The Kenyan government has strongly indicated its support for ICTs by announcing that it will grant $2.5million towards development of local online content, media reports said today.
According to Business Daily, the Chief Executive Officer of Kenya’s ICT Board, Paul Kukubo said the fund was part of the Kenya Transparency and Communication Infrastructure Project supported by the World Bank.
The grants will be offered for a period of three years but disbursed four times each year.
The report added that the money will cover development of specific content application, such as on education, e-health or innovation of new contents and applications for urban and rural areas.
This is part of the country’s local content strategy which the board expects to launch before the end of the year.
The need to develop local content stems from the fact that both the government and the private sector are investing in undersea fiber cables and National Fibre Cable Backbone which will increase the capacity of bandwidth available in the country at a reduced price. Currently, according to the latest International Telecommunication Union ITU study, the country has three million internet users.
By ItnewsAfrica.com Reporter
