Celia's

What stands in the way of bridging the digital chasm? By Adrian Craddock

Prior to the 2010 South Africa World Cup, submarine fibre optic cabling was laid to improve the speed and reliability of broadband. Despite this, Internet World Statistics reports that only 11.4% of Africans have internet access, far below the global average of 30.2%. Considering that a World Bank  study suggests every 10% of broadband penetration increases developing countries’ per capita GDP growth by 1.38%, the scarcity of Africa’s online network has significant economic repercussions.

According to Telecoms analyst Ovum, it is high prices that are standing in the way of bridging the digital divide. Senior Analyst Richard Hurst said: “Some countries have broadband pricing double or triple the price of an equivalent service in a more developed market.” Nigeria exemplifies this with broadband starting at $1,211 per year. Considering that the country’s  gross national income per capita is $1,180, only the highest socio-economic groups can afford broadband internet access.

Africa Peering and Interconnection Forum

Speaking at last month’s Africa Peering and Interconnection Forum (AfPIF) in Ghana, independent IT consultant Mike Jensen blamed prices on a lack of competition. "There are few wholesale/carrier licenses issued and in some cases [there is] discrimination against new entrants," he said. A  report published by African IT expert Olof Hesselmark supports Jensen’s view. Hesselmark writes that many countries have state-run telecom monopolies that insist on remaining the sole suppliers of international gateways and bandwidth... [more]
Think Africa Press

Adrian Craddock is a freelance journalist based in London. He has produced work for the BBC World Service, The Weekend West Australian, and Crikey.com.au. His interests include youth affairs and media practices.

Zimbabwe's NoViolet Bulawayo has won the 2011 Caine Prize for African Writing, described as Africa's leading literary award, for her short story entitled 'Hitting Budapest', from The Boston Review, Vol 35, no. 6, November/December 2010. The Chair of Judges, award-winning author Hisham Matar, announced NoViolet Bulawayo as the winner of the £10,000 prize at a dinner held 11 July)at the Bodleian Library in Oxford.

From Peter Scott's Library blog

http://www.african-writing.com/eleven/

INTERVIEWS
Ten Questions, Tendai Huchu
Militant Intellection Complex, P. Adesanmi,
Ten Questions, Ellen Banda-Aaku

FICTION
Sesotho Speakers, Ret'sepile Makamane
Bad Hair Day, Tendai Huchu
The Teacher, Ibrahim al-Koni.
Dodo is Yoruba for Fried Plantain, F. Fetto
Befriending a Lie, Christian Uwe
Invisible Woman, Mamle Kabu
Making Corrections, Bashir Adan
The Wonderful... No. 1 Recliner, E. Chiew

POETRY Malika Assal Ayọdèlé Morocco-Clarke Stephen John Rae Isoje Iyi-Eweka Chou, Monday morning.. Isaac Anyaogu Ryan Eric Lamb Essia Skhiri Magdalawit Makonnen, Wheat on Grass
ESSAYS Author for Sale, Sarah Ladipo Manyika A Brief Word on Poetry, K.W. Kgositsile Know your Classics PlaceNames, Martin Ramos
MEMOIR My Son is a Story, Juliane Okot-Bitek
BOOK BRIEFS & REVIEWS How to Euthanise a Cactus, S.D.P. 2nd Book Syndrome, Tola Ositelu A View from the North, Marcia Lynx Qualey The Rock at the Centre of my Heart, D.K. Precious; A True Story, Tola Ositelu Books Worth ReReading, Zukiswa Wanner Comic Heights, Geoff Ryman blogs:  Daily posts from our writers FLASH PRIZE Results Announced.

 

Afrographique is Ivan Colic’s small contribution to assist the changing perception of Africa and it’s people - hopefully you will be able to learn something as well. This blog aims to collect as much data as possible with the aim of presenting the information in an exciting and digestible format to all.

 Here is an example:

 

 Link to full size:

http://4.bp.blogspot.com/_5RTMa3pxr8s/TLcjThWAp8I/AAAAAAAAB8o/4VJnrUjjarY/s1600/true-size-of-africa.jpg

The United Nations University has published several activity reports on its studies on Africa:

    * Revitalization of High Education in Africa
http://www.unu.edu/africa/activities/education.html#innovativeCentre

    * Education for Sustainable Development in Africa
http://www.unu.edu/africa/activities/education.html#esdAfrica

 

From UN Pulse

Abstract:
The social sciences in sub-Saharan Africa continue to operate under conditions that are seriously under-resourced. The fact that there is still sustained and vibrant social sciences research in countries which, with a few exceptions, have little government support, poor institutional facilities and many other challenges says a great deal about the resilience and resolve of the scholars concerned.

