Question: What is your opinion of the ICANN At Large programme, and what do you feel the ratio should be of At Large board members to the others (there is discussion of 9 or 10 from the At Large constituency). Please also indicate your opinion on the election and its process.

Nominee Replies

Nii Quaynor - posted on 2000-09-30 08:02:18 The initial ICANN bylaws called for 9 At Large Directors. This appears to form a balance to the 9 SO Directors at the ICANN Board. Considering that the SO's are largely suppliers of products and services the balance by the demand side ie At Large is a good idea and should be retained. The process is fine but has some features that do not favor developing countries where Internet access is not good. All the services require good web access which many African countries do not have. Secondly, the process required snail mail for PINs yet we all know how long snail mail sometimes takes to arrive. Lastly, with our low Internet penetration and general net readiness in Africa, participation in the process has been low. There would be a better measure of democracy with larger numbers than we have in Africa.