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Sub-regional Thematic Meetings:
1) The Industrialisation of ICTs in Africa, 14 -15 August 2004, Maputo, Mozambique
The Meeting was held at Cardoso Hotel - Maputo, Mozambique, from 14-15 August 2004. The objectives were to discuss and reflect on the process of ICT industrialization of Africa, these includes prepare answers to the questions What, How and When and elaborate a detailed short, medium and long term plan.
Issues considered
Africa's
digital economy is characterized by being a net importer of
all ICT products - computers, communication equipment, software
and related services. Digital inclusion in the African context
entails support and access to information and communications
manufacturing capabilities especially with regard to low cost
and appropriate technologies among other issues.
The NEPAD work plan emphasizes "the need for increasing
Africa's capacity in design and manufacturing of communications
equipment". African countries are developing ICT policies
and strategies that promote the establishment of local ICT
industries to facilitate the production, manufacturing, development,
delivery, and distribution of ICT products and services. In
some African countries ICT manufacturing capabilities are
being encouraged through providing support to local ICT companies
involved in innovative activities such as setting up IT parks.
Some regional projects related to developing Africa's capacity
in ICT industrialization such as INDAFTEL are also underway.
There is a need to conduct research on selected critical issues related to the sector in order to review the current status, opportunities and challenges of ICT industrializations in Africa. In this regard, the African Academia Research Network can contribute significantly through research topics including the following:
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Advising countries on more strategic choices and potential for ICT industrialization and manufacturing capacity;
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Determining strategies within this context for African regional integration programmes;
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Assessing lessons learned, particularly from other regions of the world;
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Designing private-public partnership mechanisms and models with a clearly defined role for academia.
The
participants for this meeting were eight people drawn from
academia and R&D sectors in Egypt, Ethiopia, Tanzania,
and Mozambique. For further info, please contact Prof. Dr.
Eng. Venâncio Massingue, Vice-Rector, Administration
and Resources, University Eduardo MondlaneMaputo, Mozambique,
E-mail: venancio.massingue@uem.mz
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Front
view of the Business Incubator |
Internal
Layout of the Business Incubator |
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Incubatees
during a working session |
Incubatee
explaining their activities to visitors |
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MICTI
Training Centre |
The
new Training Centre |
2) African
languages and content development in the cyberspace, 22 -
26 September 2004, Bamako, Mali
Ten participants drawn from ECA, Cameroon, Mali, Senegal, South Africa, and Tanzania, and three observers attended the meeting. The meeting discussed problems related to the use of African languages in the cyberspace.
Challenges
Challenges to the presence of African languages in the cyberspace were debated, and came up with three categories: technical, social, and political. According to the participants, the third category (political) was the most compelling.
Participants noted that technical issues such as lack of adequate keyboards for African languages and necessary software interfaces, lack of African languages set of characters in the UNICODE system widely used in the Internet, and the low level Internet penetration in the African continent due to overall poor ICT infrastructure were major obstacles. They also mentioned lack of technical skills in computational linguistics.
Mass illiteracy in African languages was seen as the main social challenge.
Participants also noted that there is a great need for political will and commitments from African governments to promote African languages.
Research domains
The meeting identified the following research domains for the thematic network:
1. Development of models for the use of African languages in the cyberspace
2. Procedure of development of electronic terminology
3. Software development in African languages
4. Content (website) development in African languages
5. Latin an non Latin keyboard interface for the use of African languages
6. Registration of African language set of characters in the UNICODE system
7. Development of multilingual electronic dictionary
8. Machine Assisted Translation (MAT) of European languages to African languages and from African languages to African languages
9. Master and PhD training program
10. Development of electronic tutorials for elites literacy in African languages
11. ICT mass literacy campaign
12. Development of gateways to other WSIS/ARN thematic network
13. Development of selection criteria for cross border languages.
Priorities were not set. Rather, it was noted the urgency of a baseline study to know the current state of African languages in the Internet (who is doing what?)
Research team, planning and budget
It was agreed that all the research would be coordinated by ACALAN under the two main institutional bodies, which are ECA and AU. The functioning principles of research teams were discussed. Teams will be constituted as soon as the results of the baseline study will be available.
Activities of the network in short medium and long term were also discussed, and preliminary budget developed.
For
further info, please contact: Adama Samassekou, Président
de l'Académie Africaine des LanguesPrésidence
de la République, KOULOUBA-MALI, Email: acalan@timbagga.com.ml
3) Creating the Enabling Environment, September 2004, Dakar, Senegal
The research team on "Creating Enabling Environment" met in Dakar in September 2004. The team prepared a detailed Terms of Reference for the thematic research network outlining the problems/challenges, objectives, methodologies, activities, expected results, and the required budget.
The activities identified include setting up a task force, follow-up of activities, deliverables, dissemination of the results and evaluation.
Participants agreed that the definition of the research scope implies the consideration of various African geographical and linguistic zones, in order to seek African solutions to African problems.
In addition, it was noted that the implementation of an e-audit and the development of an e-strategy should help draw conclusions regarding the strengths and weaknesses in order to develop an African strategy at short, medium and long terms. In line with this, the network proposed to conduct e-audit with the objective of reviewing the environment of the Information Society in Africa for storing and evaluation purposes. The e-audit will mainly focus on standards, players and recipients, methods and action means of the African Information Society.
Another activity is the development of e-strategy for a conducive environment to the development of an information society. The e-strategy should help develop a consensus strategic framework for the construction of an open African Information Society, all-inclusive and based on solidarity (objectives, challenges, outcomes, approaches, activities, means, responsibilities, agenda, follow-up, evaluation).
For further info, please contact Thierry Amoussougbo (tamoussougbo@uneca.org)
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