Date: 02/07/2003
Source: Ministry of Communications
Title: Matsepe-Casaburri: Commission on Communications of the Specialised Technical Committee of Transport, Communications & Tourism of the AU
OPENING ADDRESS BY MINISTER OF COMMUNICATIONS OF SOUTH AFRICA, DR IVY MATSEPE-CASABURRI ON THE OCCASION OF THE CONSULTATIVE MEETING OF THE COMMISSION ON COMMUNICATIONS OF THE SPECIALISED TECHNICAL COMMITTEE OF TRANSPORT, COMMUNICATIONS AND TOURISM OF THE AFRICA UNION, Maputo, Mozambique, 2 July 2003
Honourable Minister Salomao,
Honourable fellow Ministers Excellencies, Ambassadors and High Commissioners,
Senior officials,
Distinguished delegates,
The last time we met in South Africa I welcomed you to the meeting in my capacity as chairperson of the Ministerial Oversight Committee (MOC) of the African Telecommunications Union (ATU). At that meeting, we decided to hold a consultative meeting in Maputo, under the aegis of the African Union (AU) to discuss a common African position or message on the World Summit on the Information Society (WSIS) so that we may have a common message to our leadership and encourage them to attend the first phase of the Summit on 10 - 12 December this year.
It gives me singular pleasure today to say that we are making history. Today we are holding our very first meeting under the umbrella of the African Union to discuss an issue that will be equally historic, the WSIS.
It is not often that a Minister is requested by colleagues to host a meeting of these historic proportions in a short space of time and the response is almost immediate. I would like to take this opportunity to thank our colleague HE Tomaz Salomao, the Minister of Transport and Communications of Mozambique, and through him the Government of Mozambique for allowing us at such short notice to make history even as they have the mammoth task of preparing for the most important annual event on our continent - the Summit of the AU.
Many times the Africa of old has been plagued by a lack of a united voice by Africans in world affairs or by simply not being heard by others who did not wish to see us succeed at our endeavours. The new Africa has and must continue to meet these challenges through bold and conscious steps in reclaiming an equal space for ourselves and the developing world in global structures and relations.
It is in this context of affirming ourselves anew and asserting ourselves, that we have come together to begin to discuss and to formulate a clear African position to the Declaration and Plan of Action to the World Summit on the Information Society (WSIS) that will take place in Geneva 2003.
MILESTONES ALONG THE WAY
Luckily for us, should I say, we have certain milestones along the way that we can tap into in order to feed into our common position. I am speaking of course, about the Bamako Declaration and the discussions we have been having in meetings earlier this year in Maputo, Port Louis and Cairo, among others that would have influenced what we see as African priorities for the World Summit.
NEPAD
The processes that we have embarked upon as Africans through the New Partnership for Africa's Development (NEPAD) must also not be forgotten during our deliberations in this new commission. The emphasis on socio-economic development through the attainment of good governance, peace and stability is something we must bear in mind if we wish to see ICTs being fully utilised in our people's lives. The development of Africa's ICT resources both in human and physical terms, the promotion of gender equality, and the development of society through addressing education and health matters, amongst others. Even the fostering of both intra-African and other international trade and investment through addressing market access and other barriers to success are related as ICT infrastructure and know-how can facilitate these activities and bring Africans closer together.
e-Africa Commission
ICTs have been recognised as of crucial importance in enabling Africa's recovery and allowing African countries to compete in the world economy. The bridging of the digital divide between rural and urban areas, bridging the gap between different countries in the same sub-regions and bridging the gap between Africa and the rest of the world is what we must seek to deliver. The e-Africa Commission has been instrumental in this regard in overseeing the implementation of priority programmes and overseeing ICT development on the African continent. The wealth of this organisation, the knowledge and practical expertise ought to influence us now as we decide on an African position.
The Millennium Declaration
Above all, ICTs have changed the global economic landscape and let us not forget that Heads of State and Government have responded to this challenge as they signed the Millennium Declaration at the United Nations in September 2000 in New York. May I remind you, once more, that the Millennium Declaration stipulates that "in order to reduce global poverty by half in 2015th ICTs are central as crosscutting, catalysts and enablers for all areas of socio-economic development.
