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EXPERTS START DELIBERATIONS ON ACCELERATING DEVELOPMENT OF ICT IN AFRICA | 4 November 2009
EXPERTS START DELIBERATIONS ON ACCELERATING DEVELOPMENT OF ICT IN AFRICA Johannesburg, South Africa 2 November 2009- Overall utilization of ICTs in Africa is still low, leaving ample room for further growth in the coming years. Africa is still the least connected continent in the world, both from an internet penetration perspective and in terms of the total bandwidth utilized by the continent. This new dynamic crosscutting sector requires discussion at the highest levels of Governments. It is in this context that experts in ICT from Member States of the African Union are meeting in Johannesburg, South Africa from 2-3 November, ahead of an extraordinary conference of African Union Ministers in charge of communication and information technologies (CITMC) to be held on Thursday 5 November. The ministerial conference is in preparation for the January 2010 Summit of Heads of State and Government whose theme will be “Information Technologies in Africa: Challenges and Prospects for Development”. The conference is a direct response to the decision of the AU Assembly of Heads of State and Governments at their Ordinary Session that was held in Addis-Ababa, Ethiopia in January 2009. At the opening session of the experts meeting today, the Director General of the Department of Communication (doc) in South Africa, Dr Mamodoupi Mohlala said her government is committed to supporting the AU and its technical committees, such as the CIT, whose key priority is to bridge the digital divide gap, promote and accelerate te socio economic development through robust infrastructure development and contribute to the attainment of the millennium development goals through ICTs. The government, she said, is committed to lowering the cost of communications. She also said the country will use ICT to allow the world to watch the soccer world cup to be held in South Africa in 2010. The Director of Human Resources, Science and Technology at the African Union, Mrs. Vera Brenda Ngosi informed the experts that the objectives of the CITMC extra-ordinary session are twofold. Firstly, the conference is expected to come up with concrete recommendations on critical issues pertaining to ICTs that will accelerate the development of the ICTs as an industry and as a catalytic tool for development. These recommendations will be used to convince the Heads of State and Governments on the key role of ICTs in the socio-economic development of Africa. The second objective of the conference is to continue the all inclusive process and get as much input as possible from Member States and other stakeholders, as the AU prepares for the January 2010 Summit, whose theme will be “Information and Communication Technologies in Africa: Challenges and Prospects for Development”. Mrs. Ngosi also said the experts’ session should guide the Ministerial session so that the Ministers can make concrete recommendations to be submitted to the Assembly of the Heads of State and Governments in 2010. The experts’ meeting continues tomorrow and will be followed by the ministerial conference on Thursday 5 November. Members of the media are invited to attend the official opening session of the ministerial conference on Thursday 5 November at Emperor’s Palace; Kempton Park in Johannesburg, South Africa. There will also be a press conference at the end of the one day conference.
For more information, contact Gilles Eic FOADEY on 073 5306654 / gfoadey@eafricacommission.org or Wynne Musabayana on 0825888044
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