Basically, see what other countries are doing to promote their own software industries using open standards, and what they are doing to develop local capacities. See how much countries are making annually in software exports, and then ask ourselves how much we are exporting and how much we are importing.
What we are doing in Kenya now does not in any way reflect where we want to be as a leading software (and IT) exporter in the years to come. From my perspective, we are mainly developing our capacities as users, not as producers. I stand to be corrected.
Evans Ikua
Thanks Rachel for sharing.
Ali Hussein
Twitter: @AliHKassim
Skype: abu-jomo
On Fri, Nov 30, 2012 at 12:47 PM, Alwala, Rachel <Alwala@cck.go.ke> wrote:_______________________________________________Listers,I happened to attend the launch of the UNCTAD - Information Economy Report 2012 , subtitled The Software Industry and Developing Countries, on 28th November in London. The report urges governments to adopt policies that can help build domestic software capabilities. I was proud to see Kenya cited in the report as one of the countries that have demonstrated high potential in this sector and I think we should laud Dr. Ndemo's 'evangelism' in this area and indeed many others. There are a number of examples that we can learn from in oder to leverage our capabilities as a nation in this multi-billion industry. Sri Lanka is a case in point, alongside other countries that are way ahead. We need to think of catalysts that are suitable to our local situation including a critical mass of skills, increase in broadband access to boost local demand and also create a flexible environment that will encourage more developers. The incubators are doing a great job in nurturing the developers but we also need to go further and create industries through provision of capital, etc. All the same, you may want to access the report and get some the insights from the link - http://unctad.org/en/pages/PublicationWebflyer.aspx?publicationid=271Enjoy the reading.Regards,Rachel Alwala
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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.