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Internet Service Providers Record Rise in Earnings in Kenya
by alice 16 Sep '07

16 Sep '07

From Balancing Act Internet Service Providers Record Rise in Earnings in Kenya Local Internet service providers are earning higher revenues signalling increased use of the web among consumers, industry statistics show. The data indicate that average revenue per user (ARPU), a measure of how each user spends on internet access, has risen to an all time high of $600 in some segments of the market, up from an average of $500 last year. Globally, ARPU is used as a measure of how much money a service provider makes from the average user and enables the ISPs to make revenue projections as well as determine which products are earning most revenues. It also provides an accurate picture as to what services and products are popular with consumers in certain segments of the market. "Most ICT firms, however, have indicated application of cost leadership strategies, resulting in lower ARPUs with the intention of raking in higher subscriber number," said Shida Mutuku, the group head of marketing at Africa Online. The pan-African ISP, which is changing focus from being a pure ISP services company to a supplier of comprehensive IT services, says demand for ICT products is rising across the board. ISPs can maximise on their resources by using ARPU data to their advantage. ARPU can also be used as a measure of how successful a company is in moving users to new services that are regarded as strategically important. Citing steadily increasing revenues from its broadband product, AccessKenya Group hopes to realise its projected revenue target from customers looking for better speed and capacity from their internet connection. Last week, AccessKenya said it was on track to realising an ARPU average of $540 owing to increased number of large customers coming on board and many existing customers upgrading their bandwidth. The ICT company, which recently announced that it had realised its customer target of 1,720 four months ahead of schedule, says its current ARPU is underpinned by the strength of its Broadband Max 2 leased line solution that has become popular with the corporate market. "Broadband Max 2 offers a quadruple downlink coupled with high reliability evidenced by a 99.8 per cent Service Level Agreement," said Jonathan Somen, the managing director of AccessKenya. "We are the only ISP offering this sort of solution in the Kenyan market and have realised significant increase in demand over the past six months," he said. Somen said AccessKenya had set a new target of enrolling a minimum of 1,900 leased line customers by the end of the year, and has been reinvesting some of its profits from increased customer numbers to build up sales and customer service teams. Africa Online refused to reveal its current ARPUs but said it was targeting ARPU of $1,000 per use by the end of the year. The ambitious target is based on increased demand for corporate leased line solutions and increased take up in the residential user market of the wireless broadband product, Infinet. (Source: Business Daily)

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Research fellow position - at Berkeley
by Michael Kipsang Bullut 16 Sep '07

16 Sep '07

Distribute widely... ---------- Forwarded message ---------- From: AhA <consultancysupportservices(a)gmail.com> Date: 9 Sep 2007 17:09 Subject: [DigAfrica] Research fellow position - in ip at Berkeley] To: ictcnigeria_group(a)yahoogroups.com, dltw0903(a)yahoogroups.com, NVLNaijaProject(a)yahoogroups.com, Naija_IT_Professionals(a)yahoogroups.com, FGCKadunaOSA(a)yahoogroups.com, Wsisnigeria(a)yahoogroups.com, digitalheritage(a)googlegroups.com, Pro-Unitate(a)googlegroups.com, cyberianigeria(a)googlegroups.com, ALF_DLTW(a)googlegroups.com, ICTAdvocacy(a)googlegroups.com, DLTWFemaleMediaPractitioners(a)yahoogroups.com, DigAfrica(a)yahoogroups.com, cyber-buddies(a)yahoogroups.com Please pass on to those who might be interested __._,_.___ Messages in this topic <http://groups.yahoo.com/group/DigAfrica/message/6309;_ylc=X3oDMTM0ZmdmZGpzB…>( 1) Reply (via web post) <http://groups.yahoo.com/group/DigAfrica/post;_ylc=X3oDMTJwYmxnaDdiBF9TAzk3M…>| Start a new topic <http://groups.yahoo.com/group/DigAfrica/post;_ylc=X3oDMTJlaXFiN2pnBF9TAzk3M…> Messages<http://groups.yahoo.com/group/DigAfrica/messages;_ylc=X3oDMTJla2dmZzZiBF9TA…>| Links<http://groups.yahoo.com/group/DigAfrica/links;_ylc=X3oDMTJmYTc5NWpzBF9TAzk3…>| Polls<http://groups.yahoo.com/group/DigAfrica/polls;_ylc=X3oDMTJmNXRwNzNuBF9TAzk3…> Dig Africa site welcomes you to join us at http://www.yahoogroups.com/group/Digafrica on IT in Africa Aids-Africa is a forum for communication and information on AIDS related issues in Africa and all are welcome to join us at http://www.yahoogroups.com/group/aids-africa Join us on hiv/aids forum on Kenya at http://www.yahoogroups.com/group/kenya-aids Join us at a Kenyan networking forum and NGOS at http://www.yahoogroups.com/group/kenyainternational [image: Yahoo! Groups]<http://groups.yahoo.com/;_ylc=X3oDMTJka3U2azJnBF9TAzk3NDc2NTkwBGdycElkAzI5M…> Change settings via the Web<http://groups.yahoo.com/group/DigAfrica/join;_ylc=X3oDMTJmZDZja2k2BF9TAzk3N…>(Yahoo! ID required) Change settings via email: Switch delivery to Daily Digest<[email protected]?subject=Email+Delivery:+Digest>| Switch format to Traditional<[email protected]?subject=Change+Delivery+Format:+Traditional> Visit Your Group <http://groups.yahoo.com/group/DigAfrica;_ylc=X3oDMTJkdjBkM2tsBF9TAzk3NDc2NT…>| Yahoo! Groups Terms of Use <http://docs.yahoo.com/info/terms/> | Unsubscribe <DigAfrica-unsubscribe(a)yahoogroups.com?subject=> Recent Activity - 3 New Members<http://groups.yahoo.com/group/DigAfrica/members;_ylc=X3oDMTJmbmF1NWw1BF9TAz…> Visit Your Group <http://groups.yahoo.com/group/DigAfrica;_ylc=X3oDMTJlZ3MyZjNpBF9TAzk3MzU5Nz…> Yahoo! Groups Moderator Central<http://us.ard.yahoo.com/SIG=12jhug8hb/M=493064.10729651.11333342.8674578/D=…> Connecting a world of moderators Real Food Group Share recipes<http://us.ard.yahoo.com/SIG=12jobk3sf/M=493064.11036139.11614791.8674578/D=…> and favorite meals w/ Real Food lovers. Beauty Groups on Yahoo! Groups<http://us.ard.yahoo.com/SIG=12jh1h9u5/M=493064.11135489.11710475.8674578/D=…> A great place to connect and share. . __,_._,___ FYI. This may be of interest to members of our list. - Molly. Original Message: ----------------- > Date: September 6, 2007 7:25:06 PM EDT > To: Fellows(a)cyber.law.harvard.edu <Fellows%40cyber.law.harvard.edu> > Subject: [fellows] research fellow position > > > Please share this notice with anyone you think might be interested: > > The Berkeley Center for Law & Technology (BCLT) is seeking to hire > a Research Fellow for a one year term (possibly renewable for a > second year), beginning in January 2008, to undertake research on > intellectual property and other high technology issues under the > supervision of BCLT faculty. Because the funding for this > fellowship is being provided by Microsoft Corp., the Research > Fellow hired will be known as the "Microsoft Research Fellow." > > BCLT is a research center at the University of California Berkeley, > Boalt Hall School of Law. For the past ten years, BCLT has been > rated by US News & World Report as the best intellectual property > program in the country, in part because of the high quality, high > impact research conducted by its faculty and students. BCLT's > research extends beyond the intellectual property core to > encompass electronic commerce, telecommunications regulation, > cyberlaw, privacy and other areas of law that are affected by new > information technologies. > > Primary Responsibilities > > The primary responsibilities of the Fellow will be: > > research and writing of articles or reports of publishable quality > on high technology issues, under the supervision of BCLT faculty > working with BCLT faculty and staff to organize workshops, > conferences, talks, and meetings with lawyers, policymakers, and > industry representatives > collaborating with JD, PhD students and Professors working on > related projects, including a major study of Intellectual Property > and Entrepreneurship > producing a periodic newsletter focused on BCLT research > writing articles, white papers, and opinion pieces directed at > audiences beyond academia > speaking at conferences and meetings, and to the press about the > research > Examples of issues for research are: patent law and > entrepreneurship, patent law reform, international patent issues, > rules for secondary liability of technology developers, anti- > circumvention regulations, legal regulation of spam, spyware, > malware and deceptive software, privacy and security issues, > digital rights management, trusted computing, computer crimes and > broadband policy. > > Qualifications > > An ideal candidate for this position would have the following > characteristics: > > • J.D. degree or relevant Ph.D. in science and technology > policy > > • research experience > > • excellent communication, analytical and writing skills; > > • subject matter knowledge of intellectual property law > and technology policy > > To apply, please submit a cover letter, resume, relevant > transcripts, writing sample, and a detailed statement of interest > as soon as possible, but in any event not later than, October 1, > 2007. Two letters of recommendation (which may arrive separately or > with application materials) required. Materials should be directed to: > > Louise Lee, Assistant Director for BCLT > > School of Law (Boalt Hall Rm 351) > > UC Berkeley > > Berkeley, CA 94720-7200 > > Please refer potential reviewers to the UC Berkeley Statement of > Confidentiality found at: http://apo.chance.berkeley.edu/ > evalltr.html. > > Applicants should be prepared to begin work during the spring of > 2008. Appointment is for one year. > > The University of California is an AA/EEO employer. Minority, > female, disabled and GLBT applicants are particularly encouraged to > apply. > > Compensation > > $45,048 to $51,660 depending upon experience. > > For more information about BC LT visit our website at <http:// > www.law.berkeley.edu/institutes/bclt/>http://www.law.berkeley.edu/ > institutes/bclt > > > > Pamela Samuelson > Richard M. Sherman Distinguished Professor of Law & Information > University of California, Berkeley 94720 > (510) 642-6775 www.ischool.berkeley.edu/~pam ---------------------------------------------------------- mail2web.com – Enhanced email for the mobile individual based on Microsoft(r) Exchange - http://link.mail2web.com/Personal/EnhancedEmail -- "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. --

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Two other classics from the Kenyans
by Eric Osiakwan 15 Sep '07

15 Sep '07

Online Newspaper Editions Increase Sales Kenyan newspapers have embraced the internet and increased their sales with innovations such as sending headlines by SMS to readers. Nairobi has also become the hub of an ambitious project to digitise all sub-Saharan newspapers. Field director of the Library of Congress Office in Nairobi, Pamela Howard-Reguindin, told the recent World Library and Information Congress in Durban that the managing editors of Kenya's main papers, the Daily Nation and Standard "realise they must adopt new technology or fall into oblivion as has happened with some of their competitors". Despite limited access to the internet by Kenyans, the two dailies and a Swahili newspaper, Taifa Leo, have used online editions to increase sales of both electronic and print versions. The key to this success has been the production of "born digital" items - first on the net and then in print - as well as marketing innovations. Text teasers and headlines are sent to SMS lists and e-mail addresses. Now the Nation Media Group is to launch a "born digital" publication, Business Daily. Deals have been struck with NewsStand and NewspaperDirect to increase sales and RSS feeds. "Both newspaper editors report that sales of online and hardcopy issues are growing," says Howard-Reguindin. "The Daily Nation is working on a new website Nation Digital that will include text messages via mobile phones, online news/chat rooms, RSS, and specialised services such as sports scores, stock prices, and horoscopes." The Standard is getting about 3 million hits a day for their website, "most from outside Kenya, but a steadily increasing number from within the country as internet access penetrates more Kenyan businesses, schools and households". Meanwhile, the US Library of Congress office in Nairobi is racing against time to digitise the newspapers of 29 sub-Saharan newspapers that are crumbling to dust in archives across the continent. The project started with a "computer-based index of the articles published in the major Nairobi newspapers from 1980 onwards covering the cultural affairs of this country, mainly music, dance, theatre, literature and art", overseen by Ruth Thomas, a noted Nairobi librarian. "Subsequently the topics expanded to include reproductive health, law/ governance affairs, and various others. "Hundreds, if not thousands, of newspaper titles from some 29 sub- Saharan countries have already been microfilmed and dozens more are being filmed on an annual basis by the library and its office in New Delhi, India. "In spite of this laudable work, many more newspaper titles and corresponding issues remain in our ever-growing backlog," says Howard- Reguindin. Ten sub-Saharan titles are being sent to the library in Washington, DC for treatment (www.loc.gov/acq/ovop/nairobi/lc_npapers.html for the list). At the library's office in New Delhi several cameras and camera operators are working overtime to film as much as possible of another 115 titles. "One possible role of Kenyan librarians would be to encourage the newspaper managers to offer internet access to full content of the articles free to Kenyan schools and universities." This "could be a role for any national African library association. Many journal publishers located in the US and Europe are now allowing internet users in developing countries to access full content of journal articles without charge". "If this open access could be offered to Kenya newspaper readers, the information in the daily press could strengthen efforts in governance and democratisation, literacy and responsible civic leadership," says Howard-Reguindin. (Source: Cape Argus) The potential of data vending in Kenya The poor penetration of Internet services coupled with low levels of computer literacy in Kenya are holding back the country's emerging data vending industry. The data vendors, who sell and distribute financial and business news, are targeting rural populations as well as Kenyans in the diaspora. Mr Bildad Kagai , the managing director of data vending firm MediaCorp Limited, told the Business Daily that while data vending has the potential to be a major industry in the financial services sector, more needed to be done to ensure computer services reached majority of the people. "Kenyans, especially those outside Nairobi, have been waiting eagerly for the Real Time data, but inability to access the Internet remains a big challenge," says Mr Kagai He said traders did not have to physically go to the bourse to get financial data, but they could do this in the comfort of their offices through the Internet. He said the highest potential for growth in data vending was in rural towns and that lack of Internet services was limiting the uptake of online financial news and data. MediaCorp earlier this month launched its data vending services in Mombasa to increase its presence in the country. Symon Ndirangu, the chief executive officer of Information Convergence Technologies ICT Ltd, says that with the signing of an average of 50 to 100 new users every month, most of the six data vendor currently operating in the market should break even within the next 12 months. "Although it is taking time for many investors to appreciate the value of data, we are upbeat that revenue will pick up very soon." Currently, the cost of a data vending license from the NSE is valued at Sh170,000 (US$2500) while ISPs are charging about Sh50,000 per month for connection. With an estimated Sh180,000 in other costs, data vendors are paying at least Sh400,000 a month or Sh4.8million annually to stay afloat. Ndirangu however projects that with the developments in the ICT sector as well as the Capital Markets, the data vendors should have at least each have 10,000-20,000 customers utilizing their services. At an annual charge of Sh5000 per customers, data vendors could easily rake in Sh50 million in a year. Eric M.K Osiakwan Executive Secretary AfrISPA (www.afrispa.org) Tel: + 233.21.258800 ext 2031 Fax: + 233.21.258811 Cell: + 233.244.386792 Handle: eosiakwan Snail Mail: Pmb 208, Accra-North Office: BusyInternet - 42 Ring Road Central, Accra-North Blog: http://blogs.law.harvard.edu/eric/ Slang: "Tomorrow Now"

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Internet Service Providers Record Rise in Earnings in Kenya
by Eric Osiakwan 15 Sep '07

15 Sep '07

Internet Service Providers Record Rise in Earnings in Kenya Local Internet service providers are earning higher revenues signalling increased use of the web among consumers, industry statistics show. The data indicate that average revenue per user (ARPU), a measure of how each user spends on internet access, has risen to an all time high of $600 in some segments of the market, up from an average of $500 last year. Globally, ARPU is used as a measure of how much money a service provider makes from the average user and enables the ISPs to make revenue projections as well as determine which products are earning most revenues. It also provides an accurate picture as to what services and products are popular with consumers in certain segments of the market. "Most ICT firms, however, have indicated application of cost leadership strategies, resulting in lower ARPUs with the intention of raking in higher subscriber number," said Shida Mutuku, the group head of marketing at Africa Online. The pan-African ISP, which is changing focus from being a pure ISP services company to a supplier of comprehensive IT services, says demand for ICT products is rising across the board. ISPs can maximise on their resources by using ARPU data to their advantage. ARPU can also be used as a measure of how successful a company is in moving users to new services that are regarded as strategically important. Citing steadily increasing revenues from its broadband product, AccessKenya Group hopes to realise its projected revenue target from customers looking for better speed and capacity from their internet connection. Last week, AccessKenya said it was on track to realising an ARPU average of $540 owing to increased number of large customers coming on board and many existing customers upgrading their bandwidth. The ICT company, which recently announced that it had realised its customer target of 1,720 four months ahead of schedule, says its current ARPU is underpinned by the strength of its Broadband Max 2 leased line solution that has become popular with the corporate market. "Broadband Max 2 offers a quadruple downlink coupled with high reliability evidenced by a 99.8 per cent Service Level Agreement," said Jonathan Somen, the managing director of AccessKenya. "We are the only ISP offering this sort of solution in the Kenyan market and have realised significant increase in demand over the past six months," he said. Somen said AccessKenya had set a new target of enrolling a minimum of 1,900 leased line customers by the end of the year, and has been reinvesting some of its profits from increased customer numbers to build up sales and customer service teams. Africa Online refused to reveal its current ARPUs but said it was targeting ARPU of $1,000 per use by the end of the year. The ambitious target is based on increased demand for corporate leased line solutions and increased take up in the residential user market of the wireless broadband product, Infinet. (Source: Business Daily) Eric M.K Osiakwan Executive Secretary AfrISPA (www.afrispa.org) Tel: + 233.21.258800 ext 2031 Fax: + 233.21.258811 Cell: + 233.244.386792 Handle: eosiakwan Snail Mail: Pmb 208, Accra-North Office: BusyInternet - 42 Ring Road Central, Accra-North Blog: http://blogs.law.harvard.edu/eric/ Slang: "Tomorrow Now"

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Fwd: SV: [AfrISPA.Discuss] Undersea cable plan tangled in acrimony inSouth Africa
by Eric Osiakwan 14 Sep '07

