KICTANets Monthly Minutes and KDN Presentation
Dear Member, Please find attached the minutes of the Planning Meeting that took place on 9th November 2006 and the KDN Presentation by Kai Wulff . Thank You. Yours Faithfully Judy Kimiti KICTANet Send instant messages to your online friends http://uk.messenger.yahoo.com Send instant messages to your online friends http://uk.messenger.yahoo.com Send instant messages to your online friends http://uk.messenger.yahoo.com ___________________________________________________________ All new Yahoo! Mail "The new Interface is stunning in its simplicity and ease of use." - PC Magazine http://uk.docs.yahoo.com/nowyoucan.html
PLAYING THE CATCH UP GAME- AFRICAN STYLE By Rebecca Wanjiku Paul Odhiambo is an ICT officer at the Ministry of Education in Kenya. He is used to the technical jargon and all issues relating to the information society. But attending the Internet Corporation for Assigned Names and Numbers (ICANN) meeting is not that easy for Odhiambo. In some of the sessions, he finds himself in unfarmiliar territory. Why ? afterall he is a techie ! Because at the meetings, participants discuss about ICT laws and how they can be made responsive to people´s demands and privacies. For instance, during discussions on WHOIS, participants discuss issues on how much information should be available to the public and whether such information should be shared accross the sectors. Then there are other issues on the menu like security concerns and the usual business aspect of e-commerce. Legal issues are also discussed regarding applicable laws in case of cross country trade. For example, if importing a car from Dubai, if its damaged at sea and you bought it online, which courts can you seek redress? Kenyan court or Dubai. Odhiambo may find himself in unfamiliar territory because Kenya has no ICT law, doesnt seem to care much about e-commerce whether in country or between Kenya and other countries. Odhiambo´s story is probably the story of many African participants at ICANN meetings. Latin America, North America, Europe and Asia seem to be operating on a different level compared to Africa. While the rest are discussing progressive issues, African delegates can only watch and say, we have our issues- access, and policy formulation. But for how long will Africa cling on to the problems as an excuse? Take for example the issue of access, those who were in the ICT industry will maybe confirm that some African heads have sang this song of the digital divide, lack of access and lack of money. But the leaders have gyrated and swung their hips at the prospect of development that ICT holds. Whilst the question of infrastructure and finance maybe understood, what about policy formulation, can that be understood too? Many of us stay home and wonder why ICANN meetings are important. Some may view it as a travel club or a playground for techies. While you wonder what label to give them, these guys are making policies that could affect you. What are you doing about it? Ends Rebecca Wanjiku, journalist, p.o box 33515, Nairobi.00600 Kenya. Tel. 254 720 318 925 blog:http://beckyit.blogspot.com/ --------------------------------- Want to start your own business? Learn how on Yahoo! Small Business.
TANZANIA ENJOYS FRUITS OF CO-OPERATION By Rebecca Wanjiku, When Peter Ulanga was invited to visit Brazil, last year, he knew that something was going to change in the management of dot Tz country code Top Level Domain (ccTLD). Ulanga, and a colleague, Peter Shilla, benefited from training offered by the Brazilian government on management of domain name registries using open source software. Within two years of the training, Tanzania Communications Regulatory Authority is ready to launch the dot Tz ccTLD registry. The domain has been administered by the University of Dar es Salaam and individuals. `The training worked well, we have bought necessary equipment and we are ready to launch Tanzania Network Information Centre, TzNIC,` said Ulanga. Ulanga says that the training was useful and the tests were successful. He added that it will now be easier to register domains and if there are any problems, then there is a central point to channel complaints. Tanzania benefitted from the south/south solidarity spearheaded by the South American power house. Kenya was the first to train on how to use the software, Tanzania soon followed suit, while Mozambique and Sudan are lining up for the services. The gesture by the Brazilian government was calculated to ensure that Africa can access the less costly open source software solutions and transform African registries from manual to automation. At the on-going Internet Corporation for Assigned Names and Numbers(ICANN) conference, in Sao Paulo, renowned Brazilian Professor Hartmut Glaser could not hide his joy while confirming that he had been invited by the Tanzanian government to witness the fruits of his government´s generosity. Apart from the training, Brazil offered technical assistance to the recipient countries in case of any problems with the software or even any technical hitches in their operations. The drive to foster south/south cooperation started in 2002 when Brazil sent engineers to Togo to train local counterparts from more than 20 countries gathered in Lome. Ends Judy kimiti <jkimiti01@yahoo.co.uk> wrote: Dear Member, Please find attached the minutes of the Planning Meeting that took place on 9th November 2006 and the KDN Presentation by Kai Wulff . Thank You. Yours Faithfully Judy Kimiti KICTANet Send instant messages to your online friends http://uk.messenger.yahoo.com Send instant messages to your online friends http://uk.messenger.yahoo.com Send instant messages to your online friends http://uk.messenger.yahoo.com --------------------------------- All new Yahoo! Mail "The new Interface is stunning in its simplicity and ease of use." - PC Magazine_______________________________________________ kictanet mailing list kictanet@kictanet.or.ke http://kictanet.or.ke/mailman/listinfo/kictanet Please unsubscribe or change your options at http://kictanet.or.ke/mailman/options/kictanet/rebeccawanjiku%40yahoo.com Rebecca Wanjiku, journalist, p.o box 33515, Nairobi.00600 Kenya. Tel. 254 720 318 925 blog:http://beckyit.blogspot.com/ --------------------------------- Everyone is raving about the all-new Yahoo! Mail beta.
