UNIVERSITY OF PENNSYLVANIA - AFRICAN STUDIES CENTER
African Network Operators Group Workshop, 05/00

African Network Operators Group Workshop, 05/00

THE AFRICAN NETWORK OPERATORS GROUP

AFNOG 2000 WORKSHOP ON NETWORK TECHNOLOGY FOR AFRICA

In conjunction with the inaugural meeting of African Network Operators Group (AFNOG) in May 2000, AFNOG will hold a Network Technology Workshop prior to the meeting. The workshop will take place in facilities of the Graduate School of Business, University of Cape Town, South Africa, from 30 April to 5 May 2000. The workshop will offer advanced training to operators of existing African Internet Service Providers (ISPs) who are participants in the process of developing and enhancing a national Internet with regional and international connectivity.

Attendance at the workshop includes attendance at AFNOG's inaugural meeting, AFNOG 2000 (www.afnog.org), and the introductory meeting of AfriNIC (www.afrinic.org), which will be held in Cape Town on 6 May 2000 and 7 May 2000 respectively, following the workshop. The programs of these two meetings will be available as they develop at:

//www.afnog.org and //www.afrinic.org.

GOALS

The goals of the AFNOG 2000 workshop are:

1. To train a critical mass of trainers and professionals in network infrastructure and services in order to support an extension of Internet-related activities within the African countries represented.

2. To identify and share individual and institutional contacts as well as information sources that will assist the process of national development, using international Internet connections.

3. To build robust professional linkages between all participants in the programs so that the mentor-student and colleague-colleague relationships formed during the workshop and conferences will remain strong and of continuing usefulness well beyond the workshop and conference.

4. To increase the level of cooperation among existing projects and activities for establishing public data networks in Africa.

5. To train people and groups of people who will return to their country and region and who will teach others what they have learned at the workshop.

PROGRAM

An intensive program of instruction is planned for the workshop, composed of two tracks: infrastructure and services.

A participant may attend only one of the two tracks, since the tracks run concurrently.

All participants will engage in extensive laboratory-based training, setting up and managing prototype infrastructure and services.

The course descriptions below include for each instructional track:

1. Who should attend this course.

2. What you need to know to enter this course and benefit from it

(Prerequisites).

3. What you will learn in this course (Subjects).

TRACK 1. SCALABLE INTERNET SERVICES

Who should attend: Technical staff who are now providing mail, file, web, and other TCP/IP based services to local and/or dial-up end users.

Prerequisites: UNIX use and some Unix system administration.

Subjects: large-scale provision of UNIX-based TCP/IP services such as:

* DNS (Domain Name Service)

* SMTP mail exchange

* POP mail delivery

* Mailing lists

* RADIUS dialup authentication

* HTTP web service

* Help desk

TRACK 2. SCALABLE NETWORK INFRASTRUCTURE

Who should attend: Technical staff who are now operating a wide area TCP/IP network, likely with international and/or multi-provider connectivity. Those who are involved in the establishment and/or operation of a basic

national network infrastructure in the country.

Prerequisites: experience using TCP/IP-based networking technologies.

Subjects: configuration and operation of larger scale backbones, including:

* Basic routing

* OSPF routing

* BGP routing (limited)

* Management of router configuration

* NOC (Network Operation Center)

* Exchange points between networks

PLACE

The workshop activities will be held at The Breakwater Lodge conference

facility, operated by the Graduate School of Business, University of Cape Town, South Africa. Participants will be offered room and board at The Breakwater Lodge residence during the workshop and the AFNOG and

AfriNIC meetings, which follow.

Shuttle bus and taxi transportation is available from the airport to the workshop accommodations.

WORKING LANGUAGE

The working language of the workshop will be English; good comprehension of spoken and written English will be required of each participant. The organizers will try to ensure that some members of the instructional staff will speak French and/or Portuguese.

DATES

Participants should plan to arrive in Cape Town on or before 1800 hours on Saturday 29 April, and leave after 1800 hours on Sunday 7 May.

Workshop sessions will be held starting in the afternoon, Sunday 30 April, and end in the evening of Friday 5 May.

The AFNOG 2000 meeting begins at 0900 hours, Saturday 6 May, and AfriNIC begins at 0900 hours, Sunday, 7 May.