14 Sep '07

fyi from the AfrISPA discuss list.... Begin forwarded message: > From: "Anders Comstedt" <anders(a)ssvl.kth.se> > Date: 9 September 2007 21:52:19 GMT+03:00 > To: <Discuss(a)afrispa.org> > Subject: SV: [AfrISPA.Discuss] Undersea cable plan tangled in > acrimony inSouth Africa > Reply-To: Discuss(a)afrispa.org > > Frank, > > You are right that everyone else but RSA needs a cable to RoW much, > much > more than the good folks south, also that the thing has got stuck in > political concerns and power games. The good thing is, however, > that the > general consensus on the needs, commercial impact and development > leverage > of a widely available optical fibre cable has shifted from cold to > warm. > > Technically, there is no need for an East African submarine cable > south > beyond Maputo at all, as there is well protected optical fibre > Maputo - > Pretoria on the power lines. Which, btw, RSA has effectively > prevented open > & fair use of during several years, effectively leaving Maputo on > VSAT for a > much longer time than necessary. So SA could connect that route, > already > today, to any cable from the north that lands close to Maputo. > > Now two small issues: > First, RSA companies are major stakeholders in any submarine cable > proposal > that has emerged the last couple of years, dominant to the extent > that it > has made other parties concerned on who actually will control a > cable system > supposed to be a joint project with some 23 participants. The > Telkom SA part > of EASSy is closer to 50% than 1/23, and may well increase to >50% > if Telkom > buys any of the other participants, which has been contemplated by > some > pundits. > Second, the RSA market is a closed market where only a very limited > number > of politically approved players are carefully allowed to > participate in > sharing the revenues of an artificially high price level market. > Who wants > to rock that boat of the industry insiders? So you have strong > concerns > among established telecom industry interests in RSA to not change > the game > for as long as possible. According to some analysts, keeping this > inflated > price for another year or so is worth much more money in excessive > profits > than the entire investment in EASSy. Why give away money by a too > early > price reduction? > > So what does the rest of the SSA think about this? And also the > international community in general, forking in quite a bit of the > financing > into any of the cable projects suggested? > Well, they probably don't go easily on potentially offending the > single > biggest partner they have in all other trade and political issues > in SSA by > suggesting a solution without clear RSA involvement. The bean > counters then > look at the traffic volumes and say that any project without the > RSA volume > will be a commercial disaster, and what about restoration if we > cannot reach > and have an agreement with SAT-3? > > You end up in a situation where the question is: Who blinks first? > > If there is no initiatives potentially making any EA submarine cable > roll-out happen ex RSA, there will be little change in any broader RSA > stance as long as the revenues and influence of the joint RSA > political and > industrial telecoms interests are lined up the way they are. > > Others have to consider their positions and responsibilities in > relation to > all this. Personally, I cannot help looking at TEAMS in the light > of the > above. > > What about an EASSy project, now financed even more by international > development money, first built to those countries where an open market > exist? Gradually expanding South instead of gradually expanding North? > > Loosing a big Telkom part of the financing is of cause not what those > banking, operator and vendor interests want that have got the > financial > EASSy-packet stitched together with difficulty. > > The interesting thing, however, is that the financing of EASSy > seems to have > been growing softer by the day during 2007. What was a year ago > portrayed as > a pure commercial financing is now looking more and more to be > relying upon > soft elements just short of labelling significant amounts pure grants. > > This shift opens up interesting considerations on the entire > development > financing too: Shall such money be used to shelter commercial > interests from > competition, actively preventing driving user prices down? > Maintaining artificially high profits to protected operators in > restricted > markets is not necessarily in line with what should be eligible for > support. > At some point of time that discussion will re-surface too in a > similar way > as it did at WSIS when the WBG took a clear stance pro openness and > equal > availability of cable capacity for all interested parties. > > I have a hard time understanding how EU institutions can provide > not only > the initial semi-soft "commercial loans" but now more of softer > financing to > any venture so openly wide open to violating several EU principles > regarding > telecoms and general market openness. Sure, as long as it stayed > under the > radar various individuals could claim ignorance, but that is > getting harder > and harder with the EA debate on why an obvious need is not met in > a fair > way. Supporting a questionable package could soon kill a promising > career > inside the EU system rather than promoting it. Time must be running > out on > the non-open conditions? > > The alternatives to EASSy now visible, funded by pure commercial > capital > like SEACOM, makes it even more questionable to give soft funds to any > set-up having questionable market development properties. Rather, it > reinforces the need to justify any support by such funds with even > MORE > arguments on the project openness and development leverage. > > Both EASSy and SEACOM seem to have a hard time in RSA as long as > they are > not clearly controlled by local interests. > > Both seem up for a hard choice in RSA: > Give in, as little as possibly, but the control must be in RSA hands > Pass RSA in an immediate implementation of the rest of the system, or > Delay the whole thing, waiting for RSA to blink in fear of being > left out. > > Other EA stakeholders need to consider what situation they like to > promote > for any cable project in the above respect. Don't just ask the cable > projects to carry the burden of dealing with this political risk > all by > themselves, later blaming them for whatever compromise they make! A > risk now > being the main obstacle between the current deficit and a state-of- > the art, > reasonably priced cable connection for SSA to RoW. > > The worst alternative for RSA operators is probably a combination > of an > early East-West SSA link (EA to Angola or Nigeria?) with two new > terrestrial > and/or submarine links north to the Mediterranean from EA. All the > current > transit traffic from RSA neighbours to SAT-3 will then disappear in > a flash. > Instead, RSA may be faced with not only a very limited interest > from others > to consider an EA submarine cable south, but a desire to making RSA > operators subject to a similar transit pricing practice that Telkom > SA has > up to now offered its neighbours in connecting to SAT-3. > Considering the > profits in the closed RSA market such a scenario may, however, > still be a > good alternative to some players in that local market as it may > delay the > tide by another year or two. > > The frustration over the EA development lag by the delay in cable > implementation is causing a lot of impatient folks to say that "the > only > important thing is that a sub marine cable gets built". That is > understandable but dangerous. Remember SAT-3. > > Dispatched over an industry standard 100Mb/s connection to the home, > commonly available for a couple of Big Macs/month in an open, > competitive > market. > > Anders > > -----Ursprungligt meddelande----- > Från: Discuss-owner(a)afrispa.org [mailto:[email protected]] > För Frank > Habicht > Skickat: den 9 september 2007 09:27 > Till: Discuss(a)afrispa.org > Ämne: Re: [AfrISPA.Discuss] Undersea cable plan tangled in acrimony > inSouth > Africa > > Question(s)... > > Who _needs_ (badly) that Eassy lands in SA ? > I'm not up-to-date with most things, but I guess for many the > connection > to Sudan will connect them to the world (maybe without redundancy, but > maybe that redundancy would be clumsy anyway). > > I think the ones who need Eassy to land in SA the most are SA > operators > (maybe excl. Telkom, maybe not?). > > For everyone else only one thing is important: that this thing gets > built! > If SA wants to stay with the connectivity they have now.... fine with > me. I don't want myself to stay with VSATs. > > So, let the SA companies loose out. Let them take it up with their > government. Or change the same if necessary. Their problem. > > The worst thing that can happen in my little uninformed opinion is > that > this political (*&^%()*&% delays the building of that cable. > > So, can we continue to build it up to Maputo, please? > The ..... opinion of politicians in SA shouldn't prevent ~20 other > countries to get proper connectivity. > > For how long has this project dragged on already? For how long been > delayed by politics? > Wasn't the contract done to start building? > > Frank > impatient, disappointed, upset > > > On 9/8/2007 3:10 PM, Eric Osiakwan wrote: >> The sole active supporter of the NEPAD-backed Broadband >> Infrastructure >> Project that will never be built, the South African Government is >> trying >> to arm-twist EASSy because the project has slipped free of NEPAD >> control. This is the arrogant display of naked political power that >> those who have not signed the NEPAD political protocol feared would >> occur if the larger African brother failed to get its way. >> >> The 10,000km Eassy cable will be 27% owned by Telkom, Neotel and MTN, >> and is designed to provide desperately needed cheap bandwidth to 21 >> African countries. But SA's communications department has taken >> umbrage >> at what it sees as the commercial nature of the enterprise, and >> intends >> to withhold landing rights. >> >> Instead, the government will use taxpayers' money to roll out two >> rival >> cables heading east and west, jointly known as the Nepad Broadband >> Infrastructure Network. Denying landing rights to EASSy will be >> detrimental to the three local companies, which, they say, have >> had the >> foresight to invest in the project to slash bandwidth prices. >> >> It will also be anticompetitive if EASSy members are not allowed >> to sell >> bandwidth to other operators in SA, says Mohsen Khalil, a director >> with >> the International Finance Corporation (IFC). He also says the >> government's hostility shows it has not understood a new >> commitment the >> consortium has made to open access. >> >> The IFC is part of the World Bank, and is investing $32,5m to help >> about >> 15 small operators participate in Eassy. Yet the director-general >> of the >> communications department, Lyndall Shope Mafole, remains vehemently >> opposed to the project. "Eassy is bad news for developing >> countries that >> are not at the level of SA," she says. >> >> "We have many problems with it. The fact that you work for the World >> Bank makes you think you know what's good for Africa even when you >> don't >> live in Africa. I find that quite insulting." >> >> Because Eassy's biggest shareholders are giants like MTN and Telkom, >> their bulk buying power gives them an advantage over smaller >> operators >> also trying to buy and resell capacity to customers in each >> country, she >> says. >> >> "South African companies could use their dominance to compete >> unfairly >> in other countries. We have a responsibility as the government to >> ensure >> there is fair competition. We are not willing to look at something >> that >> is clearly discriminatory. We couldn't rest with a clear >> conscience." If >> the South African Government has this responsibility, why has it not >> exercised it over Telkom's SAT3 prices? The Department of >> Communications >> talks the talk but does not walk the walk. >> >> A bigger issue threatening not only Eassy but also other foreign- >> backed >> cables is a demand that any cable landing in SA is partly owned by >> local >> companies. The minimum percentage of local ownership will be >> determined >> by Communications Minister Ivy Matsepe Casaburri. >> >> The instant reaction is to question whether SA has the right to do >> that. >> It has, under the Electronic Communications and Transactions Act, >> Shope-Mafole says. The second reaction is to assume that foreign >> investors will be deterred. The government's belligerent stance in an >> effort to promote local industries may backfire and deprive >> consumers of >> cheaper bandwidth if foreigners opt to bypass SA's coastline. >> >> Nonsense, Shope-Mafole says. "There are millions of people who >> want to >> enter into arrangements and land in SA. We welcome anybody who >> wants to >> invest in submarine cables that land on South African soil, but we >> need >> South African companies to invest." >> >> Although Eassy boasts 27% local ownership, that may not be enough. >> Seacom, another private cable already under construction, must also >> recruit local investors for the plans on its map to match reality. >> Seacom has signed a deal for SA's second network operator, Neotel, to >> operate the local landing station, which does not impress the >> government. >> >> Shope-Mafole said the demand for local ownership in the entire cable >> linking India to Europe via SA was discussed with Seacom's mostly US >> investors over a cup of coffee. "I don't think they thought it was >> unreasonable. I wouldn't say they loved it, but they didn't throw >> their >> cups at us," she says. >> (Source: Business Day) >> >> >> >> Eric M.K Osiakwan >> Executive Secretary >> AfrISPA (www.afrispa.org <http://www.afrispa.org>) >> Tel: + 233.21.258800 ext 2031 >> Fax: + 233.21.258811 >> Cell: + 233.244.386792 >> Handle: eosiakwan >> Snail Mail: Pmb 208, Accra-North >> Office: BusyInternet - 42 Ring Road Central, Accra-North >> Blog: http://blogs.law.harvard.edu/eric/ >> Slang: "Tomorrow Now" >> >> >> >> > > To unsubscribe send a mail to: imailsrv(a)afrispa.org. Type the > following in > the body of your mail (not header): "Unsubscribe discuss" (without > quotes). > This List is operated by ZAnet Internet Services: www.zanet.co.za > on behalf > of www.afrispa.org. For any List Admin queries send mail to > William(a)zanet.co.za > > To unsubscribe send a mail to: imailsrv(a)afrispa.org. Type the > following in > the body of your mail (not header): "Unsubscribe discuss" (without > quotes). > This List is operated by ZAnet Internet Services: www.zanet.co.za > on behalf > of www.afrispa.org. For any List Admin queries send mail to > William(a)zanet.co.za > Eric M.K Osiakwan Executive Secretary AfrISPA (www.afrispa.org) Tel: + 233.21.258800 ext 2031 Fax: + 233.21.258811 Cell: + 233.244.386792 Handle: eosiakwan Snail Mail: Pmb 208, Accra-North Office: BusyInternet - 42 Ring Road Central, Accra-North Blog: http://blogs.law.harvard.edu/eric/ Slang: "Tomorrow Now"

11 19

Vote for Pambazuka News
by Alex Gakuru 14 Sep '07

14 Sep '07

Asked to request for your vote support. Thanks > ---------- Forwarded message ---------- > From: Firoze Manji <firoze(a)fahamu.org> > Date: Sep 14, 2007 5:31 PM > Subject: [ke-internetusers] Vote for Pambazuka News > To: ke-internetusers(a)bdix.net > > > Dear All > > For the third year running, Pambazuka News has been > selected as one of > 25 finalists for the Top 10 Who Are Changing the > World of Internet and > Politics. > > Pambazuka News is produced by a pan-African > community of some 300 > citizens and organisations academics, policy > makers, social > activists, women's organisations, civil society > organisations, > writers, artists, poets, bloggers, and commentators. > > Winning this award would be a tribute to all the > many contributors who > have made Pambazuka News essential reading for all > concerned with the > cause of justice and freedom in Africa. > > With your help, we could win this award. Please vote > for us at: > > http://tinyurl.com/2yo3vy > > Pambazuka News Changing the World of Internet and > Politics > > Firoze > ______________ > Firoze Manji > Director, Fahamu - Networks for Social Justice > (http://www.fahamu.org/) > Editor, Pambazuka News (http://www.pambazuka.org/) > 2nd Floor, 51 CORNMARKET STREET, OXFORD OX1 3HA > Cellphone: +44 (0) 77 86 62 86 86 > Tel: +44-(0)1865-727006 > Fax: +44-(0)1865-727909 > Skype: firozemanji > Pambazuka News: weekly electronic newsletter on > social justice in > Africa: In English: http://www.pambazuka.org/en/ > In French: http://www.pambazuka.org/fr/ > > > _______________________________________________ > ke-internetusers mailing list > ke-internetusers(a)bdix.net > http://www.bdix.net/mailman/listinfo/ke-internetusers > > > > -- > website: http://www.billowsbpo.co.ke/ > ____________________________________________________________________________________ Looking for a deal? Find great prices on flights and hotels with Yahoo! FareChase. http://farechase.yahoo.com/

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Re: [kictanet] Fwd: SV: [AfrISPA.Discuss] Undersea cable plantangled in acrimony inSouth Africa
by Joseph Manthi 14 Sep '07

14 Sep '07

This is from the venerable news magazine The Economist: Telecoms in Africa Not so EASSy Aug 9th 2007 >From The Economist print edition A plan to run a submarine cable down Africa's east coast runs into difficulty THE East African Submarine Cable System (EASSy), a project to wire up several African countries with high-speed optical fibre, is not living up to its name. The plan, hatched in 2003, was simple enough: lay an 9,900km (6,200-mile) submarine cable along the east coast of the continent, from Sudan to South Africa, touching at several points along the way, and then link it up with the rest of the world. But the scheme has become entangled in disagreements between operators and governments over its business model. The logic of the project is clear: extra connectivity would reduce Africa's dependence on the SAT-3 cable, which runs from Iberia down the west coast of the continent, and on expensive satellite links, the only option in some countries. Cheaper connectivity would promote development and make African countries more attractive destinations for offshoring. Connecting a call-centre with 25 agents is said to cost $17,000 a month in Kenya, compared with $600–900 elsewhere. The disagreement centres on the structure of the EASSy consortium, made up of around 30 African and international telecoms operators. The governments of some countries, including South Africa, want to avoid a repeat of what happened with SAT-3. That cable is run by a consortium that allows only one telecoms operator to sell capacity in each country. The lack of competition means prices are so high that satellite is often cheaper, says Alan Mauldin of TeleGeography, a consultancy. To prevent such an outcome with EASSy, several governments, acting through the New Partnership for Africa's Development (NEPAD), have threatened to withhold landing rights for the cable unless their proposals for how to run it are accepted, says Edmund Katiti of NEPAD. They want governments to join the consortium and to have a veto over strategy; and they want any African operator to be able to buy wholesale capacity at a regulated (ie, low) price. They are even talking of building an entirely new cable on these terms, under NEPAD's supervision. The operators in the EASSy consortium say this is an attempt to hijack an existing commercial project and micromanage the industry. They do not like the sound of government vetoes or regulated pricing. And EASSy's current rules will mean that consortium members will compete to sell capacity in the same markets, driving down prices, says Michel Rouilleault of Axiom, a consultancy attached to EASSy. Critics respond that these rules, the details of which are unclear but which link the cost of access to the size of the operator's investment, could lead to high prices in countries where the local operator has only a small stake in the project. In South Africa, where several competing operators have stakes, there will be plenty of competition, but this may not be true elsewhere. The delays to EASSy have helped to spur other projects, including SEACOM, which has just appointed a contractor to lay a cable along a similar route, and TEAMS, which will link Kenya with the United Arab Emirates. India's Flag Telecom also plans to lay a cable to Kenya. At the moment there is insufficient demand to support so many cables, says Russell Southwood, an expert on African telecoms. But that may prompt operators to offer low prices to stimulate demand. So whatever happens to EASSy, getting cheaper bandwidth along Africa's east coast could soon be a lot less difficult. On 9/13/07, Manthi, Joseph <Joseph.Manthi(a)fmr.com> wrote: > Alex > Just know that you have my help if you need it. > > Joe > -------------------------- > Sent from my BlackBerry Wireless Handheld > > > ----- Original Message ----- > From: Alex Gakuru <alex.gakuru(a)yahoo.com> > To: Manthi, Joseph; jmanthi(a)gmail.com <jmanthi(a)gmail.com> > Cc: kictanet(a)lists.kictanet.or.ke <kictanet(a)lists.kictanet.or.ke> > Sent: Thu Sep 13 14:09:06 2007 > Subject: Re: [kictanet] Fwd: SV: [AfrISPA.Discuss] Undersea cable plantangled in acrimony inSouth Africa > > Hi Joe, > > I'd be glad to mobilise and work with all consumers > but if you on note my message, I requested Dr. Ndemo > to give us that chance. We wait and see what tomorrow > brings. > > > Alex > > --- "Manthi, Joseph" <Joseph.Manthi(a)fmr.com> wrote: > > > Alex > > Please I beg you to prepare that SV to buy TKL. Let > > me know if youi need help in doing this. > > > > Thanks > > Joe > > ------Original Message------ > > From: Alex Gakuru > > Sender: > > > kictanet-bounces+jmanthi=gmail.com(a)lists.kictanet.or.ke > > To: jmanthi(a)gmail.com > > Cc: KICTAnet ICT Policy Discussions > > Sent: Sep 13, 2007 12:43 PM > > Subject: Re: [kictanet] Fwd: SV: [AfrISPA.Discuss] > > Undersea cable plantangled in acrimony inSouth > > Africa > > > > wow! "Open Access" is music to many no just my ears. > > > > I wish you failure at selling Telkom this way, > > honestly. That said, could you allow me to organise > > a > > Special Purpose Truck for Kenyan consumers to invest > > in Telkom more money that the Shs. 5 Billion? Fast > > tracking (READ get round) NSE rules? > > > > Thanks. > > > > --- bitange(a)jambo.co.ke wrote: > > > > > Dear Alex, > > > Telkon will not own Teams. The Government of > > Kenya > > > will own 40% stake in > > > the Teams SPV while regional operators and > > investors > > > will own 45%. The > > > remaining 15% shall be owned by Etisalat. The > > > Government shall ensure > > > open access in both Teams and the Terrestrial > > > Networks to enable both > > > large and small enterprises to compete. > > > > > > Do not worry about the sale of TKL since we have > > not > > > sold it yet and we > > > shall not sell it if the deal is not good. > > > > > > > > > Regards > > > > > > > > > Ndemo. > > > > > > > > > > > > > > > > Before quickly "thirding", I urge on the need to > > > have > > > > light shed on TEAMS investment structure, > > > otherwise we > > > > could end up never getting the envisaged cheap > > > > bandwidth. > > > > > > > > Why? After 51% of Telkom Kenya is sold to > > British > > > > Telcom (or another) then whoever will have the > > > cable > > > > ownership transfered to them thus could dictate > > > what > > > > the final price will be. > > > > > > > > Little Telkom sale (Shs 5 Billion) is happening > > > just > > > > when the promising CDMA is getting rolled out. > > > Going > > > > by last year's Safaricom profits, the sale value > > > is > > > > also K > > > > -------------------------- > > Sent from my BlackBerry Wireless Handheld > > > > > > > > ____________________________________________________________________________________ > Check out the hottest 2008 models today at Yahoo! Autos. > http://autos.yahoo.com/new_cars.html > > -- Joseph Manthi CEO MEO Ltd http://www.meoltd.com

