Evans
 
Your comment "In some developed countries like Germany and UK, the policies are there and they clearly state that (in Government) you can only buy proprietary software only if you cannot get a OSS option to do what you need to do" is a misrepresentation of UK government policy on OSS.
 
The Government’s policy is as follows:
    Open Source Software
  1. The Government will actively and fairly consider open source solutions alongside proprietary ones in making procurement decisions,
  2. Procurement decisions will be made on the basis on the best value for money solution to the business requirement, taking account of total lifetime cost of ownership of the solution, including exit and transition costs, after ensuring that solutions fulfil minimum and essential capability, security, scalability, transferability, support and manageability requirements.
  3. The Government will expect those putting forward IT solutions to develop where necessary a suitable mix of open source and proprietary products to ensure that the best possible overall solution can be considered.
  4. Where there is no significant overall cost difference between open and non-open source products, open source will be selected on the basis of its additional inherent flexibility.
    Non–Open Source Software
  1. The Government will, wherever possible, avoid becoming locked in to proprietary software. In particular it will take exit, rebid and rebuild costs into account in procurement decisions and will require those proposing proprietary software to specify how exit would be achieved.
  2. Where non open source products need to be purchased, Government will expect licences to be available for all public sector use and for licences already purchased to be transferable within the public sector without further cost or limitation. The Government will where appropriate seek pan-government agreements with software suppliers which ensure that government is treated as a single entity for the purposes of volume discounts and transferability of licences.
    Open Standards
  1. The Government will use open standards in its procurement specifications and require solutions to comply with open standards. The Government will support the development of open standards and specifications.
    Re–Use
  1. The Government will look to secure full rights to bespoke software code or customisations of commercial off the shelf products it procures, so as to enable straightforward re-use elsewhere in the public sector. Where appropriate, general purpose software developed for government will be released on an open source basis.
  2. Where the public sector already owns a system, design or architecture the Government will expect it to be reused and that commercial arrangements will recognise this. Where new development is proposed, suppliers will be required to warrant that they have not developed or produced something comparable, in whole or in part, for the public sector in the past, or where they have, to show how this is reflected in reduced costs, risks and timescale.
  3. When suppliers are proposing a third party product there should be full price transparency. If there is a pan–Government agreement there should be the option to source through this where doing so would maximise overall public sector value. The Government will expect to be charged only the cost the supplier incurs unless the supplier can clearly and transparently provide evidence of the additional value created.
Victor
 
On 7/3/09, Evans Ikua <ikua@lpakenya.org> wrote:
As far as the policy goes, I beg to disagree with Dr Ndemo. Its good to have a policy that makes the playing field level. That is a good start and that is the basic minimum that should be expected. On the other hand, its very important to understand that for the sake of the interests of a country, its important to have a policy that supports what we believe is good for us. If we are all convinced that OSS is good for us, then there is no-one to stop us from having a policy that supports OSS very openly. Too bad if some Proprietary software houses will not like it. But we must learn to protect our national interests agressively. The many countries in Europe and the rest of the world have gone this direction and they are enjoying the benefits of OSS. In some developed countries like Germany and UK, the policies are there and they clearly state that (in Government) you can only buy proprietary software only if you cannot get a OSS option to do what you need to do.

As for the MoE, its very hard to penetrate to them as some of us have learnt. At the same time, the OSS advocates we have in this country (us included) have very limited capacities as we do not receive any funding from anyone. This is one of the handicaps that OSS advocacy has. We volunteer our resources (time and money) and have to compete with software companies that are supported by Marketing budgets that run into the Billion Dollars.


--
Evans Ikua
Linux Professional Association of Kenya
Tel: +254-20-2250381, Cell: +254-722 955 831
Eagle House, 2nd Floor
Kimathi Street, Opp. Corner House
www.lpakenya.org
Prof. Waema,
A good policy levels the play ground.  What each party (Proprietary or
OSS) does should not concern policy.  That is why we need the procurement
rules change to give everybody an equal chance.


Ndemo.





Bwana Sang,

You have a point. We do not have strong OSS champions, especially in the
public sector - at least not as powerful as the evangilists for
proprietary
software. This situation is not helped by a non-committal policy. Let me
chew over how we can change things.

