Subject: e-PRODDER-mail -Number 50
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e-PRODDER-mail

9 February 1998

Number 50

Edited and compiled by David Barnard and Yzette Ferreira
(further edited for this list by the Moderators)

A.  GENERAL DEVELOPMENT NEWS 


CLOCKWORK RADIO - POWER TO THE PEOPLE

The recent introduction of a handful of low-tech inventions has begun
to help people in some of Africa's most undeveloped areas upgrade
their standards of living and improve their daily lives.  The
inspiration came to British Investor Trevor Baylis in 1992 as he
watched a television documentary about the spread of AIDS in Africa. 
World Health Organisation experts explained that the epidemic could
not be halted by medical means, but only by widespread health
education.  Baylis realised that the only practical way of
transmitting information about AIDS prevention - radio - was out of
the reach of the millions at risk because there is no electrical power
in most of rural Africa.  That night, at home in his London workshop,
he assembled the makings of the first clockwork radio, a deceptively
simple device that can receive FM, AM and shortwave transmissions
without the need for an external power supply.

The principle of the clockwork radio is relatively straightforward.  A
single winding coils the spring, much like cranking up an old
gramophone, which pushes power through a gearing mechanism to the
generator as it unwinds.  This power, in turn, fuels the radio, which
can run for an hour after a 25-second wind-up.  Liberty Life, a
leading South african insurance company, provided investment capital
to bring the product to market in 1996 and BayGen, another South
African firm, is now cranking out 20 000 of the radios a month from
its factory in Cape Town.  Endorsed by South African President Nelson
Mandela, the lunch-box size radio is being snapped up by aid agencies
such as the United Nations High Commissioner for Refugees (UNHCR) and
the International Red Cross.  Baylis is now working with General
Electric and Apple to develop and mass produce lap-top computers that
run on the clockwork principle.  Should the wind-up computer prove
feasible, Baylis' invention could eventually help bring the
information superhighway to the dirt roads of Africa's remotest
villages.  (Time Magazine)

ENQUIRIES:  Leigh-Ann Groenink, Regional Manager - Southern and
Eastern Africa, GayGen Power Group 
Tel:  (+27) (21)  794-4888  Fax:  (+27) (21)  794-4848 
E-mail:  jeh@iafrica.com


B.  CONFERENCES/WORKSHOPS/MEETINGS 

(Conferences marked with an asterisk (*) are appearing in
e-PRODDER-mail for the first time)

SOUTHERN AFRICAN CONFERENCES

ADULT LEARNERS' WEEK COLLOQUIUM (*)

THEME:  Identifying Ways of Working Together to Lobby for Adult
Learning, Strategising for Funding Adult Education and Regional and
International Cooperation 
DATE:  5-6 March 1998 
VENUE:  Robben Island,
SOUTH AFRICA COST:  R500,00 (AETASA members), R600,00 (non-members)
ENQUIRIES:  Adult Learners' Week National Office 
Tel:  (+27) (21)  689-4838  Fax:  (+27) (21)  686-0182

ADULT LEARNERS' WEEK CONVENTION (*)

THEME:  Adult Education and Training Transformation in South Africa:
Strengthening the Linkages Within and Across Sectors - the Bonds that
Bind? 
DATE:  2-8 March 1998 
VENUE:  Museum Africa, Newtown, SOUTH AFRICA 
COST:  R75,00 
ENQUIRIES:  Catherine or Deline 
Tel:  (+27) (11)  782-9743  Fax:  (+27) (21)  782-8265



KNOWLEDGE SOCIETIES SEMINAR (*)

DATE:  13 March 1998
VENUE:  Stellenbosch, SOUTH AFRICA
COST:  R375,00
ENQUIRIES:  Fran Ritcie, Centre for Interdisciplinary Studies,
University of Stellenbosch 
Tel:  (+27) (21)  808-3708  E-mail:  fmr@akad.sun.ac.za


PROFESSIONAL AUDIO VIDEO AND BROADCASTING CONFERENCE AND SUPPORTING
EXHIBITION (*)

DATE:  17-19 February 1998
VENUE:  Gallagher Estate, Midrand, SOUTH AFRICA
COST:  R275,00
ENQUIRIES:  Sally Keeling
Tel:  (+27) (11)  484-4170  Fax:  (+27) (11)  484-2193 



1st NATIONAL CONFERENCE OF THE LIBRARY AND INFORMATION ASSOCIATION OF
SOUTH AFRICA (LIASA) (*)

DATE:  4-9 October 1998
VENUE:  Durban/Bloemfontein, SOUTH AFRICA
ENQUIRIES:  Ellen Tise, University of the Witwatersrand
Tel:  (+27) (11)  716-2177  Fax:  (+27) (11)  403-1421
E-mail:  ellent@libris.wwl.wits.ac.za


INTERNATIONAL CONFERENCES

AFRICAN CONNECTIVITY CONFERENCE (*)

THEME:  Building Awareness and Understanding of Issues, Options and
Benefits which Flow from Increased Connectivity 
DATE:  2-4 June 1998
VENUE:  Addis Ababa, ETHIOPIA 
ENQUIRIES:  Fani Zulu, World Bank
E-mail:  fzulu@worldbank.org

AFRICAN PUBLISHING AND INTERNATIONAL ORGANISATIONS
 
DATE:  18-20 February 1998 / 25-27 March 1998
VENUE:  Nairobi, KENIA / Dakar, SENEGAL
ENQUIRIES:  Kelvin Smith, CODE Europe
Tel:  (+44) (1865)  20-2438  Fax:  (+44) (1865)  20-2439
E-mail:  code.europe@compuserve.com

