FAQ

The Initiative aims to impart ICT skills to young Africans in primary and secondary schools as well as harness ICT technology to improve, enrich and expand education in African countries. The aim is to equip all African primary and secondary schools with ICT apparatus such as computers, radios and television sets, phones and fax machines, communication equipment, scanners, digital cameras, copiers, etc, and to connect them to the internet. Each school is equipped with a ‘health point’.

Specific Objectives

• To provide ICT skills and knowledge to primary and secondary school students that will enable them to function in the emerging information society and knowledge economy;
• To provide teachers with ICT skills to enable them to use ICT as tools to enhance teaching and learning;
• To provide school managers with ICT skills so as to facilitate the efficient management and administration in the schools; and
• To make every learner health literate.

The approach adopted by the NEPAD e-Africa Commission for implementation of this Initiative is one of “Continental Coordination – National Implementation”. While NEPAD e-Africa Commission plans, coordinates and sets standards at the continental level, the actual implementation and execution of the project are carried out by individual countries.

Each participating country will therefore, formally establish and capacitate a National Implementation Agency (NIA), which will be responsible for all aspects of implementation at the national level.  Governments will take the lead in setting up the agencies.

The initiative has a NEPAD e-Schools Implementation Structure, geared towards national execution with continental coordination through the NEPAD e-Africa Commission and provides for a division of functions between national entities and the Commission.  

The NEPAD e-schools Continental Coordinating Body (CCB) reviews and endorses the strategic directions of the NEPAD e-Schools Initiative. The CCB is constituted by 32 officials, with each participating country contributing two senior officials from the ministries of the Education and Information and Communication Technologies.

The management of the NEPAD e-Schools Initiative at country level is carried out by Country Liaison Persons (CLPs), who are government officials appointed by the ministries of education of the participating countries.  The CLPs work with the school principals and teachers who are also critical for the successful implementation of this Initiative.  The CLPs ensure that the communities get involved and share in the resources provided by this Initiative.  

The NEPAD e-Schools Initiative, which involves 600,000 schools across the African continent, will be executed over a ten-year period, with the secondary school component being completed in the first five years. Three phases are envisaged: 15-20 countries in each phase. The phases will be staggered by one year.

The purpose of the Demo is to accrue a body of knowledge, based on real-life experiences of implementing ICT in schools across the African continent, in order to inform the rollout of the NEPAD e-Schools Initiative.  

This includes the investigation and reporting of the typical scenarios, circumstances and requirements for implementation, challenges in large-scale implementation, effectiveness of partnerships and partnership models, and benefits of the envisaged satellite-based connectivity network.

The countries invited to participate in the first phase were those which acceded to the MOU of the NEPAD African Peer Review Mechanism (APRM) as follows: Algeria, Angola, Benin, Burkina Faso, Cameroon, Republic of Congo, Egypt, Ethiopia, Gabon, Ghana, Kenya, Lesotho, Mali, Mauritius, Mozambique, Nigeria, Rwanda, Senegal, South Africa and Uganda. The Demo involves six schools in each participating country and the countries select the participating schools themselves.

In view of the size of the continent and the poor state of its ICT infrastructure, there is need to provide an overlay satellite network that will offer broadband connectivity to the rural areas where the 600,000 NEPAD e-Schools will be located.

The satellite network will be based on leased space segment capacity. A satellite terminal will be installed at each school, with computers and other communication facilities being connected to the Internet through this terminal.

An architecture study of this network has been completed, which will form the basis for future development for the NEPAD e-Schools Satellite Network.  In addition to the communication facilities, non-grid power sources will also be provided at those schools.

The NEPAD e-Schools Business Plan is a critical component in preparations for the roll-out of the NEPAD e-Schools Initiative. The Plan will provide the necessary information about funding requirements and other actions required for the roll-out in the first-phase countries.

The Commission contracted Ernst & Young to develop the Plan in consultation with experts from the participating countries, Regional Economic Communities, the African Development Bank, the lead consortia companies, and civil society organizations. This effort was funded by the South African Government.

One of the objectives of the NEPAD e-Schools is to ensure that learners are health literate. The Commission has secured funding from the African Development Bank to appoint a consultant to define the nature of the “Health Point” in the rollout phase of the Initiative.

Three M & E reports have been produced by the Commonwealth of Learning (January & July 2006, March 2007) which have highlighted the main issues observed in the course of the Demo and should be taken into account during rollout implementation of the project.

