computer4all

Liberian Journalists equipped with skill for effective Electoral Coverage

2011-02-27T13:30:00.001-08:00

A six day workshop under the theme "Enhancing the Role of the media for Effective Electoral Coverage" took place in Monrovia, Liberia from 21st to 26th February. The workshop is under the 5year The Civil Society and Media Leadership Programme of IREX www.irex.org in partnership with USAID, Liberia Media Centre, International Foundation for Electoral System (IFES) and African Elections Project www.africanelections.org.

The workshop is part of the process to prepare Journalists in Liberia to cover upcoming October 2011 general elections

Participants are being taken through topics such as, voter Registration, Exhibition and the Final Process, The National Referendum; Facts You Ought to Know, Drawing of Electoral Districts, Prospects and Challenges to the 2011 General and Presidential , PUL'S Code of Conduct (Elections) & Code of Ethics, Liberia's electoral history, Understanding Liberia's Election Laws & the Process, Conflict Sensitive Reporting & Information Management and ICTs and Elections Coverage which is being facilitated by African Elections Project, Liberia www.africanelections.org bringing project experience from 10 countries in this area.

The workshop was attended by 24 participants drawn from radio and print Liberia journalists.

AEP

Because Accountability Counts – A Journalist guide for covering post-elections

2010-11-30T13:56:00.001-08:00

Because Accountability Counts – A Journalist guide for covering post-elections in Ghana is one of the key building blocks for Ghana Post-elections Intervention Project whose main objective is to help overcome the challenges and problems affecting citizens' ability to hold elected representatives accountable for promises they make during pre-election campaigns. The guide's main objective is to empower journalists and other stakeholders
with an information and knowledge resource for playing the watch and guide dog role in holding elected officers accountable. It provides an overview of post-elections landscape of Ghana, covering governance, legislative issues, political parties and their manifestoes,ruling party, opposition and governing after an election and provides guides for covering:
1. Parliament, Political Parties, Ruling Government (mapping campaign promises
& manifesto), Opposition and Key Governance Issues
2. Investigative journalism and post-elections coverage
3. ICTs and Covering Post-Elections
4. Covering Budget and Extractive Industries and
5. Lessons to be learned from the post 2007 election crisis in Kenya

Download a copy of the the guide here

Ghana's Budget Statement for 2011- MINISTRY OF COMMUNICATIONS

2010-11-19T06:40:00.001-08:00

Ghana's Budget Statement for 2011- MINISTRY OF COMMUNICATIONS

450. Government‟s main objective for communication is to facilitate the development and access to a reliable, cost effective and world-class communication infrastructure and services, driven by appropriate technological innovations accessible to all citizens.
451. The key projects driving the objective include telecom penetration, Mobile Number Portability (MNP), Telecommunication Gateway, National Fibre Backbone and Broadband.

Performance in 2010 Telecom Sector
452. To improve access, the telecom market experienced a growth of 10.8 percent. The total access lines stood at 16,992,460 at the end of August 2010. This represents a penetration rate of 73.8 percent with mobile telephony accounting for 97.97 percent of the total access lines of about 16,651,168. Additionally, fixed access lines also increased from 267,389 in the fourth quarter of 2009 to 351,448 by the end of August 2010 representing about 27.6 percent increase.

Telecommunication Gateway Project
453. The Ministry of Communication through the National Communication Authority (NCA) facilitated the installation of a consolidated national gateway monitoring system to help the sector accelerate the development of mobile telephony throughout Ghana and also create the environment for a competitive terrain to enhance the delivery of affordable ICT services.
National Fibre Backbone and Broadband Project
454. The Ministry supervised the implementation of the 2nd phase of the Fibre Backbone Project and 90 percent of the Kumasi-Techiman-Sunyani and Tamale-Bolga stretches have been completed. Additionally, the Navrongo-Paga path as well as Tumu-Wenchi stretch have also witnessed 90 percent and 50 percent completion rate respectively.

Provision of Universal Access
455. As part of the universal access obligation, the Ministry will continue to support the extension of ICT infrastructure and services to underserved and un-served areas of the country to bridge the digital divide between the urban and rural areas.

Spectrum Monitoring
456. NCA and Bureau of National Communications (BNC) undertook a nationwide exercise to clear all illegal spectrum occupants in the 450MHz band. In furtherance to this, NCA collaborated successfully to migrate BNC from the 800MHz band to 450MHz band to pave way for the rolling out of the sixth mobile network that will operate on the 800MHz band.

Community Information Centres (CICs)
457. Government as part of its commitment to promote all inclusive information and knowledge society to benefit the underserved and un-served areas continued to sustain the construction of CICs in all constituencies and provide infrastructure and equipment support for the completed ones.
Forty-Six existing CICs have been equipped with internet facilities whilst 20 have been provided with equipment.

E-Government Network
458. The Ministry in collaboration with the National Information Technology Agency (NITA) is pursuing the e-Government network infrastructure project aimed at creating a platform for the use of shared services among the MDAs nationwide to facilitate communication within Government. In this regard, 8 communication masts have been constructed to facilitate the deployment of WIMAX and 5 new ones are at various stages of completion.

Deployment of National ICT Standards and Type Approvals
459. In line with the effective implementation of the Electronic Communications Act, Act 775 of 2008, the Ministry through NCA developed 2 regulatory documents namely, the National Specifications and Technical Standards and Equipment Type Approval Guidelines to help prevent the importation of sub-standard ICT equipments and generate employment.

Outlook for 2011
E-Government Platform
460. The Ministry will continue to pursue the implementation of the e-applications (e-government and e-Ghana) to facilitate efficient and effective service delivery to the public in support of the broad goal of transparent and accountable governance.
461. In this regard, the Ministry will continue with the e-government network infrastructure project aimed at creating a platform for the deployment of ICT on a shared government IT architecture and will among other things build
WIMAX last mile access networks to serve government agencies in all the 10 regional capitals. It is also expected that the WIMAX network will connect up to 550 MDA facilities throughout the country and also offer data rates of up to 20 Megabits per second (Mbps).

Deployment of Enterprise Architecture and E-Government Interoperability Framework
462. The Ministry will ensure the effective implementation of the Enterprise Architecture (EA) as well as the e-Government Interoperability Framework by all MDAs to enable them meet the challenges of the digital economy. These documents will guide MDAs in deploying efficient cost-effective and citizen centred IT solutions that optimizes value gained across Government.

Creation of Computer Emergency Response Team (CERT)
463. The Ministry will facilitate the establishment of a Network Operation Centre (NOC) where computer servers and routers will be installed to receive reports of computer fraud incidence on a 24/7 basis and also provide remedial actions. This institutional arrangement will be responsible for addressing possible issues such as computer malfunction, cybercrime, and virus attacks among others.

Development of Technology Park
464. The Ministry will promote the development of an ICT Park under the Micro, Small and Medium Enterprises (MSME) project to facilitate growth in the technology industry to create the enabling environment for real job creation in the area of ICT and Information Technology Enabled Services (ITES) business initiatives. The design and construction phase of the project will commence at the Tema multi-purpose industrial park.

Telecom Sector
465. The focus for 2011 will be the expansion of the broad band infrastructure to cover all District Assembly areas to support the deployment of high speed internet to District Assemblies, schools and teacher training colleges, hospitals and police stations.

Mobile Number Portability Solution
466. The Ministry will ensure that the NCA intensifies its policy dialogue with the Telecom Industry players to address challenges associated with implementing Mobile Number Portability (MNP) in a market environment that is moving towards the deployment of next generation and converged networks. MNP will foster customer choice of service and help pro mote effective competition in the telecom industry by enabling subscribers to swish between service providers without cost and inconvenience of changing telephone numbers.

National Digital Migration
467. The Ministry will continue to monitor the national digital broadcasting migration process to ensure the smooth migration process from analogue to digital terrestrial broadcasting in line with international convergence standards.
Monitoring of Telecommunication Gateway Project
468. Government will promote transparency in the communication industry and will not relent on its responsibility to verify the number of international telephone traffic to Ghana for the purpose of enhancing revenue for development. The National Communication Authority will be tasked to exercise utmost vigilance to ensure that Government policy of strictly monitoring the international gateway infrastructure and the contribution of service providers is not undermined through the complacency of some of the operators.

Provision of Universal Access
469. The development of 50 Common Telecom Facilities that will enable telecom operators extend their services to many more communities in addition to the 378 communities under the scheme will be pursued.
470. Further, the Ghana Investment Fund for Electronic Communications (GIFEC) will accelerate the implementation of the schools connectivity project. This will enable more schools to be provided with connectivity and ICT equipment to enhance community and distance learning.
471. Madam Speaker, for the implementation of the above activities an amount of GH¢29,547,558.00 has been allocated. Out of this, GH¢6,280,127.00 is GOG and GH¢23,267,431.00 is from Donor.

Fwd: Beyond the Bank: The Rise of Mobile Money in Ghana

2010-10-22T10:33:00.001-07:00

As the number of mobile phone subscribers in Ghana increases, so does the market for mobile money services. The majority of Ghanaians lack any formal bank account. Kwami Ahiabenu II reports on how mobile money could change the shape of financial transactions in the country.

By Kwami Ahiabenu II

An estimated 80 percent of Ghanaians are "unbanked" – meaning they conduct their transactions outside the banking sector with no access to financial services. Products like "mobile money," that enable safe and secure money transfers without the use of a bank account, could have a major impact on this unserved segment of the population. Mobile money gives anyone with a mobile phone the ability to transfer money, make cash payments and conduct other financial transactions over the phone.

Mobile money is a relatively new phenomenon in Ghana. It was first introduced by the telecom company MTN a year ago. MTN Mobile Money operates in partnership with nine banks. Currently, more than 2 million Ghanaians are registered as active users. MTN expects this number to grow as a result of the resources they have committed to educating subscribers about switching from the traditional mode of cash payments to electronic payments. Earlier this year, Zain became the second mobile operator to provide mobile money services through the introduction of ZAP, working with three banks.

How Will Mobile Money Help Ghana?

With more than 15,000,000 mobile phone subscribers in Ghana, the potential market for these new services is significant. Mobile money presents certain advantages for Ghanaians without access to banks. It reduces the transaction costs of financial services for the poor, especially those in rural areas where financial services seldom exist. Mobile money saves the cost of travel and time spent visiting the nearest town to access financial services. As noted in AudienceScapes research , mobile money provides people with a way to transfer money safely and keep (or even increase) their savings.

Mobile money has the potential to create jobs directly through hiring in the mobile phone companies, partner banks and the more than 4,000 merchants involved in Ghana's mobile money system. Key partners in the provision of mobile money services include commercial banks, mobile phone operator's shops, distributor shops and accredited agents.

Jobs may be created indirectly as mobile money contributes to growth in Ghana's business and trade. If deployed successfully, mobile money could help individuals harness funds outside the banking system and channel them into the formal financial sector, thus making it easier to gather funds for investments.

Not surprisingly, the general manager of Mobile Money-MTN, Bruno Akpaka, sees many benefits for Ghana as it continues adopting this service. Akpaka believes mobile money will "help trade activities within the country and foster strong business partnerships."

"The creation of wide merchant footprints in places where traditional banks cannot go also contributes to bringing people into this new model of financial transactions," said Akpaka. "MTN Mobile Money is bridging this existing huge gap between the unbanked and the financial sector."

The Rise of E-Money Services

The introduction of mobile money service is taking place in isolation but in parallel with the advent and expansion of other financial electronic payments services. One of these is E-Zwich, an electronic platform that enables the loading and spending of electronic cash and also allows the settlement of inter-bank claims in addition to online transactions. Others are being made available over the Internet and through SMS-text messages.

The government regards these services as banking. They are strictly regulated and licensed by the Central Bank- Bank of Ghana under its branchless banking policy.

Both MTN and ZAIN SIM cards are enabled to utilize the service but each new subscriber needs to register for the service at before it is activated. Upon activation, the user is provided with a secure electronic "wallet" where funds can be disbursed or uploaded. The users can either exchange electronic money for physical cash (cash out) at shops, partner banks and accredited agents or make use of it in making purchases or transfers.

Enabling a Cash Flow to Rural Areas

In general, the most popular mobile money service is money transfer. The trend is for users in urban areas to transfer funds to recipients in rural areas. Traditionally in Ghana, city dwellers often send money to members of their extended family living in rural areas.

Other typical services include the purchase of mobile phone airtime, goods and services through electronic transfer of money from user's wallet to the merchant's account.

Commenting on money transfer via mobile phones, Carl Niikoi Ashie, an m-commerce (mobile commerce) specialist at Zain who works on ZAP, said: "The customers can 'cash in' by loading money onto their ZAP wallet, then send the money to someone else on their phone in a simple process. The person receiving the money can 'cash out' by going to any of our outlets and exchanging the e-value for physical cash. We're seeing tremendous growth in the service across the country, with more cash-in done in the major cities while cash-outs are seen predominantly in the smaller towns."

Ashie sees a lot of evidence that his product is reaching Ghana's unbanked. "Users do not need to have a bank account to use the service. Currently, there are a lot of monetary transactions that take place outside the confines of the banks and it will take a product like ZAP to fill the void while providing a secure, convenient and trustworthy channel of transaction," said Ashie. "Some customers have also requested products that will allow them to use their ZAP wallets for savings and hence enjoy interest on their savings, just as pertains in the traditional bank setting."
http://audiencescapes.org/ghana-mobile-money-branchless-banking-research-MTN-E-Zwich

Texts a New Tool in Guinea’s Historic Election

2010-09-01T08:41:00.001-07:00

Mobile phones turned citizens into election observers in Guinea's landmark presidential election. The technology will also be used to help voters in the upcoming September run-off poll.

By Kwami Ahiabenu II

On June 27, 2010, Guinea held what is widely being hailed as the nation's first freely run democratic election since gaining independence in 1958. A run-off between the two presidential candidates earning the most votes will take place on September 19, 2010. Another first in this landmark election process is the use of mobile phone technology.

Mobile phones have become a preferred means of communication in Africa because they are convenient and affordable relative to other methods. Most countries on the continent are now recording the use of mobile phones by all key stakeholders in their elections: from electoral officials, political parties and individual candidates, to electoral security agencies, civil society organizations, and local and international observers.

Candidates use mobile phones to raise funds and campaign. Voters can use mobile phones to verify their registration information and correct it if necessary before going to the polls. Mobile phones are also used to inform citizens about voter registration, and to inform registered voters about when, where and how to vote. And, in Guinea, phones have been used as a tool for election observation.

"If you have a problem during voting, send a text message to 8080." During the first round of elections in June, this was the message that Guineans around the country received at public forums, on the radio and in newspapers. The message advertised an election-monitoring service based on SMS text messages. The SMS service used a short code number, "8080," which enabled all mobile users in Guinea, regardless of their mobile operator, to send election-related queries, comments and report problems. The service was implemented by a coalition of government, private and business partners. These included the nonprofit group Alliance Guinea, the African Elections Project, Guinea's National Independent Election Commission (CENI), mobile operators (Areeba, Cellcom, Intercel Guinee, Orange or Sotelgui) and African Business Services.

Commenting on the SMS election-monitoring service, U.S. Ambassador Patricia Moller said at a briefing before the June election: "The United States is committed to ensuring that these are the freest and most transparent elections in Guinea's history. This innovative initiative will help to make this vision a reality…By providing voters with the means to protect their vote, we have helped to place the future of their country in the palm of their hands. This technology will allow CENI, local and international observers, and security forces to respond to incidents in real time."

After voters went to the polls, Alix Davilmar of the Guinea-based African Business Services, the providers of the short code service, declared the service a success. Davilmar said: "We received about 4,000 SMS [messages] before the day of election and on the day of elections there were approximately 8,000 SMS entries. After the Election Day, over 2,000 SMS entries also came in. These messages were all posted online and distributed as e-mail alerts to election administrators and observers, international media, civil society organizations or the general public."

The election did experience some glitches, according to the Carter Center, a U.S. NGO with expertise in observing elections which was on the ground in Guinea. In a statement, the Carter Center described some of the problems observed, "Confusion about several important aspects of voting and counting procedures, delay in allocation of polling stations, and late delivery of essential voting materials negatively affected the quality of polling."

Despite these difficulties, the period following the election has been calm and the results respected by all parties. The Carter Center itself declared the elections a success and noted, "the elections were marked by broad political participation, a spirit of open campaigning, and transparency."

Now all eyes are on the September poll, as Guineans prepare for the country's return to civilian rule.

http://audiencescapes.org/texts-new-tool-guinea-historic-election-mobile-communications-carter-center

Ghana – land of Gold, land of technology-Overview of ICT Sector

2010-08-27T18:44:00.001-07:00

Kwami Ahiabenu,II

Introduction

Ghana can be counted among leading countries in West Africa's information and communication technology (ICT) space; its industry is growing with new developments being recorded each passing day. In recognising the potential of ICTs as an important tool, the government and industry stakeholders are aggressively pushing to accelerate the growth and development of the country in all sectors. Ghana's Extractive Economy with weak Industrial Base

At independence, the Ghanaian economy was relatively robust and well supplied with natural resources, skills and finance with an average per capita income of US $600.(1957). Over time, however, the structure of the economy has not seen any significant change, it is still an extractive-based economy with gold, timber and cocoa constituting its main sources of foreign exchange.

Another key characteristic of its economy is a heavy dependence on international financial and technical assistance in all sectors, which has inevitably resulted in an enormous external debt portfolio. In order to tackle its mounting external debts, 2002 saw Ghana opting for debt relief under the Heavily Indebted Poor Country (HIPC) scheme, a World Bank and International Monetary Fund (IMF) debt relief initiative. As a result of the HIPC programme, Ghana will save a total of US$230 million annually in debt service costs over 2004-2013, according to IMF estimates. To deal with the growing levels of poverty, Ghana has also developed Poverty Reduction Strategy (GPRS) which chronicles its "agenda for growth and prosperity.

KEY ICT SECTORS IN GHANA AND INVESTMENT OPPORTUNITIES

If the performance of a stock exchange is a strong indication of a country's investment climate, then Ghana is an attractive prospect for those seeking a good return on investment. The Ghana Stock Exchange (GSE) is among the best performing markets in the world. In 2003, it outperformed the effective yield of the benchmarked 91 and 182 day Treasury bills with market capitalisation rising by 104% while market turnover in value terms was up 335%.

Furthermore there a rising number of entrepreneurs running a number of successful ICT and ICT-enabled businesses, a strong indication of the significant potential for growth of ICT enterprises in Ghana.

The ICT sector is enjoying sustained growth in key areas such as ICT training, internet service provision, business outsourcing processing, telecommunications and software.

Telecommunications
Telecommunications remains the top growth area both in the area of fixed and mobile telephony, though mobile telephony is the leader in this sector; currently there are two national fixed line operators in Ghana – Ghana Telecom (GT) and Westel.

Westel has not been able to meet its rollout obligations as a second national operator and the National Communication Authority (NCA) initially imposed a fine of a little over US $71 million on the company. While through government intervention the figure has being reduced to US$25milion, Westel continues to mount a court battle to avoid paying the fine.

Generally, GT remains the biggest ICT player in Ghana by the virtue of its combined fixed lines; mobile telephony, international bandwidth wholesaling and ISP service offerings.

Mobile Telephony
Long waiting periods for fixed telephony – in some cases up to a year - plus limited availability in most areas of the country, has fueled the rapid growth of the mobile telephony business in Ghana. With four mobile operators, namely GT (One Touch) Milicom (Mobitel), Scancom (Spacefon) and Cell Tel (Kasapa) servicing the needs of an estimated one and half million mobile phone subscribers. Spacefon remains the market leader with 800,000 plus subscribers. Furthermore, with the recent introduction of advanced mobile communications technology such as General Packet Radio Service (GPRS), the operator is able to offer multimedia services including Internet browsing.

Kasapa prides itself on being the most inexpensive provider of cellular calls. Its business model has to date proven to be highly successfully, cost effectively offering cheap call rates by avoiding the use of fancy technology. It remains the only non-GSM cellphone provider to date, relying rather on analogue technology, and offers free activation and starter packs.

Mobitel is Ghana's first cellphone company, and initially dominated the industry as a leader for some time prior to the introduction of competing operators. Unfortunately, it did not recognise that GSM was the driving force of mobile telephony, and thus it did not rush to implement the technology. Failure to capitalise on this market current cost it dearly as competitor Spacefon introduced GSM and subsequently took a very significant share of the market. In the interim, however, Mobitel has successful implemented its GSM system and it is working hard to gain market share.

With a strong sales drive, One Touch was dominant for some time, but the company has taken a decision to stop selling services to new subscribers due to lack of capacity on its switches. It recently expanded its network significantly and it is poised to take a healthy proportion of the growing Ghanaian cellular market.

Developing human capital for ICTs
Ghana has adequate human resources to drive ICT growth and development, but faces the well documented issue of the significant skills gap that persists in Africa, especially in the high level ICT skills area. This situation is compounded by a brain drain effect, where top professionals - including ICT-trained individuals – are lured away to First World countries. Currently there is enormous demand for ICT training, which presents a host of investment opportunities for entrepreneurs.

The ICT human resource landscape is characterised by four types of ICT training opportunities. At the upper level, tertiary institutions - mostly universities - are focused on producing computer science, engineering and information system graduates. In recent times, an increasing number of private universities have initiated operations in Ghana, with most providing ICT-based training, filling the training gap resulting from the lack of capacity of public sector universities.

The second type of training is competence-based instruction, which is aimed at producing specific ICT skills as required by industry verticals. This level of training is a niche market with few institutions offering services in this area; there is therefore a significant level of opportunity that can be tapped by appropriate providers.

The next level of training is end user training at the mass market level. There are a number of training schools providing service in this area; at this level the market is somewhat saturated.

A growing phenomenon is teaching computer literacy in schools. This opportunity carose as most formal schools in Ghana do not provide computer literacy. With many schools now outsourcing their training needs to third parties instead of developing their own computer centres, opportunities exist for providers of such facilities and equipment to address the market need for basic computer literacy at the school-learner level. The Ministry of Education is encouraging and working with such training schools, but it is constrained by lack of a policy to guide the process, as well as the absence of predefined ICT curriculum for the schools.

Internet Service provision
Internet service provision is also another area of considerable growth and opportunity in Ghana. There are a number of ISPs working under an industry body, Ghana Internet Service Providers (GISPA) which is working to regulate the provision of Internet connectivity on the country. The success of the body in regulating the industry has been demonstrated in a recent case where Ghana Telecom was offering cheap bandwidth through its ISP division, while selling at a higher price to other ISPs - GISPA successful negotiated price reduction to create a fair environment in which the ISPs could conduct their business.

Though a considerable number of end users make use of dial up Internet access, most Ghanaians tend to use the Internet at public access cyber cafes, which are dotted all over the country. However, due to high costs including that of bandwidth, most cyber cafes in Ghana are struggling to break even.

Outsourcing in Ghana and Software Development
There are a number of outsource service provider companies in Ghana, including Affiliated Computer Services, Rising Data Solutions, AQ Solutions and Supra Telecom.

However, Supra Telecom has closed shop, since its parent company in the US filed for bankruptcy.

Ghana is positioned to benefit from outsourcing business opportunities, but it must establish an enabling environment including a pool of high quality yet affordable English-speaking computer literate workers as well as an inexpensive telecommunication infrastructure. Generally, Ghana has a long way to go before it can call itself a true outsourcing location.

Local development of software is becoming popular with a number of software companies and consultancies providing solutions in this area; some are already exporting their products. Local software development, however, remains an industry in its infancy and therefore presents an area of potential growth.

Government ICT
The Ministry of Communication is the leading government organ responsible for ICT in Ghana and is charged with the responsibility of coordinating government use of ICTs. In 2002, it developed an ICT for Accelerated Development (ICT4D) policy which articulates the vision of transforming Ghana into an information-rich knowledge-based society and economy through the development, deployment and exploitation of ICTs within the economy and society. The key focus of the government is to create enabling environment to nurture the development of the ICT industry in the country.

Challenges facing ICT development in Ghana
Perhaps the most significant issue facing development in Ghana is a reality that confronts many African countries – it has a cash-based economy with limited development of its financial services infrastructure. With over 80% of money in circulation outside the banking system, finding affordable loans and credit is very difficult if not impossible. This situation has lead to the small scale nature of most ICT businesses since they are constrained in their capacity to expand. Furthermore, the size of the ICT market is relatively small since most organisations which can benefit from ICTs products and services are slow to invest in this area.

Lack of policy implementation, lack of telecommunications infrastructure and poor regulatory environments are also affecting the growth and development of the industry.

Ghana's ICTs industry is highy visible internationally with a lot of opportunities yet to be leveraged. It has chalked up many successes but there is a long way to go for ICTs to contribute significant to growth and development of the country and overtake the traditional resources exports which include gold, cocoa and timber.

Nurturing Media in West Africa

2010-08-26T07:12:00.001-07:00

The West African Media Development Fund opens it doors to facilitate the growth of media in the region. AudienceScapes interviewed the fund's CEO about their plans to sow the seeds of a vibrant and pluralistic media sector.

By Kwami Ahiabenu II

The growth and development of the media as a business venture in West Africa is hindered by a number of factors. The region possesses a limited professional capacity to produce journalism, operating a media outlet is expensive, access to credit facilities is limited and the cost of borrowing is typically high. These factors are threatening the growth of pluralistic media in the region.

To solve some of these challenges, media funds have been established to provide media organizations with affordable and readily available lines of credit. Examples of media funds active on the continent include country-based funds like the Tanzania Media Fund, regional funds like the Southern Africa Media Development Fund, and at the global level, the Media Development Loan Fund.

Media organizations in West Africa were encouraged when the West Africa Media Development Fund (WAMDEF) was set up. Launched in April of this year, WAMDEF will provide financial support to privately owned, independent media organizations established on weak capitalization and operating under precarious economic regimes.

