E/ECA/ADF/99/12

Information Infrastructure and policies to promote it - Summary, 1-8 June 1999
Information infrastructure and policies to promote it - Summary, 9–18 June 1999
The Information Economy - Summary, 19-25 June 1999
The Information Economy - Summary, 28 June –10 July 1999
Information and Communication Technologies for improved governance - Summary, 10-30 July 1999
Democratising Access to the Information Society - Summary, August 2-20, 1999
Elaboration of National Information and Communication Infrastructure (NICI) plans and policies - Summary, 24 August – 10 September 1999
The Role of African Digital Diaspora in Enhancing ICT Development in Africa - Summary, 13-19 September 1999
The Role of Women and Youth in Moving Africa into the Information Age - Summary, 20-26 September 1999
Private Sector Role in Facilitating the Use of ICTs - Summary, 6 –10 October 1999

From June through October 1999 nearly 300 participants from all over the world, but with an unusually high number of African subscribers (living both in Africa and in developed countries), participated in an e-mail discussion list hosted and facilitated by Bellanet International on the major themes of the Forum, as well as on the specific roles of stakeholders in the process of bringing the Information Age to Africa. The summaries presented here reflect the discussions by theme and by date of their posting to the list. They are presented to participants at the Forum to enrich the debate and to take into account the views of those who wanted to but could not be here physically. All of the summaries continue to be available (in English and in French) on the ADF Web site- http://www.un.org/depts/eca/adf.

Information Infrastructure and policies to promote it

Summary, 1-8 June 1999

This summary attempts to cover some of the main points and threads of discussion from the first week of the list's operation. The overall focus of the list is the challenge to Africa of globalisation and the information age, while the theme of the first two weeks of discussion is Africa's information infrastructure and policies to promote it. This summary is appearing on the list as well as on the ADF Web site.

A major thread of the discussion centred on whether the African Information Society Initiative, and other subsequent projects, activities and initiatives to promote the development of African information infrastructure, were too focused on technology, without concern for "people's socio-economic development" and whether they were importing Western models that were inappropriate in Africa. The phrase "peasants with laptops" emerged to characterize such inappropriate use. The need to utilize traditional media - including radio, television and newspapers- to reach large numbers in Africa was emphasized, as well as the need to harmonize computers and high speed data networks with other forms of information flow and communication. ICTs (information and communication technologies) should not displace but rather should supplement and complement other media, it was said.

A number of participants felt that information infrastructure which promoted the diffusion of information and communication technologies could be of genuine benefit to Africa, provided that modern and traditional modes of communication and ICTs were integrated and that basic development needs were balanced with the potential for empowerment that ICTs could bring.

To ignore the communication needs of African peasants perpetuated an urban bias to development. It was argued that asymmetry of information was one of the principal cases of inequality and rural underdevelopment. Although needs might differ, both urban and rural areas needed communications technology. Arguments were put forward that African peasant farmers indeed needed to communicate with the outside world- to find out market prices for their produce, for example. This communication could take place on a shared access basis (in telecentres, schools and community centres, for example) merging radio with e-mail: a number of projects were underway working on this and similar activities.

The case of the Grameen Bank's introduction of cellphones in rural Bangladesh (http://www.zef_deutsch/f_first.html) was cited as an example of successful introduction of ICTs on a shared basis in rural areas.

The importance of sustainability and value (what benefits do ICTs bring?) were also pointed out.

The need to evaluate telecentres was suggested, with particular emphasis on sharing information on policies to promote telecentres in place around the world. The list was informed about the Government of South Africa's Universal Service Agency (http://www.usa.org.za), a programme to implement telecentres in areas with low teledensity on the basis of universal access- service within a reasonable distance of every home. The establishment of the Agency arose from the (South Africa) Telecommunications Act of 1996 which called for the establishment of a Universal Service Fund, into which telecommunications operators pay as a part of licensing.

The importance of the involvement in users in determining content and services at telecentres was stressed.

It was pointed out that there were many cases of preconceptions of what benefit ICT could have to Africa. In this context, both African realities and global developments had to be kept in mind. Questions were raised as to whether statistics could be produced which supported the relationship between ICTs and development and whether there had been more failures than successes in on the ground projects. Many lessons could be learned from failures as well as successes, it was noted.

One participant defined what he regarded as strategic entry points for ICTs in Africa: in universities, in distance and continuing education, in spreading knowledge for conflict prevention, in improving governance. He pointed out that it was important for each African country to define its own strategic entry points.

Several participants pointed out that the proper entry point was an examination of critical needs in Africa and how they could be met. With this approach, it was suggested, one would find strategic roles for the new information and communication technologies. However, such entries had to be supported by careful analysis and feasibility studies.

The inevitably of the increasing penetration of ICTs in Africa was underlined and the need to turn this phenomenon into a positive force for social equity and justice. As one member wrote, "the electronic venue will descend upon Africa as yet another very unequal playing field on which Africans will lose, or it will be shaped to make a more equitable playing field. That is the task for those of us on the field." One participant called this approach "people driven but ICT supported," and put forth the view that the African Development Forum '99 would support it.

The list was informed about SADECCON, Southern African Development, Communication and Cultural Network, which calls for a community based approach to the development of African information society, taking into account local culture and communication techniques.

A member informed other list participants about CHANNEL AFRICA, a member of the Southern African Broadcasting Association (SABA), which comprises 60 journalists, technicians and support staff from southern Africa who are attempting to establish an Internet and satellite information exchange network in response to the challenges of digitalisation and to help stimulate the growth of information economies in Africa. They promote African content development and urge African governments to put the necessary infrastructure in place to make affordable access possible. CHANNEL AFRICA encourages others to join the network (http://www.channelafrica.org).

One list subscriber reported on the apparent rejuvenation of Africa One, a submarine fibre optic cable project originated by the International Telecommunication Union, but which had fallen on a period of inactivity. According to S. G. Fassoulis, the Chairman of Africa One, "Deregulation, privatization, competition and regulatory reform throughout Africa are creating a robust telecommunications environment, and demand for new services, especially the Internet, is growing tremendously. Africa ONE will save hundreds of millions of dollars in transit fees now being paid by African carriers to complete calls."

African Development Forum

http://www.un.org/depts/eca/adf

BBC discussion on Internet development in Africa

http://www.bbc.co.uk/worldservice/focusonafrica/internet/ram

Internet economic toolkit (ECA, InfoDev and the African Internet Forum)

http://www.worldbank.org/infodev/projects/finafcon.htm

Channel Africa

http://www.channelafrica.org

Grameen Bank introduction of cellphones in rural Bangladesh

http://www.zef_deutsch/f_first.html

Government of South Africa's Universal Service Agency

http://www.usa.org.za

Information infrastructure and policies to promote it

Summary, 9–18 June 1999

This summary continues and expands upon the themes of the prior week’s discussion: namely, what sort of policies and programmes are needed to strengthen Africa’s Information infrastructure.

Some discussants suggested that the implementation of ICTs needs to be prioritised based on the practical realities of where they could best be put to use:

"There is a perception out there that you always have to focus all the available resources on the poor or the have-nots. How about those who have just a little capacity that need[s] nurturing for success?" This group, the contributor continues, is marginalised by its knowledge and is truely the "forgotten people of Africa" today.

Instead of equipping "peasants with laptops", it was suggested that ICT implementation should aim for better education and training overall as a means to bridge the gap. Start by placing ICTs in universities and schools where students are well-positioned to take advantage of technology. Students today will be the managers of tomorrow who will build more telecentres and train more of the populace expanding the pool of ICT users.

Now that support for ICTs in Africa seems to have been accepted by many African governments and policy makers in words, it needs to be matched in deeds. Many ICT proposals fail to bear fruit because of lack of support – from both government and stakeholders – in implementation.

