[AfrICANN-discuss] Re: [africs-ig] Africa report
Ben Akoh
me at benakoh.com
Wed May 29 20:36:28 SAST 2013
Healthy dialogue Mawaki,
Perhaps Adiele and others can chime in with the necessary support.
Over to them...
Ben
On 5/29/13 11:56 AM, Mawaki Chango wrote:
> Hi Ben,
> Thanks for such a thoughtful response! In the light of your vibrant case
> for such, I hope I didn't convey the impression that I was dismissing
> donor-funded and commissioned research/studies/reports as part of their
> programs. They are of course useful since they are supposed to reach
> specific objectives and programmatic goals, which generally consist in
> helping bring about improvements on some issues or in some areas.
> My main point for making the distinction between both research avenues
> was to say we (both public and policy-makers, at least) cannot
> fundamentally change our rapport to research in the sense you are
> advocating for if we do not commit to research. And the indicator
> showing that we are seriously committed to research is not to be
> found in the number of studies or reports that may be commissioned by
> foreign/international donors (the recommendations of which, as you
> deplore, are rarely translated into actions by policy-makers), but in
> the ways we support our local/national/regional research institutions
> and tap into them for, and associate them as much as possible with, our
> various activities for social, economical and political change which may
> gain from research. And the day such level of sustainable support will
> manifest, you'll see that (well, that's my speculation but I think it's
> a sound one ;)) even recommendations from donor-sponsored studies will
> also be given more attention and they will be more readiness to
> translate them into actions. Because, as I think we agree, it is a
> cultural thing in addition to being a resource challenge.
> I might add some of the donors actually commissioned their studies
> through local/national academic institutions keeping institutional
> capacity-building as one of their objectives (I'm very much aware of
> this since that was what I did with the project 'Scan-ICT' at IDRC.) On
> the other hand you and I know very well that development projects are
> not always followed with a robust evaluation and they chronically suffer
> from lack of sustainability. I believe healthier academic research
> institutions will help foster the spirit of taking into account any
> research outcomes, and consequently, increase the potential impact of
> the research-based work done by development actors. So while I put my
> emphasis on research institutions, particularly academic research, I did
> not mean to be exclusive but cumulative in order to power the change
> we're all seeking.
>
> I would add finally, that African based institutions with funding
> should step up to the plate and provide the necessary supports that
> creates a space for African research on internet and digital futures.
>
> With the clarification I've provided above, I think it's safe to say
> we're in violent agreement not only on the point above but all the
> preceding ones you made.
>
> Apart from Research ICT in Africa, and other open access journals,
> few or none else provides any support for the telling of success
> stories of African ICT grassroots initiatives. Perhaps you can
> initiate an African Journal for this sort of research, Mawaki, my
> friend. I, and I am sure, a few others would gladly provide articles.
>
> I'm just getting back in the blocks, my dear... I mean the starting
> blocks, scrutinizing the horizon and gauging the challenge ahead ;)
> Well, let me just say for now, we will all need each other to make
> change happen in these matters of concern to us all.
> Best,
> Mawaki
>
> On Wed, May 29, 2013 at 3:26 PM, Ben Akoh <me at benakoh.com
> <mailto:me at benakoh.com>> wrote:
>
> Hi Mawaki,
>
>
> On 5/28/13 3:33 PM, Mawaki Chango wrote:
>
> Ben, and all:
> Could you please provide a link to the web page of the organization
> you're referring to? There are many pages that respond to the name
> "Research in Africa" a link would help disambiguate the search
> results.
>
>
> Research ICT in Africa does not only provide primary data, but
> analysis of primary data. See
> http://www.researchictafrica.__net/data.php
> <http://www.researchictafrica.net/data.php>. Data is also available
> at the world bank and ITU data sites. Few Project based and Program
> funded research exists on the sites of the institution you work for
> - APC, and as are the regional policy institutes such as CIPACO and
> CIPESA. As it concerns internet governance, substantial amount of
> research data exists on Afrinic sites. I have conducted a few
> research available on www.iisd.org <http://www.iisd.org>. Ken
> Lohento does substantial amount of work on ICTs and Agriculture. And
> there are numerous others sites to mention with research work of may
> Africans local and in the Diaspora (rigorous search would help). Not
> to mention reports that have been written for publications in
> Academic journals, some of which you have written but may never be
> available to us in Africa. The kind of reports that Nnenna mentions
> may be possible if a blogger takes this as his/her task to report on
> such global international arrangements. But not all bloggers have
> the luxury of physically attending these events. Perhaps those that
> do could capture the data and make them available to researchers
> like you and I for "proper" presentation to a wider audience.
>
>
>
> Clearly we agree on the root of the problem being in the mindset
> you're
> describing rather than the simple lack of data (after all that very
> mindset might well be one of the causal factors why data may be
> lacking
> on some issues.).
>
>
> Agreed. Still speculative though but generally a fair assumption to
> begin from.
>
>
> Having said that, we need to go beyond publishing reports
> commissioned
> by international/external donors as part of their programs/projects.
>
>
> There is nothing wrong with commissioning reports as a part of a
> program/project or as I would put it, a strategic focus. It is
> besides the point if a program's strategic focus, be it local or
> international, is commissioned by a donor. What is most important is
> that it generates useful data and analysis of data, it is conducted
> in a rigorous, systematic and empirical manner, that bias and other
> factors are declared and stated, and that the report recognizes the
> nuances of the local context. You would agree that these are more
> important than a mere brush stroke painting of internationally
> funded programs or project.
>
> It
>
> seems to me the intended or natural audience for those reports are,
> or in any case their audience is most of the time limited
> to, policy-makers and other policy-driven actors.And unfortunately,
>
> unless another round of activities is funded to package the
> findings help launch advocacy or campaign efforts, etc. they are
> likely
> to die on the shelves or worse in the office drawers.
>
>
> In most cases (anecdotally) yes, but there remain very good projects
> that have taken research outcomes to the grassroots in the form of,
> for instance, role plays and theaters, that change belief systems
> and attitudes about for instance, climate change and adaptation,
> finance, reproductive health, and rights. I have researched some of
> these in the past 3 to four years and have funded those sorts of
> projects in West Africa for about six years. Certainly, successful
> grassroots initiatives like Mpesa did not hit the ground without
> some research. The point is, policy makers are a part of a research
> audience, but the mechanisms are required by which such
> reports/researches can reach a wider audience base. The point about
> my earlier email is that there is first, a fundamental difference;
> and second, a gulf between the commissioning/dissemination of
> reports and the implementation of report recommendations. Linking
> those two is the "will" (or if you like, mechanism) that must be
> developed to transition from the one to the other. That is what we
> are missing. That gap needs to be bridged.
>
>
>
> While we should keep making those efforts and pushing
> policy-makers to
> embrace evidence-based policy making aided by those reports, it
> is in my
> view crucial to invest also in academic research on those issues
> --not
> just studies and reports, but sheer scholarly research.
>
>
> Agreed.
>
>
> Because there is
>
> a wider array of questions that academics are prepared to tackle and
> demonstrate the relevance thereof (as opposed to studies that are
> designed as part of, say, a charity or development
> organization-funded
> program).
>
>
> I wouldnt disregard these ll together (although some needs to be
> questioned). They provide useful sources of data from which academic
> research papers can be written. Not all researchers are ethnographic
> or willing to situate themselves in their research context for a
> long period of time. However, these reports seen through the eyes of
> the research participants help academics to provide research useful
> for academic debate and knowledge.
>
> There are two points here, that I would like to conclude with:
> 1. Producing critical, empirical, rigorous, systematic research
> useful for contributing to knowledge and for academic debate.
> Research of this form have a place in our African societies and
> context. The capacities for these need to be created. These include:
> developing the human research capacity; creating the necessary
> research departments and faculties in academic institutions;
> commissioning and providing the necessary funding for such research
> by African governments, private sectors, economic commissions, and
> institution communities (i.e. Afrinic); and creating a space for
> wider policy debate of research in our countries and regions.
