ECA briefs Africa IGF on 2013 Innovation Prize for Africa, Calls for More Entries

Cairo-- In order to create increased awareness about the Innovation Prize for Africa (IPA) initiative and further get more tech-innovators to submit their entries during next year’s awards, the ECA briefed delegates attending the Africa Internet Governance Forum on the status of the initiative.

At a pre-event workshop held on Tuesday October 2, Ms Eskedar Nega, a Programme Officer at ECA’s ICT, Science and Technology Division (ISTD) described the IPA initiative, founded by ECA and the African Innovation Foundation (AIF) in 2012, as an “African programme that promotes and encourages innovation in the continent.”

       

“The IPA focuses on African-led solutions aimed at recognizing innovative breakthroughs to unlock new African potential and mobilizing leaders from all sectors to fuel African innovation,” said Ms Nega, adding that the theme for the IPA 2013 is“the Future We Innovate” with deadline for entries being October 31, 2012.

So far, applications have been received from various countries – including Angola, Cameroon, Congo, Democratic Rep. of Congo, Egypt, Ethiopia, Ghana, Kenya, Madagascar, Mauritius, Morocco, Mozambique, Nigeria, Rwanda, Senegal, Somalia, South Africa, Tanzania, Tunisia, Uganda and Mali.

“Just like last year, most of the applicants are drawn from Nigeria and Kenya and we hereby urge innovators from other African countries to submit their innovative ideas and projects. IPA has further benefits for the finalists and winners in that it links them venture capitalists to fund their project and also offers training as well as networking opportunities,” said Ms Nega at the Africa IGF pre-event workshop held at the Smart Village in Cairo, Egypt.

Dr. Mohamed Sanad - who emerged overall winner of the 2012 IPA with his low-cost, base station antenna has that can cover all wireless applications at different frequency bands including WiMax, digital TV, CDMA and GSM – highlighted the features of his invention and the impact the Prize had on his work in Egypt and globally.

Dr Sanad  said that with initiatives such as IPA aiming at promoting innovation, Africa should be able to export technology rather than being a mere importer of technology, noting that the continent’s youth should be encouraged to build confidence and become competent globally.

The workshop recommended that policymakers need to promote an innovation ecosystem aimed at strengthening the capacity of innovators and entrepreneurs; establish public and private institutions which can drive innovation and increase the availability of resources to better nurture the capacity of potential innovators in Africa. The session further recommended that there is a need to raise awareness on the importance of intellectual property rights to encourage innovation and entrepreneurship in Africa.  

The IPA prize honours and encourages innovative achievements that contribute toward developing new products, increasing efficiency or saving cost in Africa. The prize also promotes among young African men and women the pursuit of science, technology and engineering careers as well as business opportunities with potentials of contributing to sustainable development in Africa. 

Overall, it aims to among other things: mobilize leaders from all sectors to fuel African innovation; promote innovation across Africa in key sectors of interest through the competition: promote science, technology and engineering as rewarding, exciting and noble career options among the youth in Africa by profiling successful applicants and encourage entrepreneurs, innovators, funding bodies and business development service providers to exchange ideas and explore innovative business opportunities.

The IPA anticipates that it will in future results will be evident from increased commercialization of research and development (R&D) outputs in Africa; increased funding of start-ups, adoption of new and emerging technologies and accelerated growth of an innovative and dynamic private sector; and increased economic activity and African led development that results in lasting impact.

First Africa IGF Opens with Calls for Enhanced Collaboration to Tackle Cybercrime

CAIRO--Following the successful hosting of the five regional internet governance forums or IGFs by the respective regions, the inaugural Africa Internet Governance Forum (AfrIGF) opened Wednesday amidst calls for increased partnership and collaboration to curb cyber crime and enhance online security in the continent.      

In his opening address, Egypt’s ICT minister Eng Hany Mahmoud noted that enhancing security and building confidence and trust in the use of ICT applications is one of the “most important emerging issues that are threatening the ICT sector worldwide.”

“Collaboration of regional and international efforts from all stakeholders involved is much needed. In this respect, Egypt has established its national CERT and we are ready to discuss together policy challenges and find ways for cross-border cooperation on cybersecurity. As well, openness and free flow of information should be maintained in way that preserves the stability and robustness of the global Internet,” said Eng Mahmoud.

