Africans discuss bridging digital divide, looking to world summit

REPOSTED FROM: WOUGNET: http://www.wougnet.org

Africans discuss bridging digital divide, looking to world summit

Wednesday, 17 September 2003: More than 150 delegates from 23 African countries
meeting recently in Maputo, Mozambique, agreed to bring "e-
strategies" for mobilizing information and communications technology (ICT) for
development into the mainstream of government planning.

The gathering was held in preparation for the World Summit on the Information
Society (WSIS) in Geneva this December. The summit will provide a unique
opportunity for developing countries to voice their needs and development
priorities relating to the rapidly expanding global information society.

"The conference offers a unique window of opportunity for us to interact with
one another, exchange views and experiences, and deepen our understanding of
how ICT can best be used as an effective development tool to acquire new
knowledge to address the challenges we face," said Mozambique's Prime Minister
Dr. Pascoal Mocumbi in his welcoming address.

Minister of Higher Education, Science and Technology Lídia Brito said the
conference was an opportunity for participants "to develop a common
understanding about the world information society and develop an action plan to
narrow the digital divide." She urged participants to gather lessons learned
from other African preparatory meetings in Bamako, Port Louis and Cairo to
enrich the recommendations for Geneva.

Delegates recognized that e-strategies are essential policy tools for achieving
the Millennium Development Goals (MDGs), including halving severe poverty, and
related development targets. They agreed to adapt these strategies to their
countries' unique socio-economic conditions.

So far, over 30 African countries have completed or are in the process of
completing national ICT for Development strategies.

They agreed to promote the design of ICT indicators and benchmarks for
monitoring e-strategy programmes. Priority will be given to the creation of new
partnerships, especially with the private sector, to secure additional
resources and expertise for implementation.

Delegates also agreed to set up an African e-strategy network, building on the
UN ICT Task Force Regional Network, the New Partnership for Africa's
Development (NEPAD), and other regional initiatives, to share experiences and
expertise among countries and foster South-South cooperation.

Marylène Spezzati, UNDP Resident Representative and UN Resident Coordinator,
said that "UNDP's interest in ICT is not in the technology itself, but in its
potential as a tool that helps countries to achieve development goals."

Links with poverty reduction strategies and other development programmes to
achieve the Millennium Development Goals are key to ensure the effectiveness of
the e-strategies, she noted. A significant part of UNDP support to ICT for
Development has been in the policy area, in the design and implementation of
national ICT for Development strategies.

The conference, convened under the auspices of the UN ICT Task Force, was
organized by the ICT Policy Commission of the Government of Mozambique and
UNDP. Delegates came from the public and private sectors, civil society, and
several Mozambican cabinet ministers, as well as ambassadors and development
partners in Maputo, also attended.

For further information, please contact Nelson Xavier, UNDP Mozambique, or
Cassandra Waldon, UNDP Communications Office

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

Dig Africa site welcomes you to join us at
http://www.yahoogroups.com/group/Digafrica

Also if you are interested to join a Swahili/English discussion group click
http://www.yahoogroups.com/group/kiswahili