3 3

Re: [kictanet] Fwd: SV: [AfrISPA.Discuss] Undersea cableplantangled in acrimony inSouth Africa
by Eric Osiakwan 14 Sep '07

14 Sep '07

Dear All, I had refrained from commenting just because of type language being used, please, please lets excercise decorum. First of all, i dont think it is right for us to use certain langaguage among ourselves, how much against our present leaders especially when we disagree with them on issues...please lets stick to the issues because these conversations are about shaping our African future and destiny so lets not fall prey to the temptation to personalise and loose the focus. I am going to attempt to set the conversation back on cause. I think the question that has bedeviled us is "does ownership of a cable or anything for that matter has an impact on the price to market and working mechanism?"..... so far the evidence is YES hence we need to tackle the owership structure. The human nature is such that "self centreing" is obvious and hence the best bet is "cross checking" by other natures. So in every element we setup each other as a check for the other because though one would have noble objectives, if the person has absolute power and control, falling to the temptation of abuse is almost certain. So if one investor or constituency has absolute owership, they obviously would like to maximise that investment or resource. Like SAT3, the incumbent league in some countries are not selling but they just prefer to control under all conditions and not let go though their investment is down the drain. I have argued and i do that a collective owership from all constituencies is the best way to handle a critical national or international infrastructure in a public private partnership where the various interested are represented so that the rules convey a balance of development, profits, community etc. I think there are tools to make this a reality so why dont we try them. On the issue of majority owership by Africans, may be the "capitalist niga" would do..... Eric here From: Brian Longwe <brian(a)isisweb.nl> Date: Fri, 14 Sep 2007 12:10:19 +0300 Subject: Re: [kictanet] Fwd: SV: [AfrISPA.Discuss] Undersea cableplantangled in acrimony inSouth Africa Cc: 'KICTAnet ICT Policy Discussions' <kictanet(a)lists.kictanet.or.ke> To: eric(a)afrispa.org hear, hear my mblatha! Mblayo ps. any relationship to Classic's Mwalimu Kingangi? :-D On Sep 14, 2007, at 8:46 AM, Ronald King'ang'i wrote: > I concur lets keep all discussion civilized > > King'ang'i > > -----Original Message----- > From: kictanet-bounces+fes=iconnect.co.ke(a)lists.kictanet.or.ke > [mailto:[email protected]] > On Behalf > Of Alex Gakuru > Sent: Thursday, September 13, 2007 5:55 PM > To: fes(a)iconnect.co.ke > Cc: KICTAnet ICT Policy Discussions > Subject: Re: [kictanet] Fwd: SV: [AfrISPA.Discuss] Undersea > cableplantangled > in acrimony inSouth Africa > > I know that I am usually hard hitting at my opposition > discussants, but I am feel expressions used below are > uncalled for no matter how opposed the writer's view > is. > > --- Joseph Manthi <jmanthi(a)gmail.com> wrote: > >> Sean, >> You of all people, a man living in England, reaping >> wealth from the >> ignorance of Africans, should not be making comments >> like these. You >> do not want Africans to realize what is going on. Do >> not wake a >> sleeping giant. It is high time we started taking >> care of our own. Why >> do you think that what SA is doing is "Rubbish"? >> Doesn't this >> honourable minister have the right to protect SA >> assets from nyangaus >> like you? >> >> I wish every African government is like South Africa >> where we can weed >> off foreign ownership of African assets. >> >> Bravo SA. >> >> Joe >> >> On 9/13/07, Sean Moroney <seanm(a)aitecafrica.com> >> wrote: >>> Yes, the security angle struck me as typical >> Newspeak from a regime that can >>> get away with rubbish like that where there is no >> effective opposition. How >>> like their Apartheid forebears they sound! >>> >>> Sean Moroney >>> Chairman >>> AITEC Africa >>> seanm(a)aitecafrica.com >>> >>> >>> >>> >>> -----Original Message----- >>> From: >> > kictanet-bounces+seanm=aitecafrica.com(a)lists.kictanet.or.ke >>> >> > [mailto:[email protected]] >> On >>> Behalf Of Kai Wulff >>> Sent: 12 September 2007 12:54 >>> To: seanm(a)aitecafrica.com >>> Cc: KICTAnet ICT Policy Discussions >>> Subject: Re: [kictanet] Fwd: SV: [AfrISPA.Discuss] >> Undersea cable >>> plantangled in acrimony inSouth Africa >>> >>> I second that! >>> >>> It is comforting to know that SA will provide >> security to Africa by >>> insisting on a majority ownership of the cables! >>> >>> I am sure this attitude will change once Kenya >> receives capacity @ less than >>> >>> USD 100,- per M .. >>> >>> Kai >>> ----- Original Message ----- >>> From: <bitange(a)jambo.co.ke> >>> To: <kai.wulff(a)kdn.co.ke> >>> Cc: "KICTAnet ICT Policy Discussions" >> <kictanet(a)lists.kictanet.or.ke> >>> Sent: Wednesday, September 12, 2007 14:44 >>> Subject: Re: [kictanet] Fwd: SV: [AfrISPA.Discuss] >> Undersea cable plan >>> tangled in acrimony inSouth Africa >>> >>> >>> I used to have a difficult time explaining to >> fellow Kenyans that it was >>> very difficult dealing with our brothers in SA >> because at every meeting >>> goal posts kept on shifting. Perharps now >> everybody understands that the >>> veto power in the NEPAD protocol was a control >> tool. Below please find >>> additional material. >>> >>> Ndemo. >>> >>> >>> Cables require local ownership BY DAMARIA SENNE & >> CHRISTELLE DU TOIT >>> <mailto:[email protected]> [ Johannesburg, 10 >> September 2007 ] >>> >>> South Africa requires that all undersea cables >> landing here be majority >>> owned by South Africans, says communications >> Minister Ivy >>> Matsepe-Casaburri. >>> >>> Speaking at the Southern African >> Telecommunications Networks and >>> Applications Conference (Satnac) 2007, in >> Mauritius, this morning, >>> Matsepe-Casaburri said government was happy with >> indications that >>> investors plan to land cables in the country. >>> However, she will soon announce new landing >> guidelines that require that >>> "all cables " landing in SA be majority owned by >> South Africans, she said. >>> >>> The guidelines will also be consistent with SA's >> foreign policy and take >>> the security of the country, and the African >> continent, into >>> consideration, she said. >>> "Every cable landing or leaving SA should >> incorporate in it the Nepad [New >>> Partnership for Africa's Development] Broadband >> Infrastructure Network." >>> Security measures are important, given the state >> of our insecure world, >>> she added. >>> >>> Matsepe-Casaburri said that she instructed Dep.of >> Communications >>> Dir-General Lyndall Shope-Mafole to propose the >> landing guidelines to the >>> Interim Inter-Governmental Assembly for >> discussion. She also noted that >>> her department studied the communications >> regulations of other countries >>> when drafting the landing guidelines, ensuring >> they are consistent with >>> international trends. >>> >>> Determination expected >>> BMI-TechKnowledge senior analyst Richard Hurst >> says the implications of >>> the ownership stipulations are that "those who do >> end up rolling out >>> cables will have to do so via partnerships". He >> cites Seacom and Neotel's >>> interaction as an example of this, where "Neotel >> basically would control >>> the landing rights of Seacom in SA". >>> According to Hurst, "government is trying to hedge >> its bets", but the >>> stipulations set out by the minister have >> generally been expected. He says >>> South African companies should benefit from the >> directives, as should the >>> consumer. >>> "It should open up access to those cables and >> bring prices down." He adds >>> that, as the international community moves towards >> always-on broadband, SA >>> will also increasingly need high-speed capacity. >> However he reiterates: >>> "The more bandwidth we have, the better." >>> >>> Investor support >>> Meanwhile, Matsepe-Casaburri said SA was convinced >> it was on the right >>> path to break away from the Eassy (Eastern Africa >> Submarine Cable System) >>> cable project and support the Nepad Broadband >> Infrastructure Network, as >>> well as initiating its own undersea cable systems. >>> >>> She said there was strong support from potential >> investors in the Nepad >>> Broadband (?) Infrastructure Network. "Instead of >> people running away >>> from us, we have a lot of support from investors." >>> SA and other African governments broke away from >> the Eassy project because >>> larger operators taking part in the initiative >> bought such large >>> quantities of capacity that there would never be >> fair access for smaller >>> operators, she noted. >>> >>> EASSY project was not in line with the Nepad >> objective, which was to >>> facilitate fair and open access for all telecoms >> providers to lower the >>> cost of telecoms on the continent, she said. She >> noted that SA's >>> Parliament had ratified the Nepad Broadband >> Infrastructure Network >>> protocol. >>> >>> >>>> fyi from the AfrISPA discuss list.... >>>> >>>> >>>> Begin forwarded message: >>>> >>>>> From: "Anders Comstedt" <anders(a)ssvl.kth.se> >> > === message truncated === > > > > > ______________________________________________________________________ > ______ > ________ > Check out the hottest 2008 models today at Yahoo! Autos. > http://autos.yahoo.com/new_cars.html > > _______________________________________________ > kictanet mailing list > kictanet(a)lists.kictanet.or.ke > http://lists.kictanet.or.ke/mailman/listinfo/kictanet > > This message was sent to: fes(a)iconnect.co.ke > Unsubscribe or change your options at > http://lists.kictanet.or.ke/mailman/options/kictanet/fes% > 40iconnect.co.ke > > > __________ NOD32 2527 (20070913) Information __________ > > This message was checked by NOD32 antivirus system. > http://www.eset.com > > > > _______________________________________________ > kictanet mailing list > kictanet(a)lists.kictanet.or.ke > http://lists.kictanet.or.ke/mailman/listinfo/kictanet > > This message was sent to: brian(a)isisweb.nl > Unsubscribe or change your options at http://lists.kictanet.or.ke/ > mailman/options/kictanet/brian%40isisweb.nl _______________________________________________ kictanet mailing list kictanet(a)lists.kictanet.or.ke http://lists.kictanet.or.ke/mailman/listinfo/kictanet This message was sent to: eric(a)afrispa.org Unsubscribe or change your options at http://lists.kictanet.or.ke/ mailman/options/kictanet/eric%40afrispa.org Eric M.K Osiakwan Executive Secretary AfrISPA (www.afrispa.org) Tel: + 233.21.258800 ext 2031 Fax: + 233.21.258811 Cell: + 233.244.386792 Handle: eosiakwan Snail Mail: Pmb 208, Accra-North Office: BusyInternet - 42 Ring Road Central, Accra-North Blog: http://blogs.law.harvard.edu/eric/ Slang: "Tomorrow Now"

1 0

Re: [kictanet] Fwd: SV: [AfrISPA.Discuss] Undersea cable plan
by Eric Osiakwan 14 Sep '07

14 Sep '07

Dear Dr. Ndemo, Thanks for the detailing but it would be good if you breakdown what the "Open Access Model' would be in terms of teams and the terrestrial network? Would it be there the infrastructure would be seperate from services so that the entirities that build and operate the infrastructure would be restricted from competing with the service providers and that the price approach would be high volumes against low margins? By the way what happened to the idea of having 20% on the stock market for non-deep pocket folks like myself.....:-) Eric here Date: Thu, 13 Sep 2007 19:32:44 +0300 (EAT) From: bitange(a)jambo.co.ke Subject: Re: [kictanet] Fwd: SV: [AfrISPA.Discuss] Undersea cable plan tangled in acrimony inSouth Africa Cc: KICTAnet ICT Policy Discussions <kictanet(a)lists.kictanet.or.ke> To: eric(a)afrispa.org Dear Alex, Telkon will not own Teams. The Government of Kenya will own 40% stake in the Teams SPV while regional operators and investors will own 45%. The remaining 15% shall be owned by Etisalat. The Government shall ensure open access in both Teams and the Terrestrial Networks to enable both large and small enterprises to compete. Do not worry about the sale of TKL since we have not sold it yet and we shall not sell it if the deal is not good. Regards Ndemo. > Before quickly "thirding", I urge on the need to have > light shed on TEAMS investment structure, otherwise we > could end up never getting the envisaged cheap > bandwidth. > > Why? After 51% of Telkom Kenya is sold to British > Telcom (or another) then whoever will have the cable > ownership transfered to them thus could dictate what > the final price will be. > > Little Telkom sale (Shs 5 Billion) is happening just > when the promising CDMA is getting rolled out. Going > by last year's Safaricom profits, the sale value is > also Kidogo Sana. > > Alex > > --- Kai Wulff <kai.wulff(a)kdn.co.ke> wrote: > >> I second that! >> >> It is comforting to know that SA will provide >> security to Africa by >> insisting on a majority ownership of the cables! >> >> I am sure this attitude will change once Kenya >> receives capacity @ less than >> USD 100,- per M .. >> >> Kai >> ----- Original Message ----- >> From: <bitange(a)jambo.co.ke> >> To: <kai.wulff(a)kdn.co.ke> >> Cc: "KICTAnet ICT Policy Discussions" >> <kictanet(a)lists.kictanet.or.ke> >> Sent: Wednesday, September 12, 2007 14:44 >> Subject: Re: [kictanet] Fwd: SV: [AfrISPA.Discuss] >> Undersea cable plan >> tangled in acrimony inSouth Africa >> >> >> I used to have a difficult time explaining to fellow >> Kenyans that it was >> very difficult dealing with our brothers in SA >> because at every meeting >> goal posts kept on shifting. Perharps now everybody >> understands that the >> veto power in the NEPAD protocol was a control tool. >> Below please find >> additional material. >> >> Ndemo. >> >> >> Cables require local ownership BY DAMARIA SENNE & >> CHRISTELLE DU TOIT >> <mailto:[email protected]> [ Johannesburg, 10 >> September 2007 ] >> >> South Africa requires that all undersea cables >> landing here be majority >> owned by South Africans, says communications >> Minister Ivy >> Matsepe-Casaburri. >> >> Speaking at the Southern African Telecommunications >> Networks and >> Applications Conference (Satnac) 2007, in Mauritius, >> this morning, >> Matsepe-Casaburri said government was happy with >> indications that >> investors plan to land cables in the country. >> However, she will soon announce new landing >> guidelines that require that >> "all cables " landing in SA be majority owned by >> South Africans, she said. >> >> The guidelines will also be consistent with SA's >> foreign policy and take >> the security of the country, and the African >> continent, into >> consideration, she said. >> "Every cable landing or leaving SA should >> incorporate in it the Nepad [New >> Partnership for Africa's Development] Broadband >> Infrastructure Network." >> Security measures are important, given the state of >> our insecure world, >> she added. >> >> Matsepe-Casaburri said that she instructed Dep.of >> Communications >> Dir-General Lyndall Shope-Mafole to propose the >> landing guidelines to the >> Interim Inter-Governmental Assembly for discussion. >> She also noted that >> her department studied the communications >> regulations of other countries >> when drafting the landing guidelines, ensuring they >> are consistent with >> international trends. >> >> Determination expected >> BMI-TechKnowledge senior analyst Richard Hurst says >> the implications of >> the ownership stipulations are that "those who do >> end up rolling out >> cables will have to do so via partnerships". He >> cites Seacom and Neotel's >> interaction as an example of this, where "Neotel >> basically would control >> the landing rights of Seacom in SA". >> According to Hurst, "government is trying to hedge >> its bets", but the >> stipulations set out by the minister have generally >> been expected. He says >> South African companies should benefit from the >> directives, as should the >> consumer. >> "It should open up access to those cables and bring >> prices down." He adds >> that, as the international community moves towards >> always-on broadband, SA >> will also increasingly need high-speed capacity. >> However he reiterates: >> "The more bandwidth we have, the better." >> >> Investor support >> Meanwhile, Matsepe-Casaburri said SA was convinced >> it was on the right >> path to break away from the Eassy (Eastern Africa >> Submarine Cable System) >> cable project and support the Nepad Broadband >> Infrastructure Network, as >> well as initiating its own undersea cable systems. >> >> She said there was strong support from potential >> investors in the Nepad >> Broadband (?) Infrastructure Network. "Instead of >> people running away >> from us, we have a lot of support from investors." >> SA and other African governments broke away from the >> Eassy project because >> larger operators taking part in the initiative >> bought such large >> quantities of capacity that there would never be >> fair access for smaller >> operators, she noted. >> >> EASSY project was not in line with the Nepad >> objective, which was to >> facilitate fair and open access for all telecoms >> providers to lower the >> cost of telecoms on the continent, she said. She >> noted that SA's >> Parliament had ratified the Nepad Broadband >> Infrastructure Network >> protocol. >> >> >> > fyi from the AfrISPA discuss list.... >> > >> > >> > Begin forwarded message: >> > >> >> From: "Anders Comstedt" <anders(a)ssvl.kth.se> >> >> Date: 9 September 2007 21:52:19 GMT+03:00 >> >> To: <Discuss(a)afrispa.org> >> >> Subject: SV: [AfrISPA.Discuss] Undersea cable >> plan tangled in >> >> acrimony inSouth Africa >> >> Reply-To: Discuss(a)afrispa.org >> >> >> >> Frank, >> >> >> >> You are right that everyone else but RSA needs a >> cable to RoW much, >> >> much >> >> more than the good folks south, also that the >> thing has got stuck in >> >> political concerns and power games. The good >> thing is, however, >> >> that the >> >> general consensus on the needs, commercial impact >> and development >> >> leverage >> >> of a widely available optical fibre cable has >> shifted from cold to >> >> warm. >> >> >> >> Technically, there is no need for an East African >> submarine cable >> >> south >> >> beyond Maputo at all, as there is well protected >> optical fibre >> >> Maputo - >> >> Pretoria on the power lines. Which, btw, RSA has >> effectively >> >> prevented open >> >> & fair use of during several years, effectively >> leaving Maputo on >> >> VSAT for a >> >> much longer time than necessary. So SA could >> connect that route, >> >> already >> >> today, to any cable from the north that lands >> close to Maputo. >> >> >> >> Now two small issues: >> >> First, RSA companies are major stakeholders in >> any submarine cable >> >> proposal >> >> that has emerged the last couple of years, >> dominant to the extent >> >> that it >> >> has made other parties concerned on who actually >> will control a >> >> cable system >> >> supposed to be a joint project with some 23 >> participants. The >> > === message truncated === > > > > > ________________________________________________________________________ ____________ > Need a vacation? Get great deals > to amazing places on Yahoo! Travel. > http://travel.yahoo.com/ > > _______________________________________________ > 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" > > _______________________________________________ kictanet mailing list kictanet(a)lists.kictanet.or.ke http://lists.kictanet.or.ke/mailman/listinfo/kictanet This message was sent to: eric(a)afrispa.org Unsubscribe or change your options at http://lists.kictanet.or.ke/ mailman/options/kictanet/eric%40afrispa.org Eric M.K Osiakwan Executive Secretary AfrISPA (www.afrispa.org) Tel: + 233.21.258800 ext 2031 Fax: + 233.21.258811 Cell: + 233.244.386792 Handle: eosiakwan Snail Mail: Pmb 208, Accra-North Office: BusyInternet - 42 Ring Road Central, Accra-North Blog: http://blogs.law.harvard.edu/eric/ Slang: "Tomorrow Now"

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TEAMS: Private sector gets more shares for project
by Alex Gakuru 14 Sep '07