The NEPAD ICT Broadband Infrastructure Programme aims to connect all African countries to one another and, in turn, to the rest of the world through broadband fibre-optic submarine cables. A broadband network that links all 54 African countries will provide abundant bandwidth, easier connectivity and reduced costs. It will help to integrate the continent by facilitating trade, social, and cultural exchange between countries.
The NEPAD e-Africa Commission has approached the above-mentioned priority project by working towards the development of two regional networks:

1. NEPAD ICT Broadband Infrastructure Network for Eastern and Southern Africa; comprising of a submarine segment, and a terrestrial segment. (Link to a map)
2. NEPAD ICT Broadband Infrastructure Network for Central, West and North Africa. (Link to a map)

A basic rationalized broadband ICT network for Eastern and Southern Africa was agreed by stakeholders during a workshop convened by the NEPAD e-Africa Commission in Johannesburg, 28 to 30 July 2004. The agreed network brought together a number of network development initiatives in the region, such as COMTEL, SRII and the EASSy cable, into a cohesive plan for progressing the development of the agreed basic network.

The network was subsequently adopted as a NEPAD flagship project by the twelfth summit of the Heads of State and Government Implementation Committee (HSGIC) of NEPAD, in Algiers, Algeria, on 23 November 2004.

With a view to resolving policy and regulatory issues that may impede or prevent the realization of the rationalized network, the NEPAD e-Africa Commission worked with Government ICT Experts, ICT Policy Advisors, Regulators, Civil Society, Legal Experts, Executives of Telecom Companies, and Development Funding Institutions to develop a policy and regulatory framework within which the network, including the submarine cable, could be developed. The Experts and Policy Advisors agreed that the integrated ICT Broadband backbone should be based on the principles listed below:

The Policy Principles

1. Non-discriminatory ‘open access’.
2. Equitable joint ownership of the backbone infrastructure across the region.
3. Separation of ownership of the infrastructure from its use.
4. Use of Special Purpose Vehicles (SPVs) to build, own and operate the broadband ICT network
5. ICT broadband infrastructure should be viewed as a “public good” and operated on a cost-recovery basis.

The Experts and Policy Advisors also agreed that these principles would cover the submarine cable as well as the terrestrial network. In addition, they recommended that a protocol should be signed between the countries of the region in order to underpin their collaboration in developing this network.

A protocol that encapsulates the NEPAD network  principles in a policy and regulatory framework, as well as the details of Special Purpose Vehicles (SPVs) that will own, operate and maintain the NEPAD network, was developed and accepted by a number of governments in Eastern and Southern Africa. Twelve (12) countries signed the protocol, now known as the Kigali Protocol.

The countries that signed the protocol are: Botswana, Democratic Republic of Congo, Lesotho, Madagascar, Malawi, Mauritius, Rwanda, South Africa, Tanzania, Uganda, Zambia, and Zimbabwe.  The countries must ratify the protocol before it comes into force.

1. To Large Companies
   1. The NEPAD SPV is likely to be a holding company that will invest in:
      1. Uhurunet through Baharicom
      2. Umojanet where it will be the largest and probably the only shareholder.
         Companies that do not invest in the NEPAD SPV may not get an opportunity to invest in Umojanet.
   2. Shareholders in the NEPAD SPV will have a say in the management and running of Umojanet, and will have influence on issues like:
      1. The development and extension of Umojanet,
      2. Introduction of new technologies for support of new services across the Umojanet that Authorized Service Providers may wish to offer to their clients.
      3. Setting and maintenance of standards for quality and delivery of service, etc.
   3. Companies will be seen to be supporting NEPAD’s principles and objectives.
2. To Small Companies
   1. Investment in the NEPAD Submarine SPV was set at US$2million specifically to make it affordable to even the smallest telecom operators.
   2. They benefit from the economies of scale arising from bulk capacity purchases.
   3. The submarine and terrestrial regional networks will offer affordable and non-discriminatory open-access to Authorized Service Providers. They should therefore ensure success of this venture by investing in it.

1. The NEPAD ICT Broadband Infrastructure Network is a NEPAD priority project and as such, has the support of African countries.
2. The Kigali Protocol is meant to protect African ICT markets by encouraging joint African ownership of the basic regional ICT infrastructure.
3. The Kigali Protocol removes regulatory barriers and permits the establishment of a regional broadband network that will benefit Authorised Service Providers in every country covered by the protocol, by offering the following benefits:
   • Transparent and non-discriminatory open-access to affordable bandwidth.
   • Connectivity to regional and international traffic destinations through one SPV.
   • Interconnection and settlement headaches will be greatly reduced by dealing with one SPV.
   • The Submarine SPV will lease bulk capacity from Baharicom at low prices the benefits of which will be passed on to Authorised Service Providers.
4. In the short and medium term Umojanet will be the only truly regional network on the continent offering seamless, IP based, connectivity to the region.

Yes. After the protocol has come into force; that is to say, after it has been ratified by more than half of the signatory countries, any of the 11 countries in Eastern and Southern Africa that could not sign the protocol may accede to the protocol.

