The Africa Network Information Center resisted (AfriNIC) manages Internet numbers, offers training on Internet deployment, connectivity and utilisation, and provides a forum for the technical community.
The challenges facing AfriNIC represent significant opportunities, precisely because critical Internet infrastructure is not yet in place in much of Africa, and because the prospect and potential of significant Internet capacity is more real than ever with the arrival of fibre optic connectivity on all sides of the continent. Adiel Akplogan, CEO of AfriNIC, said, "Africa has the privilege to be in the midst of the Internet engineering developments and we can help shape policies and foster dialogue on what works and what doesn't."
Mr Akplogan added a message on a measure of progress in Africa, noting that AfriNIC is working with governments, advising them on critical issues affecting the value of the Internet to African public departments. He spoke of a government working group that has been introduced to create an environment for governments, regulators and law enforcement agencies to understand the Internet ecosystem and raise any issues that might be of concern - including the development of policy, and international collaboration, and moves towards combatting cybercrime. Key to much of the work underway at AfriNIC is the prospect of an IP technical centre of excellence at its base in Mauritius, to provide training on the economics and commercial realities associated with the Internet - to help develop business models with Internet service providers (ISPs), for example. The new centre complements AfriNIC's virtual lab, which is already accessible to universities with bilateral arrangements.