If indeed ICTs can be used to provide greater access for all the world's people not only to services but also to each other and if we accept that the information society is a new and high form of social organisation for the greater good, then we would have succeeded in moving into a world that begins to understand and to see others as one and not as separate, divided entities with different, separate and possibly unequal futures. This is not to say that Africa must submit to the whims of the world; rather Africa must contribute fully to the creation of an African worldview. How we see the world's future must impact on world affairs.
The aim is to put a stop to the continued impoverishment of the African people and also to use modern technology for the advancement of African society. Let us continue to acknowledge that the African development strategy requires that Africa must bridge the digital divide and that the development of telecommunications infrastructure and ensuring Africa's access to ICT will assist in fast-tracking developmental programmes.
I started by saying that last time I spoke to you it was in an MOC meeting. It is my pleasure to speak to you today in my capacity as the out-going chairperson of the Commission on Communications (CC) of the Specialised Technical Committee on Transport, Communications and Tourism (STC on TCT) of the African Union.
This STC on TCT, which in accordance with the Constitutive Act of the AU, is made up of Ministers and senior officials in the sector has the responsibility of advising the Executive Council of the Union which in turn is made up of Ministers of Foreign Affairs.
Given the importance of Information and Communication Technologies (ICTs) to all spheres of life and to development in particular, it is significant that the first advice that we give relates to the most important event of our sector this century, the WSIS.
In due time and under the chairmanship of Minister Salomao, the Commission on Communications will need to address the issue of how it will address the question of ensuring that the work that is being done in the Specialised Agencies such as ATU, the Pan-African Postal Union (PAPU) that are in our sector will be addressed. It is my understanding in discussion with officials in the AU that some of the colleagues in other sectors have already held workshops on this issue. Of course it is expected that these agencies, which were established by their own constitution, and whose work is very important for the continent, will also discuss how they envisage their future in light of developments in the AU. Mr Mutai has sent his apologies for this meeting but he has sent a representative. I think that we will be able to get a briefing on the planned ATU Conference of Plenipotentiaries.
Fortunately for the most part it is the same Ministers and officials who sit on both sides of the coin. Most of the Ministers who are the Plenipotentiaries in ATU are also Plenipotentiaries in PAPU and are also members of the STC on TCT.
It is also the case that the Commission on Communication also incorporates areas that are outside the domain of some of us, for example broadcasting and some of us cover areas that are outside the Communications Commission like transport. We will therefore need to organise a workshop under the auspices of the AU where we can discuss this matter extensively and organise ourselves in the most appropriate way. This may be the first major task that Minister Salomao will need to undertake, and I am sure we all wish him well. On my part, I will, in conjunction with Mr Jan Mutai, the Secretary-General of ATU, and in my capacity as chairperson of the MOC initiate preparations for this discussion in preparation for the up-coming Conference of Plenipotentiaries of ATU due to take place this year.
In this meeting however we will be addressing the question of preparations for WSIS and our participation in the Summit.
In our last MOC meeting I was requested to put together a team to work on a possible position paper for discussion in this meeting. I requested the ATU Secretary-General to prepare something and also asked Prof Nadia Hegazy to prepare a paper based on the different inputs that had taken place in previous meetings such as Bamako, Mauritius and Arusha. Unfortunately the only input that I received was from Prof Hegazy and I wish to thank her for what was obviously a lot of hard work. Given that this was a detailed contribution on the Plan of Action, I have requested Dr Henry Chasia to use this material as the base document for discussion at the NEPAD workshop on WSIS, which will be organised by the e-Africa Commission and on which Dr Chasia will brief us.
In order to facilitate discussion in this meeting, and prepare a document that we will send to the Executive Council, you have before you a brief document that concentrates on the latest version of the WSIS Draft Declaration and has taken into account the Bamako Declaration and the Mauritius meeting. The document before us is also structured in the same way as the WSIS Draft Declaration and highlights out of that document the important issues for Africa. The document is limited to those issues which are important to Africa but may not be as important to other regions, especially in the developed world.