14 Sep '07

http://www.bdafrica.com/index.php?option=com_content&task=view&id=3034&Item… Consumers risk continued participation exclusion unless we get organized. Any interested on investing in TEAMS? We can get together and the government would have to give us priority especially now that local investment space is expanded. Consumers shall have an upper hand in ensuring prices remain affordable while at the same time we shall get return our investment for the next 20-25 years (life of fibre). There are many other advantages we can discuss. Condition: You must Kenyan since others are catered for in the other companies. Talk to me off-list then we can strategize. Alex ____________________________________________________________________________________ Take the Internet to Go: Yahoo!Go puts the Internet in your pocket: mail, news, photos & more. http://mobile.yahoo.com/go?refer=1GNXIC

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Re: [kictanet] Fwd: SV: [AfrISPA.Discuss] Undersea cable plantangled in acrimony inSouth Africa
by Alex Gakuru 13 Sep '07

13 Sep '07

Hi Joe, I'd be glad to mobilise and work with all consumers but if you on note my message, I requested Dr. Ndemo to give us that chance. We wait and see what tomorrow brings. Alex --- "Manthi, Joseph" <Joseph.Manthi(a)fmr.com> wrote: > Alex > Please I beg you to prepare that SV to buy TKL. Let > me know if youi need help in doing this. > > Thanks > Joe > ------Original Message------ > From: Alex Gakuru > Sender: > kictanet-bounces+jmanthi=gmail.com(a)lists.kictanet.or.ke > To: jmanthi(a)gmail.com > Cc: KICTAnet ICT Policy Discussions > Sent: Sep 13, 2007 12:43 PM > Subject: Re: [kictanet] Fwd: SV: [AfrISPA.Discuss] > Undersea cable plantangled in acrimony inSouth > Africa > > wow! "Open Access" is music to many no just my ears. > > I wish you failure at selling Telkom this way, > honestly. That said, could you allow me to organise > a > Special Purpose Truck for Kenyan consumers to invest > in Telkom more money that the Shs. 5 Billion? Fast > tracking (READ get round) NSE rules? > > Thanks. > > --- bitange(a)jambo.co.ke wrote: > > > Dear Alex, > > Telkon will not own Teams. The Government of > Kenya > > will own 40% stake in > > the Teams SPV while regional operators and > investors > > will own 45%. The > > remaining 15% shall be owned by Etisalat. The > > Government shall ensure > > open access in both Teams and the Terrestrial > > Networks to enable both > > large and small enterprises to compete. > > > > Do not worry about the sale of TKL since we have > not > > sold it yet and we > > shall not sell it if the deal is not good. > > > > > > Regards > > > > > > Ndemo. > > > > > > > > > > > Before quickly "thirding", I urge on the need to > > have > > > light shed on TEAMS investment structure, > > otherwise we > > > could end up never getting the envisaged cheap > > > bandwidth. > > > > > > Why? After 51% of Telkom Kenya is sold to > British > > > Telcom (or another) then whoever will have the > > cable > > > ownership transfered to them thus could dictate > > what > > > the final price will be. > > > > > > Little Telkom sale (Shs 5 Billion) is happening > > just > > > when the promising CDMA is getting rolled out. > > Going > > > by last year's Safaricom profits, the sale value > > is > > > also K > > -------------------------- > Sent from my BlackBerry Wireless Handheld > > ____________________________________________________________________________________ Check out the hottest 2008 models today at Yahoo! Autos. http://autos.yahoo.com/new_cars.html

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Re: [kictanet] Fwd: SV: [AfrISPA.Discuss] Undersea cableplantangled in acrimony inSouth Africa
by bitange＠jambo.co.ke 13 Sep '07

13 Sep '07

Mr. Manthi, Even South Africans know that your proposals are a mathematical imposibility (see article below from SA). Economics teach us that the only way to bring down cost is not by owning but by creating a competitive environment. All we need from the cables is bandwidth to create wealth. Our current problems in Africa emanate from our past mistakes with respects to our view on economic development. If those you call Nyangaus refuse to buy your flowers, your coffee, your tea and protect their people from travelling to our part of the world, we shall all perish. The world is a small place where we all must share that which is available. If you take a nap as we did in the 19th Century, someone else will take advantage of you. In essence we should blame ourselves for all that happened in the past and that way we shall approach the future with love and wisdom. When you blame someone else, you fill yourself with hate and darkness. Below find the article for your perusal. Bitange Ndemo. 12 September 2007 Cable policy slammed BY PAUL VECCHIATTO , ITWEB CAPE TOWN CORRESPONDENT [ Johannesburg, 12 September 2007 ] - Opposition parties, the Democratic Alliance (DA) and the Inkatha Freedom Party (IFP), have railed against communications minister Ivy Matsepe-Casburri's stance on undersea cable ownership, saying she wants to control telecommunications. They were reacting to the minister's speech, delivered earlier this week at Telkom's Southern African Telecommunications Networks and Applications Conference, held in Mauritius. She said government would require all undersea cables landing here to be majority-owned by South African companies. Matsepe-Casaburri also announced that guidelines would be drawn up and they would be consistent with SA's foreign policy, and take into account the country's security. DA communications spokesperson Dene Smuts said the Mauritius clarification on undersea cables confirms the Department of Communications' (DOC) desire to get a slice of the pie and to control telecommunications. Her insistence that all cables landing here must be majority South African-owned is a mathematical impossibility if each African country makes similar demands. It is also contrary to SA's interests to prevent the landing of the capacity we need, she said. Suzanne Vos, IFP communications spokesperson, said: This kind of power politics has to stop. The country desperately needs bandwidth to meet its own economic development objectives and to ensure the guarantees signed by the minister for the 2010 Soccer World Cup are met. Vos added: It is no wonder that public enterprises minister Alec Erwin has stepped in as the country's alternative communications minister, because the incumbent can't get things done. She also referred Matsepe-Casaburri to the Electronic Communications Act that effectively brings government interference in the telecommunications sector to an end. Smuts said the DOC's championing of the Nepad ICT Broadband Infrastructure Network has already blocked the East African Submarine Cable System cable. The minister said in Mauritius that any cables landing here would have to become part of the Nepad Network. That network will operate under a protocol that gives each signed-up African government a controlling golden share. She has already told her DG [Lyndall Shope-Mafole, DOC director-general], who is the driving force behind the protocol, to take SA's landing guidelines to the interim intra-governmental assembly. Smuts concluded by saying: No one can make head or tail of the minister's thinking, or her DG's initiatives. The only thing that is clear is that both SA telecoms ministries-public enterprises and communications are reinstating state telecoms against the tide of liberalisation and modern economic trends. Vincent Gore, who was communications spokesperson for the Independent Democrats, refused to comment as he was in the process of crossing the floor to the African National Congress. > Kai, > This has nothing to do with SA. It is Kenya's job to protect Kenya and > not SA. If Kenya does not want the SA satellites broadcasting in > Kenya, they can block it. All SA is saying is that if there any cables > landing in SA, it should be majority owned by SAfricans. Any African > country can do the same. > > And yes any cable landing in SA (or Kenya) is the national asset of SA > (or Kenya). Every SA (or Kenyan) should have access to it. And judging > by the pricing of some of these cable, it is unlikely that majority of > SA (or Kenyans) will be able to afford it. > > Shouldn't SA (or Kenyan) governments be concerned about the pricing > and therefore ownership of these cables? > > Yes - these cables are national assets. Let me see - who owns the > cables entering the Federal Republic of Germany? Germany of course. > Why should you then, a German national, deny the South African > Government of deciding who should own these cables. > > Remember that SA has the experience of SAT3. > > Joe > > On 9/13/07, Kai U. Wulff <kai.wulff(a)kdn.co.ke> wrote: >> Since when is International Connectivity a national asset? >> >> A cable comes, you don't like the price you don't buy .. Why did nobody >> insist on SA ownership of the Satellites that are broadcasting

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Internet Governance Forum (IGF) - Continent to Send 20 Delegates
by alice 13 Sep '07

13 Sep '07

*Hi all Happy to let you all know that KICTANet was selected to present at the IGF taking place in Rio in November. Any Kenyans on this list planning to attend the forum please let us know. We would like to provide members attending an opportunity to share their experiences at the KICTANet Best Practice Forum. best alice ------------------------------------------------------------------------ Internet Forum - Continent to Send 20 Delegates* Daily Champion (Lagos) NEWS 13 September 2007 Posted to the web 13 September 2007 By Remmy Nweke South Africa Civil Society Organisations (CSOs) in Africa is to send a 20-member delegation to the Internet Governance Forum (IGF) in Rio de Janero, Brazil in November 2007 to ensure that African voice is heard. At a roundtable session on IGF organised by the Open Society Institute for Southern Africa (OSISA) at the on-going 11th Highway Africa conference in Grahamstown, South Africa, CSOs resolved to ensure that Africa is not relegated at the global meeting. IGF in Rio is being organised by the IGF Secretariat based in Geneva , Switzerland in support of the United Nations Secretary-General's mandate from the World Summit on the Information Society (WSIS) with regard to convening a new forum for multi-stakeholders policy dialogue. Speaking on behalf of the CSOs, Ms Natasha Primo of the Association for Progressive Communications (APC) said that the essence of bringing the crusade to the largest gathering of pen-pushers on the continent was to guarantee that African communicators were not left out. According to her, the session was basically to raise awareness in the participation of Africans at the IGF by having an understanding of the theme focusing on access, openness, security and critical Internet resources and capacity/development agenda. African CSOs, she pointed out would be sending a 20-man delegate to the global meeting to "Get African voices heard centred on capacity and development agenda. We must make ourselves heard in all the themes." She added that the CSOs presently want to continue the crusade online with so as to develop shared position to the Rio meeting with Africa at heart. "We had a preliminary discussion and we want to take that online for further discussions," she asserted, adding that those interested should contact OSISA. The online discussion would kick off on September 15 and that it's an open invitation to organisations and individuals to join hands with CSOs to make certain the aim is achieved.

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[Fwd: [APC Forum] New Book: Diversifying Participation in Network Development]
by alice 13 Sep '07

13 Sep '07

*Diversifying Participation in Network Development* http://www.regulateonline.org/index.php?option=com_content&task=view&id=104… The final report from the World Dialogue on Regulation (WDR) 3rd research cycle has been released and can now be downloaded at <www.regulateonline.org>. Edited by Amy Mahan and William H. Melody, this most recent collection of the network’s research and case studies elaborates on inclusive and propoor strategies for extending network development. The book is divided into three sections. The first, entitled *Affordability and Use*, opens with a study on affordability - definitions, analysis and issues. This is followed by two demand side studies, the first focusing on mobile use by the poor; and the second assessing communication expenditures across four developing countries. The final chapter in this section reports on a survey of ICT use by SMEs in eight African countries. Section 2, *Models to Extend Participation in Network Development* considers /microfinance/, /smart subsidies/, /community owned microtelcos/ and the /extension of research networks/. The countries used to highlight these alternative approaches include Bangladesh, Nepal, Argentina, Brazil, Colombia, Peru and Ghana. Section 3, *Regulatory and Information Practices*, begins with two chapters dedicated to the information provision and communication practices of regulators - which are important for cultivating informed participation in regulatory processes. Next regional regulation in support of national regulators and to ensure competitive markets is examined using the Organisation of Eastern Caribbean States as a case study. Further perspective on this is provided by a chapter on multinational operators in African mobile markets. The section concludes with a case study on the regulatory environment in Guyana. This report is the third in a series of research cycles that WDR is undertaking to assess different approaches to regulation in a rapidly changing telecom environment. With the advent of privatisation, competition, and converging infrastructure sectors, the role of the regulator is in a transitional phase. The first World Dialogue on Regulation research cycle assessed two emerging regulatory trends and the report, The Next Step in Telecom Reform: ICT Convergence Regulation or Multisector Utility Regulation; and the second cycle, Stimulating Investment in Network Development: Roles for Regulators - are both available for download and hardcopies of the second can be ordered from WDR.

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Data vending hit by poor Internet connections
by Bill Kagai 13 Sep '07

13 Sep '07

http://www.bdafrica.com/index.php?option=com_content&task=view&id=3001&Item… Written by James Makau - Business Daily 13-September-2007: The poor penetration of Internet services coupled with low levels of computer literacy in Kenya are holding back the country's emerging data vending industry. The data vendors, who sell and distribute financial and business news, are targetting rural populations as well as Kenyans in the diaspora. Mr Bildad Kagai , the managing director of data vending firm MediaCorp Limited, told the Business Daily that while data vending has the potential to be a major industry in the financial services sector, more needed to be done to ensure computer services reached majority of the people. "Kenyans, especially those outside Nairobi, have been waiting eagerly for the Real Time data, but inability to access the Internet remains a big challenge," says Mr Kagai He said traders did not have to physically go to the bourse to get financial data, but they could do this in the comfort of their offices through the Internet. He said the highest potential for growth in data vending was in rural towns and that lack of Internet services was limiting the uptake of online financial news and data. MediaCorp earlier this month launched its data vending services in Mombasa to increase its presence in the country. Data from the Communications Commission of Kenya estimates that as of March, this year, only 3.2 per cent of the country's population had access to Internet up from 200,000 or 0.7 per cent of the population in 2000. Internet Service Providers have blamed the low penetration on high costs of Internet on satellite connectivity which costs up to 10 times more than the fibre optic connectivity. But once any of four planned international fibre optic cables land in Mombasa, Internet connection costs should fall drastically. The Government's Digital Villages Project under the Ministry of Information and Communication is also set to greatly boost access, resulting in more subscribers for data vendors. And with the Nairobi Stock Exchange set to switch onto a wide area network (WAN) in the next one month, the potential of data vending services may well be on its way to be unlocked. Mr Symon Ndirangu, the chief executive officer of Information Convergence Technologies ICT Ltd, says that with the signing of an average of 50 to 100 new users every month, most of the six data vendor currently operating in the market should break even within the next 12 months. "Although it is taking time for many investors to appreciate the value of data, we are upbeat that revenue will pick up very soon." Currently, the cost of a data vending license from the NSE is valued at Sh170,000 (US$2500) while ISPs are charging about Sh50,000 per month for connection. With an estimated Sh180,000 in other costs, data vendors are paying at least Sh400,000 a month or Sh4.8million annually to stay afloat. Mr Ndirangu however projects that with the developments in the ICT sector as well as the Capital Markets, the data vendors should have at least each have 10,000-20,000 customers utilizing their services. At an annual charge of Sh5000 per customers, data vendors could easily rake in Sh50 million in a year. "The need for investment decisions based on sound finanical information and data rather than speculation as is often seen today will spur the growth of data vending services," says Mr. Ndirangu. With the chairman of the NSE Jimnah Mbaru estimating that the watershed Safaricom IPO slated for later this year will bring the number of investors at the bourse to 3 million, the need for real time data on the stock markets will clearly be there. Foreign interest in the Kenyan capital markets which has picked up in last one year following a string of high profile IPOs is an also seen as a major driver to the success of data vending services. "Kenyans in the diaspora and international investors who do not have the luxury of popping into Nation Centre to see the market Viewer will definitely drive this industry." Reckons Mr. Kagai It may not be unfathomable then, that local data vendors could enter the big league of Reuters, Bloomberg and CNBC sometime in the future. -- -- Bildad Kagai MD - MediaCorp Limited Nairobi Stock Exchange [NSE] - Authorised Information Vendor Suite B2 Tetu Apartments StateHouse Avenue P. O. Box 20311-00200 Tel. 254 20 272 8332 Fax. Rendered Obsolete URL. www.mediacorpafrica.com --

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Slightly unusual request
by Brian Longwe 12 Sep '07

12 Sep '07

Hi all, I have a slightly unusual request..... I need to set a vehicle mileage rate for the local operations of one of the NGOs I'm associated with. I have the official AA rate book (August 2007) but would like to benchmark against what other organisations (and especially Public sector or NGOs) give as compensation for mileage. Could anyone who can help with this info send it directly to me off- list please? Warm regards, Mblayo

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[Grant Competition: Lighting Africa]
by alice 11 Sep '07

11 Sep '07

-------- Original Message -------- Subject: Grant Competition: Lighting Africa Date: Tue, 11 Sep 2007 16:23:00 +0300 From: kmuthembwa(a)worldbank.org To: undisclosed-recipients:; Dear Colleague, I would like to draw your attention to an announcement (below) of a grant competition entitled ?Innovations in Off-Grid Lighting Products and Services for Africa". You are invited to participate if it is relevant, but if not, kindly display and/ distribute it to as many people as possible. Please note that the deadline is 30th October 2007. ------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------ (Embedded image moved to file: pic18238.jpg) The World Bank Group and its partners are pleased to announce a Development Marketplace (DM) competition for the design and delivery of low cost, high quality, non-fossil fuel-based lighting products targeting low income consumers in Sub-Saharan Africa. The DM is part of the broader Lighting Africa program managed by the World Bank Group which seeks to reach 250 million customers with modern, affordable lighting by 2030. The grant competition entitled ?Innovations in Off-Grid Lighting Products and Services for Africa" will reward project ideas that address the various off-grid lighting needs of Sub-Saharan Africa, including alternative distribution models, new clean lighting technology, stronger production chains, and improvement of the policy environment. Ten to 20 winners will receive grant funding up to $200,000. The competition is open to a broad range of innovators around the world, including private businesses, nongovernmental organizations, universities, government entities, and individuals. Lead sponsors include the Energy Sector Management Assistance Program, the Global Environment Facility, and the Public-Private Infrastructure Advisory Facility. Other supporters include Good Energies Inc., the Governments of Norway and Luxembourg, and the Renewable Energy and Energy Efficiency Partnership. The deadline for submitting proposals is 23:00 GMT on October 31, 2007. (See attached file: DM Competition_Brochure_English.pdf) For more information on how to apply, visit the Lighting Africa Web site at: http://www.lightingafrica.org

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IPv4 to IPv6
by Alex Gakuru 11 Sep '07

11 Sep '07

Hi, We understand Swift Global and .KE are on IPv6 and would appreciate any info on whom else upgrades from this list http://www.cck.go.ke/html/child.asp?title=Telecommunications&contcatid=2&ch… Thanks Alex ____________________________________________________________________________________ Shape Yahoo! in your own image. Join our Network Research Panel today! http://surveylink.yahoo.com/gmrs/yahoo_panel_invite.asp?a=7

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America's wolves
by Dorcas Muthoni 10 Sep '07

10 Sep '07

Kenyans be proud of our wildlife and strive to protect it! *America's wolves need our help! * America's wolves were nearly eradicated in the 20th century. Now, after a remarkable recovery in parts of the country, wolves are once more threatened. **More>> http://action.defenders.org/site/PageServer?pagename=savewolves_homepage&JS…

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Newspaper columnists are dinosaur bloggers- Maher
by Rebecca Wanjiku 10 Sep '07

10 Sep '07

By Rebecca Wanjiku and Mantsha Nkayi The blurred lines that differentiate blogging and journalism were exposed yesterday, at a discussion on whether bloggers are columnists or columnists are bloggers. The discussion was spiced up by the presence of Freddy Khumalo, a columnist who thinks bloggers are not necessarily journalists/columnists and Vincent Maher, who is of the opinion that newspaper columnists are dinosaur bloggers. One of the lingering questions was; who do bloggers speak to and who is their audience? Khumalo took the opportunity to trash some bloggers as mere diarists who do not follow any code of conduct. He argued that some blogs are dedicated to pets and may not make much sense; however, he admitted that some blogs contain important and informative material. When am writing a column, I have to take time to consider the impact of what am writing about and whether it has been said before and under what context. With the blog, it is easy, and there are no such considerations because there is no code of conduct, said Khumalo. But Maher a former head of the New Media Lab at Rhodes University argued that bloggers have filled in a space that was not previously addressed by the mainstream media. He was supported by journalism trainer, Roland Stanbridge who added that 50 per cent of the women in the Middle East are blogging and addressing issues considered as taboo and not addressed in mainstream media. Blogs are giving people voices, whether it is eroding morality in society is not the issue, it is a place for the people to air what they feel. Maybe the people want a change to such standards of morality, said Maher. While supporting the argument that newspaper columnists are dinosaur bloggers, Maher invited participants to evaluate the development of communication from newsletters to newspapers and to letters to the editor-through snail mail. He argued that blogs give an opportunity for feedback and connection with the communities, which is vital for any media organisation, and he also mentions that blogs are personal web pages. But the main question that was not satisfactorily answered in the discussion was: given the challenges of technology and information penetration in Africa, can one claim to be blogging for the public while they have no access to internet or computers? Is blogging elitist? Ends Tel. 254 720 318 925 blog:http://beckyit.blogspot.com/ --------------------------------- Moody friends. Drama queens. Your life? Nope! - their life, your story. Play Sims Stories at Yahoo! Games.

