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GKP Africa regional preparatory meeting to GK III: “Knowledge and Access”
5 - 6 June 2007
Ouagadougou, Burkina Faso

In the view of providing a GKIII-preliminary regional forum, ECA- the African regional node for GKP- in collaboration with SDC and with the support of IDRC is organizing a GKP Africa preparatory meeting on " Knowledge and Access", which will provide an opportunity for GKP Africa members as well a other stakeholders committed to promote information and knowledge for development in the Continent. Participants will debate on issues such as: market opportunities, knowledge as a public good, language and culture, inclusive solutions for women and youth, innovative technologies, around 3 main themes: Emerging People, Emerging Markets, and Emerging Technologies. More >

Agenda

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First day: Tuesday, 5 June 2007

09:00 – 09:45 Session I: Opening session

- Welcoming remarks: Ms Eskedar Nega, Programme Officer, ICT, Science and Technology Division (ISTD), Economic Commission for Africa (ECA)

- Opening Remarks: Mr. Lamoussa Oualbeogo, Permanent Secretary, Ministry of Post, Telecommunication, and Information Technology, Burkina Faso

- Presentation on the GK III Conference on Emerging People, Emerging Markets and Emerging Technologies, Ms. Eskedar Nega, Programme Officier, ISTD, ECA

- Identification of drafting committee

09:45– 10:45 Session IIa: Emerging People - Empowering People, Communities and Institutions through Knowledge

Chair: Mr. Mohamet Diop, NEXT, Senegal
Rapporteur: Ms. Nnenna Nwakanma, FOSSFA Council, Cote-d’Ivoire

Knowledge is increasingly perceived as the principal driver of socioeconomic growth and development in both developed and developing countries. Africa’s most urgent need is knowledge for production, development and access. Universal, ubiquitous and affordable access to knowledge is key to social and economic prosperity. Access to the right information for all groups in the community (including women, the youth, policy makers, researchers, and rural and urban poor) is therefore necessary for reaching the Continent’s development goals. This session will look at opportunities, challenges and policy responses to insure that knowledge is a public good and community empowerment tool.

- The role of learning and knowledge institutions in African industry and community empowerment, Olivier Nana Nzepa, ESSTIC, University of Yaounde II, Cameroon (10 min)

- Knowledge networks through ICT access points for disadvantaged and rural communities, Afis Anjorin, President of Benin Cybercenter Association, Benin (10 mins)

- Young Social Enterprise an opportunity for community empowerment, Ms. Lucy Mathai, Programs Director, Slums Information Development & Resource Centres (SIDAREC), Kenya (10 min)

- Discussions

11:00 – 11:20 Coffee Break

11:20 – 13:00 Session IIb: Emerging people -Empowering People, Communities and Institutions through Knowledge (Cont'd)

Chair: Mr. Mohamet Diop, NEXT, Senegal
Rapporteur: Ms. Nnenna Nwakanma, FOSSFA Council, Cote-d’Ivoire

- The AISI response to universal access policy, Thierry H Amoussougbo, Regional Adviser, ECA (10 mins)

- The concept of global public goods and the notion of knowledge as a global public goods: Challenges and Policy implication, Dr. Abdoul Alpha Dia Docteur en économie et chef de l’Unité de formation Science Eco et gestion de l’Université de Bambey (10min)

- Language, cultural perspective, and traditional knowledge, Mr. Antony Mugeere, Coordinator, CIPESA, Kampala, Uganda (10 mins)

- Discussions

13:00 – 14:30 Lunch

14:30– 16:30 Session III: Emerging Markets and Technologies - ICTs and Employment Generation in Africa

Chair: Mr Avis MOMENI, PROTÉGÉ QV, Cameroon
Rapporteur: Mr. Joseph Gasana, Rwanda

- ICTs and Employment for Poverty Alleviation: outcome of a joint ILO-ECA-ITU study, Ms Eskedar Nega, Programme Officer - ECA

- Community development prospects in emerging markets: Challenges and Opportunities, Moubarak Lo, Emergence Consulting Group, Senegal (10 min)

- Enabling Development Opportunities, Michael Thatcher, Regional Technology officer, Microsoft (10 mins)

- FOSS as an economic resource and enabler for employment generation and market creation in Africa, Roland Christian, Director, ASSIST Sarl, Cote-d’Ivoire (10min)

- Discussions

Second Day: Wednesday, 6 June 2007

09:00– 13:00 Session IV: Breakout Sessions

· Introduction to breakout sessions, Mr Afework Temtime, Information Officer - ECA

The breakout sessions will provide opportunities for GKP Members to deepen discussion on their regional activities along the GK III themes; in addition these information and knowledge sharing sessions will create networking opportunities between GKP and non-GKP Members.

Breakout Session I: Emerging People– How ICTs and the emergence of knowledge societies is contributing to the empowerment of people, communities and whether there is evidence of transformation. This will include analysis on paths to an inclusive development in the social, economic, cultural, and political arena as a result, and a reconfiguration of citizenship in knowledge societies

Chair: Ms. Lucy Mathai, SIDAREC, Kenya
Rapporteur: Leopold Armah, AYIN, Ghana

Breakout Session II: Emerging markets and technologies, with a special focus on opportunities for women, youth and rural societies. Discussion will focus on: (i) the role and responsibility of entrepreneurs for the production of private and public goods, (ii) Financing, stimulating and mentoring of SMEs and their linkages to the global economy (iii) Fostering e-commerce though telecentres in rural, poor and migrant communities and linking it to global markets and others.