ELIGIBILITY

The workshop is specifically directed toward the needs of people from Africa who are currently playing an important part in introducing and extending public internetworking in their countries and region. Attendees should be involved in establishing the Internet's presence, in institutionalizing its operation, and in assisting the country's schools and universities,governmental agencies, local firms, and residents in exploiting the range of services available through the net. By the Internet, we mean the publicly accessible Internet, with unrestricted access for educational and commercial institutions and the not-for-profit community.

Working engineers from international and bilateral technical co-operation agencies, as well as engineering professionals having substantial involvement in international technical assistance activities, are also eligible for admission as space allows.

Participants who have attended one or more INET Developing Countries Workshop will be considered eligible to attend the AFNOG 2000 workshop on a space-available basis; however, these former participants must apply for a course of study other than subjects studied previously. Their request must be consistent with their responsibilities in a national and/or regional context, and a convincing argument for repeated attendance must accompany the application. This should include a statement of the activities carried out as a result of the previous workshop. Less financial aid will be available for repeat attendees than for first-time applicants.

APPLICATION FOR ADMISSION

To apply for admission, please complete the attached form and return it as soon as possible, but no later than February 1, 2000. If you expect to

attend the workshop as the result of being awarded a United Nations or similar fellowship awarded by a multilateral of bilateral aid agency, please inform us of the details in your application.

Applicants will be notified of their acceptance to the program and the amount of financial aid available to them by March 15.

Please note that the workshop activity includes attendance at the AFNOG

2000 and AfriNIC meetings. If you are admitted to the workshop, you should NOT register separately for the meetings; that will be done automatically for you.

NOTE: Applicants are required to submit their application via email, and also to give an electronic mail address for future correspondence regarding the workshop. Please also include a reliable FAX number on your application.

Please be sure that all of the contact information you submit is clear and accurate, or we will not be able to contact you.

VISAS

Every visitor to South Africa must have a valid passport in order to obtain the necessary visa from South Africa. If you apply to attend the

workshop, be prepared to obtain a passport immediately upon receiving an invitation to attend, or sooner if practical, since visa procedures may be lengthy.

It is the responsibility of participants to ascertain the visa requirements that apply to them and to obtain any appropriate visas (including transit visas) needed to attend the workshop and the related meetings. AFNOG will assist applicants in this matter by providing visa application information as well as information regarding the Workshop, AFNOG and its professional goals and activities.

HEALTH RESTRICTIONS

South Africa requires proof of yellow fever vaccination received at least 10 days prior to entry from all visitors who enter from a yellow fever-affected country. Accepted participants will be notified of any other health restrictions and regulations for entry into the country.

COSTS

The cost of attending the workshop and associated events is U.S. $1,500.

This fee includes:

* All tuition and fees for the workshop.

* All lodging charges from Saturday 29 April through Sunday 7 May.

* All meal charges for the period starting with dinner on Saturday evening, 29 April through dinner on Sunday evening, 7 May.

* Registration at the AFNOG 2000 meeting (Saturday 6 May) and the AfriNIC meeting (Sunday 7 May), including the midday meals included in registration for those meetings.

Participants should bring the equivalent of U.S. $30 for airport transfers. They may wish to budget approximately U.S.$50 for optional travel and other needs and activities (laundry, etc.) Saturday 29 April through Sunday 7 May.

FINANCIAL AID

For some candidates, the AFNOG Workshop will provide financial assistance to cover a part or all of each participant's overall expenditures. If you request financial aid for the workshop, please be certain to provide all financial information that is requested in the application for admission. Financial aid will take the form of either pre-paid airline tickets for

travel to and from Cape Town, partial or total coverage of the workshop

fee, or both.

The overall amount of aid available will be extremely limited. Please make all possible efforts to secure whatever funding is possible from sources known to you. If you are requesting financial aid from the Workshop, please tell us why it is necessary, how you expect to fund part of your

expenses, and what efforts you have made and are making to obtain additional aid.

Please note that aid from AFNOG may depend upon your ability to obtain partial financial support from other sources.