The document is deliberately brief as it will be input to the Executive Council. It will need to be clear enough to enable the Council to make appropriate recommendations to the Heads of State and Government.
I have been advised that the Ministers of Foreign Affairs of Mali and Tunisia have put the issue of WSIS on the agenda and proposed a recommendation or resolution on the matter for discussion by the Council. I wish to place on record our appreciation for this leadership. I trust that we will be able to receive a formal briefing on this matter for the information of our Commission.
As I wish us a good discussion, I wish to thank, through Honourable Drabo, the Minister of Communications of Mali for this country's leadership of the Bamako Bureau and re-iterate the support that was expressed as the MOC for that Bureau in order to ensure effective participation of Africa in the preparations for WSIS. Mali also has provided us with clear and visionary leadership of the WSIS preparatory process through Prof Adama Sammasekou, the chairperson of the WSIS PrepCom.
My gratitude also goes to the different administrations that have taken our preparatory process further by organising and hosting meetings and conferences. In this regard I would like to thank Mali for the Bamako Preparatory Conference, Mauritius, Tanzania for the ITU organised meeting in Arusha, and Egypt for the recent meeting which also allowed for an important interaction with our colleagues from the Arab states.
Dear Colleagues
The WSIS enables us as Africans to influence positively the global ICT agenda for development and to make a better world for the world's people. The WSIS is, of course, involving civil society, labour and NGOs as well as business. They all must be included in our national preparations and in shaping our views.
As leaders and Ministers of Communications in this technical committee, we need to follow the signposts and use the knowledge that these give us to move forward in building digital opportunities to African people.
Let us use this forum and the international space that the WSIS provides to shape a new Africa for the new generations to come. It is my sincere hope that this consultative meeting will go down in history as having contributed to that ideal.
I thank you and wish all of us good deliberations.
Issued by: Ministry of Communications, 2 July 2003
Source: SAPA
Source: Ministry of Communications
Title: Matsepe-Casaburri: Commission on Communications of the Specialised Technical Committee of Transport, Communications & Tourism of the AU
OPENING ADDRESS BY MINISTER OF COMMUNICATIONS OF SOUTH AFRICA, DR IVY MATSEPE-CASABURRI ON THE OCCASION OF THE CONSULTATIVE MEETING OF THE COMMISSION ON COMMUNICATIONS OF THE SPECIALISED TECHNICAL COMMITTEE OF TRANSPORT, COMMUNICATIONS AND TOURISM OF THE AFRICA UNION, Maputo, Mozambique, 2 July 2003
Honourable Minister Salomao,
Honourable fellow Ministers Excellencies, Ambassadors and High Commissioners,
Senior officials,
Distinguished delegates,
The last time we met in South Africa I welcomed you to the meeting in my capacity as chairperson of the Ministerial Oversight Committee (MOC) of the African Telecommunications Union (ATU). At that meeting, we decided to hold a consultative meeting in Maputo, under the aegis of the African Union (AU) to discuss a common African position or message on the World Summit on the Information Society (WSIS) so that we may have a common message to our leadership and encourage them to attend the first phase of the Summit on 10 - 12 December this year.
It gives me singular pleasure today to say that we are making history. Today we are holding our very first meeting under the umbrella of the African Union to discuss an issue that will be equally historic, the WSIS.
It is not often that a Minister is requested by colleagues to host a meeting of these historic proportions in a short space of time and the response is almost immediate. I would like to take this opportunity to thank our colleague HE Tomaz Salomao, the Minister of Transport and Communications of Mozambique, and through him the Government of Mozambique for allowing us at such short notice to make history even as they have the mammoth task of preparing for the most important annual event on our continent - the Summit of the AU.
Many times the Africa of old has been plagued by a lack of a united voice by Africans in world affairs or by simply not being heard by others who did not wish to see us succeed at our endeavours. The new Africa has and must continue to meet these challenges through bold and conscious steps in reclaiming an equal space for ourselves and the developing world in global structures and relations.
