Please join us for an interdisciplinary research workshop on the Role that Information and Communication Technologies (ICT) Play in the Development of Africa.This workshop is designed for individuals seeking to identify grant and research opportunities. Because space is limited (60 attendees) , priority will be given to Faculty and Academic Staff Researchers.
The workshop is organized and initiated by the School of Information Studies and the School of Information Technology (University of Pretoria , South Africa ) in close collaboration with Dr. Abbas Ourmazd, UWM's Vice Chancellor for Research and Dean of the Graduate School . Dr. Ourmazd will officially open the workshop and faculty members from the University of Pretoria 's School of Information Technology will participate.
Registration – Space is limited, please register early!
If you plan to participate please register before October 8. CLICK HERE TO REGISTER: http://www.sois.uwm.edu/cgi-bin/ict4.pl . The registration is free and we can accommodate up to 60 people. If you have problems with the online registration please email Evelyn at evy@uwm.edu . Lunch will be provided.
More Details:
Foundations and donors that fund research on the African continent are invited to either send a representative to attend the workshop or to provide us with information about their funding policies regarding ICT and development in Africa . The following institutions have been approached:
- NSF ( Africa desk)
- NRF (South African National Research Foundation)
- IDRC ( International Development Research Center , based in Canada )
- NIH (Sub-Saharan African desk)
- World Bank ( Africa Desk)
- Bill & Melinda Gates Foundation
All of these institutions provided us with funding information and some indicated that they will send a representative to participate at the workshop. The Gates foundation agreed to participate via teleconference. Steve Atkinson of the Graduate School will also brief us on other funding possibilities.
The research field covering ICT and development in Africa is fairly broad and includes among others:
- Health informatics and development in Africa
- Legal issues (for example intellectual property rights, WIPO, etc.)
- Issues concerning indigenous knowledge, including its protection and promotion – for example digital capturing and archiving
- Archiving of African websites
- E-governance, E-health care
- Ethical and security issues (spamming, privacy of patients, surveillance, global security)
- Distance education learning/education (e.g. nurses, teachers)
- Effective use of leapfrogging technologies (e.g. cell phone technologies and their application in healthcare)
The aim and purpose of the day is to promote interdisciplinary and international research on campus with a particular focus on Africa and can be summarized as follows:
- Brings together all researchers on campus who has an interest in the role that ICT plays in the development of Africa
- Identifies creative, relevant and fundable research topics
- Explores research opportunities with scholars in Africa (UWM has for example an official agreement with the University of Pretoria )
- Identifies funding opportunities for research on ICT and development in Africa .
The workshop is structured as follows:
- Official opening by Dr. Abbas Ourmazd, the vice chancellor for research
- Short overview of the importance of research on the role of ICT in Development in Africa
- Introduction of possible research topics
- Possible funding opportunities – introduced by the different funding institutions
- Break away groups to identify creative, relevant and fundable research opportunities
Sponsored By : UWM School of Information Studies, UWM Graduate School and School of Information Technology/University of Pretoria , South Africa
