CHAKULA
Africa ICT Policy Monitor newsletter from the APC
Issue No. 3, October 2002
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Contents:
1. Editorial: How can open source software be used to
strengthen the capacity of civil society organisations in
Africa?
2. What's new on the website, http://africa.rights.apc.org?
3. Some open source software projects in Africa
4. World Summit on the Information Society (WSIS) Update
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1. Editorial: How can open source software be used to
strengthen the capacity of civil society organisations in
Africa?
Open source is rapidly gaining ground in Africa as
governments, civil society and the private sector begin to
recognise the benefits and relevance of the movement to
African Information and Communication Technology (ICT)
development.
What is 'open source'?
According to Webopedia.com, open source is 'A certification
standard issued by the Open Source Initiative (OSI) that
indicates that the source code of a computer program is made
available free of charge to the general public. The rationale
for this movement is that a larger group of programmers not
concerned with proprietary ownership or financial gain will
produce a more useful and bug-free product for everyone to
use. The concept relies on peer review to find and eliminate
bugs in the program code, a process which commercially
developed and packaged programs do not utilize. The process of
eliminating bugs and improving the software happens at a much
quicker rate than through the traditional development channels
of commercial software as the information is shared throughout
the open source community and does not originate and channel
through a corporation's research and development cogs.'
(http://www.webopedia.com/TERM/o/open_source.html)
Open source products must meet the following criteria:
* The author or holder of the license of the source code
cannot collect royalties on the distribution of the
program
* The distributed program must make the source code
accessible to the user
* The author must allow modifications and derivations of
the work under the program's original name
* No person, group or field of endeavor can be denied
access to the program
* The rights attached to the program must not depend on
the program's being part of a particular software
distribution
* The licensed software cannot place restrictions on other
software that is distributed with it.
Some of the differences between proprietary and open source
software:
Proprietary: The source code is secret so no one can make
changes to it
Open source: The source code is made public so that anyone can
make changes to it and share the changes
Proprietary: The programs are often not compatible with other
programs developed by different companies, therefore it is
difficult to exchange documents and communications between
systems
Open source: The programs are often developed to be compatible
with most other programs
Proprietary: A great deal of investment is needed to develop
this software, and often companies charge high prices for
their products
Open source: Because the community develops the software as a
group, the costs are much lower
International trends:
Many governments around the world are developing national
policies to promote the use of open software
because of its effectiveness as an essential, economic
and sustainable solution in providing access to technology.
Brazil is one of the countries that has actively pursued the
open source model. It was here that the first law regarding
the use of open source software in the world was passed in
March 2000 and where several states have actually made the
adoption of cheap open source software by government agencies
a matter of policy. (For more on Brazil see:
http://www.apc.org/english/news/index.shtml?x=6656)
In September, the South African government released a policy
framework document from the Open Source Workgroup of the
Government Information Officers' Council (GITO), recommending
that government "explicitly" supports the adoption of open
source software as part of its e-government strategy
(http://www.itweb.co.za/sections/computing/2002/0209091122.asp
?O=FPL).
A previous study by the National Advisory Council on
Innovation's (NACI) Open Software Working Group document on
'Open Software and Open Standards in South Africa' also
recommended 'a commitment to open standards for
interoperability in government use, together with a commitment
to the use of non-proprietary formats for document exchange'
(NACI, January 2002:
http://www.naci.org.za/docs/opensource.html).
This is in direct contrast to the South African government's
earlier acceptance of a Microsoft grant of software to schools
in February of this year. Bridges.org criticized government's
acceptance of the grant, stating that Microsoft products are
not appropriate technology for South African schools which
often run older, recycled computers, and will not
be able to afford the inevitable upgrades and new hardware
that comes with a Microsoft license. 'Microsoft products have
rapid product cycles and quick obsolescence, along with
expensive long-term maintenance and support implications. Open
source software offers a more affordable and stable option,
along with "thin-client" solutions that can be run on recycled
computers'
(http://www.bridges.org/media/pressrelease/15_February_02.html
).
The NACI document outlined the major benefits of open software
and open standards as follows:
* Reduced costs and less dependency on imported technology
and skills
* Affordable software for individuals, enterprise and
government
* Universal access through mass software rollout without
costly licensing implications
* Access to government data without barrier of proprietary
software and data formats
* Ability to freely customise software to local languages
and cultures
* Lowered barriers to entry for software businesses
* Participation in global network of software development
"Reduced cost is obviously a great advantage in the African
context but it is not the only issue. (Open source software)
promotes an environment for technical and systems development,
as well as the ability to learn, innovate and invent," says
ISOC Benin chair, Pierre Dandjinou, "while stimulating the
local software industry. More importantly, it promotes
independence from foreign software companies and reduces an
outflow of funds from the country"
(http://www.linuxjournal.com/article.php?sid=6049).