Mwololo


On 6/30/09, Barnabas K. Sang <bksang@education.go.ke> wrote:

 Tim,



I agree with you to some extent, that we all need revision of the
current
ICT Policy to accommodate the key issues Kenya currently is focusing on.
On
OSS, I still doubt capacity of “*OSS Champions*” on the issue having
observed in the past one year, how an opportunity to have 210 secondary
schools each equipped with 25 PCs and use both proprietary software and
OSS
(Funds provided for) progressed.



To date, no OSS proponents have brought any concept on how MOE can
facilitate the adoption and use of OSS. There are some brilliant OSS
solutions, particularly supporting teaching and learning (animated
content
-> good for illustrations of difficult concepts in some subjects) and
development of content for use by all education and training
stakeholders
(teachers, students, parents and researchers).



I would like to acknowledge existence of sufficient leadership (policy
and
managers) to support modernization of education (ICT integration to
teaching
and learning). We may not have all necessary capacity yet for
decision-makers to guide the process, but in partnership with all
stakeholders, I believe OSS will definitely find a niche in the whole
ICT
integration exercise being spearheaded by MOE. Perhaps people like
yourself
and others in this network, could enlightened us on how OSS could be
part of
ICT integration efforts at an early stage as possible.



Kind Regards



B. K. Sang



*From:*
kictanet-bounces+bksang=education.go.ke@lists.kictanet.or.ke[mailto:
kictanet-bounces+bksang <kictanet-bounces%2Bbksang>=education.go.ke@
lists.kictanet.or.ke] *On Behalf Of *Mwololo Tim
*Sent:* Tuesday, June 30, 2009 8:02 AM
*To:* Barnabas K. Sang
*Cc:* KICTAnet ICT Policy Discussions
*Subject:* Re: [kictanet] Fw: RE: One subject, varying quality - We lack
an accreditation system for ICT courses



Listers,



Our 2006 national ICT policy is silent on open source software (OSS). As
we
think of a review of this policy, which according to me is due due to a
number of issues (Vision 2030, BPO, and many other developments), we
should
think seriously about a section on OSS policy.



tim mwololo



On 6/29/09, *Evans Ikua* <ikua@lpakenya.org> wrote:

There is also Camara Kenya (the local office of camara.ie) that has done
tremendous work in the area of putting hardware in schools, both Primary
and
Secondary, installing open source software, supporting them, and
training
the teachers. This in a short period of time.

Their work has mainly been in the coast region but they are also getting
into the hinterland. They have about 150 volunteers from Ireland who
have
just come in and they will conduct trainings for about a month.

They have equipped schools in the whole of Lamu island, and many schools
at
the coast.

They are achieving much more by using FOSS as a computer installed with
Linux gives much more to a student as opposed to one installed with
Windows.
Because they are not spending a penny on software licenses, they are
able to
supply like twice the number of PCs than if they were to have the
schools
buy licenses.

Ikua

--
Evans Ikua
Linux Professional Association of Kenya
Tel: +254-20-2250381, Cell: +254-722 955 831
Eagle House, 2nd Floor
Kimathi Street, Opp. Corner House
www.lpakenya.org




Quoting Walubengo J <jwalu@yahoo.com>:

forwarded--- On Thu, 6/25/09, Emmanuel Khisa
<emmanuel.khisa@kadet.co.ke>
wrote:

From: Emmanuel Khisa <emmanuel.khisa@kadet.co.ke>
Subject: RE: [kictanet] One subject,varying quality - We lack an
 accreditation system for  ICT courses
To: "'Walubengo J'" <jwalu@yahoo.com>
Date: Thursday, June 25, 2009, 10:11 AM

And Project Discovery Kenya has been able to train more that 200 primary
school teachers over the last five years in conjunction with Institute
of
Software technologies...I also know that similar training went on in
Yala
Division last April for Primary school teachers in the division
organised
by
the Computers for Schools.
On the subject of lack of adequate professors, I will leave that to
Academicians and those keen on interrogating academics, I however would
like
the ICT training to move from over concentration with the academics and
more
to the more handson...more like incubator based learning
approach...While
the Far East economies have good universities, they still put more
premium
on handson skills...It is sad that even our graduate engineers let alone
IT
graduates (who by the way take a lot of flack) cannot invent or think
outside the box...I mean no invention ever comes out of these highly
restricted courses yet only a select few universities dare to venture
into...

