PINA convention looks at regional internet issues

FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE
http://www.picisoc.org/tiki-read_article.php?articleId=32

PINA convention delegates encouraged to participate in regional Internet issues.

Christina Kuper-Wini Chair of the local organisation committee of PacINET 2007 addressed attendees of the 2007 Pacific Islands News Association (PINA) Convention in Solomon Islands. She encouraged them to actively participate in PacINET 2007 in late August in Honiara, Solomon Islands.

Lynnold M Wini, Secretary of the local organisation Committee of PacINET 2007 went to describe PacINET as the success story of the Pacific Islands Chapter of the Internet Society (PICISOC) and encouraged PINA members to establish links of common interests with PICISOC.

Ms Kuper-Wini stated after the presentations: "We generated a lot of interest amongst the local media and delegates present at PINA meeting today."

She added: "Both presentations were well received. The feedback from delegates who personally came up to me was very positive and in one delegate's opinion "collaboration between PICISOC and PINA on issues of common interest was bound to happen anyway""

Here are reproduced the speeches from Mr and Ms Wini.
Friday 25th May 2007
Announcement of PacINET 2007
INTERNET & ICT IN THE PACIFIC – 6TH EDITION
14th-24th August 2007, Honiara, Solomon Islands
By Christina Kuper-Wini, Solomon Islands Member of the Pacific Islands Chapter of the Internet Society (PICISOC), and Chair of PacINET 2007 Local Host Organising Committee

Distinguished guests and delegates of the 2007 PINA Convention

It gives me great pleasure to announce at this important gathering of media representatives from across the region, that PacINET, the leading ICT conference for the Pacific islands, will be held this year in Honiara, Solomon Islands from the 14th to 24th August, with the theme 'National ICT Strategy Building'.

PacINET is the region's largest annual meeting of ICT specialists convened by the Pacific Islands Chapter of the Internet Society - known as PICISOC – which encompasses 22 Pacific island states and territories with a membership of over 450 individuals across the region.

The PacINET 2007 keynote address will be by Dr Vinton G. Cerf, considered one of the fathers of the Internet and Vice President of Google. Guest speakers will include John Crain, ICANN Chief Technology Officer, John Viega VP and Chief Security Architect at McAfee and Dr Jimmie Rogers, Director General of the Secretariat of the Pacific Community (SPC).

PICISOC is an active chapter of the Internet Society (ISOC), a professional membership organisation with around 100 organisational and over 26,000 individual members in more than 180 countries represented at the local level by about 100 chapters worldwide.

Ladies and gentlemen, in the words of PICISOC Chair, Rajnesh Singh, the value of ICT capacity building will play a key role in shaping the industry to best fit our region's unique needs, keeping us on par with the rest of the world. Tackling issues such as competition, Voice over Internet Protocol (VoIP), and the next generation of Internet, known as Internet Protocol Version 6, or IPv6, will actively come to the fore at PacINET 2007. Much of the world outside the Pacific is well ahead on these technologies, which already represent several billion dollars of trade in some developed countries.

"Will the Pacific islands be left behind?"

We do not believe so. Adhering to the Vision of the Internet Society, which calls for 'Internet for everyone', PICISOC is guided by three development priority areas of Standards, Education and Policy. Active participation by the people of the Pacific in shaping these priority areas is of the essence.

The relevance of this announcement to the Pacific's media industry, ladies and gentlemen, is that we believe you have a vested interest in the development of ICTs in the region. Frameworks such as the Pacific Regional Digital Strategy of the Pacific Plan, for example, support initiatives such as these to strengthen and develop the underlying foundation upon which the media can actively develop and thrive.

I extend my sincere thanks to the Media Association of the Solomon Islands and PINA for providing us with this opportunity to address you today.

I now hand you over to my colleague Lynnold Wini, secretary of PacINET07 Local Host Organizing committee, who will speak briefly on some of the success stories of previous PacINET meetings and what PacINET07 will offer Solomon Islands and the region.
PICISOC – A Chapter of Untold Stories
By Lynnold M Wini, Solomon Islands Member of the Pacific Islands Chapter of the Internet Society (PICISOC) and Secretary of PacINET 2007 Local Host Organising Committee

Distinguished guests and delegates of the 2007 PINA Conference.

This year, the PacINET conference will have gone full circles and come back to its humble beginnings. Not just Honiara, but right here at the Forum Fisheries Agency headquarters where the Pacific Islands Chapter of the Internet Society (PICISOC) was formed in 1999. Since its inception, the conference has gained prominence and attracted global participation. I would like to highlight some of the key events that this conference has made since 2005. Events that are not only news-worthy but events that may help you understand what PICISOC is and the things that have been and will be done at PacINET meetings.

PacINET 2005, Tarawa, Kiribati

Each year, PICISOC undertakes a project in the host country of each PacINET meet. In Kiribati, it established wireless connectivity in the Kiribati National Parliament building. It was also Dr. Vinton Cerf's first hand experience of the harsh realities we in the Pacific Region face in the deployment ICT. Since then, Dr. Cerf has made it his personal ambition to regularly attend PacINET Meetings.

PacINET 2006, Apia, Samoa

Samoa Telecentres
The Samoan Telecentres are community based computer centers providing basic training on computer skills like email & the Internet and word processing. They have gone a long way in improving communication and have enhanced the status of women in communities and aiding them to acquire new skills.

E-Chutney Project
Women in Nausori, Fiji have embraced ICT to sell their products online. By accumulating email addresses from government offices, they sell their products directly to the email recipients.