In : The 2010 World Social Science report released by United Nations Educational, Scientific and Cultural Organization (UNESCO) focuses on the Knowledge Divide. It emphasizes the key role played by knowledge in social development, the disparities in research capacities across countries and the fragmentation of knowledge that hamper the capacity of the social sciences to respond to the challenges of today and tomorrow.

The report is available in English: http://unesdoc.unesco.org/images/0018/001883/188333e.pdf

The African Journal Archive is a project of Sabinet Gateway, a non-profit organisation promoting and supporting library and information services in Africa. The project is funded by the Carnegie Corporation of New York.

Browse through the collection without formulating a specific search.

Advanced Search - using more options, making your searches more precise and getting more useful results.

2009 Global GoToReportThinkTankIndex1.31.10_2010.02.14.pdf

1. South African Institute of International Affairs (SAIIA), South Africa
2. Council for the Development of Social Science Research in Africa (CODESRIA), Senegal
3. African Center for the Constructive Resolution of Disputes (ACCORD), South Africa
4. Free Market Foundation, South Africa
5. IMANI Center for Policy and Education, Ghana
6. Centre for Conflict Resolution, South Africa
7. Economic Policy Research Centre (EPRC), Uganda
8. Institute for Security Studies (ISS), South Africa
9. Kenya Institute for Public Policy Research and Analysis (KIPPRA), Kenya
10. Makerere Institute of Social Research (MISR), Uganda
11. Centre for Development and Enterprise, South Africa
12. Centre for Development Studies, Ghana
13. Nigerian Institute of International Affairs (NIIA), Nigeria
14. Africa Institute of South Africa, South Africa
15. Centre for Policy Analysis (CEPA), Ghana
16. Ethiopian Development Research Institute (EDRI) Ethiopia
17. South African Institute of Race Relations, South Africa
18. Center for the Study of the Economies of Africa (CSEA), Nigeria
19. Centre d`études, de documentation et de recherches Economique et sociale (CEDRES), Burkina Faso
20. Economic and Social Research Foundation (ESRF), Tanzania
21. Electoral Institute of Southern Africa (EISA), South Africa
22. African Technology Policy Studies Network, Tanzania Chapter (ATPS-Tanzania) Tanzania
23. Centre for Research and Technology Development (RESTECH Centre), Kenya
24. Ghana Centre for Democratic Development,Ghana
25. Institute of Economic Affairs - Kenya (IEA-Kenya), Kenya

 

2008_Global_Go_To_Think_Tanks.pdf

 

 

 

This is the official website of the archaeological excavations at Kerma, Nubia (Sudan). The website is available in French and English (click on E or F on the logo to switch between the two), but published papers are only available in one language (some are in English and some in French). This well organised website publishes short articles, accompanied by several colour pictures, on the history of Kerma and the research carried out so far by the Swiss team working there. Similarly organised are sections "Archaeological Sites" and "Museum". Section "Publications" contains a comprehensive bibliographic list with several papers freely available in PDF format. Section "Media" lists the recent TV and radio broadcasts to which team members have participated. Although all links point to external resources, at the time of review it was possible to access the original broadcasts, all of which were in French. A simple sitemap, contacts and an internal search engine complete this commendable website.

Kerma, referred to as Kush in Egyptian texts, is a very important site consisting of a settlement and the eastern necropolis, dated between 2500 and 1500 BC, and it was the capital of the Nubian kingdom. The nearby Nubian sites of Napata and Meroe are also mentioned in the illustrated texts and papers. In addition to have been an independent kingdom, Nubia's history is inextricably intertwined with that of Egypt: throughout the long history of ancient Egypt, pharaohs invaded several times Nubia, but a few dynasties of pharaohs were also of Nubian origin. This website provides a concise and clear history of the facts, including a chronological table, and section "Publications" expands on many themes. This website also publishes the preliminary reports from the ongoing excavations. It is an essential website for anyone interested in the ancient history of Africa or Egyptology, hosting contents that should satisfy everyone, from the curious amateur archaeologist to advanced researchers.

