Addis Ababa — African Development Forum (ADF), to be convened in Addis Ababa under the theme "The Challenge to Africa of Globalisation and the Information Age", from 24 - 28 October 1999.
President Thabo Mbeki of South Africa is due to officially open the Forum, which will attract some 500 participants drawn from governments, the private sector, civil society and other interested stakeholders from both within and outside the continent.
The ADF is an initiative led by the Economic Commission for Africa (ECA) to position an African-driven development agenda that reflects a consensus among major partners and that leads to specific programmes for implementation at country level. ADF is born out of the conviction that Africa cannot achieve sustainable development unless the policies, strategies and actions are designed, managed and owned by them.
The issue of globalisation and the information age has been chosen for the inaugural ADF because of the importance of defining African-owned and African- led strategies to engage with the global information economy. ECA has long advocated a development-serving information superhighway in the context of the African Information Society Initiative (AISI) which it is implementing along with a wide range of partners.
With its large rural population Africa represents the largest untapped market for the new communications services - and a challenge to investors who must identify and adapt products for local markets. While the continent lags well behind all other regions in access to information society tools growth of the Internet over the last five years has surprised many - in the last half of 1998 the number of Internet hosts grew at a rate of 38% compared to a global average of 18%. African governments are restructuring their telecommunications environments to increase transparency and competition and create an environment that is more conducive to development of ICTs.
The Forum is structured around four themes:
* Strengthening Africa's information infrastructure
* Africa and the information economy
* Information and communication technologies for improved governance
* Democratising access to the information society
The ADF is not just another conference or event. It is a concrete process designed to yield concrete outcomes, including:
- Up-to-date National Information and Communication Infrastructure (NICI) plans - Enhanced synergy among the stakeholders who design and/or implement country work programmes; - Development of concrete follow-up action plans for the Post-Forum Summit Dialogue, NICI and regional levels, for ICT partners, and for ECA; - Preparation of the African position for major global decision-making forums, including the GK II conference (Malaysia, March 2000) and the ITU World conference on the Information Society;
For the media, ADF '99 represents an important opportunity to report on the major developments in Information technology as the 21st century looms. As part of the ADF process, 20 up-to-date country studies will be made available, giving a detailed perspective on how far a number of African countries have come in putting in place the required infrastructure, policies and partnerships to build their national "Infrastructure". The emphasis will on concrete gains made in such areas as telemedicine, distance learning and electronic commerce. Major private and public sector actors will be on hand to exhibit their applications, products and services.
Prior to the Forum, a Media Symposium is scheduled on Friday 22 October 1999. The Symposium will provide a forum for journalists to share ideas and perspectives on how the new information and communication technologies are enhancing their impact as media professionals. You will be contacted shortly regarding specific presentational inputs at the symposium. We also hope to feature exciting demonstrations of state-of-the-art IT and Internet applications that are specifically designed to facilitate the work of the media. During the Forum itself, there will be a panel discussion on the role fo the Media and ICTs.
The ECA Communication Team will be on hand to facilitate interviews and filing of stories, and provide regular information updates and briefings throughout ADF '99.
Please find attached to this e-mail a brochure on ADF '99, as well as the latest draft of the programme.
IF YOU ARE INTERESTED IN SENDING JOURNALISTS TO COVER ADF '99, PLEASE PROVIDE The FOLLOWING INFORMATION AT The LATEST BY FRIDAY 1 OCTOBER:
1. Name, title, full contacts and full passport details of the correspondent you wish to assign to ADF; 2. Details of computer, broadcasting or other equipment to be brought into Ethiopia (including details of model, serial numbers etc); 3. Special technical requirements (Internet access, studio space for interviews, transportation etc); 4. Hotel, visa and other logistical requirements;
Please respond to:
Charlotte Mfasoni Communication Team Tel: +251-1-51 58 26 (direct) or +251-1- 51 72 00 Ext. 33161 Fax: +251-1-51 03 65 E-mail: mfasoni@un.org
I look forward to hearing from you, and thank you in advance for your kind cooperation.
Yours Sincerely
Peter K.A. da Costa Senior Communication Adviser Economic Commission for Africa (ECA) United Nations P.O. Box 3001 (official mail) Addis Ababa Ethiopia Tel: +251-1-51 58 26 Cell: +251-9-20 17 94 Fax: +251-1-51 03 65 E-Mail: dacosta@un.org dacosta@igc.apc.org Web: http://www.un.org/depts/eca
For further information on the ADF, please visit the ECA website at http://www.un.org/depts/eca/adf
