20''Elevation''...here I come:Elevated to new heights of success,healthy,friendship,business,family,finances and more!!!!

Promoting Women in ICT (FOSS)

Women across the world and in particular in Africa face huge challenges in addressing or catching up with their male counterparts when it comes to technology.

What are the possible factors that are currently causing what is termed technophobia amongst women?

Fundamental lessons from Open Source Software

1. Centralized Control does not work

2. Philosophical approach

3. An open and creative mind does wonders

4. Knowledge was meant to be shared

5 Anyone/You can make a difference

Wanted FOSS Certification Manager

Dear Bloggers,



Please kindly visit , http://www.ict-innovation.fossfa.net/CertificationManager
[1]

For more information on the vacancy announcement that has arisen in our
ICT@innovation project

Kind Regards

George G Nyambuya

ICT@innovation

FOSSFA and InWEnt launching first East African regional course on Business and Open Source in Kampala, Uganda

"How can African IT-businesses make money with Free and Open Source Software?“ - this one of the questions that will be discussed at the regional course on "Advanced African Business Models with Free and Open Source Software (FOSS)“. The two-week course will start on the 31^st of August to the 11^th of September 2009. The East African Center for Open Source (EACOSS) will host the event in partnership with InWEnt. This workshop is the second in a series of training-of-trainer (ToT) events in Southern and East Africa. The course is organized by the pan-African Open Source federation FOSSFA as well as the German non-for-profit, "InWEnt – Capacity Building International“. Main training and facilitator partners are the Advanced Information Technology Institute of the Ghana-India Kofi Annan Center for Excellence in ICT (AITI-KACE), the United Nations University, UNU-MERIT of The Netherlands and the Open Society Initiative for Southern Africa (OSISA).

This advanced course will bring together over 20 experts from universities, training institutions and private sector in Tanzania, Ethiopia, Rwanda, Kenya and Uganda. Its main goal is to form a corps of trainers and advocates who are equipped to spread the word on Free and Open Source and its potential for IT-companies in Africa. The course inter alia builds on more than eight practical case studies of African IT companies, who use FOSS to generate income drive innovation, add local value and provide legal, low-cost and high quality software solutions to businesses and administrations in their countries.

The second regional Advanced African FOSS Business Models is part of the multi-year ict@innovation programme, which builds capacities in African small and medium ICT enterprises to make a business with Free and Open Source Software (FOSS). ict@innovation aims to encourage the growth of African ICT industries and private sector development, particularly in Southern and East Africa, through three main actions: spreading FOSS business models for enterprises in Africa, fostering FOSS certification and supporting innovative local FOSS applications for social and economic development. ict@innovation is a partnership of FOSSFA (Free Software and Open Source Foundation for Africa) and InWEnt - Capacity Building International (Germany). Funding partners are the German Ministry Federal Ministry for Economic Cooperation and Development (BMZ) and the Open Society Initiative for Southern Africa (OSISA).

The programme focuses on Free and Open Source Software (FOSS) as a key technology to drive innovation, add local value and create sustainable and affordable ICT-solutions. ict@innovation aims to enhance regional networking and to strengthen consulting capacities of regional and national ICT associations and training institutions as well as of other relevant change agents.

For more information see: http://www.ict-innovation.fossfa.net/

For press inquiries, please contact George Nyambuya (ict@innovation / FOSSFA / InWEnt)

on + 27 (0)12 423 6313 or email: george.nyambuya@inwent.co.za