Community Projects 2 October 2014

SMART Rwanda Days: Boosting Local Content

By Michael KendeGuest AuthorSenior Advisor at Analysys Mason; Digital Development Specialist, IFC

The Internet Society is working with the Ministry of Youth and ICT in Rwanda on a study to help build a robust hosting environment for content in Rwanda.  In most African countries, including Rwanda, no more than 5% of Internet content is sourced locally, with the rest sourced internationally — including African developed content that is hosted overseas. This is true for global sites, such as Facebook, and for local sites such as online news and radio.  Moving this content local will boost the local Internet and business economy, attract more Rwandans to go on- line, and help reduce the cost of delivering Internet access.

Today Karen Rose, Senior Director, Strategic Development & Business Planning, is participating on a panel on local hosting at the SMART Rwanda Days in Kigali, Rwanda.  SMART Rwanda Days is an annual event bringing together national and international stakeholders in the ICT sector – industry experts, policy makers, and development partners – to discuss how Rwanda can leverage Information Communication Technologies for economic transformation in line with Vision 2020.  Smartrwandadays.rw.

We are honored to work together with the Minister, the Hon. Jean Philbert Nsengimana, and his team to help achieve the vision of Rwanda to meet its economic goals, and we will shortly release our study, which we believe will act as a template for all countries seeking to spur local hosting and development of content and applications.

Watch the Session Live

Disclaimer: Viewpoints expressed in this post are those of the author and may or may not reflect official Internet Society positions.

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