JHU SAIS to Host Conference on the New African Democracy
MEDIA ADVISORY
April 25, 2012
JHU SAIS to Host Conference on the New African Democracy
The Johns Hopkins University Paul H. Nitze School of Advanced International Studies (SAIS) will hold a two-day conference, “The New African Democracy: Information Technology and Political Participation” on Tuesday, May 1 from 8:45 a.m. to 2 p.m. and Wednesday, May 2 from 9:30 a.m. to 1 p.m.
The conference, hosted by SAIS’s African Studies Program, will explore how information and communications technologies (ICTs) are helping to advance political participation and social movements in Africa. Ebrahim Rasool, South African ambassador to the United States, will give the conference’s luncheon keynote address at 12:30 p.m. on Tuesday, May 1. Experts and policymakers will discuss challenges and opportunities for African politics in the digital age at the following sessions:
Tuesday, May 1
8:45 a.m. Opening Remarks
9 a.m. Panel 1: “Technology and Political Inclusion”
11 a.m. Panel 2: “Little Brother Is Watching You: Constraints and Successes of Citizen Monitoring and Reporting”
12:30 p.m. Luncheon keynote address by Ebrahim Rasool on “Harnessing ICT for Democracy, Human Rights and Development in Africa”
Wednesday, May 2
9 a.m. Panel 3: “TechChange Simulation”
10:30 a.m. Panel 4: “Collaboration and Donor Priorities”
Noon Panel 5: “Analysis and Looking Forward”
12:30 p.m. Closing Remarks by Peter Lewis, director of the SAIS African Studies Program
SAIS also will host a live webcast of the conference available at www.sais-jhu.edu/pressroom/live.html.
The conference, which is free and open to the public, will be held in the Kenney Auditorium of the school’s Nitze Building, located at 1740 Massachusetts Ave., N.W., Washington, D.C. Members of the public should RSVP to [email protected].
Media who want to cover the event should contact Felisa Neuringer Klubes in the SAIS Communications Office at 202.663.5626 or [email protected].