For more on how ICTs and the Internet can be drivers of open knowledge co-operation and a global knowledge commons , please check the following compilation of articles by GIZ Global Connect, which provides concrete examples and models such as energypedia and ict@innovation. The  reporting was just released in three languages:

- English: Global Knowledge Sharing – “The Wisdom of Crowds”
- Spanish:  La cooperación global en conocimientos como “la sabiduría de muchos”
- German:  Globale Wissenskooperationen als „Die Weisheit der Vielen”

One word on ‘GIZ global connect’. This service addresses participants,  alumni and partners of GIZ  capacity development programmes. The website provides the GIZ community with information on alumni events, follow-up seminars, news, expert chats, network features, and a large community function enabling peer-to-peer networking though social networking tools. To join the community, check the registration info.

“Although many countries are aggressively implementing the One Laptop per Child (OLPC) program, there is a lack of empirical evidence on its effects. This paper presents the impact of the first large-scale randomized evaluation of the OLPC program, using data collected after 15 months of implementation in 319 primary schools in rural Peru. The results indicate that the program increased the ratio of computers per student from 0.12 to 1.18 in treatment schools. This expansion in access translated into substantial increases in use both at school and at home. No evidence is found of effects on enrollment and test scores in Math and Language. Some positive effects are found, however, in general cognitive skills as measured by Raven’s Progressive Matrices, a verbal fluency test and a Coding test.”

This is certainly good news for ICT capacity building in general and even more interesting for the community of ict@innovation, which has been building training capacities around Linux Administration in Africa since 4 years. It looks like there is a lot to share between the pan-African community of 200+ Linux Admin trainers of ict@innovation and the new Linux training partnership in the Arab world. According to the Linux Professional Institute (LPI), which is partnering with ITU in the Arab region, the new programme aims at establishing 132 Linux “Train the trainer” centers on all three levels of Linux professional Institute Certification.

More information on ict@innovations’ African Linux training community: http://www.ict-innovation.fossfa.net/blp

More information on the initiative of ITU and LPI in the Arab world:
http://academy.itu.int/news/item/679/

If you are a German institution and looking for educational partners in Africa for the call, please check the network “ict@innovation – Creating Business and Learning Opportunities with Free and Open Source Software (FOSS) in Africa”. Through this African expert network, you will have access to over 500 ICT multiplier all over Africa, which work at universities, training institutions and other educational institutions as well as the business community.

The three areas eligible for funding under this call for proposals  are:

• Exploratory measures over a period of up to six months, including meetings of experts and thematic workshops

• Pilot measures over a period of up to 24 months, including measures to expand research capacity (participation by African scientists in qualification measures and/or continuing training of research managers, special equipment grants for African partners, etc.).

• ICT study courses: Initial and continuing training measures may receive funding of a maximum of €150,000 per course and year, including scholarships, over a period of up to 24 months within the framework of the development and implementation of German-African advanced post-graduate study courses in the field of applied information and communication technology.

The prospective ICT study courses should take place predominantly in the partner country in Subsaharan Africa and primarily involve Master’s degree programmes. This part of the call will be managed by the German Academic Exchange Service (DAAD).

A special aim is to encourage reliable networking between German and African scientists and researchers from other countries (e.g. through trilateral collaborations with other industrialized or emerging countries).

Deadline for project outline is 30 April 2012.

For more information (also in French and German), links and contact persons, see http://www.bmbf.de/en/furtherance/18242.php

In the following, please find two personal recommendations for interested institutions:

As a German institution, how can I find educational partners in Africa for the call?

You might wish to check respective ICT-related capacity-building education networks in Africa. I would recommend check the network “ict@innovation – Creating Business and Learning Opportunities with Free and Open Source Software (FOSS) in Africa”, a joint initiative by FOSSFA / GIZ with funding by the German Government. Through this African expert network, you will have access to over 500 ICT multiplier all over Africa, which work at universities, training institutions and other educational institutions as well as the business community. Many participants of the ict@innovation community are professors, trainers and lecturers and have a broad experience in building ICT courses These have been further strengthened through two ict@innovation training-of-trainer initiatives, which established local courses on “African Open Source Business Models” and “Linux System Administration” in over 13 African countries.

To access the ict@innovation community, check http://www.ict-innovation.fossfa.net/

The website has a special expert and institution search by country, check the buttons “Find IT-Organizations” and “Find IT-Experts” on the left-hand navigation bar.

How can I participate as an African institution?

As the funding will be channeled through “German universities, non-university research institutions and companies cooperating with partner institutions in Africa” (see call), it seems advisable for African institutions to partner up with suitable German institutions and contact them to form partnerships and apply. For more information on this issue, please refer to the respective contact persons named in the call.