The problem is institutional: how can African countries create vibrant public ICT institutions that understand opportunities and move the private sector and others forward? The modernisation of the telecom structure in Senegal with the involvement of Sonatel was cited as a good example of positive institutional change with dynamic private sector involvement.

There is a tendency to generalise the approach of delivery of assistance to Africa without taking into account varying levels of literacy and technical competencies from country to country and village to village. It must be kept in mind that the political and economic environments and infrastructure support of ICT vary considerably.

Support for ICTs must be two-pronged: private sector investment in combination with development of local capability. The profit motive can work as a driving force but only if the investment environment is enhanced by conducive government policies and infrastructure.

Additionally, as one participant inciscively notes, Africa has been the largest per capita exporter of skilled, home-grown manpower. Many Africans of the diaspora are hesitant to invest because they feel the environment in their home countries is hostile to enterprise. Thus, in addition to encouraging a favourable investment climate, policies should also encourage the repatriation of native expertise.

"Policy, resolve and wisdom are as important – more important – than technology."

What will prevent those students who benefit from ICT in academia from becoming part of the diaspora? Most good graduates of African universities inevitably join the brain drain, points out a contributor, himself a living statistic of it.

ICTs offer the opportunity to repatriate intellectual capital. For one, they can link local sites with expertise abroad. In a telling example of ‘digital diaspora’ being put to work locally, the example was cited of the Lebanese overseas who helped in the rebuilding of war-torn Beirut. Secondly, electronic access reduces the pressure to become part of the diaspora and creates a temptation to return.

It can even be argued that "digital diaspora" is a contradiction in terms: ICTs mean that location no longer limits. The expertise of digital diaspora can only be tapped if a digital environment is created at a local level in African countries. Given the right technologies digital knowledge can be tapped from anywhere and many members of the diaspora are eager to volunteer their participation.

On the prospect of "peasants with laptops" a discussant asked: "Laptops for what?" raising the vast and difficult issue of developing an ‘African’ content. We have brought up the issue of equipping Africa with computer access; the ensuing question is access to what?

The real needs of the intended beneficiaries of ICT application must be clearly defined in order to answer this question. Content will develop by targeting users on the basis of literacy, traditions, social infrastructure, lifestyle and personal priorities. But don’t expect a village farmer or herdsman to be immediately impressed by your laptop, a contributor warns. Unless the gadget expressly addresses his or her immediate concerns it is nothing but that – a gadget.

The mere awareness of technology will not impel people to use it unless they can see its relevance to their lives. This is easily imaginable among professionals and scholars, but less so among peasants and other marginalised groups. Rural peoples need data on income generation, leadership, literacy support, government policies on rural development and soil conservation. If the goal of implementing ICTs in Africa is to bring these latter groups in from the margin, we must build not only access, but content, that is directly applicable to them.

Or is the case "give people access and the content will follow"?

A quotation from the discussion on content:

"The issue is whether the current fire-fighting approach to blanket Africa with a computer in every home ... with little attention to content will result in the strategic planning and priority-setting of national frameworks that will be necessary to make ICTs appropriate tools for an orderly, systematic development and growth of communities within the space of their own cultures and traditions."

• Cost Issues

Several contributors raised the issue of cost of access, mainly due to high tariffs and lack of infrastructure. Lack of infrastructure also inhibits regional integration, keeping the costs of telecom links – where they even exist – high.

Government needs to go further than transforming state monopolies into private monopolies: it must also liberalise to encourage new entrants in the field. In tandem, regulatory agencies must be strengthened before full privatisation to ensure a level playing field. Of course, privatisation in Africa has proven to be a slow-moving process. Perhaps, adds another contributor, the "bottom-up" approach, where investment begins with less risky and more short-term businesses, is an alternative.

"If Africa’s adopting of ICTs is seen as ‘embracing’ a foreign technology, then Africa is in real trouble," one participant commented. Even if it was developed in the West, ICTs should be taken as universal technologies that can and should be applied world-wide. Unfortunately, the skills to make the most out of ICTs are not yet universal.

One participant made the point that ICTs can be used only as a ‘medium’ to facilitate social cohesion in Africa and warned us not to stray too much from the true goal of the Forum: harnessing the power of ICTs to combat poverty. That said, if the indigenous media were to have ICT access, it would nourish both political and cultural dialogue and interaction, contributing to communication amongst social groups.

Last week it was noted that development in Africa must be "people-driven and ICT- supported." A contributor from Botswana claims that baseline ICT capacity is as yet too low to provide support for people-driven development.

Telecentres are set up to work in support of grassroots organisations, ideally staffed with members trained to act as intermediaries for the general population. It would be a mistake for Africa to imitate the consumer society model of individual use. A participant suggests an alternative name for telecentres: ‘community information centres’. The key issue is not individual access to ICT in a village, community or rural setting; it is the productive role for such access even if access is through a trained intermediary. Don’t fall into the Western trap of aiming for a computer on every desk, he warned.

A joint project between ITU, the British Council, Uganda Public Libraries and UTL, the Nakaseke Telecentre is located about 50 km north of Kampala, Uganda. The project provides telephone lines, internet access and computers, serving and training the community in IT and internet. Participation is high, says a discussant, but there are some problems. The centre is struggling to get phone lines, the hospital is not connected yet and the community is 80% illiterate

Can a telecentre-type project succeed where 80% of the population are illiterate? There was a resounding ‘yes’ from at least one discussant. The 20:80 ratio is more than adequate to transform a rural community: for example, one literate school boy can translate letters, read newspapers and enlighten other members of his village.

A participant proposed that the ECA use the Nakeseke project as a practical prototype or case study for the future. Another remarked that telecentres are cheap to fund and high status for donors.

The Web of Information for Development (WIDE) is an on-line database being developed in collaboration with CESAR, a non-profit institute in Recife, Brazil. WIDE online is part of the UNDP’s TCDC WIDE initiative, soon to be formally announced, an initiative which recognises that the electronic venue can be used for more decentralised, more localised collaborative efforts at south-south technical co-operation and capacity building. The intent is for the WIDE initiative to represent a best practice use of the electronic venue.

There IS a history of rural and urban grassroots efforts to make use of ICTs by those whom the top-down efforts are intending to help. Well-meaning top-down initiatives, using a rationale based on access by the poor and marginalised, will not only fail to draw on that expertise and experience, it will damage those efforts in the name of helping them.

Via a live Internet link-up, an "impoverished African woman" questioned British Chancellor Gordon Brown on cancelling world debt. Mrs. Elinata Kasanga, a subsistence farmer, spoke to Mr. Brown in London from her hut in rural Zambia., BBC News On-line reported. The link-up was part of a campaign by a group of charities known as Jubilee 2000 which is urging the British government to cancel world debt to help alleviate Third World poverty. Web producer Terry Gibson admitted that the Tearfund Website link-up was "a stunt" but one that was necessary to bring the debt issue to the public’s attention. The event conveniently also hits many of ADF’s themes.

A contributor from International Business Initiatives (IBI) consulting firm writes on a new development that deals with the issue of hooking up rural communities that don’t have electricity. Utilities-in-a-Box is a "distributed, integrated infrastructure unit" to provide electricity, water and telephone service to communities of 5,000 to 100,000 people. For more information, see the web site listed below.

