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Telecentres struggle to take-off in Rwanda
The government may lose Rwf155m if the requirements needed to operate equipment Public Information Kiosks (PIK) are not met soon. The equipment is practically not functioning due to low connectivity among others. A PIK unit is basically composed of a computer, a kiosk frame, a kiosk touch screen, a printer, a coin operator and a secondary screen connected via the computer and is a typical web and internet based system that operates under site-kiosk software. The Kiosks are currently run by Rwanda Development Board (RDB).
The government purchased 31 Public Information Kiosks and installed in various institutions. In an email sent to The New Times, Gilbert Ntambara, in charge of the project in RDB, revealed that the one kiosk costs £5,510 (Approx. Rwf 5m)
“All the machines have been tested and are operational. But with our situation of unstable power and internet, sometimes you find that they are not operating in case of failure of any of the above,” responded Ntambara.

South Africa hits 5m Net users
South Africa should reach the six million mark by the end of the year, says Arthur Goldstuck, MD of World Wide Worx.
In what is being considered a significant milestone for communications in the country, the number of South Africans to have access to the Internet has hit the five million mark. Research conducted by local analyst house World Wide Worx, in conjunction with Cisco, shows that local Internet penetration has increased to 10%.
Speaking to ITWeb this morning, research lead and World Wide Worx MD Arthur Goldstuck said this figure is a significant milestone in SA’s Internet space.
He explains that, over the last year, there has been an acceleration in penetration, showing a 15% increase in the number of users with access to the Internet, from 4.6 million users to 5.3 million. “The good news is that we will continue to see strong growth in 2010, and we should reach the six million mark by the end of the year,” he adds.

Rwanda Exports ICT Expertise to USA, Europe
In a move to position Rwanda as a knowledge based economy, Gasabo 3 Dimension (3D) is exporting Computer Aid Design (CAD) of three dimensions (3D) to the United States of America, France and United Kingdom.
In 3D computer graphics, 3D modeling is the process of developing a mathematical representation of any three-dimensional object via specialized software. The project started under RDB-IT formerly RITA and was incorporated in April 2008 through collaboration with SolidWorks Corporation, a US firm.
In an interview with Gasabo 3D Chief Executive Officer John Rugamba the company receives two international projects per month. He said that drawings are sent in 2D formats and are developed into 3D model and the latest 2D which can be modified and edited.
Source: New Times, Rwanda

Nigeria: Imbibe ICT Culture for Good Governance, Legislators Told
Lagos — The Benue State House of Assembly, alongside other States, have been told to immediately imbibe the culture of ICT for its obvious advantages to good governance. Also, members of the legislature have been told to be bold and insist on good governance as their constitutional rights, so that in the long run society will be better for it and posterity will judge them faithfully. The calls were part of the outcomes of an interactive session between legislators of Benue State Assembly and civil society groups in the state, organised by the Civil Society Legislative Advocacy Centre (CISLAC), with support from the Heinrich Boll Foundation, Lagos, which took place recently in Makurdi, Benue State.
Source: THISDAY

Nigeria: SIM Card Registration
The decision of the Nigerian Communications Commission (NCC) to commence the registration of all Subscriber Identity Module (SIM) card holders in the country is a commendable step towards bringing sanity to the Global System for Mobile (GSM) Communication and Code Diversion Multiple Access (CDMA) sectors and addressing the security crisis in Nigeria. According to the Head, Media and Public Relations of the Commission, Mr. Reuben Muoka, those seeking registration of their SIM cards would need to produce valid identification documents including E-passport, corporate/company or work place identity cards that have pension identification/tax numbers; student ID cards from recognized institutions; drivers license issued by the Federal Road Safety Commission (FRSC) and e-tax cards.
Source: Daily Champion

Kenya: Sh318 Billion Sent Through Phones in 12 Months
Nairobi — Safaricom and Zain transferred a whopping Sh318.4 billion through their mobile money transfer services in 12 months up to June last year, according to the Central Bank of Kenya. The bank says Safaricom and Zain transferred the money, which translates to about Sh1 billion per day, between June 30, 2008 and June 30, 2009 through their M-Pesa and Zap services respectively.
This represents a 421 per cent growth over the Sh61.1 billion transferred in the year to June 30, 2008, the speed and size of the transferred funds clearly indicating the power of the mobile telephone industry in opening up the economy.
This is critical especially to the millions of rural and unbanked Kenyans who live in abject poverty, most on less than a dollar (Sh75) a day, and have to rely financially on relatives and friends in the cities.
“Similarly, the number of transactions increased from 21.8 million to 125.1 million over the same period,” CBK governor, Prof Njuguna Ndung’u, says in the bank’s annual report to be presented to Finance Minister Uhuru Kenyatta.
Source: Daily Nation

Rwandatel’s fibre-optic cable to reach Kigali
Despite delays, Rwandatel’s 900 Km fibre-optic cable is expected to land in Kigali by April this year. This was revealed by the company’s Chief Technical Officer (CTO), Basilio Sadindi during an exclusive interview with the Business Times.
The cable, which will be delivered by Green Future, had been slated to land in Kigali by January 2010.
Sadindi said that Uganda Telecom (UTL)—a sister company of Rwandatel was tasked to lay the cable from Kampala to Masaka. However, the cable was not yet fully connected by the December deadline.
“Ducting the Fibre from the Katuna to Kigali is government’s work. If it reaches Kigali, we shall only require six weeks to lay our own channel,” Sadindi explained. In September, Rwandatel and UTL contracted Green Future to deliver SEACOM’s fibre connection.