Background History
Free and Open Source Software (FOSS) is gaining momentum in Africa. A growing group of people is debating the potential benefits of migrating organizations to FOSS and pressure groups are emerging.
Open Source Software movement is built on the premise that better software is produced when everyone is allowed to modify and change the software. So, instead of selling user licenses, the product (source code) is distributed. On the ground however, proprietary software, Closed Source Software (CSS) is still dominant. In spite of the benefits, fear and uncertainty prevails.
The Tanzania Free and Open Source Software Association (TAFOSSA) Interim Secretariat (IS)came into existence with effect on 10th March, 2004 when it held its maiden brainstorming session at the main conference hall of the Tanzania Commission for Science and Technology (COSTECH).
The mandate of TAFOSSA dates back on 4th February, 2004 when the participants of the Seminar on Free and Open Source organized jointly by the University Computing Centre (UCC),The International Institute for Communication and Development (IICD) and COSTECH unanimously adopted a resolution to establish a national umbrella organization with general objective of harnessing the potentials of free and open source software for supporting national developmental goals as spelled in Tanzania's National Vision 2025 and reiterated in Tanzania's National Information and Communication Technologies (ICT) Policy of 2003.
Subsequently, the participants of the above mentioned seminar formally asked the seminar COSTECH and UCC to set up an interim secretariat that will guide the rest into establishment of such national umbrella organization.