Africa
The shortlisted writers for Africa's Best Book are:

Trespass by Dawn Garisch (South Africa)
The Double Crown by Marié Heese (South Africa)
The Thing Around Your Neck by Chimamanda Ngozi Adichie (Nigeria)
Eyo by Abidemi Sanusi (Nigeria)
Tsamma Season by Rosemund Handler (South Africa)
Refuge by Andrew Brown (South Africa)
Kings of the Water by Mark Behr (South Africa)

The shortlisted writers for Africa's Best First Book are:

I Do Not Come to You by Chance by Adaobi Tricia Nwaubani (Nigeria)
The Shape of Him by Gill Schierhout (South Africa)
The Shadow of a Smile by Kachi Ozumba (Nigeria)
Come Sunday by Isla Morley (South Africa)
Sleepers Wake by Alistair Morgan (South Africa)
Jelly Dog Days by Erica Emdon (South Africa)
Harmattan Rain by Aysha Harunna Attah (Ghana)

 

From Peter Scott's Library blog

One of the things we spend a lot of time thinking about at Google is how we can make the world's information more accessible and useful to people all over the globe. This includes providing rich local geographic data because, after all, a huge number of search queries have a geographic component. Our efforts to start putting Africa on a map kicked off back in 2009 when we announced the launch of Google Maps for Kenya. Not long afterwords, we announced that users across 45 African countries could build and edit maps in Map Maker. Most recently, we launched Google Maps for South Africa.

Our big announcement today is that we are launching Maps domains for 30 countries across Africa. So what's on offer? As well as searching online Maps for towns, highways, or roads, Google Maps users can now find local businesses. This could be a burger place in Lagos, a garage in Kampala, a hairdresser in Accra or an airport shuttle in Dakar. Any business anywhere can add their own business listing for free via the Google Maps Local Business Centre. Businesses can also improve their websites and help customers locate them by installing the Maps API.

In addition, we know that a lot of people need to find map information whilst travelling or driving, which is why we offer Google Maps for Mobile on data enabled handsets.

You know your local area better than we do, which is why Map Maker is on offer. With Map Maker, any user can create or edit map data, ranging from schools to local businesses, national parks to taxi stops. If you know your local area, or you've seen something that's missing, take up the opportunity to get mapping! As we've pointed out before, maps are also invaluable for governments, NGOs, universities and entrepreneurs, who can visualise, plan and market the areas and projects that they work on.

Ever thought about creating your own map for a specific event (like a wedding or treasure hunt) so you can share it with friends? You can do this using the popular, easy to use My Maps feature, which allows users to add their favorite locations and destinations to Google Maps and include their photos, comments and reviews about each place. You can check out new My Maps content for Nigeria, including additions from musicians D'banj and Nneka.

We are thrilled to be improving our maps functionality for Africa, and helping to make Africa's information readily available. We encourage you to add your own content and showcase to the world the parts of Africa that you know best.

Posted by Joe Mucheru, Google Sub Saharan Africa, and Jarda Bengl, Product Manager

From: http://google-africa.blogspot.com/

The Smithsonian Institution's Museum of African Art has a delightful online kid-friendly exhibit, and it can be explored in detail here. The "Introduction" explains that African art depicts some animals more than others, and some not at all. The cheetah and the zebra do not appear to be found in any of the art, and the ostrich and gorilla appear only rarely. The main page divides the artwork up by general animal type, such as "Leopards and Lions", "Mudfish, Water Spirits and Snails", and "Look for the Animals", which is a work of art that has several different animals in it. Many of the images of the artworks also have a link called "Kids! Click Here" that lead to fun facts about the animals in the artwork. The descriptions of the art that accompany the images inform visitors about the animals depicted, but also about the role or use of the animal in African societies. Finally, visitors shouldn't miss the recording of the director of the National Museum of African Art reading an Asante tale, called the Leopard's Drum, at the end of the exhibit. [KMG] From Scout Report

http://africa.si.edu/exhibits/animals/index.html

http://afripopmag.com/50-books-every-african-should-read/

From Afripop

From Celia: don't forget to look at the comments.