From its headquarters in Accra, Ghana, Kwasi Owusu Asare, chief executive officer of WAMDEF, spoke to AudienceScapes about the progress of the fund and his vision for the future:

AudienceScapes: Can you tell us more about WAMDEF, when it was established and why the need for such a fund?

Asare: WAMDEF was launched on the 13th of April 2010 as an initiative of the Media Foundation for West Africa and Free Voice of the Netherlands. This was after comprehensive research had been conducted which showed clearly the challenges independent media had in accessing credit for growth. The WAMDEF Fund does not only provide credit, but also provides technical support which is critical to the support/sustainability of these businesses.

AudienceScapes: What is your geographical coverage and do you have country offices or representatives?

Asare: Our mandate is to work in all West African countries, but currently we do not have in-country offices, though we are planning to develop this in the near future. We are currently using an in-country representative of MFWA which has a presence in all West African countries.

AudienceScapes: Why is a special case being made for media funding in the region instead of the media being empowered to apply for commercial lending?

Asare: This is because the media has the challenge of not being able to meet the requirement for credit of most financial institutions in the subregion, plus the media is generally seen as a high-risk venture.

AudienceScapes: Who qualifies to tap into the fund and what is the procedure for doing so?

Asare: Basically, any registered news and information disseminating agency, registered and operating within the subregion, is qualified to apply. An applicant has to visit WAMDEF to download an application form. After submission of the form, it will be assessed and a decision communicated to the applicant within 8 weeks.

AudienceScapes: Does WAMDEF have any particular focus in the types of media organizations it will select for funding? Any priorities?

Asare: WAMDEF is particularly interested in news and information-dissemination independent media organizations.

AudienceScapes: Do you providing funding for new media?

Asare: Yes.

AudienceScapes: Do you have any funding opportunities for freelancers or sole proprietorship-type media operations?

Asare: Each media organization is assessed based on its merit.

AudienceScapes: Are funds provided interest free? And typically what is the duration for paying back such funds?

Asare: Our portfolio includes:

* Quick operating loans of up to $10,000, repayable between 60-120 days.
* Short-term loans between $10,000 and $50,000, repayable between 120 days and 2 years.
* Medium-term loans between $50,000 and $100,000, repayable between 3 and 5 years.
* Long-term loans between $100,000 and $200,000 repayable between 5 and 7 years.

Please visit our website for more information. These options are not cast in stone but are assessed and dealt with on case-by-case basis. These loans are not interest free but are offered at much lower interest rate (60-70% less) than prevailing commercial rates in the country of the applicant.

AudienceScapes: How many applications have you received so far?

Asare: Some 30 applications have so far been received, and more keep coming in.

AudienceScapes: Has WAMDEF made any investments yet?

Asare: We will be making our first investments in September 2010.

AudienceScapes: What kind of technical assistance do you expect to deliver the most? What do you see as the greatest technical assistance needs for media organizations?

Asare: The greatest technical assistance media organizations needs are its internal systems. Most of them have no software to harness revenue, ensure internal control, track performance, etc. Closely following these are the human resource capacities especially in the areas of management and general leadership.

AudienceScapes: What are some of your key challenges and achievements over your short period of operations?

Asare: The general volume of financial requests is a testament to the fact that private independent media needs support and we need more partners in this venture.

AudienceScapes: What is your vision for the fund and how do you see contributing to the growth of free and vibrant media in the region?

Asare: The fund will definitely make a major contribution to the strengthening of democracy in the subregion.

source: http://www.audiencescapes.org/intermedia-nurturing-media-west-africa-media-development-fund

GES Introduces SMS Short Code For BECE Placement

2010-08-22T06:15:00.001-07:00

The Ghana Education Service (GES), has introduced SMS short code 1060 on all mobile networks for students who sat for the 2010 BECE exams to check their Senior High School placements.

A statement signed by Mr. Charles Parker-Allotey, Head of Public Relations of GES to the Ghana News Agency, said there will be supplementary placement for all qualified and unplaced candidates by 20th October, 2010.

"As part of the plan to fully automate the placement process for this year, the entry into Senior Secondary and Technical Institutes (ESS/TI) placement form would be accessed on the internet."

"Each successful candidate is required to print out his /her ESS/TI placement form from the internet using a GES Scratch Card," it added.

The statement said, the scratch card can be obtained from the nearest Agriculture Development Bank and its agencies as well as the ARB Apex Bank and its network of rural banks by Monday 6th September, 2010.

It said the location of the banks will be published in the local newspapers and advertised on TV and FM stations.

It also said, candidates without access to the internet may contact the head of their various Junior High Schools (JHS).

The GES expects all Regional, Districts Directors and Heads of Junior High School to facilitate the admission process by providing information and helping answer queries raised.

Source: GNA

African Elections Project- Botswana, Namibia and Mozambique

2009-09-17T14:39:00.001-07:00

African Elections Project

Elections are crucial bedrock for democracies and enabling a free and open society. The role of the media in ensuring successful election is very crucial. All over the world the media is playing this important role of ensuring free and fair elections by working with all stakeholders across board.The media can strengthen the electoral process by providing independent information through impartial coverage. Three important elements come into play: access to information on the political process, ability to undertake investigate journalism and document lessons and experiences from the electioneering process.

There are a lot of challenges and problems facing the media in the area of election coverage. Key among them is lack of access to real-time information, lack of capacity to undertake investigative journalism surrounding elections, use of ICTs in coverage, inability to produce balanced reports and to incorporate user content are some of the challenges and problems facing the media during elections coverage. In order to address some of these problems, African Elections Project was launched in September 2000 with the following key activity areas :

v Training for senior editors, journalists and reporters

v SMS application in coverage and monitoring

v Election Guide for the Media

v Information and Knowledge Online Portal

v Knowledge products for the media

v Media Content Monitoring

With funding from OSISA - The Open Society Initiative for Southern Africa www.osisa.org working with key partners, African Elections Project is providing coverage for the following countries in the Southern Africa region :

1. Mozambique http://www.africanelections.org/mozambique/

http://twitter.com/mozambiquevotos

2. Namibia http://www.africanelections.org/namibia/

http://twitter.com/namibiaelection

3. Botswana http://www.africanelections.org/botswana/

http://twitter.com/botswanaelects

If you are in the region or any of the above countries and want to get involve with this exciting project send a mail to

info@africanelections.org

Hope to hear from you soon

Editor

www.africanelections.org

Countries Covered so far :

Ghana www.africanelections.org/ghana
Mauritania www.africanelections.org/mauritania
Malawi www.africanelections.org/malawi

Pending Elections :

Cote d'Ivoire www.africanelections.org/cotedivoire,

Niger www.africanelections.org/niger

and Guinea www.africanelctions.org/guinea

Declaration on ICT for Development,World Congress on ICT for Development, 11 September 2009, Beijing

2009-09-17T01:06:00.001-07:00

Declaration on ICT for Development

World Congress on ICT for Development, 11 September 2009, Beijing

The 2009 World Congress on ICT for Development, WCID'09, held Sept. 10-12, 2009 in Beijing, was sponsored by the World Federation of Engineering Organizations (WFEO) and China Association for Science and Technology (CAST), co-sponsored by International Telecommunication Union (ITU), United Nations' Educational, Scientific and Cultural Organization (UNESCO), the United Nation's Global Alliance on ICT and Development (UN-GAID), and the International Center for Science-Technology-Innovation for South-South Cooperation (ISTIC), and organized by the WFEO Committee on Information and Communication (CIC). The theme of WCID09 was "ICT for Development". A number of issues of significance related to the theme were addressed in the Congress and the participants have reached the following understandings and agreements.

1, Millennium Development Goal, for Remedying the Unbalancing Boat

People, from every corner of the globe have same rights for seeking the happier life. We are in fact in a big village and sailing on the same boat.

Due to historical reasons, however, people have been in different positions, richer or poorer, stronger or weaker, well-educated or less-enlightened. Over-unbalance may lead to danger to the mankind.

To remedy the situation, the United Nations have set a Millennium Development Goal to at least halve the poor population before 2015. This is a loyal responsibility for all of us.

2, Information Age, New Stage of Human Society

Science and Technology as a whole is the major driving force for the development of human society.

Material Science and Technology has made it possible for human society to advance from nomadic age to agricultural age, Energy Science and Technology has driven the society from agricultural age to industrial age, and now Information Science and Technology is leading the society from industrial age to information age.

3, ICT, Effective Tool for Development in the New Age

Advancement of the human society depends on the new tools innovated by science and technology.

The typical new tool in information age is the information and communication technology, ICT, which has two stages to develop: the Primary stage and the Advanced stage.

The Primary ICT Tool supports the convenience of information sharing among people that will make better matches among sectors of the society and thus improves the social productivities.

The Advanced ICT Tool will support highest efficiency and creativity in social productivities and provide equal opportunity for people to use, leading the various kinds of gaps existed in society gradually diminished.

4, Education, Key to the Use of ICT Tool

To effectively use ICT Tool for making progress in economic and social development, people need to acquire necessary kinds of knowledge and skills. Education will thus play the most fundamental and indispensable role.

People in information age have the advantage of using ICT for receiving education. This has been proved by many appreciable cases presented during WCID'09.

5, Responsibility for Governments and Citizens

Government in any country should take on the responsibility to promote the national education for all people and place education as the top priority on the national development agenda.

Government should also take effective measures to encourage all stakeholders for building up and maintaining the national infrastructure as well as creating the variety of information resources so that people, including disabled people, can afford to use ICT Tool for learning, working and living.

Citizens should well be aware of the importance of learning and people are never too old to learn ICT.

6, Responsibility for International Organizations

To reduce the unbalance of development among nations, international cooperation between developed and developing countries should be strengthened. Developed countries have responsibility to provide assistance to the developing countries in this regards.

The international organizations have obligations to work together for promoting various kinds of cooperation among nations. Conference, e.g., WCID'09, is one of the approaches for this purpose.

7, Public Call

The participants of WCID'09 strongly appeal to all citizens, professions, governments and international bodies to take effective actions in promoting ICT for sustainable human, economic and social development.

-----------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------

Vodafone reduces broadband installation charges

2009-09-16T07:27:00.001-07:00

Accra, Sept. 15, GNA - Vodafone Ghana, has announced a reduction in the installation charge of its fixed broadband service from GHc90 to GHc55, a statement copied to the GNA said.

The reduction, which started from September 11, 2009, would last for a period of three months.

The statement said the reduction meant that, the initial upfront cost for new broadband customers has reduced significantly.

"We have reduced our installation charges so that everyone can connect to our broadband facilities," it said.

Recently Vodafone introduced a wireless dongle that offered on-the-go internet service on Vodafone Mobile broadband. Dubbed, the Vodafone Mobile Connect, the dongle gave customers always-on, fast Internet access on one's PC or laptop "whether you're stationary, on the move, indoor or outdoor," a statement said. The service, which came with a Vodafone USB Modem with a new Tariff Offer for Post-paid and Prepaid subscribers, would soon be available in the market.

The statement said Prepaid Customers would enjoy an additional GHC20 to start directly with the service.

It said Vodafone's broadband had a suite of business broadband packages tailored to the needs of Solar and Heliospheric Observatory service (SOHOs), Small and Medium scale Enterprises (SME's) and large enterprises.

In a related development, the Vodafone Group had launched a Wi-Fi hotspot application that would enable users to connect up to five devices to the same mobile broadband connection, a statement copied to the GNA said.

The "Vodafone Mobile Broadband Hotspot" would initially be available in Germany, Romania and Spain and soon in Ghana and other Vodafone operations in Ghana, would support High Speed Packet Access (HSPA) connectivity up to 7.2 Mbps.

The credit-card-sized independent operating system enables customers to connect quickly and easily to any device that supports the Wi-Fi standard, and then connect to the internet using Vodafone's mobile broadband connectivity.

With one touch to power on, users will be able to detect the mobile Wi-Fi cloud using any device configured for Wi-Fi and connect up to five devices within a 10-metre radius.

The device has an internal battery that provides up to four hours of active use on a single charge.

"The Vodafone Mobile Broadband Hotspot offers mobile professionals, students and families a one-touch connectivity solution that turns Wi-Fi enabled devices such as MP3 players and laptops into connected mobile internet devices," the statement said.

It said the product brought even more flexibility to customers, and ensures that Vodafone's market leading mobile broadband could be rolled out to even more devices to give customers greater convenience. Vodafone has a monopoly over SAT-3, the only submarine fibre optics cable with a landing station in Ghana, giving the company monopoly over broadband.

But two more submarine fibre optic cables, Glo One and Main One, are due to land in Ghana soon, which would broadband ownership available to other telecom operators and ISPs; and analysts say that would break Vodafone's monopoly on broadband and automatically force prices down.

GNA

ps: SOHO stands for Small Office Home Office not Solar and Heliospheric Observatory stated above

Fibre Optics: Africa on Information Superhighway

2009-09-16T06:08:00.001-07:00

A GNA Feature by Samuel Dowuona

So much has been said about fibre optics over the last two years, particularly submarine fibre optics communications technology coming to Ghana.

The hype of the fibre optics talk was particularly fuelled by the sale of 70 per cent of the Enlarged Ghana Telecom to Vodafone at a "paltry" $900 million.

The Enlarged GT included the fixed line operations, the mobile phone operations (Onetouch), the call centre (Exzeed), the National Fibre Optics Backbone and the SAT-3 Submarine Fibre Optics landing station.

In simple terms, fibre optics refers to the technology that enables the transmission of information (as light impulses) along a glass-like or plastic-like wire other than the conventional copper wire. Fibre optic wire carries much more information at a faster speed than conventional copper wire and is far less subject to breaks in communications. It is widely used by telephone companies, around the world, for long-distance lines.

Because fibre optics transmits larger volumes of information (data and voice) at a higher speed, it makes internet and telecommunications more affordable than satellite does.

In fact, the coming of fibre optics has compelled satellite technology companies to slash down their prices by more than 50 per cent, said Karl Keppke, Regional Sales Director for O3b Networks, a satellite company with operations in Africa.

Mr Keppke told this writer, at the just ended Telecom World Africa Conference in Cape Town, South Africa, that he was confident that there would continue to be a fair mix of satellite and fibre optics communication technologies on the African Continent. The benefits fibre optics promises for Africa are obvious; speed and affordability of electronic communication; this means internet access and data transmission will be cheaper and voice communication could be free.

These are necessary to enable Africa to catch up with the rest of the world at a faster rate.

Another fall out advantage of fibre optics, particularly for those who are concerned about the spread of telecom masts in residential areas across Ghana, is that fibre optics does not need masts and antennae to operate. Satellite technology uses masts but fibre optics is underground technology.

Currently, Africa is virtually inundated in the sea of submarine fibre optic cables; there are at least eight undersea fibre optic cables, with an aggregate of 10.94 terabytes capacity, landing in almost all the coastal countries of Africa; some of the cables also provide connectivity to several inland countries.

The undersea cables available to Africa right now are SAT-3, 120 gigabytes; Main-one, 1.92 terabytes; Glo-one, 640 gigabytes; East African Submarine Cable System (EASSY), 1.3 terabytes; South Asia Telecom Cable (SEACOM), 1.2 terabytes; The Eastern African Marine Systems (TEAMS), 640 gigabytes; and the largest of them all, West Africa Cable System (WACS), 5.12 terabytes.

On the West Coast of Africa, SAT-3 (14,000km), WACS (14,000km) and Main one (14,000 km) connects Europe to South Africa, stretching from Portugal, with several landing stations along the western coast of Africa, including Ghana, down to the south.

Glo1 (9,500km), owned by Nigerian-based Globacom, connects United Kingdom to Nigeria, landing in Spain, Portugal, Morocco, Mauritania, Senegal and Ghana.

Ghana is a beneficiary of at least four submarine cables; SAT-3, which is currently 50 per cent live; Glo1, expected to go live later this year; Main-one due in May 2010 and WACS due 2011. All things being equal, in less than five years, the whole of Africa should be hooked unto fibre optics technology.

According to Mr Alhassan Umar, Executive Director of Information Technology Enable Service (ITES) Secretariat, with such a huge fibre optic capacity, Ghana stands to benefit in the area of business processes outsourcing (BPO).

He explained that the submarine fibre optics landing stations would provide a huge backup of redundant fibre optics capacity that would trigger investor confidence in the ability of the country's BPO companies to provide reliable, high speed and affordable communications service to their clients around the world.

On the eastern coast of Africa there is EASSY Way, 10,000km long, which connects South Africa to Sudan, with several landing stations along the eastern coast. Twenty other countries in south-eastern and north-eastern Africa are also connected to EASSY. SEACOM (15,000km) is also on the east, connecting France to India, with at least seven landing stations in Africa; from South Africa through the eastern coast to Egypt in the north.

TEAMS is 4,500km long and links Kenya with the United Arab Emirates, with possible landing stations in Rwanda, Southern Sudan, Ethiopia, Uganda, Tanzania and Burundi.

Affordable and high speed transmission of information, reduction in spread of telecom masts and confidence booster in Africa as a BPO hub, are all very good benefits of fibre optics for Africa, but telecom industry investors, operators and regulators think there is more to this fibre optics discussion than the expected benefits.

At the just ended Telecom World Africa 2009 conference in Cape Town South Africa, industry stakeholders expressed concern over whether the expected level of demand for fibre optics technology in Africa, is worth the billions of dollars being invested to develop the technology. The supply side has been well catered for, but there is a dilemma as to whether the level of demand would sustain the supply; the danger of a huge chunk of Africa's fibre optic capacity remaining redundant is staring industry stakeholders in the face.

TEAMS, for instance, is being constructed at a cost of $82 million; EASSY Way, $235; Main One, $240 million, SEACOM, $600 million and WACS, SAT-3 and GLO1 are all multi-million-dollar projects. One of the arguments was that, not many of the 72 GSM carriers and 35 CDMA operators (like Kasapa) in Africa can afford to buy fibre optics capacity.

Price per megabyte per month of fibre optic capacity differs from one cable to the other; on SAT-3, for instance, a megabyte of capacity costs between $4,500 to $12,000 per month; 50 times higher than what similar fibre optics capacity in the United States of America. WIOCC, majority shareholders of EASSY Way, said their capacity would sell for about a million dollars less than what is already on the market.

Currently, there are at least 80 drivers, including major telecom operators, internet service providers (ISPs) and corporate investors onboard the fibre optics train and actually driving the development of the technology.

That excludes a huge number of smaller telecom operators and their customers from the fibre optics revolution. Industry stakeholders also argued that fibre optics consumption lies more in data communication and internet connectivity than in voice, saying that the high level of illiteracy, poverty, power supply bottlenecks and lack of access to ICT infrastructure to a larger portion of Africa's population were genuine concerns for operators and investors.

It is, for instance, projected that data costs, which now averaged between $5,000 and $7,000 per megabit of bandwidth on satellite, would be reduced drastically to $500 per megabit on fibre optics, and that would translate into even more affordable transmission of data for the average African. (Source: TEAMS Kenya)

But people are not likely to do data communications if they are not educated and or cannot afford to acquire ICT equipment and hi-tech mobile handsets needed for that kind of communication. Again there is a huge power supply problem across Africa, which even makes it difficult for people who are able and can afford ICT equipment to do data communication effectively.

The call is, therefore, for telecom operators in Africa to collaborate with their respective governments of the countries they operate in to deal with some of the bottlenecks now, when not much of the fibre optics is live on the Continent yet.

In Ghana, the Government has awarded a $150 million contract to Huawei, a Chinese telecom infrastructure installation company, to provide infrastructure that would allow nationwide broadband connectivity on the back of the... long National Fibre Optics Backbone. Some of the operators, particularly MTN, have earmarked funds to build ICT centres in all 10 regions of the country to give internet access to schools and communities in the hinterlands. The Ghana Investment Fund for Electronic Communications (GIFEC) is also undertaking a similar project; providing ICT centres and power sources to un-served and under-served communities across the country. GIFEC and individual operators have also collaborated to provide lots of fixed wireless pay phones in rural communities and in schools to enable people make and receive calls as well as receive money transferred to them on pay phones.

Speaking of money transfer, the telecom operators in Ghana are also coming up with lots of Value Added Service (VAS), which makes convergence technology such as voice over internet protocol (VOIP), mobile money, mobile TV and others relevant to the average Africa. Indeed, convergence technology has been identified as one way by which much more fibre optics capacity could be consumed through the use of mobile handsets. There was one more concern about submarine fibre optic cables in Africa; security. The Chief Executive Officer of the Nigerian Regulator, Ernest Ndukwe said African states must put measures in place to ward off saboteurs and thieves from submarine fibre optic path and from the landing stations as well. Paul Edwards, Chairman of Starcomms Communications, Nigeria, who presided at the TWA 09 conference, said submarine fibre optics is bringing the kind of information technology available to the average citizen in a developed country to the average citizen of an African country with Mr Sarat Dutt Lallah, CEO of Mauritius Telecom adding that when the time comes, Africans would be ready for it. 15 Sept. 09

GNA

Zita Okaikoi, Ablakwa, et' al address citizens on Facebook

2009-09-02T11:50:00.001-07:00

The Minister of Information, Mrs Zita Okaikoi and her two deputies from now on, will be on the social networking site, Facebook, to interact with citizens.

The move, the minister said, is in recognition of the fact that the internet has become an important tool in the new media.

Speaking to Joy FM's Super Morning Show host Kojo Oppong-Nkrumah, Mrs Okaikoi said the government recognises that its information needs to reach the people who need it.

She said, herself and her deputies, Samuel Okudzeto Ablakwa and James Agyenim Boateng, would spend two hours each on selected days on Facebook to address the concerns of Ghanaians on the social networking site.

She is available every Friday, from 8am to 10am on Facebook, while Okudzeto is on every Wednesday from 3pm to 5pm, and Agyenim Boateng comes every Thursday, 4pm to 6pm.

The Information Minister says she hopes to be able to interact with as many people as possible every Friday when she takes her turn.

"We think that as government information (outfit), we should be able to interact with people one-on-one on a personal basis so that we will be able to address their issues and take their concerns," she explained.

According to her, traditional media such as radio and newspapers are not adequate in addressing the needs of the citizenry.

She said there are many people out there, "who have needs but do not have access to anyone to talk to in government so these are the people we are considering creating this channel for."

The minister said immediate action will be taken on issues raised by citizens through the platform.

Source : jfm

Benin hosts Penplusbytes’ Communication Design Workshop

2009-04-11T03:16:00.001-07:00

Thirty (30) West African Newspaper and Magazine Designers from both Francophone and Anglophone speaking West African countries are meeting at the Universite d'Abomey Calavi, Campus Numerique Francophone de Cotonou in Benin for the 2nd West African Communication Design Workshop.

Opening the workshop, Guy Constant Ehoumi, deputy president of Union des Professionnels des Medias du Benin - UPMB (Journalists Union of Benin) said they are pleased to welcome participants from West African countries to Contonou for the workshop and asked the participants to take advantage of this unique training opportunity to learn more about how to improve the design and layout of their various publications.

The workshop which runs from 6th to 10th April 2009, focuses on visual theory, design as a profession, working on publications in a newsroom and designing for different audiences. This short course also engages already existing knowledge about what constitutes good newspaper/magazine. In addition to the main course, a group of participants are taking a Training of Trainers (TOT) course in design communications.

Speaking on the objectives of the course, the president of Penplusbytes, Kwami Ahiabenu II, said "unfortunately most training programmes for the media turn to forget the role of design in the media and we have come out with this workshop to provide capacity building for design communicators and graphic design in West Africa thereby filling a major training gap."

Participants to the workshop are drawn from the following West Africa countries including: Togo, Benin, Nigeria, Sierra Leone, Liberia, Senegal, Ghana, Mali, Niger, Burkina Faso, Cote D'Ivoire and The Gambia.

Two key experts in design communications namely; Shalen Gajadhar of Rhodes University, South Africa and Nahmsath Yabouri, an Open Source expert based in Togo are the key facilitators for this course.

The second workshop training course on Design Communication 2009 is jointly organized by The International Institute for ICT Journalism www.penplusbytes.org, Highway Africa, Digital Media Foundation in partnership and with funding from Open Society Initiative of West Africa (OSIWA), www.osiwa.org.

http://news.myjoyonline.com/international/200904/28537.asp

Computer Selection and Placement System (CSSPS) to be Reviewed

2009-03-30T05:03:00.001-07:00

The Ghana Education Service (GES) has reviewed the Computerized School Selection and Placement system (CSSPS) to enable more qualified candidates to gain admission to Senior High Schools according to Ghanaian Times. The review was necessitated by the fact that every year, since its inception in 2004, about 20 per cent of candidates with good scores are not able to get placement. Mr. Samuel Bannerman-Mensah, Director General of the GES, speaking at a media briefing in Accra on Friday, said the CSSPS has been confronted with many challenges in its five years of operation.

He said most of the problems were human-related since some parents repeatedly selected the same school in the options given them with the perception that their wards would get that particular school, no matter their performances.

Mr. Bannerman-Mensah said other candidates refused to select schools in their communities thereby placing undue stress on schools with limited boarding facilities, while others placed their priorities on particular schools that did not have place for them as a result of the high competition in the aggregates scored.

He said to address the challenges, schools had been categorized according to availability of facilities, geographical location, subjects offered and vacancies available to allow candidates spread their choices so as to increase their chances of being placed.

He said the schools had been put into six categories of Public Senior High Schools in 'A,' to 'D', Public Technical/Vocational, Institutions under category 'T' and Private Senior High Schools and Technical Vocational Institutes in category 'P'.

Mr. Bannerman-Mensah explained that every candidate was expected to choose a total of six schools, stressing that candidates would be allowed to choose only one school from category 'A' and a maximum of two schools from category 'B'.

He said if a candidate made five choices from categories 'A', 'B', 'C', 'D' and 'T' the sixth school must be either from category 'C' or 'D', 'T' or 'P'.

"A person who desires to pursue purely Technical courses may select all six choices from category 'P'. The same also goes for candidates who desire to pursue courses in private senior high schools.

