RE: domain name news - 13 May

["Paul Wilson" <pwilson@apnic.net>]

Thanks for your efforts David, however I need to point out that this story
is misleading and incorrect.

> 
> Africa Finalises Strategy to Control Own Website Addresses 
> African countries are set to control their own website 
> addresses and stop paying to Europe and the US for the right 
> to own website names. This move is being made possible by the 
> impending launch of the African Network Information Centre 
> (AfriNIC), which has been created to administer domain names 
> on the continent.  http://allafrica.com/stories/200405110656.html

AfriNIC is in formation as a Regional Internet Address Registry (RIR) with
no responsibility for domain names.  Like other RIRs, it will be responsible
for allocation and management of IP addresses and related resources, but NOT
for domain names or website URLs, at either the country code or global
level.

Furthermore, it is not the case, as implied here, that AfriNIC represents
some kind of "breakaway" from EU or USA.

AfriNIC is in fact being established with full support of the other RIRs,
namely APNIC (RIR for the Asia Pacific region), ARIN (North America), LACNIC
(Latin America), and RIPE NCC (Europe).  Those RIRs have voluntarily
contributed substantial resources towards the establishment of AfriNIC, and
have recently signed an MoU with AfriNIC for a further cash contribution of
USD$100,000.

Like so many other initiatives within the Internet community, AfriNIC has
come about through open cooperative activities.  It is not an initiative of
the UN, ITU, ICANN or any other "top down" body; but rather of the African
Internet community itself, supported by their peers around the world.

Paul Wilson
Director General 
APNIC