IfG.CC -
Institute for eGovernment

According to a report of the study published online this month (2 August) in Scientometrics, about 88 per cent of ICT publications in South Asia originate in India.

The 250,000 IT, telecoms professionals in Nigeria, constitute only 40 percent of the actual figure needed, and are inadequate for a market and population of over 170 million people.

This was the summation of experts in business, legal and ICT sectors across Nigeria and India that gathered in Mumbai, India, at the 2015 Indian Nigerian Business Forum (INBF), organised by the law firm, Perchstone & Graeys in collaboration with the Federation of India Chamber of Commerce and Industry (FICCI), last week

Addressing the industry at the ASSOCHAM Focus conference in New Delhi, Planning Commission member secretary Raajeva Ratna Shah disclosed the 11th five year plan for 2008-2012. The plan is in keeping with digital content production and distribution in India.

Chaired by the Philippines’ Department of Science and Technology Secretary Mario Montejo, the two-day meetings were preceded by meetings with senior officials and regulators in charge of telecommunications and information technology in their respective countries to see to it that they were on track for implementing the Asean ICT Masterplan (AIM) targeted for completion in 2015.

The report says that the incomes from ICT sector rose 17.3% to $ 1.9 bln. In general, the revenues during past 5 years made $ 7.7 bln. In 2012, more than $410 mln was invested in ICT sector.

Sadly, the principal victims of poor access to information are rural people. This is despite the fact that rural communities require information, inter alia, on supply of inputs, new technologies, early warning systems (drought, pests and diseases), credit, and market prices.

The Prime Minister and Interior Minister H E Sheikh Abdullah bin Nasser bin Khalifa Al Thani launched it on Monday while inaugurating the third edition of Qatar’s ICT conference and exhibition ‘QITCOM 2014’ at Qatar National Convention Centre.

Yes, this is actually the “Rising India” or the “Changing face of India” in which villagers are getting as technology savvy as people in metros are, in their day-to-day life.

From basic Internet and telephony to sophisticated cloud offerings, connectivity and communication are the heart of ICT, and central to delivering these services is the network backbone, enabling access for connectivity. While multiple undersea cables have landed on the African continent, providing the potential for high-speed connectivity, much of the population remains unable to access this, which is slowing business growth.

Interestingly enough, there are wide differences among the Gulf Co-operation Council (GCC) states in regard to their performance on the “Network Readiness Index”. To put it more simply, the extent of their technological readiness.

At least, this was the judgment in the “Global Information Technology Report 2014” issued by the World Economic Forum in partnership with INSEAD, the business school, and Cornell University.

A range of government initiatives are driving ICT adoption in Oman, as the sultanate works to connect all homes and businesses to the national broadband network by 2040.

Sector growth is being driven in part by government efforts to promote connectivity, a key element of the broader Digital Oman Strategy (eOman) launched in 2003, which is focused on developing IT skills, digital literacy and e-government services.

The Kenya National ICT Masterplan 2017 document will guide the country’s ICT direction in the next three years. The Masterplan was first launched in February 2013 and is a five-year plan. It covers the vision 2030 pillars as well as focusing on other functional areas.

ICT Cabinet Secretary Fred Matiangi said three key ICT projects have been identified—Citizen Service Portal, Government Shared Services and National Digital Registry Services.

The UK has traditionally viewed Silicon Valley as the trailblazer of technological advancement, but environments producing innovation and success in the IT industry extend well beyond the USA. To drive success, the UK needs to expand its horizons and look to emerging markets, such as India, which has seen its ICT sector grow from being a $5.7bn industry in 2000 to a staggeringly large $100bn industry just 12 years later.

1. Smartphones: A great equalizer.

Note how mobile phones transformed India within a decade: from being objects of luxury, they became a basic necessity. Landlines were once scarce, and phone service was unreliable and unaffordable. Now, India has amongst the best and cheapest phone connections in the world and has a billion cellphones.

The ICT sector contributed about $1.5bn to GDP in 2010. The report pointed out that Qatar leads the Arab world in the Network Readiness Index, which ranks 144 countries on broad criteria to determine the present status of their ICT sector.

ICT Cabinet Secretary Fred Matiang’i said in Nairobi the shortage has forced some county governments to depend on private sector in order to deploy ICT systems.

“We are therefore fast tracking efforts to increase the number of highly skilled personnel in ICT sector,” Matiang’i said after signing a Memorandum of Understanding between Huawei Technologies and ICT Authority of Kenya.

The Vice Chancellor, Professor Ernest Aryeetey, made this known on Friday at the congregation ceremony held at the Great Hall on the Legon campus of the University.

Addressing the media during the occasion, he said the school has introduced new graduate programmes including Master of Science and Master of Philosophy programmes in Computer Science and Professional Master of Science programme in Medical Laboratory Sciences at the School of Allied Health Sciences.

“Access to relevant information and technology will surely catalyse the transformation of industries, formal and informal sectors, defence, education and financial services, among others,” he said here when inaugurating the Kipawa Institute of Communication Technology on Monday.

The Chief Officer in charge of Information Communications Technology and E-government at the Uasin Gishu County government Edwin Kemboi has said that the public sector is still facing a shortage of Information Communication Technology skilled experts.

According to Mr Kemboi, youth have failed in taking up the ICT and opportunities in the sector therefore creating a gap that requires ICT skills in a bid to streamline the public sector.

This is a goal outlined by the Communications Commission of Kenya (CCK), which launched its third five-year strategic plan on Friday.

In terms of broadband consumption, the country plans to boost usage in this category from the current 2.4% to 10%.