DSA explains choice of April for Nigeria IGF-10

Organizers of the Nigeria Digital Sense forum, the Digital Sense Africa (DSA), have said the 2010 edition of the forum will hold in second quarter of this year.

Executive Director, Operations at Digital Sense Africa, Mrs. Nkemdilim Nweke, said the timing of the forum follows the need to sell Nigeria’s position to the West African countries.

This, she said, cannot be well articulated after the regional Internet Governance Forum (IGF) must have been held.

Other West African countries, she said, must be carried along in the nation’s bid to ensure that her own interest is well represented in the global session of the Internet Governance Forum.

According to her, the global IGF for this year, is coming much earlier than that of last year, hence the choice to hold the Nigeria Digital Sense forum in April.

She recalled that the decision to announce the date for the 2010 edition of its annual gathering of Information and Communication Technology (ICT) stakeholders in the country with focus on Internet Governance, would take place on Friday, April 16, this year.

In addition, Mrs. Nweke said that this year’s theme of the forum planned for Golden Gate Ikoyi-Lagos, would centre on ‘Five Years of IGF, the Way Forward for Nigeria.’

Stressing that following the success of 2009 edition, it befitting to make certain the 2010 edition takes place in good time in order to ensure that those stakeholders planning to be at this year’s Internet Governance Forum, would have most of the subject that needed trashing at heart.

Further, she said that strategies are at the final stages to make sure that this edition improves on the intentions of stakeholders ahead of last year’s records.

Nigeria Digital Sense forum, she said, avails stakeholders the needed platform to articulate a stand on Internet Governance and accurately align the nation’s position into the global Internet Governance Forum holding in Vilnius, Lithuania between September 14 and 17, 2010.

The forum, she said, was initiated as part of efforts at always stimulating outlook and enlightenment on Nigeria’s position on the global annual Internet Governance Forum, which is in its fifth year.

She called to mind the fact that 2009 edition was presided over by chairman of the pioneer Internet Service Provider, Linkserve Group, Chief Chima Apugo Onyekwere with the participation of the Federal Minister of Information and Communications, Prof. Mrs. Dora Akunyili and Executive Vice Chairman (EVC) of the Nigerian Communications Commission (NCC), Dr. Ernest Ndukwe, who were both adequately represented at the forum.


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