A brief note from our outgoing CEO (Neil Dundas) on dotAfrica and what it has meant for the registry
"The whole dotAfrica (.africa) application process has been a steep learning curve for us. Although it has been a complicated and time-consuming process, it has nevertheless been an invaluable eye opener for us. Thanks largely to our existing operational capacity, our experience with the .ZA ccTLD and the fantastic team of people at the ZA Central Registry, we have coped very well and have made Africa proud.
Despite the challenges we have faced on this journey, we have been able to grow and mature as a world class registry much quicker than we could have as a ccTLD administrator alone. We are now more confident than ever before that we can compete with the best in the world. We are able to hold our own on any technical, business and/or operational matter at the top- level of the Internet name industry. The dotafrica project has been an opportunity for us to develop our skills, as well as to mature our structures and systems.
A big thank you must go to the membersof the dotAfrica team and our supporters based all over the continent of Africa and throughout the world.
Bring on 2014, bring on dotAfrica!
A few words from some of our steercom members on dotAfrica and its future
“dotAfrica is an important project for Africa, Africa is united today behind dotAfrica (.africa) as its future Internet Identity. The success of dotAfrica (.africa) will enable us to contribute back to the Africa Internet community development throughout projects funding plans." -Mohammed El Bashir
"Our main goal is to promote and contribute to the development of Africa's internet economy by creating a visible regional internet domain space for Africans, by Africans and global stakeholders interested in and associated with Africa" - Alice Munyua
The ICT industry holds several meetings throughout the year and some of our team members are given the opportunity to attend them. Below are some of the meetings attended by the dotAfrica team this year.
ICANN 46 Meeting
The first ICANN meeting of the year was held in Beijing, Republic of China. This was the 24th meeting and was said to be the most well attended meeting in the history of ICANN meetings. There were at least 2600-registered participants.While at ICANN 46, the ZA Central Registry (ZACR) and the African Top Level Domains Organisation (AfTLD) signed a Memorandum of Understanding (MoU). The agreement is a ratification of the partnership which has existed since 2011 when AfTLD and its members endorsed the ZACR dotAfrica application.
ICANN 47 Meeting
In July 2013 the ZA Central Registry team had an opportunity to co-host an ICANN meeting. ICANN 47 was held in the city of Durban, South Africa, from 14 to 18 July 2013. In partnership with ZADNA (South African Domain Name Authority), we were able to pull off a successful, authentically African experience for the delegates in attendance. It was at this meeting that we received the news that our dotAfrica application had passed Initial Evaluation. The dotAfrica team celebrated this milestone at Zack’s restaurant on the Durban beach front.
The team celebrates
The first ever Africa Domain Name Industry Awards 2013 were held at the meeting in Durban. The nominees for the awards included registries from all over Africa. ZACR was delighted to receive the award for Best Registry for the ccTLD .ZA. The meeting ended with a visit to a Durban school on Nelson Mandela Day(18 July) where delegates met the school children and painted Chesterville High School beautifully...Read More
Internet Service Providers Association(ISPA) iWeek, South Africa
During iweek our team members were involved in several presentations and panel discussions. Neil Dundas(ZACR,CEO), Alice Munyua(Steercom Member) and Vika Mpisane(ZADNA, CEO) were key speakers at the meetings. ISPA and Coza Cares Foundation partnered to honour hard working teachers through the Super Teacher Awards. A Gala Dinner was held to end off the event at Back o' The Moon in Gold Reef City.
ICANN 48 Meeting
The ICANN meeting took place in Buenos Aires, Argentina, from 17 to 21 November 2013. It was attended by at least 2000 delegates. ICANN celebrated its 15th Anniversary during this meeting. Some of the developments at the meeting were: new gTLDs delegated into the root-zone, and the Trade Mark Clearing House's new database.
Our team members attended the ICANN48 Meeting. Their participation in the meeting included a presentation on The Marks Validation System, which will cater for the needs of African rights holders to participate in the (sunrise) launch of this exciting new domain. With the support of the Government Advisory Committee we a requested a “special launch” programme for geographic and community TLD’s and also requested the ICANN Board in the BA Communique to provide clarity on the proposed launch program for special cases as a matter of urgency.".
MEET THE TEAM
We would like to thank the hardworking team members who keep the registry going, and are instrumental in creating the success that dotAfrica has enjoyed thus far and will continue to enjoy going into 2014.
We conducted interviews with some of the dotAfrica team members about their travelling experiences and dotAfrica's popularity.
"What I picked up while travelling to northern Africa, is that African people are very welcoming. It was wonderful meeting people from different countries.T he dotAfrica project will unite Africa and is becoming huge, thanks to conferences around the African continent and ZACR's promotion of it at these conferences"- Sipho Xaba
"Through travelling I have learnt that our company is a great vehicle for change, a great start-up agent, a light required in our continent. People are aware of us, and they are keen on knowing who dotAfrica is and what it’s bringing along with it. I had the chance to network with different individuals concerning ICT in Africa, who they are and what their desires are in life"-Louis Bezeidenhout
"We had a great experience and met people from different parts of the African continent. Networking and getting to know other people at the conferences is also very important because you get to share ideas. DotAfrica is a very well marketed project and well known. People are waiting with great enthusiasm to see how this great project will unfold-Andile Ndabeni
For a catch up on all the dotAfrica newsletter posted this year click this link: dotAfrica Newsletters
Visit our website daily for dotAfrica and ICT news: www.africainonespace.org
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