Chair: Ms Shalini Mathaven, Mauritius
Rapporteur: Mr. Thomas Tchetmi, AYIN, Cameroon

Breakout Session III: The role of media in promoting knowledge societies, with focus on GKP III themes.

Chair: Ms Sylvie Niombo, Project Officer AZUR Développement, Congo
Rapporteur: Brenda Zulu, Zambia

14:30– 16:00 Session V: Report from Breakout sessions

Chair: Ms. Nafissatou Mbodj, Executive Director, SchoolNet Africa, Senegal
Rapporteur: Mr. Antony Mugeere, CIPESA, Uganda

- Report from Breakout Session I: Innovative technologies for women, youth and rural societies (10 min)
- Discussion (10 min)
- Report from Breakout Session II: Emerging markets - Building knowledge institutions in Africa
- Discussion (10 min)
- Report from Breakout Session III: The role of media in promoting the knowledge societies (10 min)
- Discussion (15 min)
- Drafting and adoption of the recommendations and final report
- Closing

Background

Global Knowledge Partnership (GKP) is an international multi-stakeholder network committed to harnessing the power of Knowledge and utilising Information and Communication Technologies (ICT) for sustainable and equitable development. With over 100 members, the GKP Network reaches across sectors and continents, to share their experience, ideas and solutions to unleash the potential of knowledge and ICT to improve lives, reduce poverty and empower people. GKP is actively involved in programmes that address development opportunities and challenges within four strategic themes - Access to Knowledge, Education, Poverty Reduction and Resource Mobilisation.

The Global Knowledge Partnership (GKP) will be organizing the 3rd Global Knowledge Conference (GK3) on "Emerging People, Emerging Markets, Emerging Technologies" GK3 will be a dynamic GKP Event focused on the Future. GK3 will explore concrete solutions and possibilities within the interplay, interface and interweaving of issues related to the Knowledge for Development (K4D) and Information and Communication Technologies for Development (ICT4D) in the context of our globally evolving societies, economies and technologies worldwide.

In the view of providing a GKIII-preliminary regional forum, ECA- the African regional node for GKP- in collaboration with SDC and with the support of IDRC is organizing a GKP Africa preparatory meeting on " Knowledge and Access", which will provide an opportunity for GKP Africa members as well a other stakeholders committed to promote information and knowledge for development in the Continent. Participants will debate on issues such as: market opportunities, knowledge as a public good, language and culture, inclusive solutions for women and youth, innovative technologies, around 3 main themes described as follows:

Emerging People. The ultimate goal of economic and technological activity is for the well-being of people. The decade ahead brings extraordinary opportunities for social and economic inclusion. This will permit the movement beyond the pockets of prosperity of the past and to reach the MDGs. However, it is essential to mitigate the risk of growing national, regional and global disparities. How ICTs and the emergence of knowledge societies is contributing to the empowerment of people, communities and whether there is evidence of transformation. This will include analysis on paths to an inclusive development in the social, economic, cultural, and political arena as a result, and a reconfiguration of citizenship in knowledge societies. Key among the various stakeholders involved in building Information and knowledge societies and economies are the youth and their role.

Emerging Technologies: Information and communication technologies offer the option of a knowledge society for all based on tools and infrastructure providing a networked and interoperable environment. Furthermore, the basis for an information society a user-driven, demand oriented applications in everyday life and work. Therefore stories and coverage should focus on how Africa and benefits from various forms of technological developments, from both a hardware and software perspective as well as examining issues such as legal/regulatory, interoperability and appropriate technology issues, access at all levels including community-levels (telecentres), adaptive technologies and innovation for use of local languages and supporting inclusion, open networks and standards, including localization, capacity-building/training and employment opportunities. Other aspects also include policies required for use of technology in the knowledge society such as: skill base for managing complex global, regional and national ICT issues (Internet Governance), issues concerning open standards, digital rights, security and cybercrime, as well as technologies for transparency and accountability (good governance).

Emerging Markets. Markets provide the framework to make an economy work for the benefit of the people. Globalization and private sector developments have resulted in dynamic innovation. The enabling potential of ICT provides positive options and access to the benefits of the knowledge economy must become inclusive. Consequently, stories under this theme should include evidence that suggests there are multiple sites of innovation being undertaken in Africa, demonstrating that innovation is possible in local economies as much as in the global economy. Focus could also be on the roles and responsibilities of entrepreneurs for the production of private and public goods is critical and how they can facilitate the emergence of a knowledge economy in the context of Africa. In particular, how are SMEs involved and affected and how do they have a stake in the knowledge society? How can new business models facilitate Africa’s emerging knowledge economy and what policies and strategies are required?

A specific session on African media and the Information Society will also create awareness among African media practitioners on the themes of GK3 so that activities in Africa related to the themes can be well documented and widely disseminated.