Finding Unity in Diversity By Rebecca Wanjiku African participants at Internet Corporation for Assigned Names and Numbers(ICANN) meeting in Sao Paulo have formed a unified body that with articulate issues from participants drawn from various sectors. Africa Regional At Large Organisation (AFRALO) will unite users wishing to articulate their issues to ICANN. AFRALO is expected to link Africa to the global At Large Organisation within ICANN. Alice Munyua, a member of ICANN´s At Large Organisation says AFRALO will help Africa identify their peculiar issues and call attention to the global body. ¨Through the regional body, African users can identify their challenges and design ways to deal with them. For instance, if the fibre optic cable is laid, then more people can access the internet and then we can deal with other problems other than access,¨said Munyua. With the growing mobile telephony and cutting edge technology that provides internet via mobile, Munyua says AFRALO will ensure that African voices are heard. Though not officially launched, preparations of a Memorandum of Understanding are in top gear. AFRALO is expected to face challenges of language and culture, multiplicity and diversity of digital challenges. Some countries are deemed to have developed ICT infrastructure while others have not. Munyua expects all countries to meet and point out issues that affect all sectors and the changes they would like to see. The country representatives/ liasons will forward to AFRALO which will then link with the global body. She recognises that it will be hard to reach consensus because of the diverse interests but she promises AFRALO will work hard to adequately represent african users. Latin America and the Caribbean have already formed LAC-RALO (Latin America and the Caribbean Regional At-Large Organisation) which is expected to maximize participation of user groups from the region Paul Twomey ICANN president, told delegates during the opening ceremony that LAC-RALO will be the third Latin American organisation to help ICANN in its work. The other two are LACTLD (Regional ccTLD managers) and LACNIC (Regional Internet Registry for Latin America). Ends Rebecca Wanjiku, journalist, p.o box 33515, Nairobi.00600 Kenya. Tel. 254 720 318 925 blog:http://beckyit.blogspot.com/ --------------------------------- Cheap Talk? Check out Yahoo! Messenger's low PC-to-Phone call rates.
Calling African Scholars By Rebecca Wanjiku African scholars interested in developing and preserving indigenous languages have been challenged to take the lead in the Internationalised Domain Name (IDN) debate. Prof. Maxime Z. Somé, from the University of Ouagadougou in Burkina Faso called on African linguists to actively participate in the IDN project. `Scientists and scholars should constitute themselves as an exceptional authority in African affairs and move the project forward, said Some. Some is concerned that Cambodia, Japan, China, Korea and Arabic countries seem to be moving at a faster pace and leaving Africa behind. In his opinion, linguistic experts as well as scientists in Africa should work together and move the agenda forward. He added that the IDN project requires linguists to agree on the language and terminologies of a particular language and the scientists to work on the technological aspects. After the agreement of the scripts and language tables, the UNICODE consortium, which consists of computer makers and other bodies, will be expected to integrate the languages into most computers sold to the Africa region. In this regard, if I have a computer, I can choose the language to use, just like I select to use French or German. In the case of French, the computer inserts the right accents and other letters that may not be available in the English key board. Asked whether this will lead to development of many key boards, Some says experts can work on some regional languages like Bambara, used in Guinea, Mali, Ivory Coast and Burkina Faso or Fulani, used in Nigeria, Senegal, Mauritania and Mali. `We know that this project requires a lot of financial commitment and big businesses are not going to invest if not assured of profits. That leaves governments, which have been very non committal, ` he adds. But he maintains that scholars can jumpstart the process by learning from other countries where experts volunteered their services for the sake of development. Some spoke at the ongoing Internet Corporation for Assigned Names and Numbers (ICANN) meeting in Sao Paulo, where the urgency of IDNs has taken centre stage and its proponents are touting it as a solution to communication problems. While there are workshops and follow-up meetings to discuss and update on issues relating to IDNs, Africa is stuck with the obsession of listing its numerous cultural and logistical problems as the hindrance to IDN progress. In 2004, Adama Samassekou, head of the African Academy of Languages was quoted saying there was lethargy within African leadership to use local languages even at Africa Unity meetings Swahili was recommended in 1986 but was used at the AU meeting in July 2004. Swahili is widely spoken in 15 East and Central African countries. Ends Rebecca Wanjiku, journalist, p.o box 33515, Nairobi.00600 Kenya. Tel. 254 720 318 925 blog:http://beckyit.blogspot.com/ --------------------------------- Everyone is raving about the all-new Yahoo! Mail beta.
