The Web in Africa

First World nations that were present for and part of the development of the world wide web take the freedom of the web for granted. When we lose access, we complain about missed ebay bids, not talking to friends, or not being able to watch goofy videos on YouTube. But in some countries, the freedom the Web provides reaches much futher than “free shipping.” In many nations, even with minimal, spotty access, the ability to participate in the social web has hugely affected the participation of people within society. It is so powerful that oppressive regimes have spent large amounts of money and energy restricting and filtering their citizens’ access to maintain control.

The obstacles put in place by dictatorial governments can only hold the flood of information back for so long. Jonathan Gosier wrote a 3-part blog on the web in Africa, which describes some of the advances being made – technically and culturally – in some cases, in spite the efforts of government control. His goal is to encourage entrepreneurship through the use of the Internet in the third world.

http://www.readwriteweb.com/archives/social_media_in_africa_part_1.php
http://www.readwriteweb.com/archives/social_media_in_africa_part_2_mobile.php
http://www.readwriteweb.com/archives/africa_democracy_social_media.php

When government can no longer control information, the people can begin to hold government accountable. In Ethiopia, the services Feedelix uses technology that can bypass government filters to keep users connected. In Zimbabwe, the civic group Sokwanele uses the web to alert citizens and the rest of the world to violence and forced “land redistribution”, while the government attempts to suppress reporting. http://appfrica.net/blog/archives/131

Perhaps because of the need for the populous to communicate above the government radar, Africa’s mobile market is the fastest growing worldwide. While there is little broadband infrastructure, VSat services can provide a signal, even without electricity.
Due to this availability, many regional social sites have popped up – Muti.co.za, which is like Digg, Sokwanele.com provides updateable maps through SMS, Amatomou is a news Aggregator, Mzaleno tracks Kenya’s Parliamentary actions.

The downside of satellite connectivity is that networks get bottlenecked and will slow down, which keeps prices high and speeds low.
Johathan Gosier writes his blogs in hopes that the developing world will notice the extraordinary potential available in Africa