ANNUAL CONFERENCE OF THE ASSOCIATION OF CORRESPONDENCE SCHOOLS (AECS)
(*)

THEME:  Creating Competitive Advantage for Distance Learning
DATE:  27-29 May 1998
VENUE:  London, UNITED KINGDOM
ENQUIRIES: Margaret Philpot
Tel:  (+44) (171)  935-5391


GHANA COMPUTER LITERACY AND DISTANCE EDUCATION CONFERENCE (*)

THEME:  Use of Information Technology (IT) to Enhance the Economic,
Social, Cultural and Educational Development of African Countries
DATE:  20-22 May 1998 
VENUE:  Accra, GHANA 
ENQUIRIES:  Conference Organisers 
E-mail:  GDEP-register@ulbobo.com  WWW: http://www.ulbobo.com/gdep


LIBRARIES AS LEADERS IN COMMUNITY ECONOMIC DEVELOPMENT (*)

DATE:  16-17 June 1998
VENUE:  Victoria, BRITISH COLUMBIA
ENQUIRIES:  Stan Skrzeszewski, ASM Advanced Strategic Management
Consultants 
Tel:  (+519)  473-7651  Fax:  (+519)  471-9945 
E-mail:  cubberly@onlink.net


ROLE OF COMMUNICATION TECHNOLOGIES IN SOCIAL DEVELOPMENT FOR THE ARAB
WORLD (*)

DATE:  22-23 March 1998
VENUE:  Cairo, EGYPT
ENQUIRIES:  Conference Organisers
E-mail:  nahoubih@ workspace.org


TECHNOLOGY-LED ECONOMIC DEVELOPMENT (*)

DATE:  4-5 March 1998
VENUE:  Washington, DC, UNITED STATES
ENQUIRIES:  National Council for Urban Economic Development
Tel:  (+1) (202)  223-4735  Fax:  (+1) (202)  223-4745

TELECOMMUNICATIONS LINKS IN LOW-INCOME AND RURAL COMMUNITIES

THEME:  Connecting All Americans for the 21st Century
DATE:  24-27 February 1998
VENUE:  Washington, DC, UNITED STATES
ENQUIRIES:  Trudi Renwick, Department of Commerce and Public Utility
Law Project 
E-mail:  info@pulpny.org or tjrenwick@pulpny.org 
WWW:  http://www.pulpny.org/CAMp

WEST AFRICA GLOBAL KNOWLEDGE POLICY SEMINAR

DATE:  12-14 February 1998
VENUE:  Accra, GHANA
ENQUIRIES:  Brigid O'Connor, The British Council (Lagos)
Tel:  (+234) (1)  269-2188/92  Fax:  (+234) (1)  269-0646
E-mail:  brigid.oconnor@bc-lagos.sprint.com


2nd WORLD TELECOMMUNICATION DEVELOPMENT CONFERENCE (*)

DATE:  23 March - 1 April 1998
VENUE:  Valletta, MALTA
ENQUIRIES:  Hans Pieterse, Conference Coordinator, ITU
Tel:  (+41) (22)  730-5094  Fax:  (+41) (22)  730-5484
E-mail:  wtdc-98@itu.net  WWW:  http://www.itu.int/wtdc-98

2nd WORLD TELECOMMUNICATION POLICY FORUM (WTPF) (*)

DATE:  16-18 March 1998
VENUE:  Geneva, SWITZERLAND
ENQUIRIES:  Maija Thynell, ITU
Tel:  (+41) (22)  730-5118  Fax:  (+41) (22)  730-5881
E-mail:  thynell@itu.net  WWW:  http://www7.itu.int/wtpf/8


15th INTERNATIONAL FEDERATION FOR INFORMATION PROCESSING (IFIP) WORLD
COMPUTER CONGRESS (*)

THEME:  The Global Information Society on the Way to the Next
Millennium 
DATE:  31 August - 4 September 1998 
VENUE:  Vienna, AUSTRIA
ENQUIRIES:  Conference Organisers 
Tel:  (+43) (1)  512-0235  Fax:  (+43) (1)  512-0235



C.  EXHIBITIONS AND FAIRS

CAPE COMPUTER FAIR AND BEXA

DATE:  17-19 February 1998
VENUE:  Cape Town, SOUTH AFRICA
ENQUIRIES:  TML Reed Exhibitions (Pty) Ltd
Tel:  (+27) (11)  789-2144  Fax:  (+27) (11)  789-6497
E-mail:  vivs@sefin.co.za


WIRED WORLD INTERNET EXHIBITION AND CONFERENCE

DATE:  17-19 February 1998
VENUE:  Midrand, SOUTH AFRICA
ENQUIRIES:  TML Reed Exhibitions (Pty) Ltd
Tel:  (+27) (11)  789-2144  Fax:  (+27) (11)  789-6497
E-mail:  vivs@sefin.co.za



D.  PRODDER ACTIVITIES 

PRODDER ADDRESS DETAIL

David Barnard - Coordinator
Yzette Ferreira - Development Information Officer

P O Box 32410
2017  Braamfontein
SOUTH AFRICA

Tel:  (+27) (11)  482-6150  Fax:  (+27) (11)  482-4739
E-mail:  DBB@zeus.hsrc.ac.za  or  YOF@zeus.hsrc.ac.za
WWW:  http://www.web.co.za/prodder/