The African IGF forum was held in Nicon Luxury, Abuja, Nigeria from the 10th to the 12th of July, 2014. The AfIGF is Africa’s multi-stakeholder forum of Internet actors. About 476 participants were physically present at the meeting and 214 remote participants were remotely connected to the meeting. The participants comprise Government officials, representatives from private sector, civil society, regional and international organisations from 41 countries across the world. The Honourable Minister for Communication Technology in Nigeria, Dr. Mrs Omobola Johnson was also present at the forum.

The meeting was addressed by highly reputable stakeholders across Africa and beyond. There were representatives from ICANN among other organisations across the world.

Some of the issues discussed include; Connecting Africa for Enhanced Multi-Stakeholder Internet Governance, Policies Enabling Access, Content Creation, Dissemination and Use, Internet as Engine for Growth and Development among other issues.

During the forum, presentations and comments were made and questions were asked. At the end of the forum, some recommendations were made. These recommendations look at ways of improving the internet and involving all stakeholders including the civil society in the governance of the internet.

At the just concluded Nigeria Internet Governance Forum (NIGF) on 10 June, 2014 at the Muson Centre Lagos, AfICTA Chair, Dr Jimson Olufuye who was represented by AfICTA board member, Engr. Adetola Sogbesan spoke on “IANA Transition: Implication for Nigeria”.

Dr Jimson Olufuye said "Our socio-economic live is increasingly dependent on the Internet – telecommunication, banking, commerce, etc." In this regard, he recommended that

1. Nigeria should be actively involved in the ICANN Government Advisory Committee (GAC) where governments on equal footing discuss the IANA transition
2. The Nigerian businesses and users should engage through the ICANN Stakeholder Groups (e.g. Business Constituency – comprised of business users of the Internet AfICTA is a member) to ensure the continuous stability, resiliency and predictability of the Internet.
3. NIRA (.ng) should continue to play active role in the ccNSO.

Please see the full presentation on IANA Transition implication for Nigeria by Dr Jimson Olufuye

The Internet Corporation for Assigned Names and Numbers (ICANN) today announced that it has promoted Mandy Carver to the newly created position of VP, Government Engagement, Global Coordination.

Based in ICANN's Los Angeles office, Mandy will be responsible for the analysis, integration and coordination of global strategy with regional and national projects and programs. She will assume the role on 1 July 2014 and report to ICANN's Senior Advisor to the President on Government Engagement, Tarek Kamel.

"The VP Government Engagement, Global Coordination role will be important in integrating and synchronizing the work between the capitals, the regions and the international fora, and work in Geneva and New York. This will support the global implementation of the government engagement strategy while preserving regionally and nationally identified priorities," said Tarek.

As VP, GEGC Mandy Carver will work closely with the Vice Presidents for IGO and IO Engagement and Government Engagement in Geneva and New York addressing the Intergovernmental and International Organizations and UN structures as well as with the VPs for Global Stakeholder Engagement in the regions in their work with national governments and regional governmental entities.

About Mandy Carver

Mandy Carver has been with ICANN since 2006 when she joined Global Partnerships, a precursor to the Global Stakeholder Engagement (GSE) function. She brings more than 20 years' experience in international relationship management and conflict mediation work.

AfICTA Chair Dr Jimson Olufuye is to participate in the first Commonwealth Domain Name System Forum in London on 19 – 20 June 2014. The Forum is to be jointly hosted by Commonwealth Telecommunications Organisation (CTO), the Internet Corporation for Assigned Names and Numbers (ICANN), the UK domain name registry Nominet and Public Interest Registry, operators of the .ORG domain.

Named Commonwealth DNS Forum 2014, the event is designed to help the stakeholders from across the Commonwealth to examine:

• the economic potential of the domain name industry
• governance policy options for the cyberspace
• issues surrounding local content generation and utilisation
• opportunities for investment and innovation
• the social impact of generic top level domains
• opportunities for and impact upon civil society, and
• the role of multi-stakeholder partnerships to develop public policy.

“This event will contribute to ICANN’s global programme to diversify its Community through a multi-stakeholder approach. The Commonwealth represents a cross section of the global ICT community contributing a great deal to the public policy debate. We hope this event will be able to marshal that thinking for the greater good of the DNS community” said Nigel Hickson, ICANN’s Vice-President, Stakeholder Engagement, Europe.

Professor Tim Unwin, the Secretary-General of the CTO said: “The CTO is delighted to be a partner of this event which, for the first time, will bring an important Commonwealth perspective to a consultation on the domain name system. It will be another step in the CTO’s efforts to mobilise the strengths of the Commonwealth to ensure Cyberspace delivers the socio-economic benefits it is capable of.”

Nominet’s Chief Executive Officer, Lesley Cowley OBE, added: “We’re very pleased to be supporting this important event. There is a lot of interesting activity taking place across the Commonwealth which is helping to unlock the full potential of the Internet. This includes improving cybersecurity, increasing access, and work with local communities and businesses, as well as developments in the DNS market. We hope that the Commonwealth DNS Forum will allow us to share this wealth of practical experience, helping us all to learn from each other."

“For more than a decade, Public Interest Registry has served as an advocate for collaboration, safety and security on the Internet. As the long-standing operator of the .ORG domain and operator of the soon-to-be-launched .NGO and .ONG domains for the global non-governmental organisation community, we have unique insight into the issues surrounding the domain industry. We look forward to bringing together stakeholders from across the Commonwealth at this event to help them prepare for imminent changes to the Internet landscape and to foster discussion around the power of the domain name system,” said Brian Cute, Chief Executive Officer of Public Interest Registry.

The event will be opened by Kamalesh Sharma, Commonwealth Secretary-General, and will be attended by over 150 participants from across the Commonwealth with a speaker faculty drawn from public sector, industry and civil society.

Visit CTO website for more information.