For the study course component:

Contact person at the DAAD for specialist questions is:
Mr. Cay Etzold
Head of Division Eastern and Southern Africa / 413
Phone: +49  228 – 882 686
Fax: +49  228 – 882 9686
E-Mail: etzold@daad.de

Contact person at the DAAD for administrative/financial information is:
Ms. Heide Albertin
Assistant Head of Division Eastern and Southern Africa / 413
Phone: +49 – 228 – 882 275
Fax: +49 – 228 – 882 9275
E-Mail: albertin@daad.de

For the Exploratory measures / Pilot measures

Internet: http://www.internationales-buero.de Contact persons at the International Bureau for subject-related information are:

Ms. Petra Ruth Mann (Southern Africa)
E-mail: Petra-Ruth.Mann@dlr.de
Phone: +49-228-3821 -1461

Ms. Nina Helm (West Africa)
E-mail: Nina.Helm@dlr.de
Phone: +49-228-3821 -1546

Mr. Stefan A. Haffner (Central and Eastern Africa)
E-mail: Stefan.Haffner@dlr.de
Phone: +49-228-3821 -1899

For administrative/financial information, please contact:
Ms. Stephanie Neumann,
E-mail: stephanie.neumann@dlr.de
Phone: +49-228-3821 -1848

Press release
Abuja, March 2nd, 2012

Under the distinguished chairperson  of the Honourable Minister of Communication Technology of the Federal Republic of Nigeria, Engineer Mrs Omobola Johnson, the 5th African Conference on FOSS (Free and Open Source Software) and the Digital Commons – Idlelo 5 will hold at the Umaru Musa Yar’Adua Center in Abuja from the 19th to the 23rd of March 2012. IDLELO 5 follows successful series of conferences already held in Cape Town, South Africa; Nairobi, Kenya; Dakar, Senegal and Accra, Ghana.

The overall theme of the conference is: “Open Source Solutions for achieving the Millennium Development Goals (MDGs)”

Programme
IDLELO 5 will consist of keynotes by internationally-acclaimed ICT and Open Source authorities, sessions on all the Millennium Development Goals and demos and exhibitions of cutting edge technology in hardware, software and recent applications.  A high-level session on the state of Open Data in Africa will see the participation of India, South Africa, Kenya, Tanzania, Brazil and many others.

Certified  training sessions for eLearning in Moodle for universities, Network Monitoring and Management for Network Engineers, Content Management Systems for Webmasters, Internet Governance Capacity for Policy Makers, and FOSS Business Models for SMEs have been secured for all participants.
In collaboration with the Linux Professional Institute of Nigeria, a bootcamp will be organised and on-the-site examinations and certification will be ensured for all aspiring  and senior Linux Professionals.  IDLELO 5 has also acquired collaboration with world-class Ethical Hackers to hold an extra-ordinary Ethical Hacking training during the event.

Jon “maddog” Hall, of the Linux Institute of the United States of America and one of the earliest founders of open source has confirmed a very important keynote. The Director General of the National Information Technology Development Agency (NITDA), Professor Cleopas Angaye, will also be giving key indicators of the information technology development initiatives of the Federal Republic of Nigeria.

Awards
During a cultural gala dinner at the Sheraton Hotel on the 20th of March, an award ceremony will reveal:

• The Guido Sohne Fellow of 2012
• The Best African FOSS Community
• The Best African FOSS Reporter
• The Best FOSS Business Innovation in Africa

Participants
Registrations for IDLELO 5 have arrived from Asia, Europe, USA, Canada, Latin America and all over Africa. It is expected that Yar’Adua Center will be hosting at least 1000 participants during this week.

Exhibition
A limited number of exhibtion booths have been reserved for top technologies players in the country. NGOs, artists and all development stakeholders will also find a place for an exhibition during IDLELO.

Partners

1. The Federal Ministry of Communication Technology – COMTECH
2. The National Communications Commission – NCC
3. The National Information Technology Development Agency – NITDA
4. The Economic Community of West Africa State – ECOWAS
5. The Common Market for Southern Africa – COMESA
6. The United Nations Economic Commission for Africa – ECA
7. UNESCO – France
8. Network Startup Resource Center – USA
9. GIZ – Germany
10. ICANN – USA
11. The Nigeria ICT Forum of Partnership Institutions LTD/GTE
12. Federal University,  Oye Ekiti
13. Backbone Connectivity Network Nigerian Limited
14. MainOne
15. Nigerian Internet Registries Associan
16. OMATEK Computer
17. CHAMS
18. ICT@INNOVATION Project
19. IBM Africa – Kenya
20. DiploFoundation  – Malta
21. The Ghana-India Kofi Annan Center for Excellence in ICT  – Ghana
22. The Deutsche Welle, Germany
23. Mandriva Africa
24. Google Africa
25. Linux Professionals Institute – LPI
26. Nigerian Internet Exchange Point – NIXP
27. Association of African Univeristies – AAU
28. Creative Commons – CC
29. Abuja Logistics Company – ALC
30. West Africa Internet Governance Forum – WAIGF
31. The Yar’Adua Foundation