Why support open source?
There are two primary issues of relevance to civil society
organisations with regards to open source:
1. The need for civil society organisations to enhance their
understanding and capacity to use cheaper, more sustainable
open source solutions within their organisations; and
2. The need for civil society organisations in Africa to lobby
governments to develop open source policies. By encouraging
the use of open source software, governments encourage the
development of an African software development community, save
taxpayers' money, and contribute to long-term sustainability.
More on open source software and its political importance can
be found on the APC Internet Rights site:
http://rights.apc.org/software/
More about how to get hold and use open source software:
http://www.apc.org/english/capacity/training/opensource.shtml
And on open source software news:
http://www.apc.org/english/news/os_index.shtml and
http://www.opensource.org
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Workshop alert! ICT POLICY AND CIVIL SOCIETY WORKSHOP
IN AFRICA
JOHANNESBURG The Association for Progressive Communications
(APC), ARTICLE 19 and the United Nations Economic Commission
for Africa (UNECA) will be holding a five-day information and
communications technologies (ICT) policy and civil society
workshop from November 6th to 10th, 2002 in Addis Ababa,
Ethiopia.
Civil society groups have been at the forefront in advancing
ICT applications in various sectors, and the purpose of this
workshop is to build on the knowledge and expertise of civil
society organizations to engage ICT policy processes in
Africa.
For more information on the workshop, please see:
http://www.apc.org/english/press/archive/apc_p022.shtml or
contact Africa.workshop@apc.org.
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2. What's new on the website, http://africa.rights.apc.org?
\\/ NEWS \//
* Looking At Gift Computers in the Mouse
- South Africa, Open Source -
http://www.businessday.co.za/bday/content/direct/1,3523,119583
3-6078-0,00.html
Advocates of free computer software have expressed concern
that Microsoft is engaged in tactics in poor countries that
will help it further entrench its dominant position in the
industry. As free alternatives to proprietary software gain
credibility, Microsoft is preparing to give away its products
to schools across the developing world. This comes as
education authorities in poorer countries are turning to the
free Linux operating system because they are unable or
unwilling to pay for licences to use software from Microsoft
and various other commercial vendors. Microsoft has already
announced it will give away its software to schools in Africa,
Latin America, and the Middle East.
* New Media awards aim to promote African Information Society
- Ethiopia, Media -
http://www.uneca.org/aisi/mediaaward.htm
A media awards programme has been launched to promote and
encourage more informed and consistent reporting and analysis
of the information society and issues related to the
development potential and impact of Information and
Communication Technologies (ICTs). The AISI Media Awards
Programme was named after the African Information Society
Initiative, a framework launched by the Economic Commission
for Africa six years ago to help develop national information
and communication infrastructure plans and to engender an
information society in African countries.
* Brain Drain Stunts Africa
- South Africa, Training -
http://allafrica.com/stories/200210060131.html
Loss of professionals from Sub-Saharan Africa to developed
countries has raised major concern, as it has become one of
the region's greatest threats to economic development.
Emigration of qualified manpower especially academics from
African universities was one of the central issues that was
discussed during the recent World Summit on Sustainable
Development held in South Africa. The meeting heard that in
less than two decades Sub-Saharan Africa has lost a third of
its skilled professionals and had to replace them with over
100,000 expatriates from the West at a cost of US$4 billion a
year.
* MISA Communique
- Zambia, Media -
http://africa.rights.apc.org/news-content.shtml?x=7680
Dozens of journalists from both the state owned and private
media marched through the streets of the Zambian capital,
Lusaka, to press for the enactment of a freedom of
information, broadcasting and independent broadcasting
authority bill. The march, which was staged to commemorate the
tenth anniversary of the campaign for media law reforms in
Zambia, was used to introduce three information sheets
summarising the contents of the proposed bills.
* Profile of Esther Dyson who recently visited South Africa
- South Africa, Media -
http://allafrica.com/stories/200209100243.html
AllAfrica.com profiles Esther Dyson, former chair of the
Internet Corporation for Assigned Names and Numbers (ICANN),
who recently visited South Africa to participate in President
Thabo Mbeki's international ICT advisory board.
\\/ RESOURCES \//
* Developments on the use of mass media at the national level
for HIV/AIDS prevention in South Africa
- South Africa, Media -
http://www.comminit.com/stcoulson/sld-5496.html
Nancy Coulson, a communication researcher in South Africa,
critically analyses the effective use of mass media in
addressing HIV/AIDS by focusing on 3 major public television
programmes - LoveLife, Soul City and the Beyond Awareness II
Campaign.