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[Fwd: [AfrICANN-discuss] Employment Opportunities ICANN]
by alice 10 Sep '07

10 Sep '07

-------- Original Message -------- FYI - http://www.icann.org/general/jobs.htm Employment Opportunities Administrative Support Supervisor/Manager <http://www.icann.org/general/jobs.htm#adminmgr> At-Large Coordination Officer <http://www.icann.org/general/jobs.htm#atlargeadmin> (Original Title: At-Large Administrative Support Officer) Communications Manager - Policy Development <http://www.icann.org/general/jobs.htm#commmgr> Consulting services to assist with the development of a translation policy <http://www.icann.org/general/jobs.htm#translate> General Manager, Policy Development <http://www.icann.org/general/jobs.htm#gmpd> GNSO Policy Officer <http://www.icann.org/general/jobs.htm#gnsooff> Manager, Regional Relations - Asia <http://www.icann.org/general/jobs.htm#manregrelasia> Manager, Regional Relations - Europe <http://www.icann.org/general/jobs.htm#manregrel> Registrar Liaison Manager <http://www.icann.org/general/jobs.htm#regliaison> At-Large Regional Affairs Officer <http://www.icann.org/general/jobs.htm#RAsec> (Original Title:Secretary for Regional Affairs, At-Large Community) _______________________________________________ AfrICANN mailing list AfrICANN(a)afrinic.net https://lists.afrinic.net/mailman/listinfo.cgi/africann

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Southern Africa media in peer review
by Rebecca Wanjiku 10 Sep '07

10 Sep '07

Malawi, Zambia and Mauritius win inaugural gender and HIV/AIDs awards By Rebecca Wanjiku Malawi, Zambia and Mauritius yesterday won the inaugural gender and HIV/AIDs awards, in recognition of their exemplary work place policies. The awards were judged through peer review and targeted 218 newsrooms in the southern Africa region. Malawi Broadcasting Corporation (MBC) won the HIV/AIDs category; Times of Zambia was runners up. In the gender policy category, Mauritius Broadcasting Corporation (MBC) scooped top honours while the Malawi Broadcasting Corporation took the runners up position. Organised by Gender Links and several regional organisations, the awards sought to initiate a process where the media houses in the region will develop and implement policies and commit resources to implement them. We all know that the media has not produced gender and HIV/AIDs policies. But how do you change an institution without putting your neck on the line? The awards seek to recognise media houses in the region willing to sacrifice and implement such policies, said Colleen Lowe Morna, head of Gender Links. While citing scanty statistics of HIV/AIDs reportage in the media, Morna added that the awards are critical in showing other media houses in the region how to implement their policies and improve the quality and quantity of stories. The awards were organised in conjunction with the Sol Plaatje leadership Institute which is dedicated to training media managers in Africa . We would have liked more entries and we hope to receive more last year. It was inspiring to see that most applicants also presented the actual policies and implementation plans, which validated their claims, said Francis Mdlongwa, head of the institute. The awards are targeting 80 per cent of Southern Africa newsrooms by 2008 and it is hoped that reporting of gender and HIV/AIDs issues will also improve. It is also projected that more media houses will implement policies to support national, regional and international legal instruments. Speaking on behalf of the judging panel Mdlongwa said the winners, had committed resources to ensure that policies were understood and complemented through a series of policies. In Mauritius , it was noted that MBC had appointed a gender coordinator who made monthly reports to the head of MBC. The award ceremony was spiced up by music from Nia band, which embodied the true spirit of Africa with representatives from Kenya , Zambia and South Africa . Participants were treated to songs in Swahili, Xhosa and English. As the ceremony drew to a close, Morna encouraged participants to dance to the famous song Vulindlela which is Xhosa for open the way. The song was sung by the late South African musician Brenda Fassie. The song was symbolic for the winners, expected to open or lead the way for other regional media houses. Ends Tel. 254 720 318 925 blog:http://beckyit.blogspot.com/ --------------------------------- Boardwalk for $500? In 2007? Ha! Play Monopoly Here and Now (it's updated for today's economy) at Yahoo! Games.

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Africa complained, the west has responded
by Rebecca Wanjiku 09 Sep '07

09 Sep '07

Negative images- Africa complained, the west has responded By Rebecca Wanjiku The longest and loudest complaint by African leaders is that western media portrays Africa as desperate and hopeless, the west has now responded. The complaints have been directed to the global media houses such as CNN, BBC, AP, AFP and Reuters accused of only covering civil wars, hunger, corruption and deprivation in Africa- these are form the bulk of African content on the internet. Well, the response does not come from the big media, but from a group of Dutch journalists who felt the situation should change and started a website- www.africanews.com. Africanews.com is a website dedicated to Africans to tell their stories to the world without any inhibitions. The website is targeting politics, social as well as the economic challenges and successes in the continent. The stories, photographs and video are uploaded to the site and have reached audiences in Europe, America, Australia, Asia and Africa. This is calculated to improve on variety and content of stories available of the internet. According to Elles van Gelder, the South African representative, the website has received critical acclaim and is hoping to recruit journalists and bloggers from every African country. Why should western media fly in journalists while there are local journalists willing to tell the stories? We tap the talent, train them, and they become better writers, photographers and can take good videos, said van Gelder. The organisation has started a pilot project for reporting using state of the art mobile phones that can shoot video and upload to the website. This project will be tested during the general elections in Kenya, scheduled for December this year. To establish the reliability of mobile phones in reporting Van Gelder said a group of Dutch students will embark on an Africa-wide trip, testing the mobile phones and the challenges faced. This, van Gelder added, will help improve the quality of African content available on the internet, and the stories that come from the continent. Ends Tel. 254 720 318 925 blog:http://beckyit.blogspot.com/ --------------------------------- Moody friends. Drama queens. Your life? Nope! - their life, your story. Play Sims Stories at Yahoo! Games.

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from Highway Africa Conference
by Rebecca Wanjiku 09 Sep '07

09 Sep '07

Rural stories remain untold By Rebecca Wanjiku Africas best stories remain untold, because journalists and bloggers have concentrated in urban areas and neglected rural areas, said Tanzanian journalist Ansbert Ngurumo. Presenting at the Digital Citizens Indaba, Ngurumo indicted journalists and bloggers for the insufficient content of African stories on the internet. The stories have to cover the feelings and aspirations of people. Most of the stories cultural, social and political are in the rural areas. These rural people are isolated because they have no access to the technology and if they do, they may not be able to blog or publish their stories, Ngurumo added. With journalists, he said they concentrate in town centres because that is where there is technology to transmit the stories meaning that most stories told are from the urban centres and occasionally from the rural areas. In developing local content, Ngurumo argued Africans have to develop the civic will to blog more because it does not take political will to start and maintain a blog. Ngurumo told the Indaba that Africa has to villagize the internet and make sure that people in the rural areas blog, podcast and tell their stories to the world. Speaking about lack of a critical mass of African languages on the internet, Ngurumo said he chose to blog in Swahili because that is the language he knows best and is spoken by about 100 million people in east, central and parts of southern Africa. Why would I want to blog in English yet 100 million Africans communicate in Swahili? asked Through his blog- www.ngurumo.blogspot.com , he was able to reach several people mostly from Tanzania where Swahili is the national language. The comments on the blog, he says, have been used to gauge the political and social temperatures. For instance, he said he had been forced to delete certain posts after readers complained about them. Ends Tel. 254 720 318 925 blog:http://beckyit.blogspot.com/ --------------------------------- Shape Yahoo! in your own image. Join our Network Research Panel today!

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Undersea cable plan tangled in acrimony in South Africa
by Eric Osiakwan 09 Sep '07

09 Sep '07

The sole active supporter of the NEPAD-backed Broadband Infrastructure Project that will never be built, the South African Government is trying to arm-twist EASSy because the project has slipped free of NEPAD control. This is the arrogant display of naked political power that those who have not signed the NEPAD political protocol feared would occur if the larger African brother failed to get its way. The 10,000km Eassy cable will be 27% owned by Telkom, Neotel and MTN, and is designed to provide desperately needed cheap bandwidth to 21 African countries. But SA's communications department has taken umbrage at what it sees as the commercial nature of the enterprise, and intends to withhold landing rights. Instead, the government will use taxpayers' money to roll out two rival cables heading east and west, jointly known as the Nepad Broadband Infrastructure Network. Denying landing rights to EASSy will be detrimental to the three local companies, which, they say, have had the foresight to invest in the project to slash bandwidth prices. It will also be anticompetitive if EASSy members are not allowed to sell bandwidth to other operators in SA, says Mohsen Khalil, a director with the International Finance Corporation (IFC). He also says the government's hostility shows it has not understood a new commitment the consortium has made to open access. The IFC is part of the World Bank, and is investing $32,5m to help about 15 small operators participate in Eassy. Yet the director- general of the communications department, Lyndall Shope Mafole, remains vehemently opposed to the project. "Eassy is bad news for developing countries that are not at the level of SA," she says. "We have many problems with it. The fact that you work for the World Bank makes you think you know what's good for Africa even when you don't live in Africa. I find that quite insulting." Because Eassy's biggest shareholders are giants like MTN and Telkom, their bulk buying power gives them an advantage over smaller operators also trying to buy and resell capacity to customers in each country, she says. "South African companies could use their dominance to compete unfairly in other countries. We have a responsibility as the government to ensure there is fair competition. We are not willing to look at something that is clearly discriminatory. We couldn't rest with a clear conscience." If the South African Government has this responsibility, why has it not exercised it over Telkom's SAT3 prices? The Department of Communications talks the talk but does not walk the walk. A bigger issue threatening not only Eassy but also other foreign- backed cables is a demand that any cable landing in SA is partly owned by local companies. The minimum percentage of local ownership will be determined by Communications Minister Ivy Matsepe Casaburri. The instant reaction is to question whether SA has the right to do that. It has, under the Electronic Communications and Transactions Act, Shope-Mafole says. The second reaction is to assume that foreign investors will be deterred. The government's belligerent stance in an effort to promote local industries may backfire and deprive consumers of cheaper bandwidth if foreigners opt to bypass SA's coastline. Nonsense, Shope-Mafole says. "There are millions of people who want to enter into arrangements and land in SA. We welcome anybody who wants to invest in submarine cables that land on South African soil, but we need South African companies to invest." Although Eassy boasts 27% local ownership, that may not be enough. Seacom, another private cable already under construction, must also recruit local investors for the plans on its map to match reality. Seacom has signed a deal for SA's second network operator, Neotel, to operate the local landing station, which does not impress the government. Shope-Mafole said the demand for local ownership in the entire cable linking India to Europe via SA was discussed with Seacom's mostly US investors over a cup of coffee. "I don't think they thought it was unreasonable. I wouldn't say they loved it, but they didn't throw their cups at us," she says. (Source: Business Day) Eric M.K Osiakwan Executive Secretary AfrISPA (www.afrispa.org) Tel: + 233.21.258800 ext 2031 Fax: + 233.21.258811 Cell: + 233.244.386792 Handle: eosiakwan Snail Mail: Pmb 208, Accra-North Office: BusyInternet - 42 Ring Road Central, Accra-North Blog: http://blogs.law.harvard.edu/eric/ Slang: "Tomorrow Now"

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Clear Directions to sega Silicon Valley
by Jose' 08 Sep '07

08 Sep '07

Dear Members, I appoloise for cross posting. I hereby give the correct directions. The best is to take an Akamba bus and drop of at Sega Township bus stop. This is a direct connection rather than dropping off at Kisumu, alternatively with Easy Coach one can drop at Maseno or Kisumu and take a PSV/Matatu to Busia Town and not Siaya town.As stated earlier. Hope to see you all there. Best Regards, Jose' Njuki-Imwe Ngunjiri || +254 722 336754 || --------------------------------- Need a vacation? Get great deals to amazing places on Yahoo! Travel.

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New debate in US & UK on two-tier Internet - is this a good idea for Africa?
by Marcel Werner 08 Sep '07

08 Sep '07

Two tier Internet *The US Justice Department has said that internet service providers should be allowed to charge for priority traffic. *The Justice Department said imposing net neutrality regulations could hinder development of the internet and prevent ISPs from upgrading networks.The agency's stance is contrary to much of the internet community that believes in an open model for the internet. Net neutrality advocates argue that a two-tier internet would allow broadband providers to become gatekeepers to the web's content. Providers that can pay will be able to get a commercial advantage over those that cannot, they say. In particular, there is a fear that institutions like universities and charities would suffer. Last year, Sir Tim Berners-Lee the inventor of the web rallied against the idea of a two-tier internet. What are your ideas? Marcel Werner

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Engineering Students Exhibition 14-15 September, Sarit Centre (Nairobi)
by Marcel Werner 08 Sep '07

08 Sep '07

The 10th annual Engineering Students Exhibition will be held on 14 and 15 September at the Nairobi Sarit Centre (opening hours 10-6). Over a 100 innovative prototype projects will be shown by students from Kenyan universities and universities from seven more countries. The Exhibition theme this year is ICT for Rural Development (electronics, mobile computing, software). The event is held under the auspices of the global engineering society IEEE and Kenya Private Sector Alliance and has attracted wide support and endorsement from Kenyan and multinational companies, government, academia and development partners. The event demonstrates a huge capacity and drive to realise innovation for our market. Do come and see how ICT is being put in practice! Information: info(a)centurionsystemsltd.com Marcel Werner

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Directions to Sega Silicon Valley Initiative.
by Jose' 07 Sep '07

07 Sep '07

Here are the directions. From Nairobi take EASY COACH bus services to Kisumu,Then take another PSV going to Siaya and request the driver to drop you at Sega Township Primary School. IT's going to be the bomb yawa!! dont miss this chance to see how communities are being impacted through ICT. Best Regards, Jose' Njuki-Imwe Ngunjiri || +254 722 336754 || ____________________________________________________________________________________ Take the Internet to Go: Yahoo!Go puts the Internet in your pocket: mail, news, photos & more. http://mobile.yahoo.com/go?refer=1GNXIC

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FOIA: Petition to the National Assembly
by Alex Gakuru 07 Sep '07

07 Sep '07

attached ____________________________________________________________________________________ Shape Yahoo! in your own image. Join our Network Research Panel today! http://surveylink.yahoo.com/gmrs/yahoo_panel_invite.asp?a=7

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The 411...
by Michael Kipsang Bullut 06 Sep '07

06 Sep '07

Guys, Information is vital and sometimes can be unavailable, therefore, I want to welcome/introduce you all to my first blog <http://kipsang.wordpress.com/>dedicated entirely to matters concerning Information Technology. As an Information Technologist in the making, sharing information is vital to surviving in this competitive industry and with the advent of blogs, distributing this information will be quick and easy. By all means, feel free to comment on the articles I post and if you have anything you want posted, drop me a line. Enjoy! Kind regards, Michael. -- "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. --

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Africa: The race to liberalise broadcast markets is just beginning
by alice 05 Sep '07

05 Sep '07

(From Balancing Act) Africa: The race to liberalise broadcast markets is just beginning The 1990s saw the phenomenal growth of the mobile sector in Africa turning millions of people into the proud owners of a phone. This growth was made possible by opening Africa's telecoms market to new investment and competition, lowering prices and increasing choice. Broadcasting is about to go through the same cycle only twenty years later, writes Russell Southwood, and Africa's broadcast industry may see the same kind of growth. This issue of African Broadcast, Film and Convergence sees new pay-TV entrant GTV going into more countries and a third entrant announcing its presence in the Ugandan market. Cameroon has announced four new broadcast licences for private operators. Togo has announced the arrival of a sports channel. Two new broadcast stations appear to be on the cards, one in the capital Abuja and the other in Kogi State. As elsewhere in Africa, these last two stations have been prompted by local politicians, anxious to have access to the means of communication to promote themselves. It will take a breed of tough, brave regulators to police issues around fairness and access. The state broadcasting sector is largely under-funded and will find it difficult to keep up with the pace of this race. Africa has not often seen public broadcasting in the purer sense (of the kind best represented by the BBC) as too many broadcasters have become the captive of Government, for whom they rely on their funding. At its worst, African state broadcasting is sadly amongst the dullest viewing on the planet. More private broadcasters create new talent and new voices and spread the power to communicate into more hands. Africa's state broadcasters will need to create a clear role for themselves if they are to survive this onslaught. Simply repeating what the Government wants will not play well if there are alternatives. Why watch the President opening yet another something when you can watch a local football match or the Barclays Premier League? A staggering fifty organisations were shortlisted to operate private radio or TV licences in Cameroon. Only four received licences - Spectrum TV, Canal 2 International, Sweet FM and TV+ - but according to Cameroon's Minister of Communications Professor Ebénézer Njoh Mouelle:" Amongst the 50 audio-visual stations only 4 of them have today received licences to operate. It means that 46 others should also be ready to come forth for their licences. The delay depends on them. They need to follow the example of those who have received an authorization to operate a private audio-visual media in Cameroon". In other words, show you can do it and we will give you a licence. The process has been presented as a regularisation of the existing market as many stations already operate without a licence. According to the Minister:" The licence enables those who are already operating in the field to be formal rather than informal. Those who received the licence to operate have become more opened, recognised and can freely negotiate financial deals with foreign operators". The main obstacle for more clearing the requirements for a licence are money. The sum paid depends on whether the station is a local or a national one. All applicants have cleared the technical requirements hurdles but the remaining 46 have found difficulty thus far in finding the money required to pay their licence fees. A lively and healthy media market in broadcasting will doubtless help with the process of raising the money. The first four entrants have a more or less clear run at it and should produce clear evidence of both listener/viewer interest and advertising revenues. Meanwhile in Togo, a new TV channel - Télé Sport has launched that will concentrate on meeting the thirst for sport among its Togolese viewers. It will devote 90% of its content tosport, 5% to culture and 5% to science. It wants to provide coverage of local Togolese sporting events as well as global events. Télé Sport broadcasts on Channel 29 that will start by covering the whole of the north of Lome but will eventually cover the whole region around the capital. It will employ a dozen people band its launch brings to six, the number of TV channels available to Togolese viewers. There are sixty radio stations, one of which is Sport FM.

