January 1, 2008
The planning process for the Fourth Tokyo International Conference on African Development (TICAD IV) is well underway. The first conference was held in 1993 and subsequent conferences have been held every five years. The Japanese Ministry of Foreign Affairs has released a concept paper with the theme — “Towards a Vibrant Africa: Continent of Hope and Opportunity.” The conference will be held from May 28 to 30, 2008, in Yokohama, Japan. A key goal of the conference is to further mobilize the knowledge and resources of the international community to help ensure that growth in Africa is self-sustained, pro-poor, and inclusive. Priorities include trade and investment, infrastructure development, and agriculture. The concept paper also emphasizes the need to support South-South and triangular cooperation, in particular, Asia-Africa and Intra-Africa cooperation.
For more information, see:
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African development, Asia-Africa, foreign aid | 
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January 1, 2008
On December 20, RASCOMSTAR-QAF launched the first telecommunications satellite dedicated solely to the African continent. The satellite was built by Thales Alenia Space under a $150 million turnkey contract with the Regional African Satellite Communication Organization (RASCOM), a treaty-based, inter-governmental organization. RASCOMSTAR-QAF is the pan-African operator in charge of deploying and operating the satellite, including system financing, design, supply, construction, installation, reception, and maintenance.
The satellite will provide fixed voice and data, Internet access, and broadcasting services. In particular, the satellite should help improve Internet and telecommunications connectivity in rural communities that currently have limited, if any, access to phone and Internet services. The dedicated satellite will reduce costs and improve pan-African inter-connectivity for African telecom operators.
Thales Alenia Space is a joint venture between Thales (67%), a French aerospace, defense, and IT company, and Finmeccanica (33%), an Italian aerospace and defense company. RASCOMSTAR-QAF, registered in Mauritius, is a joint partnership of LAIP (33%), GPTC (29%), RASCOM (26%) and Thales Alenia Space (12%).
For more information related to Africa’s first dedicated telecommunications satellite, see:
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African IT, African development, African telecommunications, regional integration | 
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