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"Europe's most visible forum for ICT research and innovation, ICT2013, will take place from 6-8 November 2013 in Vilnius, Lithuania. The ICT 2013 event will be the first opportunity to learn the details of research funding for ICT-related projects under Horizon 2020, the EU's new research program for 2014-2020. The European Commission proposed an €80 billion package for research & innovation funding, as part of the drive to create sustainable growth and new jobs in Europe. Horizon 2020 will support the development of ICT in Science (in future and emerging technologies or e-Infrastructures); in industrial leadership (such as smart systems, robotics, photonics, etc.) and in societal challenges (such as eHealth, eGovernment and eSkills)."

"ICTs are always evolving and have been contributing immensely in development policies and programmes in developing countries. Appropriate application of ICTs will help the institutions, organizations, and nations in development plans. In spite of the tremendous potential of ICTs, developing countries have not adapted a sound strategy to utilize ICTs effectively. The application of Information and Communication Technology (ICT) in agriculture is increasingly important. If ICTs are utilized fully in agriculture and allied fields, traditional knowledge could be improved and farmers would benefit from this new technology. "

CRISAT, December 2012 - Using ICT to revitalize agricultural extension and education towards providing knowledge access to smallholder farmers was the subject of an international workshop held at the Infosys Campus in Hyderabad (India) on 3-4 December. The global consultation on Innovative ICT and Knowledge Sharing Platforms for Revitalizing Agricultural Extension and Education: Opportunities and Challenges organized by a global team led by the International Crops Research Institute for the Semi-Arid Tropics (ICRISAT), brought together about 60 ICT, research, extension and education experts from India, USA and Africa. The two-day workshop was successful in laying the groundwork for the formation of a global partnership that will push the 'knowledge to the poor' revolution through ICT application in agricultural extension and education.

"The next EuroAfrica-ICT/P8 Regional Workshop on 'Awareness & Training on Africa-­EU ICT research opportunities' is taking place on June 25-26, 2013 at the Terrou-bi Hotel in Dakar, Senegal. The event is organised under the aegis of the European Commission (DG CONNECT) by the EuroAfrica-ICT/P8 Project (ESMT, Senegal with the support of Sigma Orionis, France and CSIR, South Africa) and in collaboration with the ERAfrica Project (IRD on behalf of the French Ministry for Higher Education and Research, MESR)."

"From 25 to 26 October 2013, the UNESCO International Research and Training Centre for Rural Education (INRULED) in collaboration with UNESCO-UNEVOC, Chengdu Municipal Education Bureau, and Dujiangyan Municipal Government organized a conference on rural skills development through Information Communication Technologies (ICT). The conference's objective was to share policies, strategies and good practices on rural skills development through ICT, with the aim to develop and improve the information and practical guidelines for further enhancing the access to and outreach of ICT in rural areas."

"The conference of the RICTD 2013 committee welcomes both academic and practitioner papers on a wide range of topics and a wide range of scholarly approaches. The main focus of the conference is related to rural ICT development. "

"A high-level conference on "Promoting Africa-EU Research Infrastructure Partnerships" will take place on 7-8 March 2013 in Brussels, Belgium. The conference will present the outcomes of the PAERIP (Promoting African European Research Infrastructures Partnerships) project, funded under the EU's Seventh Framework Programme (FP7)."

"An increasing number of young innovators and entrepreneurs in developing countries now develop ICT for agriculture solutions to strengthen agri-food systems in their respective countries, and to provide employment and livelihood opportunities for themselves and other young people."

Agribusiness and entrepreneurship are two critical areas which have a strong potential to increase employment opportunities for youth and to boost economies in African, Caribbean and Pacific countries. Similarly, the use of information and communication technologies (ICTs) is modernising the agricultural sector and providing more opportunities for youth. In particular, young farmers who apply ICT tools and skills to their farming businesses generally have higher yields, incomes and social status.

Increasing agricultural productivity in developing countries and promoting youth employment and entrepreneurship are important recommendations of the new Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs) adopted by the United Nations in 2015. Information and communication technologies (ICTs) play an important role. Young entrepreneurs using ICT innovations are particularly suited to contribute to increased agricultural productivity and sustainability given their inventiveness, energy and capacity to take risks.

eLearning Africa is the key networking event for ICT enhanced education and training in Africa. As the largest annual conference of its kind, the three-day event is a must for those wanting to develop multinational and cross-industry partnerships and contacts whilst enhancing their knowledge, expertise and abilities. In 2015, eLearning Africa is being hosted by the Ethiopian Ministry of CIT at the African Union Conference Centre.

