The East African Standard (Nairobi)
Benson Kathuri
26 August 2006
Nairobi — The Government has finalised an Information and Communication Technology (ICT) Bill that also addresses offences linked to computer crimes, Information and Communication minister, Mr Mutahi Kagwe has said.
Kagwe said the Bill that will be tabled in Parliament when it resume in October will make it a criminal offence to programme mobile phones using computers.
He said lack of a legal framework had made it easy to change mobile telephone programmes using computer software.
Speaking during the launch of an international calling card by the Acevilla Development Company, Kagwe said the fast expanding sector was creating problems that require proper legislation.
"The draft ICT Bill is very much a draft but it contains ideas needed to promote the content of the ICT policy," said Kagwe in a speech.
The Bill also seeks to control emerging fraud cases in the ever-expanding e-commerce.
Also targeted is the development and distribution of pornography through the Internet.
The minister appealed to the stakeholders in the sector to read the draft and make recommendations that would improve the industry's regulatory environment.
He said the ICT policy gazetted in March had given the sector clear guidance and pledged that the Government was committed to encourage more players.
However, Acevilla managing director, Mr Las Ove Soderlund, expressed concern that it took the firm one-year to get a licence from the Communications Commission of Kenya to operate the call card service.
"Globe call is a leading card currently used in Europe and now we are introducing it in Kenya," said Sonderlund.
The card, he said, which offers competitive calling charges would be sold countrywide. He said international calls, especially calls to Europe and America, will be fairly cheap to what is available in the market
Sonderlund said it would cost Sh5 per minute to call to the United Kingdom, United States of America, Australia, Canada, China and Germany.
"But it would cost Sh22 per minute to call the United Arab Emirates, India (Sh14) and Pakistan (Sh13)."
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