- From: Janet Daly <janet@w3.org>
- Date: Tue, 24 Apr 2007 07:05:32 -0700
- To: w3c-news@w3.org
W3C will open its newest office in Southern Africa on 14 May 2007.
For more information, please contact Janet Daly, W3C Global
Communications Officer, at +1 617 253 5884 <janet@w3.org> or the W3C
Communications Team Representative in your region.
World Wide Web Consortium Launches Office in Southern Africa
W3C Invites Technical Experts of a Rapidly Growing Economy to Join
Web Standardization Activities
Web Resources
This Press Release
In English: http://www.w3.org/2007/03/saoffice-pr.html.en
In French: http://www.w3.org/2007/03/saoffice-pr.html.fr
Agenda for Southern Africa Office Event on 14 May
http://www.meraka.org.za/innovate/
Homepage of W3C Southern Africa Office
http://www.w3.org.za/
W3C Ubiquitous Web Activity
http://www.w3.org/2007/uwa
W3C Mobile Web Initiative
http://www.w3.org/Mobile
http://www.w3.org/ -- 24 April 2007 -- The World Wide Web Consortium
(W3C) announces the launch of its Southern Africa Office and invites
experts in the region to join the international effort of developing
Web standards at W3C. The Office is hosted by the Meraka Institute, a
center managed by the Council for Scientific and Industrial Research
(CSIR) in Pretoria, South Africa.
W3C invites the public and press to attend the opening ceremony,
which takes place on 14 May 2007. Representatives from the industry
and academic leaders in Southern Africa will speak on the state of
Information Communications and Technology (ICT) and the W3C staff
will present recent work. The list of speakers at the event include:
* Ms. Lyndall Shope-Mafole, Director General of the South
African Government Department of Communications
* Mr. Quentin Williams, Manager of the Southern Africa Office
* Dr. Daniel Dardailler, W3C Associate Chairman
* Mr. Stephane Boyera, W3C Team Contact for Ubiquitous Web
Applications Activity and the Mobile Web Initiative
To register, visit the registration page or send an email containing
your name, designation, company and contact details to Dikeledi Moche
at +27 12 841 2110 <dmoche@csir.co.za> .
Southern Africa Experiencing Dramatic Growth in IT, Telecommunications
The Southern Africa Office serves the region defined as Southern
Africa by the United Nations and the Southern African Customs Union.
The countries include Botswana, Lesotho, Namibia, South Africa and
Swaziland.
South Africa ranks among the top 20 in the world in
telecommunications development and Internet use. Given the
substantial growth in Mobile and Internet use, there are a
significant number of local companies that are seeking to establish a
foothold in this region as well as the larger African continent. Most
of them have realized that it is only through the use of innovative
Web technologies that they will gain a substantial advantage and
guarantee their continual growth. These are all areas closely
associated with the work of the W3C.
The Meraka Institute Brings Regional Expertise in ICT to W3C
The Meraka Institute is the unit of the CSIR focusing on research and
development within the Information and Communication Technology (ICT)
domain. The CSIR is a government supported research council
constituted by an Act of Parliament in 1945. The Meraka Institute has
partners in the private/public sector, with tertiary institutions and
peer institutions internationally.
One area of Meraka focus is innovation in ICT, leading to
applications that address development challenges facing Southern
Africa, the Continent and the developing world. Projects such as the
National Accessibility Portal (focussing on ICT for people with
disabilities and the aged), Digital Doorway (Minimal Invasive
Education), Wireless Africa (root-level community owned access), and
ICT in Education have already made an invaluable impact on the ICT
landscape of Southern Africa.
This focus, along with CSIR's established regional partnerships in
industry and research, makes the Meraka Institute a natural choice
for hosting the W3C Office.
About W3C Offices
As its Members work to realize the full potential of the Web, W3C
collaborates with regional organizations wishing to further W3C’s
mission. The W3C Offices assist with promotion efforts in local
languages, help broaden W3C’s geographical base, and encourage
international participation in W3C Activities. W3C has Offices in
Australia; the Benelux countries; Mainland China; Germany and
Austria; Finland; Greece; Hong Kong; Hungary; India; Israel; Italy;
Korea; Morocco; Southern Africa; Spain; Sweden; and the United
Kingdom and Ireland.
Contact Americas, Australia --
Janet Daly, <janet@w3.org>, +1.617.253.5884 or +1.617.253.2613
Contact Europe, Africa and Middle East --
Marie-Claire Forgue, <mcf@w3.org>, +33.492.38.75.94 or
+33.676.86.33.41
Contact Asia --
Yasuyuki Hirakawa <chibao@w3.org>, +81.466.49.1170
About the World Wide Web Consortium [W3C]
The World Wide Web Consortium (W3C) is an international consortium
where Member organizations, a full-time staff, and the public work
together to develop Web standards. W3C primarily pursues its mission
through the creation of Web standards and guidelines designed to
ensure long-term growth for the Web. Over 400 organizations are
Members of the Consortium. W3C is jointly run by the MIT Computer
Science and Artificial Intelligence Laboratory (MIT CSAIL) in the
USA, the European Research Consortium for Informatics and Mathematics
(ERCIM) headquartered in France, Keio University in Japan, and has
additional Offices worldwide. For more information see http://
www.w3.org/
Press Release | W3C Press Release Archive
Received on Tuesday, 24 April 2007 14:05:14 UTC