For practical examples of telecentres

http://www.idrc.ca/pan/telecentres

Project of the El Salvador Learning Society

(in Spanish with an English summary available)

http://www.conectando.org.sv/

Archives on computer conference to develop digital networks with diaspora population

(Spanish and English)

http://www.vita.org/technet/esls/eslsarch

Universal Service Agency project

http://www.internews.org/nigeria

Mamelodi Community Information Service (MACIS)

http://mweb.co.za/mamelodi/main1.html

African Connection programme

http://www.africanconnection.org

Assessment of Kingo Mchombu's study on rural people's information need in Malawi, Botswana and Tanzania

http://www.idrc.ca/books/focus/783/mchombu.html

More information on Utilities-in-a-Box

http://www.tvigroup.com

http://www.ibicorporations.com

The Information Economy

Summary, 19-25 June 1999

This week we initiated debate on what promises to be one of ADF’s most important themes: Africa and the Information Economy. Most discussion list participants attempted to respond to Catherine Nyaki Adera’s (author of the ADF ’99 theme paper on this issue) challenging questions, so the summary below follows her guidelines.

One contributor felt there was still no good definition of the Information Economy. Because of dynamic developments in ICTs, the week’s discussion leader pointed out that the perceptions, and consequently, the working definitions, of the information economy are constantly changing. African countries do have their own information economy already. In order to move forward in terms of generation, processing and use of information, African economies must work based on the current transformation in network technologies.

Despite the hype, the Information Economy as a whole has been slow to show truly substantive developments anywhere – witness that it still relies on traditional credit card settlement set-up, a contributor notes. Implications for Africa could be potentially huge if problems of access to financial systems such as credit cards and banking were resolved.

Although global use of ICTs is novel, they operate on top of the existing social and economic structure. They present the possibility to overcome a lack of material resources by investing in human, organisational and social capital. One participant asks if we are all suffering from a case of "historical amnesia" wherein every technological breakthrough is heralded as a destroyer of existing hierarchies but in reality, as in information capitalism, there is merely another shifting of the economic goalposts.

Contributing to this view, one person cited the example of the advent of the telegraph and railroads, to demonstrate how the primary effects of the introduction of new technologies is usually to strengthen the power of those organisations investing in technology.

• Electronic commerce
• Content development
• Entertainment industry
• Educational broadcasting
• ICT industries such as software, services, telecommunications, etc.
• Low-cost videoconferences combined with regular phone service, one contributor suggested, sharing an experience he had with personal videoconferences arranged between London and Ecuador.

But all the potential depends on readiness of countries based on their vision, infrastructure and skills.

As small- to medium-sized firms are usually the source of new marketing solutions, they are potential sources. However, although many small, micro and medium scale enterprises (SMEEs) feel technology will enable them to compete globally they don’t feel they have the expertise to take advantage of it.

African firms must focus on innovation, it was echoed, and be an ICT producer. In the words of one contributor: "We should resist being ICT consumers and strive for being ICT Exploiters and Maximisers." Keeping in mind that "no miracle or flood of money will turn any odd place into a Silicon Valley in a fortnight."

A participant requested models for understanding policymaking in Africa as a critical element to understand and create policy in the field of global knowledge. "If we are to recommend ICT/AISI policies to African governments, we must have a conceptual framework to help us understand and articulate the dynamics of policymaking in Africa. . . I am trying very hard to resist the temptation of using western models."

Some suggestions included facilitating credit card transactions over the Internet, encouraging a build-up of human and physical infrastructure and, as always, providing a secure, conflict-free environment to encourage growth.

The primary sector identified to target was the youth. Once the youth have been enabled to join the "revolution in interaction" and have a grasp on empowering technologies, they too will lap their parents on the information track, as their more fortunate fellows are doing elsewhere in the world. Old folks watch out: "We will just have to let the older generations catch up as best they can," says one discussant.

A caveat: Africa’s participation in an information economy may not happen without a strong local vision and vibrant ICT institutions. The private sector will not necessarily invest in problems of considerable importance to society in the Information Economy. Markets do not respond to need but demand (i.e. need + money to pay).

Beware of the hype: different players have vested interests in painting a positive picture of technology. An individual cannot share in the hype surrounding the information economy until technologies make it easy to use applications in every day life – and not many ICT meet these criteria, a contributor notes.

ICT is a sector where the rich can make a fortune but the poor have little chance to participate, merely increasing economic disparities. Other social costs cited included displacement of workers and perceived/real loss of national sovereignty. As always, conflict is a constraint: "Even a minor conflict can have far-reaching consequences for investment," writes a participant.

One participant cited ADF ’99 Coordinator Kate Wild who said "In the African context e-commerce should not be understood in the same strict terms by which it has been defined elsewhere." Elaborating on this idea, Kate explained, "From a development perspective, the benefit of Internet access and ICTs will come through their capacity to generate income and opportunity in poor communities. E-commerce at the micro level is comparatively insignificant in the north."

The presence of Egypt, Morocco, Nigeria and Sudan at the "Working Group on Electronic Conference" which took place in Vienna in January 1998 represents their governments’ interest in the sector, contributed a discussant. See http://www.uncitral.org/english/sessions/unc/unc-31/acn9-446.htm#top for more on this.

One suggestion was locating telecentres at/near Chambers of Commerce offices in provincial African towns to promote e-commerce and concurrently discourage capital flight.

Government-sponsored programs in Morocco and Tunisia were cited as good examples of a national-guided effort. Almost all African countries share examples of private firms making the best out of the transformation. Some examples provided by discussion list participants:

• teleshops in Dakar
• newspapers such as Les Echos of Bamako
• artisans in Uganda, Botswana and Senegal marketing their products through the ITC Virtual Handcraft Exhibition centre
• thousands of UNISA students across the continent taking internet correspondence courses
• travel and tourism information service for almost all of Africa
• Africa Online and its newly unveiled service, E-Touch
• Airlines
• specialty products such as glassware, regional wine merchants

Despite daunting challenges, Kenya is now firmly on the e-commerce and information economy track, writes a Kenyan contributor. On 17 May, ITU in Kenya held a workshop to assess e-commerce and established a national task force to harness all the efforts at e-commerce development. Though infrastructure in country may prevent national exploitation of the information economy, ICTs can be used for international trade and tourism. See sites below for samples of emerging e-commerce in Kenya.

There was a request for more information on Mauritius as an example of an information economy success story.

Information on Upcoming conference, "Bamako 2000: Internet et le plurilinguisme"

http://www.anais.org/Fr/activities/bamako2000/index.html

International Institute of Communications – a network of interdisciplinary communications "decision-takers and thinkers"

http://www.iicom.org

Information on IIC’s conference "Emerging Knowledge Society – Commerce, Culture and Communities in Cyberspace", 7-9 September, Kuala Lumpur

http://www.iicom.org/services/conferences/kl99/index/html

Paper addressing social development paradigm

http://www.unrisd.org/infotech/conferen/castelp1.html

Africa Online E-Touch Centres

http://www.africaonline.co.ke/e-touch/index.html

For a taste of emerging e-commerce in Kenya try:

Properties - www.reallynyce.com

Artefacts - www.africaonline.co.ke/thevillage

Flowers- www.kenyaflowers.co.ke

Safaris- www.venture-africa.com

Hotels- www.africaonline.co.ke/trisanhotel

Job hunting/search- www.africaonline.co.ke/prefer

Disadvantaged - www.eastafrica.com

Tea- www.easternproduce.co.ke

Online advertising – www.nation.co.ke

IT Francophone initiatives

http://intif.francophonie.org

The Information Economy

Summary, 28 June –10 July 1999

The week’s discussion debated one of ADF’s most important themes: Africa and the Information Economy. The debate covered the need for a good definition of the Information Economy for Africa, suggested potential niches for Africa’s participation, advocated models for policymaking and warned that these questions will be moot without the combination of strong local vision and vibrant ICT institutions. Additionally it broached potential and existing E-commerce possibilities, many of which were carried through in the discussion this period. Clearly there is still work to be done if the challenging questions we considered are going to be answered. This week’s discussion raised many more new questions which are summarised below.