Mr. Bannerman-Mensah said as a result of the development, the Basic Entrance Certificate Examination registration has been decoupled, explaining that it would give the candidate another opportunity to re-select their schools and programmes between April 4 to 8 before their examinations while the registration for the BECE would now take place in September/October.

Previously the registration and the school selection were done at the same time.

EPA: Draft document on co-location of telecom masts ready

2009-03-26T05:38:00.001-07:00

The Environmental Protection Agency (EPA), and its collaborators have completed a draft document seeking legally binding modalities for telecom operators to undertake co-location exercises according to GNA

The 26-page draft document made available to the Ghana News Agency is entitled "Guidelines for the Installation and Operation of Communication Mast in Ghana". It is designed to inject sanity into the mounting of telecom masts and antennas in the face of the rapidly growing telecom industry. The document noted that from the late 1990s till date, the telecom industry, particularly mobile telecom, has seen rapid growth leading to the littering of residential areas and the countryside with telecom masts with its attendant aesthetic and public safety concerns. "In some instances, masts are installed without compliance with existing regulatory requirements; unfortunately no other structured tower and antenna support structures has been developed to specifically regulate the location and construction of masts," it said. Co-location allows more than one telecom operator to mount their equipment at a common cell site and serve their subscribers. Mr Ebenezer K. Appiah-Sampong, Director of Environmental Assessment and Auditor of the EPA, told the Ghana News Agency that in the face of challenges posed by littering of masts, co-location was the best alternative option to salvage the situation.

He said even though the telecom operators were fully aware that co-location was a sure way to create a win-win situation for all the stakeholders in the industry including subscribers, regulators and the operators themselves, they had only been paying lip service to it for years now because there was no law enjoining them to undertake co-location. "The telecom operators are quick to blame the permit agencies like EPA for the poor quality service. Meanwhile they have not been able to take a single action on co-location since they started discussions on it years now," he said.

Mr. Appiah-Sampong said one of the cardinal purposes of the guidelines would also be to ensure that the National Communications Authority (NCA), made it a licensing requirement for operators to undertake co-location, adding that it should be possible for the NCA itself to mount masts at strategic positions for the purposes of co-location. Operators who spoke with the GNA admitted that even though they had agreed on hundreds of cell sites for co-location, they had not been able to take action on even one, for reasons not yet clear. The Chief Executive Office of MTN, Brett Goschen, said the market leader had submitted a list of all its current and future cell sites to other operators but their competitors had not done same adding that co-location would save the operators money. Meanwhile aggregately, operators have made thousands of separate requests to the permit agencies, including the EPA, District, Municipal and Metropolitan Assemblies, the Ghana National Fire Service and Ghana Civil Aviation Authority (GCAA) for permits to mount their own cell sites within residential areas.

The GNA has a long list of complaints made to the EPA by residents of communities where cell sites have been mounted. The complaints include mounting of cell sites without the consent of residents; congestion of masts in particular communities; masts close to people's homes; radiation; fumes and noise from generators causing health problems; schools losing pupils whose parents are concerned about nearby masts.

Mr Appiah-Sampong said the myriad of complaints the EPA received and attended to on daily basis was enough to ensure that the telecom companies were made legally enjoined to undertake co-location. On delays in the issuance of permits, Mr Appiah-Sampong noted that several of the requests presented to the EPA for permits were incomplete, saying that an operator needed to show proof of consultation with residents of the community within which it sought to mount a mast, but in most of the cases there was no such proof. "We have asked most of the operators to take the necessary steps to complete their requests but they have not. There are others who have completed the process and we have asked them to come and pay for the permit to be issued but they have not done so for months now," he said. Mr Appiah-Sampong said some operators mounted cell sites without the requisite permits and some had had to bring their masts down of that reason.

"There are currently several telecom masts which have been mounted and are functioning without the requisite permits and the EPA keeps receiving and attending to complaints about those." Mr Appiah-Sampong said the EPA, together with the other permit agencies, the regulator and the operators themselves, was designing a public education programme to disabuse the minds of citizens about the fear of radiation and other concerns about telecom masts. "But it is our opinion that the operators should have led the way for the permit agencies and the regulators to support but they keep putting huge money into other ventures to promote their brands instead of educating the public to correct the wrong perceptions about telecom masts," he said.

Tigo, Google, GNA launch SMS service

2009-03-18T03:24:00.001-07:00

Millicom Ghana, operators of Tigo, in collaboration with Google and the Ghana News Agency (GNA) has launched a value added service to provide subscribers with internet-based information through text messaging.

The service allows Tigo subscribers to send text messages to short code '4664' to receive information on weather, currency conversions, news from all over the world and sports among others as may be preferred by the subscriber.

The service also allows Tigo subscribers to access definition of words and translations of English words into other languages.

As per the collaboration, Google will provide the internet service facility whilst GNA provides news feeds.

Ms Anita Erskine, Corporate Affairs Manager of Tigo, said the service was to ensure that apart from the normal voice calls, customers had the opportunity to use the network to build on knowledge.

She said the company was committed to adding value to communication and giving customers value for money.

Mrs. Estelle Akofio-Sowah, Google Ghana Office Lead, said subscribers did not need hi-tech phones to access the service since it was based on ordinary text messaging, adding that the cost per service was the same as that of a regular sms.

Mr Kweku Ofosu Adakwa, Chief Director of the Ministry of Communications, was hopeful that the service would provide entrepreneurs with the opportunity to deploy ICT in meaningful ways to help minimize the cost of doing business.

He called on subscribers to use the service for social networking to promote inclusiveness and confidence among one another.

Source: GNA

India inaugurates Pan-African e-Network project

2009-02-26T21:56:00.001-08:00

The Indian government on Thursday inaugurated its Pan African E-network project for 11 African countries aimed at promoting effective communication and connectivity in the continent through satellite and fibre network.
     The 125 million-dollar support project would also facilitate the sharing of Indian's expertise in the fields of education and healthcare with members states of the African Union (AU).
     The project was proposed by Indian's ex-president Dr. A.P.J. Abdul Kalam during the Pan African Parliament in Johannesburg, South Africa, in September 2004.
     At a video conference in Accra which saw the inauguration of the projects via electronic interaction with Ministers of State of the beneficiary countries, Mr Pramab Mukherjee, Indian's External Affairs Minister, noted that the project was part of India's commitment to socio-economic development in Africa.
     He indicated that the project would help bridge the digital divide between his country and the continent and further support e-governance, e-commerce and other information technology tools in beneficiary countries.
     Mr Mukhejee said the Indian government hoped to connect the project to all 53 AU member states and expressed the hope that this would further help to promote South-South cooperation
     Touching on Ghana's ties with India, Mr. Mukhejee said the two countries continued to enjoy good bilateral relations and expressed the hope that this would continue under President John Evans Atta Mills' government.
      He mentioned the construction of the Golden Jubilee House and the Kofi Annan ICT Centre as some projects that demonstrated the ties between the two countries.
     The Minister further congratulated Ghanaians for demonstrating political maturity during the December 2008 elections.
     Mr. Haruna Iddrisu, Minister of Communications, hinted that under the project, the Kwame Nkrumah University of Science and Technology had been selected as one of the five super specialty regional centres and hubs for tele-education programmes in the sub-region.
     He said the Komfo Anokye Teaching Hospital had also been selected as a patientend centre for tele-medicine and information sharing to improve quality healthcare, while the University of Ghana would be a learning centre for undergraduate and postgraduate programme in ICT.
      The Minister said the project had already installed a VVIP Node at the Golden Jubilee House that would provide voice and video conferencing services for the President with other Heads of State.
     Mr Iddrisu thanked the Indian government for the support and pledged the government's commitment to continue to cooperate with India, especially in the areas of ICT education and Business Processing Outsourcing.
     The beneficiaries are Ghana, Nigeria, Ethiopia, Rwanda, Senegal, Mauritius, Seychelles, Benin, The Gambia, Gabon and Burkina Faso.
GNA

Computerize hospitals for efficient health care delivery

2009-02-25T23:33:00.001-08:00

Participants at a day's consultative stakeholders meeting in Accra to discuss "the role of ICT in health care delivery" on Wednesday made a strong case for computerization of internet connectivity system to exist among hospitals in the country for efficient health care delivery.
     The participants, who were drawn from both public and private health institutions in the country, also called for Information Communication Technology (ICT) courses to be made part of the curriculum of the country's medical and health training institutions to equip the students with knowledge on its application to deliver quality service to patients.
     Chaired by Professor Ofosu Armah, formerly of the School of Public Health Legon, and organized by the Ghana-India Kofi Annan Centre of Excellence in ICT, the meeting explored the potential and actual use of ICT in health care delivery in the country and examined ways in which ICT could help strengthen the pillars of the country's health care delivery system.
     Participants were of the view that when the hospitals were computerized and inter-connectivity made possible among them, it would make diagnosis and health care delivery to patients easy and quicker at anywhere in the country.
     Currently, apart from using the manual system, health training institutions and hospitals in the country do not have ICT interconnectivity system to allow doctors to track medical records of patients easily.
     It therefore, called for action to be expedited on the country's ICT policy to ensure that the problem was addressed to make health care delivery more efficient.
GNA

$200m Fibre Optic Cable Project Underway

2009-02-06T05:27:00.001-08:00

Work has begun on a 200-million dollar undersea fibre optic cable, which aims to provide reliable internet and telecommunication services to industry stakeholders across Ghana and Nigeria.

The project being undertaken by Main One Cable Company will help to minimize the difficulties of switching traffic between African countries and eliminate the inconveniences and added cost of first routing traffic to Europe.

It is in line with the continent's quest to participate fully in the Information and Communication Technology through digital connection with the rest of the world.

The company has already begun laying the cables, which will run from Portugal to Ghana and Nigeria to enhance efforts to digitally connect Africa with the rest of the world.

Speaking at a press briefing in Accra to officially announce the commencement of work, Ms Funke Opeke, Chief Executive Officer of the company said the first phase of the project is expected to be completed in May 2010.

The first phase spans 6,900 kilometres extending from Portugal to Ghana and Nigeria with an additional 6,000 Kilometres extension to South Africa and Angola in the second phase.

The development, she said, represented a major landmark for the continent, as this was the first time ever that a private sector driven undersea cable network received landing licences.

The company secured the licenses from Ghana's National Communications Authority and the Nigerian Communications Commission respectively, granting it the right to land its intercontinental undersea fibre optic cable in the two countries.

Ms. Opeke said funding for the project was sought within the African continent adding that; "it shows how committed we are in using the continent's resources to build this solid infrastructure for Africa."

"The unique promise of the Main One undersea cable to boost Internet access across the African continent lies in the huge improvement in bandwidth which we will be driving even while reducing costs phenomenally".

Main One, she said, is deploying the very latest technology in undersea fibre optic cabling.

"In employing the combination of Dense Wave Multiplexing Technology of 1.28 Terabits per second and two fibre pairs Main One will deliver far more capacity to the region than any existing or proposed undersea projects even while bringing costs down to about twenty percent of what is currently obtainable from SAT 3 or satellite service operators," Opeke stated.

In addition to providing a major boost to Internet access on the continent, Main One, she said would help to considerably minimize the difficulties of switching traffic between African countries and eliminate the inconveniences
and added costs of first routing traffic to Europe.

"We will also enhance job creation and local content development through skills transfer in ICT and particularly networking technologies," she said.

Beyond these direct benefits, however, said Opeke, the granting of the pioneer landing licenses to Main One Cable Company, represents a major milestone for the continuing growth of telecommunications regulatory capacity on the continent.

"Intercontinental undersea cabling, especially as driven by private sector operatives is a relatively new phenomenon in Africa and it is remarkable that regulators are fast amassing the critical expertise with which to drive rapid growth and development in this unique area for the benefit of the continent," she said.

Mr. Thomas Schaefer Jr. Shore End Installation Engineer, Tyco Telecommunication Company partners in the project said test conducted at the beach of Teshie where the cable would pass revealed that the soil is good for the exercise.

"We don't foresee any difficulty with our work with regards to the soil in Ghana," he said.

Source: GNA

Software to enhance learning of maths & science

2008-07-11T01:32:00.001-07:00

Junior High School Students now have the opportunity to learn science and math, as well as basic computer skills by themselves following the launch of a self-teaching software. The software: Soft Science Volume 1, Soft clips Volume 1 & 2 and a book on how to study effectively and become successful were developed by Mr Justice Annan, Project Officer of the Creator's Computer Clinic, an Information Communication Technology (ICT) based organization. The software is in consonance with the Ghana Education Service syllabus.
The programme, which is in a form of an interactive workbook, is expected to aid the teaching and learning of mathematics, Science, basic computer skills at a student's own pace. It entails some 38 computer animations.
Mrs Aurore Selormey, a Chartered Accountant, who launched the programmes, asked parents, teachers and students to accept them. "The ICT industry is a very dynamic one, growing by leaps and bounds daily. The industry in Ghana is no exception as it is also developing at a very fast pace in many sectors of the economy and has thus become a vital part of our daily lives." Mrs Selormey noted that although computer education in Ghana was growing, the level of integration of ICT into the teaching and learning process was very low because many schools lacked modern laboratories and instruction tools based on the Ghana Education Service's approved syllabus.
Mr Annan said he developed the programmes because the working environment in Ghana was fast becoming ICT dominated and there was the need to prepare students in that capacity before they entered the job market.
"E-Learning, that is teaching and learning enhanced by the computer has been identified as having the potential to expand quality educational opportunities to students," he said. Commenting on some advantages of the programmes, he said because of their interactive nature, they enhanced students' interest and confidence, thus facilitating their understanding of their courses. Professor Jophus Anamuah-Mensah, Former Vice Chancellor of the University of Education, Winneba, expressed concern about the lack of ICT programmes in most schools in Ghana. He noted that education and knowledge was what drove the development countries and called on Ghanaians to take education, especially ICT serious.
"Countries with poor educational facilities perform poorly academically," Prof. Anamuah-Mensah said.

Source:
GNA

A two-day West Africa ICT Road Map to Opportunities Conference

2008-07-10T05:17:00.001-07:00

A two-day West Africa ICT Road Map to Opportunities Conference, is underway in Accra to discuss regional market creation and cross border co-operation on wireless technologies. The conference on the theme: "West Africa ICT Road Map to Opportunities," which attracted participants from West Africa and other global partners would examine the application of ICT in the areas of e-commerce and e-Government within the Sub-Region. Government, US Trade and Development Agency (USTDA) and the US Department of State, organised the conference, which was opened by Vice President Alhaji Aliu Mahama.

Vice President Mahama observed that the realisation of the Millennium Development Goals (MDG's), in West Africa, would be a mirage if ICT do not play an integral part. He said the MDG's are time-bound and there were challenges associated with the objectives, hence the need for stakeholders in ICT in the Sub-Region to shy away from mere rhetoric's and be proactive to achieve results. "The quest for rapid socio-economic development in our part of the world does not allow us the luxury of conference talk with little action."

Vice President Mahama said the promotion of the Information Society would require substantial investments in terms of financial, technological and human resources. He noted that although West Africa possesses enormous investment potential for the deployment of ICT for development, there is minimal cross-border ICT infrastructure that would provide the expected impact for development.

"In fact, we are still confronted with the phenomenon of passing our telephone and Internet traffic through the developed countries of Europe and America to the West African Sub-Region." Vice President Mahama called for global assistance to enable Ghana to pursue the Digital Freedom Initiative to facilitate services such as Internet connectivity.

He said Ghana and other West Africa countries lacked financial resources to improve on problems like ICT capacity building programmes and specialised training for policy makers and regulators, connectivity for ICT services and applications in remote areas. Dr. Benjamin Aggrey Ntim, Minister of Communications expressed the need for the expansion of access to ICT in West Africa in order to facilitate economic competitiveness.

Mr. David Gross, US Co-ordinator for ICT Policy, noted that, the US had exceeded its financial commitment to Africa and also shown the way to boost the economic growth of the Continent. Dr. Hamadoun Toure, Secretary General of International Telecommunication Union said Africa was leading the way in embracing ICT which he described as positive news that deviated from the negative news of wars and conflicts.

He expressed the need for concerted efforts to confront cyber crime, which is undermining public confidence in ICT. Ms. Leocadia Zak, Deputy Director of USTDA said her outfit had committed 745,000 dollars in support of ICT projects in Liberia and Niger.

The first grant will fund an assessment for the Liberian Telecommunications Corporation for the technical and financial viability of the proposed metropolitan fibre optic ring around Liberia. The second grant will support a separate study for Seaquest Info Tel of Niger on the National ICT backbone.

Source:
GNA

Explore the privileges of ICT – Tema MCE

2008-06-16T01:03:00.001-07:00

The Tema Metropolitan Chief Executive (MCE), Mr David Quaye Annang, on Monday, entreated Ghanaians to explore the privileges of Information Communication Technology (ICT) in every aspect of their lives.
Mr Annang said ICT should not be limited to only specialized services, such as banking, as individuals could benefit greatly from it when well utilized.
He made the call at the launch of Busyinternet Tema, the first branch of the company, an Internet Service Provider (ISP).
The MCE said, to reap the full benefits of ICT in all aspect of the country's economy, the government was promoting the study of ICT in the educational sector, starting with the basic schools.
He explained that when students are exposed to the benefits of ICT at an early age, they impart the knowledge to their peers and the elderly as well as appreciate its importance to their existence in the future.
Touching on the benefits of the new branch to the metropolis, Mr Annang said schools in the metropolis without ICT facilities could patronize the services of the Centre, adding that, it would also help expand business activities in the industrial hub.
Miss Estelle Akofio-Sowah, Managing Director of Busyinternet, in a welcome statement said, the company, which has operated in the country for the past seven years would provide services and ICT teachings to 30 schools in the Tema metropolis, indicating that, it has already started with students from Naylor SDA School.
Urging Ghanaian establishments to concentrate on developing the talents of their employees in addition to making profits, Ms Akofio-Sowah observed that Ghana would not develop when companies limit their operations to profit making.
Mr Mark Davies, Founder of Busyinternet on his part said the opening of the branch was a step towards achieving the company's aim of providing Africans access to the social and economic opportunities of ICT.
Mr Davies noted that the ISP sought to blend technology with service, to challenge Africans to see the impact of ICT in their lives and the continent.
Representatives of Fidelity Capital Partners and Stanbic Bank, partners of the company pledged their support to Busyinternet and congratulated its management for winning the Best ISP and Life Time Achievement awards.

http://www.modernghana.com/news/169074/1/explore-the-privileges-of-ict-tema-mce.html

Government establishes 230 CICs in Districts

2008-06-16T00:00:00.001-07:00

The government is to establish 230 Community Information Centres (CIC) in the Metropolitan, Municipal and District Assemblies in the country. The programme, which falls within the government's development framework for the Information Communication Technology (ICT) for accelerated development aims at spreading the use of ICTs to improve the country's economic base and accelerate growth by transforming Ghana into information enabled society.

Dr. Benjamin Aggrey Ntim, Minister of Communications announced this at the inauguration of a CIC in Bimbilla in the Nanumba North District of the Northern Region at the weekend. The government spent GH¢ 70,000 to build and equip the Centre, while the Bimbilla District Assembly used 50 million cedis to furnish it.

Other districts in the Northern Region to benefit from CICs include Damongo in the West Gonja District, Salaga in the East Gonja District, Yendi District, Walewale in the West Mamprusi District, Gushiegu District and Saboba in the Saboba/Chereponi District. Dr. Ntim said the CIC programme was aimed at bridging the digital divide between the rural and the urban centres and also forms part of government's efforts to reduce the incidence of poverty.

Dr. Ntim said, as an interface between the citizens and government, the CICs would help disseminate information from the government to the people and simultaneously cumulate data and opinions of the people for input into governments planning machinery. "The CICs serving as model tools of ICT would help integrate and coordinate development planning at all levels and sectors, thus establishing an effective national development planning system," Dr. Ntim said.

He said government policies would be easily accessible by the local people and thus leading to an effective roll-out and implementation on the local front while also providing a platform for the training in ICT for school kids, market women, farmers, teachers' and staff of decentralised departments.

Dr. Ntim warned the management of the CICs not to turn them into "cyber-cafe or internet caf=E9 type facility" but to remain focused on their core mission of providing access to ICTs, creating awareness for ITC and providing support for the local business community. Mr. Salifu Sa-eed, the Nanumba North District Chief Executive (DCE) urged teachers, educational authorities and parents to encourage their students or children to make maximum use of the facility. He said reasonable user fees would be charged at the Centre to help defray user cost to ensure the sustainability of the facility. 15 June 08

Source:
GNA

Ghana loses number one position of internet services in West Africa

2008-06-15T23:54:00.001-07:00

Inadequate and high cost of communications infrastructure, lack of consistent and sustained efforts in the implementation of the national ICT policy and ineffective regulatory body have been identified as some of the problems impeding the development of the telecom sector in the country.

These impediments have caused the country to lose its position as number one in the provision of internet services in the West African sub-region to Senegal. Ghana is now ranked third after Senegal and Nigeria.

The 2006 communication policy and advocacy report launched on Thursday by the Ghana Internet Services Providers Association (GISPA) said the early start made by the country in implementing the telecom sector reforms yielded some positive results, including the attraction of foreign invertors such as Scancom Ghana and Millicom International.

Throwing more light on some of the problems in the telecom sector, the report mentioned the National Communications Authority's (NCA) delay in responding to Internet Services Providers' (ISP) complaints, lack of transparent licensing procedures and the long delay in appointing NCA's Director-General and Board as some problems.

The report conducted by Comconsult Limited, a communication and marketing firm, said the unclear role for the private sector regarding the implementation of the Information Technology policy, the non-existence of an ICT policy unit at the Ministry of Communications and the inadequacy of resources for fixed network expansion were also some of the problems.

On the way forward, the report called for an urgent elimination of impediments to ICT strategy implementation, the strengthening of the capacity of the NCA and greater public and private sector cooperation for ICT policy formulation and implementation.

The report also recommended a faster approach in the privatization of Ghana Telecom and Westel to create room for the needed private sector investment required for their expansion.

The introduction of tariff reduction strategies in consultation with stakeholders, the strengthening of GISPA capacity to become active in ICT policy formulation and the elimination of regulatory challenges to facilitate increased investments by ISPs were mentioned as some of the means by which the sector could be improved.

On the contributions of ISPs to the nation's economy, the report talked about internet connectivity for public and private sector entities such as schools and other organizations.

The report also mentioned the creation of jobs and the facilitation of the establishment of a networked economy and the creation of internet dependent enterprises such as banks, academic research networks and online payment facility (e-cash).
Mr Desmond Boateng, the representative from the Ministry of Communications, promised government's preparedness to help develop the telecom sector and look into the report.
GNA

First Phase of broadband Fibre optic completed

2008-05-26T23:26:00.001-07:00

The first phase of the broadband fibre optic infrastructure has been completed and is undergoing testing before full operation, Dr Benjamin Aggrey Ntim, Minister of Communication said on Monday.

Speaking at the official opening of the International Telecommunication Union's Africa Standardisation Development Forum and Preparatory Meeting being held in Accra, Dr. Ntim said the broadband infrastructure was expected to provide seamless, integrated multimedia services anytime, anywhere with lower fee to broadband internet by the year 2012.

The construction of the fibre optic transmission network is being undertaken in two phases covering over 4,000 kilometres. It is being supported by the Chinese government, with a concessionary loan facility of 30 million dollars. Government is also in negotiating for an additional 70 million dollars for the second phase.

The plan is being complemented by the building of 230 community information centres as access points for ICT in the rural communities in the country.

Already 90 of such centres have been completed.

"With the provision of ICT access points all over the country the provision of new services will become possible, and the government's vision realizable," he said.

Dr Ntim said since the development of the national ICT vision, the country had witnessed appreciable growth in the sector. For example, telephone subscription has hit the eight million mark, giving a tele-density of nearly 40 per cent.

However, Dr Ntim said there was need for increased public and private sectors investment to enable the goal of using ICT to accelerate economic development became a reality and to also bridge the digital divide.

"If the programmes and projects outlined in the national ICT roadmap are adequately pursued, there is every assurance for Ghana to break out of the poverty cycle and into the middle-income bracket in the not-too-distant future," he said.

Dr Ntim said the country will continue to participate in the International Telecommunication union activities to ensure accelerated deployment of new networks and services and also bringing connectivity to cities and towns as well as to the remote areas.

"Standardisation should contribute to the lowering of capital and operational expenditure in the deployment and expansion of core network," he added.

Mr Malcom Johnson, Director, ITU Telecommunication Standardisation Bureau, said standards are important to enhance international communications and global trade.

Besides they are essential aid to developing countries in building their infrastructure and encouraging economic development as well as help reduce costs for all manufacturers, operators and consumers through economies of scale.

"Global standards avoid costly market battles over preferred technologies, and for companies from emerging markets, they create a level playing field which provides access to new markets," Mr Johnson said.

He therefore urged the African Region to participate actively in the World Telecommunication Standardisation Assembly to be held in Johannesburg in South Africa in October to enable them influence the future direction of standardization and to ensure that standards meet the specific requirements of the region.

Dr Akossi Akossi, Secretary-General of the African Telecommunications Union, said accelerated infrastructure was key to bridge the digital divide between the developed and developing countries. He pledged ATU's support in the area of resources to advance the course of ICT development on the continent.

