Listers, I think this is a bit of a content fishing expedition. The FTA doesn't seem to be going anywhere. It has been on ICE since the Biden administration came in. The US seems keener on CPTPT (Comprehensive and Progressive Trans-Pacific Treaty) and the EU-US Trade & Tech Council. The TTC in Pittsburg did not do much except come up with broad areas for the next meeting in Paris in 2022.
From the emails I have been seeing from the American Chamber of Commerce which was very active in organizing meetings around the Kenya-US FTA last year, now it is taking a more East African tone.
UK is itself trying desperately to get an FTA done with the US and it hasn't happened yet. Probably why they are busy dismantling some Tech related laws. In my opinion, it is good academic exercise to discuss it, but I do not see it in the near horizon. By then perhaps we will have built up the ODPC and probably put in legislation around Ethical AI & Automated Decision making. Regards, JG Mbugua On Wed, Oct 6, 2021 at 11:46 AM Ali Hussein via KICTANet < kictanet@lists.kictanet.or.ke> wrote:
Adrian
Please see my responses in-line below.
Regards
*Ali Hussein*
Fintech | Digital Transformation
Tel: +254 713 601113
Twitter: @AliHKassim
Skype: abu-jomo
LinkedIn: http://ke.linkedin.com/in/alihkassim <http://ke.linkedin.com/in/alihkassim>
Any information of a personal nature expressed in this email are purely mine and do not necessarily reflect the official positions of the organizations that I work with.
On Wed, Oct 6, 2021 at 10:10 AM Adrian Teri <adriateri@gmail.com> wrote:
@ Ali Hussein
We have a new/young authority that has the mandate to oversee Data Protection at the ODPC's office. In the last paragraphs of BD's article there is mention of clauses that ban data localisation.
*Ali response - With you on this. At KICTANet we fully support the ODPC's Office.*
We need to empower and give teeth to this authority such that they can
impose fines and if it comes to it, "black hole" these companies' services at the Internet Exchange Point (KIXP). Also making these companies set up local offices would be highly desirable as they aren't too far from reach.
*Ali response - Let's be careful with some of the solutions you are suggesting. This could lead to further Balkanization of the Internet. Something that China, Russia, and the GCC countries have perfected. No one wants this except totalitarian regimes. *
I see you are from the Fintech industry but I don't know your inclination on regulation. *It is unquestionably clear that there is nothing like self regulation*. If the home countries of these companies can not muster and see through regulation for them, then the onus is on us and every other sovereign country in the world to do so.
*Ali response - I'll be careful to not think regulation is the cure of all evil. What we forget is that regulators are human too, with all our positives and negatives. Having said that I'm all for Enlightened Regulation. Here I mean that regulators need not only swing the big stick but also do something towards enhancing and advancing the industries they regulate. One such regulator in my humble opinion is the Communications Authority of Kenya. *
The beauty of the internet is not like regular products e.g cars which can comply to various regulations per region/country with the emission's laws. On the Internet you can't have 10 different versions of Instagram or WhatsApp. Evidence? The persistent and obnoxious Cookie notices you receive all the time thanks to The EU's GDPR even if you are not a resident of an EU member state.
*Ali response - Agreed. However, nature abhors a vacuum. So the EU (for better or worse) is doing what other countries should do. Instead of blaming them let us look at ourselves... :-)*
Yours Kindly,
Adrian
On Mon, 4 Oct 2021 at 15:43, Ali Hussein <ali@hussein.me.ke> wrote:
My humble opinion?
Too much hullabaloo for nothing. What is it that the American companies are doing now that will be accelerated by this trade agreement?
Methinks this is just sensational reporting without much meat in it...
Regards
*Ali Hussein*
Fintech | Digital Transformation
Tel: +254 713 601113
Twitter: @AliHKassim
Skype: abu-jomo
LinkedIn: http://ke.linkedin.com/in/alihkassim <http://ke.linkedin.com/in/alihkassim>
Any information of a personal nature expressed in this email are purely mine and do not necessarily reflect the official positions of the organizations that I work with.
On Mon, Oct 4, 2021 at 1:52 PM Adrian Teri via KICTANet < kictanet@lists.kictanet.or.ke> wrote:
Good afternoon listers,
On Today's (Oct 4th 2021) Business Daily ()What//how does is say/impact about digital taxes (mostly on foreign internet services) and Data Protection Act?
The irony of free trade agreements is like putting a heavyweight champion against a featherweight. It’s not competition, it’s ugly and brutal.
https://www.businessdailyafrica.com/bd/economy/us-tech-giants-profit-from-ke...
Yours Kindly, Adrian _______________________________________________ KICTANet mailing list KICTANet@lists.kictanet.or.ke https://lists.kictanet.or.ke/mailman/listinfo/kictanet Twitter: http://twitter.com/kictanet Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/KICTANet/
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KICTANetiquette : Adhere to the same standards of acceptable behaviors online that you follow in real life: respect people's times and bandwidth, share knowledge, don't flame or abuse or personalize, respect privacy, do not spam, do not market your wares or qualifications.
KICTANet - The Power of Communities, is Kenya's premier ICT policy engagement platform.