It is in this context of affirming ourselves anew and asserting ourselves, that we have come together to begin to discuss and to formulate a clear African position to the Declaration and Plan of Action to the World Summit on the Information Society (WSIS) that will take place in Geneva 2003.
MILESTONES ALONG THE WAY
Luckily for us, should I say, we have certain milestones along the way that we can tap into in order to feed into our common position. I am speaking of course, about the Bamako Declaration and the discussions we have been having in meetings earlier this year in Maputo, Port Louis and Cairo, among others that would have influenced what we see as African priorities for the World Summit.
NEPAD
The processes that we have embarked upon as Africans through the New Partnership for Africa's Development (NEPAD) must also not be forgotten during our deliberations in this new commission. The emphasis on socio-economic development through the attainment of good governance, peace and stability is something we must bear in mind if we wish to see ICTs being fully utilised in our people's lives. The development of Africa's ICT resources both in human and physical terms, the promotion of gender equality, and the development of society through addressing education and health matters, amongst others. Even the fostering of both intra-African and other international trade and investment through addressing market access and other barriers to success are related as ICT infrastructure and know-how can facilitate these activities and bring Africans closer together.
e-Africa Commission
ICTs have been recognised as of crucial importance in enabling Africa's recovery and allowing African countries to compete in the world economy. The bridging of the digital divide between rural and urban areas, bridging the gap between different countries in the same sub-regions and bridging the gap between Africa and the rest of the world is what we must seek to deliver. The e-Africa Commission has been instrumental in this regard in overseeing the implementation of priority programmes and overseeing ICT development on the African continent. The wealth of this organisation, the knowledge and practical expertise ought to influence us now as we decide on an African position.
The Millennium Declaration
Above all, ICTs have changed the global economic landscape and let us not forget that Heads of State and Government have responded to this challenge as they signed the Millennium Declaration at the United Nations in September 2000 in New York. May I remind you, once more, that the Millennium Declaration stipulates that "in order to reduce global poverty by half in 2015th ICTs are central as crosscutting, catalysts and enablers for all areas of socio-economic development.
If indeed ICTs can be used to provide greater access for all the world's people not only to services but also to each other and if we accept that the information society is a new and high form of social organisation for the greater good, then we would have succeeded in moving into a world that begins to understand and to see others as one and not as separate, divided entities with different, separate and possibly unequal futures. This is not to say that Africa must submit to the whims of the world; rather Africa must contribute fully to the creation of an African worldview. How we see the world's future must impact on world affairs.
The aim is to put a stop to the continued impoverishment of the African people and also to use modern technology for the advancement of African society. Let us continue to acknowledge that the African development strategy requires that Africa must bridge the digital divide and that the development of telecommunications infrastructure and ensuring Africa's access to ICT will assist in fast-tracking developmental programmes.
I started by saying that last time I spoke to you it was in an MOC meeting. It is my pleasure to speak to you today in my capacity as the out-going chairperson of the Commission on Communications (CC) of the Specialised Technical Committee on Transport, Communications and Tourism (STC on TCT) of the African Union.
This STC on TCT, which in accordance with the Constitutive Act of the AU, is made up of Ministers and senior officials in the sector has the responsibility of advising the Executive Council of the Union which in turn is made up of Ministers of Foreign Affairs.
Given the importance of Information and Communication Technologies (ICTs) to all spheres of life and to development in particular, it is significant that the first advice that we give relates to the most important event of our sector this century, the WSIS.
In due time and under the chairmanship of Minister Salomao, the Commission on Communications will need to address the issue of how it will address the question of ensuring that the work that is being done in the Specialised Agencies such as ATU, the Pan-African Postal Union (PAPU) that are in our sector will be addressed. It is my understanding in discussion with officials in the AU that some of the colleagues in other sectors have already held workshops on this issue. Of course it is expected that these agencies, which were established by their own constitution, and whose work is very important for the continent, will also discuss how they envisage their future in light of developments in the AU. Mr Mutai has sent his apologies for this meeting but he has sent a representative. I think that we will be able to get a briefing on the planned ATU Conference of Plenipotentiaries.