The five-day meeting is being held on the theme: "Bridging the ICT standardization gap in developing countries for the Africa Region." The Africa meeting precedes this year's WTSA's Conference in Johannesburg, South Africa from October 21 to 30 2008 that would adopt working methods and approve the ITU-T work programme as well as appoint chairs and vice chairs of Study Groups. The Accra meeting is to deliberate on world standardisation issues of common concern to the continent and adopt common proposals for presentation to the WTSA

Source:
GNA

International Computer Driving Licence (ICDL) launch in Accra

2008-05-26T23:20:00.001-07:00

An international computing forum opened in Accra on Monday with a call on the public, especially students, to patronize a programme dubbed; "International Computer Driving Licence (ICDL)", which provides an equal platform and standard training for all people irrespective of their location.
The ICDL programme is internationally recognized as the global standard for end-users computer skills and has been widely adopted by governments and international organizations in Europe and Africa.
Mrs Jenny Van Neikerk, Chief Executive Officer for ICDL Africa, said the programme delivered quality certification to everyone who patronized it throughout the world.
She said the ICDL, which took students through programmes like Concepts of Information Technology, File Management, Word Processing, Spreadsheets, Databases, Presentations and Internet and Emails, was skills-based and not specific to an inventor like Microsoft.
Mrs. Niekerk said the programme also focused on developing infrastructure with a special attention to schools including polytechnics and universities.
Mr. Anthony Harper, Development Coordinator for ICDL, Africa, who stressed the quality of the programme, noted that they adopted the same standards in terms of testing process and testing environment, and it was accessible to everyone.
Ms. Dorothy Gordon, Director-General of the Ghana-India Kofi Annan Centre of Excellence in ICT, urged ICT professionals especially in Ghana to make use of free software available on the Internet.
Commenting on the ICDL programme in Ghana, she said the programme made people who patronized it to be competitive and called for collaboration in terms of knowledge sharing on ICT.
"The IDCL programme offers skills that can be transferred to any platform," she said, and noted that the programme could help government achieve her vision of transforming the Ghanaian economy into a knowledge-based one using ICT.
Participants from Kenya, Uganda, Sierra Leone and Rwanda shared their experiences in the use of the ICDL.
Mr Ibrahim Bah, coordinator for the programme in French-speaking countries, said the programme which offered a common ICT standard was gradually succeeding in the elimination of barriers between French and English speaking countries in Africa.
http://www.modernghana.com/news/167105/1/computing-forum-opens.html

Spio-Garbrah to deliver lecture

2008-05-25T00:20:00.001-07:00

The Chief Executive Officer of the Commonwealth Telecom Organisation, Dr. Ekwow Spio-Garbrah would deliver a public lecture at the British Council on Tuesday, according to a statement released in Accra on Friday. The topic of his lecture is; "The Future of Ghana's Development Process". The statement said the theme for the occasion was an e-Agenda for Human Resource Development with focus on education and health. It is being supported by the Ghana Renewal Institute, Centre for e-Governance and African Cancer Organisation.

Source:
GNA

FON TV LAUNCHED IN GHANA

2008-05-24T23:27:00.001-07:00

Emily Aggrey, IDG News Service

With a partnership between Black Star TV and South Korean company 2ii Tech, Ghana has become home to the first service in West Africa for mobile-phone-enabled TV content viewing. Employing Terrestrial Digital Multimedia Broadcasting (T-DMB) technology, the new service allows users to view movies, sports, music videos, 24-hour news and current affairs.

Accessories and the handset necessary for viewing, known as FonTV, cost GHC350 (US$345.66) and include free service for the first three months, after which time subscribers pay GHC4 per month. The battery lifespan of the phone is three hours of viewing time on a single charge.

Ghana Telecommunication Company (GT), operator of Onetouch mobile phone service, is currently the only mobile network to operate FonTV, but South Africa's MTN and DSTV have plans to launch another mobile TV with different technology. The launch of the service comes after three months of a successful pilot program.

Ibrahim Adjei, corporate affairs manager of Black Star TV, said in an interview that Ghana's main attraction for the service is its "strong, stable economy [and] the conducive political atmosphere, underscored by a strong market of mobile penetration with the current seven million subscribers."

"Ghana also has a well-developed and innovative media, which facilitates our operations. The country also boasts of a good human resource capacity, with high enrolment in institutions offering Information Technology and Information and Communication Technology courses. All the above factors are buttressed by the professionalism and capabilities of the Ghanaian business partners that form Black Star TV."

Although Ghana is the first to embrace the T-DMB technology, countries like Nigeria, Uganda and South Africa also have access to Mobile TV, but rely on analog technology.

The new service, which covers the Greater Accra Region, will be extended to the Ashanti Region in the next three weeks, followed by the Northern, Western and Central regions, in that order. Managers of the mobile TV hope to cover all of the 10 regions by early 2009. The two companies will ensure the service reaches parts of Ghana where there is no television signal, he said.

In the future, the partnership plans to introduce e-commerce services to allow consumers to use the digital mobile television platform to trade goods and services, as well as a traffic watch service, with a dedicated channel on which viewers can observe (via networks linked to CCTV cameras) road networks that are free from congestion.

Beyond the delivery of digital mobile television, 2ii Tech and Black Star TV hope to establish a manufacturing plant in Ghana.

Source: http://www.pcworld.com/businesscenter/article/146267/ghana_is_now_home_for_digital_mobile_tv.html

Accra hosts World Telecom Standardisation Assembly

2008-05-21T08:48:00.001-07:00

Officials of the Telecommunication Standardisation Bureau (TSB) of the International Telecommunication Union (ITU) will meet next week in Accra to participate in the Africa Region's Preparatory Meeting for the World Telecommunication Standardisation Assembly (WTSA).

The meeting precedes this year's WTSA's Conference in Johannesburg, South Africa from October 21 to 30 2008 that would adopt working methods and approve the ITU-T work programme as well as appoint chairs and vice chairs of Study Groups.

Ghana's host slated May 26 to 30, 2008, is to offer African countries the platform to deliberate on world standardisation issues of common concern to the continent and adopt common proposals for presentation to the WTSA.

Standardisation is a universally agreed set of guidelines for interoperability, and the ITU -T is the body responsible for setting globally accepted standards for ICT. The WTSA is convened every four years by the ITU.

The Accra meeting would organise a forum on the theme: "Bridging the ICT Standardisation Gap in Developing Countries" in recognition of the continued shortage of human resources in the standardization field of developing countries.

The Standardisation Gap is defined as disparities in the ability of developing countries, relative to the developed ones, to access, implement, contribute to and influence international ICT standards, specifically ITU recommendations.

The Ministry of Communications and the National Regulatory Agencies have in the past involved in ITU standardization activities to help in the standards requirements for new technologies and technological convergence in ICT that are creating major standardization challenges. 21 May 08

Source:
GNA

Role Of Community Information Centres In Accelerating Development

2008-05-19T23:43:00.001-07:00

In this new knowledge-based society, access to information and knowledge have become essential resources for development.

As a continent, our future and survival depends upon our willingness to harness the new information and communication technologies. A nation unable to join this new economic order, unable to harness the power of ICT, is effectively locked out of the new global economy, and forced to remain a marginal player on the world economic stage. .

In Africa and other parts of the developing world, development agencies, non-governmental organisations and the private sector are searching for new and better ways to harness the power of information technology (IT) to meet economic, social, educational and development objectives.

Community information centres (CICs) are shared information and communication facilities for people in rural and isolated areas.

CICs range from a one room facility providing a narrow range of services to facilities that provide training and a wide range of development-oriented services. Generally, CICs can be classified into two broad categories - those with a purely commercial orientation, and those with a community/education service orientation.

Commercial oriented CICs are those established with a profit motive. They provide basic communication services such as telephones, fax and photocopying. A sizable percentage provide secretarial as well as computer-based services.

Community/education-oriented communication centres provide basic services to address the needs of a given community. Among other things the centres aim to

a) tap the untapped potential of the people they serve,

b) organise resources and expertise nationwide,

c) foster the emergence of local capability, and

d) promote a unique and comprehensive approach to servicing the multiple needs of people they serve through the innovative use IT.

While they are not profit-oriented, almost all of them charge basic fees for their services. Web-browsing at some non-commercial centres with donor support is priced usually at the same level as web-browsing at the commercial centres.

The Ghana Investment Fund for Telecommunications (GIFTEL) – a unit under the Ministry of Communications- provides a hybrid model of for-profit and non-profit CICs in selected locations in Ghana.

The primary focus of GIFTEL's CICs is to create rural access to information communication services. This is where the majority of the population live and face a number of economic, social, cultural and legal barriers to their advancement.

CICs in such environments provides opportunities for users to have access to electronic connectivity. Such access provides rural people with instantaneous information on what their counterparts in other countries are doing.

CICs are needed in such an environment because the transition to an information society usually brings growing inequality, since not all people are able to take advantage of new opportunities. CICs are innovative ways of addressing the multiple challenges confronting rural populations under a single roof, providing simple, single-point access to information and services to rural people.

Challenges Confronting CICs

Due to poor connectivity, inadequate infrastructure and human resource limitations, most of the centres provide very limited services. Low level of communication infrastructure in the rural areas make it difficult for such areas to be linked electronically. Rural communities, it is said, represent the 'last mile of connectivity'.

Currently, CICs operate in isolation. There is no centralization of standards, infrastructure, and services. There is the need for a coordinating body to bring some level of standardization and to determine the needs of existing CICs to enable them function better.

Such a centralised body could address issues such as equity of access; connectivity challenges confronted by some CICs, and human resource capacity building.

A national policy to drive the development and evolution of CICs will be a step in the right direction. Ghana, for example, has adopted an ICT for Accelerated Development Policy (ICT4D) to represent the ICT vision for the country.

POLICY

The policy statement sets out the road map for the development of Ghana's information society and economy. The document acknowledges the role that ICT can play in moving Ghana from where it is today to a knowledge-based society.

It addresses Ghana's development challenges and how the development, deployment and exploitation of ICTs could accelerate the nation's socio-economic development.

It also acknowledges the role being played by various organisations in moving the country's ICT agenda forward.

The need for champions advocating the development of CICs cannot be overemphasized. Generally, rural people are less aggressive in shaping new public policies and taking advantage of existing rules to enhance their prospects for connection. Without CIC champions, the evolution and roll out of the model will not be rapid.

Also, the time has come for African governments to begin exploring the possibility of creating a Rural Information Technology Administration (RITA) under the Ministry of Local Government. The failure of the market to deliver information services to rural people necessitates an aggressive initiative to ensure that rural people are no longer comparatively disadvantaged when it comes to reaping the benefits of the information revolution.

Alternatively, RITA could be subsumed under a larger body, the Rural Utilities Services (RUS). Such a body should be charged with the responsibility of bringing utilities (such as electricity, telephones, the Internet, etc.) to rural areas.

Today we truly live in a global village, but it is a village with privileged 'information haves' and many 'information have-nots'. With the new technologies available to us, we have an opportunity to change this.

I believe it is possible to achieve the goal of what has now come to be known as universal access, that is, community access to basic telecommunications at reasonable distance through the establishment of CICs across the African continent.

modern ghana

Mobile phone penetration in Ghana is estimated to hit 50 percent by the end of 2010.

2008-05-19T23:19:00.001-07:00

According to Joshua Peprah, Director in charge of Regulations and Licensing at the National Communications Authority (NCA), the country, which currently has over 8 million mobile phone subscribers, has already seen 36 percent penetration since the end of 2007.

Mr. Peprah disclosed this on Wednesday at the launch of Fon TV, a collaboration between Black Star TV and GT Onetouch that will give Onetouch subscribers the opportunity to view television on their mobile phones.

The new product comes with GPRS compatibility as well as call conference and internet provisions.

All over Africa especially Ghana, mobile phone usage has seen explosive growth since 2004 and there are more opportunities ahead as the NCA will soon license a sixth operator, Mr. Peprah hinted.

As at December 2007, MTN, the largest mobile service provider has seen its subscriber base hitting 3.9 million followed by Tigo with over 2 million subscribers. Onetouch had over 1.5 million while Kasapa had 248,000 subscriber base.

In addition to the boom in the mobile service provision, there had been a 2.7 percent penetration in the internet sector with 34 operational internet service providers (ISP) licenses, he added.

Ghana signed GE'O6 agreement to complete the transition from analog to digital TV by June 17, 2015 and according to the NCA it will provide spectrum efficiency-1 channel for 4-8 programmes, new licensing models and potential increased revenue from digital dividend.

This innovation will mean a TV station like TV3 network could broadcast about seven channels such as kiddie and sports programmes, he explained.

On the way forward, Mr. Peprah emphasized that the NCA will continue to adopt and maintain principles and policies that foster development through private sector as well as ensure a pro-business and competitive regulatory regime.

In addition, he explained, investment opportunities in telecommunication, data and BPO spaces will be expanded.

Source:
Daily Guide

ghanaelections wants to keep up with you on Twitter

2008-04-18T00:11:00.001-07:00

To find out more about Twitter, visit the link below:

http://twitter.com/i/5df1a050cb8dc3a6491689011c22a639cda6b8e5

Thanks,
-The Twitter Team

About Twitter

Twitter is a unique approach to communication and networking based on the simple concept of status. What are you doing? What are your friends doing—right now? With Twitter, you may answer this question over SMS, IM, or the Web and the responses are shared between contacts.

ICT equipment gift to Western Heritage Home

2008-03-31T03:42:00.001-07:00

Ghana Together, a US-based charity organisation, on Saturday donated ICT equipment and other teaching and learning materials to the Western Heritage Home, an orphanage at Axim in the Western Region.

The gifts, which were a collection from individual members of the organisation and valued at more than 10 million Ghana Cedis, included 12 laptop and four desktop computers, 35 chess sets, children's books and other educational materials.

Mr. and Mrs Richard and Maryanne Ward, Directors of Ghana Together who presented the items at a ceremony at Axim, said the aim of the organisation was to support the needy and vulnerable children in Ghana. Mrs Maryanne Ward said since children were the most valuable assets of every nation they must be given care, protection and encouragement to become useful leaders in the future.

Nana Kaku Bulu II, Nkosuohene of Lower Axim who was instrumental in the establishment of the Home in 2007, received the items on behalf of the community and expressed gratitude to the donors.

Nana Kaku Bulu, a Takoradi-based businessman, said an ICT centre attached to the Home would soon be completed and opened to the public particularly students.

He appealed to individuals, public and private institutions, religious organisations and the district assembly to help to provide the Home with materials and facilities.

Madam Hanna Esi Biney, Manager of the Home, appealed to citizens and institutions to help the Home to procure basic items such as refrigerators, cooking utensil among others to enable it to admit more children.

Source:
GNA

Omatek Boosts Ghana ICT Density

2008-02-28T09:44:00.000-08:00

Aimed at bridging the digital divide across the length and the breath of the continent, Omatek Computers, a foremost computer brand and the first indigenous computer manufacturing company in Africa, has successfully berthed in Ghana.

With this new development, Omatek has become the first local OEM to be established in the country.

The Managing Director and chief executive officer of the company revealed in her speech at the commissioning exercise that Omatek is the first indigenous completely knocked down factory in Ghana.

Omatek, founded 21 years ago, started by training executives on one-on-one basis. By 1991, Omatek had become premium partners with the major foreign brands at the time and it launched its first locally assembled Omatek Computer Brand from Semi Knocked Down (SKD) assembly in Nigeria.

By 2003, Omatek established its first locally assembled (CKD) factory in Africa. Today, these factories are sited in Nigeria and Ghana.

Stating the benefits of citing the factory in the country, Mrs Seriki said, "Omatek will among other things pioneer youth recruitment and empowerment in IT, create several derived SMEs and generate massive employment in the country's ICT sector."

She further disclosed that Omatek now produces for i-Advance, a government scheme designed to make for easy acquisition of personal computers by all Ghanaians, especially those in the civil service.

"Omatek factory produces for i-Advance and delivers via resellers, especially via the project managers. They pick systems up from the factory and coordinate smooth distribution to the beneficiaries."

She hinted that the scheme has further been enhanced through Omatek partnership with the banks, stating also that millions of dollars have been set aside by the banks to ensure the success of the scheme.

"Beneficiaries will be able to pick up Omatek computers under the i-Advance scheme and pay over 12 months by installments."

The event also witnessed the launch of Omatek smallest notebooks for educational institutions.

She revealed that through partnerships with key manufacturers in Asia and the privilege of research and development with them, Omatek had come up with a new Omatek 8-inch notebook for the education sector.

The 8-inch notebook comes with 60GB hardisk, 256MB memory and is equipped with WIFI while the 10-inch one is specially designed for executives.

The Minister of Communications was happy with the presence of Omatek in the country and encouraged the company to make computer available to the people of Ghana at affordable prices so as to encourage computer ownership by the citizenry.

The commissioning of Omatek Computers Ghana was attended by top personalities, and more than seven ministers of various sectors.

Suame Magazine goes ICT

2008-02-25T06:46:00.001-08:00

The government of Ghana, the United Nations Industrial Development Organisation and the Suame Magazine Industrial Development Organisation are working out a programme to obtain Indian government sponsorship to enable artisans from the magazine go for further studies in advance internet technology in order to add value to their business.

The SMIDO has a similar partnership agreement with the Kofi Anan ICT resource centre to provide light industrial technological machines at the Magazine premises to promote efficiency in their businesses and also equip them with computers to offer basic IT education.

The move by the SMIDO and its development partners is to ensure that the artisans are abreast with the current technological approach to repairing modern vehicles instead of relying on their old methods which is gradually killing the industry.

The President of SMIDO, George Asamoah Amankwa who said disclosed this at the official launching of the "Suame Magazine goes ICT road show" yesterday said the Magazine which has over the years employed large percentage of the youth in Ghana stand at a possible risk of collapse due to the introduction of highly sophisticated vehicles and their parts on the market which artisans have no knowledge of.

"It is to arrest this situation that we have taken this bold initiative to have both SMIDO as our development organization and ICT project to encourage ourselves to start with the basic computing as part of the process of establishing the Suame Tech Automatics Engineering Institute where vehicles diagnostics would be learnt using the computer"

Mr. Amankwa said to further improve upon the skills of artisans SMIDO is negotiating with the Ministry of Trade and Industry to support the establishment of the Suame Tech Automatics Engineering Institute which is estimated to cost GH¢550,000.

He also said the Organisation was working out a special financial product with UNIBANK for its members and artisans at the magazine. Through this initiative, he said they will guarantee for members to access credits from the bank to expand their businesses.

The Director General of the Kofi Anan ICT Centre, Mrs. Dorothy Gordon disclosed that the training of artisans and other workers at the Magazine is a first step towards making the Suame magazine an ICT industrial hub in the West African sub-region.

She said the establishment of the Suame Tech Automatics Engineering Institute which is in collaboration with her outfit is to ensure that artisans who enroll in the institution come out well equipped with adequate knowledge in IT and also certificates which would enable them work in other industries in the country.

She assured that the Kofi Anan ICT training centre will continue to support members of SMIDO to be abreast with the IT in order to meet the challenges of the modern technological in the execution of their businesses to safe it from total collapse.

Member of Parliament of Suame and also Minister of State in-charge of Parliamentary Affairs Kyei Mensah Bonsu expressed the need for artisans in the country to let formal education be a priority to them, noting that "there are some artisans here who are doing relatively well in their area of operations but due to limited formal education they do not realize the need to bring improvement into their busineses", calling on masters to put in place criteria for selecting apprentices for job training, saying that such criteria must first consider the educational background of apprentices before admmitting them.

credit :statesman

Govt Poised To Attract Investments

2008-02-24T23:39:00.001-08:00

� Dr Benjamin Aggrey-Ntim, Minister of Communications

Ghana has made significant strides towards developing information, communications and technology (ICT) infrastructure to attract business into the sector, especially business process outsourcing.

Apart from the development of the national ICT backbone, currently ongoing, the Ministry of Communications is also developing standards and curricular for software development and training, an important ingredient in establishing the country as a viable Business Process Outsourcing (BPO) destination.

Ghana is seeking to put her house in order to be able to generate about $750 million in the next five years.

The Director of the Information Technology Enabled Services (ITES) Secretariat, a body under the Ministry of Communications, Mr Kwesi Adu Gyan, said in Accra at an executive breakfast meeting of the Ghana Association of Software and IT Services Companies (GASSCOM) that in a matter of weeks, the contract would be awarded for the development of the curricular and accreditation scheme for skills training in the ITES sector.

The event was organised by AITEC Ghana, an ICT events management company, in collaboration with GASSCOM, as a prelude to a two-day seminar on BPOs, and call and contact centres.

Mr Gyan said ITES had also charged the Ghana Standards Board (GSB) to develop standards for software development and the ICT industry as a whole to move it to international standards.

He pointed out that ITES had been charged with the responsibility for nurturing the private sector to participate effectively in the IT-enabled services sector, formulate policies and create the enabling environment to advance the industry.

As part of its goals, he said the Ghana Multimedia Incubator Centre (GMIC) was set up in 2005 to develop the ICT sector through incubation as well as promote the development of the BPOs, and call and contact centres.

The director of the ITES Secretariat said to develop the sector, the country needed a cost-effective and suitable infrastructure to support the smooth evolution of the sector.

A South African consultant and founder of C3Africa, Mr Rod Jones, who has done extensive work in the IT-enabled services area in many African countries, urged the country to conduct an extensive in-country study into the sector so as to identify strengths, weaknesses, what could work for the country and what could not.

�A formal countrywide research to understand the matrices and nature of existing industry in Ghana should be conducted, after which comes a clear domestic and international development strategy to make the industry work,� Mr Jones stated.

He said it was also important for Ghana to ensure that its services offered were between 30 and 40 per cent cost-savings so as to compete with the more advanced BPO countries such as India, Malaysia and The Philippines.

According to Mr Jones, who referred extensively to the South African experience, it was also important to improve the skills of the personnel, get people to appreciate the area as career-driven and not stepping stones to look for �better opportunities�.

He said language proficiency and accent could be a drawback, but could be worked on with elaborate training and coaching.

The Minister of Communications, Dr Benjamin Aggrey-Ntim, said the sector was dear to the heart of the government and it was taking pragmatic steps to develop it.

Dr Aggrey-Ntim advised private sector operators to consider extending their services to other parts of the country, adding that the policy of the government to downsize the public sector would offer more business opportunities to the private sector BPOs, and call and contact centres.

GASSCOM hopes to play a leading role in the ICT industry of Ghana through advocacy and practical interventions, both at the private and public sector levels as a way of contributing to the growth of the multi-billion dollar industry.

Story by Samuel Doe Ablordeppey

http://www.graphicghana.com/default.asp?sourceid=&smenu=85&twindow=Default&mad=No&sdetail=2163&wpage=&skeyword=&sidate=&ccat=&ccatm=&restate=&restatus=&reoption=&retype=&repmin=&repmax=&rebed=&rebath=&subname=&pform=&sc=2364&hn=graphicghana&he=.com

ICTs open up more avenues for development

2008-01-25T08:43:00.001-08:00

The Principal of the Ghana Telecom University College, Dr. Osei Darkwa says the introduction of Information, and Communications Technologies, has led to the emergence of open and distance learning as a supplement to the traditional educational system.

He said, this is helping to address the growing demand for higher and continuing education.

Dr. Darkwa said this last night in Accra at the first Anniversary Public Lecture of the University.
His topic was "The Changing Role of Universities in the 21st Century".

The Principal noted that it has taken five years for ICT to reach 50 million people while, Radio has taken 32 years and television, 13 years to reach the same number of people.

He said, this points to the fact that ICT can be harnessed for the total development of a country. Dr Darkwa said most open universities are demonstrating that quality teaching and learning can go on without physical structures, books and presence of lecturers.

Ghana Telecom University, is now operating on electronic library, which he said has improved library service at a low cost.

He said, issues of cost of computers, connectivity and their related challenges must be addressed if Africa is to benefit from ICTs. The former Vice Chancellor of the University of Education, Prof. Jophus Anamoah-Mensah said universities must be the centre of development and the mindset of society.

He asked universities to create a learning society for continuous learning process to improve on ways of doing things.

http://gbcghana.com/news/16733detail.html

Tigo hits 2 million subscribers

2008-01-09T13:24:00.001-08:00

Millicom Ghana Limited, operators of Tigo GMS network, on Wednesday announced that its subscriber levels had crossed the two million mark from 1.2 million at the beginning of 2007. The over 800,000 increase in the number of subscribers recorded in 2007 alone, represented 66 per cent increase.

Mr. Ransford Nyarko, Marketing Manager of Tigo told journalists that the quick rise in subscriber levels was attributable to the up-to the scratch network value and quality delivered by the company over the period. "Besides everything else, we have always focused on our network to ensure that the services we offer supports the values we proclaim," he said. "We are committed to ensuring that our subscribers do not just own phones but are able to make calls any time they need to without any interruption."

He noted that products such as Extreme Value, Free Night Calls and Double your credit, which the company offered to customers in 2007, were all novelties designed to uphold the company's belief that the customer was "the king".

Mr. Nyarko assured existing and prospective Tigo subscribers of more reward and innovative products in 2008.

Ms. Patricia Obodai, Chief Technical Officer of the company noted that to ensure that subscribers were able to make calls without interruptions at any time, Tigo had added an extra 313 Base Transmitter Stations (BTS) to its 390 BTS in 2007 alone, saying that the company would add 518 BTSs in 2008.

She said the network had also been designed in a way to ensure that calls made from areas where there were faulty BTSs were re-routed through other BTS and thereby prevent call drops or congestion. "Currently we have an average of 95 per cent successful call rate and even during the peak Christmas festive period we had 99 per cent success call rate throughout," she said.

Ms. Anita Erskine, Corporate Communications Executive said regarding the Talk Tax proposed by the government, the company was still waiting for directives from the government and would be willing to follow those directives.

Source:
GNA

Chief Justice plans 300 laptops for judiciary

2008-01-02T00:38:00.001-08:00

The Chief Justice, Mrs. Justice Georgina Theodora Wood on Friday announced plans to provide laptop computers to the three hundred members of the judiciary within the shortest possible time.

She said the plans were in line with her vision to strengthen the capacity of the judiciary to carry out its work of administering and delivering justice more efficiently.

Mrs. Justice Georgina Wood announced this when she received thirteen laptop computers valued at GH¢14,352 from the United Nations Development Programme (UNDP) in Accra.

The Laptops are to be used by the thirteen Justices of the Supreme Court as part of the Judicial Service's Automation Programme to enhance efficiency and the quick delivery of justice.

She commended the UNDP for their timely support, which she said, would go a long way to assist the justices in the efficient discharge of their duties.