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Internet Server Set Up at IGAD Secretariat. Expressions of interest
by alice 05 Sep '07

05 Sep '07

We are looking for Experts to undertake the task below in this month of September. If interested please email proposal/quote/ enquirie on bessie.nyirenda(a)igad.org. Thanks Bessie Nyirenda ICT Coordinator - IGAD ____________________________________________________________________________ INTERGOVERNMENTAL AUTHORITY FOR DEVELOPMENT (IGAD) REGIONAL INFORMATION AND COMMUNICATIONS TECHNOLOGIES SUPPORT PROGRAMME (RICTSP) TERMS OF REFERENCE SETTING UP SERVERS AT IGAD SECRETARIAT AUGUST 2007 Terms for Server Set Up at IT Section for IGAD Secretariat 1. Background Information The regional integration organization of the Inter-Governmental Authority on Development (IGAD) is implementing a Regional ICT Support Programme. The overall objective of the RICTSP is to contribute to the ESA region's integration agenda through an effective and efficient Information and Communications Technologies (lCT) environment, which will reduce the costs of trade and investment and thereby stimulate economic growth and reduce poverty. The purpose of the RICTSP is to achieve a reduction in the digital divide by removing some of the constraints to the efficient use of ICT. Currently, more efficient use of ICT by entrepreneurs and policy makers is inhibited by a combination of a restrictive regulatory environment; poor connectivity; poor access to commercially valuable information; and a lack of ICT skills. The Programme contains various sets of activities aimed at achieving the following results: 1) The development, and monitoring of implementation, of ICT policy guidelines and strategies and monitoring of e-readiness status; 2) The provision of high speed internet connectivity to regional key stakeholders to reduce costs of doing business in the region and promote migration to Asycuda++ in selected countries; 3) Improved and more efficient access to economic, commercial and policy information of practical use and the establishment of incubator projects to demonstrate the viability of the internet, including e-commerce. Improved capacity for entrepreneurs to exploit ICT opportunities and e-commerce techniques. As part of improved and more efficient access to information, servers have been purchased to host the regional web portal and email services. The first step to ensuring improved access to information is to properly set up the servers to provide an environment for storing information. The set up of the servers of the IT section at IGAD Secretariat will be undertaken with funding under the Regional Information and Communications Technologies Support Programme (RICTSP), funded under the 9th EDF. 2. Objectives of the Assignment The objectives of the assignment are to elaborate: i) Set up secure local hosting services for Email and Web Services for IGAD Region at its Secretariat Offices. Currently these services are being outsourced to an outside hosting Company in the USA. ii) To build capacity of IGAD staff members to take charge of their information and information provision services. 3. Regional Integration Organisation The assignment under these terms of reference will cover the IGAD Secretariat in Djibouti which serves countries of: Djibouti, Eritrea, Ethiopia, Kenya, Somalia, and Sudan. 4. Scope of Services In order to meet the objectives of the assignment, the consultant will be required to carry out the following activities: i) Carry out a situational analysis of the IT section to assess available hardware and available internet connections ii) Design the network, security system and internet services. iii) Set up the network, security system and Internet services : ? Router configuration for the DMZ, firewall, and NAT ? DNS, outbound Web proxy, and outbound e-mail ? Primary and Secondary Servers ? Name servers ? Security ? set up DMZ ? All software in use on this work must be 100% open source. ? The internal file and email server ? A secure auditing workstation will sit between the DMZ switch and the DMZ Ethernet port on the router. ? Set up Web services with Content Management System (Joomla) ix) Train Systems Administrator and Webmaster is setting up the Servers. 4. Expected Results The results to be delivered under this assignment are - A well functioning Email Service with webmail access to all staff. - A Web Server with content management system - An easy to update antivirus and antispam filtering system for email server; - A Secure network with well functioning DMZ with intrusion detection and network management facility; 5. Duration and Reporting The consultant will be expected to commence the assignment immediately upon signing the contract, and complete the assignment not later than 9 days after commencement date. The short-term expert will work under the supervision of the RICTSP Coordinator and the Supervisor (the IGAD Director of Economic Cooperation and Social Development Division (ECSD)). The consultant will produce a draft assessment report and a final report providing documentation of all work done. Soft and hard copies of the final report and final should be presented in MS Word and MS Excel (Office 2003 compatible) and will be written in English. 5. Profile of Short-term Expert/s The consultant will meet the following requirements: Qualifications and Experience: ? A University degree in Computer Science, Engineering or Equivalent qualification; ? At least 5 years experience of progressively setting up Internet Servers; ? Experience in designing and producing documentation; Record of working collaboratively and successfully with country officials, private sector and the public in the ESA region will be an added advantage. Language: The short-term expert will have an excellent command of English with good report writing skills. Knowledge of French will be an added advantage. _______________________________________________ AAW-Network mailing list AAW-Network(a)lists.apcwomen.org http://lists.apcwomen.org/cgi-bin/mailman/listinfo/aaw-network

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Invitation to Opening Ceremony of the development aid project „Sega Silicon Valley”
by Jose' 05 Sep '07

05 Sep '07

We would like to invite you to opening ceremony of our project, that will be held on 15th of September 2007 in Sega Township Primary School organized by Simba Friends Foundation Poland. The project is a part of “Sega Sillicon Valley” program financed by Simba Friends Foundation and polish Ministry of Foreign Affairs. Our activities focus on installation of computers in certain schools in Sega Township, creation of an IT Centre available for the local community, organization of trainings on ICT and environmental protection. The actions of Simba Friends Foundation are aim at empowering the inhabitants of Sega by enabling them access to IT education and as a result widening their chances for employment. Attached is our program of events that would take place from 10.am to 4.pm. You are most welcomed, we hope you will be able to make it. Best Regards, Jose' Njuki-Imwe Ngunjiri || +254 722 336754 || ____________________________________________________________________________________ Need a vacation? Get great deals to amazing places on Yahoo! Travel. http://travel.yahoo.com/

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ISO said 'OOXML ?, No thanks'
by Dorcas Muthoni 05 Sep '07

05 Sep '07

http://www.iso.org/iso/newsandmedia/pressrelease.htm?refid=Ref1070

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[Fwd: [AfrICANN-discuss] Kenya bids to host top IT conference]
by alice 01 Sep '07

01 Sep '07

* <http://www.eastandard.net/hm_news/news.php?articleid=1143973832> * The East African Standard | Online Edition <http://www.eastandard.net/> * Saturday September 1, 2007 * * Kenya bids to host top IT conference * ------------------------------------------------------------------------ *By Alari Alare* Kenya has submitted a bid to host the African round of the Internet Corporation for Assigned Names and Numbers (Icann) meeting set for November next year. The bid was submitted by the board of the Kenya Information Centre (Kenic) on behalf of the private sector and the Government. Speaking during Kenic's annual general meeting on Friday, chairman Anthony Mugambi, disclosed that a team comprising Government, private sector and the Kenya Tourism Board (KTB) will be constituted to lobby for the bid. As a trustee for the dot. ke country-code-top-level-domain, Kenic oversees the Kenyan Domain Name space by managing and administering the dot .ke in conformity with global Internet policies. Icann, the Internet Corporation for Assigned Names and Numbers on the other hand is responsible for managing and coordinating the global Domain Name System (DNS) to ensure each address is unique and that users of the Internet could find valid addresses. It does this by overseeing the distribution of unique IP (Internet Protocol) addresses and domain names. "In an effort to expose Kenya's vibrant ICT community to the rest of the world, the Kenic Board has submitted a bid to host the African round of the Icann meeting in November next year in Nairobi, Kenya", said Mugambi. "We are confident of winning the bid to host the event and we shall be seeking your support in hosting the event," said Mugambi. During the meeting, a new board led by Mugambi was named to steer the Centre's activities. << Back <http://www.eastandard.net/hm_news/news.php?articleid=1143973832> _______________________________________________ AfrICANN mailing list AfrICANN(a)afrinic.net https://lists.afrinic.net/mailman/listinfo.cgi/africann

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29-30 October 2007, Kigali, Rwanda:, Connect Africa Summit
by alice 31 Aug '07

31 Aug '07

Connect Africa - The Summit As host of the Summit, the Government of Rwanda will welcome some 500 participants, including Heads of State/Government and Ministers from Africa and other regions, CEOs and senior executives of global and African ICT companies, heads of international and regional organizations and financial institutions, international and local media as well as other stakeholders. The Summit will have a practical, results-oriented format, including interactive, multi-stakeholder panel discussions, partnership announcements, as well as opportunities for participants to showcase their ICT development projects to potential partners and donors. The Summit will also provide an excellent networking platform for leaders from the public, private and financial sectors to meet and forge new partnerships for the future. Participants in the Connect Africa Summit will examine key success factors for ICT investment and development and identify areas for collaboration to: * expand broadband backbone infrastructure and access networks, using innovative business and financing models, such as infrastructure-sharing and demand aggregation among local and regional institutions. This new infrastructure investment includes national and regional interconnectivity initiatives, such as Internet exchange points and rural connectivity projects; * enhance workforce training to support employment and growth in the ICT sector and the overall economy; * stimulate the development of locally-relevant ICT content, applications and services, and * broaden efforts to develop an enabling policy and regulatory environment for investment, including harmonization across regions and sub-regions. The Connect Africa Summit will be preceded by several months of preparations between the partners, including an analysis of the current situation and requirements, an assessment of constraints and an elaboration of policy options to promote private sector investment, strengthening statistical capacities to improve tracking of progress, as well as the development of specific project proposals for funding that will be presented to potential partners and donors. *29-30 October 2007*, Kigali, Rwanda: *Connect Africa Summit* <http://www.itu.int/ITU-D/connect/africa/2007/summit/index.html> http://www.itu.int/ITU-D/connect/africa/2007/summit/index.html

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Who's afraid of Google?]
by alice 31 Aug '07

31 Aug '07

Who's afraid of Google? Aug 30th 2007 >From The Economist print edition The world's internet superpower faces testing times RARELY if ever has a company risen so fast in so many ways as Google, the world's most popular search engine. This is true by just about any measure: the growth in its market value and revenues; the number of people clicking in search of news, the nearest pizza parlour or a satellite image of their neighbour's garden; the volume of its advertisers; or the number of its lawyers and lobbyists. Such an ascent is enough to evoke concernsboth paranoid and justified. The list of constituencies that hate or fear Google grows by the week. Television networks, book publishers and newspaper owners feel that Google has grown by using their content without paying for it. Telecoms firms such as America's AT&T and Verizon are miffed that Google prospers, in their eyes, by free-riding on the bandwidth that they provide; and it is about to bid against them in a forthcoming auction for radio spectrum. Many small firms hate Google because they relied on exploiting its search formulas to win prime positions in its rankings, but dropped to the internet's equivalent of Hades after Google tweaked these algorithms. And now come the politicians. Libertarians dislike Google's deal with China's censors. Conservatives moan about its uncensored videos. But the big new fear is to do with the privacy of its users. Google's business model (see article) assumes that people will entrust it with ever more information about their lives, to be stored in the company's "cloud" of remote computers. These data begin with the logs of a user's searches (in effect, a record of his interests) and his responses to advertisements. Often they extend to the user's e-mail, calendar, contacts, documents, spreadsheets, photos and videos. They could soon include even the user's medical records and precise location (determined from his mobile phone). More JP Morgan than Bill Gates Google is often compared to Microsoft (another enemy, incidentally); but its evolution is actually closer to that of the banking industry. Just as financial institutions grew to become repositories of people's money, and thus guardians of private information about their finances, Google is now turning into a custodian of a far wider and more intimate range of information about individuals. Yes, this applies also to rivals such as Yahoo! and Microsoft. But Google, through the sheer speed with which it accumulates the treasure of information, will be the one to test the limits of what society can tolerate. It does not help that Google is often seen as arrogant. Granted, this complaint often comes from sour-grapes rivals. But many others are put off by Google's cocksure assertion of its own holiness, as if it merited unquestioning trust. This after all is the firm that chose "Don't be evil" as its corporate motto and that explicitly intones that its goal is "not to make money", as its boss, Eric Schmidt, puts it, but "to change the world". Its ownership structure is set up to protect that vision. Ironically, there is something rather cloudlike about the multiple complaints surrounding Google. The issues are best parted into two cumuli: a set of "public" arguments about how to regulate Google; and a set of "private" ones for Google's managers, to do with the strategy the firm needs to get through the coming storm. On both counts, Googlecontrary to its own propagandais much better judged as being just like any other "evil" money-grabbing company. Grab the money That is because, from the public point of view, the main contribution of all companies to society comes from making profits, not giving things away. Google is a good example of this. Its "goodness" stems less from all that guff about corporate altruism than from Adam Smith's invisible hand. It provides a service that others find very usefulnamely helping people to find information (at no charge) and letting advertisers promote their wares to those people in a finely targeted way. Given this, the onus of proof is with Google's would-be prosecutors to prove it is doing something wrong. On antitrust, the price that Google charges its advertisers is set by auction, so its monopolistic clout is limited; and it has yet to use its dominance in one market to muscle into others in the way Microsoft did. The same presumption of innocence goes for copyright and privacy. Google's book-search product, for instance, arguably helps rather than hurts publishers and authors by rescuing books from obscurity and encouraging readers to buy copyrighted works. And, despite Big Brotherish talk about knowing what choices people will be making tomorrow, Google has not betrayed the trust of its users over their privacy. If anything, it has been better than its rivals in standing up to prying governments in both America and China. That said, conflicts of interest will become inevitableespecially with privacy. Google in effect controls a dial that, as it sells ever more services to you, could move in two directions. Set to one side, Google could voluntarily destroy very quickly any user data that it collects. That would assure privacy, but it would limit Google's profits from selling to advertisers information about what you are doing, and make those services less useful. If the dial is set to the other side and Google hangs on to the information, the services will be more useful, but some dreadful intrusions into privacy could occur. The answer, as with banks in the past, must lie somewhere in the middle; and the right point for the dial is likely to change, as circumstances change. That will be the main public interest in Google. But, as the bankers (and Bill Gates) can attest, public scrutiny also creates a private challenge for Google's managers: how should they present their case? One obvious strategy is to allay concerns over Google's trustworthiness by becoming more transparent and opening up more of its processes and plans to scrutiny. But it also needs a deeper change of heart. Pretending that, just because your founders are nice young men and you give away lots of services, society has no right to question your motives no longer seems sensible. Google is a capitalist tooland a useful one. Better, surely, to face the coming storm on that foundation, than on a trite slogan that could be your undoing. __._,_.___

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[Registrar-announce] Streaming KeNIC AGM 2007 - 31st August, 2007
by Michuki Mwangi 30 Aug '07

30 Aug '07

* <apologies for cross posting> Dear Members, Streaming KeNIC AGM 2007 - 31st August, 2007* * *KeNIC will broadcast a live audio stream of its' 4th Annual General Meeting. The live stream can be accessed at http://habari.kenic.or.ke:8001/. In addition, an IM server will be available for remote users to post comments and/or queries. It is our hope that this effort will continue to provide useful, timely and accessible access to the proceedings of these meetings as they happen. *Streaming and Conference Service * Streams are delivered as 64Kb/s unicast-http-streamed mp3 audio, a popular and relatively standard way to deliver internet radio. Most platforms should have a client immediatly available (windows media player, quicktime, real, winamp, vlc, mplayer, zinf, etc) capable of playing back the stream. For the jabber service: (a) those *with *jabber clients can join the meeting room, agm2007(a)conference.psg.com <mailto:[email protected]>. A list of jabber clients can be found at http://www.jabber.org/software/clients.shtml <http://www.jabber.org/software/clients.shtml> (b) those *without *can send their comments and/or queries to live-comments(a)kenic.or.ke *Testing * To test your client against a currently active stream of the same type, access the stream at the following URL, http://habari.kenic.or.ke:8001 <http://videolab.uoregon.edu/events/ietf/test.m3u>/ *Meeting * Streaming begins at *0900hrs *(GMT+3) *Friday 31st August, 2007*. All meetings will be held at the Simba Room. Kind Regards, ----------------- Vincent Ngundi Technical Manager KeNIC - The Kenya Network Information Center http://www.kenic.or.ke _______________________________________________ Registrar-announce mailing list Registrar-announce(a)ole.kenic.or.ke http://ole.kenic.or.ke/mailman/listinfo/registrar-announce

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[Fwd: Fwd: FW: first announcement/ radio script writing competition]
by alice 30 Aug '07

30 Aug '07

Dear All, > Developing Countries Farm Radio Network <http://www.farmradio.org/> > (DCFRN) and CTA <http://www.cta.int/> will soon launch a scriptwriting > competition entitled African Farmers Strategies for Coping with > Climate Change for African radio practitioners (broadcasters, > production organizations, NGOs with a radio project, farmers > associations with a radio show etc.). > > > > Climate change is having a major impact on smallholder farmers in ACP > countries and farmers urgently need information to help them > understand climate change, the ways it might affect them, and how they > can adapt their resource management strategies to reduce global > warming and mitigate its negative effects. > > Radio, as we know, is one of the most effective media for providing > rural communities in Africa with information but the capacity of the > stations in writing relevant scripts is also limited. This competition > serves both purposes of better sharing information and strengthening > the capacity of rural radio broadcasters. > > > > Competitors will be invited to submit a radio script on themes related > to local adaptation to climate change under various formats (audio > interview, spots, discussion between two hosts, drama, stories). The > scripts will be reviewed by an international panel of judges. The > winners will be announced in May 2008 and the top 15 entries will > receive audio recorders and be published by CTA and DCFRN. But one of > the most important aspect of the capacity building process is that all > entrants will receive feedback on their scripts. > > > > We plan to widely communicate amongst the radio community in Africa > and amongst those who work with/ for this community (Media network, > African radio broadcasters, Development organisations such as Deutsche > Welle, radio Nederland...). > > > > Thanks for your kind help to help us disseminating the announcement > amongst the radio community in Africa (_let us know if you need a > certain format to communicate on the initiative_). > > > > Best regards > > > > > > Sarah Bel

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Fwd: [ke-internetusers] Safaricom - A case against "Ghost Owners"
by Alex Gakuru 29 Aug '07

