INVITATION TO OFFICIAL LAUNCHING - GHANA ICT AWARDS 2007

The government continues to place emphasis on the
potential of Information and Communication Technology (ICT) to provide a foundation for building an information and knowledge society
and has accordingly integrated the Ghana ICT Policy for Accelerated
Development, as driver and enabler, within the three-pronged GPRS II
development strategy.

In connection with this, the Ministry of Communications is planning
to organise the 1st Ghana Information and Communications Technologies
Excellence Awards for 2007 in partnership with industry players in the
private sector to commemorate the 50th Anniversary Celebration of
Ghana's Independence. This initiative is designed to serve as a key
catalyst for government and the private sector to drive the programme
of using ICT for accelerated national development.

The main objectives of this Awards scheme are:

- To create greater awareness of the role of ICT
in public services
and the development process within the framework of
the Information
Society.

- To motivate other stakeholders in effective
utilization of ICT for
citizens services.

- To ensure that ICT professionals are provided a
benchmark for
recognising and validating outstanding contribution.

In view of the above, you are kindly invited to
participate in the official launching ceremony scheduled as follows:


DATE: 23rd FEBRUARY 2007

VENUE: GHANA INDIA KOFI ANNAN CENTRE OF EXELLENCE IN
ICT

TIME: 10 A.M PROMPT

Offshore Outsourcing blossoming in Ghana

The Ministry of Communications with the support of the World Bank carried out a study last year to establish Ghana's idealness for Business Process Outsourcing and Information Communication Technology (ICT) enabled services in the country.

Even before the study’s final report was made public, a major US based BPO operator has began operations in Ghana with an initial staff of 25 employees. International Outsourcing Service with plants in Mexico, Slovakia, India, France and Germany is set to make a mark in the $300 billion outsourcing market in sub-Saharan Africa. The company with the assistance of a Ghanaian resident in the United States started pilot operations in December 2006 under the name Novel Solutions, Ltd. This was after it conducted its own private study of the BPO market in Ghana. read
more

Workshop on ICT for dev't for African institutions opens

Professor, Jophus Anamuah-Mensah, Vice-Chancellor of the University of Education, Winneba has called for the institution of a special fund to be named ICT Trust Fund for the establishment and equipping Information Communication Technology Centre in all basic and secondary schools in the country.
He said if the fund is established, it would make every school child in the country to start the learning of computer from the basic schools, adding that by the time the child would enter the secondary cycle institutions, he or she would have become very good at ICT and conversant on the computer. Read more

Internet: Will the sector ever remain the same?

This is one question that comes to mind looking at developments in the communications sector which makes it very possible now for phone users to be on the super highway even on their mobile handsets. Fixed Wireless Operators now bundle internet along with their lines making it possible for subscribers using their lines to do internet without extra headache. In a way the operations break the norms because traditionally people used to pray for a fixed line to be able to do that kind of service.
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Workshop on "Mobiles and Development: The Contribution of Mobile

Workshop on "Mobiles and Development: The Contribution of Mobile
Devices to
Development"
Wednesday 16th May 2007
Development Informatics Group, University of Manchester

This is a call for abstracts and first announcement of a workshop of
the UK Development Studies Association "Information, Technology and Development" study group on the relation of mobile devices to socio-economic development.

According to the International Telecommunication Union (ITU), there are
now more mobile subscribers than fixed line subscribers, and mobile teledensity
rates continue to outstrip fixed teledensity in every region of the world.
ITU statistics show a global increase from approximately 740 million mobile
subscribers in 2000 to 2.2 billion subscribers more than one-third of
the world's population by the end of 2005. With one million new
subscribers every day, it is estimated that almost four billion people will have a mobile phone by the end of 2010.

Rising uptake of mobile phones is indicative of the huge potential
mobile devices have in reaching significant portions of erstwhile excluded
populations. This workshop will bring together field evidence on the
use of mobile devices in delivering development objectives in a range of
developing and developed countries. It will explore the application of mobile
devices to health, education, economic and social empowerment, human rights,
commerce, etc.

Interested presenters should in the first instance submit an abstract
of no more than 300 words to abi.jagun@manchester.ac.uk. Please include "Mobiles
and Development Workshop" in the Subject field of your email. Paper
submissions should be sent to: Dr Abi Jagun, Development Informatics Group, IDPM,
School of Environment and Development, Precinct Centre, University of Manchester, Manchester, M13 9QH, UK. Abstracts should be received no later than
Wednesday 28 February 2007.

Participants wishing to attend should complete and return a
registration form to the address above no later than Monday 30 April 2007. Details of the workshop and a copy of the registration form can be found at:
http://www.sed.manchester.ac.uk/idpm/research/events/mobile.htm

Attendance is free of charge and some support for within-UK-only travel
costs may be available to presenters who are members of the Development
Studies Association:

please contact Richard Heeks
(richard.heeks@manchester.ac.uk)
convenor of the I,T&D study group in advance of the workshop.