One of the themes picked up by participants in the most recent discussion was ‘appropriate’ technology for Africa – and if there is such a thing. "I sometimes wonder why we tend to think that what is good for Europe, USA or other industrialised countries can’t be good for Africa," queried a participant. "Technology is an instrument of human liberation," he cited McLuhan.

Another contributor added, "If people continue to nurture the belief that what is good for one isn’t necessarily good for the other, they will continue to subscribe to the inferiority complex that has been killing the African continent for many centuries.... The same people maintained that the Internet would not work in Africa. But today, they are all using it to communicate with Africans."

Of course, it was underlined, ICT can help Africa speed up its development process if and only if there is co-operation in terms of policy, investment and human capacity-building.

The arguments as to whether Africa should be a testing ground for new technology were bounced back and forth. The first question which needs to be addressed is what is meant by the term ‘testing ground’: is it, on one hand, a scenario of exploitation and imposition or, on the other, "a voyage of discovery – from within"?

Although Africa is smart in its urge and demand to catch up, it should not be a testing ground for new technology. "Let there be no computer in Africa until we are able to produce [a] simple floppy drive," asserted one participant. Africa’s own technology must evolve – in tune with the rest of the world – but on its own. One participant in Scandinavia exhorted the Africans of the Diaspora to find out what the African Nations need and want to move from their present position: "If we do not go back to the drawing board to develop and produce our own IC, we will always be dependent on importing them to fuel our own economy."

"We can not afford to be the recycling area of technology," one participant warned.

Regardless of the arguments for or against, it is also important to recognise that information and communication technologies are not necessarily neutral in their effects. The extension of computer technologies into every aspect of social and economic frameworks reorders the social and economic environments. "This re-ordering is also wrapped up with a whole wave of speculation on, enthusiasm for, and fear of technologised futures," a participant contributed. However, when groups – such as community centres or African transnational enterprises – take various ICTs and master their use to suit their particular needs, this reordering is locally directed.

Why shouldn’t Africa be a testing ground? asked one list participant. After all, with a minimal degree of literacy and access to a machine anyone can download software or order online. Africa should be an environment where ‘cutting edge development’ takes place. This should be one of the "pillars" of the leapfrogging issue. Having Africa as a technology testing ground presents the advantage that the technologies which should be tested and adapted to human purposes and not imposed from without.

This is not to say there are real risks regarding the importation of technologies – these risks must be considered and avoided if possible. But Africa would be well advised to take some – even poorly defined – risks to be able to capture potential benefits from ICTs early. "The more we leave out any aspect of what is happening globally in the name of appropriateness ... the more we deny ourselves the paths for trendy development and therefore continue to be ‘damping grounds.’ If not information facilitated by the means to access and share it, what will move us from inability to innovate for our betterment?" asks one discussant. Niche uses for older technology exist as well but the application needs to be well thought through.

The fundamental truth, it was said in discussion, is that African governments have to be accountable to their people first – while one can talk about governments using ICTs to organise, disseminate and manage information for effective governance, the key question is whether these efforts will make them more accountable to the taxpayer.

The point was made that ICTs should be used first and foremost for the political education of the masses: when the population is properly informed about subjects like finance and economics, the level of debate is enhanced and they will demand better services from their governments. "If there is anything special in the so-called information economy, it is that people’s smartness is what makes the difference, not materials and energy."

"What do these technologies mean for what we are trying to achieve?" asked a participant. Experience ‘on the ground’ may not have expertise about various given technologies, but – given the chance – there is much expertise and wisdom to be found in asking the right questions. This can’t happen in a ‘top-down’ approach.

A list suggestion: let African telecomm be privatised through competent companies, which have the expert knowledge, management, experience, organisation abilities and R&D funds to run them.

It is generally acknowledged that partnerships must be developed between the public and private sector, but ICT strategies are hindered by the lack of trust between those two groups. Still, noted one participant on companies bringing the Internet to Africa: "They are not doing us any favours because we pay for the services they render."

Discussion of the possibility of Chambers of Commerce as telecentre sites raised in the first part of the discussion on the information economy continued.

ICTs to support business and economic development are not realistic unless they are based on a solid understanding of how business is done: Chambers of Commerce have this understanding. Their memberships are demand-driven and so are forced to deliver to the satisfaction of their constituency. Chambers of Commerce are the most likely candidates to apply their business acumen to find ICT-based solutions to support local businesses and economic development – that is, solutions which are both financially self-sustaining and can be operated to performance standards.

Africaservice

http://www.africaservice.com

http://www.icann.org

http://www.ncdnhc.isoc.org/home.html

http://www.afrinic.org

http://www.afridev.net/aig

http://www.dnso.org

listservs:

Afrinic-discuss@afrinic.org

Aig@co.ug

Cmusisi@uol.co.ug

Agnog@uol.co.ug

Information and Communication Technologies for improved governance

Summary, 10-30 July 1999

The discussion from 10-30 July focussed on the topic of information and communications technologies (ICTs) for improved governance. The discussion started with issues raised by the moderators in relation toICTs and governance - failures and successes, applications in African context, ICTs for economically and geographically marginalised populations, opportunities for public participation in political debates, etc. Various issued raised during the discussion are summarised below:

Participants felt that ICTs can play a significant role in enhancing governance and developing civil society. ICTs can also help African governments to reach the majority of the population living in the rural areas, and help these people to have their voices heard in political debates and public administration. It was pointed out that the governance role of ICTs in Africa is likely to be small at least in the short term because access (so far) is extremely limited. ICTs clearly have a place as tools to be used for African development. People will have access, and it's a good thing for development. People will also use that access to influence lawmakers, post their opinions, flame their opponents, etc. This makes it a vital issue of equity to ensure that access is available to the poor and disempowered --not only so that they do not fall further behind economically, but also to ensure their political voice. The choice is not (and should not be) between access to ICTs and no access, it is between access for the elite alone or more equitable access. Concern has been expressed on lack of trust and commitment on the part of African governments in sustainably implementing ICT applications including governance.

The list was informed about a global survey on online governance being conducted by COMNET-IT Foundation and UNESCO (http://www.comnet.mt/globsurv/annolgov.htm). The preliminary response from Africa is good; it is expected that the results of the study will be presented at ADF 99.The list was also informed about UNESCO's overview of the the problem of online governance in development, which includes topics such as governance and the internet, applications of the internet in developing countries, access to government information, provision of online services, online participation, government management, community access, and problems, solutions and priorities for the future.

A participant criticised the focus on possibilities of 'bottom up' participation in ICTs and governance debate, with too little focus on 'top down' obligations for greater transparency in government and governance. 'Bottom up' governance participation, in the absence of 'top down' transparency, has a hard time being 'strategic'. A Canadian example is given - public cross-country townhall hearings on the future of the Canadian Broadcasting Corporation (CBC), Canada's public radio network. The discussant argued that facilitating 'bottom up' participation - to improve governance - will fail unless there is a 'top down' transparency, especially with respect to policy processes.Therefore, ICTs could improve governance if both 'bottom up' and 'topdown' approaches are considered in implementing such programs.

The list was informed about Centre for Electronic Communities/Institute for Electronic Governance, which has published many papers on ICTs for governance.

It was pointed out that ICTs have the potential to open up access to information on public matters that people can use for their own political education - essential in the process of democratising many political systems in Africa. Better-informed society will result in the development of information and knowledge societies - keys to socio-economic progress. A discussant suggested that ICTs should be used first and foremost for the political education of the masses. When people are better informed about subjects like finance and economics, their level of debate is much enhanced and they will demand better services from their governments, resulting in improved governance and more transparency.Concern has been expressed regarding using IT for educating the masses. Strong government commitment is needed to promote, with donors' support, Multi-Purpose Community Centres, both in urban and rural areas, to reach agreement with local ISPs for special Internet access prices, as an incentive for public access to information, and to develop content in local language.

