7 May 2003
Accra — Co-organized and hosted by:ˇ W. E. B. Du Bois Institute for Afro-American Research, Harvard Universityˇ MIT Program on Internet and Telecoms Convergenceˇ Digital Partners Institute (DDNA) will bring together leaders from technology corporations, academia, government and non-profit organizations to consider the necessary steps to reach inclusion and advancement for Africa.
This roundtable discussion is being co-sponsored by the United Nations Information and Communications Technologies (UN ICT) Task Force, the United Nations Development Fund for Women (UNIFEM), Hewlett Packard, US Department of State Office of International Communication and Information Policy, and the US Agency for International Development (USAID). This initiative was facilitated by the United Nations Fund for International Partnerships (UNFIP).
The meeting will explore ways in which the combined knowledge, experiences and resources of the public and private sectors can be harnessed to create positive and sustainable change in Africa. Leaders from government, business, academia and the development community from Ghana, other parts of Africa, Europe and the United States will join together to devise a strategy and implementation plan to enhance technology innovation in and for Africa.
To demonstrate commitment to this end, three major initiatives will be launched during the conference.
1. The meeting will be opened with Ghana New Ventures Competition Inc. (GNVC), awarding its two (2) finalist teams with $1000 each in seed-funding.
2. Digital Partners will launch its Ghana office to service West African social entrepreneurs integrating technology in their business model.
3. The Ghana Web Directory on CD-Rom will be released on May 9th during lunch to better enable synergies between existing Ghanaian ventures.
The conference which would be held at Busy Internet in Accra, will build on the success of the US Digital Diaspora Network Africa launch meeting held at the United Nations in New York in July of 2002 and the European launch meeting held in October at the European Union headquarters in Brussels. These meetings helped to unite the Africa Diaspora community and inspire a sense of commitment and focus to Africa's development.
Experts that will be sharing their views at this conference include: Hon. Kwamena Bartels, Minister for Private Sector Development; Hon. Albert Kan-Dapaah, Minister of Communications and Technology; Dr. Henry Louis Gates, Jr., Harvard University; Dr. Kwame Anthony Appiah, Princeton University; Dean Peter Cowhey, UC San Diego; Dr. Michael L. Best, Massachusetts Institute of Technology; Dr. Akhtar Badshah, Digital Partners; Dorothy Gordon, Digital Partners Ghana; Noeleen Heyzer, UN Development Fund for Women (UNIFEM); Gisele Yitamben, Executive Director ASAFE; Paul Maritz, Venture Capitalist and former Sr. VP of Microsoft; Asie Ocansey, Digital Women and NEKO Tech; Nii Narku Quaynor, Enterprise Africa; John Sarpong, CEO, Africast; and Awo Q Sackey, CEO, AQ Solutions.
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