The minister added  that the UN General Assembly would decide on a number of important issues such as the report of the 15th session of the Commission on Science and Technology for Development of the Economic and Social Council on Internet Governance Improvements, the Enhanced Cooperation consultations, and the WSIS Review Meeting Decision.

“We have the World Conference of International Telecommunications (WCIT) that encompasses a lot of articles pertaining to Internet Public Policy matters. Such issues require series collaboration and coordination from our side to be able to face the international community with one African voice,” he said, adding that the first African IGF is a catalyst for creating more convergence between the views coming from the five different African regions.

Mr  Moctar Yedaly, African Union Commission’s (AUC) head of Post and Telecommunication Division, ICT Policy and Development programmes, said that the “more the modern society depends on the Internet the more relevant Internet governance will be.”

The 2-day meeting, being held at the Smart Village Convention Centre, has been organized by the United Nations Economic Commission for Africa (UNECA) and the African Union Commission (AUC), government of Egypt through the Ministry of Communications and Information Technology and the five African sub-regional IGFs.

The five regional IGFs include the West Africa Internet Governance Forum (WAIGF), the East Africa Internet Governance Forum (EAIGF), Forum de Gouvernance de l’Internet en Afrique Centrale (FGI-CA), the Southern Africa Internet Governance Forum (SAIGF) and the North Africa Internet Governance Forum (NAIGF).

The event has drawn participants from across the continent to define Africa’s collective common position on Internet Governance and share best practices based on the results of national and sub-regional consultations. The conference was preceded by pre-conference workshops in the afternoon of 2 October 2012.

Mr Masango Chengetai from the IGF Secretariat in Geneva stated that there are 12 regional IGFs and more than 22 national IGFs covering the globe, as well as thematic IGF initiatives such as the Youth IGF.

“It is important that Africa makes its voice heard in the global Internet Governance debate. Good Internet governance begins at home, that is at the national and regional level, where the policies are incorporated into legislation and are actually implemented. It is better to have a public comment before a law is passed then after,” said Chengetai, adding that the Africa IGF has a pivotal role in interconnecting the regional IGFs and can provide a united African perspective to the global Internet governance discussions.

Mr Makane Faye, who read the speech on behalf of Dr Aida Opoku-Mensah, the director of UNECA’s ICT, Science and Technology Division (ISTD), said that Internet governance, as a key issue emerging from the WSIS process, is an important multi-stakeholder platform.

“The key to making Internet Governance a success at both the sub-regional and regional levels is dependent on the take up and active participation at the national level. To this end, national forums on the management of Internet resources and critical infrastructure are encouraged in countries,” said Faye.

So far, Africa has hosted 2 annual IGF meetings - with the 2009 IGF being held in Egypt while the 2011 IGF, which had the highest attendance, was held in Nairobi. The African Internet Governance Forum (AfIGF) was launched in 2011 to support and promote the consolidation of the on-going regional initiatives and reach out to continental and global stakeholders and guide in their engagement in continental, regional and national initiatives.

The seventh global IGF will take place on November 6-9, 2012, in Baku, Azerbaijan under the theme: “Internet Governance for Sustainable Human, Economic and Social Development.

“We expect that this conference will promote discussions on the African IG agenda and shape the way for Africa's participation in the next IGF, in Baku,” said Faye

MTN Business Kenya is the 2012 Concours d’Elegance Media Sponsor

Converged communications solutions provider MTN Business Kenya is the media sponsor for this year’s Concour s d’Elegance, a vintage cars showcase set for Sunday, September 30 at the Ngong Racecourse, Nairobi.

As part of the sponsorship package, MTN Business Kenya will provide a 10 megabytes broadband to serve the media centre through provision of a Wi-Fi hotspot and also enable live-streaming services from Capital FM during the event.

“MTN Business Kenya is excited and pleased to be associated with the 2012 Concours D’Elegance whose tradition has been maintained by the Alfa Romeo Owners Club for the last four decades,” said MTN Business Kenya managing director Tom Omariba.

The Concours d’Elegance has been rated as being “the most prestigious and varied event of its type in the world” with the cars being classified as “magnificent examples of the best from around the world."

The Commercial Bank of Africa (CBA) is the title sponsor for the 2012 edition with a KES 10 million sponsorship package.

This annual event attracts over 10,000 people and is organized by the Alfa Romeo Owners Club. This year’s edition has attracted teams from Australia who will ship their cars to Cape Town and then drive them from South Africa to Kenya while the Uganda Bikers Association has entered seven motorcycles which they will ride from Kampala to Nairobi.