"The third Call for Proposals under the Intra-ACP academic mobility scheme has been launched, with a deadline of 10 June 2013. The intra-ACP academic mobility scheme supports higher education cooperation between countries in Africa, the Caribbean and the Pacific (ACP). The scheme aims to promote sustainable development and poverty alleviation by increasing the availability of trained and qualified high-level professional manpower in the ACP countries. The Education, Audiovisual and Culture Executive Agency (EACEA) is responsible for the managing this programme, with the support of the African Union (AU) and the Africa Caribbean and Pacific Group of States (ACP), and under the supervision of the Directorate-General for Development and Cooperation-EuropeAid. More… "

"A 'Center for Commercial and Agricultural Information' (PICA) for the collection and the publication of price lists via the internet has been launched in Togo to enable farmers and traders to interact over prices and availability of products by ICT The center is equipped with computer and Internet facilities with a web page www.tradenet.biz with a strong integration of data and mobile technology. The center will allow producers and tradesmen to consult in real time over price lists that are in conformity with the ECOWAS region."

The Sixth International Conference on Information and Communication Technologies and Development (ICTD2013) will be held in Cape Town, South Africa, from December 7-10 2013 ICTD Conferences provide an international forum for researchers and practitioners exploring the role of information and communication technologies (ICTs) in social, political, and economic development. The conference reflects and deepens the multidisciplinary nature of ICTD research in a broad range of areas including computer science, anthropology, communication, design, economics, electrical engineering, geography, information science, political science, health, sociology, and many others. ICTD2013 will be the sixth of an ongoing series of conferences occurring every one-and-a-half years.

"The Hindu Business Line-. There are over 80 web sites and portals ran by Governments providing information to farmers on soil, plant protection, diseases, weather forecast, fertiliser use and farm and crop management. The number could be much more in the private sector. All this is likely to confuse the farmer. To tackle this, the Union Government has come up with the idea of a unified portal, to provide information on all farming needs. The portal www.farmer.gov.in, is not fully live yet. The basic version integrates the convergence technologies to offer latest information to farmers, instead of uploading dated information. "Compare this with the number of agri-climatic zones in the country. They are just 23. When they open the portal, the farmers see the Indian map. Depending on their location, they can select a State and the block they belong to," said Sanjeev Gupta, Joint Secretary of Department of Agriculture and Cooperation, Government of India. "

Le programme du CTA Agriculture, développement rural et jeunesse dans la société de l'information (ARDYIS) a remporté un prix international lors du Sommet mondial sur la société de l'information (SMSI, où WSIS, selon son sigle en anglais) de 2015. Après avoir été retenu lors d'une première phase de présélection plus tôt cette année, le projet ARDYIS a été déclaré vainqueur de la catégorie e-agriculture, à la suite d'un vote en ligne et d'une évaluation par un panel d'experts des trois projets les plus votés. Ken Lohento, coordinateur du programme ICT4D et responsable du programme ARDYIS au CTA, était présent à Genève, en Suisse pour recevoir la prestigieuse récompense au cours d'une cérémonie officielle qui s'est déroulée le 26 mai dans le cadre du Forum SMSI 2015. Cet évènement annuel constitue le plus important rassemblement mondial de la communauté des technologies de l'information et de la communication (TIC) pour le développement.

Information and Communication Technology (ICT) plays an important role in development today. For Jorge Rodriguez, Quality Support Manager in the Civil Society, Local Authorities Unit at EuropeAid, online media provided the answer to communicating complex issues on decentralisation to colleagues working in the field. Topics: Public Sector Reform & Decentralisation

In the framework of the International Women's Day, the CTA ARDYIS project is celebrating young women in agriculture and ICT who have been successfully involved in its activities. More on these ladies and activities they have been involved in sections below. We would like to seize the opportunity to wish all women involved in our activities a very beautiful Women's Day!

"On April 25-26, the AYA Forum is being organised by the African Development Bank (AfDB), in collaboration with Partners in GFAR: CTA, the International Institute of Tropical Agriculture (IITA) and the African Agribusiness Incubation Network (AAIN). About 250 young agripreneurs from across Africa, as well as institutional and business partners, are expected to attend. As a pre-event to the AYA Forum, CTA will run, on, a workshop entitled Accelerating Youth Agriculture Entrepreneurship Using ICTs. This workshop is designed for partners including development organisations, venture capitalists, young start-up companies, farmer organisations and representatives of national entrepreneurship programmes."

"Le premier Forum ministériel sur l'intégration des technologies de l'Information et de la communication (TIC) dans l'éducation et la formation en Afrique se tiendra à Tunis du 9 au 11 décembre 2013. Le Forum est organisé par la Banque africaine de développement (BAD), l'organisation des Nations Unies pour l'éducation, la science et la culture (UNESCO), l'Organisation Internationale de la Francophonie (OIF), INTEL et l'Association pour le développement de l'éducation en Afrique (ADEA). Il est placé sous les auspices du ministère de l'Education de la Tunisie. "