Participants were informed about the release of this year's UNDP Human Development Report, which is on the theme of "Globalisation with a Human Face" and argues that benefits of globalisation are not shared by all. It states that Internet increases global inequality. Internet was contributing to an ever-widening gap between rich and poor. And according to the UNDP Report the effects of globalisation and IT were the rich getting richer and the continuing unequal spread of technology. The report outlines seven goals that must be targeted to achieve an information society – connectivity, community access, capacity, content, creativity, collaboration and cash. Participants felt that there is an enormous need for all concerned to redouble their efforts in promoting the awareness of the Information Age in Africa.

The list was also informed about comments on the findings of the report can be accessed at http: //www.zdnet.com/zdnn/stories/news/0,4586,2292531,00.html?chkpth

Other links were also provided:

Participants were requested to share their interesting ICT practices, cases and stories in Africa with ADF, which is discussing with International Institute of Communications and Development (IICD) and others (PANOS and IDRC) the possibility of pulling together such efforts so that as much information will be available as widely as possible. The contributions will be made available on a shared database on the Internet, and the results will be documented at ADF99. An example case was also provided to inform participants about the kind of information sought - title, location, institution(s), funding source and resources, problem addressed, description, successes, problems encountered, lessons learned, potential for sustainability,and contacts.

Participants argued that telecommunications privatisation is a complex political issue. In the short term it undoubtedly means giving up a government revenue stream, losing workers from the state sector, and(possibly) higher import bills. At the same time it usually means privatisation revenues. In the long term, it also brings better service, more tax revenues and more jobs. But of course, this depends on whether one believes that privatisation leads to a better telecoms network and a better telecoms network leads to a healthier economy. A discussant argued that international pressures of western technology and western funders are governing African choices.

At the same time it seems very difficult to link all the issues – democratic ways and means; press freedom; grassroots activities; NGOs and community organisations; government information - with the potential of Internet. The connections are not there for most people and will only allow elite debate for many many years. The driving forces of Africa growth today are inward investment and good commodity prices. The discussant said that the issues of governance, governability and Internet should be looked at in terms of mediating this traffic and these interests. It was argued that the evidence presented in World Bank's Internet Toolkit suggested that African countries with more liberal telecommunications regimes had, on average, lower cost, broader access to the Internet. The report also noted that a number of other studies, from a wide range of sources, had found that there was a correlation between the level of telecoms development and future economic growth. Liberalisation has dramatic returns.

It was also noted that most governments seem to accept this, and the global trend is strongly toward liberalisation. Further, no country that has liberalised seems to have regretted it. So most governments seem to accept the trade-off (short-term revenue streams and state sector jobs lost versus service, productivity, privatisation revenues and future taxesgained) as worthwhile. It was also noted that good governance cannot be imposed by outside/foreign agencies, but instead results from the popular demand of the African populations.

http://www.uganda.co.ug/parliament or http://www.parliament.go.ug This site is one of the examples for making government information available by using ICTs. However, many participants have found the site impossibly difficult to access, and this has resulted in a lot of debate on good web design. Constructive and very educational comments were given to fix the accessibility problem of the Ugandan and other web sites.

A participant argued that NGOs offer a two way cut on governance, by giving example of how governance mechanisms and NGOs have formed something exciting and hopefully permanent (information provided from UN Convention to Combat Desertification to pastoralists in rural Tanzania, and rural telecenters effectively run by local NGOs to disseminate knowledge and information). The other trend however is that, with Internet, NGOs can become merely efficient development subcontractors, and the discussant asks, "is there any evidence ofthis?"

Participants expressed concern on continued disparities in access to computers and the Internet in Africa. It was also pointed out that such measurement of disparities needs to be considered with caution and shall address factors such as rates and levels of computerisation, effective use and impact.

Participants were requested to share information on web sites on social and economic development in Africa. In response to this request, it was mentioned that UNESCO, within the framework of the Regional Informatics Network for Africa (RINAF), is organising a selection of the African best 50 web sites of public interest (TOP50) on education, science, culture, information services and community development. The project is described at http://www.woyaa.com/topweb. In addition to this, other web sites are mentioned. (see under Web sites section at the end of this summary).

A participant brought the idea of using ICTs to assist African cattle keepers to be able to track every single cattle movement in thecountry on a computer station programmed for that purpose (sticking locator chips on cattle and tracking their location via satellite). Some participants expressed their reservation about the practicality of such a proposal due to cultural, social and economic and bureaucratic impediments that will make such suggestion unworkable. Besides, such activity is not developmental priority in Africa.

Global Survey on online governance

http://www.comnet.mt/globsurv/annolgov.htm

Uganda parliament web site

http://www.uganda.co.ug/parliament
http://www.parliament.go.ug

UNDP Human Development Report

Comments:

http://www.zdnet.com/zdnn/stories/news/0,4586,2292531,00.html?chkpth
BBC Report: http://news.bbc.co.uk/hi/english/world/newsid_392000/392171.stm
Summary of the report: http://www.undp.org/hdro/99.htm
Ordering info: http://www.oup-usa.org/docs/0195215621.html
The report: http://www.undp.org/hdro/report.html

Web sites on social and economic development in Africa

RINAF Top 50 project
http://woyaa.com/topweb
Africa: Research, resources and links in education and development http://communicationculture.freeservers.com
Research, resources and links on the relationships between communication, culture, education and development in Africa.
Institute of Distance Education, Swaziland: http://www.realnet.co.sz/ide about the courses and staff at the Institute of Distance Education in Swaziland, Southern Africa, together with information on the Royal Kingdom of Swaziland - its geography, climate, population and languages.
Distance Education in Developing Countries: http://members.tripod.com/stewart_marshall designed to facilitate the collection and dissemination of research results and information on the use of distance education and open learning in developing countries.
Educational Research in Southern Africa: http://www.realnet.co.sz/boleswa proceedings of the Seventh BOLESWA Symposium on "Educational Research and Quality of Life in Africa" held at the University of Swaziland in August 1997

Democratising Access to the Information Society

Summary, August 2-20, 1999

The discussion on Democratising Access to the Information Society began with a summary of the theme paper on the topic which will be presented at the ADF '99 in Addis Ababa in 24-28 October 1999. The theme paper noted the determining nature of Information and Communication Technologies (ICTs) in the lives of African people. It stressed the need for information and communication in African society and the possibility of application of ICTs therein. Current applications and experimental programmes concerning the use of ICTs in the continent were noted. The paper questioned whether the new ICTs can empower people, unlike earlier information and communication media, due to their interactive nature. Effective ways of extending access to ICTs were also raised. The summary requested discussants to contribute examples of efforts underway in these regards and of communication between communities with similar problems. The paper's author stated that ICTs may be able to narrow the gap between the rich and poor in Africa or widen it. Discussants were asked to focus their contributions on strategies that would narrow the gap.

There was a posting in the list from Environmental Rights Action (eraction@infoweb.abs.net) field report on a leaking oil pipeline in Delta State, Nigeria. It showed how Environmental Rights Action used its electronic newsletter to inform the public and authorities of the negative consequences on communities living around the area where the oil pipeline was leaking. This effort could be considered an application of ICTs to promote/safeguard the interests of communities.

A posting from Uganda suggested that list subscribers ask schools in Uganda with Internet access to share their experience in the use of ICTs.

