[kictanet] Toronto: DCA's Contribution to ICANN Africa Strategy and the Multi-Stakeholder Model

[Gideon]

*Toronto: DCA's Contribution to ICANN
Africa<http://www.circleid.com/posts/20121022_comments_by_dca_trust_on_the_icann_multi_stakeholder_model_africa/>
Strategy and
the Multi-Stakeholder
Model<http://www.circleid.com/posts/20121022_comments_by_dca_trust_on_the_icann_multi_stakeholder_model_africa/>
*

http://www.circleid.com/posts/20121022_comments_by_dca_trust_on_the_icann_multi_stakeholder_model_africa/

**

*This is a complete unabridged version of the document by Ms. Sophia
Bekele, Executive Director, DotConnectAfrica, titled: "General Comment on
the ICANN Multi-Stakeholder Model & DCA's Contribution to the ICANN Africa
Strategy". A shorter version was read out at the ICANN's Public Forum
Meeting on Thursday, October 18, 2012 due to constraint of time.*

* * *My name is Sophia Bekele, I am Executive Director, DotConnectAfrica.

DCA Trust has been participating in the ICANN Global Community and
attending the ICANN International Meetings regularly and actively within
the past few years. DCA Trust is also a new gTLD applicant, and has
submitted an application for the .Africa generic Top-Level Domain.

This *ICANN-45 Meeting in Toronto has provided a landmark opportunity for
the presentation of the initial draft of the ICANN Africa Strategy*. We are
thankful for the increased attention that is now being given to Africa, in
order to put it more firmly on the ICANN Global Map.

ICANN thrives on its multi-stakeholder, transparent and consensus-based
approach to policy development and implementation. *Meanwhile, the same
multi-stakeholder approach is often criticized, but the critics of this
model are unable to devise an alternative approach that could effectively
replace the multi-stakeholder model*, and serve the global public interest
on issues of Global Internet Governance. A global Internet requires that
different stake-holders participate in its governance, and that a proper
forum is provided for any interested party to participate ensure that such
voices are heard. At the very minimum, the debate will be enriched based on
democratic principles. *DCA will continue to support the multi-stakeholder
concept, without needing to over-emphasize that in the absence of the
multi-stakeholder model, DCA Trust, as a private, non-profit, non-partisan,
independent organization will not have the opportunity to be heard in
matters of Global Internet Governance and as an active participant in the
global ICANN Community*.

At the ICANN-44 Prague meeting, DCA Trust had been concerned that a
preliminary meeting was held between some ICANN officials and certain
group(s) of the African constituency at ICANN. DCA Trust was not invited to
that meeting, for which reason we demonstrated our grievance by writing a
letter to ICANN to protest our exclusion. *It later transpired that the
meeting was to lay the initial framework for commencing the ICANN Africa
Strategy, and we interpreted our apparent exclusion from participating in
that meeting as a prelude to our non-involvement in the process of the
ICANN Africa Strategy — both in formulation and implementation*. We
complained again based on multi-stakeholder principles. We strongly believe
that all those participating as recognized constituents of the African
Community at ICANN should be involved in any ICANN Africa Strategy. Even
whilst maintaining that our initial complaints were valid, we also believe
that all that is now in the past and that DCA Trust was able to make its
point.

Accordingly, in moving forward towards future and positive cooperative
endeavors, *we are thankful to Mr. Tarek Kamel, the Senior Adviser to the
ICANN President & CEO, who also has the primary responsibility for leading
the formulation and implementation of the ICANN Africa Strategy*. Mr. Kamel
has been gracious enough to meet with DCA Trust here in Toronto and discuss
the framework under which DCA Trust will participate in the ICANN Africa
Strategy. To this end, DCA Trust is pleased to announce that it has
developed a new initiative — the Internet Business Council for Africa
(IBCA) — that is aimed at increasing the African private sector
participation at ICANN; to be implemented as a component part of the ICANN
Africa Strategy.

*The principal objective of this initiative is to help promote and increase
the multi-stakeholder diversity at ICANN in line with the broader strategic
objectives of the ICANN Strategic Plan* covering the three-year period that
spans July 2013 to June 2016. We envision that the inclusion and early
adoption of the proposed IBCA initiative as a key component of the ICANN
Africa Strategy will strengthen ICANN's multi-stakeholder model; as the
organization increases the visibility of its work and overall
outreach/communication activities in Africa, and DCA Trust is proud to
propose this as a strategic input that would enable it achieve further
levels of cooperation with ICANN in the implementation of its Strategic
Plan. The private sector is seen as the key driver of socio-economic
transformation and enabler of economic growth in an emerging Africa,
therefore, any initiative that attempts to increase the participation of
this important business and non-governmental constituency in Global
Internet Governance will no doubt strengthen the multi-stakeholder work of
ICANN. DCA Trust has already submitted a copy of the IBCA proposal to ICANN
through Mr. Tarek Kamel, and will also avail copies to the ICANN leaders.

In closing, *DCA Trust is thankful for the opportunity afforded by this
ICANN-45 Public Forum in Toronto to share its proposed IBCA initiative*.

By DotConnectAfrica

**
* *
* [image: DotConnectAfrica] <http://www.circleid.com/members/6624/>*

DCA is a not-for-profit, non-partisan org incorporated in Mauritius Africa
and will sponsor, establish and operate a TLD registry with global
recognition and regional significance dedicated to the needs of Pan-African
& African constituency. (Learn More <http://www.circleid.com/members/6624/>)
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