Trustworthy Cross-Border Interoperable Identity System for Developing Countries

Foundational identity systems (FIDS) have been used to optimise service delivery and inclusive economic growth in developing countries. As developing nations increasingly seek to use FIDS for the identification and authentication of identity (ID) holders, trustworthy interoperability will help to develop a cross-border dimension of e-Government. Despite this potential, there has not been any significant research on the interoperability of FIDS in the African identity ecosystem. There are several challenges to this; on one hand, complex internal political dynamics have resulted in weak institutions, implying that FIDS could be exploited for political gains. On the other hand, the trust in the government by the citizens or ID holders is habitually low, in which case, data security and privacy protection concerns become paramount. In the same sense, some FIDS are technology-locked, thus interoperability is primarily ambiguous. There are also issues of cross-system compatibility, legislation, vendor-locked system design principles and unclear regulatory provisions for data sharing. Fundamentally, interoperability is an essential prerequisite for e-Government services and underpins optimal service delivery in education, social security, and financial services including gender and equality as already demonstrated by the European Union. Furthermore, cohesive data exchange through an interoperable identity system will create an ecosystem of efficient data governance and the integration of cross-border FIDS. Consequently, this research identifies the challenges, opportunities, and requirements for cross-border interoperability in an African context. Our findings show that interoperability in the African identity ecosystem is vital to strengthen the seamless authentication and verification of ID holders for inclusive economic growth and widen the dimensions of e-Government across the continent.Comment: 18 pages, 4 figures, In 2023 Trustworthy Digital Identity International Conference, Bengaluru, Indi

Education Technology Design and Deployment in HCI4D:A Nigerian Perspective

The decolonisation of knowledge has shown significant impact in reframing the understanding of technology as a means to the development of African communities. However, post-development narratives in HCI4D have failed to explicate how situated and grassroot alternatives can inform the innovative design of diverse perspectives and experience. As such, this thesis approaches this fundamental gap in our understanding of the practice of technology design and deployment by problematising conventional approaches for understanding, designing, and deploying educational technologies in the context of Nigeria. Through the adoption of a range of indigenous sensitivities, the thesis seeks to develop candidate approaches for analysing diverse cultural perspectives and for designing technologies that embody and extend them. Through the thematic analysis of empirical data, the thesis shows how stereotypical approaches to educational research and technology design presents postcolonial narratives of innovation in Nigeria as neo-colonial design agenda’s that needed to be appropriated in line with emerging conditions and relations in Africa. The interpretive analysis of the perspective of stakeholders in three Universities shows the relevance of developing context-specific pedagogical approach relevant to the politics of decolonialise blended education. The analysis also attempts to revive the arguments about the processes of technology diffusion and acceptance, showing the relevance and limit of traditional models for understanding the acceptance or rejection of technologies in an educational context. Using the Wittgensteinian approach of Winch and a range of Feminist positionalities, I attempted showing how a situated epistemological orientation can bring about envisioning alternative’s ways of articulating and translating transnational encounters and exchange of technological innovation. The sensitization and evaluation of the mundane practice of three software development firm shows the mythology of design innovation in/from Africa. This led to the consideration of how reframing the basic assumption about creativity from Africa could present African culture of innovation not merely as a passive space for the transfer and appropriation of technology but as a transitional space where innovate practices get regenerated and redistributed across already polarised boundaries of innovation. Finally, the thesis argues for an ‘ontological’ framing of designing localised and indigenous technologies. Through critical reflection on a range of issues associated with post-colonialism and post-development, I examine the possibilities that various historical tropes might offer to the reinvention of the African perspective on innovation. This leads to the consideration of how engaging in critical discussions about the future dimensions of African HCI can allow for grappling with the effect of the coloniality of being, power and knowledge. Developing on the ideas of futuring as a way of dealing with the complexities of the present – in this case the coloniality of the imagination - the thesis ends by discussing three tactical propositions for ‘remembering’ future identities of African innovation where the values of autonomy are known and acted upon