About the Conference
IDLELO 5 will be one event for FOSS practitioners, developers and advocates as well as governments, education and businesses to showcase results, share experiences and challenges, review progress on the continent in diverse domains and chart a way forward for an African future grounded in true ownership of technology that will help achieve the Millennium Development Goals. IDLELO 5 offers a real opportunity to discuss new issues, tackle complex problems and find advanced enabling solutions able to shape new trends in FOSS and related technologies on the African continent.

IDLELO is a Southern African word meaning “Common Grazing Ground”. It is  the premier African continent’s  open technology gathering.  Every two years, the continent dedicates a one-week period to appraise its open source and free software initiatives, expertise, community, challenges and experiences. This March event is the continent’s rallying point for critical issues in the Information and Communication Technology (ICT) as they are directly related to the development of its people, governments and business enterprises.  http://www.idlelo.net is the official web site

About FOSSFA
The Free Software and Open Source Foundaiton for Africa – FOSSFA, is Africa’s premier Non-Governmental FOSS organisation on the continent. The vision of FOSSFA is to promote the use of FOSS and the FOSS model in African development. FOSSFA supports the integration of FOSS in national policies, coordinates, promotes and adds value to African FOSS initiatives, creativity, industry, expertise, efforts and activities at all levels. FOSSFA partners with development organizations who share these goals towards a participatory and gender-mainstreamed sustainable development and the attainment of the Millennium Development Goals in Africa. http://www.fossfa.net is the official website

About OSFON
The Open Source Foundation for Nigeria is the nation’s association of its FOSS activists, media, academia, researchers, developers, businesses, and agencies for the common FOSS objective. Its mission  is to promote and educate decision makers in government, educators, NGOs, businesses and citizens on the advantages of using the Linux Operating System, Free and Open Source Applications and Open Standards.  The official web site is http://www.osfon.org.ng

CONFERENCE CONTACT
Mr Dele Ajisomo        OSFON President     08088356709        dele[at]osfon.org.ng

The IGC is the global conference for geographers worldwide, and Germany is host country in 2012. We, the UNESCO Chair/Centre in ICT4D at Royal Holloway, University of London and Mark Wilson from Michigan State University are organising an ICT4D session and would welcome abstracts/papers from colleagues (academics and practitioners from all different disciplines) working on ICTs, development and well-being, in the global South and/or the global North. The deadline for abstracts is Jan 8, so please send them in soon.    

The full Call for Papers has been posted here:

http://www.e-agriculture.org/events/32nd-international-geographical-congress-igc2012

If you want to submit a paper please submit an abstract of up to 250 words to Dorothea Kleine (dorothea.kleine@rhul.ac.uk) and Mark Wilson (wilsonmm@msu.edu) and/or the online registration form at www.igc2012.org by 8th January 2012.

The Manual and the Toolbox could be found on the “IT Sector Promotion Tools” page of this blog.

Participants will receive intensive training on FOSS Business Models in Africa, learn how ICT enterprises can use FOSS as a business, obtain necessary business skills to establish and operate a FOSS business in Africa, and acquire knowledge and skills to adopt FOSS training as a business. The main goal of the Training of Trainers is to share skills and qualifications to equip African ICT companies with the knowledge needed to successfully integrate FOSS into their business.  Those who take part in the Training of Trainers will be expected to give trainings on FOSS Business Models a part of their regular business and/or teaching activities.

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

The training of trainer programme is part of the following human capacity development programme:

ict@innovation – Creating Business and Learning Opportunities with Free and Open Source Software in Africa

 The programme ict@innovation 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 in Africa. The programme aims at enhancing regional networking and strengthening consulting capacities of regional and national ICT associations, training institutions, and other change agents. The programme is a partnership of FOSSFA – Free Software and Open Source Foundation for Africa  and  the GIZ – Deutsche Gesellschaft für Internationale Zusammenarbeit. Funding partners are the German Ministry Federal Ministry for Economic Cooperation and Development (BMZ) and the Open Society Initiative for Southern Africa (OSISA). Please find more information at http://www.ict-innovation.fossfa.net