She said in this modern era where the Supreme Court and the Court of Appeal rely more on written advocacy than oral arguments, courtroom hearings are no longer really time consuming or tasking.

She said the real task of judges commences after court hearings, studying the court record and doing the necessary research that judges must begin to translate into their judgments.

Mr Shigheki Komatsubara, Deputy UNDP Representative in Ghana who made the presentation said the Judicial Service (JS) had a constitutional responsibility of interpreting the law and protecting the rights of citizens.

He said however, the realization of this mandate is challenged by capacity constraints that the service faces resulting notably in congestion in the courts and its associated delays and access to legal remedies.

He said in line with the GPRS II and the United Nations Development Assistance Framework agreed upon with the Government of Ghana, the UNDP through its Country Programme Action Plan had supported the Judicial Service, Ministry of Justice and Office of the Attorney General, Legal Aid Scheme, Commission on Human Rights and Administrative Justice (CHRAJ) and Civil Society Organizations to ensure effective delivery of justice and the upholding of the rule of law in Ghana.

Ministry to promote ICT in schools

2007-12-26T11:00:00.001-08:00

The Ministry of Education, Science and Sports has developed an educational policy framework document, which would serve as a guideline for the implementation of Information, Communication and Technology (ICT) programmes in schools.

A curriculum for ICT training would therefore be put in place to make computer studies an integral part of basic and secondary education as well as teacher training.

This was stated in an address read on behalf of Professor Dominic Fobih, Minister of Education, Science and Sports on Friday in Accra at the 5th annual Global Teenager Project Ghana (GTP) certification and awards ceremony organized by Rescue Mission Ghana, a non-governmental organization on the theme: The role of Global Teenager Project in the Ghana educational reform.

Twice a year, a cluster of eight to twelve classes from different schools link up via E-mail to form Virtual Learning circles with the aim of connecting local and international learners and teachers, developing educational content, promoting cross cultural understanding and raising ICT literacy awareness in schools.

"This would provide pupils and students at these levels some fundamental training in ICT before entry into tertiary institutions where further training in ICT can be pursued.

"In terms of infrastructural deployment, every effort is being made to provide telephone facilities to all senior secondary schools and training colleges to enable them to have access to the internet" Professor Fobih said.

He noted that training in ICT requires the formation of a critical mass of teachers who would be in a position to handle critical information in a knowledge-based world.

He said economic growth in most developing countries have been induced by the flow of information adding" this realization has led the transformation of most economies into knowledge based ones.

"Government is therefore planning to extend the national broadband backbone connectivity throughout the country as part of efforts to facilitate the development of infrastructure facilities that would enhance the access and study of Information, Communication and Technology (ICT) in schools.

Professor Fobih said as part of its "computers in school" policy, ICT based tools, systems, educational technologies, software and courseware would be deployed within the educational system to improve the quality of education, science and sports at all levels.

Mr Benjamin Aggrey Ntim, Minister of Communications announced that government has completed the first phase of the National Fibre Backbone Network which spanned from Accra through the southern part of the country to Tamale and ends at Ho.

He said the completion of the project would ensure the provision of an affordable cost of bandwidth and an increase in the quality of service.

Mr. Ebenezer Malcolm, Project Manager of the Global Teenager Project Ghana noted that one of the major challenges facing the expansion of the project was the provision of regular and reliable Internet access.

He said the project started with four schools in Greater Accra region in 1999 but has now reached over 30 schools in Greater Accra, Central, Western, Ashanti and Volta regions.

Mr. Malcolm appealed to individuals, private organizations and the Ministry of Education Science and Sports to Support the expansion of the project.

He said the project has given basic training to 750 teachers and 840 students," adding 17 students and two teachers won an international award in a web development contest lat year."

The overall best basic learning circle award went to Mr. Frank Fiamor of Morning Star School in Accra, the best Advanced circle learning award went to Mr. Saddick Boateng of T.I Ahmadiyya school in Kumasi whiles the best supporting learning circle school went to Aggrey Memorial Zion secondary school in Cape Coast.

Fifteen other individuals were awarded for their dedication to the development of the project.

Source: GNA

Celtel completes privatisation process for WESTEL

2007-12-25T02:23:00.000-08:00

Accra, Dec. 24, GNA - Government has officially welcomed Celtel International BV, as a new market entrant into the telecom sector after it paid USD115 million to the government, signifying the termination of the privatisation process of Western Telesystems Limited (WESTEL). The receipt of Celtel's payment, represents transaction payment of its shareholding in WESTEL and concludes the Sales and Purchase Agreement (SPA), a statement issued by the Ministry of Information and National Orientation said on Monday.

The statement, signed by Ms. Oboshie Sai-Cofie, the Minister, said this left a balance of five million US dollars subject to the completion of due diligence by the time of assumption of the company by Celtel. It said the transfer of Western Wireless International (WWI)'s 66.67 per cent shares to the Government of Ghana in 2005 and the need to secure strategic investment to re-position WESTEL as a significant telecommunications service provider in the country necessitated its privatisation.

The statement recalled an earlier statement issued on October 24, 2007, informing the public about the conclusion of negotiations for the divestiture of WESTEL stating that, a price offer of USD 120 million had been agreed for 75 per cent shareholding, following extensive negotiations.

It said this reduced to 70 per cent within three years, when Celtel would release five per cent of its shares in addition to those to be released by the government and floated on the Ghana Stock Exchange to benefit the Ghanaian public.

Under the agreement, a USD 25 million due to the National Communications Authority and payable over an 11-year period of the licence's lifespan was reduced to USD15 million, and paid outright as part of the offer price of USD 120 million. The outright payment is actually a deal struck to save government some money.

It was also made clear that Kinz Telecom, as the highest bidder for WESTEL, was not able to fulfil its undertaking to make payment within an agreed stipulated period, hence, the government invited Celtel as the next successful bidder into the negotiations.

The statement said the privatisation exercise for Ghana Telecom was still in progress and that offers received so far had not met the expectation of government.

Source:
GNA

Millicom Ghana Secures Debt Financing for Network Expansion

2007-12-10T01:22:00.001-08:00

The second-largest mobile telephone operator in Ghana, Millicom Ghana, is to receive a finance package of US$140 million. DEG – Deutsche Investitions- und Entwicklungsgesellschaft provides together with other development finance institutions, including French Proparco, a tranche of US$80 million. While DEG acts as coordinator of this tranche, it finances US$27.5 million of this amount itself. The remaining US$60 million will be provided by a pool of local banks.

Millicom Ghana will invest these funds in developing and strengthening its mobile phone network in Ghana.

Millicom Ghana was able to almost double subscribers to 1.2 million last year. Besides expanding the present network, the pending investments are earmarked for installing a fibre optic ring to enable the use of more internet based applications.

By financing this project in Ghana, DEG will contribute to upgrading the telecommunications sector, which currently accounts for six per cent of national aggregate value added. As a profitable company Millicom Ghana will continue to pay important taxes and customs duties contributing to the national budget. The sale of mobile phone cards will also generate additional employment opportunities in the whole country.

As one of the largest European development finance institutions, DEG has already implemented a whole range of telecommunications projects in Africa. Most recently at the end of June, it financed investments by the mobile telephony operator Celtel International in Madagascar, Malawi, Uganda and the Democratic Republic of Congo.

According to figures from the Mobile World, Millicom had just over 1.5 million customers at the end of September. The market leader is ScanCom, who ended the month with just under 3.9 million customers. The country population penetration level is around 27%.

Accra Institute of Technology Obtains UK Engineering Council Accreditation

2007-12-09T04:58:00.000-08:00

The United Kingdom Engineering Council has given the Accra Institute of Technology a full accreditation to offer its engineering qualifications through the body that runs the UK Engineering Council Examinations worldwide.

The United Kingdom Engineering Council has given the Accra Institute of Technology (AIT) a full accreditation to offer its engineering qualifications through City and Guilds of London, the body that runs the UK Engineering Council Examinations worldwide.

The accreditation, the first to be given to a Ghanaian University, puts AIT at par with leading technological universities offering undergraduate and post-graduate engineering programmes, a statement issued by AIT said.

AIT, which is also called University of the Future, said Ghanaians could now run courses, register candidates and conduct the examinations on all the UK Engineering Council programmes.

These include Engineering Council (EC) Engineering Certificate programmes (equivalent to 1st year of a British Bachelor in Engineering degree programme), Graduate Diploma (equivalent to British Bachelor in Engineering) and Post-Graduate Diploma (equivalent to a British Masters in Engineering).

"Ghanaians can now obtain at AIT an internationally recognised professional engineering qualification acceptable in any part of the world," the statement said.

The statement quoted Dr Philip Riseborough, Head of Higher Qualifications in charge of EC programmes, as saying the accreditation would enhance AIT's competitive advantage through providing its students with the opportunity locally to access the internationally recognised Chattered Engineer level qualifications.

It also quoted Prof. Clement Dzidonu, President of AIT, as saying the recognition fitted in with their programmes, which were practical oriented with emphasis on producing a professional engineer that could work and compete with their peers anywhere in the world.

The UK Engineering Council is the UK registration authority for professional engineers working in partnership with 35 professional engineering institutions.

Source : Accra Mail

Dr Nii Quaynor Donates John Postel Award Prize Money to African Fund for Capacity Building, Research And Internet Development

2007-12-09T04:16:00.000-08:00

AfriNIC, the Regional Internet Registry for Africa, is very pleased to announce that Dr. Nii Quaynor, convenor of AfNOG and one of the authors of the original
project plan to set up an African Internet Number Registry has been awarded the Jonathan B. Postel Award at the IETF-70 meeting on 5th December 2007 which was
held in Vancouver Canada.

Dr. Nii Quaynor becomes the first African to receive this prestigious award from the Internet community. Each year, the Internet Society awards the Jonathan B.
Postel Service Award. The award is presented to an individual who has made outstanding contributions in service to the data communications community.

Dr. Quaynor has selflessly pioneered Internet development and expansion throughout Africa for nearly two decades, enabling profound advances in information access, education, healthcare

and commerce for African countries and their citizens, said Internet Society president Lynn St. Amour. Today, Dr. Quaynor continues to champion not just technological advances but also African
involvement in Internet standards, processes and deployments, discussion on Internet policies and regulations, and ensuring African interests are well-represented globally.

He has shaped a community of Africans who share his vision and reflect the dedication shown by Jon Postel.

According to Adiel A. Akplogan, the CEO of AfriNIC, This is an important milestone for the African technical community presence in the International
forum. We expect this Award to have a huge impact on the community and will certainly emulate more contribution and commitment for Internet Protocol
technology and it use for Development in the AfriNIC service region.

Dr. Nii Quaynor has pledged to dedicate his prize to contribute to the new fund being setup by AfriNIC to support Internet development in Africa (African Fund
for Capacity Building, Research and Internet Development).

He said: We need to develop our young engineers to emulate the dedication to network engineering as exemplified by Jon Postel. We have to harness the
pioneering work done by the dedicated technical leadership who have trained hundreds of young engineers through AfNOG and AfriNIC. The fund will make a
difference in support for education and research of young engineers in Africa.

We would like all the African community to join us to congratulate Dr Nii Quaynor for his great contribution to the Internet community in Africa.
AfriNIC is a non-governmental and not-for-profit membership based organisation. Its main role is to serve Africa region as Regional Internet Registry, like the
four other continents which have their own RIR.

AfriNIC's mission is To provide professional and efficient distribution of Internet number resources to the African Internet community, to support Internet technology usage and development across the continent and strengthen self Internet governance in Africa by encouraging a participative policy development.

To contact AfriNIC: t: +230 4666616, f: +230 4666758, e: press@afrinic.net

More about the Postel Service Award: http://www.isoc.org/awards/

http://www.afrinic.net/news/press/POSTELAWARD_2007_PRESS_RELEASE.pdf

Nii Quaynor Receives the Internet Society’s Jonathan B. Postel Service Award for Pioneering Work to Advance the Internet in Africa

2007-12-06T01:00:00.000-08:00

Press Releases

Reston, VA and Geneva, Switzerland - 5 December 2007 – The Internet Society has awarded pioneering Internet engineer Nii Quaynor the prestigious Jonathan B. Postel Service Award for 2007 for his leadership in advancing Internet technology in Africa and galvanizing technologists to improve Internet access and capabilities throughout the continent.

The Internet Society presented the award, including a $20,000 [USD] honorarium, during the 70th meeting of the Internet Engineering Task Force (IETF) in Vancouver, BC, Canada.

"Dr. Quaynor has selflessly pioneered Internet development and expansion throughout Africa for nearly two decades, enabling profound advances in information access, education, healthcare and commerce for African countries and their citizens," said Internet Society president Lynn St. Amour. "Today, Dr. Quaynor continues to champion not just technological advances but also African involvement in Internet standards, processes and deployments, discussion on Internet policies and regulations, and ensuring African interests are well-represented globally. He has shaped a community of Africans who share his vision and reflect the dedication shown by Jon Postel."

"I am humbled by the award and what Jon Postel represents to our community in Africa. Jon Postel's efforts and the global view he maintained on the operation of the domain name system and the numbering services assured that Africa would share in the Internet growth and early. I thank the Internet Society for the recognition and am very pleased to be associated with Jon's memorial," said Dr. Nii Quaynor. "We will work to develop more African engineers to meet the fast network growth needs of the region, being a late starter, and to join the technical policy processes. Our overall objective is to strengthen education and research in network technologies in Africa."

The annual Internet Society award is named after Dr. Jonathan B. Postel to commemorate his extraordinary stewardship exercised throughout his thirty-year career in networking. Between 1971 and 1998, Postel managed, nurtured and transformed the RFC series of notes, which encompasses the technical specifications and recommendations for the Internet and was created by Steve Crocker in 1969 as a part of his work on the Arpanet, the forerunner of today's Internet. Postel was a founding member of the Internet Architecture Board and the first individual member of the Internet Society, where he also served as a trustee until his untimely death.

Dr. Quaynor is chairman of Network Computer Systems (NCS) Ghana.COM and a professor of computer science at University of Cape-Coast, Ghana. He is also the convener of the African Network Operators Group (AfNOG), a network technology transfer institution since 2000 and the founding chairman of AfriNIC, the African numbers registry.

Dr. Quaynor began his pioneering Internet work in Africa in 1993 when he returned to his home country of Ghana to establish the first Internet Service operated by NCS in West Africa. At NCS, he and his team worked on the early development of the Internet in Africa. Today, there are more than 43 million Internet users in Africa.

Prior to NCS, Dr. Quaynor worked with Digital Equipment Corporation in the United States from 1977 till 1992. In 1979, he established the Computer Science department at the University of Cape Coast, Ghana. Dr. Quaynor graduated from Dartmouth College in 1972 with B.A (Engineering Science) and received a Ph.D. (Computer Science) in distributed systems in 1977 from State University of New York at Stony Brook.

About the Jonathan B. Postel Service Award

The Jonathan B. Postel Service Award was established by the Internet Society to honor those who, like Postel, have made outstanding contributions in service to the data communications community. The award is focused on sustained and substantial technical contributions, service to the community, and leadership. With respect to leadership, the nominating committee places particular emphasis on candidates who have supported and enabled others in addition to their own specific actions. Previous recipients of the Postel Award include Jon himself (posthumously and accepted by his mother), Scott Bradner, Daniel Karrenberg, Stephen Wolff, Peter Kirstein, Phill Gross, Jun Murai, Bob Braden, and Joyce K. Reynolds. The award consists of an engraved crystal globe and $20,000 [USD].

This year's award is sponsored in part by Afilias Global Registry Services.

About the Internet Society

The Internet Society is an independent international nonprofit organization founded in 1992 to provide leadership in Internet related standards, education, and policy. With offices in Washington, DC, and Geneva, Switzerland, and with more than 80 chapters worldwide, it is dedicated to ensuring the open development, evolution and use of the Internet for the benefit of people throughout the world.

For further details

Mark Thalhimer
Director of Communications and Public Relations, Internet Society
E-mail: thalhimer@isoc.org
Telephone: +1 703 326 9880 x130
1775 Wiehle Avenue
Reston, VA 20190-5108
USA
Internet Society: www.isoc.org

Defence Minister donates computers

2007-12-05T22:53:00.001-08:00

Mr Albert Kan-Dapaah, Minister of Defence, on Wednesday donated three computers and accessories to the 66 Artillery Regiment in Ho to ensure effective communication with peacekeepers and their relatives.

Mr Kan-Dapaah said Zinox donated the items to him and he was in turn donating it to the Regiment to help them move in tune with the current Information Technology revolution. "Today it is not only when one cannot read or write that he/she is illiterate but lack of knowledge in computers also makes one an illiterate as well," he said. He lauded the Ghana Armed Forces for their contribution to the growth of the IT sector and said the establishment of the internet cafe by the Regiment was a clear indication of the success chalked in that area.

Major Gen. Samuel Odotei, Chief of Army Staff, who received the computers, thanked the Minister for responding to the request made by the Regiment.

Lieutenant Colonel Emmanuel Kotia, Commanding Officer of 66 Artillery Regiment, said the Internet cafe, worth over 150 million cedis, was made possible through personal contributions from troops. He said the Ministry had employed IT officers who were manning and training other officers.

Source:
GNA

Ghana to Host UNCTAD On ICT4D

2007-12-04T04:05:00.001-08:00

Ghana is to host the 12th United Nations Conference on Trade and Development (UNCTAD XII) in April 2008, under the theme 'Science, Technology, Innovation (STI) and Information and Communication Technologies (ICT)s for Development (ICT4D)'.

According to the secretary general of UNCTAD, the event comes at a time when UNCTAD is preparing to host the 12th UNCTAD quadrennial ministerial conference, also on the heels of another meeting; the science, technology, innovation and Information and Communication Technologies (ICTs) for development, to be held at the Palais des Nations in Geneva on December 6, 2007.

All experts, he said, are encouraged to prepare and submit brief papers related to one or several relevant issues, as well as those relating to their countriesÂ´ experiences in the area of science and technology, innovation and ICTs.

"The contribution of STI and ICTs to the achievement of broader development objectives," he urged.The scribe equally said that issues bordering on global and regional cooperation in the areas of STI and ICTs are welcome, adding that such papers will be made available to the meeting in the form and language in which they are received.

"States members of UNCTAD, specialized agencies, intergovernmental bodies and non-governmental organizations wishing to attend the pre-event are requested to inform the UNCTAD secretariat of the name of their representative at an early date," he said.

UNCTAD's mission is to promote the development-friendly integration of developing countries into the world economy and has progressively evolved into an authoritative knowledge-based institution whose work is also to help shape current policy debates and thinking on development, with a particular focus on domestic policies and international action that are mutually supportive in bringing about sustainable development.

higway africa news agency

Minister Advocates Knowledge-Based Economy

2007-12-04T03:59:00.001-08:00

The Minister of Defence, Albert Kan-Dapaah says developing countries have the obligation to build a knowledge-based economy that would lead to economic revolution and ensure that they compete effectively with the developed nations.

According to him, developing nations of today are poor largely because of their inability to take advantage of previous economic revolutions that took place in the agricultural, industrial and scientific sectors.

Mr. Kan-Dapaah said this at a reception organized by the Indian High Commission to mark Indian Technical and Economic Co-operation (ITEC) Day.

The ITEC programme, which was launched by the government of India in 1964, has provided training in India in various fields such as banking, Information Communication and Technology (ICT), audit and accounts, hydrology, management and journalism for almost 30,000 foreign nominees from developing countries.

Mr. Kan-Dapaah urged developing countries to take advantage of another emerging economic revolution, which had been sparked by ICT, in order to achieve growth and prosperity.

He commended the Indian government for the investment and gains made in the field of ICT.

Rajesh Nandan Prasad, High Commissioner of India in Ghana, said a total of 1,350 training slots were allotted each year and 800 were earmarked for candidates from Africa.

He said 70 training slots had been earmarked for Ghana this year adding that since the inception of the programme, India had provided technical assistance worth more than $2 billion to developing countries.

Daily Guide

National Telecom Policy and Regulatory workshop opens

2007-12-02T08:50:00.000-08:00

Dr. Benjamin Aggrey-Ntim, Minister of Communications on Monday stressed the need for Telecommunication Regulators to consider not only new approaches to regulate the sector, but also consider the convergence of Telecommunications, Broadcasting and Information Technology into a Multimedia Industry.

"Even though this workshop would concentrate on Telecommunications Policy and Regulation, you should have at the back of your minds that technological convergence is diminishing such regulatory distinctions between Telecommunications, Broadcasting and the Information Technology industries," he said.

Dr. Aggrey-Ntim, was opening a five-day National Workshop for Telecommunications Experts from the West African sub-region to address and share ideas on regulatory issues and challenges affecting the industry.

Participants from Nigeria, Uganda, Sierra Leone, The Gambia, Tanzania, Zambia, Rwanda and Ghana are attending the workshop organised by the West Africa Telecommunication Regulators Assembly (WATRA) and the National Communication Authority (NCA), Ghana.

The workshop on the theme: "Changing Landscape of Regulation in Africa: Challenges and Capacity Demands" is being sponsored by NetTel@Africa, a Network for capacity building and knowledge exchange in ICT policy, regulation application.

The Minister said in the increasingly complex environment, the policy makers and the regulatory authorities were expected to be futurists in thinking, with the 'roadmap' and directions needed to stay ahead and navigate affairs of the sector.

Dr. Aggrey-Ntim said, the high-level representation at the workshop should encourage the participants to deliberate on issues that would help provide long lasting solutions to the challenges confronting the communications industry while building strong networking bonds between themselves.

He, therefore, urged the regulators to promote universal access to communication technologies in the sub-region, show interest in protection of the rights of consumers and citizens and assurance of safeguard and redress.

"As regulators within the sub-region, I advise you to familiarize yourselves with the regional and sub-regional initiatives being promoted to harmonize ICT policies, regulations and laws so as to facilitate regional integration and enhance the attraction of our countries for greater investments.

"It is in this regard that we should pursue our infrastructure development in a harmonious manner that would grant our citizens the ease of communication and mobility," he said.

Dr Aggrey-Ntim said that would be facilitated if the countries were able to develop the enabling regulations and common legislation across the networks and jurisdictions.

Mr. Nnamdi Nwokike of the WATRA Secretariat, said WATRA was established in 2004 to address the present realities of the telecommunications industry in the sub-region while focusing on the need for West Africa to evolve a harmonized regulatory identity to boost investment and investor-confidence.

WATRA has 14 ECOWAS member countries as signatories and headquartered in Abuja, Nigeria.

Member countries are Benin, Burkina Faso, Cote d'Ivore, Gambia, Ghana, Guinea, Guinea Bissau, Liberia, Mali, Mauritania, Niger, Nigeria, Senegal and Sierra Leone.

Mr Bernard Forson Jnr., Director General, NCA and Chairman of WATRA said the role of regulators was very important in the development of strong, competitive and socially responsive communications industries.

He, therefore, called for the full support of member governments to build capacities in investment areas and harmonize the negative areas of the sector to achieve results.

Source: GNA

Politics 'stifling $100 laptop'

2007-11-27T05:31:00.001-08:00

A lack of "big thinking" by politicians has stifled a scheme to distribute laptops to children in the developing world, a spokesman has said.

Walter Bender of One Laptop per Child (OLPC) said politicians were unwilling to commit because "change equals risk".

But, he said, there needed to be a "dramatic change" because education in many countries was "failing" children.

In an interview with the BBC, Nigeria's education minister questioned the need for laptops in poorly equipped schools.

Dr Igwe Aja-Nwachuku said: "What is the essence of introducing One Laptop per Child when they don't have seats to sit down and learn; when they don't have uniforms to go to school in, where they don't have facilities?"

"We are more interested in laying a very solid foundation for quality education which will be efficient, effective, accessible and affordable."

The previous government of Nigeria had committed to buying one million laptops.

Dr Aja-Nwachuku said he was now assessing OLPC alongside other schemes from Microsoft and Intel.

There is still a concerted misinformation campaign out there

Walter Bender, OLPC

"We are asking whether this is the most critical thing to drive education."

But speaking separately to BBC News, Professor Bender said: "We think that change has to be dramatic."

"You've got to be big, you've got to be bold. And what has happened is that there has been an effort to say 'don't take any risks - just do something small, something incremental'."

"It feels safe but by definition what you are ensuring is that nothing happens."

Winds of change

OLPC was started in 2002 by Nicholas Negroponte, a professor at the Massachusetts Institute of Technology.

The laptops have been designed to cope with harsh conditions

It aims to put thousands of low-cost laptops, known as the XO, in the hands of children around the world.

The machines are planned to cost $100 and have been especially designed for use in remote and harsh environments where there is little access to electricity or the internet.

But getting the project off the ground has proved difficult.

Professor Negroponte has had high profile run-ins with major technology firms.

He told an audience at a Linux event: "if I am annoying Microsoft and Intel then I figure I am doing something right."

Microsoft head Bill Gates had questioned the XOs design, particularly the lack of hard drive and its "tiny screen".

But recently, the firm announced that it was working on a version of Windows XP that would run on the pared down machines.

The price will come down as the numbers go up. It will take time but it will happen

Walter Bender

"We are spending a non-trivial amount of money," Microsoft's Will Poole told Reuters.

Earlier this year, Professor Negroponte also accused Intel of selling its own cut-price laptop - the Classmate - below cost price to drive him out of markets. He said that Intel "should be ashamed of itself" and said its tactics had hurt his mission "enormously".

Within weeks it was announced that Intel had joined the board of OLPC amid speculation that the firm was unhappy about the XO using a processor from its main rival AMD.

'Small thinking'

Although these episodes now appear to be behind OLPC, Professor Bender said there was still an "aggressive" effort to undermine the charity.

"There is still a concerted misinformation campaign out there," he said.

Mr Bender said he would not speculate on who was behind the alleged campaign.

"Wherever it is coming from, it exists," he told BBC News.

But he said the main problem for OLPC was dealing with conservative politicians.

"Change equals risk especially for politicians. And we are certainly advocating change because the [education] system is failing these children," he said.

