I have been following your postings and those of others for quite a while; I must say, you do a great job. Much obliged for all your efforts. I have been researching Liberia’s chances of garnering a fiber optic connection; I’ve heard – and you responded- to my email confirm connection to ACE in 2011. What I don’t understand is, why does that country have to wait when there’s a cable landing in Ivory Coast, Ghana, and even Senegal? SAT-3/WASC is right ajacent to the country’s sea coast, I wonder why only an ACE implementation would be the alternative?

Thanks

Darren

Adoption of information and communication technologies
and access to the Internet is expanding in Africa, but be-
cause of the rapid growth elsewhere, a Digital Divide be-
tween Africa and the rest of the world exists, and the gap
is growing. In many sub-Saharan African countries, educa-
tion and research sector suer some of the worst deficien-
cies in access to the Internet, despite progress in develop-
ment of NRENs {National Research and Education (cyber)
Networks. By contrast, it is widely acknowledged in policy
statements from the African Union, the UN, and others that
strength in this very sector provides the key to meeting and
sustaining Millennium Development Goals. Developed coun-
tries with effective cyber-capabilities proclaim the benefits
to rich and poor alike arising from the Information Revo-
lution. This is but a dream for many scientists in African institutions. As the world of science becomes increasingly
Internet-dependent, so they become increasingly isolated.
eGY-Africa is a bottom-up initiative by African scientists
and their collaborators to try to reduce this Digital Divide
by a campaign of advocacy for better institutional facili-
ties. Four approaches are being taken. The present status
of Internet services, problems, and plans are being mapped
via a combination of direct measurement of Internet per-
formance (the PingER Project) and a questionnaire-based
survey. Information is being gathered on policy statements
and initiatives aimed at reducing the Digital Divide, which
can be used for arguing the case for better Internet facil-
ities. Groups of concerned scientists are being formed at
the national, regional levels in Africa, building on existing
networks as much as possible. Opinion in the international
science community is being mobilized. Finally, and perhaps
most important of all, eGY-Africa is seeking to engage with
the many other programs, initiatives, and bodies that share
the goal of reducing the Digital Divide either as a direct
policy objective, or indirectly as a means to an end, such
as the development of an indigenous capability in science
and technology for national development. The expectation
is that informed opinion from the scientific community at
the institutional, national, and international levels can be
used to influence the decision makers and donors who are in
a position to deliver better Internet capabilities.