Professor Nii Narko Quaynor, a Ghanaian scientist and engineer, is Africa’s high-tech entrepreneur. He is considered the father of the African internet because he was responsible for ensuring that Africa was not left behind during the internet revolution.
Prof. Quaynor was the first person on the African continent to have an internet connection. This is because he personally spearheaded the establishment of the continent’s first internet connection. To this end, he founded important organizations such as the African Network Operators Group, Value Added Networks, SWIFT (Global Financial Telecommunications) and other trading technology systems that were vital to the deployment, access and most importantly the security of the Internet.
His passion for web development across Africa is so it pays to be recognized for it. With Internet connectivity, for example, Africa is beginning to enjoy more effective communication in governance and a variety of other institutions.
In addition to the achievements of this IKTProf. Quaynor, the pioneer, is still hoping and working on more e-commerce activities in and out of Africa. As a high-profile ICT personality and one of the founding members of the Institute of Computer Science at the University of Cape Coast in Ghana, member of the United Nations Secretary-General’s Advisory Group on ICT; Prof. Quaynor has held a number of distinguished positions in Africa’s digital community. For two decades he dedicated his talent and skills to the introduction and further development of the Internet in Africa. He has developed his skills and know-how over many years in various digital companies.
In 2013 he was admitted to the Internet hallof fame. He served and was recognized for his position as Director of ICANN (2000). In fact, he made history by being the first African to be an ICANN board member.
If today we can boldly say that Africa is a part, then we can rest assured that we are only benefiting from the ingenuity of quite a number of people, particularly professors like Nii Narko Quaynor. Thanks to this internet titan, Africa is not left behind in the growing internet world.
Telecommunications and commerce alone could not have put Africa on the world map were it not for the Internet, and Prof Quaynor and other Internet entrepreneurs did not enter the scene. Each has their own contribution to the diversity and advancement of the internet in Africa. As much as these men are undoubtedly the giants, makers and shakers of African internet society in their various capacities, the efforts of some others have grown stronger.
Besides Prof. Quaynor, the Egyptian father of the internet is also worth mentioning in Africa’s internet success story.
dr Tarek Kamel Contributions to Accessibility in Africa
DR. Tarek Kamel is an Egyptian web expert on global internet governance issues. Its main task is to put Egypt and Africa on the world map of the Internet through persistent advocacy and progressive approach to the development of the African Internet.
He began his career as a Network Support Engineer for the Academy of Scientific Research and Technology. Over time, he rose to various positions, which led to the creation of Internet access in Egypt.
The now 56-year-old was personally responsible for setting up Egypt’s first online connection. He also led the launch of commercial internet services in his homeland and founded the Internet Society of Egypt. To date, he continues to promote ICT start-ups in Egypt.
Because of his wealth of expertise, Dr. Kamel has held various national positions, including Secretary of State for Communications and Information Technology and Chairman of the National Telecom Regulatory Authority and the National Telecommunication Institute.
He is a formidable force in Egyptian telecoms and is known for his wealth of experience in the digital world.
He is also a prominent figure in ICANN and the Internet community. The ICANN filing shows the following:
“During (Dr. As Minister, he led a local and global team to formulate and implement a national strategy that positioned Egypt as a regional model for call centers, business process outsourcing, knowledge process outsourcing and innovation-based services.”