The answer in my opinion lies in building skills that are more practical
and
focussed on creating entrepreneural opportunities.

Rgds,

Manu

"New opinions are always suspected and usually opposed, without any
other
reason but because they are not already common."
P Before printing, think about the Environment and your responsibilities
-----Original Message-----
From: kictanet-bounces+emmanuel.khisa=kadet.co.ke@lists.kictanet.or.ke
[mailto:kictanet-bounces+emmanuel.khisa<kictanet-bounces%2Bemmanuel.khisa>
=kadet.co.ke@lists.kictanet.or.ke] On
Behalf Of Walubengo J
Sent: Thursday, June 25, 2009 8:41 AM
To: emmanuel.khisa@kadet.co.ke
Cc: KICTAnet ICT Policy Discussions
Subject: Re: [kictanet] One subject,varying quality - We lack an
accreditation system for ICT courses


I agree that something is happening within the High-School teaching
fraternity. Last April, Multimedia University College trained 80 high
school
headteachers from Samburu and I think Transmara Districts, giving them
basic
ICT skills...am aware Strathmore University, IAT etc also do such
trainings
regularly...It may not be enough, but its definitely a good kick in the
right direction.

As for the University Level IT faculty staff.  Unfortunately the
statistics
are likely to be true.  You can count the number of IT Professors in
this
country on your three fingers ;-)

walu.



--- On Wed, 6/24/09, Barnabas K. Sang <bksang@education.go.ke> wrote:

From: Barnabas K. Sang <bksang@education.go.ke>
Subject: Re: [kictanet] One subject, varying quality - We lack an

accreditation system for  ICT courses

To: jwalu@yahoo.com
Cc: "KICTAnet ICT Policy Discussions" <kictanet@lists.kictanet.or.ke>
Date: Wednesday, June 24, 2009, 11:32 PM















Betty,



Thanks for your response on the article
mentioned below. Will go
through it and perhaps respond on key issues raised, which
ICT in Education has
already done or planned. I hope it will minimize fears all
of us have or may be
persuaded to think all is totally misplaced and lost.




?ICT Integration? is currently Ministry
of Education focus, and
steps already put in place are expected to make Kenya
improve both teaching and
learning environment, with better education ?products?
across all levels.



Kind regards



B. K. Sang







From:
kictanet-bounces+bksang=education.go.ke@lists.kictanet.or.ke
[mailto:kictanet-bounces+bksang <kictanet-bounces%2Bbksang>=
education.go.ke@lists.kictanet.or.ke]
On
Behalf Of Betty Ogange

Sent: Wednesday, June 24, 2009 4:31 PM

To: Barnabas K. Sang

Cc: KICTAnet ICT Policy Discussions

Subject: Re: [kictanet] One subject, varying quality
- We lack an
accreditation system for ICT courses








  Hallo David,
  Last week there was furore in this forum
about media
  misrepresentation of the Kenyan situation. The article
that you make
  reference to in today?s Standard (24.06.09) may be
accurate in the areas that
  you have highlighted. However, I wish to take issue with
a few points raised
  in the article.

http://www.eastandard.net/education/InsidePage.php?id=1144017693&cid=316


   ?Unlike other academic fields, very
little has been done
  to train most teachers in ICT skills. Currently, no
primary teacher training
  college offers comprehensive pre-service training in
information technology.?

  Anyone with a modest interest in education in
Kenya would not
  miss something as obvious as a subject in the national
curriculum when reporting
  in a national daily. Prior to the year 2004, a few
colleges had ICT skills
  courses for pre-service teachers based on in-house
curricula that were
  independently developed by each college. The Primary
Teacher Education (PTE)
  ICT curriculum developed by the Kenya Institute of
Education has been in
  force since the year 2004 and ICT is taught as a
compulsory subject in all
  primary teacher training colleges.  It is examined
internally at the end of
  the first year and all students must pass in the subject,
among other
  subjects, in order to proceed to second year. There are
several
  implementation hitches in this programme arising from the
fact that ICT is
  being taught as a discrete subject in the curriculum and
has yet to be
  mainstreamed in the other subjects in the PTE curriculum.
The debate around
  ICT- pedagogy integration in education and how to
operationalise it right
  from curriculum development to classroom level
implementation continues in
  the education circles.