Another participant noted that the issue of the continent taking advantage of ICTs is probably the single issue regarding ICTs upon which there is universal agreement in Africa at the moment. It was suggested that there was a need to formulate ICT agendas specific to the African situation.

One contribution reported the existence of work on the use of Internet for teaching subjects in African schools and links to such efforts in South Africa.

Generally, the discussion was dominated by postings which focused on the use of ICTs by different sectors of African society. However, as contributors did not relate their postings to the topic under discussion, the list was negatively affected. This led to postings by a number of discussants for a request to return to the topics under discussion.

Elaboration of National Information and Communication Infrastructure (NICI) plans and policies

Summary, 24 August – 10 September 1999

The discussion on elaboration of national information and communication infrastructure policies ran from August 24 to 10 September, 1999 and was opened with the moderator’s brief remarks on the Technical Advisory Committee preparatory meeting for the African Development Forum 1999 (ADF 99) and on the efforts that are being exerted by many African countries toward elaborating a national information and communication infrastructure policies, an attempt to formulate the required policy direction that would enable Africa to cope with the global Information Age.

Participants were asked to share their knowledge and experiences with regard to the formulation of national ICT policies. In order to focus the discussion on the topic, the moderator raised a number of questions and the responses given to them are summarised below:

Most of the participants responded to this question affirmatively. It was pointed out that "Speaking of national policy presumes the presence of a viable nation state with a mobilising capacity and influence to ensure peace and provide an enabling milieu for substantive development initiative", which is lacking in Africa. It was also stressed that the process of formulation of ICT policy needs to embrace all the stakeholders and be linked to real development needs. Some felt that in order to formulate a policy that would take into account the impact of ICTs on the national development endeavours, policy makers need to be educated about new technologies.

Some found it difficult to work out a policy that would benefit the disadvantaged sections of the African community because of the fact that the technologies are more controlled by manufacturers than policymakers and their pace of development is faster than it could be monitored by the continent. In order to overcome this, they pointed out that, Africa’s policy direction should focus on creating and fostering indigenous capacity for research and development on technologies. It was also suggested that if Africa wants to share the ownership over the Internet, it should create and maintain information making and software engineering centres.

Some of the issues to be addressed by the national ICT policy were outlined. They included: emphasising the vanguard position of the private sector in the development and implementation of the NICI policy, access to information resources at affordable prices, promotion of technological innovation, ensuring information security and network reliability, improved management of the radio frequency, regional and international collaborations. It was pointed out that the realisation of these intentions requires close interaction between the government and the private sector.

Some felt that each government ministry should elaborate a national ICT within its sphere of activity and then the communications ministry should have policies specifying methods to achieve the outcomes specified by the other ministries. Others disagreed that" telecommunications policy is too important to be left to the telecommunications ministers/ministries". The key issue in this process is " to mobilise key constituencies such as the education, ealth, and business communities -- who have a vital stake of the ICT infrastructure -- to articulate their interests and do fight for them in the development of ICT policies. For this to occur, the policy process may have to be reformed to encourage this kind of participation and avoid narrow corporativist approaches to sectoral development policies".

A participant posed some questions that need to be addressed while developing ICT policies. These included: What should be the focus of the policy" How and where to start defining the policy" What mode of ownership the policy should advocate" What kind of institutional arrangement should be there" What are the legal implications posed by the policy" What are the regulatory frameworks under which the policy is going to be implemented

Participants stated that addressing the right to access information at reasonable cost needs to be considered as a fundamental human right and should constitute the basis for the formulation of a national ICT policy. It was also stated that as the goal of a national ICT policy is to improve the flow and utilisation of information at all levels, the core of the policy should rest on building up ICT infrastructure that could facilitate both national and global connectivity.

It was pointed out that one must take into account the peculiar situations that exist in the country under consideration while considering telecom reforms, and the issue of ownership needs to be addressed in relation to long term development effects. The experience of Uganda came into the picture whereby a six months license is given to a telecom operator to provide pre-defined services and if it failed to do so, then its license will be revoked and given to someone else. Based on this it was noted that ICT policies should be oriented toward satisfying the demands of the user communities.

Participants stressed that defining and implementing ICT policies is a collective responsibility of all stakeholders (government agencies, non-government organisations, private sector, civil societies, etc.) and warned that formulation of ICT policies should not be taken as a one time business, but as an ongoing process.

Some felt that the private sector should be taken as a partner. But as its target is profit, it could not be viewed as a promoter of social needs. It was added that apart from working collaboratively with other stakeholders on policy issues, the private sector should also join hands with the government in the process of building the infrastructure especially in the rural areas.

It was revealed that the situation of African countries regarding ICT development was encouraging. References were given on the various ICT related projects being executed in different African countries. It was pointed out that embarking on making software products that "reflect and mould African mentality " that can take us out of present economic stagnation" could significantly reduce Africa’s dependency on the developed world. Some suggested "set up a kind of African Bank for Technology Finance where young Africans would address their technical idea around building the Infrastructure for approval and Financing".

Some of the participants expressed their concern about the amount of time and money that is being spent on meetings and conferences and stated that "what we need is fewer talk-shops, more collaborative work and more support for small enterprises.

Information was given that ADF 99 is not just a conference but rather a process that brings together donors with various countries" ICT programmes and projects with the aim "to seek funding and partners for their implementation in late 1999 and 2000. The essence of the Forum is its link with these work programmes."

One list member stated that "conferences constitute a form of technology transfer that should be always promoted for cheap acquisition of state-of-the-art (usually not yet published) knowledge and practical exposure to leading scientists and experts in a specific field or topic" offer ample opportunities for professional development".

Information was given on Building Information Community in Africa (BICA), which is sponsored by the British Council and ITU. A project proposal for publishing a CD was approved, whose objective is "to create a medium to collate and continuously deliver critical information to telecentre operators and potential operators as well as other stakeholders" throughout the world. List members were asked if they can contribute input to the same and positive replies were secured.

A question was raised as to who controls the information distribution throughout Africa. In response to this, one list member said that it is the communists and the dictators who control information, while the other argued that it was not true and stated that "the systems that control information are systems that understand the ramification and importance of information and its use".

Formulating a national strategy toward building a learning society

http://www.conectando.org.sv

The Role of African Digital Diaspora in Enhancing ICT Development in Africa

Summary, 13-19 September 1999

The discussion on the role of the African Diaspora in accelerating Africa's movement into the Information Age ran from 13 to 19 September 1999 and was opened with the moderator's brief definition of the African Digital Diaspora -Africans now living in developed countries who by education and work experience have acquired skills (and perhaps capital or ready access thereto) that could be helpful in accelerating frica's movement into the Information Age.

In order to focus the discussion, the following questions were raised by the moderator: What are some of the ways that could be used to attract the participation of the African Digital Diaspora, what concrete experiences have already been acquired in this regard, what actions should be sought to actualize this, and what sort of mechanisms should be employed repatriation or remote consultation. The postings made by various participants have been summarized below:

A participant categorised the African Digital Diaspora into three groups: (i) people of African descent residing outside Africa but with few or no direct links to the continent; (ii) people of African descent living outside but with regular contacts with the continent and (iii) the Africanist community.

A consensus was on the importance of the role of the African Digital Diaspora in facilitating the meaningful movement of the continent toward the Information Age, and most of the Africans in the Diaspora are willing to participate in African development projects. A participant informed list members that there are many people of African descent who have not so recently been moved to other continents are a highly undervalued resource of people who would be quite willing to contribute, because of their own sincerely and deeply held feelings and desires for connections. However, clearing the "two way misconception about Africa among Africans on the continent and the African-Diaspora" and creating a "reciprocal awareness", among Africans in the continent and those in Diaspora, was noted to eliminate the negative attitude of the former towards the latter.

