Kwami Ahiabenu,II Knowledge Chief

Video Powerpoint Presentation: PDF Event Highlights:PDF featuring Kwami Ahiabenu Reagan-Fascell Democracy Fellow, National Endowment for Democracy with comments by Larry Diamond Founding Coeditor, Journal of Democracy and Co-chair, International Forum for Democratic Studies' Research Council, National Endowment for Democracy moderated by Christopher Walker International Forum for Democratic Studies About the event In recent years, a majority of the 15 ECOWAS (Economic Community of West African States) member countries have enjoyed expanded political freedoms and have passed a variety of reform measures to combat corruption, including the establishment of a regional anti-corruption institution. Despite this progress, the region still confronts instability, limited transparency, and weak democratic governance. In response to these ongoing challenges, countries across West Africa have begun to harness the power of information communication technologies (ICT), ...

  The International Forum for Democratic Studies at the National Endowment for Democracy   cordially invites you to a luncheon presentation entitled   "Using Technology to Promote Good Governance and Economic Transparency in West Africa"   featuring   Kwami Ahiabenu,II Reagan-Fascell Democracy Fellow, National Endowment for Democracy   with comments by   Larry Diamond Founding Coeditor, Journal of Democracy and Co-chair, International Forum for Democratic Studies' Research Council, National Endowment for Democracy   moderated by   Christopher Walker International Forum for Democratic Studies   Thursday, May 30, 2013 12 noon – 2:00 p.m. (Lunch served 12:00–12:30 p.m.) 1025 F Street, N.W., Suite 800, Washington, D.C. 20004 Telephone: 202-378-9675   In recent years, a majority of the 15 ECOWAS (Economic Community of West African...

A 13 -member Governing Council of the African University College of Communication (AUCC) has been inaugurated with Professor S.K.B. Asante as its chairman. Other members of the Council include Hon. Kojo Yankah, Mr. Tim Acquah-Hayford, Mrs. Emma Mitchell, Mr. James Kwamena Anaman, Mr.J.E. Allotey-Pappoe, Dr. Sam Dapaah, Mr. Kwami Ahiabenu, Nana Essilfie-Conduah, Mr. Kwesi Gyan Appenteng, Mr. Kwasi Osei, Ms Judith Aidoo and Madam Dorothy Gordon. In his inaugural address, Professor S.K.B. Asante said that the establishment of the Centre for Africana Studies by AUCC to complement the study of Communication was a laudable venture as it would enable the country to address the   high level of intellectual dishonesty associated with Africa's political history and socio-cultural institutions. He further stated that it had become imperative for Ghana to address the unfortunate deficit in the projection of a positive African personality as far as the trai...

It is my unenviable task to announce that Computer Professionals for Social Responsibility (CPSR), a non-profit educational corporation, has been dissolved. CPSR was launched in 1981 in Palo Alto, California, to question the computerization of war in the United States via the Strategic Computing Initiative to use artificial intelligence in war, and, soon after, the Strategic Defense Initiative — "Star Wars". Over the years CPSR evolved into a "big tent" organization that addressed a variety of computer-related areas including workplace issues, privacy, participatory design, freedom of information, community networks, and many others. Now, of course, there are hundreds, if not thousands, of organizations and movements that are concerned not only about the misuses of ICT by governments and corporations (and others) but also about trying to develop approaches that help communities work together to address issues related to econom...

  WASHINGTON—The National Endowment for Democracy (NED) is pleased to welcome its Spring 2013 cohort of Reagan-Fascell Democracy Fellows and Visiting Fellows. In residence are leading practitioners, journalists, and scholars from around the world, including Bahrain, Burma/Thailand, Cambodia, Ghana, Kyrgyzstan, Mexico, Nigeria, Pakistan, Uganda, and the United States. A list of the 2012–2013 Fellows and their bios can be found here . Named in honor of NED's two principal founders, former president Ronald Reagan and the late congressman Dante Fascell, the Reagan-Fascell Democracy Fellows Program seeks to increase the knowledge, enrich the skills, broaden the perspectives, and boost the morale of some of the world's most committed and courageous democracy activists and scholars. Based at the International Forum for Democratic Studies, NED's research and publications arm, in Washington, D.C., the program has enabled over 180 fellows from more t...