"It has not been that processor versus that processor or that operating system versus that operating system - it's been small thinking versus big thinking. That's really the issue," he said.

Sales target

Originally, the laptops were to be sold to governments in lots of one million for $100 apiece.

Over time, however, the project has dropped the minimum number of machines that can be ordered, leading some to speculate that governments were not buying into the scheme.

Factfile: XO laptop

The project also recently launched an initiative to allow citizens of North America to buy two machines at a time; one for themselves and one for a child in a developing country.

But Mr Bender said the shift was because of a better understanding of how to distribute smaller numbers cheaply and effectively, rather than a lack of orders.

"Part of it was our understanding of how the supply chain was going to work and having enough flexibility in the supply chain to make it work with a small number," he said.

"The big numbers were really about how you get this thing started not how you make it work in the long term.

"That was always going to be about supporting any good idea that comes along. And we've been able to get it started without the big top down numbers so we are off and running."

Developing tool

Since the scheme was first announced in 2002 there have been reports of several countries signing up to it.

Both Nigeria and Libya were reported to have ordered more than one million laptops.

Tests of the Xo are going on around the world

Other countries including Thailand and Pakistan had also placed orders, according to reports.

But recently, OLPC revealed it had just taken its first order for 100,000 of the machines, placed by the government of Uruguay.

"Uruguay is first then it will be Peru, Mexico, Ethiopia then we are going to be doing stuff in Haiti, Rwanda and Mongolia," said Mr Bender.

In addition, he said, OLPC had done a deal with Birmingham, Alabama, in the US, to provide the laptop for schools in the city.

"The numbers of countries where we have trials set up is also increasing," he said.

Tests were also going on in the Solomon Islands, Nepal and India, a country that had previously shunned the scheme.

The Indian Ministry of Education had previously dismissed the laptop as "pedagogically suspect", whilst the Education Secretary Sudeep Banerjee said the country needed "classrooms and teachers more urgently than fancy tools".

Tipping point

The first machines will cost almost double the $100 originally planned.

The high price has been blamed on the increasing cost of the raw materials for the components inside the XO. Each machine currently costs $188.

"The price will come down as the numbers go up. It will take time but it will happen," said Mr Bender.

The manufacturer of the laptop - Quanta - recently revealed it had started mass production of the machines, after a number of delays.

Previously, OLPC had said it needed three million orders to make production feasible.

Professor Negroponte said it was an important milestone that had been reached despite "all the naysayers".

"We're not turning back - we have passed the point of no return," said Mr Bender. "It is happening."

Ghana Association of Software & IT Services launch

2007-11-23T15:38:00.001-08:00

GASSCOM to promote the growth of information technology services and business process outsourcing in Ghana

Anybody with the misfortune to need help or advice from a public utility, government agency, hospital, airline or even some big businesses in Ghana will know the frustrations, delay, expensive time wasting leading to annoyance of the frequently proffered expression 'go and come' or I'm working on it.'

In more sophisticated economies where the consumer is 'king' and doesn't hesitate to point out that 'it's me who's paying your salary,' more and more organisations outsource their front office services, and other operations, to a contact centre where customers can be accorded due time and diligence by trained staff who can answer queries at a computer keystroke. This is designed to improve customer satisfaction, reduce costs, diversify corporate risk in the event of a disaster and minimise bureaucracy.

To promote the growth of business process outsourcing (BPO) as a major business opportunity, a number of private sector information technology organisations have come together to form the Ghana Association of Software and IT Services (GASSCON)

The Association, which is supported by the World Bank, was launched on 5 November in the presence of its founders by Ghana's Minister of Communications, the Hon Benjamin Aggrey-Ntim.

Ceremony Chairman, academic Kofi Bentil, described Ghana business as 'strong on talk but slow to act.' Meanwhile, BPO companies from India including HCL, realising that they were losing the competitive advantage in their own territory, were already migrating to and investing in Ghana.

World Bank representative, Mavis Ampah, recounted that she had just returned from a fact finding visit to Kigali in Rwanda where she was astonished at the speed of BPO development. There was a determined push by the Rwandan government to create jobs in the sector fast and they were marketing themselves much more effectively than Ghana to potential customers in the outside world.

CEO of Persol Systems and founder member of GASSCON, Michael Quarshie explained that a significant factor inhibiting BPO development in Ghana was the high cost of workspace as well as bandwidth. Drawing comparisons with America where many organisations outsource to developing countries including the Phillipines and China, Mr Quarshie said that the cost of bandwidth in Ghana was $4,200 compared with $300 for the same bandwidth in America. He went on to say that the remit of GASSCOM was to act as a catalyst to encourage and guide the industry.

In his keynote speech, the Minister of Communications said that his Ministry, through the Information Technology Enabled Services (ITES) Secretariat, anticipated that the sector, currently employing around 2,500 was anticipated to grow to 40,000 generating about $750m in foreign currency earnings over the next five years, with each job within the industry likely to generate employment opportunities for a further four people in support. The Ministry was already taking action to provide office space at the Technology Park in Tema at modest cost and a recent cut in bandwidth costs from $7,000 to $4,200 was likely to be followed by further cuts in the future. The Minister urged BPO companies to market themselves, both collectively and individually, more powerfully to potential customers using high quality brochures containing irrefutable information and facts.

After ITES director, Kofi Adu-Gyan had introduced the interim executive committee of GASSCOM, a vote of thanks was proposed by Kofi Hayford, CEO of e-Services who underlined the need for Ghanaian companies to grasp this major opportunity whilst the window of availability remained open.

Baah-Wiredu explains excise duty on airtime calls

2007-11-22T11:07:00.001-08:00

Mr. Kwadwo Baah-Wiredu, Minister of Finance and Economic Planning, has explained that the proposal in the 2008 Budget Statement, which slapped excise duty on airtime on mobile phone calls, would rather reduce the cost of making calls.

In an interview with the Ghana News Agency, the Minister, who is also NPP MP for Asante Akim North, said the increasing number of mobile phones that were smuggled into the country by mobile phone dealers as well as individuals informed the decision.

He said statistics obtained from the mobile phone companies and the National Communications Authority (NCA) showed that there are about seven million mobile phones in the country.

"However, records of taxes paid at the port of entry from the Immigration Service and the Customs, Excise and Preventive Service (CEPS) show that just about one million mobile phones have been brought into the country."

He described the practice where people continuously brought mobile phones into the country without paying the appropriate tax as unacceptable, since the nation lost billions of cedis in the process.

Government decided to abolish import duty and import VAT on all mobile phone handsets and introduced excise duty on airtime.

Mr Baah-Wiredu explained that if the current taxes on mobile phones were removed as proposed in the 2008 budget, the cost of the product as well as the charges on airtime by the various networks would drop significantly.

"Currently, the networks charge about 14 Ghana pesewas per minute on each call, as per the tax charges, making 98 million Ghana Cedis per minute which is the result of the number of mobile phones multiplied by the cost per minute.

"If we cancel the tax on mobile phone imports and the total number of handsets grows to eight million we would reduce the cost per minute to 12.5 Gp. If the total number of handsets goes up to about nine million, the cost per minute to end-users would drop further to 10 Gp. The same would be when the total number of handsets rises to 10 million and the cost of air-time per minute would also drop to 9.8 Gp."

Reacting to network providers' concern that they were not contacted or involved in arriving at the proposal, Mr Baah-Wiredu said adverts and invitations were sent out for stakeholders to make their input, but not all of them made the effort to contribute to the discussions and contributions.

"It is important that when adverts are put out for stakeholders to make their contributions, they are taken seriously since it would help government in shaping development approaches," he added.

Source: GNA

No time to wait

2007-11-22T06:01:00.000-08:00

Video blogs are an interesting and engaging method of presenting information, especially in areas with low levels of literacy.

The availability of broadband internet has increased rapidly in developing countries in the last few years, but it is still almost exclusively limited to users in the larger towns and cities. Because of this, most organizations working with rural communities use simple web 2.0 tools, such as blogs, to present information, usually in text form. It might seem strange then to make videos, which are typically very large files that take a long time to download, for farmers who might not even have a computer. But the team at Ghana Information Network for Knowledge Sharing (GINKS) are convinced that it is important to start using this technology now.

'At the moment we are still trying to catch up with the western world,' explains Prince Deh, assistant country coordinator at GINKS. 'If we wait until everyone has broadband access in Africa that might take another five years, at least. By that time, there may be web 3.0 or even web 4.0. How would we catch up then? We need to act now to promote the use of technology of all kinds in Africa, especially in rural areas.'

GINKS produces video blogs, also known as vlogs, on subjects that are relevant to the communities they work with in rural Ghana. One particularly popular video blog explained how farmers can use their mobile phones to get market information. Despite the poor connectivity among their target audience the video blogs have proven to be more popular than the more traditional, static pages of the GINKS website, which received just under 500 visits since January 2007, compared with nearly 900 users visiting the blog site since it began in April.

For Deh, it is easy to explain the success of the video blogs. 'Videos are powerful. If you watch someone speaking you understand much more than when you just read about it. And video blogs can still be used by people who have difficulties reading. Plus they are cheap to make, it's easy and doesn't take too long to learn the process. Once you go through the process it doesn't take more than a day to learn how to produce a video blog.'

Document experience

Another advantage of putting videos on the web is that they can be distributed to a large potential audience at low cost. But Prince Deh admits he is sometimes frustrated that the videos don't reach their main target group rural farmers. At the moment the members of the GINKS team are promoting video blogging primarily to other NGOs and government institutions. 'We've had very good feedback from several organizations and government ministries who have seen the videos and want to know more, and especially how we can reach more people,' says Deh.

Although progress so far has been slow, the Ghanaian government is now working to improve internet access across the country. There has also been increased investments in rehabilitating and refurbishing old rural communication centres, which should also help in opening up the GINKS network and their series of video blogs, to farming communities. As the technology becomes more affordable, Deh hopes that farmers will be able to produce their own video blogs.

The only means of communication at the moment in rural areas is through mobile phones, so most people save their money to buy one. Very few of these phones can record videos, but that will change in the near future. Then farmers would have almost all the resources they need to produce their own video blogs. They could then also access an old PC they and use free editing software, available from the web. We're still talking some years away,' he adds, 'but we have already introduced the idea to farmers, and many of them are very interested. They want to document their experiences and make them available to others. The big advantage too is that people don't even have to be able to read and write to make a video blog.'

The team at GINKS ensure that they keep up to date with the latest developments, following technical improvements until they find something else they can use in their work. In the meantime, they are continuing to promote video blogging to other organizations as a way to reach rural communities.

http://ictupdate.cta.int/en/feature_articles/no_time_to_wait

Guinness Opens Advanced ICT Studies

2007-11-19T14:10:00.001-08:00

The Hon. Minister of Trade, Industry and PSI, Joe Baidoo-Ansah has on behalf of President J. A. Kufuor, commissioned the new Osei Tutu II Institute for Advanced ICT Studies, situated at the Guinness Ghana Breweries Limited's (GGBL) Ahinsan Brewery in Kumasi.

The institute, which will offer undergraduate and postgraduate courses in ICT and related studies, was established by Heineken International and the Dutch government in collaboration with Diageo/GGBL.

The Managing Director of GGBL, Mr Seni Adetu said from 2002 until the middle of 2003 research was carried out in Ghana to investigate the level of ICT programmes and the need for additional applied ICT education.

The result was the need to significantly improve both the knowledge base and the ICT course content in Ghana.

Mr Seni Adetu said to ensure that the institute compete favourably with the best in the world, a section of the Brewery office has been converted into an ultra-modern complex with ample lecture room space and state-of-the-art facilities.

He commended the Government of Ghana, for creating an enabling environment for investment. Additionally, he thanked Otumfuo Osei-Tutu II, Asantehene, for his guidance and continued support to GGBL.

The President of Heineken, Africa and Middle East Region, Tom de Man thanked all the organizations and individuals who have worked tirelessly and contributed in cash and kind to making the project a reality.

He specifically thanked Nurfic, a Dutch Governmental Organization, for their donation of 1.5m euros, Diageo, Heineken, Unilever for their commitment of 70,000 euros each per annum over the next 5 years, and Coca-Cola and Barclays for their sponsorship.

Prof. Martin Looijen, Rector of the institute, in a short speech stated that the mission of the college is to educate students from Ghana and other African countries to become professionals in ICT with the prescribed capabilities and attitudes required in developing applying and maintaining ICT related problems in industry and business.

He acknowledged the fact that the establishment is the first postgraduate ICT institute in Africa, and hoped students from other neighbouring countries would be encouraged to patronize its services.

He confirmed that the institute was accredited by the Ghana Accreditation Board and fully endorsed by the Kwame Nkrumah University of Science and Technology.

The President, represented by the Hon Minister of Trade and Industry and PSI, Mr Joe Baidoo-Ansah, took the opportunity to commend GGBL for its achievements and continuous contribution to the socio-economic development of Ghana.

Source/Credits: Daily Guide

FFP to promote indigenous arts on Internet

2007-11-17T07:57:00.001-08:00

The Foundation of Female Journalists (FFP) on Saturday organised its "2007 Street Art Festival" aimed at improving the artistic and creative industry in the country. The programme, which was under the theme; "Artists on the Internet, Build Your Image" was this year focus on encouraging artists to use the Internet to improve their packaging and marketing.

Ms Mardey Ohui Ofei, President for FFP said using the internet to improve creative works and market Ghanaian artistry had become necessary in today's world of information technology in order to compete effectively in the globe.

She said the programme was to encourage, especially women and young people to project their various skills and creativity in arts and to assist the participants to develop their profiles on the internet. Ms Ohui said the Ghanaian artistic industry had, over the years been challenged with weak writings which had accounted for poor packaging and marketing of the arts.

She said there was also the need for artists to explore other opportunities within the industry such as photography, videography and the use of arts for social work instead of confining themselves to only painting.

Ms Patience Dzormeku, Cooridnator for the programme also expressed worry on the limited number of females in the industry, saying lack of self-confidence was preventing more women from bringing out their creativity.

She said the FFP was therefore, providing websites that would have profiles of all artists in order to have a common platform for promotion of creative arts.

Source:
GNA

Ghana 2008 budget- ICT highlights

2007-11-15T11:52:00.001-08:00

1.Excise Tax on Mobile Phone Airtime
Government has decided to abolish import duty and import VAT on all mobile phones imported into the country and introduced a more effective means of taxing mobile phone usage. Consequently, Government proposes to impose a specific excise duty per minute of airtime use.

2. National Switch and Biometric Smartcard Project
The Bank of Ghana is establishing a National Switch, the E-ZWICH, to allow the establishment of a common platform for all payments transactions, both on-line and off-line, in the country. Associated with the E-ZWICH is a biometric smartcard that eliminates the need to have basic literacy and numeracy to operate a bank account since it relies on the identification features of finger prints. The E-ZWICH is a major vehicle for financial inclusion. The smartcard can also be used for payment of wages to workers on the government payroll. The use of the biometric identification system will remove ghost workers on the public payroll. The National Switch and smartcard project would serve as the vehicle to transform Ghana from a predominantly cash economy to one dominated by electronic transactions using modern state of the art technology.

3. the National Communication Authority (NCA) will in the course of the year, issue 3G mobile license
4. Under Govt Assisted PC Programme (GAPP), it is projected that 40,000 more PCs will be supplied to beneficiaries.

5. NCA to develop modalities for allocation of Worldwide Interoperability for Microwave Access (WIMAX)

6. A number of institutions including Domain Name Registry will be set up in this regard.

see Ministry of Communication sector below :
MINISTRY OF COMMUNICATIONS
658. Mr. Speaker, MOC is facilitating the vision of government to develop policies and programmes to transform Ghana into a
country with sufficient, efficient, cost effective and accessible communications infrastructure to propel appropriate technological
applications and innovations to enhance socio-economic development

Performance in 2007
659. Mr. Speaker, the Ministry in pursuant of its mandate monitored the increase in telephone penetration from 20 per cent in 2006 to
30 per cent in 2007 as planned. It also pursued the privatisation of Ghana Telecom (GT) which is in progress and that of WESTEL
which is completed.
National Fibre Communications Backbone Infrastructure
660. Mr. Speaker, to complement the efforts of the private sector in the extension of affordable and efficient connectivity solutions, the
Ministry pursued the development of the National Fibre Communications Backbone Infrastructure network to provide open
access broadband connectivity.
661. Mr. Speaker, the Ministry under the Backbone Infrastructure
Network undertook survey and design of the various sites, procured and delivered equipment, constructed and commissioned
Achimota distribution site, commenced laying of pipes for Buipe-Tamale, Akosombo-Ho and Kumasi-Obuasi and laid over 492 km
of fibre cable.
A Brighter Future
186
Promotion of Competitive Telecom Market
662. Mr. Speaker, to promote the deployment of affordable wireless broadband access, the National Communications Authority (NCA)
commenced the development of modalities for allocation of Worldwide Interoperability for Microwave Access (WIMAX) service
deployment to benefit all the major telecom sector players. This intervention is aimed at encouraging the private telecom service
providers to further plan their infrastructure deployment and invest in a strategic manner and also improve access and quality
of service. In response to this intervention by the NCA, all the telecom sector players have launched challenging expansion
programmes.
The eGhana Project
663. Mr. Speaker, under the eGhana project the Ministry developed certification and standardization procedures related to human
resource capacity in Information Technology Enabled Services (ITES). It also developed investment promotion and support
mechanisms to attract and retain investors in Information Communication Technology (ICT) and ITES businesses.
IT/IM Career Classification
664. Mr. Speaker, MOC with the support of the United Nations Development Programme (UNDP) has commenced the
consultation process for the development of a Scheme of Service to define job content, career paths and appropriate remuneration
packages for professional ICT/IM personnel. This is to facilitate their engagement in the civil/public service.
A Brighter Future
187
Ghana Investment Fund for Telecommunications (GIFTEL)
665. Mr. Speaker, GIFTEL, set up to facilitate the extension of communications services to underserved and unserved areas
through the provision of common facilities has undertook the common telecom tower service facility at Nandom (U/West) which
is now offering transmission coverage to over 10 towns including Lambushie, Boe, Burutu, Piiri, Basabli, Yipele, Naapal, Pofiem,
Napaali, and Gengenkpe. A similar facility at Fetentaa is also serving over 12 towns in the locality and another at the towers at
Bibiaraneha and Atuna have also been completed.

Community Information Centres (CICs)
666. Mr. Speaker, in furtherance of the commitment of the Ministry to use the medium of ICT to promote an all-inclusive information
and knowledge society to benefit under served and rural areas, the CIC concept has been developed. To date 92 CICs out of the
projected 230 CICs have been constructed. Ghana Post has upgraded over 50 Postal Agencies to Post Offices and will connect
those centres to ICT to make them learning centres in addition to providing universal postal services.
Government Assisted PC Programme (GAPP)
667. Mr. Speaker, GAPP under the iAdvance Computer4All project has sold 10,000 units of computers to the public, private and
educational institutions and individuals to increase the availability and usage of computers in the country. It was also intended to
encourage local entrepreneurial assembling of personal computers.
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188
Broadband4U
668. Mr. Speaker, GT has extended broadband Internet services using copper to Kumasi and its environs, Obuasi, Cape Coast,
Akosombo, Koforidua, Gbawe, Tamale, Bolgatanga, Wa, Ho, Takoradi and Tarkwa. Wireless technology has been used to
provide additional broadband internet capacity for Labone, Spintex Area and Weija in the Greater Accra area.
669. Mr. Speaker, under the Postal and Courier Services Regulatory
Commission (PCSRC) the policies, guidelines, rules and regulations for carrying out postal and courier business were drafted and
reviewed with stakeholder participation. Also 50 firms operating postal/courier services have been registered under the regulatory
framework to ensure high-level performance. Ghana Post is also being monitored in its usage of exclusive license for the provision
of reserved postal services in Ghana which is aimed at ensuring that basic postal services are provided at prices, which are
affordable for all segments of the population.

670. Mr. Speaker, in addition, education exercises to encourage all the identified courier companies to regularise their operations has
been undertaken. The provision of inputs to facilitate the clear definition of National Postal Policy, modernize and develop the
postal sector, ensure universal access to postal services, promote new service development and strengthen the role of the postal
sector as an instrument of economic and social development in the era of ICT has been pursued.

ICT Business Incubator
671. Mr. Speaker, the centre supported the establishment of WiceNet Ghana Limited to provide through the primary medium of
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189
television, data, video and audio/voice services. Currently, the company has deployed to 4 hotels, namely; La Palm Royal Beach,
Cocoa Beach Hotel, Shangri La Hotel and the Dutch Hotel. Tripod Global Ventures (Jobweb), Makana Technologies Limited and IDZ
Ghana Limited to provide online recruitment, develop a vehicle tracking system and operate an online advertising/events listing
media website, respectively has been established.

672. Mr. Speaker, CBB Ghana Limited has developed a product tracking, scanning and identification of objects using Radio
Frequency Identification (RFID) with the support of the centre. Real IT Solutions a tenant-company of the GMIC, has also
developed science educational software being tested with support from the centre.

Business Process Outsourcing (BPO) Training
673. Mr. Speaker, Ministry in collaboration with the Ghana
Telecommunications University College trained 30 Call Centre and Data Entry Clerks. The Ministry also collaborated with the Ministry
of Information and National Orientation (MINO) and the Ghana Investment Fund for Telecommunications (GIFTEL) in the
provision of training of 22 information officers from various districts under the Community Information Centre initiative.
Currently, over 200 Call Centre and Data Entry operators have received training.

Science and Technology Park
674. Mr. Speaker, the Ministry is facilitating the establishment of a Science and Technology Park at the Institute of Industrial
Research (IIR) to support emerging technologies. MOC formulated a master Plan for the park, collected and compiled
data relevant to science and technology, economics, and
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190
infrastructure in Ghana and submitted the second draft report in June. It is currently, updating the final draft to ensure
commencement of actual implementation by the close of 2007.

Outlook for 2008
675. Mr. Speaker, MOC will pursue the policy to develop nationwide communications and technology infrastructure backbone and
services to ensure that the first phase of the national fibre optic infrastructure backbone project covering the laying of fibre optic
cable to Tamale, which is to be completed by Huawei Technologies by December 2007 will become functional.

676. Mr. Speaker, the Ministry will also facilitate the operationalisation and the setting up of the National Fibre Backbone Company
Limited to help in the management of the national fibre backbone facility as a commercially viable business. It will further pursue
the actualisation of the second phase of the fibre backbone and egovernment project which will go beyond Tamale to the
northernmost borders.
677. Mr. Speaker, the output from the delivery of this project should see the attainment of the major objective of ensuring the
provision of adequate and affordable bandwidth throughout the country under an open access management model to benefit the
wider private sector.
678. Mr. Speaker, GIFTEL will construct additional common masts facilities in 29 towns. It is estimated that a total of 44 common
telecommunications facilities will be provided across the country. The Ministry in collaboration with the Ministries of Information and
National Orientation, Local Government, Rural Development and Environment and the District Assemblies will sustain the CIC
A Brighter Future
191
Programme. Under GAPP, it is projected that 40,000 more PCs will be supplied to beneficiaries.

Ghana Meteorological Agency (GMA)
679. Mr. Speaker, SADIS 2nd Generation equipment installed at the Accra Airport office will facilitate the reading of wind speed and
direction as well as temperature at different levels in the atmosphere, significant weather charts and aerodrome forecasts
and warnings for airports around the world.

Business Process Outsourcing training (BPO training)
680. Mr. Speaker, the Ministry in collaboration with the BPO Training outfit will train additional 300 Centre and Data Entry operators.
The outfit will also continue with its collaboration with the Ghana Telecommunications University College.

681. Mr. Speaker, Tripod Global Ventures, IDZ Ghana Limited and CBB Business Limited will start commercialization of their products.
These companies would move from staff strength of 3 each to approximately 6 each.

Technology Park
682. Mr. Speaker, the Technology Park Project to be located within the Free Zone enclave is to house ICT/IT enabled companies. The
Request For Proposals (RFP) from the short listed companies will be sought to facilitate the commencement of work.

eGhana
683. Mr. Speaker, in the area of e-governance that is aimed at employing e-government applications to contribute to improved
efficiency and transparency of Government functions, the Ministry
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192
will procure the services of an international consultant to conclude feasibility studies on the PPP approach for the provision of egovernment
services in IRS and VAT service, DVLA, RGD and LTR. It is expected that the IRS nationwide digitalisation will enhance
the collection of both individual and cooperate taxes.

684. In addition, a government-wide network will be installed to connect about 64 different MDAs to enable better sharing of
information as well as improve coordination across government agencies. A data centre and national portal will be established
which will facilitate generation of revenue through levy of transaction fees and training in the use of these facilities will be
provided to CIOs, Legislators, the Judiciary, civil servants and technical staff who will manage the facilities.

685. Mr. Speaker, the passage of the National Information Technology
Agency (NITA) bill in due course will give the needed legal backing to implement a number of revenue generation initiatives
contained in the Electronic Transactions Bill. A number of institutions including Domain Name Registry will be set up in this
regard.

Government Network (GovNet)
686. Mr. Speaker, GICTeD will design and develop a Government Network called GovNet to connect 22 Ministries and 42 Agencies
to support transparent communication. This will improve access to government services by citizens, businesses and other
governmental agencies.

Interoperability of Networks
687. Mr. Speaker, GICTeD will ensure that all networks talk to each other and ensure cohesive systems in content management,
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193
electronic messaging and collaboration, documents and record management, correspondence management, and workflow
management that will be deployed under the government gateway project with the support of the MINO. This will lead to
the systematic development of MDAs information and transaction activities online in a progressive and competitive manner. GICTeD
will effect the interoperation of networks under the eGhana.

688. Mr. Speaker, to make improved telecommunication technology available to local users, the National Communication Authority
(NCA) will in the course of the year, issue 3G mobile licenses.
689. Mr. Speaker, for the implementation of the above activities, an amount of GH¢18,518,487 has been allocated. Out of this, GOG
is GH¢5,815,274, IGF is GH¢644,000, Donor is GH¢9,059,213 and HIPC is GH¢3,000,000.

