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 Internet Access
APC STATEMENT - ICASA HEARINGS ON DRAFT ESSENTIAL FACILITIES REGULATIONS (NOTICE 1800 OF 2007)
South Africa,
-- APC thanks the Independent Communications Authority of South Africa (“the Authority”) for the opportunity to make comment on the oral presentations on the draft regulations prescribing a list of essential facilities and matters related thereto, pursuant to Section 42(8) of the Electronic Communications Act No. 36 of 2005 (“the Act”). - 03/06/2008
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Anriette Esterhuysen's speech at the opening session of the second Internet Governance Forum (IGF) touches on key issues
Rio de Janeiro, Brazil,
-- APC's executive director, Anriette Esterhuysen's well-received speech at the opening session of the second Internet Governance Forum (IGF) in Rio de Janeiro on Monday 12 November 2007 urged the IGF to prioritise access. Touching on critical issues such as security, openness, standards and diversity, she emphasized the potential of the internet to contribute to all aspects of human development.
- 11/13/2007
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Computer Aid International wins Nominet’s access award
London, England,
-- Access remains one of the greatest challenges facing the internet community in the developing world. The Nominet judges believe that the work of Computer Aid epitomizes what their access category represents. Computer Aid has enabled thousands of people in developing countries, who wouldn’t normally have the opportunity, to access to the internet. Computer Aid’s partners are also able to provide training, capacity building and routine maintenance, to ensure that the use of equipment is maximized. - 10/16/2007
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APC's executive director gives keynote at Web 2.0 for development conference
ROME, Italy,
-- Anriette Esterhuysen's opener for the first "Web2fordev" conference taking place in Italy this week on video (the organisers have provided the video viewable in Internet Explorer only!). - 09/26/2007
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Open Institute featured in the International Herald Tribune: "Cambodians of post-Khmer Rouge era embrace new cultural revolution — the blog."
Phnom Penh, Cambodia,
-- Increasingly, young, tech-savvy Cambodians are embracing blogs. The trend is changing their lives and their communication with people abroad — even as electricity remains an unreachable dream for most households in this poverty-ridden nation of 14 million. "This is a kind of cultural revolution now happening here in terms of self-expression," said Norbert Klein, of the Open Institute, a close APC partner. - 09/26/2007
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The end of the beginning: DRC plans ambitious infrastructure development
LONDON, UK,
-- Balancing Act, one of Africa's most important ICTD online media, has picked up on a feasiblity study carried out by APC member Alternatives for an internet backbone for the Democractic Republic of Congo that featured in APCNews earlier this month. "For all the difficulties in Eastern Congo, the DRC has seen a number of recent developments that will form the beginning of a backbone development plan for the country," writes Balancing Act. "Canadian NGO Alternatives launched its extremely detailed feasibility study for a backbone plan and the Government has begun to look at some of the issues that will need to be addressed if it is to be implemented." - 09/11/2007
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DRC: No electric infrastructure, no internet backbone?
OUAGADOUGOU, Burkina Faso,
-- Within the perspective of making high-speed internet accessible to the Congolese people, the development of an internet backbone in the Congo seems to be a necessity that could give an immediate boost. On Tuesday 7 August 2007, the feasibility study for an open internet backbone in the DRC was officially revealed in Kinshasa. APCNews quizzed Alphonse Ntita, a specialist in ICTs and internet infrastructure issues, who is part of the team of researchers behind the study. - 08/21/2007
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DRC: Developing the net in co-ownership
MONTREAL, Canada,
-- “Feasibility study for an open internet backbone in the Democratic Republic of Congo”, this is what the ripened fruit has been called for close to a year by a team of seasoned researchers. François Ménard is one of those who were hands on in this exhaustive study. He is a project manager with the Canadian firm Xit Télécom. APCNews interviewed him on the subject of deploying a high-speed internet in Congo. - 08/21/2007
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ALTERNATIVES, Democratic Republic of the Congo: New report on internet infrastructure in the Congo
GOA, India,
-- Montreal-based Alternatives is in the final sprint to release a report on the development of internet infrastructure in the Democratic Republic of the Congo. The feasibility report by this APC member focuses on the set-up of a national internet backbone as well as on the content of a national information and communication technology policy for Africa’s third largest country.
