The 3rd UbuntuNet Council of Members meeting will be held on 17th April 2009 at Hilton Hotel in Nairobi. Attention of NRENS is drawn to the issues outlined below. Reference should also be made to the Articles of Association of the Alliance (Download here), Articles 4, 5, 7, 9, 14, 16, 17 and 20.

The Council of Members is the supreme policy organ of the Alliance and is specifically responsible for:

1. Discussion and approval of the annual report
2. Adoption of the Annual Accounts
3. Appointment of Auditors
4. Approval of annual charges to members (REN Participants)
5. Appointment of Directors

Each Member NREN of the Alliance, formally designated as a REN Participant in the Articles, is entitled to nominate one person as its Representative Member to the Council of Members. It is desirable – but not mandatory – that the Representative Member is the CEO (Vice-Chancellor, Rector, or President) of one of the member institutions of the NREN so that there is a direct linkage between the policy level of the Alliance and the policy level of the member institutions of the NRENS.

The Board of the Alliance consists of nine (9) people of whom two (2), the Chairperson of the Alliance and the CEO, are ex-officio members. The Chairperson is identified through a process that is overseen by the Association of African Universities, and the CEO is appointed by the Board. The other seven (7) members of the Board are appointed by the Council of Members. The current Board was put in place two years ago, and its term will expire at this year’s Council of Members meeting: seven (7) Directors must be appointed to the next Board of the Alliance during this 3rd Council of Members  meeting.

According to Article 9.4,“The appointment of Directors shall be made from a list of candidates. Each Representative Member shall have the right to nominate one or more candidates. Such nomination shall be submitted to the Secretary in writing, accompanied by the curriculum vitae of the candidate and a statement of the main contributions that the candidate envisages making, if elected. Notice of the list of candidates of the Management Board shall be given in the notice convening the meeting”
The REN Participants of the Alliance are asked to take note and prepare to:

1. Formally communicate to the Alliance either confirming the current or nominating a new Representative Member;
2. Work with the Representative Member in identifying potential members of the Board. Such potential members do not necessarily have to be from the country of the NREN or the university and research community: The essence of the Board is a group of individuals who have the complementary skills and experience to oversee the successful implementation of the strategic plan of the Alliance, rather than representing the interests of any particular NREN or other group.