ICT POLICY AND CIVIL SOCIETY WORKSHOP IN AFRICA

EMBARGO: OCTOBER 15 2002, 12.00 GMT

PRESS RELEASE

ICT POLICY AND CIVIL SOCIETY WORKSHOP IN AFRICA

JOHANNESBURG - The Association for Progressive Communications (APC), ARTICLE
19 and the United Nations Economic Commission for Africa (UNECA) will be
holding a five-day information and communications technologies (ICT) policy
and civil society workshop from November 6th to 10th, 2002 in Addis Ababa,
Ethiopia.

Civil society groups have been at the forefront in advancing ICT
applications in various sectors, however the purpose of this workshop is to
build knowledge and expertise of civil society organizations to engage ICT
policy processes in Africa.

According to Emmanuel Njenga Njuguna, APC's project coordinator, "Few civil
society organizations are aware of the policy developments taking place at
the global, regional and national levels that can impact on their ability
and potential to use ICTs as a tool in their work, let alone own or control
the production and application of these technologies locally. This workshop
will help build people's awareness and capacity to understand ICT policy
concepts, issues, and how these impact on their work and their communities."

Says Karima Bounemra Ben Soltane of ECA, "increasing the participation of
civil society in harnessing ICT for development in general and ICT policies
in particular is one of the key objectives of the AISI and is considered a
priority for ECA". Ms Bounemra further adds,?ECA is working with some
thirty-two countries in Africa, assisting them develop national ICT
policies. It is hoped that civil society in these countries will work with
these governments in this regard?.

The workshop, which will bring together approximately seventy
representatives from civil society organizations from all regions of Africa,
is particularly timely, closely following a month-long discussion on the
African Information Society Initiative forum on the role of civil society in
promoting the use of ICTs to strengthen and stimulate participatory
approaches to policy issues especially governance in Africa. The forum
discussions will provide the basis for a strong African civil society input
to the World Summit on the Information Society (WSIS) in December 2003 in
Geneva, and then again in Tunis in 2005.

The workshop has been made possible thanks to the generous support of the
International Development Research Centre (IDRC), HIVOS and the Open Society
Institute (OSI).

ABOUT APC

The Association for Progressive Communications (APC) is an international
network of civil society organizations dedicated to empowering and
supporting groups and individuals through the strategic use of information
and communication technologies (ICTs), especially Internet-related
technologies. APC and its members pioneer practical and relevant uses of
ICTs for civil society, especially in developing countries. APC is an
international facilitator of civil society's engagement with ICTs and
related concerns, in both policy and practice.

Our network of members and partners spans the globe, with presence in
Western, Central and Eastern Europe, Africa, Asia, Latin America and North
America. APC: http://www.apc.org.

ABOUT APC?S POLICY WORK IN AFRICA

The Africa ICT Policy monitor website, launched in May 2002, is a
user-friendly resource which aims at demystifying the concepts of ICT
policy-making. APC hopes that the Website content will stimulate discussion
between users from around the continent about the use and relevance of ICTs
for development in Africa, and facilitate the development of a network of
civil society organisations promoting African Internet rights issues.
Africa ICT Policy Website: http://africa.rights.apc.org

ABOUT ECA

ECA is the regional arm of the United Nations, mandated to support the
economic and social development of its 53 member States, foster regional
integration, and promote international cooperation for Africa?s development.
The Commission is a key pioneer in the area of ICT for development over the
last 25 years. ECA is an implementing agency for the African Information
Society Initiative (AISI)? an action framework for bridging the African
digital divide that was adopted by the conference of ministers of planning
and economic development in 1996 and endorsed by African heads of States.
AISI major activities and objectives include the development of national ICT
policies and strategies, and building Africa?s information and communication
infrastructure and capacity involving all major stakeholders. Website:
http://www.uneca.org/aisi

FOR FURTHER INFORMATION

For more details about the workshop please contact:

Emmanuel Njenga Njuguna
Project Coordinator, AFRICA ICT POLICY MONITOR PROJECT
Association for Progressive Communications (APC)
E-mail: [email protected] or [email protected]
Tel/Fax: +27 11 726 1692

Aida Opoku-Mensah
Team Leader
Promoting ICTs for Development
Development Information Services Division
Economic Commission for Africa (ECA)
Addis Ababa, Ethiopia
E-mail: [email protected]
Tel: +251-1-51-11-67
Fax: +251-1-51-05-12