > >>>> key sector of the ICT Board's mandate. > > > > >>>> > > > > >>>> Who are the stakeholders from the other ICT sectors? Shouldnt the > > > > >>>> Board be > > > > >>>> getting input from key stakeholders at this workshop. > > > > >>>> > > > > >>>> They are wasting government resources going to write strategies > > > > >>>> and then > > > > >>>> 'presenting' to stakeholders, yet stakeholders should have been > > > > >>>> involved > > > > >>>> from the word go. > > > > >>>> > > > > >>>> The > > > > >>>> > > > > >>> > > > > >>> > > > > >>> -- > > > > >>> David Otwoma, > > > > >>> Chief Science Secretary, > > > > >>> National Council for Science and Technology, > > > > >>> Utalii House 9th Floor, > > > > >>> Mobile tel: +254 722 141771, > > > > >>> Office tel: +254 (0)20 2346915, > > > > >>> P. O. Box 29899 - 00100, Nairobi, Kenya > > > > >>> email: <otwomad(a)gmail.com>otwomad(a)gmail.com & <otwoma(a)ncst.go.ke> > > otwoma(a)ncst.go.ke > > > > >>> <http://www.ncst.go.ke>www.ncst.go.ke > > > > >>> > > > > >>> _______________________________________________ > > > > >>> kictanet mailing list > > > > >>> <kictanet(a)lists.kictanet.or.ke>kictanet(a)lists.kictanet.or.ke > > > > >>> <http://lists.kictanet.or.ke/mailman/listinfo/kictanet> > > http://lists.kictanet.or.ke/mailman/listinfo/kictanet > > > > >>> > > > > >>> This message was sent to: <brian(a)caret.net>brian(a)caret.net > > > > >>> Unsubscribe or change your options at <http://lists.kictanet.or.ke/> > > http://lists.kictanet.or.ke/ > > > > >>> mailman/options/kictanet/brian%40caret.net > > > > >> > > > > >> > > > > >> _______________________________________________ > > > > >> kictanet mailing list > > > > >> <kictanet(a)lists.kictanet.or.ke>kictanet(a)lists.kictanet.or.ke > > > > >> <http://lists.kictanet.or.ke/mailman/listinfo/kictanet> > > http://lists.kictanet.or.ke/mailman/listinfo/kictanet > > > > >> > > > > >> This message was sent to: <godera(a)skyweb.co.ke>godera(a)skyweb.co.ke > > > > >> Unsubscribe or change your options at <http://lists.kictanet.or.ke/> > > http://lists.kictanet.or.ke/ > > > > >> mailman/options/kictanet/godera%40sky <http://web.co.ke>web.co.ke > > > > > > > > > > > > > > > _______________________________________________ > > > > > kictanet mailing list > > > > > <kictanet(a)lists.kictanet.or.ke>kictanet(a)lists.kictanet.or.ke > > > > > <http://lists.kictanet.or.ke/mailman/listinfo/kictanet> > > http://lists.kictanet.or.ke/mailman/listinfo/kictanet > > > > > > > > > > This message was sent to: <otwomad(a)gmail.com>otwomad(a)gmail.com > > > > > Unsubscribe or change your options at > > < http://lists.kictanet.or.ke/mailman/options/kictanet/otwomad%40gmail.com> > > http://lists.kictanet.or.ke/mailman/options/kictanet/otwomad%40gmail.com > > > > > > > > > > > > > -- > > > > David Otwoma, > > > > Chief Science Secretary, > > > > National Council for Science and Technology, > > > > Utalii House 9th Floor, > > > > Mobile tel: +254 722 141771, > > > > Office tel: +254 (0)20 2346915, > > > > P. O. Box 29899 - 00100, Nairobi, Kenya > > > > email: <otwomad(a)gmail.com>otwomad(a)gmail.com & <otwoma(a)ncst.go.ke> > > otwoma(a)ncst.go.ke > > > > www.ncst.go.ke > > > > _______________________________________________ > > > > kictanet mailing list > > > > <kictanet(a)lists.kictanet.or.ke>kictanet(a)lists.kictanet.or.ke > > > > <http://lists.kictanet.or.ke/mailman/listinfo/kictanet> > > http://lists.kictanet.or.ke/mailman/listinfo/kictanet > > > > This message was sent to: <likoa(a)verviant.com>likoa(a)verviant.com > > > > Unsubscribe or change your options at > > < http://lists.kictanet.or.ke/mailman/options/kictanet/likoa%40verviant.com > > > > http://lists.kictanet.or.ke/mailman/options/kictanet/likoa%40verviant.com > > > > _______________________________________________ > > > > kictanet mailing list > > > > <kictanet(a)lists.kictanet.or.ke>kictanet(a)lists.kictanet.or.ke > > > > <http://lists.kictanet.or.ke/mailman/listinfo/kictanet> > > http://lists.kictanet.or.ke/mailman/listinfo/kictanet > > > > > > > > This message was sent to: <brian(a)caret.net>brian(a)caret.net > > > > Unsubscribe or change your options at > > <http://lists.kictanet.or.ke/mailman/options/kictanet/brian%40caret.net> > > http://lists.kictanet.or.ke/mailman/options/kictanet/brian%40caret.net > > > > > > ------------------------------ > > > > _______________________________________________ > > kictanet mailing list > > <kictanet(a)lists.kictanet.or.ke>kictanet(a)lists.kictanet.or.ke > > <http://lists.kictanet.or.ke/mailman/listinfo/kictanet> > > http://lists.kictanet.or.ke/mailman/listinfo/kictanet > > > > This message was sent to: <godera(a)skyweb.co.ke>godera(a)skyweb.co.ke > > Unsubscribe or change your options at > > < > http://lists.kictanet.or.ke/mailman/options/kictanet/godera%40skyweb.co.ke > > > http://lists.kictanet.or.ke/mailman/options/kictanet/godera%40skyweb.co.ke > > > > _______________________________________________ > > kictanet mailing list > > kictanet(a)lists.kictanet.or.ke > > http://lists.kictanet.or.ke/mailman/listinfo/kictanet > > > > This message was sent to: <blongwe(a)gmail.com>blongwe(a)gmail.com > > Unsubscribe or change your options at > > < http://lists.kictanet.or.ke/mailman/options/kictanet/blongwe%40gmail.com> > > http://lists.kictanet.or.ke/mailman/options/kictanet/blongwe%40gmail.com > > > > > > > > > > -- > > Brian Munyao Longwe > > e-mail: blongwe(a)gmail.com > > cell: + 254 722 518 744 > > blog : http://zinjlog.blogspot.com > > meta-blog: http://mashilingi.blogspot.com > > > > _______________________________________________ > kictanet mailing list > kictanet(a)lists.kictanet.or.ke > http://lists.kictanet.or.ke/mailman/listinfo/kictanet > > This message was sent to: lmwatibo.ktd(a)gmail.com > Unsubscribe or change your options at > http://lists.kictanet.or.ke/mailman/options/kictanet/lmwatibo.ktd%40gmail.c… >

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Runway inflation?
by aki 05 Sep '08

05 Sep '08

Dear all, I recently returned from an overseas trip and was dismayed to learn that it's becoming very expensive in kenya. Here are two examples: 1) Electicity cost has gone up by 100%! This means every business, whether small scale or large will have to adjust their sale prices. ( One of my friend's just paid a bill of USD 300! ) 2) Fuel is now at almost 1.5USD/Litre! ( This price seems like I'm purchasing fuel somewhere in Europe ) I'm not an economist but I seriously wonder where we are heading. Will struggling industries such as the BPOs remain competitive enough to survive? Are we going to loose our price competitive edge to runaway inflation? Aki.

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