* Rowing Upstream: Snapshots of Pioneers of the Information
Age in Africa
- Africa, Access -
http://www.piac.org/rowing_upstream
Over the last year, PIAC (The Project for Information Access
and Connectivity produced "Rowing Upstream: Snapshots of
Pioneers of the Information Age in Africa". Published in
August 2002, Rowing Upstream captures the experiences of Ford
and Rockefeller grantees making innovative use of technology,
assesses African utilization of the Web, and examines donor
support of ICT. An Internet timeline takes you back to the
beginning of email use on the Continent. In the last chapter,
some of Africa's pioneers tell their "Untold Stories".
* African Women Speak on the Internet
- Africa, Gender -
http://www.xs4all.nl/~ekole/public/endrapafrinh.html
This report presents the research results of the electronic
survey in the African region into information and
communication needs among women's organizations and women from
other Non-Governmental Organizations (NGOs).
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3. Open source software projects in Africa
3.1 Sohne.net's Telephone Billing Project
This project aims to ensure accuracy in telephone billing by
Ghana Telecom through providing a way for consumers to cross-
check their telephone bills. According to Sohne.net, 'this
project is West Africa's first Open Source project'. The
source code and project details are available from
http://sohne.net/publications.html and the company invites
other programmers to join the initiative by using the source
code as they see fit or to seek opportunities to profit and
learn from the software and source code.
3.2 The Shuttleworth Foundation's Translate.org.za Project
Translate.org.za (www.translate.org.za) is one of a number of
open source projects run by the Shuttleworth Foundation
(http://www.tsf.org.za/projects.html) that has an ambitious
vision of translating a core set of end-user software into
eleven official languages of South Africa.
Successes of the project to date include the set up of the
translation lab and the translation of an operating system
called KDE (K Desktop Environment) into Xhosa, Zulu and Venda.
KDE is a contemporary desktop environment for UNIX
workstations, part of the open source movement which competes
with the more common commercial operating system platforms on
the market. The project is also being recognised as official
translators for KDE, Mozilla and OpenOffice, all major
producers of open source software.
The Shuttleworth Foundation is also inviting proposals for the
further development of one of its projects called Schooltool,
an open source management and administrative software system
for schools in South Africa. Schooltool allows for effective
timetabling, learner and staff tracking, learner performance
evaluation and school budgeting facilities - in essence, a
tool to enhance current school management. It will also
facilitate better communication between schools and provincial
or national education authorities.
3.3 The APC's ActionApps Project
As part of our effort to build capacity, in 2001, APC
released a free collaborative Web publishing software for not-
for-profits. The APC ActionApps were developed to offer a low
cost solution for content sharing that both increases the
functionality of not-for-profit and NGO Websites and
facilitates the creation of portal sites, improving the
visibility of civil society information and at the same time,
as a free software project.
APC ActionApps is an online content management system (CMS).
All CMSs allow authorised users to easily update the content
of a website using just a web browser like Netscape Navigator
or Internet Explorer. It's easy to add, remove, or update
information from a website anytime, from anywhere, with no
HTML skills needed. Using the APC ActionApps website,
administrators can automate the publishing of press releases,
job listings, events and other types of information.
But the real power of APC ActionApps comes at the level of
collective publishing and aggregation. Each news item or
resource added to an individual organisation's site can be
automatically fed to a 'community-wide' portal. Spread-out
coalitions can quickly put together a campaign site. The
result is greater outreach, more speedily, to a wider
audience.
By releasing the ActionApps, the APC is committing itself to
open source software. The open source movement not only
encourages the free sharing of software but also encourages a
collaborative, evolutionary approach to software development.
A mailing list of interested technicians and developers
provides a common workspace.
See: http://www.apc.org/actionapps for more information.
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4. World Summit on the Information Society (WSIS) Update:
The Civil Society Plenary Coordinating Group statement to the
WSIS Informal Meeting on Content and Themes was delivered on
the 16th of September this year, the only day of the three-day
meeting that was open to civil society organisations. The aim
of the meeting was to continue the discussion on content and
themes that was started at the first preparatory committee
meeting earlier this year.
Support for open source software is declared in this document,
with the civil society plenary confirming the need for
'continued support for open source technologies' in order to
build the infrastructure for equitable development of the
future Information Society (Section 4.3.2 of the Statement to
the Informal Meeting on Content and Themes, Geneva, 16-18
September 2002).
Read the report of the Chairman of Sub-Committee 2 (Content
and Themes):
http://www.itu.int/wsis/docs/010e.doc
Read the civil society plenary response:
http://www.geneva2003.org/home/documents/doc01/16sept_en.pdf
For more information, see the CRIS website at:
http://www.comunica.org/cris/ and the official WSIS site at:
http://www.itu.int/wsis/
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Chakula: Africa ICT Policy Monitor newsletter
Contact chakula@apc.org with questions, comments and
contributions.
Chakula is produced by the Africa ICT Policy Monitor Project
of the Association for Progressive Communications (APC)
http://africa.rights.apc.org
APC: http://www.apc.org
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