Special Interest Groups
The formation of special interest groups with specific tasks on bringing the Pacific Islands region in line with the rest of the world in ICT. For example, SIGS on IPv6, FOSS, VOIP and WIT. There are even special interest groups for Education and Media.

Samoa Project
In Samoa, a wireless link was established between the main island of Upolu and a primary school on an offshore island situated approximately 15km from the mainland.

PacINET 2007, Honiara, Solomon Islands
PacINET 2007 Theme | National ICT Strategies

The main theme of the conference is "National ICT Strategies". Countries around the world are busy, with the help of donor agencies such as the EU and UNDP, writing ICT Plans that explain how the countries hope to leverage the power of ICT in human and economic development.

Such plans can create an enabling environment for the private sector IT and communications industries, give investors a clear picture of how the technology environment can help them, and cater for the needs of the public and civil society. The ICT plans are like pacts between all the stakeholders that agree on how the country can make ICT work for everyone.

In the Pacific, creating National ICT Plans is an integral part of the Digital Strategy. Some Pacific Island's countries are advancing forward with ICT plans. Some can learn from others that are more advanced in this process. The conference will help in the exchange of ideas and information, and showcase best case practices and local knowledge concerning this important subject.

World Summit Awards
The WSA is a road show that showcases innovative ideas for e-learning, e-health, e-governance, e-Science, e-Business, e-Inclusion, e-Government, e-Entertainment, e-Culture. The WSA shifts the focus from technology, networks and access issues to applications that have content. Simply put, taking out the "geekiness" and focusing on what the rest of us actually understand, CONTENT/INFORMATION. A roadshow showcasing innovative ideas from our region is planned for Honiara. If it doesn't happen here in Honiara, WSA representatives in our region are still keen on promoting and ensuring that a roadshow will and must happen soon enough for the Pacific Islands.

Women in Information Technology
Women continue to be under-represented in ICT. We are hoping that there will be greater emphasis placed on raising awareness and giving prominence to issues that continue to impede the uptake of women in IT.

Workshops
Contrary to popular belief, PICISOC members are not all 'geeks'. Our membership continues to grow drawing professionals from different walks of life. It is anticipated that workshops planned for PacINET 2007 will strike a fair balance between technical and policy issues.
• Pacific Regulators/Policy-makers Meeting and Workshop
• Inaugural Pacific IPv6 Summit
• APTLD Meeting
• IGF Dynamic Coalition on Access and Connectivity (Workshop)
• Linux System Administrator Training (Workshop)
• IPv6 Tutorial (Workshop)
• Establishing local Computer Clubs and Societies (Workshop)
• SPAM and Information Security (Workshop)
• PICISOC AGM

Education Day
The aim of the ICT in Education day is to discuss, promote and demonstrate the use of ICT as an effective and affordable approach to improving education services in the Pacific region, especially where learners live in remote rural areas and scattered islands.

The day will feature four very interesting sessions, with presenters from USP, Australia, Taiwan, Solomon Islands, New Zealand.
1. Educational ICT in the Pacific featuring USP and the PRIDE regional programme and illustrate ICT initiatives for the delivery of basic education.
2. Cyber Schooling in theory and practice which will be illustrated by two practitioners in advanced use of the Internet for education, including team teaching
3. SchoolNets in the Pacific will feature the Samoan, Fijian and Solomon Islands SchoolNet Projects with particular emphasis on Solomon Island's Distance Learning Center Project.
4. OLPC Oceania initiative. This initiative proposes to distribute 100,000 units over a three-year period throughout the Pacific region, as part of the implementation of the Digital Strategy of the Pacific Islands Forum

There will also be the following hands-on training sessions during the Education Day.

Solomon Islands Project
In keeping with the tradition of PICISOC, the local HostOrg Comm must initiate a project for the conference in Honiara. We recognize the diversity of people and cultures in the Solomon Islands. We must plan for a project that embraces that diversity and benefits all Solomon Islanders. As it is still in its early stages of discussions, I am not at liberty to reveal those plans. However, we believe we have a project that meets those expectations but we also welcome discussion from you or the greater Solomon Islands/Pacific Communities on ideas for possible implementation.

PacINET, PICISOC & PINA

Now having said all that, I guess being the inquisitive journalists/media personnels you all are, you would probably be asking the most obvious question; why PINA and PICISOC? How does PINA fit into the PICISOC framework.

Firstly, it has been said time and time again throughout this PINA conference how media can influence the mass public. I couldn't agree more. However, I must emphasize that it must do so with responsibility. At this age where the dissemination of information is made even faster by ICT - caution and responsibility becomes ever more important. On the other hand, PICISOC recognizes the enviable position PINA members have in enhancing PICISOC's reputation and bringing to the fore issues regarding ICT and its impact on the Pacific Islands Region. We have come a long way from the dark, dimly lit room illuminated by a lone computer monitor, empty noodle packs and coffee. The main stream media can paint a brighter image.

Secondly, you have a tool with great potential, the Internet. The media landscape has changed dramatically with the emergence of new technologies, new media, new audiences and a new way of life. Even the simple broadcast has evolved into Podcast and Webcast. PICISOC can help you as media specialists harness this new media. We talk about blogs, security, forums, content distribution,radio on IP, TV on IP and many more issues that may have an impact on your business. We discuss these technologies from a technical and also from a societal point of view. The ease with which information can be disseminated through the Internet poses a real challenge to traditional media, PICISOC through its mailing lists and PacINET conferences will help your business stay ahead and grow.

Thank you and we hope you go back to your respective countries and tell them what a great country Solomon Islands is, and we hope you can visit us again for PacINET 2007, August 14-24.

(ends)

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