>
> 2. Linking research to grassroots development. I mentioned in my
> previous email that research should not just be for the sake of it,
> but that it should make meaning in the lives of people. We should be
> able to say that, "this policy or government program was influenced
> by this or that research". I can however, not substantially assert
> that policy makers and governments can say so. These mechanisms
> need to be developed and systematized within the African governance
> structures.
>
> I would add finally, that African based institutions with funding
> should step up to the plate and provide the necessary supports that
> creates a space for African research on internet and digital
> futures. Apart from Research ICT in Africa, and other open access
> journals, few or none else provides any support for the telling of
> success stories of African ICT grassroots initiatives. Perhaps you
> can initiate an African Journal for this sort of research, Mawaki,
> my friend. I, and I am sure, a few others would gladly provide articles.
>
>
> Best,
> Ben
>
>
> Because research leads to an orderly accumulation of
>
> knowledge, and research generates more research. Students and
> peers read
> the outcomes and seek to critique it and to add their
> contribution (and
> this ripple effect doesn't require that much additional
> funding.) And
> because once research findings are recognized as valid by the
> community
> of peers, it is more likely that they will raise questions
> wherever they
> apply, eg, to policy-makers, and sparkle debates, which can in turn
> drive the public attention, etc.
> So this is my impassioned call ;) for all practitioners and all
> those
> already in this field to make particular efforts to associate
> researchers, particularly social science researchers (and further
> particularly the younger ones who might be interested in new
> areas to
> specialize in), to your relevant activities and proceedings. We
> could
> wait for them to come to us but we are the ones closer to the
> field, so
> we can afford to be more proactive and reach out to them knowing
> that to
> date there's no subject area labeled internet governance in
> university
> curricula.
> Mawaki
>
>
> On Tue, May 28, 2013 at 12:28 PM, Ben Akoh <me at benakoh.com
> <mailto:me at benakoh.com>
> <mailto:me at benakoh.com <mailto:me at benakoh.com>>> wrote:
>
> Some organizations, eg Research in Africa are producing
> reports from
> primary data (because of the challenges of accessing both
> primary
> and secondary data) such as mawaki describes. A substantial
> amount
> of data and analysis of data already exists, although more
> needs to
> be done. However, the fundamental question pertains to a
> mindset
> that fails to read these reports or to associate research
> findings
> with policy action. It shouldn't be a report just for the
> sake of it!
>
> Sent from my iPhone
>
> On 2013-05-28, at 6:27 AM, Dandjinou Pierre
> <pdandjinou at gmail.com <mailto:pdandjinou at gmail.com>
> <mailto:pdandjinou at gmail.com
> <mailto:pdandjinou at gmail.com>>> wrote:
>
> Mawaki,
>
> You said it all ! collecting the information and
> documenting those
> relevant events as the ones Nnenna alludes to should be
> the focus.
> But this calls for resources (human and financial
> resources). The
> way some parts of the world do this is through regional
> organizations such as the European commission who
> commissioned
> (!!) appropriate studies and white papers.
>
> Our challenge here is how to get the Africa Union
> commission and
> other RECs interested.
>
> Pierre
>
>
> On Tue, May 28, 2013 at 12:42 PM, Mawaki Chango
> <kichango at gmail.com <mailto:kichango at gmail.com>
> <mailto:kichango at gmail.com <mailto:kichango at gmail.com>>> wrote:
>
> All,
> There is a lot to be done in Africa. So one might
> think it
> is even more crucial here to bring in all segments of
> the society which can help improve our
> understanding and
> practice. I totally agree that academia should be
> invited in
> what we do at all levels. It doesn't matter how
> much you slice
> this, you can't avoid education, training, research
> without a
> serious loss. As recently as last year I was doing
> a survey in
> an African country and one of my respondents
> working in a
> public research agency told me once she asked to
> consult a
> document (which was not a government classified
> document but
> has to do with some development issues in one sector of
> activity) at another government agency, then after
> asking what
> exactly she was looking for her colleague opened the
> corresponding pages for her to make note of, while
> concealing
> the non-related contents. That's the mindset we're up
> against. In many places, it is the very notion of
> collecting
> information and making it easy to retrieve later on
> which is
> lacking. Believe it or not, in some countries
> ICT-related
> policy documents are said to exist but cannot be
> easily found
> by the public. For the medium and long-term there
> is a need to
> educate and train information specialists,
> librarians, people
> who are prepared to identify relevant data gathering
> opportunities and sources and people who are
> prepared to
> systematically gather and curate information, index
> it and
> make it easy to find and retrieve at any point in
> the future.