29 Aug '07

FYI -Separately, --------Forwarded message------ --- JME Simekha <simekhajme(a)gmail.com> wrote: > Date: Wed, 29 Aug 2007 03:01:03 -0700 > From: "JME Simekha" <simekhajme(a)gmail.com> > To: Judy <judy.adhiambo(a)gmail.com> > CC: ke users <ke-internetusers(a)bdix.net> > Subject: [ke-internetusers] Safaricom - A case > against "Ghost Owners" > > *SAFARICOM â A CASE AGAINST 'GHOST OWNERS'* > > > > Kenyans own Telkom Kenya; a company that we all have > invested our taxes in, > and therefore, Telkom is a public asset. Telkom once > owned Safaricom > entirely. Safaricom, in the last three years, has > been the best performing > company in Kenya. At some point, Telkom decided to > sell part of Safaricom > and struck a deal with Vodafone of the United > Kingdom, which bought 30 > percent of the shares. Telkom was left with 70 > percent. However, to date > Telkom owns only 60 percent of the company. This is > a story of who owns the > 10 percent and how that percent was illegally and > fraudulently acquired. > This is a case against the 'ghost owners' of > Safaricom who are reaping where > they did not sow and secondly, want the public to > buy what they literally > stole from the Kenyans. > > > > 1. *From Telkom to Vodafone* > > Part of privatization process, initially pushed as > part of World Bank > conditionalities, involved off-loading some of the > 100 percent ownership of > Safaricom, which Telkom held since the establishment > of the company. Telkom > sought a partner and sold off the 30 percent of the > shares. Vodafone bid and > got the deal, getting 30 percent of the shares. All > paper work regarding > legal and company transfer was complete, and hence > Safaricom was jointly > owned by Kenyans and the company based in the United > Kingdom. > > 2. *From Vodafone to Vodacom Kenya Ltd.* > > Vodafone is known to have made a formal request for > an extra 10 percent of > shares held by Telkom. Rather than bid directly, a > 'subsidiary company' by > the name Vodacom Kenya Ltd, did the bidding. This > company managed to get the > 10 percent from Telkom. However, there is no legal > paper work that was > undertaken. No legal transfer from Telkom to > Vodafone and then to Vodacom > was carried out. At some point, Vodacom is said to > have off-loaded 5 percent > of the shares back to Vodafone but this did not > last, as the shares were > 'returned' to Vodacom Kenya Ltd. > > > > In fact, part of the fraud involved two critical > issues that the > Parliamentary Investment Committee (PIC) documented > in their recent report. > First, the Safaricom Chief Executive Officer, > Michael Joseph, claimed not to > know who owners of the 10 percent shares are. > Secondly, a forged letter, > which was backdated to year 2000, was produced by > Michael Joseph as evidence > but this was unacceptable to the PIC. Therefore, > from Telkom to Vodafone, > the deal involving 30 percent shares was legal. > However, the deal of 10 > percent from Telkom to Vodafone, then to Vodacom, > back to Vodafone and then > back to Vodacom was illegal and compounded by > mystery and secrecy. > > > > 1. *From Vodacom Kenya Ltd to Mobitelea* > > Vodacom has since changed its name to Mobitelea. > Mobitelea is registered in > Guernsey, a small island within the territory of the > United Kingdom, > adjacent to the English Channel. This is an island > ill-famed for > money-laundering but is gradually working on such > infamous attributions. The > 'ghost owners' of Mobitelea are reportedly: former > president Daniel > Toroitich arap Moi, Nicholas Kiprono Kipyator arap > Biwott and the son-in-law > of Biwott. If these allegations are confirmed, then > the owners cease > forthwith to be 'ghost owners'. The three gentlemen, > are reaping where they > did not sow. Other than being transferred 10 percent > of Telkom holding of > Safaricom shares illegally and without paying a > penny for it, they have been > reaping dividends which today amount to Kshs 850 > million. Mobitelea owes > Kenyans, not just the initial value of the shares > that they never paid for, > but also the accrued dividends arising from the > profits made by Safaricom > and forwarded to Mobitelea. This is illegal, unjust, > and unacceptable to > owners of Telkom and by extension Safaricom â the > Kenyan taxpayers. > > > > 1. *From Mobitelea to Safaricom IPO* > > Safaricom Initial Public Offer (IPO) has already > been set in motion. The > Government of Kenya (GoK) has announced that it > wants to off-load 25 percent > of the shares Telkom has in Safaricom. GoK, > represented by the Minister for > Finance, has said that the IPO is unstoppable. With > an unwarranted smile, > the Minister for Finance is asking Kenyans to be > part of the glory that > Safaricom has become. No doubt, anyone wants to be > part of the billions in > profit that Safaricom mints every year. However, > before Kenyans get > financially excited, they should and must ask the > question: which shares are > on sale? First, do the 10 percent of shares, which > were stolen from the > public by Mobitelea, part of the 25 percent on > offer? Secondly, is the GoK > off-loading 25 percent of the remaining 60 percent? > Third, why should > Kenyans buy shares in Safaricom without confirming > who the other > shareholders are? > > > > 1. *Breach of the Laws * > > The Minister for Finance argues all laws have been > observed and that the > Privatization Act is the only ammunition that > Kenyans can have to stop the > Safaricom IPO. Nothing could be further from the > truth. There are many > other laws, which have been breached. Beginning with > the Privatization Act > however, the Minister for Finance should tell > Kenyans why Treasury, despite > assent by the President, had to wait for a warning > from National Assembly > Speaker Mr Francis ole Kaparo to make moves to > operationalise it. This has > not been explained by the smiling Minister for > Finance. > > > > Secondly, the Anti-Corruption and Economic Crime Act > has ably defined > corruption to involve attempted or actual fraud. > Other laws, such as the > Companies Act, Communications Act, and State > Corporations Act have been > breached. The Capital Markets Act (Regulations) has > also been breached, to > the extent that the intended Safaricom IPO has not > been accompanied by > disclosure to the potential shareholders, who are > the actual owners of > Mobitelea. Therefore, with or without > operationalizing the Privatization > Act, the GoK, through the Minister for Finance, has > breached several other > Laws of Kenya. > > * * > > 1. *Final Word: Stop Safaricom IPO, Do not Buy > what is Yours* > > Safaricom IPO needs to be stopped in its tracks. > Kenyans could be part of > the process to cover up fraud or legitimizing it, > when participating in the > impending Safaricom IPO. The fraud involves looting > from the public asset â > Telkom â by Mobitelea. Secondly, in the process > Kenyans are likely to be > floated some or all the 10 percent of shares owned > by Mobitelea. This would > be tantamount to buying from oneself. Do not buy > what is yours. Third, a > Public Interest Litigation (PLI) is being instituted > by civil Society > Organizations (CSOs) in the High Court on 31st > August, 2007. The Application > seeks a Court Injunction to stop the Safaricom IPO, > pending the ownership of > Safaricom, is disclosed to the public. Be part of > the process to stop the > Safaricom IPO, as engaging in it will be the second > fraud of public > property: Safaricom, a property which you have paid > taxes to establish and > sustain. > > -- > Simekha JME > Director of Programmes > Projects & Allied Consultants Ltd > 1st Floor, Rattansi Educational Trust Building > Koinange/Monrovia Street > Opposite Kengeles Restaurant > P. O. Box 8924 GPO > Nairobi 00100, Kenya > Tel: (+254 20) 340896 / 341097; (+254) 721 920 151 > Fax: (+254 20) 341099 > E-mail: simekha.joseph(a)paconsult.co.ke ; > simekhajme(a)gmail.com > > Focusing on what's going right is a great idea, and > can be quite energizing. > We often spend far too long thinking about what's > going wrong! > > _______________________________________________ > ke-internetusers mailing list > ke-internetusers(a)bdix.net > http://www.bdix.net/mailman/listinfo/ke-internetusers > ____________________________________________________________________________________ Park yourself in front of a world of choices in alternative vehicles. Visit the Yahoo! Auto Green Center. http://autos.yahoo.com/green_center/ _______________________________________________ ke-internetusers mailing list ke-internetusers(a)bdix.net http://www.bdix.net/mailman/listinfo/ke-internetusers

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A small axe to the Safaricom IPO]
by alice 29 Aug '07

29 Aug '07

A small axe to the Safaricom IPO By L. MUTHONI WANYEKI I am not the daughter of a Big Man. Neither am I married to a Big Man or even to the son of a Big Man. I had the good fortune to have essentially middle-class parents who worked hard to give my siblings and me a good basic education. And I had the good fortune to have a mother whose citizenship made it possible for me to attend university, courtesy of the student loans system of her country. The student loans covered fees and accommodation. But my parents couldn't afford to send us much money getting $100 on birthdays and at Christmas was like getting a windfall. So I worked to supplement the student loans, from the time I left Kenya at the age of 16. Of course, I now recognise that, despite not being associated with a big man's family, in comparison with the majority of people in Kenya, I am not only fortunate, I am actually extremely privileged. But, despite that recognition, having worked since the age of 16, I also know the value of my money. I have worked for what I have. This is why, for instance, I get apoplectic with rage about corruption. Under Kenya's ridiculously constructed tax brackets, I fall into the same top tax bracket as Kenya's Big Men. And I get nothing for it, having to pay privately for everythingincluding security where I live and medical insurance. But, my privileges taken into account, I certainly wouldn't mind paying the amounts of tax that I do pay if I felt the money went to help those with fewer privileges, not to pay the obscene salaries of those who cannot be bothered to assure the House of a quorum sufficient to pass even 10 Bills a year or to build the "bigness" of the Big Men. The other night, some friends and I calculated the share of Safaricom's reported Ksh17 billion ($253.7 million) profit that would have gone to Mobitelea the company that, according to the Public Investments Committee, is irregularly in possession of no less than five per cent of the mobile phone company's shares, meaning that there are apparently no records of Mobitelea having paid for that shareholding. MEANING THAT MY TAX MONEY, which went into building and sustaining Telkom and Safaricom, was essentially given away. Meaning that, coming back to our calculation, the alleged owners of Mobitelea the son of a Big Man and the son-in-law of another Big Man under the former regime and a Big Man in this regime earned themselves no less than Ksh850,000,000 ($12.6 million) last year alone. From doing nothing at all, except live off the profits of having stolen from us. Ksh850 million off my back (and your's as well). Again, I am incapacitated with rage. And yet, the Treasury insists that Safaricom's initial public offer will proceed, regardless of the outcomes of the PIC debate within the House or any court cases that might ensue. What?! FRANKLY, DESPITE OUR NEWFOUND fascination with IPOs, I don't think a single one of us should put a single shilling forward. Those of us who do work hard and honestly deserve better. If shares in Safaricom could essentially be given away to Big Men, their sons and sons-in laws, then they can be given away to us. Why should we pay for them? They're our property in the first place, which the government was meant to hold in trust for us. If it breached that trust for three of us, then it should share the love with all of us. It might not seem like it, but there are, in fact, victims of corruption. Those victims are you and me every single Kenyan who dutifully pays his or her taxes. I'm furious. I'm ready for a tax boycott the residential associations led the way and it's time to scale up their efforts. We need to say to hell with that IPO until the issues raised by the PIC have been satisfactorily dealt with. We need to be the "small axes" that Robert Nestor Marley talked about and cut down all those "big trees." L. Muthoni Wanyeki is a political scientist based in Nairobi http://www.nationmedia.com/eastafrican/current/Opinion/Opinion2708079. <http://www.nationmedia.com/eastafrican/current/Opinion/Opinion2708079.> htm __._,_.___ Messages in this topic <http://groups.yahoo.com/group/DigAfrica/message/6280;_ylc=X3oDMTM0dDFhZGw5B…> (1) Reply (via web post) <http://groups.yahoo.com/group/DigAfrica/post;_ylc=X3oDMTJwcDE1bmplBF9TAzk3M…> | Start a new topic <http://groups.yahoo.com/group/DigAfrica/post;_ylc=X3oDMTJlNmE4ZmxyBF9TAzk3M…> Messages <http://groups.yahoo.com/group/DigAfrica/messages;_ylc=X3oDMTJlbDY5dTNmBF9TA…> | Links <http://groups.yahoo.com/group/DigAfrica/links;_ylc=X3oDMTJmdnIxcDkyBF9TAzk3…> | Polls <http://groups.yahoo.com/group/DigAfrica/polls;_ylc=X3oDMTJmYnJpaDNoBF9TAzk3…> Dig Africa site welcomes you to join us at http://www.yahoogroups.com/group/Digafrica on IT in Africa Aids-Africa is a forum for communication and information on AIDS related issues in Africa and all are welcome to join us at http://www.yahoogroups.com/group/aids-africa Join us on hiv/aids forum on Kenya at http://www.yahoogroups.com/group/kenya-aids Join us at a Kenyan networking forum and NGOS at http://www.yahoogroups.com/group/kenyainternational Yahoo! 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Consumers to date Safaricom in court
by Alex Gakuru 29 Aug '07

29 Aug '07

Dear All, I regret to confirm the story appearing on Business Daily pp. 28 today. Falling flat-face after their collapse, these talks were aimed at alternative dispute resolution through Communications Commission of Kenya. Alex ____________________________________________________________________________________ Got a little couch potato? Check out fun summer activities for kids. http://search.yahoo.com/search?fr=oni_on_mail&p=summer+activities+for+kids&…

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TIDE-Innovation Series With Joe Mucheru, Google Kenya CEO
by Michael Kipsang Bullut 28 Aug '07

28 Aug '07

Sambaza... ---------- Forwarded message ---------- From: Gichingiri Kuria <gichingiri(a)gmail.com> Date: 27 Aug 2007 12:48 Subject: [keepingitrealafrica] Fwd: [Skunkworks] TIDE-Innovation Series With Joe Mucheru, Google Kenya CEO To: MILI <milimani(a)yahoogroups.com>, keepingitrealafrica(a)yahoogroups.com ---------- Forwarded message ---------- From: John Wesonga <john.wesonga(a)multiplechoices.biz> Date: 27-Aug-2007 12:39 Subject: [Skunkworks] TIDE-Innovation Series With Joe Mucheru, Google Kenya CEO To: skunkworks(a)my.co.ke Hi, I'm pleased to invite all of you to *TIDE (Technology, Innovation, Design and Everything)- Innovation Series Event *this Saturday September 1st, 10-12pm at Grand Regency. The guest speaker will be Joseph Mucheru, Google Kenya CEO. The entrance charge is Kshs.1000. This talk is open to all persons and is not a technology only event, it will focus on innovation in Africa from a business and entrepreneur point of view. If you need any matter clarified please contact: *Charity 0733640027 or 0720302036* ** Thank you -- John Wesonga, Technology Director, Multiple Choices http://www.multiplechoices.biz http://wesonga.peupe.net "You are remembered for the rules you break."-Douglas MacArthur _______________________________________________ skunkworks mailing list skunkworks(a)my.co.ke http://ole.kenic.or.ke/mailman/listinfo/skunkworks Blog http://skunkworks-ke.blogspot.com -- Gichingiri Kuria __._,_.___ Messages in this topic <http://groups.yahoo.com/group/keepingitrealafrica/message/1583;_ylc=X3oDMTM…>( 1) Reply (via web post) <http://groups.yahoo.com/group/keepingitrealafrica/post;_ylc=X3oDMTJxNnZycGp…>| Start a new topic <http://groups.yahoo.com/group/keepingitrealafrica/post;_ylc=X3oDMTJmNmFrNzB…> Messages<http://groups.yahoo.com/group/keepingitrealafrica/messages;_ylc=X3oDMTJmdTh…>| Files<http://groups.yahoo.com/group/keepingitrealafrica/files;_ylc=X3oDMTJnZ3E3Zz…>| Photos<http://groups.yahoo.com/group/keepingitrealafrica/photos;_ylc=X3oDMTJmbWFlM…>| Links<http://groups.yahoo.com/group/keepingitrealafrica/links;_ylc=X3oDMTJnYjB1NH…>| Database<http://groups.yahoo.com/group/keepingitrealafrica/database;_ylc=X3oDMTJkdmh…>| Polls<http://groups.yahoo.com/group/keepingitrealafrica/polls;_ylc=X3oDMTJnaHE2Ym…>| Members<http://groups.yahoo.com/group/keepingitrealafrica/members;_ylc=X3oDMTJmZzhv…>| Calendar<http://groups.yahoo.com/group/keepingitrealafrica/calendar;_ylc=X3oDMTJlZGs…> [image: Yahoo! Groups]<http://groups.yahoo.com/;_ylc=X3oDMTJldnN0Z2Q5BF9TAzk3NDc2NTkwBGdycElkAzE3N…> Change settings via the Web<http://groups.yahoo.com/group/keepingitrealafrica/join;_ylc=X3oDMTJnaXFxZGx…>(Yahoo! ID required) Change settings via email: Switch delivery to Daily Digest<[email protected]?subject=Email+Delivery:+Digest>| Switch format to Traditional<[email protected]?subject=Change+Delivery+Format:+Traditional> Visit Your Group <http://groups.yahoo.com/group/keepingitrealafrica;_ylc=X3oDMTJlczRhcHRnBF9T…>| Yahoo! Groups Terms of Use <http://docs.yahoo.com/info/terms/> | Unsubscribe <keepingitrealafrica-unsubscribe(a)yahoogroups.com?subject=> Recent Activity - 4 New Members<http://groups.yahoo.com/group/keepingitrealafrica/members;_ylc=X3oDMTJnc2Zx…> Visit Your Group <http://groups.yahoo.com/group/keepingitrealafrica;_ylc=X3oDMTJmazB0NGltBF9T…> Y! Messenger All together now<http://us.ard.yahoo.com/SIG=12jglobgf/M=493064.10729668.11333359.8674578/D=…> Host a free online conference on IM. Best of Y! Groups Discover groups<http://us.ard.yahoo.com/SIG=12jfquh1i/M=493064.11127061.11695037.8674578/D=…> that are the best of their class. Endurance Zone on Yahoo! Groups<http://us.ard.yahoo.com/SIG=12jbfjk62/M=493064.11135487.11710473.8674578/D=…> Communities about higher endurance. . __,_._,___ -- "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. --

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cancellation of retreat...
by Rebecca Wanjiku 28 Aug '07

28 Aug '07

Dear all Greetings and hope this message finds you well. We apologize profusely to all of you that had made space for the KICTAnet retreat which was scheduled for 29August to 1 September 2007. We have had to postpone it due to unavoidable circumstances. We shall communicate back to all the stakeholders as soon as we have more concrete dates and venue. We look forward to hosting you all to finalize the assessment exercise as well as begin to work on KICTAnet strategic plan for the next two years. Once again my apologies for any inconveniences caused warm regards alice munyua Tel. 254 720 318 925 blog:http://beckyit.blogspot.com/ --------------------------------- Ready for the edge of your seat? Check out tonight's top picks on Yahoo! TV.

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Re: [kictanet] Safaricom SMS Swindlers
by Michael Joseph 28 Aug '07

28 Aug '07

I will look into this immediately Michael Joseph CEO Safaricom Limited BlackBerry powered by Safaricom ----- Original Message ----- From: kictanet-bounces+mjoseph=safaricom.co.ke(a)lists.kictanet.or.ke <kictanet-bounces+mjoseph=safaricom.co.ke(a)lists.kictanet.or.ke> To: Michael Joseph Cc: KICTAnet ICT Policy Discussions <kictanet(a)lists.kictanet.or.ke> Sent: Mon Aug 27 09:28:57 2007 Subject: [kictanet] Safaricom SMS Swindlers Dear Consumer, It has come to our notice that Safaricom is charging but blocking SMS sent to Telkom Wireless network. Charging for undelivered goods and services is outright theft, and criminal acts under Kenya Laws. Their Network accepts SMS from Telkom Wireless but replies to these message instantly report "message sending failed" although Safaricom still eat your balance. We have been at Telcos malpractices since 2005 and now it is time to change the strategies. We are filing a lawsuit against Safaricom Ltd and we need as many petitions as possible. Kindly send your electronic petition directly to me assist our lawyers in filing the suit. Regards Alex Gakuru Chairman, ICT Consumers Association of Kenya ____________________________________________________________________________________ Moody friends. Drama queens. Your life? Nope! - their life, your story. Play Sims Stories at Yahoo! Games. http://sims.yahoo.com/ _______________________________________________ kictanet mailing list kictanet(a)lists.kictanet.or.ke http://lists.kictanet.or.ke/mailman/listinfo/kictanet This message was sent to: mjoseph(a)safaricom.co.ke Unsubscribe or change your options at http://lists.kictanet.or.ke/mailman/options/kictanet/mjoseph%40safaricom.co… The information in this email and any attachments is confidential and may be legally privileged. It is intended only for the use of the named addressee. Emails are susceptible to alteration and their integrity cannot be guaranteed. Safaricom Limited does not accept legal responsibility for the contents of this email if the same is found to have been altered or manipulated. The contents and opinions expressed in this email are solely those of the author and do not necessarily represent those of Safaricom Limited. Safaricom Limited disclaims any liability to the fullest extent permissible by law for any consequences that may arise from the contents of this email including but not limited to personal opinions, malicious and/or defamatory information and data/codes that may compromise or damage the integrity of the recipient's information technology systems. If you are not the intended recipient please notify the sender and immediately delete this email from your system.

