AfNOG2004 - Workshop, Tutorials & Meetings

The African Network Operators' Group (AfNOG) will hold its fifth meeting (AfNOG 2004) from May 22nd ­ 23rd 2004 at the NGOR-DIARAMA Hotel, Dakar, Senegal.(See Pictures at NGOR-DIARAMA Hotel, Daker, Senegal).

The full address for the NGOR-DIARAMA Hotel is:

Hotel Ngor Diarama
Route de Ngor,
BP 8092 Dakar - SENEGAL
Tel: +221-820 27 24
Tel: +221-820 10 05
Fax: +221-820 27 23

Please call directly for reservations. For Visa requirement, please visit:

www.gouv.sn/guide/visa.html
www.traveldocs.com/sn

Anyone in need of an invitation letter, please address your request to:
isoc@isoc.sn
Include the following:
Full name as shown in Pass port, Passport number, Date of Issue. This info can be sent as a scanned image to the above address.

The workshop will offer advanced training to operators of existing African Internet Service Providers (ISPs) who are participants in the process of developing and enhancing a national Internet with regional and international connectivity.

Attendance at the workshop includes attendance at the AfNOG 2004 meeting, and planned AfriNIC meeting sessions (AfriNIC), which will be held in Dakar on May 23rd - 24th, following the workshop.

This workshop builds upon the experiences of the previous AfNOG workshops held in Cape Town South Africa, Accra, Ghana, Lome, Togo Kampala, Uganda and the INET workshops held during 1993-2000 at eight locations around the world.

Goals

The goals of the workshop are:

1. To train a critical mass of trainers and professionals in network infrastructure and services to be able to support an extension of Internet-related activities within the African countries represented.
2. To identify and share individual and institutional contacts as well as information sources that will assist the process of national development, using international Internet connections.
3. To build robust professional linkages between all participants in the programs so that the mentor-student and colleague-colleague relationships formed during the workshop and conferences will remain strong and of continuing usefulness well beyond the workshop and conference.
4. To increase the level of co-operation among existing projects and activities for establishing public data networks in Africa.
5. To train people and groups of people who will return to their country and region and who will teach others what they have learned at the workshop.

Program

An intensive program of instruction is planned for the workshop, composed of three instructional tracks.

Participants attend only one of the two instructional tracks presented in English, and one in French, since the tracks run concurrently.

All participants will engage in extensive hands-on training, setting up and managing prototype infrastructure and services.

The course descriptions below include for each instructional track:

1. Who should attend this course.
2. What you need to know to enter this course and benefit from it (Prerequisites).
3. What you will learn in this course (Subjects).

TRACK 1: SCALABLE INTERNET SERVICES

Who should attend: Technical staff who are now providing mail, file, web, and other TCP/IP based services to local and/or dial-up end users.
Prerequisites: UNIX user and some Unix system administration.
Subjects: large-scale provision of UNIX-based TCP/IP services such as:
DNS (Domain Name Service)
SMTP mail exchange
POP mail delivery
WebMail service
HTTP web service
Internet Services & Server Security

TRACK 2: SCALABLE NETWORK INFRASTRUCTURE

Who should attend: Technical staff who are now operating a wide area TCP/IP network, likely with international and/or multi-provider connectivity. Those who will be involved in the establishment and/or operation of a basic national network infrastructure in the country.
Prerequisites: experience using TCP/IP-based networking technologies.
Subjects: configuration and operation of larger scale backbones,
Including:

Basic routing
OSPF routing
BGP routing (limited)
Management of router configuration
NOC (Network Operation Center)
Exchange points between networks
Network Security

TRACK 3: INFRASTRUCTURE RESEAUX IP (French Version of Track 2)

Base des reseaux IP
Bases de configuration des routeurs Cisco
Routage statique (utilisation d'Unix et de Routeur Cisco)
OSPF
Architecture d'un reseau redondant
BGP
NOC services et application
Securite Reseau

Place

Workshop activities to be held at the NGOR-DIARAMA Hotel in Dakar, Senegal. The workshop attendance fee includes room and board at the NGOR-DIARAMA Hotel during the workshop and the AfNOG and AfriNIC meetings, which follow. Shuttle bus and taxi transportation is available from the airport to the workshop accommodations.

Dates

Participants should plan to arrive in Dakar by 1800 hours on Saturday 15th May, 2004, and leave after 1800 hours on Monday 24th May, 2004. Workshop sessions will be held starting in the afternoon, Sunday 16th May, and end in the evening of Friday 21st May.