Improving social and political situations in Africa has been stated as a major step forward to attract Africans in Diaspora to extend their contribution to the development of the continent. To improve Africa-Diaspora relationship, it was noted that "the primary step towards long-term effective networks of Africa and Africa-Diaspora will be to generate and disseminate positive knowledge of the African existence to counteract the misconceptions. The positive values, principles and knowledge of African community societies could be animated and digitized as instructional tools to disabuse minds in the Diaspora and vice-versa".

Some prerequisites were put forward for the movement of the continent into the Information Age: some said that the "government and the African Diaspora have to trust each other and work together within the given sector mandated by law" and while others stressed that "the government or the professional bodies in Africa must show seriousness that they need to tap into the knowledge of these people".

Information was given on the functions of International Organisation for Migration (IOM) Africa Programs which is assisting peaceful African countries, as opposed to "boiling countries" like the Congos and CAR, to "reduce the gap between their undergoing economy and the fast growing international market" by using services from their citizens in Diaspora. The Return and Reintegration of Qualified African Nationals Programme (RQAN) "offers assistance in returning to employment or self-employment in target or non-target African countries, in sectors of priority to the recipient country’s development". Some, however, disclosed that the programs of RQAN have failed to attain the goal set simply because the funds available from the program were insufficient to support the project intended to be accomplished by the returnees.

Some suggested that establishing the African Digital Diaspora organisation (ADD) in North America or Europe with branch offices in the continent could help the Diaspora "work very closely with government agencies and professional organisation to identify areas where these interactive bridges must be built".

Some showed scepticism about forming an organisation for reasons that Africans in Diaspora were more interested to work for their own country than for other countries, and each country has peculiar challenges and strategic priorities for development. They suggested that there should be more of a consortium that would enable exchange of experience on various challenges, strategies, success and failure stories obtained along the process of development. In this connection, the effort being made by the Economic Commission for Africa (ECA) to stage the African Development Forum (ADF) was praised.

Developing "a database of people with expertise in key areas and key institutions [and] organizing basic information systems to enable the right people to be in the right place at the right time with the right information [and] develop the institutional support they will need" was described as a good strategy to facilitate the intervention of the Diaspora in development endeavors of the continent.

It was pointed out that "it is essential to co-ordinate the willingness and effort of the Africa-Diaspora in a manner which will be meaningful to how ordinary Africans make living in their homes and communities". It was declared that Africans abroad are Africa's largest "aid donors". Thus the issue needs to be how can we capitalise and best utilise the "intellectual capital" contributions of the Diaspora regarding ICT development and utilisation in the continent. It was noted that the key responsibility of the ADF'99 Diaspora working group includes "feeding back to African organisations in the Diaspora the contents of the specific national communication plans [to] ensure that these national communication policies identify where a Diaspora input would be most useful [in] supporting telecenters [and ] help with monitoring positions adopted at the WTO".

Manufacturing computers and computer related products such as motherboards, sound cards, modems, video cards, etc. and network products such as cable, hubs and other accessories have been indicated as possible areas of intervention for Africans in the Diaspora. The Diaspora can also participate in providing remote data processing services over the Internet.

A participant wrote that if the continent wants to rise from its knees, repatriation is not only necessary, but a must. For this to happen, it was pointed out that trust needs be developed between the Diaspora and the government, and the return of the Diaspora should not be taken as a threat to the local elite; it should rather be considered as a reinforcement of the efforts that have already been exerted locally.

Some negated this and pointed out that repatriation is somehow controversial in that "considering many of the Africans in the Diaspora may have chosen their present countries of residence seeking relief from the asperity in their countries of birth/origin; whether these asperities are of political, social or economic origins (or a combination thereof)". In this connection, some pointed out that the choice to come back to Africa or to stay behind and work closely with the continent should be left to the Diaspora itself.

Some of the participants felt the using the intellectual capabilities of the Diaspora does not necessarily mean bringing them back home, it means that drawing the most out of their knowledge and experience and putting it into "home service". They rather suggested that governments give permission to the Africans in Diaspora to obtain dual citizenship, and added that consultancy assignments must be given to them instead of the Europeans and Americans who "get paid fat salaries and turn around and ask advice from the African intellectuals".

A member of the ADF preparatory committee pointed out that the African Digital Diaspora's role with regard to improving the continent's competitive position in ICT needs to be seen from short and long term perspectives. The short term tasks need to focus on making meaningful contributions to ADF deliberations in terms of ideas, technology and finance, while long term efforts should be geared toward creating real impact on the use of ICT to harness African development.

Some optimism was expressed about the contribution of the Africa-Diaspora to the four themes of ADF. The Diaspora in US especially must be viewed as "part of the investment community" and every possible effort needs to be exerted by governments to foster credibility and transparency, which the forum in October needs to consider seriously. The need to utilise the skills, knowledge and experiences of Africans in Diaspora for trade and others negotiations has also been highlighted.

In the event where the Diaspora chooses to remain behind and contribute whatever it is possible, it was noted that "it is important to utilise ICTs to tap the resources - human and material- of these groups (the Diaspora) through a co-ordinated network building scheme in order to provide a solid base for forging partnership for common objective". Some pointed out that we need to convince the Diaspora about the value of contributing via the internet. Others stated that the basic issue is not to question the role of the African Digital Diaspora in bringing the benefits of ICT to Africa but how best to utilise ICTs to enhance their contribution. It was noted that the efforts that are being made to expand and sustain telecenter initiatives in Africa can be augmented by African civic organizations operating all over the world.

On Web of Information for Development Initiative
http://www.undp.org/tcdc/index2.html

On Technical Co-operation among Developing Countries INRES expertise databases
http://www.wide.org.br

On IOM programs
http://www.iom.int/iom/rqan/index.htm

On African Diaspora Organisations
Http://www.sul.stanford.edu/depts/ssrg/africa/elecnet.html
Http://www.sul.stanford.edu/depts/ssrg/africa/email.html

The Role of Women and Youth in Moving Africa into the Information Age

Summary, 20-26 September 1999

The discussion on the role of women and youth in moving Africa into the Information Age ran from 20-26 September 1999 and was focused around the following questions from the moderator: how can ICT be used to improve women's disadvantaged position in the region? What policy actions are necessary to ensure that women have access as ICTs become more available in the region? What actions are already taking place in this regard specifically with regard to youth? What is the situation of our youth in Africa if they do not have access to ICTs? Does it matter? What are some initiatives already happening to ensure access for youth in the region to ICTs? Again, what policy actions are necessary to ensure that this happens on a sustained basis? The responses given to these questions are summarized below:

A reference was made to the World Conference on Women at Beijing in 1995 where the discouraging picture of ICT utilisation in Africa was apparent. List members declared that today the image has been changed significantly in that several virtual networks for women of Africa have been set up and connectivity to regional and global networks has become a reality.

Participants pointed out that ICTs, especially the Internet, are advantageous for women because they creates forums that could be used to discuss issues of common interest and hence initiate collective actions for development. In this connection, it was advised that providing training courses to women on the language of the web and the use of techniques required to tap information from the Internet and manipulate its various resources are of paramount importance. ICTs can also be used as a delivery mechanism in both formal and informal education programs to women.

It was stated that "women in rural areas are the fastest processors and communicators of information [and] this ability can further be developed by making accessible to them more sources of information like Internet". But some expressed skepticism about the real impact of the Internet on women due to lack of familiarity with the language of the web (non-existence of knowledge in the case of women from Francophone countries) and the irrelevance of the information obtained from the Internet. Some said that people in the rural areas have more pressing needs (roads, health, food access, etc.) than access to the Internet.

