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EAC
Secretary General Amb. Dr. Richard Sezibera
(centre) speaks during the launch
his left is Microsoft’s Dr. Mark
Matunga. Right is EAC’s Principal Public
Relations Officer Mr. Richard Owora Othieno.
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East African
Community
PRESS
RELEASE
SECRETARY
GENERAL LAUNCHES MICROSOFT
OFFICE 2010 KISWAHILI LOCAL LANGUAGE PACK
Urges Microsoft to work with
governments in the region to increase investments
East African Community Secretariat, Arusha, 22 February
2012: The Secretary General of the East African Community Amb. Dr. Richard
Sezibera this morning launched the Microsoft Office 2010
Kiswahili Local Language Pack, urging the Information Technology firm to work
with governments in the region to increase investments in projects that will
enhance the bloc’s economic growth.
At the ceremony held
at the EAC headquarters in Arusha, Tanzania, Amb. Sezibera described the
occasion as “yet another milestone in the Information and Communications
Technology (ICT) sector” and hailed Microsoft for taking a leading role in
facilitating adoption of ICT and the general economic development of the East
African Community.
The Secretary General
commended Microsoft
for recognizing the importance of Kiswahili language in communication and said
“both Windows 7 and Office 2010 translations will go a long way in spurring
growth of Kiswahili as a mode of communication in education, science and
technology as well as government services”.
He affirmed that
translating the Microsoft Office 2010 into a language that is familiar to the
local citizens is a boost to regional development as more computer users will
now participate in development discussions resulting in improving the effective
delivery of public services for citizens; enhancing national and regional
capacity to formulate and implement ICT policies; developing public
sector-oriented ICT solutions as well as enhancing the use of technology to
promote good governance and poverty reduction in the region.
The Secretary General
disclosed that the ICT sector had driven up to 40% of economic growth in East
Africa in the past 10 years and most of that growth had been in large companies.
He noted that the next phase could be led by Small and Medium Enterprises
(SMEs), as long as the necessary and targeted policy interventions were
made.
The Secretary General
said there was urgent need for change, not only to maintain existing levels of
education and training in the population, but also to develop the new skills and
competences required if East Africa is to remain competitive and grasp new
opportunities. He added that the region acknowledges ICT as a driver of economic
growth although literacy levels were influencing its use.
“The development of
the information society and the wide-spread diffusion of Information and
Communication Technology (ICT) give rise to new digital skills and competences
that are necessary for employment, education and training, self-development and
participation in society,” noted Amb. Sezibera.
Speaking at the
launch, Microsoft’s Citizenship and Regional Education Manager for East and
Southern Africa Dr. Mark Matunga said: “We believe technology has an
increasingly important role to play in the maintenance of linguistic diversity,
not only to promote mutual understanding and dialogue, but also to strengthen
local economies.
“All too often
communities are excluded from IT skills fluency, and the accompanying job
opportunities, for lack of technology in their local
language. Providing technology in a native language is critical to helping
people access the tools they need to create better economic opportunities,” Dr. Matunga said.
Notes to
Editors
The
launch of the Microsoft Office 2010
Kiswahili Local Language Pack comes after the launch of the
Windows 7 Kiswahili
Local Language Pack in Dar-es- Salaam in May last year by His Excellency
President Jakaya Mrisho Kikwete. The availability of Office 2010 in Kiswahili
will enable over 50 million speakers in East Africa and Central Africa to
participate effectively in economic development through
ICT.
With
over 5 million native speakers and more than 50 million Africans speaking
Kiswahili on a daily basis, Kiswahili is undoubtedly the most widely understood
language in Africa after Arabic. The availability of Microsoft Office 2010 in Kiswahili is a
remarkable step towards elimination of language as a barrier to technology
access.
For
more information please contact:
Owora Richard Othieno, Head of Department; Corporate Communications and Public
Affairs; Tel: 255-768-835021; Email: othieno@eachq.org
Corporate
Communications and Public Affairs Department
EAC
Secretariat
Arusha,
Tanzania
