[kictanet] [Kictanet] Existing/Appropriate Regulatory Models for OFC (Day 8 Cont'd)

Sat Feb 3 18:33:31 EAT 2007

Alex,

Plse, to avoid information overload, plse give a preamble
(executive summary) of what your links do elaborate in what
I believe would be much detail. 

It will be much, much more helpful in that you would assist
us in internalising the whole idea/model...so back to
Mucheru's qtn.  How can/should the Consumers as one of the
Key stakeholders engage with the others  namely, Regulator,
Operator, Govt, in the future dispensation (when OFC has
been provisioned?).

walu.
NB: we shall start on the Closing phase on Monday. I
remembered Kenyans (and other African users?) are not
active internet users on weekends..

--- Alex Gakuru <alex.gakuru at yahoo.com> wrote:

> Glad to:
> 
> Loss of internet users affects everyone and economic
> retardation, knowledge society, will be washed away, just
> like we lost fibre cable in 1995 see Vohra Speech <
> http://www.isoc.or.ke/speeches/launch_vohra.pdf>
> 
> Thus, read my frustrations in the light of the many
> proposals made officially but nothing has ever been done.
>   
> 
> Synopsis:
> 
> 3 things for now maybe more later (if needed.)
> 
> 1. Boost IT confidence for otherwise, there will not be
> any market left for business, no e-government,
> information society....
> 
> <snip>
> You can find them on
> http://www.sweden.gov.se/sb/d/2156/a/22411
> 
> The two reports are:
> 
> - Policy for the IT society - Recommendations from the
> members of the IT
> Policy Strategy Group
> 
> An overall document with recommendations on what the
> government should do.
> It includes information from the 2nd report...
> 
> - Broadband for growth, innovation and competitiveness
> 
> > In April 2004 the Government´s IT Policy Strategy Group
> set up a
> > working group on IT infrastructure and broadband. The
> primary task of
> > the working group has been to support the Strategy
> Group by working,
> > within the framework of a free market, for futureproof,
> accessible,
> > competitionneutral, technologyneutral and coherent
> electronic
> > communications networks, which are capable of meeting
> the challenges
> > of the future. This report summarises the discussions
> and proposals.
>  
> <snip>
>    
> 2. Because Regulator apparently never catchup, then 
> establish consumer complaints portal (something like
> http://spokane.bbb.org/)
>    - ICT policy provides for consumers to frequently
> their concern areas ( a pity all our labored official
> documents were pulled down and replace with a template at
> www.information.go.ke documents.
>    - Consumers register complaints against businesses at
> this portal. When the company addresses the issue, the
> complaint is struck off. governments not allowed to
> transact with business above certain complaints ratio -
> Promotes business ethics.
>    - Register members=>Consumer make responsible
> complaints not malicious to their competitors
>     
> 3. Regulation.
> 
> What is self regulation?
>     - A corporate basement corner "self-regulation" desk
> or acceptance to complaints, criticism and  accepting the
> impact of one's action to others
>     - Regulator will have a "regulatory" job in this
> environment
>     - Currently consumer complaints collected by CCK just
> accumulate dust in their archives and this would be  a
> good way to  measure their performance contracts.
> (Business disputes area addressed in a flash) record. So
> in a way consumers, will "regulate" the Regulator.
> 
> This is just a synopsis let me know if it suffices
> 
> Alex
> 
> Joseph Mucheru <mucheru at wananchi.com> wrote: Alex,
> 
> I may have missed you post, but have you proposed an
> appropriate
> Consumer/Business/Regulatory structure that you believe
> will work? It would
> help to have an idea of what you are proposing as a
> structure.
> 
> Thank you
> 
> --
> Joseph Mucheru
> Executive Director
> mucheru at wananchi.com
> 
> > From: Alex Gakuru 
> > Reply-To: Kenya ICT Action Network - KICTANet 
> > Date: Fri, 2 Feb 2007 00:36:43 -0800 (PST)
> > To: 
> > Cc: 
> > Subject: Re: [kictanet] [Kictanet] Existing/Appropriate
> Regulatory Models for
> > OFC (2days)
> > 
> > Kenya has been profusely bleeding internet users.
> > 
> > In 2005, we had  1.5 million internet users but in Sept
> 2006, ITU revised the
> > number to 1 million. CCK then urged some of us who
> raised this concern that
> > they disputed the figure and urgently launched an
> Internet users study-census
> > on 01 Nov 2006 at Mbagathi.  We  were all promised to
> be called back before
> > end December 2006 for study findings. That never
> happened and January just
> > end.
> > 
> > Two week ago at the World Bank RCIP meeting at the
> Jacaranda Hotel, the PS in
> > his presentation stated the number of internet users to
> be 1.25 million.
> > 
> > Question, Going by the PS data, what could be causing
> internet  loss in Kenya?
> > 
> > Eight years after CCK was formed and section 23 and 47
> of the communications
> > act introduced, The Regulator is yet to show 1
> practical initiative they have
> > ever implemented to protect consumers. Consumer
> protection, it would appear,
> > is petulant and the law is broken without a blink while
> the Regulator embarks
> > on situation containment-management, and life goes on.
> >    
> > Is it time for Civil society to divorce itself from
> over engagement on
> > commercial arrangement discussions between government
> and business and
> > re-dedicate itself to serving the voiceless?
> > 
> > Will all this fibre talk  translate to real consumer
> cost savings or are they
> > just the usual public marketing of the wonderful world
> to come, but as usual
> > just in the future to keep hope high?
> >  
> > In the meantime we continue talk on fibre while a third
> of our internet users
> > are lost.
> > 
> > Alex Gakuru
> > 
> > 
> > Rebecca Wanjiku  wrote: the question of regulation
> > is tricky but as Kihanya points out, it is going to
> take a lot of
> > consultations and concessions between government and
> other stakeholders if the
> > OFC is to work and serve the intended purposes,
> >    
> >   True, other countries have deregulated but what do
> you do in a country like
> > say, Kenya where the anti monopolies commissioner is
> not in the fore front of
> > addressing  issues, am sure many people on the streets
> may not know the
> > existence of that office.
> >    
> >   In the article by Roland Alden that Walu has
> recommended, he argues that
> > many African govts have been resistant to change and
> adds that what is needed
> > is regulation liberalization. Maybe thatâ€™s what is
> needed.
> >    
> >   But how do we start talking of deregulation when we
> canâ€™t agree about the
> > Act that will govern some of these issues.
> >    
> >   I may not be well versed with the law but am sure
> with the technological
> > development, there will arise disputes that were not
> envisaged in our current
> > laws, how do we deal with that within the judicial
> system, we need an ACT
> >   Roland further contends that in some cases,
> regulators may have ordered a
> > party to fulfill its part of the bargain, but when it
> failed, the judicial
> > system "rarely provided any meaningful" compensation to
> the aggrieved party.
> >    
> >   Regulation, deregulation, appropriate law, and am
> sure 
=== message truncated ===>
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