INFORMATION ETHICS IN AFRICA PAST, PRESENT AND FUTURE ACTIVITIES (2007-2010)

1. INFORMATION ETHICS IN AFRICAPAST, PRESENT AND FUTURE ACTIVITIES (2007-2010) Rafael Capurro Distinguished Researcher in Information Ethics University of Wisconsin-Milwaukee http://www.capurro.de/wsis2010_africa_infoethics.html WSIS Forum 2010

2. Content Introduction I. First African Conference on Information Ethics (2007) • The Tshwane Declaration on Information Ethics • The African Network for Information Ethics (ANIE) • The Proceedings II. Africa Reader on Information Ethics (2009) III. High-level Workshop on Ethics and e-Government in Africa (2009) IV. Second African Conference on Information Ethics (2010) WSIS Forum 2010

3. Introduction Information Ethics in Africa is a young academic field. But there is also a long history of Information Ethics in Africa. It concerns Africa’s rich oral and written traditions throughout many centuries about different kinds of information and communication practices using different moral codes and media based on dynamic and complex processes of cultural hybridization. WSIS Forum 2010

4. Introduction Critical reflection on this history promotes greater awareness of Africa's cultural legacy, which provides the foundations of the digital information and communication technologies that will create unique and genuinely African information societies. WSIS Forum 2010

5. Introduction Information ethics opens a space of critical reflection for all stakeholders on established moral norms and values, it provides the catalyst for a social process, and is a space for retrieving the rich African cultural memory necessary to our field. WSIS Forum 2010

6. Introduction The main moral responsibility of African academics in the field of information ethics is therefore to enrich African identities by retrieving and re-creating African information and communication traditions. WSIS Forum 2010

7. Introduction From this perspective, cultural memory is an ethical task if we want to create a humane community based not just on the number of people but on the relations between them. WSIS Forum 2010

8. I. First African Conference on Information Ethics (2007) The First African Conference on IE was held in Tshwane/Pretoria, South Africa, 5-7 February 2007, under the auspices of UNESCO, sponsored by the South African Government, Department of Communications and organized by the University of Wisconsin-Milwaukee, University of Pretoria, University of Pittsburgh, and the International Center of Information Ethics. WSIS Forum 2010

9. I. First African Conference on Information Ethics (2007) Under the heading 'the joy of sharing knowledge' and the patronage of UNESCO it brought together some 80 policy makers and academic minds from Africa and around the world to discuss the impact of the use of modern Information and Communication Technologies (ICTs) on the African continent and formulate a specifically African perspective on the challenges involved - locally and globally WSIS Forum 2010

10. I. First African Conference on Information Ethics (2007) In addressing the ethical challenges of the information society on the African continent the conference was inspired by the Geneva Declaration adopted by the Geneva World Summit on Information Society (WSIS) of 2003. It was explicitly conceived as part of the implementation of Action Line C10 of the Geneva Plan of Action. WSIS Forum 2010

11. I. First African Conference on Information Ethics (2007) The conference produced the following results: Tshwane Declaration on Information Ethics adopted by the participants of the conference as a genuine African contribution to the UNESCO Code of Ethics for the Information Society. African Network for Information Ethics giving African scholars a platform to exchange and realize their ideas in the field. The proceedings were first published in the International Review of Information Ethics (IRIE vol. 7 - 09/2007). Now: "African Reader on Information Ethics“ http://www.africainfoethics.org/conferences_2007.html WSIS Forum 2010

12. I. First African Conference on Information Ethics (2007) African Network for Information Ethics (ANIE) http://www.africainfoethics.org/index.html This website is the result of the first African Information Ethics Conference, held in Tshwane, South Africa, 5-7 February 2007. The attendees agreed to form a network of professionals interested in Information Ethics from an African perspective to further research in this area and to contribute to fulfill the ideals as spelled out in the Tshwane declaration.It includes • Conferences • Members • Tswane Declaration • Bibliography • Photos • List Server • Africa Reader on Information Ethics WSIS Forum 2010

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14. The Tshwane Declaration on Information Ethics in Africa The Tshwane Declaration was adopted by the participants of the African Information Ethics Conference: Ethical Challenges in the Information Age on 7 February 2007. http://www.africainfoethics.org/tshwanedeclaration.html WSIS Forum 2010

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16. II. Africa Reader on Information Ethics Capurro, R, Britz, JJ, Bothma, TJD and Bester, BC (Eds.). Africa Reader on Information Ethics. ISBN 978-0-620-45627-2. Pretoria (2009) http://www.africainfoethics.org/african_reader.html WSIS Forum 2010

17. III. High-level Workshop on Ethics and e-Government (2009) under the auspices of UNESCO, co-sponsored by the South Africa Government, Department of Communications and organized by the University of Pretoria, the University of Wisconsin-Milwaukee, the University of Pittsburgh, and the International Center for Information Ethics, 23-26 February 2009. http://www.africainfoethics.org/conferences_2009.html WSIS Forum 2010

18. III. High-level Workshop on Ethics and e-Government (2009) The central focus of e-Government in Africa should be on helping to accomplish development goals and objectives, which includes improving the quality of life of individuals and families, strengthening institutions in both the private and public sectors, and enlarging the role of elements of the civil society so that the civil society can partner more effectively with the other elements of the public sector and with the private sector.  WSIS Forum 2010

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20. IV. Second African Conference on Information Ethics Teaching Information Ethics in AfricaCurrent Status, Opportunities and Challenges Venue: University of Gaborone, Botswana, 6-7 September, 2010 Organized by the University of Botswana the University of Zululand the University of Pretoria the University of Wisconsin-Milwaukee and the International Center of Information Ethics under the auspices of UNESCO and co-sponsored by UNESCO, the University of Botswana, the University of Wisconsin-Milwaukee, the South African Government (Department of Communications) and SAP. http://www.africainfoethics.org/conferences_2010.html WSIS Forum 2010

21. IV. Second African Conference on Information Ethics • Status reports from different African countries on the teaching of Information Ethics South Africa:                        Dennis Ocholla Namibia:                               Kingo Mchombu Botswana:                            Stephen Mutula Uganda:                                Kigongo Bukenya Nigeria:                                 Iyabo Mabawonku Kenya:                                   Daniel Rotich or Japheth Otike Ghana:                                  Anaba Alemna Zambia:                                Akakandelwa Akakandelwa Zimbabwe:                           Lawton Hikwa Tanzania:                              Akello S. James Central African Republic:    To be announced • Children / Youth and Information Ethics in Africa WSIS Forum 2010