Wal-Mart Sells $199 Linux Computer

2007-11-07T05:39:00.001-08:00

Wal-Mart Carries $199 Computer With Free Linux Operating System in Stores and Online

NEW YORK (AP) -- Linux, the free operating system that's a perpetual underdog in the desktop market, is showing up in computers in Wal-Mart stores this week for the first time.

About 600 Wal-Mart stores will carry the $199 Linux-powered "Green gPC" made by Everex of Taiwan, Wal-Mart said. It was available online on Wednesday.

A comparable Everex PC that comes with Windows Vista Home Basic and more memory costs $99 more, or $298, partly because the manufacturer has to pay Microsoft Corp. for a software license. Both computers come with keyboard, mouse, and speakers, but no monitor.

Linux is maintained and developed by individuals and companies around the world volunteering on an "open source" basis, meaning that everyone has access to the software's blueprints.

Linux is in widespread use in server computers, particularly servers that host Web sites. But it hasn't yet made a dent in the desktop market. Surveys usually put its share of that market around 1 percent, far behind Windows and Apple Inc.'s OS X.

Wal-Mart spokeswoman Melissa O'Brien said it is stocking the gPC in about one in eight stores to test the demand for an open-source product.

Wal-Mart Stores Inc. sold Linux computers online -- but not in stores -- starting in 2002 at prices as low as $199. Computers from several manufacturers were available for several years but they didn't find much of a market, and they're gone now.

The variant of Linux on the gPC is called gOS and is derived from the popular Ubuntu variant. It's heavily oriented toward Google's Web sites and online applications, like YouTube, Gmail and the company's word processing program, all of which can be used only when the computer is connected to a broadband line.

Google's push into desktop applications is relatively new, and gOS, the Los Angeles-based startup behind the software, sees it as crucial in overcoming consumers' reluctance to leave the familiar Windows environment.

"We feel the timing is right for open source because of that," said gOS founder David Liu. The company has fewer than 10 people on staff but gets help from volunteers in the Linux community.

Whether value-minded shoppers who would be enticed by a $199 PC will also be interested in making the jump to Linux remains to be seen. The operating system isn't known for ease of use and mainly attracts the tech-savvy, though Liu said his aim was to make the gPC something his mother could use.

The gPC has a low-end processor from VIA Technologies, plus 512 megabytes of internal memory, an 80-gigabyte hard drive and a combination DVD drive and CD burner.

Everex says the processor is very energy efficient, meriting the "Green" part of the name.

http://www.thinkgos.com

http://www.everex.com

http://www.walmart.com

AP
Wednesday October 31, 4:27 pm ET
By Peter Svensson, AP Technology Writer

GT relocates 620 payphones across the country

2007-11-06T14:53:00.001-08:00

A total of 620 Ghana Telecom (GT) payphones has been relocated due to the low patronage in their current locations and general improvement in mobile telephony service in the urban areas. Dr. Benjamin Aggrey Ntim, Minister of Communications, who made the point in an answer to a question in the House, said the relocation was done between 2006 and 2007.

He was responding to a question by Mr. Kwame Owusu Frimpong, NDC-Ahafo North on what plans the Ministry of Communications has to put the numerous unused payphones dotted around the cities and big towns into effective use in the face of hectic competition from myriad cell phone operators.

Industry experts who spoke to the Ghana News Agency said the use of mobile phones versus fixed lines was in a serious dilemma, especially with a heavy burden on government to ensure that an increasing number of the population get access to not only fixed lines, but to the internet as well.

The Minister did not give the geographical redistribution, but said 272 payphones had been relocated within the Greater Accra Region, 121 in Ashanti, 77 in Western and 19 in the Eastern Regions.

He said 60 payphones have been relocated in the Central Region and 27 in the Brong Ahafo while the Volta, Northern and Upper East Regions have 30, 8 and 6 respectively. None of the relocations had taken place in the Upper West Region.

This brought Mr Joseph Yieleh Chireh, NDC-Wa West to his feet to question the Minister why none of the payphones had been relocated in his region. He therefore asked what criteria were used in determining towns and villages that should benefit from the relocation.

To this the Minister said GT had a programme in place and expressed the hope that Upper West would be receiving some payphones in the near future.

Mr Mahama Ayariga, NDC-Bawku Central expressed concern about the trend in the relocation and urged the Ministry to ensure that the redistribution of the payphones should be done more across regions than within borders, "especially to regions and areas where they are most needed and where the populations may not have easy access to mobile phones."

On when telephone facilities would be extended to the newly created Ga East District Capital of Abokobi/Pantang and the surroundings, Mr Ntim said GSM services are available in the two areas, but will be extended to be used to provide fixed cellular terminals to prospective customers.

He noted that access to internet connectivity can be obtained through the fixed cellular terminals for the people to use.

The Minister said GT currently does not cover Oyarifa, but it intends to extend coverage there by the second quarter of 2008, adding that coverage in the Ga East is expected to improve when the new GSM site at Oyarifa is completed.

He said MTN already has full coverage in Pantang and with their current programme surrounding towns will be covered by the end of the year. Dr Ntim said the Worawora Community Information Centre will be commissioned soon, saying the first phase of a physical infrastructure of a Local Area Network (LAN) and Wide Area Network (WAN) has been completed.

"In addition, a Very Small Aperture Terminal (VSAT) has been installed for the WAN under the Ghana/Indian government collaboration.

He said even though the centre is operational, the second phase requires the provision of fax machines, Television, printers and computers, saying: "the Ministry will make arrangements with the local authorities to formally commission the centre in the coming weeks.

Dr Ntim said Bogoso and Prestea already have fixed telephone facilities, when the question by Mr Albert Kwaku Obbin, NDC- Huni Valey spoke to the contrary. He explained that Aboso and Huni Valley, as well as the people of Juabeso, would get GT fixed land services by the first and second quarters of 2008.

Source:
GNA

ICT To Make Financial Services Efficient - Deputy Minister

2007-11-05T07:34:00.001-08:00

Government is facilitating ICT-enabled services by laying optic fibre around the country to ensure that financial services are made reliable and effective.

This is expected to make companies and businesses hook unto the information super highway.

Deputy Minister for Communications, Frederick Ansah Opare said this at the end of an international workshop for the implementation of International Express Money Orders via the International Financial Service (IFS) Network in Accra yesterday.

The three-day workshop hosted by the Ghana Post drew participants from Ghana, France, Nigeria, South Africa and The Gambia.

It was in line with a resolution of the Universal Postal Union (UPU) in Bucharest, which emphasizes orientation among member countries concerning the development of regional projects, particularly the development of International Express Money Transfer Services (IEMO) of Postal Organizations.

The Deputy Minister noted that with lack of ICT infrastructure in Africa, Universal Postal Unions needed to set up more regional technical centres to provide support for African Postal Administration in establishing ICT centres to train more people to acquire the needed ICT capabilities of African countries.

He said with most human resource base destroyed in some African countries such as Liberia and Sierra Leone, it was necessary that ECOWAS gave them the necessary support in terms of training and provision of infrastructure to enable them to make headway in introducing technology in their postal operations.

Mr Opare said the ministry would put in place strategies that would make the implementation of the International Express Order and all other Postal Financial Systems workable.

Mr Kofi Duah Adonteng, Managing Director, Ghana Post, expressed the hope that financial services would enable the company to resume its proper position in the remittance business. He said Ghana Post had several branches countrywide and could therefore perform better in the remittance services.

A communiqué issued at the end of the workshop among other things agreed to admit South Africa, Tanzania and Uganda as full members.

GNA

DiData buys African communications firm

2007-11-05T07:33:00.001-08:00

SE-listed ICT firm Dimension Data has bought Accelon, an African communications services company operating in Nigeria and Ghana, for an undisclosed amount, it said on Thursday.

Accelon offers broadband services, ranging from internet access to data and voice communication solutions to large enterprises, government and public sector agencies.

"The Accelon acquisition has been structured in line with Dimension Data�s and Internet Solutions' African strategy of focusing on local empowerment through local ownership. The acquisition also aligns to Dimension Data's and Internet Solutions' strategic intent of increasing our presence, and our solutions and services offerings, in Sub-Saharan Africa," Dimension Data Middle East & Africa CEO Allan Cawood commented.

The existing management team would be joined by Vernon van Rooyen who has been appointed COO. He joins Accelon from Internet Solutions, a division of Dimension Data.

"The demand for telecommunications in West Africa is increasing rapidly and this demand from a volume perspective is accompanied by an increasing demand for quality telecommunications solutions and services," GM for Internet Solutions Jacques Rautenbach said.

The acquisition is subject to the finalisation of regulatory requirements.

http://www.engineeringnews.co.za/article.php?a_id=120357

Computers made in Ghana

2007-11-05T07:25:00.001-08:00

Omatek Ventures Limited, an ICT company has started manufacturing computers, casing and speakers in Ghana. It is the second to be built in the West Africa sub-region after the one in Nigeria.

It is a pioneer in the field and the only factory in Africa that produces computers, casings and speakers from completely-knock-down components.

The factory which is currently operating at 25 percent capacity utilization would roll out 48,000 fully-built PCs, 120,000 casings and 120,000 speakers per annum.

Mrs. Florence Seriki, Managing Director of Omatek Ventures Limited (OVL), who took media personnel round the factory said the company was producing Omatek brand of computers ranging from desktops, notebooks and servers for both local and foreign markets.

She said the company has the capacity to produce casings and speakers of different forms and sizes for other local and foreign brand builders.

She said the brand casings could be customized to suit various corporate clients and any other organization that may require such value added services of having their company's logo or names printed on them.

Mrs. Siriki used the occasion to introduce the Omatek smallest 8 and 10 inch computer notebooks onto the Ghanaian market.

She said the two computer notebooks were built specifically with the youth both at tertiary and secondary schools and the Ghanaian environment in mind.

She said the new releases were the most current classic notebook that not only replaced the tablet notebook but its lightness was incomparable with any notebook. She said they are assembled locally and have added to the technology transfer required for the country's ICT development.

source : accra mail

Sambus Company challenges local businesses

2007-11-05T07:15:00.001-08:00

Sambus Company Limited, a wholly-owned Ghanaian IT firm, has challenged businesses in the country to adopt the use of smart technologies such as Geographical Information System and Global Positioning Systems in their activities to increase their market share and productivity.

Currently, a large number of businesses including banks, oil marketing companies and retail operators are at the verge of expansion and merging within a highly competitive market and a fast growing population.

The GIS is a computer system capable of capturing, storing, analyzing and displaying geographically referenced information; (data identified according to location). The technology makes use of the huge array of satellites orbiting the Earth which take digital images of the planet.

Changes to the planet's surface can be tracked using the satellites and can be used to map data collected on the surface. The data are often taken from more traditional sources, such as medical records. The use of GIS softwares like BusinessMap, Business Analysts and ArcPad Mobile GIS will enable businesses to create custom business maps and perform analysis that would help them identify patterns, trends and understand relationships not apparent from tables and charts.

At a Sambus Company-organized seminar on: "Leveraging the power of GIS business strategy" a Senior Manager of Sambus in charge of GIS, Mrs. Amerley Ampofo said the GIS is a valuable tool for businesses due to its capability to assist in market surveys and research, and can help to reduce turnaround time and increase productivity of firms.

"The GIS tool can also help in house numbering, personal credit data for loan management, monitoring and management of resources such as wildlife, forestry among others, allowing emergency planners to easily calculate emergency response times in the event of a natural disaster, or find wetlands that need protection.

"In fact, it is a system that provides the power to answer critical business questions quickly, accurately, and visually. "The future success of businesses will therefore be determined to a large extent by the competitive advantages of investing in and implementing smart technology like Geographical Information System," she said. The cost of businessMap GIS software is estimated at US$500.

In Ghana, Sambus is the sole distributor of GIS and GPS systems and prides itself as an integrator able to provide the broad spectrum of IT solutions ranging from web-based systems, smart card systems, Geographical Information Systems, GPS, Remote Sensing Technologies and Financial Management Solutions.

Sambus has been in operation for 16 years and has experienced consistent annual growth.

The Company has won numerous Industry Partnership awards. Hewlett Packard Corporation adjudged the company as its overall best Partner in Ghana for the year 2003 beating 25 other HP Partners and again in 2004 and 2005. The company was also adjudged as ESRIGIS software Best Partner for the whole of Africa in 2003.

Source: Business and Financial Times

Minister says Ghana Telecom privatisation on course, France Telecom interested

2007-09-03T01:46:00.001-07:00

Minister says Ghana Telecom privatisation on course, France Telecom interested

The Ghanaian Government says it is on course to privatize Ghana Telecom by the end of the year. Minister of Communication, Dr. Benjamin Aggrey Ntim says the transaction advisers have been working assiduously to ensure that final bidders are chosen on time. The Ghanaian Government last May selected Ecobank Development Corporation (EDC) and Societe Generale (S-G) as transaction advisors for the valuation of the company.

Though France Telecom has expressed interest in buying a stake in Ghana Telecom when the privatization process is complete, it is not known whether it will succeed. But clearly its name has been leaked to excite interest in a somewhat lacklustre company.

About 51 per cent of GT's shares are expected to be off-loaded to a strategic investor, while the remainder will be listed on the Ghana Stock Exchange (GSE). The Government is expected to retain about 20 percent stake in Ghana Telecom.
(source: Daily Guide)

Huawei to build north-south fibre cable

2007-08-31T01:25:00.001-07:00

Chinese vendor Huawei will build the first phase of Ghana's planned national backbone between the southern and northern regions of the country. The timetable for completion is the end of 2007 so that it will be available for the up-coming CAN 2008/

It is anticipated that the completion of the installation of the cable would enhance greater access to information, communications and technology by the close of 2007 and can facilitate communications during the upcoming CAN 2008.

China's Huawei Technologies Company is installing the cable from the capital, Accra to Tamale in the Northern region at a cost of US$30 million. The cost of constructing the cable across the whole country is estimated at US$70 million.

The first phase would use the Volta River Authority's (power generator and transmitter) Voltacom fibre optic cable in Accra through Cape Coast in the Central Region, Takoradi in the Western Region, Nkawkaw in the Eastern Region, Kumasi in the Ashanti Region, Sunyani in the Brong Ahafo Region to Tamale in the Northern Region.
(Source: Highway Africa News Agency)

The L.A. Times tells its readers: 'Shut up'

2007-08-18T03:01:00.001-07:00

Commentary: A Times editorial attacks the concept of reader comments on news stories, declaring Google a greater threat "than Osama bin Laden."

By Robert Niles

The Los Angeles Times this morning insulted its readers in a stunning editorial that compared Google with Osama bin Laden and showed why Times editors simply do not understand the medium that is growing to dominate the news publishing industry. A point by point rebuttal follows:

Many publishers consider the Internet, and Google in particular, a greater threat to their livelihoods than Osama bin Laden.

Who are these publishers, exactly? The Times' David Hiller? Ignore the straw man here and the reader is still left with The Times' belief that a search engine company which has helped millions of people around the world more effectively find the information they need, and that has paid publishers billions of dollars to create original content (full disclosure: including OJR and me, personally) is a greater threat to journalism and Western capitalism than a murderer who killed 3,000 Americans on 9/11.

Wow.

After The Times lit its credibility on fire with that statement, one shouldn't need to dissect the rest of its ridiculous editorial.

But I will. ;-)

Among those who have taken particular offense at Google are some current and aspiring newspaper publishers, including Sam Zell (who's in the process of buying Tribune Co., owner of the Los Angeles Times), who once famously asked, "If all of the newspapers in America did not allow Google to steal their content, how profitable would Google be?"

Well, does Zell think Google is worse than bin Laden? I do not see that claim in what he said. Furthermore, I, and several other news industry executives, took apart Zell's myopia here in OJR when he made that ill-informed comment last spring.

Up to now, Google's news site hasn't been a moneymaker for the company, at least not directly. There are no ads on Google News, just links to stories on websites run by newspapers, magazines and other news outlets. Those links prompt people to spend more time on the news media's sites, potentially increasing their ad sales.
But Google now is doing yet another thing that's bound to get under journalists' skin."

Umm, perhaps I shouldn't speak for others here, but, as a journalist and a publisher, I like readers to spend more time on my sites, "potentially increasing [my] ad sales." That doesn't get under my skin at all.

This month, it announced plans to let people and organizations comment on the stories written about them. For example, if The Times ran another exposé on conflicts of interest within the Food and Drug Administration's drug-approval process, Google News would provide a forum for the FDA and any researchers or drug manufacturers implicated in the story to respond, unedited.

Goodness, we wouldn't want the sources in our stories to have a chance to respond, would we? /sarcasm

The feature implies that the stories aggregated by Google News are incomplete -- possibly because of limited space, but also possibly because of bias, neglect or ignorance. News organizations have their flaws, and the added comments on Google may demonstrate that.

Finally, a point of agreement. Reader comments on online news stories give readers the opportunity to provide a needed check on reporting flaws. No journalist should ever presume that a single news article ever is complete.

But Google's effort may have a happier side effect: It may illustrate why journalism is more than just aggregating information -- and why Google News isn't really its competition after all.
The essence of good journalism is asking the right questions. Google, however, won't ask anything of those who submit comments. According to the company's announcement, its only interest is that the submissions are authentic, not that they're relevant or even truthful. As a result, the comments section is likely to be larded with spin, hype and obfuscation. A seemingly heartfelt comment may carry the CEO's name, but the words will probably have been typed by corporate flacks.

Another point of agreement: "The essence of good journalism is asking the right questions." No, Google won't ask those questions, but its technology will enable readers to ask those questions, of reporters and of each other. And allows reporters to come back and ask follow-up questions of the readers who questioned the reporter in the first place.

This is is point that journalists who have spent their lives publishing in a one-way medium too often fail to grasp: That online reader comments are not a one-way medium, in the opposite direction. They are a two-way conversation, in which reporters can, and ought to, participate, as well.

Nor should The Times condemn Google for sins that many traditional journalists have committed. "Stenography" journalism runs rampant at newspapers which have cut reporting staffs to the bone. Readers of Dan Froomkin's outstanding White House Watch will be familiar with many examples of Washington-beat scribes dutifully "reporting" U.S. administration spin, with no effort to provide context or determine truth.

Furthermore, is the reader of this editorial to assume that The Times never runs quotes from CEOs in its paper that were in fact written by corporate spokespersons? If The Times' editorial writers truly believe that, I suggest they take a trip over to The Times' newsroom sometime.

There will be some valuable responses too, plugging holes in stories or correcting mistaken impressions.

Third point of agreement here. So why, then, is The Times attacking this technology which would plug holes in stories, correct mistaken impressions, enable readers to ask questions of reporters and provide a check on reporting flaws?

Google, however, won't help readers separate the factual wheat from the public-relations chaff -- a reminder that Google may strive to be the world's index, but it's not journalism.

If The Times wants to criticize Google's implementation of reader comments, that's fair game. Many good publishers have shut off reader comments because they didn't want the hassle of handling them. But plenty of system administrators have developed systems to allow readers and/or editors to filter comments, so that readers can separate the wheat from the chaff. By not acknowledging any of those, however, The Times allows its editorial to stand as a condemnation of the concept of enabling online comments to news stories.

So let The Times readers be warned: The Times doesn't get it. It hasn't enabled comments on its own news stories ( previously criticized in OJR), nor does it like the idea of others linking to and commenting on its stories.

As I said at the opening of OJR's annual unconference last spring, journalism should noy be defined by its process. Journalism ought to be defined by its end result: fresh, accurate information that helps its readers see a truth that they did not before.

Smart news organizations need to be blowing up their old ways of producing journalism -- not just publishing it, but reporting it as well -- in order to better provide more accurate and insightful journalism to beat the increased competition from millions of new content publishers online. To do that, publishers need to hear fresh perspectives, from their employees... and from the public.

But what does The Times tell them with this editorial?

"Shut up."

http://www.ojr.org/ojr/stories/070817niles/

GLOBACOM Confident Of Pitching Camp In Ghana

2007-08-16T14:28:00.001-07:00

Officials of Nigerian Telecommunications giant, GLOBACOM, remain confident they will soon be granted a license to operate in Ghana.

Though the NCA has confirmed it is studying the documents of the company, it is yet to come out with an official position on the deal. Globacom says it is bent on ruling the African telecommunications market and it believes Ghana is an excellent destination to enhance their effectiveness.

The company was granted a license last week in Benin after it emerged tops in a keen contest in which several telecom operators participated. Sources close to Citi FM say Globacom was preferred ahead of the other bidders because of its technical superiority.

The source added that the Beninoise government was also swayed by Globacom's demonstrable ability to commence services within sixty days, a key requirement of the Benin's telecom authorities.

In an earlier interview with Citi FM, the Manager in charge of Events and Sponsorship at GLOBACOM, Olayinka Atande, said they will certainly make an appearance in Ghana since the country has established itself as a reliable business destination. 'Any thriving company which does not see the essence in establishing in Ghana is not serious', he said.

www.ghanaweb.com

GT University breaks new grounds in IT education

2007-08-16T14:27:00.001-07:00

Ghana Telecom University College is to set up centres of excellence in telecommunication and information nationwide which would position it to be more competitive and attractive to students both locally and internationally. The College which celebrates its first anniversary today August 15, is also to initiate other modern technological innovations such as introducing an online distance education in Ghana that would enable students attend lectures through video conferencing at their various locations.

Speaking at a media briefing on the anniversary on Wednesday, Dr. Osei K. Darkwa, Principal of the College said the country's current educational needs required a radical thinking of the traditional ways of providing mass education to people.

"In the world of rapid development of ICTs, the need to use new technologies to raise effectiveness and quality of education can not be over-emphasized," he said.

By devising and implementing a distance learning strategy through the use of new technologies as learning agents, Dr Darkwa said it would allow the University to tap into the teaching forces of the world. He explained that soon it would be possible for students of the College to go to community learning centres, tele-centres, churches, or schools or a local business in most major cities and towns to use computers with the institution's faculties.

"...This vision is realistic and represents hope for the million of Ghanaians and Africans who are looking for access to higher education and nothing will stand in our way in making this vision a reality," Dr Darkwa said.

He announced the introduction of a scholarship programme this year that would enable brilliant but needy students have access to telecommunication and information courses at the College.

Mr Darkwa said in October, this year, the College in collaboration with the Technical University of Denmark would begin a Masters programme in Information Communication Technology, the first of its kind in the country.

The College, which is affiliated to the Kwame Nkrumah University of Science and Technology and DePaul University of the United States of America, has attracted over 500 tuition-paying students in Ghana. Since its inauguration in August 2006, a total of 213 students have completed certificate studies in various Information Technologies, such as Telecommunication Engineering, Computer Science, Computer Forensics and Information Technology, Business Processing, Outsourcing and Open Source Software.

Source:
GNA

Lands Commission to be networked - Minister

2007-08-16T11:00:00.001-07:00

Mrs. Esther Obeng-Dapaah, Minister of Lands, Forestry and Mines, has stated that the reliance on scattered and obsolete operational procedures and unclear mandate of the various institutions under the Lands Commission would be changed soon.

She said the Commission would soon be networked electronically to facilitate their work and ensure reliable information on available land to ease double sale and litigations.

Mrs. Obeng-Dapaah who was inaugurating the re-constituted 17-member Western Region Lands Commission in Sekondi on Wednesday, said under the Land Administration Project (LAP), all the six lands institutions in the country would be merged.

She said a Customary Land Secretariat would also be established and charged the reconstituted Commission to ensure that its services were effective, transparent and accessible.

Mr. Anthony E. Amoah, Western Regional Minister, described land as "fundamental" for every society and said all efforts must be made to streamline its procedures.

He said the 1999 National Land Policy was aimed at stimulating economic development, reducing poverty and simplifying the processes for having access to it in a fair, transparent and efficient manner.

Mr. Amoah called on members of the Commission to be transparent during their four-year tenure.

Source: GNA

Communication Minister launches jobsinghana.com

2007-08-16T00:58:00.001-07:00

Dr. Benjamin Aggrey Ntim, Minister of Communications on Wednesday launched Ghana's first indigenous job engine, www.jobsinghana.com, that uses the Internet as a platform linking jobseekers to employers and vice-versa.

It is a tool that makes human resource management easier for employers and puts jobseekers in control of their careers.

Dr. Ntim said the database, which would introduce Information Communication Technology (ICT) and related efficiencies in the human resource sector, would also make jobs readily available to help reverse brain drain in the Diaspora.

He said the attainment of this feat pointed to the fact that ICT holds immense promise as its deployment was rapidly changing and opening new avenues of relationships for society.

"The contribution indeed points to the fact that there are individuals in Ghana with innovative skills today who are committed to the deployment of ICT solutions that are beneficial to users as a universal enterprise", he added.

The Minister said the website would also provide consultancy services to help solve problems of unemployment by attracting persons with employable skills to the site to attain jobs and complement government's effort to secure jobs for the youth.

Dr. Ntim said in Business Processing Outsourcing ( BPO) which was a lucrative venture in ICT, a number of investors were keen to locate in Ghana and improve telecom services to enable them do business on cost effective basis.

He hinted that the Ministry in collaboration with the United Nations Development Programme (UNDP) was facilitating the development of incubation facilities at the Ghana Multimedia Centre to promote technology commercialization and economic focus.

The Minister therefore commended the initiative and called on the young entrepreneurs and others in the IT industry to set targets and increase research activities to develop skills in the industry.

Mr. Ernest Adade, Deputy National Coordinator of the National Youth Employment Programme (NYEP) also applauded the initiative, which, he said, was consistent with the aims of the NYEP to create more job avenues for the youth.

He stated that the NYEP had been able to employ over 104,000 youth, saying this had reduced the number of graduate unemployment by 6,000.

He said the programme had also employed over 23,000 pupil teachers in the regions, and pledged the Ministry of Manpower, Youth and Employment's commitment to support any drive to secure more jobs.