In the past, the event has attracted entries from Australia, England, Germany, Malawi, Mauritius, Tanzania and Uganda among others. The Concours has been recognized and sanctioned by the FIM Africa since 2006 and is now listed on the international FIM calendar as an Africa status event

MTN Business Kenya offers end-to-end converged communications solutions that enable its over 600 top-tier customers to consolidate their ICT requirements with a single vendor. It has invested in, and added capacity to multiple internet cable systems to provide redundant internet connectivity. They are positioned to harness synergies between the telecommunications and networking worlds. MTN Business can facilitate the convergence of traditional networking, cellular networks and the internet.

MTN Business also has fixed to mobile convergence, mobile IP-based network converged with IP network. The company is always tracking, measuring and putting projects in place to improve customers' experience. MTN Business is at the forefront of innovation – lowering costs and increasing efficiencies in the local workplace.

Ericsson Partners with PeaceEarth Foundation to Enhance Peace Efforts in Africa

As part of its contribution to the Social good Summit held in New York with parallel sessions in Nairobi and Beijing on Monday September 24, 2012, Swedish-based IT firm Ericsson has announced its commitment to join Oscar-winning actor, humanist and Goodwill Ambassador of UNESCO, Forest Whitaker, in a new foundation whose mission it is to promote peace among youth everywhere, from troubled urban neighbourhoods in Africa – especially South Sudan and Uganda – as well as the United States.

Ericsson's engagement will begin by providing Information and Communications Technology (ICT) solutions to schools in two locations, South Sudan and Uganda, in conjunction with the global education initiative Connect To Learn. This will enable the PeaceEarth Foundation to establish access to the internet and create a collaborative environment among the participating youth and further develop the education initiatives.

 Also through Connect To Learn, Ericsson will provide on-site project management resources, Wi-Fi coverage, and basic ICT training for teachers and students on the use of the Ericsson cloud computing solution.

 Ericsson President and CEO Hans Vestberg said that the company’s work with PeaceEarth Foundation is a natural extension of how to bring its competence to advocate for Technology for Good around the world.

 “We know that our technology has a positive link to development, where 10 per cent of increased broadband penetration leads to more than 1 per cent sustainable growth in GDP. You can't have positive social and economic development where people are suffering from conflicts or natural disasters. I hope that extending access to education will help enable the PeaceEarth Foundation further its goals," said Vestberg.

 Lars Lindén, head of Ericsson Sub-Saharan Africa, who introduced a panel discussion on ‘African digital entrepreneurs’ at the Nairobi session which discussed ways in which the internet has revolutionized African businesses and the role played by organizations like Ericsson in driving this, underscored the importance of broadband revolution.

“Today, broadband is recognized as a basic need, a core part of societal infrastructure as essential as roads and bridges. It is revolutionizing all areas of our lives and enabling a new era of empowerment for people, business and society. We see this forum as an occasion to explore new ways in which we can exploit the opportunities the technology avails,” said Lindén.

The PeaceEarth Foundation brings together public and private entities and aims to serve as a vehicle for an array of programs, initiatives and campaigns in the U.S. and around the world.

"Ericsson's support to PeaceEarth will establish a truly connected program in South Sudan and Uganda. The commitment will allow us to advance our shared goal to collectively move our world towards peace, one day at a time," said Forest Whitaker.

 Currently, 1.5 billion people live in countries affected by violent conflict, and more than 8 million children have been killed or disabled through violent conflict. Working in partnership with local and regional experts, civil society and multilateral organizations, governments and businesses, PeaceEarth will work to promote peaceful conflict resolution through youth empowerment, access to knowledge, capacity-building and cultural diversity.

PeaceEarth Foundation recently launched an interactive website that gives people the power to learn, engage and act. It serves to connect and foster dialogue among communities, practitioners and scholars, giving people key information about conflict zones, best practices in peace-building, and solutions. The work of the Foundation is also instrumental to further the mission of Whitaker as UNESCO Goodwill Ambassador for Peace and Reconciliation, and co-founder of the International Institute for Peace.

  

Ericsson was a corporate partner of the Social Good Summit 2012, which brought together influential leaders from different sectors to explore digital solutions to the world's shared challenges. The Summit is an annual event held to coincide with the United Nations General Assembly meeting.

