IST-Africa co-organises IEEE ETAP Forum on CyberSecurity as pre-conference event on 30 May 2017

10 April 2017

IST-Africa is cooperating with IEEE Internet Initiative to co-organise the first IEEE ETAP (Experts in Technology and Policy) Forum in Africa as a pre-conference event to the IST-Africa 2017 Conference on Tuesday 30 May 2017.

Based on consultation with the 18 African Member States involved in IST-Africa it was agreed that this forum should focus on Cyber Security. The Forum will facilitate technology developers, policy makers and other stakeholders to come together to share experiences and learnt from each other.

Significant progress has been made in Africa over the last seven years in increasing Cyber Security awareness and putting the necessary legal and implementation frameworks in place. AfriCERT was established in 2011 to enhance the cyber security of African countries through effective collaboration and communication with all stakeholders concerned across Africa. In 2012, the African Union Commission prepared a draft Convention on the Establishment of a Legal Framework Conducive to Cyber Security in Africa, which was adopted in 2014. African Regional Economic Communities (including ECOWAS, COMESA, SADC) have prepared frameworks to assist their Member States to address the pressing issues related to cyber security and cyber crime over the past six years.

Cyber Security Policies and Computer Incident Response Teams (CIRTs) are already in place in Cameroon, Uganda, South Africa, Mauritania, Egypt, Mauritius and Kenya. ITU has been supporting both Lesotho and Burundi to set up a national CIRT (Computer Incident Response Team) since 2014.

IST-Africa has invited a range of speakers to share experiences from NEPAD, South Africa, Namibia and Cameroon:

- Welcome Remarks, Mr. Nhlanhla Lupahla, Deputy Director: Innovation, Ministry of Higher Education, Training and Innovation, Namibia

- Cyber Security Awareness (CSA) in Africa, Prof Basie von Solms, Centre for Cyber Security, University of Johannesburg, South Africa

- Internet Governance and CyberSecurity in Namibia, Ms Elizabeth Kamutuezu, Acting Deputy Director: IPRM, Ministry of Information and Communication Technology, Namibia

- Cybersecurity and Multi- stakeholder Internet Governance - the case of the AU Convention on Cybersecurity, Dr. Towela Nyirenda-Jere, Principal Programme Officer, NEPAD Agency, South Africa

- Implementation of a Framework to support CyberSecurity and Internet Governance in Cameroon, Njei Check, Agence Nationale des Technologies de l'Information et de la Communication, Cameroon

Following the formal presentations the participants will engage in group work around short listed topics and then report back to the full group.