The AfNOG Tutorials begins at 0900 hours, Saturday 22nd May 2004, AfNOG 2004 Meeting begins at 0900 hours, Sunday 23rd May 2004, and AfriNIC sessions are on Sunday 23rd and Monday, 24th May 2004. (To be confirmed by AfriNIC )

Eligibility

The workshop is specifically directed toward the needs of people from Africa who are playing an important part in introducing and extending public internetworking in their countries and region. Attendees should be involved in establishing the Internet's presence, in institutionalizing its operation, and in assisting the country's schools and universities, governmental agencies, local firms, and residents in exploiting the range of services available through the net. By the Internet, we mean the publicly accessible Internet, with unrestricted access for educational and commercial institutions and the not-for- profit community.

Working engineers from international and bilateral technical co- operation agencies, as well as engineering professionals having substantial involvement in international technical assistance activities, are also eligible for admission as space allows.

Participants who have attended the AfNOG 2000, 2001, 2002 & 2003 training or any of the INET Developing Countries Workshop will be considered eligible to attend the AfNOG 2004 workshop on a space- available basis; however, these former participants must apply for a course of study other than subjects studied previously. Their request must be consistent with their responsibilities in a national and/or regional context, and a convincing argument for repeated attendance must accompany the application. This should include a statement of the activities carried out as a result of the previous workshop. Less financial aid will be available for repeat attendees than for first-time applicants.

Application for Admission

To apply for admission, please complete the application form and return it as soon as possible, but no later than 1st March, 2004. If you expect to attend the workshop as the result of being awarded a United Nations or similar fellowship awarded by a multilateral of bilateral aid agency, please inform us of the details in your application.

Applicants will be notified of their acceptance to the program and the amount of financial aid available to them (if any), by 31st March, 2004.

Please note that the workshop activity includes attendance at the AfNOG 2004 and AfriNIC meetings. If you are admitted to the workshop, you should NOT register separately for the meeting; that will be done automatically for you.

NOTE: Applicants are required to submit their application via email, and also to give an electronic mail address for future correspondence regarding the workshop. A reliable FAX number should also be included on your application.

Please be sure that all of the contact information you submit is legible and accurate, or we will not be able to contact you.

Visas

Every visitor to Senegal must have a valid passport in order to obtain the necessary visa from Senegal. If you apply to attend the workshop, be prepared to obtain a passport immediately upon receiving an invitation to attend, or sooner if practical, since visa procedures may be lengthy.

It is the responsibility of participants to ascertain the visa requirements that apply to them and to obtain any appropriate visas (including transit visas) needed to attend the workshop and the related meetings. AfNOG will assist applicants in this matter by providing visa application information, an official letter of invitation as well as information regarding the Workshop, AfNOG and its professional goals and activities.

Health Restrictions

Accepted participants will be notified of any health restrictions and regulations for entry into the country.

Costs

The cost of attending the workshop and associated events is U.S.$1600.00. This fee includes:

All tuition and fees for the workshop. All lodging charges from Sunday, 16th May through Monday, 24th May 2004.

All meal charges for the period starting with dinner on Saturday evening, 15th May through dinner on Monday evening, 24th May 2004. Registration at the AfNOG 2004 meeting ( Sunday 23rd May) and the AfriNIC meeting (Monday, 24th May), including the midday meals included in registration for those meetings.

Participants should bring the equivalent of U.S. $30 for airport transfers. They may wish to budget approximately U.S.$50 for optional travel and other needs and activities (laundry, etc.) Sunday, 16th May,2004 through Monday, 24th May 2004.

For some candidates, the AfNOG Workshop may provide some financial assistance to cover a part of participant's overall expenditures. If you request financial request aid for the workshop, please be certain to provide the financial information that is requested in the application for admission. Financial aid will take the form of either pre-paid airline tickets for travel to and from Dakar, or a partial coverage of the workshop fee.

The overall amount of aid available will be extremely limited. Please make all possible efforts to secure whatever funding is possible from sources known to you. If you are requesting financial aid from the Workshop, please tell us why it is necessary, how you expect to fund part of your expenses, and what efforts you have made and are making to obtain additional aid. Please note that aid from AfNOG may depend upon your ability to obtain partial financial support from other sources. Preference will be given to qualified applicants who have their own financial support.

Payment of workshop fees may be made by funds transfer, certified check (bank draft) or in cash. Details will be provided in the admission letter.