A glance from South Africa - The future of e-Infrastructures in Sub-Saharan Africa…outcomes of the BELIEF-CHPC conference

By Eleni Toli, Micheal Panzaglou and Dimitra Keramida, National and Kapodistrian University of Athens, Greece

For the very first time last December, the BELIEF team entered the stimulating world of e-Infrastructure in Sub-Saharan Africa. Thanks to the joint forces with the Centre of High Performing Computer CHPC in Cape Town, the BELIEF team successfully brought together over 150 players from Sub-Saharan African and Europe to talk together and measure the impact and level of e-Infrastructures in both regions. This three-day meeting managed, thanks to the stimulating presentations provided and the sparkling discussions that animated the two Round tables, to explore the way forward in creating a sustainable growth of Africa and South African National Cyber-Infrastructure, research and applications through a range of purposeful partnerships. Particularly the Round table discussions revolve around the topic of Funding agencies’ commitment and long-term goals, education as the cornerstones (towards creating a critical mass of skilled researchers and bridged the digital divide), best practices: lessons learned from our international partners and how to apply them in South Africa and Africa and finally how to fostering collaboration amongst Africans and between Africa and international partners. The event was opened by policy makers and dignitaries from EU and South Africa, who not only encouraged more partnerships between the two regions but also highlighted the strong political, social and economical ties in place since centuries. The Position Statement of the event is now available also on the Digital Library.

The BELIEF team wishes you an inspiring read!