Driss Kettani

Driss Kettani is a Moroccan/Canadian citizen, specialist in ICT4D. Currently, he is Professor/Researcher at Al Akhawayn University in Ifrane, Morocco. He is considered to be the pioneer of the development of e-services and e-Technology in Morocco. Driss Kettani is leading several national automation Projects from his the ICT4D (Information and communication Technology For Development) laboratory at Alakhawayn University. While the Moroccan government usually contracts foreign software development companies (like so many other developing countries’ government!), Driss Kettani could impose his expertise and extended experience in the ICT4D domain. Most of his Projects are meant to participate in the development and modernization of the social, administrative and economic sector of Morocco. His proficiency and devotion have been prized by several national and international prestigious institutions.

Academic background

Driss Kettani holds an M.Sc. and a Ph.D. degrees from the Computer Science Department of Laval University in Canada. He also holds a Certificate in Business Administration and a Certificate in Geomatics from the Environmental System and Research Institute (ESRI) Montréal.Driss Kettani earned his Ph.D. on 1999. It was about the design and implementation of a spatiotemporal system that mimics human being reasoning and behavior in complex environment.

Professional experience in Canada

After his Master, Dr Kettani worked in a Research and Development project in Canada (OCTOPUS) as a Research Professional for two years. This project aimed at designing and building an embedded system to intelligently assist truck drivers in terms of guidance, optimal delivery itinerary, mechanical state checking, paperless management, and EDI. During this project, Driss Kettani owned a good expertise in Geographical Information System and in Artificial Intelligence applied to the transport domain. He has built a software that visualises in real time a truck fleet in a given territory and allows direct interactions with any member of the fleet by a simple mouse click. This system is being used now in Canada by at least 2 big transport companies (Cabano transport, Thibodeaut Transport ).In 1999, Driss Kettani has been hired by the Canadian Department of Defence (Defense Research Center at Val Cartier). He worked for two years as a there and led two major projects: the “Intelligent Situation Assessment and in Data Fusion” and “the Intelligent Search and Rescue”.

Teaching

On September 2000, He joined Alakhawayn University in Ifrane as a Computer Science professor. He is dispensing courses both at the graduate and the undergraduate level. His teaching classes are essentially related to the fields of Software Engineering, GIS and Artificial Intelligence. Driss Kettani has also supervised a number of master projects/thesis both in Laval University and Alakhawayn University in Ifrane

E-projects

Further to his teaching duties, Driss Kettani is the founder and the head of an ICT4D lab. This lab is unique in Morocco (and maybe in the whole region) and is specialized in Information and Communication Technologies for Development in Morocco. Its research mission consists of elaborating new technology models and developing concrete applications that apply technology to enhance the daily life of Moroccans in different sectors, such as public administration, transport, tourism and education. All applications developed in the ICT4D Lab have a strong added value in terms of digital cultural and ICT dissemination in society. They are in line with the Moroccan government priorities in terms of human and social development. The main research methodology that is used in the ICT4D lab is “learning by doing” where all stakeholders (including citizens and decision makers) are turned into researchers. This allows for a better appreciation and appropriation of technology as people learn in action and for their own needs, under the assistance/guidelines of the ICT4D Lab Researchers.Professor Kettani is leading three major national projects: e-government, e-tourism and e-transport. His most notorious project, e-government, is considered a real revolution in the area of electronic administrative management.

Recognitions

Driss Kettani’s competence and innovation have granted him numerous awards and distinctions at both the local and the worldwide level. In 2007, he has won–along with his team at the ICT4D lab - the 2007 United Nations Public Service Award in the category of “Improving the Delivery of Services,” for their Fez e-government project. During the same year, Driss Kettani has been awarded the 2007 TIGA (Technology in Government in Africa) prize as a recompense for his contribution to the development of the e-government projects in Morocco. In 2006, his project e-Fes was attributed the national digital administration award -e-mtiaz- in Morocco.In 2007, the popular Moroccan magazine Telquel has chosen Driss Kettani among the “100 Moroccans that push Morocco forward”.

Quotations

"It is good to participate in the development of your country, but doing it using the tools and theories that you master, is better yet…."

References

* www.aui.ma/personal/~D.Kettani/
* www.menara.ma/Infos/includes/detail.asp?article_id=11002&lmodule=Technologie
* www.maroc-it.ma/annexes/e-gov_au_maroc__un_management_de_changement_26062006.html
* www.marocinfocom.com/detail.php?id=3468
* www.informatik.uni-trier.de/~ley/db/indices/a-tree/k/Kettani:Driss.html
* www.menara.ma/infos/includes/print.asp?article_id=11002&categorie=&lmodule=Technologie