[UgaBYTES] FOSSFA and InWEnt launching first East African regional course on Business and Open Source in Kampala, Uganda

[Mwathi Francis]

"How can African IT-businesses make money with Free and Open Source
Software?“ - this one of the questions that will be discussed at the
regional course on "Advanced African Business Models with Free and Open
Source Software (FOSS)“. The two-week course will start on the 31st of
August to the 11th of September 2009. The East African Center for Open
Source (EACOSS) will host the event in partnership with InWEnt. This
workshop is the second in a series of training-of-trainer (ToT) events in
Southern and East Africa. The course is organized by the pan-African Open
Source federation FOSSFA as well as the German non-for-profit, "InWEnt –
Capacity Building International“. Main training and facilitator partners are
the Advanced Information Technology Institute of the Ghana-India Kofi Annan
Center for Excellence in ICT (AITI-KACE), the United Nations University,
UNU-MERIT of The Netherlands and the Open Society Initiative for Southern
Africa (OSISA).

This advanced course will bring together over 20 experts from universities,
training institutions and private sector in Tanzania, Ethiopia, Rwanda,
Kenya and Uganda. Its main goal is to form a corps of trainers and advocates
who are equipped to spread the word on Free and Open Source and its
potential for IT-companies in Africa. The course inter alia builds on more
than eight practical case studies of African IT companies, who use FOSS to
generate income drive innovation, add local value and provide legal,
low-cost and high quality software solutions to businesses and
administrations in their countries.

The second regional Advanced African FOSS Business Models is part of the
multi-year ict at innovation programme, which builds capacities in African
small and medium ICT enterprises to make a business with Free and Open
Source Software (FOSS). ict at innovation aims to encourage the growth of
African ICT industries and private sector development, particularly in
Southern and East Africa, through three main actions: spreading FOSS
business models for enterprises in Africa, fostering FOSS certification and
supporting innovative local FOSS applications for social and economic
development. ict at innovation is a partnership of FOSSFA (Free Software and
Open Source Foundation for Africa) and InWEnt - Capacity Building
International (Germany). Funding partners are the German Ministry Federal
Ministry for Economic Cooperation and Development (BMZ) and the Open Society
Initiative for Southern Africa (OSISA).

The programme focuses on Free and Open Source Software (FOSS) as a key
technology to drive innovation, add local value and create sustainable and
affordable ICT-solutions. ict at innovation aims to enhance regional networking
and to strengthen consulting capacities of regional and national ICT
associations and training institutions as well as of other relevant change
agents. For more information see: http://www.ict-innovation.fossfa.net/ For
press inquiries, please contact George Nyambuya (ict at innovation / FOSSFA /
InWEnt) on + 27 (0)12 423 6313 or email: george.nyambuya at inwent.co.za

-- 
Enter our Photo contest for your chance to win recognition and prizes from
telecentre.org
For more info, please check www.telecentre.org


Francis Mwathi
Support Community Facilitator
UgaBYTES Initiatives (www.ugabytes.org)
Telecentr.org (www.telecentrecommunity.ning.com)
Tel: +256 414 370163
Mob: +256 783 010269
Skype: francis.mwathi
E-Mail: mfrancis at ugabytes.org