Local access and community networking
With hundreds of telecommunications and broadcasting licenses granted since 1992, Nigeria is arguably the leading country in Africa with respect to spectrum deregulation and licensing. There are over currently 350 licensed broadcast stations in operation in the country. With the global trend that will see two regulatory bodies merge, this report questions which regulatory body’s practice of assignment will prevail, and what steps will be taken to improve transparency and usage of spectrum â...
APC’s open spectrum initiative aims to provide an understanding of spectrum regulation by examining the situation in Africa, Asia and Latin America. The timely research coincides with the rapid growth of wireless and mobile in Asia, Africa and Latin America, and raises fresh questions about the use of spectrum and the policies that govern it. The research looks at how spectrum is assigned, who assigns it, and what policy or regulatory framework they use.
Every thirty months the amount of information that can be transmitted over a wireless internet connection has the potential to double. Wireless could be the way to provide affordable broadband to millions of people currently living with poor connectivity. However the policy and regulation related to spectrum is often inefficient, secretive and ill-informed. APC’s new research will examine how...
Wireless technology could radically transform the lives of millions of people living with poor connectivity — but only if the policy makes sense. Our research critiques the situation in Africa, Asia and Latin America.
At the regulatory layer, Communications Commission of Kenya (CCK) is a key actor with a legal mandate on spectrum management in Kenya. Kenya Communications Act 1998, Kenya Communications Act 2010, and subsequent subsidiary legislation as promulgated by the Minister define the CCK’s mandate. Appeals Tribunal arbitrates any disputes arising from implementation of the enabling legislation.
In order to reduce poverty and foster inclusive development through affordable access to the internet, APC developed a resource kit for realising a universal access agenda, present promising options, experiences, lessons and opportunities in pro-poor access provision in developing societies.
Project Capacity Building for Community Wireless Connectivity in Africa was implemented over a period of just over two years (from the end of 2004 to late 2006). It started out primarily as an initiative to gather knowledge and resources on community wireless connectivity. But, working with a network of partners to design the project, its eventual goals were to pilot face-to-face workshops, dev...
In Africa, APC’s main focus is on access to infrastructure. Africa currently has to pay for some of the most expensive bandwidth in the world and the hard currency paid leaves the continent. Because East Africa does not have international fibre connections it is paying even more than West African countries connected to the monopoly-controlled SAT3/WASC cable.
The aim of this manual is to draw upon existing knowledge and materials on Telecentres, and adapt them to the African context in a style, which is user-friendly and makes few assumptions about the user’s knowledge. This manual is aimed at any person or organisation that is interested in setting up a community-based Telecentre, such as a telecom operator, an NGO, a community group, a local gov...

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