Over the years PADIS (whose name was changed in 1989 to ``Pan African Development Information System'') came to concentrate on advisory services and training for member States and regional institutions on development information systems and on development information management. One area stressed was promoting information exchange by improving the norms and standards, harmonization and compatibility of development information being produced in Africa.
With the emphasis on information exchange came an increasing awareness of the need to use electronic means of information exchange. PADIS' work in this area began in 1990 with a pilot project on computer networking in Africa, following by the project on ``Capacity building for electronic communication in Africa, (CABECA)'' which was initiated in 1993. This project helped established or strengthen electronic communication nodes, albeit mostly store-and-forward FIDOnet systems, in some 24 African countries, including Ethiopia where its present systems supports more than 2,000 users on a sustainable fee-paying basis and where an electronic bulletin board of Horn of Africa development information - the ``Hornet''- has proved a helpful tool.
PADIS' work in electronic connectivity continued in 1995 with the organisation of a Regional Symposium on Telematics for Development which brought together more than 300 telematics service providers, telecommunications officials, donors and other supporters of telematics in Africa and resulted in great impetus for the movement to build Internet connectivity in Africa. This Symposium was followed in May 1995 by the passage of ECA Conference of Ministers resolution 795 (XXX) entitled "Towards Africa's Information Highway" which called upon ECA to establish a high level working group on information and communication technologies to development an African action plan to accelerate activity in this area.
Subsequently ECA is going through an internal restructuring that has heightened the profile and role of information technology for development. With the arrival of a new Executive Secretary in June 1995, the substantive divisions of ECA are being re-organized into 5, including one on "Information and Development." Additionally, the Secretary General of the United Nations has charged ECA with the management of a task force under the System-Wide "Special Initiative for Africa" (SPA) on "Harnessing information technology for development." In partnership with the entire United Nations system, but especially with the World Bank and UNESCO, ECA will raise funds for and implement a programme working in the following areas:
In order to work towards meeting these objectives, the SIA on harnessing information technology for development has proposed the following set of activities:
National policy and sectoral workshops to intensify policy dialogue on obsolete regulatory frameworks. (Twenty national policy and sector workshops over three years). At national level, workshops would be held concurrently (1) for senior policy level officials (e.g., ministers of information, communication, prime minister's office) demonstrating the development potential of computer networking, to examine policy restraints in regulatory and pricing areas, taxes and monopolies on equipment; and for (2) potential private and public users in priority areas (especially health, education, trade, and environment) to demonstrate sector applications, expand Internet awareness and discuss current policy constraints, policy and pricing issues.
Installation of Internet nodes with local servers, to provide all Internet services, with suggested modality of Very Small Aperture Terminals (VSATs, or small satellite earth stations) in 8 countries.
Training systems engineers and operators and information users throughout Africa in computer networking. Regional training programmes for systems engineers and operators would be instituted. Users would be trained at national level.
Establishment and operation of outreach electronic clearinghouse on African development information. The clearinghouse would use traditional and electronic dissemination techniques to furnish users with appropriate electronic information, stimulate continuing demand for it, and package available information into operational products in order to build local capacities to use knowledge.
Among the operative principles of the SIA would be: