ICANN TO INSTALL NEW IMRS IN KENYA FOR IMPROVED INTERNET CONNECTIVITY

Non-profit internet protocol (IP) organization, Internet Corporation for Assigned Names and Numbers (ICANN) is assuring African internet users of a more reliable internet use with speed and cyber threat protection.

With aid from regional partners, ICANN plans to situate its novel ICANN Managed Root Server (IMRS) Kenya’s capital, Nairobi. The IMRS will enhance Domain Name System (DNS) anywhere in the world as well as minimizing potent cyberattacks.

“Improving users' access to the Internet in Africa, and their safety while using it, is part of ICANN's mission to help make the Internet more secure, stable, and resilient across the world,” says ICANN President and Chief Executive Officer (CEO), Göran Marby. “The installation of this new IMRS cluster would not have been possible without the participation of the local community. We are grateful to the Kenyan government for its support and commitment to advancing Internet accessibility across Africa.”

Furthermore, ICANN says the IMRS will help tackle distributed denial-of-service, a known cyberattack method. This installation alleviates dependence on other regional networks and localizes the “root traffic”.

Cabinet Secretary for Information, Communications and the Digital Economy, Republic of Kenya, Eliud Owalo, says: “The installation of the IMRS cluster aligns with our mission to digitally transform not only our own country but the entire continent, through regulation, partnership, and innovation. We are proud to help bring a more resilient internet to a larger audience in Africa.”

“This project is the result of years of collaboration between the local and regional technical community, ICANN, and others. We recognize that having the IMRS cluster at the Kenya exchange point (KIXP) will improve Internet services on our continent for Internet users due to the presence of carriers from across the continent at KIXP,” said Chief Executive Officer (CEO) of the Technology Service Providers of Kenya, a tech interest group, Fiona Asonga.

Currently, five IMRS clusters exist in the world: two for North America, One for Europe, one for Asia, and the new one to be situated in Africa.