ADDITIONAL INFORMATION

Specific questions regarding the workshop may be directed electronically to:

workshopinfo@afnog.org

Information about AFNOG and the May AFNOG meeting in Capetown is available at:

//www.afnog.org

AfriNIC information can be found at:

//www.afrinic.org

* * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * *

THE AFRICAN NETWORK OPERATORS GROUP

AFNOG 2000 WORKSHOP ON NETWORK TECHNOLOGY FOR AFRICA

APPLICATION FOR ADMISSION

Please fill out this questionnaire completely and email it by February 1, 2000 to

workshop-apply@afnog.org

A. Personal data

----------------

FAMILY NAME (LAST NAME, SURNAME) ONLY:

Full Name:

Employer/Organization:

Position/Title:

Business Address:

Business Telephone:

Alternate Telephone:

E-mail address:

Fax:

Date of birth:

Nationality:

Name as it appears on passport or other travel document:

Passport number:

Country issuing passport:

Date passport was issued:

Date of passport expiration:

Knowledge of English: Please rate your knowledge in these categories:

Listening/comprehension minimal fair good excellent

Reading minimal fair good excellent

Speaking minimal fair good excellent

Writing minimal fair good excellent

Please indicate with an asterisk (*) the most reliable addresses and telephone/fax numbers above which can be used to reach you.

B. Course of Instruction

------------------------

Instructional track applied for (Please select only one track; the tracks will run concurrently):

[ ] Track 1 SCALABLE INTERNET SERVICES

[ ] Track 2 SCALABLE NETWORK INFRASTRUCTURE

Please indicate any specific interests within the area you have chosen:

C. Technical Skills

------------------------------------------------------------------

1. Are you a UNIX user? How much have you used it?

2. Have you been a UNIX system administrator? Describe your experience (length of time, versions, etc.).

3 Have you used/administered TCP/IP networks? Describe.

4. Have you set up and/or administered any of the following?

Please give details.

- nameservers

- sendmail/smail/exim

- majordomo or other list manager

- web systems

5. Have you configured or otherwise managed any of the following? Details, please.

- routers

- switches

- network monitoring

- noc

D. Description of Role in National Networking Activities

--------------------------------------------------------

Bearing in mind that this information will be used to determine whether to admit you to the workshop, please provide in the format of your choice the following information about yourself. Please be sure that it is sufficiently clear, well organized and adequate for this purpose.

1. A description of your current employer, your position, your duties and responsibilities, and how they relate to current and future data networking activities in your country.

2. A brief description of your computing and networking environment (operating systems, networking software, modems, etc.), including the connectivity of your organization to the Internet and your country's connectivity to the international Internet.

3a. Scope of your institution (check all categories that apply):

[ ] Commercial Network Provider

[ ] Academic Network Provider

[ ] NGO Network Provider

[ ] Other Specify______________

Approximate number of full time staff at your institution:

4. How your training and current work prepare and qualify you for the track you wish to attend.

5. How you expect to use the knowledge you gain at the workshop after you return to your country.

6. If you have previously attended INET Workshops for Developing Countries,

1. Year and track you attended:

2. A precise description of how you have used the training you have received in the past:

3. The significant advances in networking which have occurred in your country specifically because of your knowledge and effort:

E. FINANCIAL INFORMATION ------------------------

Your application must contain the following complete information if you

wish to be considered for financial support to attend the workshop.

NOTE: Your acceptance into the workshop may depend on your ability to provide some or all of the funding.

1. Are you are requesting financial aid from the AFNOG Workshop for attending the workshop and meetings?

[ ] Yes

[ ] No

2. If you are requesting financial aid to cover the workshop fee, please provide a complete list of funding sources in the following form. The list should contain all sources of funds that are available to you for payment of the workshop fee.

1. Your Institution U.S.$

2. Your Government U.S.$

3. From international organizations U.S.$

4. Your personal contribution U.S.$

5. Amount you ask from AFNOG U.S.$

_____________

TOTAL Income U.S.$1,000.00

3. Will you need financial assistance for airfare? If so, how much will you or your institution be contributing?

[ ] No, assistance for airfare not needed.

[ ] Yes, assistance needed.

Amount of your contribution: U.S.$_________

4. If you are requesting financial support for airfare, please provide a good estimate of round trip, lowest economy excursion airfare next June

between your place of residence and Cape Town, South Africa.

1. Airfare:

2. Airline:

3. Type of fare:

4. City of departure:

5. Source of your estimate:

Signature: ____________________________ Date: ___________________

_________________________________________________________________________

For a blank copy of this announcement and application, send e-mail to:

application@afnog.org

YOU MUST SEND YOUR COMPLETED APPLICATION BY ELECTRONIC MAIL.

Completed applications should be submitted to:

workshop-apply@afnog.org

The "Subject" line of the message should contain your surname or family name in the following format:

Subject: AFNOG Workshop Application: <your-family-name

If you have questions regarding this announcement and application, they may be addressed to:

workshopinfo@afnog.org



Editor: Ali B. Ali-Dinar
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