- 03/06/2007
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'Consumers shouldn't subsidise South African telephone monopoly'
JOHANNESBURG, South Africa,
-- It's time to stop subsidising monopolies like Telkom, argues APC's director Anriette Esterhuysen. That's after Telkom told South Africa daily, the Financial Mail, that too much competition in the provision of international bandwidth in Africa could be bad for business. - 02/23/2007
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Slum activism at the WSF
NAIROBI, Kenya,
-- In Punwami there are 35 toilets in total, and four computers. No internet is available, and the computers are mostly used for playing CDs with preventive HIV information. Walking around Pumwani, I visit a small para-legal office. Para-legals are people who receive basic training in human rights, in order to give legal advice to other people in the community. - 01/29/2007
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The power of the internet: UN adopts convention on people living with disabilities in record time
NEW YORK, USA,
-- The United Nations General Assembly has adopted a landmark disability convention that will benefit ten per cent of the world’s population. “It is the most rapidly negotiated human rights treaty in the history of international law; and the first to emerge from lobbying conducted extensively through the internet” by the community of people living with disabilities, the Secretary-General Kofi Annan said. The convention covers rights to education, health, work and a range of other protective measures for people with disabilities. - 12/15/2006
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“The discussion about diversity must not become diversity”
Tokyo, Japan,
-- Over the past few years, a considerable number of discussions have been conducted on linguistic diversity in the online world. It has brought with it a controversy, in part due to the fact that the spread of the internet is frequently hailed as a cause for the loss of cultural diversity. At the recent Internet Governance Forum though, much attention was given to the protection of our linguistic diversity. - 12/01/2006
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Wi4D, techies and campaigners look at potential for the social world
GOA, India,
-- You can't see it; you can't even know it exists. But for enabling data communication on the fringes of an internet-enriched globe, wireless communication makes a world of a difference. For groups like the Association for Progressive Communications (APC), it offers untapped power in harnessing wireless technology for social purposes. - 12/01/2006
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APC updates groundbreaking "internet rights" charter
MONTEVIDEO, Uruguay,
-- APC's charter was first developed by APC members and partner organisations at “internet rights” workshops held in Europe, Asia, Latin America and Africa in 2001-2002. APC's new charter revised in November 2006 includes a section on internet governance -the focus of recent UN summits- and our position that the internet is a global public good. An essential reference for anyone concerned about the freedom of the internet and 'internet access for all' nationally and internationally. - 11/06/2006
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APC asserts `access´ to the internet & capacity-building are key to participative internet governance
ATHENS, Greece,
-- The Association for Progressive Communications (APC), a network of civil society organisations working with ICTs and the internet for social justice and sustainable development thinks that the IGF is a valuable space for policy dialogue. As the first Internet Governance Forum that took place Athens in early November 2006 draws to a close, APC would like to insist on two issues be given priority: access to internet infrastructure and capacity building. - 11/02/2006
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Accessibility for all, central to internet forum
ATHENS, Greece,
-- Aside from ‘access to the internet’ - the single most important issue at this weeks first Internet Governance Forum – ‘accessibility’ follows suite in what is to be labelled “priority”. In fact, access to the internet deals with submarine fibre optic cables, gigantic satellite dishes and other infrastructure considerations. That has to come first. But when you break down the story of internet access to the personal level, what is needed, is a strong commitment towards getting women, underprivileged and people with disabilities on board. - 11/01/2006
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APC to IGF: Cyberspace should promote maximum sharing, creativity and innovation
GOA, India,
-- APC executive director Anriette Esterhuysen has told the Internet Governance Forum, meeting in Athens currently, that it has a duty play a much bigger role in spreading the sharing of ideas and encouraging innovation. Copyrighting and limiting the rights of teachers and learners in the developing world from share information would add only "limited value" to harnessing the internet for development, Esterhuysen said in the Greek capital. - 11/01/2006
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Blatant censorship is one thing. But who controls the controllers?
GOA, India,
-- Blatant censorship is one thing, and can be fought. But who controls the controllers? What about the more subtle forms of control and blockages, that often can work in the more brutal ways of the unseen hand? APC member-organisation RITS's Carlos Afonso, made this point articulatedly at the Internet Governance Forum in Athens. Afonso underlined that it was difficult to deal internet-related issues "without considering the situation of regulation, legislation and control of the network itself." He questioned the view that "the technical question is not as relevant as the other issues." What is the responsibility of network operators? Controlling players decide if voice over IP traffic can pass through an exchange point or not. - 11/01/2006
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Think standards are boring? Think again!
ATHENS, Greece,
-- If you think standards are boring, you had to be in Greece this week, where a loose coalition of researchers, librarians and corporate representatives launched a campaign on open standards. The timing coincided with a forum on the future of the internet that is receiving about 1,500 people in a hotel outside of Athens four days in a row. - 10/31/2006
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