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Africa's Internet registries lag
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BY
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STAFF WRITER
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, ITWEB<br><a href="http://www.itweb.co.za/sections/internet/2008/0804091038.asp?O=FPTOP&S=All%20Africa%20News&A=AFN">http://www.itweb.co.za/sections/internet/2008/0804091038.asp?O=FPTOP&S=All%20Africa%20News&A=AFN</a> </small></font></strong>
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<font face="Arial" size="1"><strong>READ IN THIS STORY:</strong></font>
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<a href="http://www.itweb.co.za/sections/internet/2008/0804091038.asp?O=FPTOP&S=All%20Africa%20News&A=AFN#1" class="more"><font face="Arial" size="2">Key challenges</font></a>
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<a href="http://www.itweb.co.za/sections/internet/2008/0804091038.asp?O=FPTOP&S=All%20Africa%20News&A=AFN#2" class="more"><font face="Arial" size="2">Some solutions</font></a>
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<span id="bodytext"> <font color="#575757" face="Arial" size="2">[</font>
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Johannesburg, 9 April 2008
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<font color="#575757" face="Arial" size="2">] </font> -
Africa lags behind other regions when it comes to the size of its <span id="HL0" onmousemove="javascript:ShowAdBox('internet',event.clientX,event.clientY)" class="intelliword" onmouseout="javascript:InitializeTimer()">Internet</span>
domain registrations, with the biggest registry being SA`s .za, which has
400 000 registrations, says <span id="HL1" onmousemove="javascript:ShowAdBox('communications',event.clientX,event.clientY)" class="intelliword" onmouseout="javascript:InitializeTimer()">communications</span> minister Ivy Matsepe-Casaburri.
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Country code top-level domain (ccTLD) registries fast-track economic
development and social participation of citizens, as they attract more
consumers to use the Internet, she said.<br><br>Speaking
at the African Top-Level Domains conference, in Sandton, this week,
Matsepe-Casaburri noted globally, ccTLDs account for 58 million of the
160 million domain names registered to date.<br><br>Generic top-level domains account for the rest of the domain name registrations.<br><br>Africa`s contribution to the 58 million ccTLDs is so insignificant it did not rate a comment, she said.<br>
<br>Most
African country registries have less than 10 000 registrations, which
are unlikely to drive economic development and social participation of
citizens in those countries, she explained.<br><br>Sedo, a domain
buying and selling marketplace, says ccTLDs attract more end-users
because their owners usually register them for a specific purpose, such
as providing an online presence for a <span id="HL2" onmousemove="javascript:ShowAdBox('small[s]business',event.clientX,event.clientY)" class="intelliword" onmouseout="javascript:InitializeTimer()">small business</span>.<br>
<br>ccTLDs
are also rarely registered solely for parking and provide
geographically targeted traffic for Web sites, blogs and online shops,
it said.<br><br><b><a name="1"><font style="color: BLACK; font-family: verdana; font-style: normal; font-variant: normal; font-weight: normal; font-size: 10pt; line-height: normal; font-size-adjust: none; font-stretch: normal;"><b>Key challenges</b></font></a></b><br>
<br>Matsepe-Casaburri
attributed Africa`s low ccTLD registrations to a lack of knowledge and
awareness of the Internet domain name registrations and the role they
can play in economic and social development. "Most people do not
understand what it means to utilise the country code top level domains."<br><br>
<br><br>Businesses and individuals also prefer to use generic top-level
domains like .com and .biz, because they believe it gives them more
credibility, she noted.<br><br>What is worrying is the fact that some
of the ccTLDs are managed by people who do not even reside on the
continent, she said. This has social, economic and security
implications, as a ccTLD identifies countries in cyberspace, she said.<br><br>"If
we are to take full advantage of what the information era brings, it is
important that ccTLDs be managed on the continent, as Africa-based
people, with vested interest in promotion and adoption of the Internet,
would be responsible for it."<br><br><b><a name="2"><font style="color: BLACK; font-family: verdana; font-style: normal; font-variant: normal; font-weight: normal; font-size: 10pt; line-height: normal; font-size-adjust: none; font-stretch: normal;"><b>Some solutions</b></font></a></b><br>
<br>Matsepe-Casaburri
encouraged African governments to improve their governance of the
Internet. There should also be open standards, with no particular group
or interest given preference, she added.<br><br>Government should also partner with appropriate stakeholders, to gain access to their resources and insight.<br><br>The
ICT sector has the technical know-how, academic institutions can
provide the much-needed scientific research and direction, and small
and medium enterprises provide a potential for registration of new
domain names, she said.<br><br>The youth and civil society can also
play meaningful ICT advocacy roles, while government has the resources
and can provide political will, she noted.<br><br><b>Related story:<br></b> <a href="http://www.itweb.co.za/sections/internet/2007/0705291038.asp" target="_new">Domain name policy welcomed</a></span>