Africa Must Formulate Strong ICT Policies to Promote Development

By Zachary Ochieng

ADDIS ABABA----African countries need to strengthen their ICT policies and strategies in order to generate wealth and employment to their people. In his opening remarks at the Second Session of the Committee on Development Information, Science and Technology (CODIST-II) currently underway in the Ethiopian capital Addis Ababa, Abdoulie Janneh, the Executive Secretary of the UN Economic Commission for Africa (ECA) and UN under-secretary-general noted that limited and inadequate economic transformation partly explains why Africa continues to experience jobless growth as the sectors that have been driving its commendable economic performance are mostly capital intensive and generate a limited number of jobs.

“The pressing issue of jobs reminds us of recent developments in North Africa where ICTs were used innovatively to propel demands for democracy, freedom and human rights. Whether we are talking of WikiLeaks, which has changed the nature of diplomacy, or about social networks being used to mobilize popular movements, ICTs have been in the forefront of bringing about change”, Janneh told the conference.
Noting that the traditional uses of ICTs have also grown in leaps and bounds through industrial applications such as mobile banking, electronic billing and global marketing of local services by SMEs, the UN under-secretary-general underscored the need for technological developments that have reduced operational costs, increased market penetration, improved competitiveness of firms and presented new opportunities of growth.

“In order to reduce its vulnerability to external shocks, Africa, indeed, must overcome its current narrow and weak technological and industrial base. It is noteworthy that while primary commodities make up about 80 per cent of Africa’s merchandise exports, the ratio is 54 per cent and 24 per cent in the Latin America and Caribbean region and Asia respectively. Yet, we know for a fact that Africa is unlikely to transform this situation without significant investment in science, technology and innovation.”

CODIST-II, being held under the theme Innovation for Africa’s industrial development, has been organized by ECA in collaboration with the African Union Commission. It includes workshops, a colloquium as well as the Technology in Government in Africa (TIGA) awards. The Second Session of CODIST will explore the extent to which African countries have harnessed innovation to enhance industrial development on the continent.

The theme of the conference couldn’t have come at a better time. While the impact of the innovation taking place in the ICT sector in Africa is not enough to dent high unemployment, there is nevertheless ample evidence of its potential to drive industrial development if properly used.

“Africa must commit to innovation by exploiting existing knowledge to add value and develop its industrial and technological base. Our continent must create industries that deepen skills and human capital, produce the drugs, vaccines and medical devices needed to bring quality healthcare services to our people, and that enable production of tradable goods that are competitive in regionally integrated markets and also in the global market”, Janneh said.

The four-day conference, which runs from 2-5 May has brought together senior government officials including cabinet ministers, Members of Parliament, National Assembly Speakers as well as Science and Technology experts from the continent and beyond. The Second Session of CODIST also provides a good opportunity to discuss the potential of geospatial and space-related technology for Africa’s development. Notably, advances in space technology have impacted positively on natural resource management, oil and gas, urban planning and in combating climate change.

Telkom Kenya Launches Double Play Service

Telkom Kenya, the leading integrated telecommunications service provider today launched the Orange Double Play service in a bid to deliver faster broadband connectivity to the city’s residents. The launch—held at the Muthaiga mini market in the presence of the Muthaiga Residents Association—also involved the revamping of the company’s landline service which has been severely hit by cable vandalism in the recent past.

The launch, a major milestone in the company’s growth strategy, is aimed at strengthening its market leadership in the data segment in tandem with its corporate ambition.

Telkom Kenya CEO Mickael Ghossein said for the first time in the history of Kenya’s telecommunications industry, customers will now be able to access true broadband direct from their landline handsets in addition to voice calling.

“By integrating our copper and fibre infrastructure, our new bouquet of Orange Double Play offers that we are unveiling today, are undoubtedly set to exceed the voice and data communication expectations of our customers”, said Ghossein.
It is noteworthy that the Orange Double Play service comes hot on the heels of the highly successful Internet Everywhere 3G+ Internet service which is already popular in the market.

“With speeds of up to 8MB per second, we now have a network easily scalable to transmit video signals, just like it happens in developed countries. We are already in talks with partners to see Orange introduce Triple play services in the near future.

Orange clients will access the Double Play service through fibre optic cable, with the last mile to their homes and offices offered through copper. The service will be offered in four competitive bundles with the cheapest one going for Sh 2,999 ($37.5).

If Orange finally upgrades its service to Triple Play, it will join the Wananchi Group which launched its Triple Play service in 2009, comprising Internet, cable TV and VoiP.