Baseline survey open data, open government and data journalism in Ghanaian newsroom   The International Institute of ICT Journalism (Penplusbytes), Ghana's premier new media organization, is undertaking a baseline survey on how newsrooms in Ghana plans to take advantage of opportunities offered by open data, open government and how they are investing in data journalism skills development. This study is coming at the time, Ghana is expected to pass the Freedom of Information Law which will unlock droves of data for the newsrooms and the National Information Technology Agency (NITA) undertaking Ghana Open Data Initiative ( http://data.gov.gh ) to make government data online. The World Bank's Open Data initiative ( http://data.worldbank.org/ ) is also making bank's lending operations data available.   An unparalleled open data opportunity to help journalists tell compelling high impact stories is now a present reality. Please take a few m...

This book contributes to debates concerning online reporting of elections and the challenges facing journalism in the context of democratic change. The speed of technological adaptation by journalists and their audiences means online news is gradually becoming a normalised part of media landscapes across the world. Journalists monitor social media for insight into the political process and as an instant indication of "public sentiment", rather than waiting for press releases and opinion polls. Citizens are actively participating in online political reporting too, through publishing eyewitness accounts, political commentary, crowd-sourcing and fact-checking information (of political manifestos and media reports alike). It is therefore growing increasingly important to understand how political journalism is evolving through new communicative forms and practices, in order to critique its epistemological role and function in democratic societies, and...

13th September to 13th December 2013 Duration: 4 months Location: online Introduction Penplusbytes' innovative global course in ICT Journalism provides a unique online training opportunity for journalists in the exciting area of ICT Journalism. Participants will be exposed to the wider context of ICTs assisted journalism including how these technologies are impacting on the world of journalism, how to harness the power of ICTs in producing high quality impactful stories, and how to manage change process in using innovative ICT tools. This course provides skills and knowledge within a practical interactive learning environment with the main goal of strengthening capabilities in both multimedia and online news production while increasing understanding of the rapid changing environment in newsroom operations due to opportunities and challenges Information and communication Technologies revolution brings. After successfully completing the course, each partic...

   

  The centre will provide a real time response mechanism on election irregularities, violence and other concerns by reaching out to key election stakeholders for immediate action. The aim is to monitor all social media platforms during the elections to afford civil society, state authorities and development partners the opportunity to know in real time public opinions, sentiments and attitudes relayed through different social media platforms in order for relevant actions to be taken. The African Election Project, in collaboration with the Georgia Institute of Technology, Meltwater Entrepreneurial School of Technology (MEST) and EnoughisEnough (EiE) with support from the United Kindom's Department for International Development (DFID) is Social Media Tracking Centre (STMC). According to Mr. Michael Ohene-Effah, Governance Advisor at DFID, "Ghana DFID welcomes and supports this ground-breaking social media tracking centre initiative. Although...

  In the run-up to Ghana's 2012 general election, leading political parties have gone fully for the door-to-door model of campaigning. Unlike in the past when presidential candidates took to holding huge rallies, they are now criss-crossing the country, moving from community to community, and talking to individuals, and small groups in their homes, and community meetings. This mode of selling campaign messages is a sharp departure from the previous practice of busing supporters to venues for huge rallies. Since 1992 when the country returned to multi-party democracy, after 11 years of military rule, the major political parties - National Democratic Congress (NDC), New Patriotic Party (NPP), Convention People's Party (CPP), and the People's National Convention (PNC) – have resorted to staging massive rallies. Former president Jerry John Rawlings is believed to have set the tone for such rallies in the 1992 and 1996 political campaigns fo...

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