Fortunately for the most part it is the same Ministers and officials who sit on both sides of the coin. Most of the Ministers who are the Plenipotentiaries in ATU are also Plenipotentiaries in PAPU and are also members of the STC on TCT.
It is also the case that the Commission on Communication also incorporates areas that are outside the domain of some of us, for example broadcasting and some of us cover areas that are outside the Communications Commission like transport. We will therefore need to organise a workshop under the auspices of the AU where we can discuss this matter extensively and organise ourselves in the most appropriate way. This may be the first major task that Minister Salomao will need to undertake, and I am sure we all wish him well. On my part, I will, in conjunction with Mr Jan Mutai, the Secretary-General of ATU, and in my capacity as chairperson of the MOC initiate preparations for this discussion in preparation for the up-coming Conference of Plenipotentiaries of ATU due to take place this year.
In this meeting however we will be addressing the question of preparations for WSIS and our participation in the Summit.
In our last MOC meeting I was requested to put together a team to work on a possible position paper for discussion in this meeting. I requested the ATU Secretary-General to prepare something and also asked Prof Nadia Hegazy to prepare a paper based on the different inputs that had taken place in previous meetings such as Bamako, Mauritius and Arusha. Unfortunately the only input that I received was from Prof Hegazy and I wish to thank her for what was obviously a lot of hard work. Given that this was a detailed contribution on the Plan of Action, I have requested Dr Henry Chasia to use this material as the base document for discussion at the NEPAD workshop on WSIS, which will be organised by the e-Africa Commission and on which Dr Chasia will brief us.
In order to facilitate discussion in this meeting, and prepare a document that we will send to the Executive Council, you have before you a brief document that concentrates on the latest version of the WSIS Draft Declaration and has taken into account the Bamako Declaration and the Mauritius meeting. The document before us is also structured in the same way as the WSIS Draft Declaration and highlights out of that document the important issues for Africa. The document is limited to those issues which are important to Africa but may not be as important to other regions, especially in the developed world.
The document is deliberately brief as it will be input to the Executive Council. It will need to be clear enough to enable the Council to make appropriate recommendations to the Heads of State and Government.
I have been advised that the Ministers of Foreign Affairs of Mali and Tunisia have put the issue of WSIS on the agenda and proposed a recommendation or resolution on the matter for discussion by the Council. I wish to place on record our appreciation for this leadership. I trust that we will be able to receive a formal briefing on this matter for the information of our Commission.
As I wish us a good discussion, I wish to thank, through Honourable Drabo, the Minister of Communications of Mali for this country's leadership of the Bamako Bureau and re-iterate the support that was expressed as the MOC for that Bureau in order to ensure effective participation of Africa in the preparations for WSIS. Mali also has provided us with clear and visionary leadership of the WSIS preparatory process through Prof Adama Sammasekou, the chairperson of the WSIS PrepCom.
My gratitude also goes to the different administrations that have taken our preparatory process further by organising and hosting meetings and conferences. In this regard I would like to thank Mali for the Bamako Preparatory Conference, Mauritius, Tanzania for the ITU organised meeting in Arusha, and Egypt for the recent meeting which also allowed for an important interaction with our colleagues from the Arab states.
Dear Colleagues
The WSIS enables us as Africans to influence positively the global ICT agenda for development and to make a better world for the world's people. The WSIS is, of course, involving civil society, labour and NGOs as well as business. They all must be included in our national preparations and in shaping our views.
As leaders and Ministers of Communications in this technical committee, we need to follow the signposts and use the knowledge that these give us to move forward in building digital opportunities to African people.
Let us use this forum and the international space that the WSIS provides to shape a new Africa for the new generations to come. It is my sincere hope that this consultative meeting will go down in history as having contributed to that ideal.
I thank you and wish all of us good deliberations.
Issued by: Ministry of Communications, 2 July 2003
Source: SAPA
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