AGIS '11: Diverse Voices in your Languages - PRESS RELEASE

[Reinhard Schaler <Reinhard.Schaler@ul.ie>]

AGIS '11 – Action for Global Information Sharing

01-02 December 2011

Addis Ababa

www.agis11.org

PRESS RELEASE

Dublin, 05 October 2011

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AGIS '11: Diverse Voices in Your Language

The  United  Nations Economic Commission for Africa (ECA), the Localisation

Research  Center  (LRC),  and  the  Center  for the Development of Advanced

Computing  (C-DAC)   are  bringing  together  business  people,  technology

experts,   linguists  and  policy  and  decision  makers  in  language  and

technology  fields  from  around the world from  1-2 December 2011 in Addis

Ababa,  Ethiopia,  to  discuss   and develop innovative solutions that will

allow  the  world  in  general  and  Africa  in particular to listen to its

diverse voices in their own language.

The theme of  the third AGIS’11 is ‘Promoting Equality through Language and

Cultural Diversity”. Participants will address issues among others language

and technology policy, language and business opportunities in Africa, human

language technologies and language service delivery for development, etc.

For  the first time, AGIS ’11 (Action for Global Information Sharing) will

connect Africa’s language industry and policy- and decision-makers with the

mainstream localization and translation industry and researchers.

Action  for  Global Information Sharing (AGIS) is an annual global event to

promote  access to information and knowledge for all. Access to information

and  knowledge in any language is not just a fundamental human right; it is

also a pre-requisite for development, inclusion and economic growth.

Following  the  highly  successful  AGIS  ’09   (http://www.agis09.org/) in

Limerick,  Ireland  and  AGIS  ’10   (http://www.agis10.org/) in New Delhi,

India  events,  AGIS  ’11  was  launched in New Delhi, India on 07 December

2010. The third AGIS (AGIS ’11) event will be hosted by the ICT and Science

&  Technology Division (ISTD) of the United Nations Economic Commission for

Africa  (UNECA)  at  the  United  Nations Conference Centre in Addis Ababa,

Ethiopia, from 1 to 2 December 2011. Ms Aida Opoku-Mensah, Director of ISTD

and  Reinhard  Schäler  launched  the  AGIS  ’11  in Addis Ababa during the

UNECA’s second Committee on Development Information, Science and Technology

(CODIST   II)   held  in  May  2011  which  was  attended  by  all  African

stakeholders.AGIS’11  calls  on interested contributors to submit proposals

on  or  before  30  September  2011  through  the  proposal submission form

available   at   www.agis11.org/registration/propose/.  Proposals  will  be

evaluated  based  on  the submission of short abstracts (maximum 300 words)

and  selected  speakers  will  be  notified  by  15  October  2011.  Online

registration for participation at AGIS ’11 (www.agis11.org/registration) is

also open until 18 November 2011.

For more information contact:

Reinhard Schäler

Director, Localisation Research Centre/CNGL, University of Limerick

Chairperson and Founder, The Rosetta Foundation

Tel: +353-61-202881 or mobile: +353-87-6736414

E-mail: Reinhard.Schaler@ul.ie

or

Thierry H. Amoussougbo

Regional Advisor

ICT,  Science & Technology Division (ISTD)

United Nations Economic Commission for Africa (UNECA)

Tel: 251 11 5443053

Fax: 251 11 5510512

E-mail : tamoussougbo@uneca.org

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