   ?In-service training is often
provided by trainers who
  are just barely literate in
computers?

  In my knowledge, this has happened especially
in instances when
  some hardware providers ?dangle? teacher training as
an additional offer to
  the institution. TTCs used to hire ICT technicians to
teach the course, but
  in the last 2 years, the Teacher Service Commission has
posted trained
  lecturers of ICT to a number of TTCs. There have also
been some highly
  professional training offered to college lecturers by
Microsoft (in
  conjunction with the Institute of Advanced Technology -
IAT) and the Kenya
  Technical Teachers College. Computers for Schools Kenya
and the Nepad
  e-schools teacher training programmes have also reached
teachers in selected
  secondary schools. Lack of co-ordination (as with the
rest of the ICT
  initiatives in Kenya ), lack of clear training targets
and time-lines have
  compromised continuity and impact of some of these
training programmes.

  ?The
entire ICT education is in tatters?
  An interesting analogy there. But I see a
sector that is struggling
  with what some scholars in educational reform have called
an ?implementation
  dip? ? that for a number of reasons things normally
tend to get worse before
  they can get better.  There are lots of difficulties in
implementing large
  scale ICT initiatives in the education sector world over.
In our country,
  there have been positive efforts by the Ministry of
Education, the KIE and a
  number of stakeholders in education, and these do count.
On the other hand,
  there has been the tendency (by education leaders)
towards elaborate policy
  documents, ?ICT networks? and trust funds whose
mandates remain
  indeterminate. All these need to be researched and
accurately presented.

  Accurate reporting by the media and objective
analysis of both
  the positives and difficulties are important in helping
the public target
  their attention and effort. Besides the inaccuracies, the
use of expressions
  such as ?in tatters? ?the situation is bad?,
?alarmed professionals?
  ?obsolete hardware? to describe ICT in education in
Kenya sounds to me fairly
  sensational.

  Betty





  --- On Wed, 6/24/09, David Otwoma
<otwomad@gmail.com>
  wrote:


  From: David Otwoma <otwomad@gmail.com>

  Subject: [kictanet] One subject, varying quality - We
lack an accreditation
  system for ICT courses

  To: ogange@yahoo.com

  Cc: "KICTAnet ICT Policy Discussions"
  <kictanet@lists.kictanet.or.ke>

  Date: Wednesday, June 24, 2009, 9:32 AM


  .....universities
  offer many degrees but their quality and market demand
differ......





  Although
  nearly all universities offer degrees, only the
University of Nairobi, Jomo
  Kenyatta University of Agriculture and Technology and
Strathmore have
  Master?s programmes and only UON and Jkuat teach at
doctoral level.


  There
  is a diminishing number of staff with PhDs in ICT
departments. According to
  Prof Rodrigues, UoN has the highest number of full-time
lecturers with PhDs
  in ICT that stands at eight of 18, while Jkuat has three
of six, which is the
  same number for Strathmore.


  Kenyatta
  University has nine full-time but none of them have a PhD
or an equivalent
  qualification, while none of the Kabarak?s eight
lecturers have a PhD. Two of
  six of United States International University has
doctoral degrees.


  Many
  lecturers have no experience as ICT professionals as
engineers, software
  developers or in the emerging area of computer and
network security.





  See

http://www.eastandard.net/education/InsidePage.php?id=1144017693&cid=316&

  for full story





  --

  David Otwoma,

  Chief Science Secretary,

  National Council for Science and Technology,

  Utalii House 9th Floor,

  Mobile tel: +254 722 141771,

  Office tel: +254 (0)20 2346915,

  P. O. Box 5687 - 00100, Nairobi, Kenya

  email: otwomad@gmail.com & otwoma@ncst.go.ke

  www.ncst.go.ke



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--
David Otwoma,
Chief Science Secretary,
National Council for Science and Technology,
Utalii House 9th Floor,
Mobile tel: +254 722 141771,
Office tel: +254 (0)20 2346915,
P. O. Box 29899 - 00100, Nairobi, Kenya
email: otwomad@gmail.com & otwoma@ncst.go.ke
www.ncst.go.ke

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