Dear Judy, Thank you for the minutes. I was not able to attend the meeting. I however need to make some clarifications. Kenya is commited to developing a competitive environment to ensure quality and affordability of connectivity. To achieve this we have adopted a model in which the Government takes the lead in development of infrastructure just like roads then the private sector could run on it. The terrestrial network the Government is developing is not going to be owned by TKL but all operators can participate. With this model you ensure rural connectivity (the business case here is that the fibre would carry all manner of traffic including radio signals) and increase infordensity ultimately creating wealth, reduce poverty to many Kenyans. The undersea cable too is to be owned by the private sector (all operators region and other willing investors in this region)once we structure TEAMS. TKL by signing the MOU did not mean they are to own it inspite of the fact that the Government owns it 100%. Fujiaira has four links that would allow competitive prices and possibly a buy in into the proposed SEA-ME-WE 5. Other locations may be vulnerable especially if there is a breakdown. I hope this sheds some light. Regards Bitange Ndemo. ---------------------------------------------- This message has been scanned for viruses and dangerous content by Jambo MailScanner, and is believed to be clean. --------------------------------------------- "easy access to the world"
Bwana PS, I must say this information is very timely and very important for us in the private sector. I must say personally this is a welcome clarification and spells out a significant policy decision that is not been available to us in the industry. I therefore thank you for the clarification and further more request that as soon as the investment information is available, we in private sector are keen to invest in the proposed projects in order to compete in this global sector. When are we likely to know when the investment structure will be published and will there be preference /an allocation for Kenyan businesses first? -- Joseph Mucheru Chief Executive mucheru@wananchi.com Wananchi Online Ltd Voted ISP of the Year 2006 Computer Society of Kenya Annual Awards 30th November 2006 Panari Hotel, Nairobi Are you hosting your domain name with the leaders??: See http://webhosting.info/webhosts/tophosts/Country/KE
From: <bitange@jambo.co.ke> Reply-To: Kenya ICT Policy - kictanet <kictanet@kictanet.or.ke> Date: Wed, 6 Dec 2006 07:31:44 +0300 (EAT) To: <mucheru@wananchi.com> Subject: Re: [Kictanet] KICTANets Monthly Minutes and KDN Presentation
Dear Judy, Thank you for the minutes. I was not able to attend the meeting. I however need to make some clarifications. Kenya is commited to developing a competitive environment to ensure quality and affordability of connectivity. To achieve this we have adopted a model in which the Government takes the lead in development of infrastructure just like roads then the private sector could run on it. The terrestrial network the Government is developing is not going to be owned by TKL but all operators can participate. With this model you ensure rural connectivity (the business case here is that the fibre would carry all manner of traffic including radio signals) and increase infordensity ultimately creating wealth, reduce poverty to many Kenyans.
The undersea cable too is to be owned by the private sector (all operators region and other willing investors in this region)once we structure TEAMS. TKL by signing the MOU did not mean they are to own it inspite of the fact that the Government owns it 100%. Fujiaira has four links that would allow competitive prices and possibly a buy in into the proposed SEA-ME-WE 5. Other locations may be vulnerable especially if there is a breakdown.
I hope this sheds some light.
Regards
Bitange Ndemo.
---------------------------------------------- This message has been scanned for viruses and dangerous content by Jambo MailScanner, and is believed to be clean. --------------------------------------------- "easy access to the world"
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participants (4)
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bitange＠jambo.co.ke -
Joseph Mucheru -
Judy kimiti -
Rebecca Wanjiku