Mobile Africa:Human Trafficking and the Digital Divide

What happens at the nexus of the digital divide and human trafficking? This book examines the impact of the introduction of new digital information and communication technology (ICT) – as well as lack of access to digital connectivity – on human trafficking. The different studies presented in the chapters show the realities for people moving along the Central Mediterranean route from the Horn of Africa through Libya to Europe. The authors warn against an over-optimistic view of innovation as a solution and highlight the relationship between technology and the crimes committed against vulnerable people in search of protection.In this volume, the third in a four-part series ‘Connected and Mobile: Migration and Human Trafficking in Africa’, relevant new theories are proposed as tools to understand the dynamics that appear in mobile Africa. Most importantly, the editors identify critical ethical issues in relation to both technology and human trafficking and the nexus between them, helping explore the dimensions of new responsibilities that need to be defined. The chapters in this book represent a collection of well-documented empirical investigations by a young and diverse group of researchers, addressing critical issues in relation to innovation and the perils of our time

Études des systèmes de communications sans-fil dans un environnement rural difficile

Les systèmes de communication sans fil, ayant de nombreux avantages pour les zones rurales, peuvent aider la population à bien s'y établir au lieu de déménager vers les centres urbains, accentuant ainsi les problèmes d’embouteillage, de pollution et d’habitation. Pour une planification et un déploiement efficace de ces systèmes, l'atténuation du signal radio et la réussite des liens d’accès doivent être envisagées. Ce travail s’intéresse à la provision d’accès Internet sans fil dans le contexte rural canadien caractérisé par sa végétation dense et ses variations climatiques extrêmes vu que les solutions existantes sont plus concentrées sur les zones urbaines. Pour cela, nous étudions plusieurs cas d’environnements difficiles affectant les performances des systèmes de communication. Ensuite, nous comparons les systèmes de communication sans fil les plus connus. Le réseau sans fil fixe utilisant le Wi-Fi ayant l’option de longue portée est choisi pour fournir les communications aux zones rurales. De plus, nous évaluons l'atténuation du signal radio, car les modèles existants sont conçus, en majorité, pour les technologies mobiles en zones urbaines. Puis, nous concevons un nouveau modèle empirique pour les pertes de propagation. Des approches utilisant l’apprentissage automatique sont ensuite proposées, afin de prédire le succès des liens sans fil, d’optimiser le choix des points d'accès et d’établir les limites de validité des paramètres des liens sans fil fiables. Les solutions proposées font preuve de précision (jusqu’à 94 % et 8 dB RMSE) et de simplicité, tout en considérant une multitude de paramètres difficiles à prendre en compte tous ensemble avec les solutions classiques existantes. Les approches proposées requièrent des données fiables qui sont généralement difficiles à acquérir. Dans notre cas, les données de DIGICOM, un fournisseur Internet sans fil en zone rurale canadien, sont utilisées. Wireless communication systems have many advantages for rural areas, as they can help people settle comfortably and conveniently in these regions instead of relocating to urban centers causing various overcrowding, habitation, and pollution problems. For effective planning and deployment of these technologies, the attenuation of the radio signal and the success of radio links must be precisely predicted. This work examines the provision of wireless internet access in the Canadian rural context, characterized by its dense vegetation and its extreme climatic variations, since existing solutions are more focused on urban areas. Hence, we study several cases of difficult environments affecting the performances of communication systems. Then, we compare the best-known wireless communication systems. The fixed wireless network using Wi-Fi, having the long-range option, is chosen to provide wireless access to rural areas. Moreover, we evaluate the attenuation of the radio signal, since the existing path loss models are generally designed for mobile technologies in urban areas. Then, we design a new path loss empirical model. Several approaches are then proposed by using machine learning to predict the success of wireless links, optimize the choice of access points and establish the validity limits for the pertinent parameters of reliable wireless connections. The proposed solutions are characterized by their accuracy (up to 94% and 8 dB RMSE) and simplicity while considering a wide range of parameters that are difficult to consider all together with conventional solutions. These approaches require reliable data, which is generally difficult to acquire. In our case, the dataset from DIGICOM, a rural Canadian wireless internet service provider, is used