After signing of the Kigali Protocol, an Interim Inter-Governmental Assembly (Interim IGA) was established in line with Article 18 of the protocol. The Interim IGA is an assembly formed by countries that are signatory to the Kigali Protocol, meant to facilitate the realization of the objectives of the protocol.  Each signatory country has a representative and an alternate on the Interim IGA.

On October 15, 2007, the first Ministerial Inter-Governmental Assembly (Ministerial IGA) comprising of Ministers responsible for ICT and/or Telecommunications in countries that are signatory to the Kigali Protocol, met in Johannesburg, South Africa.

The participants of the meeting approved the construction of a high capacity submarine cable system with the potential to connect each and every coastal and island African country, and connecting the continent to the Americas, Europe, Middle East, and India. They named the submarine segment, UHURUNET; the terrestrial segment, UMOJANET; and the holding company, BAHARICOM.

UHURUNET is the submarine segment of the NEPAD network, named in recognition of the fiftieth anniversary of the beginning of Sub-Saharan independence from colonial rule as well as the importance of the cable for economic freedom in Africa. UHURU is a Kiswahili word that means freedom.

UMOJANET is the terrestrial segment of the NEPAD network, named in recognition of the spirit of unity in action among, and united action by all the stakeholders of the countries of Eastern and Southern Africa involved in the project. UMOJA is a Kiswahili word that means togetherness.

BAHARICOM is the name of the holding company of the submarine cable, a fitting Kiswahili name for a company operating an under-sea cable.

The NEPAD Submarine SPV to be set up by telecom operators in conformity with the Kigali Protocol (the SPV) will be the single largest shareholder with a 30% investment in Baharicom. The NEPAD Submarine SPV will secure at least one third of the bandwidth of the Uhurunet cable in order to meet the current and future bandwidth needs of its shareholders across the African continent.

In October, 2007, the Commission signed a Memorandum of Understanding (MoU) with the promoters of one of the larger initiatives, 5-P Holdings. MoUs between the promoters of the various initiatives are currently being considered and a steering committee will be established to coordinate the implementation of the expanded network.

The NEPAD Submarine SPV will have to raise US$600 million for its 30% share in the Baharicom company. It is envisaged that 50% of this will be equity, and 50% debt. The Commission has entered into discussions with the Pan African Infrastructure Development Fund (PAIDF), with a view to obtaining quasi-equity funding for the NEPAD Submarine SPV’s investment in Baharicom.

The Commission has also held discussions with the Development Bank of Southern Africa (DBSA) and the Industrial Development Corporation (IDC) with a view to persuading them to take a similar interest in funding the NEPAD Submarine SPV. The PAIDF is a NEPAD initiative intended to utilize pension funds from various African countries for infrastructure development across the continent. PAIDF has expressed a keen interest to lead the process of funding acquisition.

To attract potential investors to take part in the NEPAD SPV that will develop, own and operate the terrestrial segment of the NEPAD network, the technical and commercial viability of the network must be assured. A detailed feasibility study for the terrestrial network will be carried out during the first half of 2008. The outcome of the study will form the basis of a Project Information Memorandum (PIM) that will be presented to prospective investors in the NEPAD Terrestrial SPV that will develop, own and operate the NEPAD ICT terrestrial broadband network.

The Commission applied to the DBSA for funding of the study and an amount of US$410,000 was approved by the AFD/DBSA PPPF in September, 2007.

An ICT broadband network for West, Central and North Africa was agreed during a workshop convened by the Commission in July, 2005, in Dakar, Senegal.  Due to a lack of resources, the Commission has been unable to build on the outcome of the workshop in the interim. The Commission secured funding from the African Development Bank (AfDB) for a follow-up study of terrestrial optical fibre networks in the region which was concluded in November 2007.

In order to develop the network further, the Commission requires the services of a technical expert to lead the work in those regions. The Commission concluded a funding agreement with the Agence Française de Développement (AFD) worth € 850 000.00. The appointment of the expert will be concluded in early 2008.

The NEPAD e-Africa Commission conducts its work by creating and fostering partnership between governments, business and civil society. The partnership created by the Commission for the purpose of fulfilling the objectives of the NEPAD ICT Programme is known as the Information Society Partnership for Africa’s Development (ISPAD).

Foundation Partners are private sector entities that express significant interest in the success of the NEPAD ICT Programme as a whole and are prepared to support the Commission and work with it to accomplish its goals and programmes.

Foundation Partners will be required to make an annual financial contribution to the work of the Commission. A range of classes of contribution (i.e. Silver, Gold, Platinum and Diamond ) has been established from which, a Foundation Partner can make a voluntary choice.

For information about joining ISPAD, please consult the ISPAD Manager, Ms Nancy Ncube, Email: nncube@eafricacommission.org.