Togo launches the NICI process

Approximately 98 participants from the Office of the President, Cabinet of the Prime Minister, various government ministries and departments, the private sector, parliamentarians, academia, NGOs and international organizations attended the launch of the National Information and Communication Infrastructure (NICI) process in Togo on 3 February 2006. The workshop, which was coordinated by the Ministry of Communications and Civic Training, evolved around the following issues: stakes and opportunities of the Information Society; the NICI process; engendering the NICI process; and, Togo and the Information Society, among others.

The Minister of Communication, Mr. Biossey Kokou Tozoun, thanked the ECA Executive Secretary for the rapid response to his request and promised to offer optimal conditions for the successful implementation of the country’s NICI plan. A National NICI Committee, comprising the main Government bodies and other stakeholders, will be set up in the coming days to oversee the development of the plan.

Three ECA experts, including a gender-mainstreaming consultant, met and discussed Togo’s needs with Togolese high officials, UNDP staff, and various stakeholders in order to come up with a roadmap and the appropriate methodology for the development of a NICI plan for the country. The next step, which will be conducted in March, will consist of assessing Togo’s ICT landscape and socio-economic development frameworks.

The development of NICI policies and plans is the main ECA programme for implementing the African Information Society Initiative (AISI) adopted in 1996 by the African Ministers in charge of Economic Planning and Social Development. For more information, contact Makane Faye (mfaye@uneca.org).