ICANN planning major expansion in Africa

ICANN – The Internet Corporation for Assigned Names and Numbers, the body that regulates the naming systems for websites, has announced plans for major expansion expansion in Africa – this is in line with the rapid economic growth on the continent.

“We’re coming to you”, said Fadi Chehadé, ICANN president at the Africa Multi-stakeholder Internet Governance meeting in Addis Ababa, Ethiopia. The two-day meeting ended Friday after drawing Internet leaders from across the continent.

“We will have ICANN staff, at least one, in each of the 6 regions of Africa. North, South, East, West, Central and the Indian Ocean,” said Chehadé. “I want African on-ramps into the ICANN structures. I will give you the on-ramps, but you need to climb them.”

Chehadé also said he would like to see a dramatic increase in the number of accredited Domain Name Registrars on the African continent. Currently there are only five accredited Registrars in Africa among more than one thousand worldwide, but Chehadé said he wants to see that number increase five-fold in less than two years.

“This is about us moving the needle forward. Africa will not wait,” said Chehadé.

The multi-stakeholder Internet Governance event was co-organized by the African Union, ISOC-Africa, AFRINIC and the African Internet Governance Forum. It was preceded by a two-day workshop about the development of the Domain Name Service (DNS) Industry in Africa.

During the event the implementation of an African Strategy for better engagement in Africa was discussed in detail. This strategy was prepared by representatives from the African community last summer and announced during the ICANN meeting in Toronto in October. Fadi Chehadé reiterated ICANN’s commitment to help implement the three-year strategy in coordination with our global and regional partners in Africa.

Source: African Press Organization