Cyberinfrastructure in Africa, Survey on Internet capability Monique Petitdidier IPSL, Paris, France

Cyberinfrastructure in Africa: Initiatives eGY Sharing Knowledge Foundation –Larger number of Scientific domains – SMEs, NGO… –Bénin, Cameroon, Ghana, Ivory Coast, RC, RDC, Senegal –Participation of a EU representatitve of EuroAfrica-IST programme –Support a small scale project through contacts, proposal by funded agency –Recommendations –Pilot project HP-UNESCO programme Algeria, Ghana, Nigeria, Senegal, Zimbabwe Local Grid Tutorial Grid EGEE - HP

Other initiatives Outside large organisations like IUT, UNESCO, UNITED NATIONS Association of African Universities: Research and Education Networking Unit (Contact : Boubakar Barry) African Information Society (AISI) was launched in 1996 (related to the United Economic Commission for Africa (UNECA) –Africa needed a common vision for its quest not only to bridge the digital divide between Africa and the rest of the world –but more importantly to create effective digital opportunities to be developed by Africans and their partners, –and to speed the continent's entry into the information and knowledge global economy AfrISPA (13 African Countries), Afrinic, AfTLD RASCOM1 telecommunication satellite launched in december

OBJECTIVES The goal of all the initiatives is to bring Africa as the same level of technology and science as Europe, America, India…. The problem is so large that the different actions are complementary Important point is the communication of what is going on –the different projects –the African colleagues –eGY mailing list –Other mailing list

Network Monitoring (Les Cottrell- SLAC) Pinger First Contacts in June 2007, questionnaire in Nov.2007, IHY meeting Country contacted –Algeria - recently –Burkina Faso –Cameroon –Ghana –Ivory Coast –Kenya –Malawi –Morocco –RC - Brazzaville –RDC - Kinshasa –Senegal –South Africa –Togo –Uganda Pb: sites hosted in Europe, Ping blocked

Recommendations Cameroon –General director of national agency of ICT –Meeting with CISCO to have a national exchange point –Seminar RDC –Ministry of the higher education and research –Scientific council –Professors at the University on Social communications –Conference on the network linking the different universities (project –Connected by satellite to world, not yet by optical fiber RC –Better speed for internet

Recommendations Ivory Coast –University President of the University of Cocody –CAMES: organisation of the French-speaking universities (17) –Network inside the university implemented by Koreans Internet now working 24h/24h and 7 days FP7 EuroAfrica-ICT meeting 31 January 2008 –Presentation of the recommendations by R. Klapisch, President of the Sharing Knowledge foundation –African Research and Education Networking- An Overview – B; Barry Paper to the IST conference in Namibia

Sharing Knowledge Foundation: Pilot project To be prepared to welcome new technology The Africans are the actors of the improvement of their working conditions for education and research –Bring the recommendations to their organisation (University, Ministry, network operators….) –In each country organize themselves: group of scientists, computer and network people Example Cameroon: 5 persons involved –Organisation at a regional level : meeting, tutorial, Workshop Collaboration RDC-RC –Collaboration inter-countries on Science and technics whatever their regional belonging. The goal will be to make a proposal for a regional Grid infrastructure to the FP7 programme