Thursday, May 06, 2004
Kenya gets on with Internet addresses
CAIRO: Wednesday 5 May. 2004
By Haru Mutasa
Highway Africa News Agency
CAIRO: Africa is still lagging behind the rest of the world in Internet connections, but at least one country is tackling the issue of who controls their internet addresses.
This is part of the much contested and highly controversial issue of Internet Governance an issue not yet clearly defined as stakeholders prepare for the World Summit on the Information Society to be held in Tunisia in 2005.
Amidst the heated debate and endless panel discussions, Kenya has managed to plough ahead with its plan of managing its own national Internet domain system through a recently established organization, the Kenya Networking Commission Centre.
Addressing ICT stakeholders at the sixth International Telecommunications Union (ITU) Telecom Africa conference in Egypt today, Sammy Kirui, Vice Chairman of the ITU council 2003, gave testimony to the numerous problems his country still faces and will continue to face for years to come.
"There are many challenges to the African context domain name management," he said, "Some people believe governments should ultimately delegate domain names. The challenges outlined by Kirui are as follows:
• Policy and regulatory limitations.
"Regulations outlined by most African states are too limiting and hamper progress," said Kirui. "The Kenya Networking Commission Centre want government to play more of a facilitory role, working closely with public/private sectors and civil organizations."
• A lack of awareness of the whole process by all stakeholders.
"The area is still not understood as a debate," he added. "Africans need to look at the issue of the Internet and domain name management in ways which we can understand. In other words, we still need to sensitise our people more."
• A lack of adequate technical capacity
• High domain name pricing
"A country code domain name costs between US$15 and US$50 a year to have," said Kirui. "The more common ones, i.e. dot.com domain names cost between US$10 and US$35 a year to have. This makes it cheaper for African Internet users to have an overseas domain name than a local one."
• A lack of stable and reliable internet connectivity on the continent
• A lack of local stakeholder support
He added however that some ISPs in Kenya have been supportive of the initiative and have encouraged more stakeholders to join the bandwagon.
• A lack of an local internet exchange point (IXP) for local traffic
"Of course there are the ever existing problems of funding," he continued, "and the fact that governments need to play a more clearly defined role in the whole process. These issues have to be addressed for Africa to move forward."
Markus Kummer, head of the United Nations Secretariat Working Group on Internet Governance summarised the sentiments of most delegates at the conference.
"The task ahead for us is daunting," he said, "therefore management of the Internet, and the issues around it, should be multilateral, transparent and democratic."
Recommendations on this issue and other Internet concerns are what the United Nations Working Group on Internet Governance hopes to take to the second phase of the World Summit on the Information Society in Tunisia next year.
Highway Africa reports from Cairo are made possible with support from the Swiss Agency for Development and Cooperation. Editorial decisions are solely the responsibility of Highway Africa.
CAIRO: Wednesday 5 May. 2004
By Haru Mutasa
Highway Africa News Agency
CAIRO: Africa is still lagging behind the rest of the world in Internet connections, but at least one country is tackling the issue of who controls their internet addresses.
This is part of the much contested and highly controversial issue of Internet Governance an issue not yet clearly defined as stakeholders prepare for the World Summit on the Information Society to be held in Tunisia in 2005.
Amidst the heated debate and endless panel discussions, Kenya has managed to plough ahead with its plan of managing its own national Internet domain system through a recently established organization, the Kenya Networking Commission Centre.
Addressing ICT stakeholders at the sixth International Telecommunications Union (ITU) Telecom Africa conference in Egypt today, Sammy Kirui, Vice Chairman of the ITU council 2003, gave testimony to the numerous problems his country still faces and will continue to face for years to come.
"There are many challenges to the African context domain name management," he said, "Some people believe governments should ultimately delegate domain names. The challenges outlined by Kirui are as follows:
• Policy and regulatory limitations.
"Regulations outlined by most African states are too limiting and hamper progress," said Kirui. "The Kenya Networking Commission Centre want government to play more of a facilitory role, working closely with public/private sectors and civil organizations."
• A lack of awareness of the whole process by all stakeholders.
"The area is still not understood as a debate," he added. "Africans need to look at the issue of the Internet and domain name management in ways which we can understand. In other words, we still need to sensitise our people more."
• A lack of adequate technical capacity
• High domain name pricing
"A country code domain name costs between US$15 and US$50 a year to have," said Kirui. "The more common ones, i.e. dot.com domain names cost between US$10 and US$35 a year to have. This makes it cheaper for African Internet users to have an overseas domain name than a local one."
• A lack of stable and reliable internet connectivity on the continent
• A lack of local stakeholder support
He added however that some ISPs in Kenya have been supportive of the initiative and have encouraged more stakeholders to join the bandwagon.
• A lack of an local internet exchange point (IXP) for local traffic
"Of course there are the ever existing problems of funding," he continued, "and the fact that governments need to play a more clearly defined role in the whole process. These issues have to be addressed for Africa to move forward."
Markus Kummer, head of the United Nations Secretariat Working Group on Internet Governance summarised the sentiments of most delegates at the conference.
"The task ahead for us is daunting," he said, "therefore management of the Internet, and the issues around it, should be multilateral, transparent and democratic."
Recommendations on this issue and other Internet concerns are what the United Nations Working Group on Internet Governance hopes to take to the second phase of the World Summit on the Information Society in Tunisia next year.
Highway Africa reports from Cairo are made possible with support from the Swiss Agency for Development and Cooperation. Editorial decisions are solely the responsibility of Highway Africa.
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