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On Visit to Kenya's iHub, UN Secretary-General Calls for Use of ICT to Tackle Emerging Development Challenges(Targeted News Service Via Acquire Media NewsEdge) NAIROBI, Kenya, Oct. 31 -- United Nations Development Programme issued the following news release: United Nations Secretary-General, Ban Ki-moon, today visited and interacted with young Kenyan technology innovators at the iHub, an incubation facility for entrepreneurs and innovators in Nairobi, Kenya. He observed that homegrown technology-based solutions are key to effectively dealing with current and emerging development challenges. He lauded the innovation center for blazing the trail in technology especially in encouraging girls and women to not only learn but to also come up with solutions to issues affecting them. "I am pleased and inspired by the active engagement of young people in seeking development solutions through ICT. Creative ideas being advanced in Kenya and other developing countries will play an important role in transforming society for the future. They will make life much easier and should be used by all people around the world." The Secretary-General was impressed by the creativity that young people are using with limited resources to come up with innovative ideas that can spur growth in the country. He cited M-Pesa, the mobile-phone based money transfer and micro-financing service, as one of the local innovative solutions that Kenya has exported successfully. He said that that mobile technologies and the Internet are opening new channels of interaction and can be used for gathering, disseminating and analyzing information, which can accelerate action to protect natural resources, combat climate change and help vulnerable people. He urged policy makers to support the youth by providing an ideal policy framework for their innovations to succeed in the region and the rest of the world. "Kenya is a thriving country and a power house in the regional economy, strategic to the political and security stability of Eastern Africa." Accompanying the Secretary-General were UNDP's Director for Africa Abdoulaye Mar Dieye and the UN Kenya Resident Coordinator Nardos Bekele-Thomas. Ms Bekele-Thomas said that the UN team in Kenya through its ICT for Development programme, is committed to supporting practical solutions that can be applied in all sectors of the economy to improve the lives of citizens. "We will partner with the iHub on a pilot initiative over the next four years to exchange knowledge and expertise among social innovators, stakeholders and policy makers to come up with knowledge and solutions that meet existing and future demands relevant particularly to vulnerable communities in the local context and beyond," she said. The iHub played a crucial role following the disputed 2007 elections, through an online platform, Ushahidi.com. Kenyans used their mobile phones to record eye witness reports of violence, which helped to map hotspots that could more readily receive priority attention from the police. It was also used to monitor and manage online hate messages in the run-up to the 2013 elections. The iHub currently has a membership of over 10,000 youths, many of whom have started their own web-based businesses and continue to offer mentorship to upcoming technology innovators to meet the growing demand for development-based technology. TNS 18EstebanLiz-141101-30FurigayJane-4921082 30FurigayJane (c) 2014 Targeted News Service |