Namibia leads southern Africa in Internet access assessment
The Deputy Minister of Information and Communication Technology, Honourable Emma Theofelus officially launched the Namibia National Internet Universality Indicators (ROAM-X) Assessment at the Namibia University of Science and Technology HTTP Centre in Windhoek, on 27 June.
The ROAM-X framework is developed by UNESCO and Namibia as a member state is carrying out a national assessment using the framework
The ministry said the ROAM-X assessment is used to develop policy recommendations and practical initiatives that will enable Namibia to improve the national Internet ecosystem as advanced ICTs evolve, among other things.
Theofelus said Namibia has embraced this opportunity to allow for the voluntary assessment that will provide evidence as to where precisely the national policy and development of internet systems are, particularly considering the human rights aspects, openness, accessibility and the role and governance of the multi-stakeholder. “This will further focus and recognise the aspects of gender, disability, youth and AI as diverse inter-sectional issues that policies should consider,” she added.
The launch was followed by a panel discussion, which had panellist share insight on the challenges and opportunities in internet development in Namibia. The assessment is being conducted by the Internet Society, the Namibian Chapter, MICT and UNESCO. Namibia is the first country in southern Africa to conduct an assessment of this nature.
