South South Cooperation between Africa and South Asia on Information and Communication Technologies

Wednesday, November 5, 2008
Time: 7.00 AM – 9.00 AM (EST)

This GDLN event will connect the World Bank Headquarters Washington DC with African countries (Nigeria, Ghana, Tanzania, Rwanda and Kenya) and India. The videoconference is part of the second South Asia Regional Cooperation Dialogue and in support of the New Economy Skills for Africa Program, Information and Communication Technologies (NESAP-ICT) aimed at enhancing competencies in using information and communication technology (ICTs) for ICT enabled growth. Specifically the aim is to bring together and engage African countries to explore options to address ICT skills/human capacity in the Information and Technology (IT)/Information Technology Enabled Service (ITES) sector and to learn from the experiences, challenges and best practices of Indian institutions and entrepreneurs on how they have managed to tap these skills to build IT and ITES industry, for which India has received global recognition.

The GDLN session is an informational session and has been organized to introduce the NESAP-ICT program and to inform the participants of the upcoming South-South Exchange Visit to India. Some of the participants may also want to share some of experiences faced by them in their countries. The session will be opened by Philippe Dongier (Sector Manager, Global ICT Department) who will explain the purpose of the series of South-South GDLN events on ICT collaboration between India and Africa.

Jee-Peng Tan (Advisor, AFTHD) will give the opening remarks, touching on the importance of ICT in the Africa Region. Peter Materu (Task Team Leader of NESAP-ICT, AFTHD) will describe the NESAP-ICT program and discuss the plans for the South-South Exchange Visit to India in early February 2009. Sangeeta Gupta (VP of NASSCOM) will give a brief description of the function of NASSCOM and will highlight some of the examples of IT and ITES companies in India. This will be followed by questions and answers or comments from the participants. Jee-Peng Tan (Advisor, AFTHD) will give the closing remarks.

The discussion will revolve around the following questions:

1. The objective of the NESAP-ICT program

2. the opportunities that exist in India for IT and ITES

The event can also be accessed through live webcast:

http://vcg01.worldbank.org/vc/ then click on 'Live Conferences'

Please contact Juan Blazquez Ancin for more information about this GDLN event.

South-South Cooperation

- South - South Experience: What can Africa learn from India’s IT miracle?

- South-South Initiative Launched to share Development Knowledge

Additional Resources

- South Asia: Growth & Regional Integration
South Asia is the least integrated region in the world. Closer integration can be an effective tool in addressing energy shortage, improve connectivity, and promote peace and stability. (Read More »)

- South Asia: Development Data
A wide range of social and economic measures on South Asia, including links to the World Bank's most important online development databases. (Read More »)

- South Asia: Analysis and Research
Compilation of all the World Bank's publications on South Asia, with 'search' options and links to analysis and research on other South Asian countries. (Read More »)

- World Bank Program in South Asia
Launching pad to all information on World Bank activities in Afghanistan, Bangladesh, Bhutan, India, Maldives, Nepal, Pakistan, and Sri Lanka.(Read More »)