Tuesday 26 November 2019

Embu County set to host Communications Authority for 'Kikao Kikuu' Forum

A Kikao Kikuu setting when the Communications Authority held the forum in Nyandarua County earlier in the year. PHOTO: File 

EMBU: Communications Authority of Kenya's Kikao Kikuu to be held in Embu. 

Areas in Embu that have been facing mobile network challenges are set to get a communication uplift as way of connecting them to the world. 

This comes after Embu County government partnered with the Communication Authority of Kenya to provide mobile network to areas that have been experiencing network issues in the past. 

The authority, together with the Embu County Government, will from 25th to 28th November hold a County ICT Consumer Forum at the University of Embu. 

Through the forum, dubbed 'Kikao Kikuu', the Authority is set to provide platforms of interaction with ICT consumers and service providers among other stakeholders to explore solutions to challenges in communications with the devolved units.

Embu will be the 19th county to host the forum as C.A targets to traverse the 47 counties in Kenya.

The forum’s theme is ‘Using ICT as an enabler of opportunities’.

The regulator whose mandate is to facilitate development of the information and communications sectors including; broadcasting, cybersecurity, multimedia, telecommunications, electronic commerce, postal and courier services, uses Kikao Kikuu forums to create a sustainable link that promotes value in the way consumers interact with systems and processes.

In addition, it helps to bridge the gaps between the policy and legal framework by deepening the awareness and building individual capacity.

CA is charged with safeguarding the interests of consumers of ICT services. This is achieved through the enforcement of consumer regulations as well as educating users of these services on their rights and responsibilities.

In the past, it has carried out consumer education outreach program targeting users of mobile and internet services (“Chukua Hatua: Pata Huduma ya Mawasiliano Unayostahili”), Postal Courier Consumers (Kaa Macho), SIM Card Registration (Pata Ukweli wa Mtambo), Number Portability (Namba Yangu Milele) and Child Online Protection.

According to Kenya’s Digital Economy Blueprint, digital skills are a prerequisite for benefiting from any technology, across all sectors of the economy, and at all levels of the skills spectrum. 

“Digital skills will enable every Kenyan to have access to digital technology, having the literacy and know-how to use this technology, and being able to participate in and create with this technology,” reads part of the digital skills pillar that is focused on developing digital skills for its citizens [Mostly ICT professionals] to meet the competencies and expertise required for the digital economy.

The Blueprint identifies the five pillars of the digital economy, that are described under the headings, Digital Government, Digital Business, Infrastructure, Innovation-Driven Entrepreneurship, and Digital Skills and Values


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