dotAfrica
JOHANNESBURG – THE dotAfrica (.africa) roadshow has begun its journey from Southern Africa towards Mount Kilimanjaro as the continent gears towards a new online identity.
A unique geographic Top Level Domain (gTLD), .africa, aims to bring the continent together as an internet community under one umbrella allowing
e-commerce, technology and infrastructure to flourish.
The roadshow has moved from South Africa to Francistown, Botswana on Thursday (today) before the .africa team arrives in Zimbabwe on Friday.
From Bulawayo, the flag will travel to Chinhoyi before embarking to Lusaka, Zambia.
On Saturday, the team leaves for Serenje, prior to visiting a series of Tanzanian towns and cities on Monday.
Makambako, Iringa and Dodoma will all play host to the .africa team before they arrive in the Tarangire National Park next Friday.
The .africa flag will start its journey up Kilimanjaro on January 16. It is the highest mountain in Africa, about 5 000 metres above sea level at summit.
The climb is set to last ten days.
The roadshow will culminate at the African Union (AU) Headquarters in Ethiopia at the Heads of States Summit on January 28 and 29.
Lucky Masilela, Registry Africa Chief Executive Officer, said the Kilimanjaro summit attempt exemplified like-minded Africans working together towards a common goal.
“Just as the eventual commercial launch of .africa was an example of Africans overcoming enormous odds in the quest to better their lives through a unique online identity, so too is this historic trek by the .africa team,” he said.
Masilela expressed gratitude to the AU Commission for its support throughout the journey that began as far back as the OR Tambo (2009) and Abuja Declarations (2001) where it was resolved to use information communication technology to ensure the development of Africa.
“It is now time to create the next chapter in the .africa story as the general public begins contributing to Africa’s development each time they register a .africa domain name,” Masilela said.
– CAJ News