Mr. Richard Baffour, Chief Executive Officer for Jobsinghana said the website has a growing database with automatic links for jobseekers, employers, and a resource centre with information on resume writing, career search and other human resource tips.

He said the site has registered over 3,000 job seekers to save them from frustrations of walking around with application letters to seek employment.

Mr. Baffour said the initiative was more of his social contribution to the growth of the human resource sector and to jobseekers whose dreams to secure a job had never been realized.

Source: GNA

PC in every Nigerian home receives a boost

2007-08-15T12:52:00.001-07:00

Omatek computers says the desire to ensure that low-income earners in Nigeria have access to computers at home have informed its decision to enter into an agreement worth its N1 billion finance with First Bank of Nigeria Plc to provide low income earners access to funding to purchase computers.

According to the Managing Director of the firm, Mrs. Florence Seriki, the firm had to enter into the pact so that finance which had been a challenge to many people in purchasing computers would be handled by first bank on behalf of interested buyers.

She said: "The era of inability of Nigerians to purchase computers because of the stringent payment conditions are gone. Now even a low income earning individual can acquire an Omatek computer because all the barriers to owning one have been removed."

Omatek, one of Nigeria's local Original Equipment Manufacturers has formally signed a memorandum of understanding (MOU) with First Bank in which the bank would provide finance up to N1 billionn for the acquisition of laptops and desktop computers. Under the pact, any Nigerian interested in owning a computer can now have one and spread payment over a period of 12 to 24 months. According to the firm, the MOU fulfils the twin objective of both parties of putting a computer in every home in Nigeria and contributing to the development of information and communications technologies in the country.

They added that it also strengthens the Federal government?s Computer for All Nigerians Initiative.

Ends....

highway Africa news agency

All banks to connect to E-ZWICH

2007-08-15T12:51:00.001-07:00

The Deputy Governor of the Bank of Ghana, Dr Mahamudu Bawumia on Wednesday asked all banks to link their ATMs and Point of Sale (POS) device to the National Switch, the E-ZWICH by March 31, 2008.

The E-ZWICH, a brand name for the National Switch, under the new Universal Electronic Payments (UEPS) technology is to ensure that all commercial banks, rural banks and savings and loans institutions implemented a common payment platform and biometric Smartcard. Speaking at the launch of the Ghana Commercial Bank (GCB) MoneyGram, Dr Bawumia said banks with existing switches were expected to upgrade them to make them compatible with the National Switch by July 1, 2008.

The GCB MoneyGram service would be operated through all its 133 branches.

Dr. Bawumia said the introduction of the National Switch and Smartcard payment system would dramatically increase the number of people with access to financial services.

Currently about 80 per cent of Ghana's population did not operate any kind of bank account and this represents a huge market opportunity for banks, rural banks, savings and loans companies".

He said; "The traditional Visa and Mastercard would still have their uses but what we are introducing is a smartcard that is accessible to everyone and that can work everywhere, both on-line and off-line, even in places without electricity".

"Henceforth all new ATMS and POS devices deployed by any financial or non-financial institution must be compliant with the new (UEPS) technology," Dr Bawumia said.

He urged all the banks to issue the E-ZWICH biometric smartcards to their customers by March 31, 2008 Dr. Bawumia said banks without switches/ATMS and POS devices were expected to integrate their payment terminals directly into the National Switch or through a E-ZWICH compatible switch.

Mr. Lawrence N. Adu-Mante, Managing Director, GCB, said the Bank was undertaking the alliance with Moneygram International because of the importance attached to remittances. "The importance of these funds is so critical not only to the development of our country, but also for the socio-economic well-being of our people".

He estimated that between January and November last year, about 4.25 billion dollars was remitted to Ghana, out of which 1.7 billion dollars came from private individuals alone.

Mr. Adu-Mante said the transfers helped to conserve and improve the nation's foreign exchange reserves, and also boost the import capacity for needy goods and services, including drugs and equipment. "The funds are also remitted for payment of school fees for the upkeep of relations and for a variety of private project.

"It is for these reasons that everything possible must be done to ensure a hustle fee service to our people who are recipients and the remitters abroad," he said

Source:
GNA

Work on an ICT post office at Sekondi begins

2007-08-14T07:01:00.001-07:00

The management of Ghana Post has decided to include Information, Communication and Technology (ICT) facilities to post offices in the country.

Mr Kofi Dua-Adonteng, Managing Director of Ghana Post who announced this said a post office equipped with ICT facilities was ideal with the current development in information technology. He was speaking at a sod cutting ceremony for the construction of a GH=A2 140,000 (1.4 billion cedis) post office equipped with Internet facilities and a conference hall at Sekondi.

Papa Owusu Ankomah, Member of Parliament for Sekondi, and a Presidential aspirant of New Patriotic Party (NPP) is financing the project.

Mr Dua-Adonteng said a post office with ICT facilities would enable many people nationwide to have access to Internet facilities. He noted that Ghana Post must adopt modern technologies to effectively compete with the increasing technologies. Mr Kwesi Blay, Deputy Western Regional Minister called on management of Ghana Post to introduce courier services to re-capture the business sector of communication.

He said the sale of stamps alone was not financially prudent. Mr Blay regretted that most people instead of using the Internet to access information, misuse it and sometimes defraud unsuspecting individuals.

He called on citizens in Sekondi to utilise opportunities offered by the facility and maintain it for future generations. Papa Ankomah said it was his contribution towards the development and bringing ICT closer to the doorsteps of people in Sekondi and its environs.

He pointed out that the facility would educate the youth, generate funds for development and create employment opportunities for the youth. "There are several opportunities for the elderly, women and children in ICT," he added.

Source:
GNA

Government launches $70m communications project

2007-08-13T11:30:00.001-07:00

The government of Ghana has launched a $70m project to provide greater access to information and communications technology.

The project, which is known as the National Communications Backbone Project is being executed by the government with support from the Chinese government.

President J. A. Kufuor cut the sod for the official start of the project. In an address, he said the project will improve internet and telephony services across the country.

He however, cautioned cable thieves to desist from the habit of stealing cables. He added that, the cables to be laid underground do not contain copper wire and therefore, would be of little value to the thieves.

The first phase of the project in the southern part of the country will be completed in January 2008. The second phase which will cover the northern part of the country will be completed in the middle of 2008.

Ghanaian Child Has Right To Access ICTs

2007-08-13T00:37:00.001-07:00

The Accra Metro Director of Education, Mr James Nii Okaija Dinsey, has suggested that the right and access to Information Communication Technologies (ICTs) should be considered as a fundamental Human Right for the Ghanaian child so that it would be integrated into the school syllabi to enhance teaching and learning process in the country.

Explaining further, Nii Okaija noted that the whole notion of Basic Education has now taken a new dimension that students today have to learn to access, use and generate information for their own survival in this competitive world - noting that gone are the days when blackboard was hailed as revolutionary device to have impact on the educational process.

Nii Okaija made these pronouncements at the commissioning and fund-raising ceremony for a computer laboratory for the Kanehie - Awudome 1&3 JSS Cluster of Schools in the Okaikoi Sub – Metro in Accra yesterday.

He commended the Government of Ghana for launching an ICT for Accelerated Development Policy among others, and consequently placing greater emphasis on ICT education in the 2007 Education Reform.

Nii Okaija added that this initiative of establishing an ICT laboratory at Kaneshie – Awudome 1 and 3 JSS would promote learning and teaching and support government's desire to deploy ICTs in the education sector to transform the culture and practice of traditional memory-based learning to a system that stimulates thinking and creativity, necessary to meet the challenges of the 21^st century.

Member of Parliament of Okaikoi North, Hon. Elizabeth Sackey, attributed the indiscipline of the Ghanaian youth today to lack of education; noting that was the reason why Government has put in place national funds with the aim of reforming the education system so that the Ghanaian school child will be computer literate to compete with colleagues from the international communities.

The construction of the Computer Laboratory was initiated by the OIC of Okaikoi sub – Metro and sponsored by the Member of Parliament of Okaikoi South Constituency Hon. Nana Akomea, through the Ghana Education Trust Fund (GETFund). The cost was estimated to be over 20,000 Ghana Cedi.

Source: ISD (Daniel Agyiri)

First credit card introduced in Ghana

2007-08-13T00:06:00.000-07:00

As some Ghanaian banks enter into mergers and acquisitions in order to stay in business, others have resorted to the introduction of high-tech products in order to stay on top of competition that has partly resulted in the influx of more Nigerian banks.

ECOBANK Ghana is the latest to introduce the first-ever Visa Credit Card in the country to offer clients and non-clients the chance to conduct flexible business transactions.

The cards would also enable users to better handle issues of risk and inefficiency associated with cash transaction within and outside the country.

The card, known as the ECOBANK Visa Gold Credit Card, is an unsecured card and gives a line of credit without the need to put money upfront to secure the debt.

Speaking at the launch of the credit card which is expected to operate on the visa network, Managing Director Samuel Ashitey Adjei said the introduction of the card proved the goal of the bank to lead the sector.

ECOBANK Ghana which has won the overall best bank of the Corporate Initiative of Ghana awards for three times expects the visa credit card to be used in 30 million outlets anywhere in the world in addition to over 800,000 ATMS which have the Visa logo. The maximum credit limit of the card is based on the credit scoring which takes into consideration the various quantitative and qualitative factors of the user.

Mr Adjei said the card was targeted at employees of companies, professional, traders and business executives and high net-worth individuals with verifiable sources of income and that it could be accessed by both clients and non-clients of ECOBANK.

He said the cards were specifically targeted at government, government officials, Ministries, Departments and Agencies who currently travel abroad with large sums of physical cash on official duties.

The ECOBANK group aims to become a Pan African Bank. The Group currently has 19 branches within West and Central Africa.

Ghana's Controller and Accountant-General, Mr Christian Sottie, described the introduction of the credit card as a new arrangement to modernize the nation's payment systems that had the potential not only to eliminate the risks associated with the use of cash, but also enhance the accountability of funds disbursed.

The Accountant-General said new payments system pursued by his department at the district level had saved the nation an annual amount of 5.2 million new Ghana cedis (about $5.7m) from transportation, hotel and food costs.

He therefore welcomed the introduction of the Gold Credit Card and said it was one of the reforms of the department to bring transparency into public financial management and also to meet the needs of clients at minimum cost.

END....

Ghana holds first ICT Awards

2007-08-13T00:05:00.003-07:00

Ghana holds first ICT Awards

Accra, Aug. 12, GNA - The first ever Ghana Information Communication and Technology (ICT) Awards was held at the weekend in Accra, with a call on people in the industry to improve their innovative and creative capabilities for the nation's benefit.

President John Agyekum Kufuor, who made the call in a speech read on his behalf at the ceremony, said there was room for improvement and further collaboration with government to provide better access to ICT to many Ghanaians.

He urged stakeholders in the industry to initiate social responsibility programmes that would address the needs of the disadvantage and physically challenged.

President Kufuor noted that ICT provided the competitive edge for businesses and the socio-economic development of the country.

"In recognition of this, government continues to invest in world-class information technology systems to attain a leadership status in the West African."

President Kufuor said the pervasive ICT high-speed networks were no longer a luxury but an essential infrastructure for socio-economic development.

He said "We must prepare the infrastructure for the current needs as well as future needs and we will also have to do cost-effective work and in an efficient manner."

President Kufuor said it was necessary to have easy and affordable access to resources that would enable businesses especially local small medium scale enterprises to provide new services to the citizenry. He said as a result, Government was committed to enhancing the bandwidth availability to promote efficiency in ICT services at affordable cost.

President Kufuor said the construction of the National Fibre Communication Backbone Infrastructure had commenced and urged all businesses to explore and harness its potential and that the first phase of the project would start by the close of the year.

He explained that the project would open the doors to new business opportunities in software and hardware development and create new jobs for the youth.

President Kufour said that as the ICT industry strives for peaks of excellence by global standards, the challenge for Ghana would be to work hard to be among the world's best countries in the industry.

Dr. Benjamin Aggrey Ntim, Minister of Communication, said the awards which was championed by the Ministry of Communication in partnership with people in industry was designed as a catalyst for the Government and private sector to drive the programme of using ICT for accelerated development.

Mr. Ntim said the objective was to evaluate and recognize standards of excellence in the quest for growth and development, encourage public and private institutions to use ICT for development and to ensure that ICT professionals were provided a benchmark for recognizing and validating outstanding contributions.

He said the event, which saw 17 companies and institutions receiving awards would be an annual affair. Soft Tribe Company received an award for being the pioneering software company that has promoted and stimulated the growth of software development in the country.

Network Computer Services received an award for been the first Internet Service Provider, ACR Company, was adjusted the first major outsourcing company and NCR Company as the pioneer in hardware trading in computers.

Kasapa, Tigo and MTN were awarded for their being the first companies in implementing CDMA, provision of mobile telephones and GSM in Ghana respectively.

One Touch of the Ghana Telecom Company received the award for its pioneering role in the provision of ICT in remote parts of Ghana whilst Ghana Telecom took the award for its pioneering role in implementing international gateway via undersea cable.

Business Ghana, Kwame Nkrumah University of Science and Technology, and IPMC were adjudged the pioneering companies in establishing cyber cafes and ICT training University in the country respectively. Clydestone Ghana received an award for been the first to list on the Ghana Stock Exchange and Ghana Commercial Bank as the first company to be computerized.

University of Ghana was adjudged the first in providing leadership in the creation of academic research network in ICT. The pioneering role in the use of ICT tools for employment award went to the Ghana Society for Blind.

The only lifetime achievement for ICT development award went to Professor Clement Dzidonu, who provided leadership for the development of Ghana's ICT for accelerated development policy.

Source:
GNA

UNECA supports e-trade in Ghana

2007-08-13T00:05:00.001-07:00

Ghana and the rest of Africa can make significant progress in developing high-tech export products? industry to boost trade if attention is given to the development of scientific and industrial research base.

According to reports and supported by evidence collated by the World Bank a number of countries in Africa have a low research.

Analysts believe that the trend was attributable to the minimal number of scientists and engineers available on the African continent.

In Ghana for instance, a study conducted as part of the input for the Ghana ICT4AD process on the number of research scientists and engineers in the universities and the number of registered practicing engineers in the country, estimated that the number of scientists and engineers per million persons was close to 300.

Less than 10 per cent of the number was involved in research and development (R&D) works. This was interpreted to mean that Ghana had as low as less than 30 scientists and engineers per million persons involved in research and development.

The statistics in the World Bank report also meant that countries with a high percentage of scientists and engineers involved in R&D were those that were doing well in the area of high tech exports.

Another study report on ICTs and Trade urged Ghanaians to develop scientific and industrial research base and take policy steps to increase the percentage of scientists and engineers involved in R&D work.

"The recommendation here is that: if Ghana is to make any progress in developing a high-tech export industry to enable it address the challenges of a weak and narrow export based dominated by traditional products, a lot of efforts will need to be directed at developing the nation's R&D base devoting particular attention to establishing linkages between industry and the research institutions and universities", the report said.

This, the ICTs and Trade report said, would enable the nation to make appreciable progress in developing high-tech exports.

The World Bank report formed part of the basis for the recommendations in the other report that sought to find ways to inculcate ICTs into trade in Ghana.

The other report titled "The ICTs, Trade and Economic Growth Study: The Ghana Report" researched into a number of policy issues relating to the prospects and the opportunities of the deployment and exploitation of ICTs to facilitate economic growth through the promotion of Ghana's internal and external trade.

The study was funded by the United Nation's Economic Commission for Africa (UNECA).

The main objective of the UNECA supported study was to carry out an extensive research work on the subject matter with a view to come out with specific policy recommendations to guide and facilitate the deployment and the use of ICTs to promote regional and international trade to promote Ghana's economic growth and development in the information age.

Among the areas researched into was the socio-economic and ICT landscape of Ghana with a focus on a number of indicators including those relating to demographic and ICT deployment and roll-out.

The study also reviewed Ghana?s trade landscape through the use of a number of broad and specific trade indicators to provide a basis for assessing Ghana's capacity to facilitate economic growth.

While assessing Ghana?s readiness to promote trade and economic growth through the deployment and the exploitation of ICTs, the study also identified key target areas and sectors such as commodities, financial services, BPOs, e-Content services, tourism, export and m-trade whose activities can be supported and harnessed through the use of ICTs and trade facilitation to improve their competitiveness.

An area of policy recommendation that Ghana can also pursue to develop e-trade capacity especially in ICT products and services is to put in place policy initiatives and incentive packages to product development of the ICT industry and services sector.

The report said promotion of ICT friendly and trade related policies must seek to promote enabling industrial and trade policies and instruments as well as suitable investment, competition and business promotion policies and regimes, mechanisms and environment.

The report said while looking at policy interventions, there is the need to also pay attention to issues that would complement private sector investments, availability of a critical pool of labour with the requisite technical skill, education that makes ICT specialisation a prime focus, simplified trade procedures and a consistent capacity building.

ENDS....

Highway Africa News Agency

AITI & CIS Ghana, Collaborate to Train ICT Professionals

2007-08-08T02:03:00.001-07:00

The Ghana-India Kofi Annan Centre of Excellence in ICT, Ghana first Advanced Information Technology Institute (AITI) and CIS Ghana, a major stakeholder in supporting the sub-region's drive to deploy and use ICT effectively, have signed a Memorandum of Understanding to provide the needed knowhow in emerging ICT skills and technologies.

The purpose of this partnership is to deliver high level ICT training for corporate entities and individuals; and also to share experience on the ICT landscape in the ECOWAS Region. Both AITI and CIS have over the years been at the forefront of promoting and equipping businesses with the necessary human and capital resources in the sub-region to compete globally.

The exciting new range of courses offers globally benchmarked training methodologies and tools in system and network administration. The programmes are designed to provide hands-on training on leading ICT infrastructures such as HP-UNIX, IBM, SUN Microsystems, etc. The partnership between AITI and CIS guarantees quality, international benchmarked training with the option of international certification.

System Administrators; Computer Graduates; Webmasters; IT Professionals looking to upgrade and improve their skills have available to them a state-of-the-art facility and experienced and qualified instructors.

Ghanaian companies and computer professionals can now benefit from a partnership that signifies only the best in ICT solutions.

President appoints new Director General for NCA

2007-07-19T03:51:00.000-07:00

President Kufuor has appointed a new Director General for the National Communications Authority following the retirement of Major Tandoh who had held the position till now.

Mr Bernard Aidoo Forson takes over from Maj. Tandoh with effect from Wednesday August 1st 2007.

Mr. Forson is a Telecommunications Management Executive with over 30 years experience and a graduate of the University of Ghana.

Before his appointment, Mr Forson was the Deputy Director-General of the NCA, a position he has held since 2002.

Meanwhile, President Kufuor has expressed his profound gratitude to Major Tandoh for his invaluable service to the country and wished him well.

GT’s ``Broadband4u`` Internet service goes to Ashanti

2007-07-19T03:40:00.001-07:00

GHANA TELECOM (GT) has made another breakthrough with the launch of its Broadband Internet service christened “Broadband4U” in Ashanti.

GT’s Internet service, which provides threw fastest internet connectivity, comes in various forms to enable a broad spectrum of its clientele to access it in homes, schools offices, businesses and churches, among others.

The facility was introduced in Ghana on a pilot basis and became operational in Accra three years ago.

Described as an “all-in-all product”, Broadband4U is currently available in Accra, Tema, Cape Coast, Kumasi, Obuasi and Konongo with plans to expand to other regional capitals and district centres.

Launching the service in Kumasi, the Deputy Ashanti Regional Minister, Mr. Osei Assibey Antwi noted that Information Technology (IT) was the key to rapid telecommunication and that ICT has the potential of powering the economic development of the country.

According to him, it is in view of this that Ghana signed an agreement with Microsoft Corporation to provide resources to improve ICT education in Ghana as its commitment to ICT Accelerated Development policies in Ghana.

Ghana, he disclosed, became the first country south of the Sub-Saharan to have full Internet connectivity.

He commended GT for the efforts at enhancing this facility saying “GT could not have introduced this facility at a better time than now”.

Mr. Joseph Wereko, General Manager in charge of Marketing, indicated that the Internet is a powerful tool, which opened the gate to global opportunities and empowerment in Ghana hence the vision of GT to roll out this service throughout the country.

He mentioned some of the benefits of the facility as global and competitive opportunities in electronic commerce in the field of business as well as providing a research tool for students and academia in education.

Mr. Wereko said the facility also provides entertainment and the highest security and therefore not an evil tool as it is being perceived by the public thus dispelling the rumour that the Internet was obscene saying there is a lot of fun and entertainment.

Ing. Robert Baffour-Awuah, the Regional Head of GT said at the launch that the introduction of the facility in an indication of GT’s committed effort at providing stakeholders with the best service. He said it did not only aid a client to have access but also provides the most affordable service with the widest coverage and fastest speed.

Major (rtd) Albert Don Chebe, Head of Corporate Communications and Care4U said the facility had the potential of bringing the whole worldwide library to the home.

According to him while European households had 50% access to broadband service Ghana had less than 1% access and expressed the hope that Broadband4U would increase access to the Internet in the Ghanaian home and setup.

Source/Credits: Ghanaian Chronicle

Intel and $100 laptop join forces

2007-07-19T03:16:00.000-07:00

Chip-maker Intel has joined forces with the makers of the $100 laptop.

The agreement marks a huge turnaround for both the not-for-profit One Laptop per Child (OLPC) foundation and Intel.

In May this year, Nicholas Negroponte, the founder of OLPC, said the silicon giant "should be ashamed of itself" for efforts to undermine his initiative.

He accused Intel of selling its own cut-price laptop - the Classmate PC - below cost to drive him out of markets in the developing world.

"What happened in the past has happened," Will Swope of Intel told the BBC News website. "But going forward, this allows the two organisations to go do a better job and have a better impact for what we are both very eager to do, which is help kids around the world."

Nicholas Negroponte, founder of One Laptop per Child, said: "Intel joins the OLPC board as a world leader in technology, helping reach the world's children. Collaboration with Intel means that the maximum number of laptops will reach children."

Intel inside

The new agreement means that Intel will sit alongside the 11 companies, including Google and Red Hat, which are partners in the OLPC scheme.

It will also join rival chip-maker AMD, which supplies the processor at the heart of the $100 laptop.

"Intel's apparent change of heart is welcome, and we're sure they can make a positive contribution to this very worthy project for the benefit of children all over the world," read a statement from AMD.

Initially there are no plans to switch the processor to one designed by Intel. However, the servers used to back-up the XO laptops, as they are known, will have Intel technology at their core.

Decisions about the hardware inside the XO laptop would be made by OLPC, said Mr Swope.

"OLPC will decide about which products they choose to offer or not offer," he said.

OLPC, however, indicated that it would consider using Intel chips in its machines in the future.

Walter Bender, head of software development at OLPC, told the BBC News website that he believed OLPC would eventually offer different computers with different hardware.

"I think we will end up with a family of products that run across a wide variety of needs," he said. "Intel will be part of that mix."

Price test

In addition, the partnership will have a practical pay off for software developers.

"Any software you build is going to run at least on our two platforms," said Mr Swope.

An application developed for the XO laptop should work on the Classmate and vice versa.

"That's the exciting thing for me," said Mr Bender.

Currently both laptops are being tested in schools around the world. In parallel, OLPC is finalising orders for the first batch of computers.

Participating countries are able to purchase the XO in lots of 250,000. They will initially cost $176 (£90) but the eventual aim is to sell the machine to governments of developing countries for $100 (£50).

Intel says it already has orders for "thousands" of Classmates, which currently cost over $200 (£100).

Like the OLPC machine, Intel expects the price to eventually fall.

New initiative to provide computers for all in Ghana

2007-07-19T03:12:00.001-07:00

New initiative to provide computers for all in Ghana

A new enterprise between the Ghana government and multinational computer microchip maker Intel, is expected to bring affordable computer ownership within reach of thousands of Ghana households and small business owners over the next three years.

A range of inexpensive, brand new computers, supplied with access to the internet, will go a long way towards improving the level of computer literacy amongst the nation's workforce and will help students with home study as well as improving their computing skills in readiness for employment. And to make it easy for salaried workers to buy the package, an installment payment plan will be available through their employer or trade association.

A new partnership between computer re-sellers, internet service providers and banks was inaugurated at a workshop for potential stakeholders and beneficiaries of the project held in Accra. At the workshop, over 150 representatives of employers' and professional associations, ministries, departments and agencies of government, businesses, church groups, educationalists and the media were introduced to the partnership.

According to Intel representative, Sam Mensah, Ghana is one of a number of developing countries that the company is working with. "We believe this joint venture between us, the government and the other partners is a win-win situation all round with the ultimate benefit going to the computer end user."

Dr Benjamin Aggrey Ntim, Deputy Minister of Communications pointed out that Ghana's growth strategy relied heavily on a competent workforce with well developed IT skills. For this to be achieved, it was vital to provide affordable access to internet ready computers both in the home and at work.

Initial target for the project will be substantial employers and umbrella organizations having access to large workforces and with the ability to deduct repayments from their salaried workers or members. Explains Kwami Ahiabenu,II of programme management office "It is important that we achieve economies of scale early in the project lifecycle so that we can move large volumes of internet ready computers into the marketplace quickly. This way, the benefit of home computer ownership at affordable prices will be recognized and passed on by word-of-mouth to friends and co-workers."

The computers, which are sold under the iADVANCE brand, meet internationally recognized specifications similar to proprietary products which sell on the local marketplace at over twice the retail price. This is achieved by assembling the computers in Ghana from only Intel approved products as well as through bulk buying of their component parts.

The iADVANCE programme, with the theme computer4all, commences immediately and enquiries from employers, associations and businesses wishing to offer pre-financed internet ready computers to staff or members, is welcomed.

welcome to computer4all ghana blog

2007-07-19T03:07:00.000-07:00

welcome to computer4all ghana blog
by Ghana Government Assisted PC Programme (iadvance)
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