> This can only help all researchers, academic or
> practitioners,
> to do their job better as well as decision-makers,
> for that
> matter.
> In any case, and particularly for the short term,
> the best we
> can do is to gather raw data whenever possible, I
> agree with
> Nnenna on that (Reports are just a means to build
> reference
> repositories for such data and there may be other
> ways). The
> most important (and urgent) is to make sure the
> data (as per
> the data points she just indicated) is available
> somewhere for
> the public to access. Otherwise, how is one to
> debate cogently
> about the geopolitics of the Internet in Africa without
> knowing which African countries were there during
> relevant
> proceedings, which ones contributed language, what
> their
> rationale was, what the different positions among
> African
> countries are and which ones took which positions
> and why,
> etc. A handful of people may be able to find out with a
> reasonable time investment but most people, who
> might use that
> information for useful things that we cannot even
> predict, won't be able to find it. Not to mention
> that the
> more aware the public, the greater the benefits of
> the debate.
> So yes, we need to demonstrate more awareness for the
> necessity to collect information and systematically
> document
> what we do and relevant events, to associate
> academia and
> other researchers and work with them in order to
> facilitate
> data collection and information retrieval for
> research and
> policy analysis as well as for decision-making,
> policy-making
> and public information.
> Best,
> Mawaki
>
>
> On Tue, May 28, 2013 at 9:40 AM, Nnenna Nwakanma
> <nnenna75 at gmail.com <mailto:nnenna75 at gmail.com>
> <mailto:nnenna75 at gmail.com <mailto:nnenna75 at gmail.com>>> wrote:
>
> SM, all
> I am talking about an Africa report directly
> in relation
> to the:
> WCIT - World Conference on Information Technology
> WTPF - World Telecommunications and ICT Policy
> Forum
> WSIS+10 - World Summit of Information SOciety +
> 10 meetings
>
> It is not about "what worked in a country" but
> rather the
> sum total of:
>
> 1. Which African countries contribted content
> 2. In which areas/domains were African countries
> working/interested in
>
> 3. Which Countries had delegations
> 4. What commissions/committees of the policy
> rounds did
> they chair/work on
> 5. What Ministers were present? What panels
> did they
>
> feature on? What content did they contribute?
> 6. What engagements, what plans, what future..
>
>
> All of that in the framework of global
> Internet/ICT Policy
>
> Best
>
>
> Nnenna
>
>
>
> On Tue, May 28, 2013 at 8:28 AM, SM
> <sm at resistor.net <mailto:sm at resistor.net>
> <mailto:sm at resistor.net
> <mailto:sm at resistor.net>>> wrote:
>
> Hi Nnenna,
> At 00:04 28-05-2013, Nnenna Nwakanma wrote:
>
> I honestly do believe that if we have
> an "Africa
> report" after each of these meetings,
> such will
> come in handy when we are planning for
> the future.
>
>
> Replicating what worked in Country X does
> not work
> well. The quality of reports are in my opinion
> relatively low. That might be due to research
> constraints. The reader would expect an
> Africa report
> to include as many countries as possible.
> Reports
> generally cover a few countries as case
> studies and
> are extrapolated from there.
>
> There isn't a breath of expertise as input;
> either the
> expertise is not there, or it is untapped,
> or there is
> lack of interest.
>
> Regards,
> -sm
>
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