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Re: [kictanet] Safaricom SMS Swindlers
by Eric aligula 27 Aug '07

27 Aug '07

Barrack, True it is the charges. I don't know about fair, but if you take Safaricom to court, they can argue that they had no agreement with Telkom to provide that service. What recourse do you have then? Eric Aligula Magolo Senior Policy Analyst Infrastructure and Economic Services Division Kenya Institute for Public Policy Research and Analysis P.O. Box 56445, 00200 Nairobi, Kenya Telephone: +254-20-2719933/4 Fax: +254-20-2719951 E-mail: jairah(a)kippra.or.ke URL: www.kippra.org First, they ignore you, then they laugh at you, then they fight you, then you win. Mahatma Gandhi "Ex Africa semper aliquid novi" -----Original Message----- From: Barrack Otieno [mailto:[email protected]] Sent: Monday, August 27, 2007 5:02 PM To: Eric aligula; KICTAnet ICT Policy Discussions Subject: Re: [kictanet] Safaricom SMS Swindlers Bwana aligula the contentious issues are the charges, with or without the sla's is it fair? On 8/27/07, Eric aligula <jairah(a)kippra.or.ke> wrote: > Alex, > > Does Safaricom have service agreement with Telkom in respect of this > service? > > Kind regards, > > Eric Aligula Magolo > Senior Policy Analyst > Infrastructure and Economic Services Division > Kenya Institute for Public Policy Research and Analysis > P.O. Box 56445, 00200 Nairobi, Kenya > Telephone: +254-20-2719933/4 > Fax: +254-20-2719951 > E-mail: jairah(a)kippra.or.ke > > URL: www.kippra.org > > First, they ignore you, then they laugh at you, then they fight you, then > you win. Mahatma Gandhi > "Ex Africa semper aliquid novi" > > > > -----Original Message----- > From: Alex Gakuru [mailto:[email protected]] > Sent: Monday, August 27, 2007 9:29 AM > To: jairah(a)kippra.or.ke > Cc: KICTAnet ICT Policy Discussions > Subject: [kictanet] Safaricom SMS Swindlers > > Dear Consumer, > > It has come to our notice that Safaricom is charging > but blocking SMS sent to Telkom Wireless network. > Charging for undelivered goods and services is > outright theft, and criminal acts under Kenya Laws. > > Their Network accepts SMS from Telkom Wireless but > replies to these message instantly report "message > sending failed" although Safaricom still eat your > balance. > > We have been at Telcos malpractices since 2005 and now > it is time to change the strategies. We are filing a > lawsuit against Safaricom Ltd and we need as many > petitions as possible. Kindly send your electronic > petition directly to me assist our lawyers in filing > the suit. > > Regards > > Alex Gakuru > Chairman, ICT Consumers Association of Kenya > > > > ____________________________________________________________________________ > ________ > Moody friends. Drama queens. Your life? Nope! - their life, your story. Play > Sims Stories at Yahoo! Games. > http://sims.yahoo.com/ > > _______________________________________________ > kictanet mailing list > kictanet(a)lists.kictanet.or.ke > http://lists.kictanet.or.ke/mailman/listinfo/kictanet > > This message was sent to: jairah(a)kippra.or.ke > Unsubscribe or change your options at > http://lists.kictanet.or.ke/mailman/options/kictanet/jairah%40kippra.or.ke > > _______________________________________________ > kictanet mailing list > kictanet(a)lists.kictanet.or.ke > http://lists.kictanet.or.ke/mailman/listinfo/kictanet > > This message was sent to: otieno.barrack(a)gmail.com > Unsubscribe or change your options at > http://lists.kictanet.or.ke/mailman/options/kictanet/otieno.barrack%40gmail. com > -- Barrack O. Otieno Project Discovery P.o. Box 21386 Nairobi 00100 Tel: +254721325277 +254726544442 +254733229925 http://projectdiscovery.or.ke

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Re: [kictanet] Safaricom SMS Swindlers
by Eric aligula 27 Aug '07

27 Aug '07

Alex, Does Safaricom have service agreement with Telkom in respect of this service? Kind regards, Eric Aligula Magolo Senior Policy Analyst Infrastructure and Economic Services Division Kenya Institute for Public Policy Research and Analysis P.O. Box 56445, 00200 Nairobi, Kenya Telephone: +254-20-2719933/4 Fax: +254-20-2719951 E-mail: jairah(a)kippra.or.ke URL: www.kippra.org First, they ignore you, then they laugh at you, then they fight you, then you win. Mahatma Gandhi "Ex Africa semper aliquid novi" -----Original Message----- From: Alex Gakuru [mailto:[email protected]] Sent: Monday, August 27, 2007 9:29 AM To: jairah(a)kippra.or.ke Cc: KICTAnet ICT Policy Discussions Subject: [kictanet] Safaricom SMS Swindlers Dear Consumer, It has come to our notice that Safaricom is charging but blocking SMS sent to Telkom Wireless network. Charging for undelivered goods and services is outright theft, and criminal acts under Kenya Laws. Their Network accepts SMS from Telkom Wireless but replies to these message instantly report "message sending failed" although Safaricom still eat your balance. We have been at Telcos malpractices since 2005 and now it is time to change the strategies. We are filing a lawsuit against Safaricom Ltd and we need as many petitions as possible. Kindly send your electronic petition directly to me assist our lawyers in filing the suit. Regards Alex Gakuru Chairman, ICT Consumers Association of Kenya ____________________________________________________________________________ ________ Moody friends. Drama queens. Your life? Nope! - their life, your story. Play Sims Stories at Yahoo! Games. http://sims.yahoo.com/ _______________________________________________ kictanet mailing list kictanet(a)lists.kictanet.or.ke http://lists.kictanet.or.ke/mailman/listinfo/kictanet This message was sent to: jairah(a)kippra.or.ke Unsubscribe or change your options at http://lists.kictanet.or.ke/mailman/options/kictanet/jairah%40kippra.or.ke

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FYI: Links to DFID projects & funding programs]
by alice 27 Aug '07

27 Aug '07

DFID works in partnership with a range of different organisations to ensure effective use of our development budget and to assist us in achieving the Millennium Development Goals (MDGs). These include multilateral institutions (such as the World Bank, European Community and UN agencies), developing country governments, civil society organisations and the research community. See 'Who DFID works with <about:blank../aboutdfid/dfidwork/>’ for more information. Although the greater part of our development assistance funding is channelled through multilateral agencies, direct budget support and larger scale programmes, there is still substantial support provided through a variety of other funds for smaller scale initiatives. These are aimed at promoting sustainable development and eliminating poverty. They are open to different groups and the following list has been arranged to reflect this. For a breakdown of expenditure see our annual publication, ‘Statistics on International Development <about:blank../pubs/files/sid2006/contents.asp>’. Any organisations or individuals seeking funding should read the guidelines for the Fund which they feel best suits their needs and apply directly, using the instructions given. · Funding for international students wishing to study in the UK <about:blank#individuals> · Funding for not-for-profit organisations <about:blank#orgs> · Conflict and humanitarian funding <about:blank#humanitarian> · Funding for the private sector <about:blank#businesses> · Funding for educational institutions <about:blank#education> · Funding for the media <about:blank#media> · Funding for local authorities <about:blank#commonwealth> · Funding for specific countries or regions <about:blank#countries> · Closed funds <about:blank#closed> *Funding for international students wishing to study in the UK* * Commonwealth Scholarship and Fellowship Plan <about:blankcsfp.asp> (CSFP) Awards for post-graduate study and occasional undergraduate study covering some Commonwealth countries. * Shared Scholarship Scheme <about:blank../funding/sharedscholarship.asp> Awards for Commonwealth postgraduate students to study in the UK. *Further information* The above schemes are aimed primarily at students from developing Commonwealth countries. For other funding opportunities, please visit the British Council website - * External linkScholarship search <http://www.educationuk.org/scholarships/> External linkStudy in the UK <http://www.britishcouncil.org/learning-study-in-the-uk.htm?mtklink=corporat…> *Funding for not-for-profit organisations* * Civil Society Challenge Fund <about:blankcivilsocietycf.asp>Aimed at UK-based not-for-profit organisations working to provide lasting benefits to poor communities and under-represented people in the developing world. * Development Awareness Fund <about:blankdaf.asp> and the Mini Grants Scheme <about:blankdafminigrants.asp> UK-based not-for-profit organisations or networks which share our commitment to raising awareness and understanding of development issues. * Partnership Programme Agreements <about:blank../aboutdfid/DFIDwork/ppas/partnerprogagreements.asp> Agreements between DFID and influential civil society organisations in the UK which set out at a strategic level how the partners will work together to meet the Millennium Development Goals. Strategic Funding is provided, and is linked to jointly agreed outcomes. * Governance and Transparency Fund <about:blankgtf.asp> Targeted principally at not-for-profit organisations. It will also consider proposals which involve local/regional government bodies and certain for-profit groups (particularly those in the media), where their involvement can show to be an integral part of the project/programme. proposal. If you would like to know more about the Fund please e-mail gtf(a)dfid.gov.uk <mailto:[email protected]> *Further information* * External linkBOND <http://www.bond.org.uk/funding/> (British Overseas NGOs for Development) * External linkForeign and Commonwealth Office Global Opportunities Fund <http://www.fco.gov.uk/servlet/Front?pagename=OpenMarket/Xcelerate/ShowPage&…> * Research opportunities <about:blank../research/research-calls.asp> *Conflict and humanitarian funding* * Conflict and Humanitarian Fund <about:blankconflict-humanitarian.asp> *Applications for the current funding round closed on 8 February 2007*. Information about future opportunities for not-for-profit organisations to apply for funding for work in the areas of conflict prevention, humanitarian assistance and access to justice will be published in summer 2007. * Humanitarian response funding <about:blankhumanitarian-funding.asp> Allocated in response to specific emergencies and disasters to not-for-profit organisations, United Nations agencies and the Red Cross Movement. * Disaster Risk Reduction <about:blank../news/files/disaster-risk-reduction-launch.asp> After a major rapid-onset disaster, up to 10% of DFID's response funding may be available for Disaster Risk Reduction (DRR) activities including prevention, mitigation and preparedness for future disasters, where this can be done effectively. This is likely to be relevant for sudden onset disasters and will only apply to responses above £500,000. The funding is often managed by the DFID country or regional office. For further information read our Disaster Risk Reduction Policy Paper <about:blank../pubs/files/disaster-risk-reduction-policy.pdf>adobe pdf(657 kb) or contact (+44) (0)20 7023 1476. * The Africa Conflict Prevention Pool <about:blankacpp.asp> (ACPP) and External linkGlobal Conflict Prevention Pool <http://www.fco.gov.uk/servlet/Front?pagename=OpenMarket/Xcelerate/ShowPage&…> (GCPP) managed jointly by DFID, the Foreign and Commonwealth Office and the Ministry of Defence. More information on the GCPP is also available <about://aboutdfid/organisation/conflicthumanitarianassistance.asp#GCPP>. * Mine action DFID funds a programme of global mine action through the United Nations and selected NGO partners. For further information please contact the Security and Justice Team in Conflict, Humanitarian and Security Department (CHASE) on (+44) (0)20 7023 0599. *Funding for the private sector* * Africa Enterprise Challenge Fund <about:blank../news/files/aecf.asp> A 7-Year DFID led initiative to stimulate pro-poor growth and create employment in Africa. * External linkBusiness Sector Advocacy Challenge Fund <http://www.busac.org/> (BUSAC) Aims to broaden the engagement of the Private Sector in Policy formulation and implementation in Ghana. * Emerging Africa Infrastructure Fund <about:blankemergingafrica.asp> A Public Private Partnership providing long-term debt finance on commercial terms to finance the construction and development of private infrastructure in Sub-Saharan Africa. * Investment Climate Facility for Africa <about:blank../news/files/pressreleases/investment-climate-facility.asp> Helps lower the cost of doing business in Africa and promote a better investment climate across the continent. *Further information* * Procurement opportunities <about:blank../procurement/default.asp> * Research opportunities <about:blank../research/research-calls.asp> * External linkStrategic Business Partnerships for Growth in Africa <http://www.sbp.org.za/> * CDC Group plc <about:blank../aboutdfid/DFIDwork/privatesector-cdc.asp> Wholly owned by DFID, CDC Group plc invests in poor developing countries and aims to attract private capital by showing that such investments are worthwhile. * Public Private Partnerships in Infrastructure <about:blank../pubs/files/pppinfrastructureoct04.pdf>adobe acrobat pdf(88 kb) * Working with the private sector to eliminate poverty <about:blank../pubs/files/dfid-private-sector.pdf>adobe acrobat pdf(393 kb) * External linkForeign and Commonwealth Office Global Opportunities Fund <http://www.fco.gov.uk/servlet/Front?pagename=OpenMarket/Xcelerate/ShowPage&…> *Funding for educational institutions* * DELPHE <about:blankdelphe.asp> The DELPHE (Development Partnerships in Higher Education) programme provides funding for partnerships between Higher Education Institutions (HEIs) working on collaborative activity linked to the Millennium Development Goals <about:blank../mdg/default.asp>. * DFID Global Schools Partnerships <about:blankglobalschools.asp> Provides grants to schools in the UK and Africa, Asia, Latin America and the Caribbean to help build partnerships through teacher exchanges and for projects to build development issues into the curriculum. *Further information* * External linkEDULINK <http://www.acp-edulink.eu/> * External linkEngland-Africa Partnerships in Higher Education <http://www.britishcouncil.org/learning-eap> * Research opportunities <about:blank../research/research-calls.asp> *Funding for the media* * Commonwealth Broadcasting Association DFID Travel Bursary Fund <about:blankcbatravbursfund.asp> Established UK based network and regional media producers/journalists who want to spend up to three months in a Commonwealth developing country. * Commonwealth Broadcasting Association DFID Programme Development Fund <about:blankcbaprogdevfund.asp> Established UK Producers/Production companies. *Funding for Local Authorities* * Commonwealth Local Government Good Practice Scheme <about:blankcomlocgov.asp> Commonwealth local authorities, local authority associations. *Funding for specific countries or regions* Please note that this list is not exhaustive and there will be more schemes run directly from country offices. *Africa* * External linkRapid Funding Envelope for HIV/AIDS <http://www.rapidfundingenvelope.org/> Provides grants to Tanzanian non-profit civil society organisations, academic institutions, and civil society partnerships for essential, short-term projects aligned with the National Policy on HIV/AIDS and the National Multi-Sectoral Strategic Framework. * Africa Enterprise Challenge Fund <about:blank../news/files/aecf.asp> - due for launch summer 2007. * External linkBusiness Sector Advocacy Challenge Fund <http://www.busac.org/> (BUSAC) Aims to broaden the engagement of the Private Sector in Policy formulation and implementation in Ghana. * Emerging Africa Infrastructure Fund <about:blankemergingafrica.asp> A Public Private Partnership providing long-term debt finance on commercial terms to finance the construction and development of private infrastructure in Sub-Saharan Africa. * External linkFoundation for Civil Society: Tanzania <http://www.thefoundation-tz.org/> Provides grants and other capacity building support to civil society organisations to establish a support mechanism for civil society organisations in Tanzania. * External linkGhana Research Advocacy Programme <http://www.g-rap.org/> Aims to support the institutional development of Research and Advocacy Organisations (RAOs) in Ghana. * Investment Climate Facility for Africa <about:blank../news/files/pressreleases/investment-climate-facility.asp> Helps lower the cost of doing business in Africa and promote a better investment climate across the continent. * External linkRapid Funding Envelope for HIV/AIDS <http://www.rapidfundingenvelope.org/> Provides grants to Tanzanian non-profit civil society organisations, academic institutions, and civil society partnerships for essential, short-term projects aligned with the National Policy on HIV/AIDS and the National Multi-Sectoral Strategic Framework. * External linkRegional Trade Facilitation Programme <http://www.rtfp.org/> Aims to expand the regional and international trade of Southern Africa as a way of reducing poverty. * External linkRights and Voice Initiative <http://www.ravighana.org/> Aims to strengthen capacity of vulnerable groups to exercise voice and demand their rights in Ghana. * External linkSouthern Africa Trust <http://www.southernafricatrust.org/> Supports processes to deepen and widen participation in policy dialogue with a regional impact on poverty. *Further information* * External linkStrategic Business Partnerships for Growth in Africa <http://www.sbp.org.za/> *Asia* * External linkDFID Community Support Programme <http://www.csp.org.np/> aims to provide funding support to poor, marginalized, excluded, and conflict-affected communities in Nepal to address their immediate livelihood issues. * Iraqi Civil Society Challenge Fund <about:blankiraqi-csf.asp> Aims to strengthen capacity of Iraqi civil society organisations, contribute to local/community initiatives, increase access to information, and support organisations in the non-government sector to work better with government to develop and improve social policy across Iraq. * Iraq Political Participation Fund <about:blankiraq-ppf.asp> Organisations that work to support the development of legitimate and inclusive political institutions in Iraq. * Orissa Civil Society and Poverty Programme <about:blankorissaprog.asp> NGOs that have been in existence for a minimum of five years, and are based in Orissa, India. * External linkIndia Poorest Areas Civil Society Programme <http://www.empowerpoor.com/> Seeks to support civil society organisations working in identified thematic areas in India. *Worldwide* * External linkCommunity Led Infrastructure Finance Facility (CLIFF) <http://www.homeless-international.org/text_link.aspx?link_id=1:1464> Provides loan finance for slum development projects that are implemented by the urban poor in India and Kenya. * Small Grants Scheme <about:blanksmallgrant.asp> Now the responsibility of the Foreign and Commonwealth Office. *Closed funds* * Business Links Asia * External linkBusiness Linkages Challenge Fund <http://www.businesslinkageschallengefund.org/home_blcf.aspx?siteId=9035ead6…> * External linkFinancial Deepening Challenge Fund <http://www.enterplan.co.uk/fdcf/default.htm> * External linkGhana Business Linkages Challenge Fund <http://www.challengefunds.org/ghana/ghanahome.htm> * External linkHigher Education Links Scheme <http://www.britishcouncil.org/learning-higher-education-links.htm> * Know How Fund <about:blankkhf.asp> Strategic Grant Agreements <about:blank../aboutdfid/DFIDwork/strategicgrantagreements.asp>

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Re: [kictanet] Safaricom SMS Swindlers
by Michael Joseph 27 Aug '07

27 Aug '07

As i have said earlier i have for this to investigated and can assure all that this is not intended and may be a configuration error in the billing system. No sms messages to TKL were envisaged earlier and we have just started technical testing. We will try to get records of all sms records and apply a refund Michael Joseph CEO Safaricom Limited BlackBerry powered by Safaricom ----- Original Message ----- From: kictanet-bounces+mjoseph=safaricom.co.ke(a)lists.kictanet.or.ke <kictanet-bounces+mjoseph=safaricom.co.ke(a)lists.kictanet.or.ke> To: Michael Joseph Cc: kictanet(a)lists.kictanet.or.ke <kictanet(a)lists.kictanet.or.ke>; wawerujn(a)cck.go.ke <wawerujn(a)cck.go.ke> Sent: Mon Aug 27 16:36:44 2007 Subject: Re: [kictanet] Safaricom SMS Swindlers Hello all, I am a victim of this matter, and i would like to point out that the actual charge being levied for the "undelivered" sms is actually ksh 10/= and not even the published sms rate of Ksh 5/= to other networks. By way of this message, i hope also CCK and the courts will give this matter expeditious action. The information in this email and any attachments is confidential and may be legally privileged. It is intended only for the use of the named addressee. Emails are susceptible to alteration and their integrity cannot be guaranteed. Safaricom Limited does not accept legal responsibility for the contents of this email if the same is found to have been altered or manipulated. The contents and opinions expressed in this email are solely those of the author and do not necessarily represent those of Safaricom Limited. Safaricom Limited disclaims any liability to the fullest extent permissible by law for any consequences that may arise from the contents of this email including but not limited to personal opinions, malicious and/or defamatory information and data/codes that may compromise or damage the integrity of the recipient's information technology systems. If you are not the intended recipient please notify the sender and immediately delete this email from your system.

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