Others reacted to this by stating that the language problem could be overcome by re-packaging the information from the Internet using local languages and pointed out that NGOs and women organizations could play an instrumental role in this respect. Reaching rural women located in remote areas and conducting online distance learning courses in the vernacular was also mentioned as another potential benefit of ICTs. It was also pointed out that the existence of good governance and stable political and economic situations are prerequisites for effective utilization of the Internet.

Some felt that ICTs could be used as a tool to improve the situation of rural women only if they are integrated within the overall national development process. Some said that, ICTs can be used to "take women from positions of waiting for the men to be the sole bread-winner to positions where they are involved in decision making, not just in their homes but in their communities and the nation at large", while others disagreed saying that the majority of African women have always been the bread-winner through their active engagement in various informal sector activities and agricultural production.

The overemphasis laid on access to computers as an ultimate solution of problems of rural women was criticized and business promotion motives were suspected. It was stressed that the basic issue for Africa is to develop a "pro-Africa" mentality rather than securing everyone have access to computers. According to them, Internet is considered as a "convenience and entertainment, it is not a need." Some others doubtfully asked ? What would a poor rural woman do with access to a computer (Internet) [and] What are the chances that she will even get access to a computer?

Information was given on some of the women associations with focus towards using ICT for harnessing socio-economic development. Countries cited include: South Africa, Zimbabwe, Malawi and Uganda. It was noted that such associations could lay the foundation for creating a well informed society. Abantu in Kenya, ENDA in Senegal, SANGONeT in South Africa, Boginet in Botswana, ISIS-WICCE in Uganda and other African wide organizations like FEMNET and APC were cited as examples where ICTs are used to realize women equality and to promote their concerns and voices.

Women's Net has built a website which contains a huge amount of information about, and for, women in South Africa. The website gives information to women on gender equality legislation and contains guidelines as to what to do, for instance, in case of rape. Women’s Net provides training to women working in the NGOs so that they can repackage information from the website, using such formats as posters, to reach women who do not have direct access to the Internet. The joint effort that is being made by FEMNET and APC to train women design and launch websites that would track the implementation of the resolutions of the Beijing Conference on Women in 9 African countries was yet another example cited from the continent.

List members were informed about the application of ICTs to disseminate information on existing and new legislation concerning violations of women rights; a case in point was the extensive online advocacy being made to women living under Muslim law on violations of women's rights with the aim of protecting individual women from violations.

Participants stated that there is no doubt that students must have access to computers, video and other technologies in the classroom, because competency in the use of these is an important step in building one’s career.

Some suggested that the access and use of ICTs by African youth can be facilitated by making computers available to them. They further added that if the youth are provided with computers their attention would not be diverted towards crime and other social vices. But some argued that does not always work out positively because many kids are engaged in undesirable activities on the Internet. They pointed out that the quick receptive potential of youth to innovations would make them a target for ICT applications, and they could be used as a vehicle to transmit knowledge on use of ICTs to parents. It was also recommended that setting up computerized youth centers with the assistance of the international donor communities would facilitate the realization of ICT industries in the continent.

A number of participants reiterated that ICTs policies should be gender-sensitive. It was felt that the policies formulated in any sector of the national economy should balance the gender issues in that the interests and needs of women should be reflected. It was asserted that ICT policies must advocate the promotion of women entrepreneurial role in owning and controlling ICT businesses and they need to clearly show how ICTs are used to promote women's causes.

List participants expressed their frustration on the lasting impact of the new technologies, especially the Internet on the rural population who do not have access to basic telephone services as a result of absence of required infrastructure. Liberalization of the telecom industry is believed to facilitate the proliferation of the telephone services and growth of the technology.

The issue of empowering people as a strategic move towards developing and implementing the African information society was brought to the floor. In this regard, three views were reflected, namely, increasing the participation of individuals and groups in government decision-making, democratising the processes that shape the information society itself and empowering people so that they will come up with their own agenda for using ICTs to solve development problems. Participants were concerned that the issue of empowerment may not be addressed adequately during ADF. In response to this, the ADF co-ordinator stated that the issue of empowerment was fundamental to ADF and would be addressed explicitly in a number of ADF sessions.

The comment made by the Tanzanian ambassador to Ethiopia in the meeting called at Addis Ababa by ECA to all ambassadors resident in Addis Ababa for a briefing on the ADF. He stated that "Africa already missed out the information Age in the 90's. And it has lost its most talented citizens to the brain drain as well? He added that this Diaspora could be the seeds of African salvation, and its accumulated skills and organisational talents can be used to African development.

Participants welcomed the comment and appreciated developments of positive thinking towards the Diaspora. It was noted that unless and until the politicians and military provide a safe and stable environment, talented Africans will continue to seek their fortunes in places which, if not particularly friendly, at least tolerate them and respect their talents and work ethic.

The Internet Society

http://www.isoc.org/inet99/proceedings/3i/3i_1.htm http://www.isoc.org/inet99/proceedings/3i/3i_2.htm http://www.isoc.org/inet99/proceedings/3i/3i_3.htm http://www.isoc.org/inet99/proceedings/3f/index.htm

Private Sector Role in Facilitating the Use of ICTs

Summary, 6 –10 October 1999

The moderator asked list participants to express their views about the roles of the private sector (both multi-nationals and African domestic private sector) in accelerating the use of ICTs in Africa. Participants were informed that Professor Derrick Cogburn of University of Michigan and the Global Information Infrastructure Commission is organising a private sector group to give feedback at the ADF ’99. Participants were pleased that the private sector will be covered at ADF ’99.

More information was given on how women are using ICTs in Africa, especially about the web site that is being maintained to gather information on and evaluate the various programmes that are being implemented regarding the resolutions of the World Conference on Women in Beijing (1995). It was stated that women from women’s organisations from all over Africa built the web site. An account was given on the Family Life Education programme conducted in schools in Uganda.

Several requests were made on distance education efforts/projects in Africa, use of ICTs in women organisations and existence of electronic discussion lists. Bellanet responded that it maintains several lists. Additional information was given on lists being run exclusively for women in francophone African countries.

The moderator of this discussion list made concluding remarks. The discussions had looked in depth at issues related to the four major themes, namely, African Information Infrastructure and the policies to promote it, Africa and the global information economy, democratising access to the information society and using ICTs for improved governance. Participants were informed that all the summaries will be compiled in English and French and, participants of the ADF conference will receive them in their package of conference documentation.

Interested subscribers wanted to continue discussing issues related to the above mentioned themes were encouraged to subscribe to the Global Knowledge for Development Internet discussion list through majordomo@mail.edc.org with a message SUBSCRIBE GKD. This list is maintained by the Global Knowledge Partnership, of which the Economic Commission for Africa is a part. List members were informed that the summaries as well as the archives of all messages are and will continue to be available on the ECA-ADF web site. Sincere thanks were extended to Bellanet International and its staff members for their devotion and patience.

Web site evaluation of activities related to Beijing + 5

http://www.flamme.org

Women efforts in Uganda through ICT

http://www.nic.ug/acfode/html/acfode_house.html

Electronic Discussion Lists

http://www.ugandanet.de

http://www.un.org/depts/eca/adf

http://www.agricta.org/afagriict-l.index.htm

Lists for francophone African women

Femmes-afrique@enda.sn

Femmes-afrique-info@goups.com

http://www.enda.sn/synfev/fainifo.htm

http://www.famafrique.org

http://www.famafrique.org/toile/toileindex.html

On African Rural Women

http://www.nic.ug/IRDI/html/news.html

http://www.nic.ug./IDRI/html/gender_issues.html

Directory of Scholarly and Professional E-conferences

http://www.n2h2.com/KOVACS

Index of email discussion lists on all subjects related to Africa

http://www.sul.stanford.edu/depts/ssrg/africa/email.html