[NCUC-DISCUSS] Candidate Statement - Shadrach Ankrah

[Shadrach Ankrah]

Dear NCUC Community Members,

Thank you for supporting my nomination to be elected as EC Africa
representative. As required, below is my candidate statement:



*Name: *Shadrach Ankrah

*Region of residence: Africa (AF)*

*Gender: Male*

*Employment: IT Support Specialist; *Founder & Executive Director – Connect
Rurals

*Conflict of interest:* None



*II. Why I Want to Serve on the EC*



I'm passionate about contributing to the NCUC's mission and fostering a
strong regional voice in ICANN policy discussions. The opportunity to
collaborate with dedicated individuals to shape Internet governance excites
me. My journey within the global Internet community began in 2018 as an
ISOC Youth at IGF fellow, where I gained an in-depth understanding of the
Internet ecosystem. This fellowship has been the foundation of my active
participation and contribution to the Internet.



My goal has always been to represent and assist youth and underserved
communities in gaining digital skills and access to the Internet, thereby
transforming their lives. With this passion and desire, I have participated
in many youth-led initiatives and communities, including the Youth
Observatory (ISOC’s Youth Standing Group), Digital Grassroots, the Ghana
Youth IGF steering committee, West Africa and Africa, and the global IGFs.
I have contributed to these communities in various capacities, serving as a
trainer, mentor, and technical support person, ensuring the successful
completion of initiatives and integration of youth into those communities.



Often, rural and underserved communities are not included in opportunities
related to digital transformation. For example, in my country, Ghana, many
opportunities such as access to broadband, STEM training, and ICT tools and
equipment mainly benefit those in urban areas, leaving those in rural areas
behind. I have been focusing on addressing this issue for years, and it has
led me to run a nonprofit initiative called Connect Rurals, where we focus
on providing these skills and connecting rural communities to the
opportunities the Internet offers.



This was the reason for joining the NCUC, and I am confident that I can
effectively represent the voices of rural and underserved communities in
ICANN.



*III. Relevant Experience and Qualifications*



I am an IT Support Specialist, which has allowed me to contribute to
technical initiatives within the community. For instance, in 2022, I was
part of a team of trainers who provided Disaster Preparedness Training
(IDPT) to local NGOs, national and regional disaster management
organizations, Internet Society Ghana chapter members, telecommunications
staff, and young professionals. This training aimed to enable local
communities to become more efficient and effective in restoring power and
Internet connectivity and enhancing information sharing during a disaster
or an emergency.



As a 2019 Hackathon at AIS fellow, I gained an understanding of Internet
measurement where I participated in DNS over TLS (DoT) and DNS over HTTPS
(DoH) setups and measured the performance of caching resolvers against
locally set up DoT and DoH servers against publicly available DNS resolvers.



In addition, I have an understanding of policy development processes. As an
AFRINIC-31 participant, I have been involved in policy discussions on the
RDP mailing list and during the AFRINIC-31 Policy Meeting in Luanda,
Angola. Furthermore, I have had the opportunity to participate in and learn
about the policy development processes within ICANN by attending meetings.
As the EC representative for Africa in NCUC, I plan to participate more
actively in PDP and contribute to policies that shape the end-user and
civil society perspectives.



Aside from these, I have actively participated and volunteered within the
ICANN community. During the ICANN77 Policy Meeting in Washington D.C, I
volunteered as a booth engager and also assisted in writing the ICANN77
fellows report. I also did the same during the Africa Engagement Forum held
in July 2023 in Accra. With my active engagement within the At-Large Social
Media group, I have won two (2) social media awards, one at each of these
meetings.



*IV. Time Commitment*



With my years of engagement and volunteering experience, I know the time
commitment needed to serve in such a community. While, I am not mentioning,
specific hours of time commitment, I am available to attend the EC meetings
and other meetings within ICANN both in-person and remotely. In this
regard, the time commitment to attend EC meetings can be within 10 hours a
week. This is because I have engaged in other communities that regard
weekly and regular meetings with individuals from different backgrounds and
time zones.



*V. Communication with Membership*

I am open to and welcome discussions from all members. I will keep NCUC
members informed, if necessary, and work with the other EC members and the
chair to provide email updates with clear summaries of EC discussions and
decisions. I will also be open and engage with community members during
ICANN and other Internet-related events. Additionally, I am open to
exploring other communication methods based on members’ feedback.



*VI. NCUC's Future and ICANN Policy Focus*

NCUC can play a crucial role in promoting regional Internet governance
capacity building. I envision expanding outreach programs to educate and
empower stakeholders across the region, especially those in underserved
communities.



Kind regards,

*Shadrach Ankrah*

*Founder and Director, Connect Rurals <https://connectrurals.org/>*
*Lead Facilitator,* Internet For Education SIG
E: shadrach at connectrurals.org | me at sankrah.tech
Tel: +233 27 746 8886 | +233 54 895 5758
Prang, Bono East - Ghana
Social Media: Twitter <https://twitter.com/ankrah960> Facebook
<https://web.facebook.com/ankrah960/> LinkedIn
<https://www.linkedin.com/in/ankrah960/>
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