Mastering SomaliREN Services: Training Program for Gaalkacyo & Nugaal University

Wednesday 29 Apr 2026, 10:00 → 12:30 Africa/Mogadishu

Online

Mohamed Bile (CTO, SomaliREN)

Welcome to the SomaliREN Services Training Program! 

 

We are excited to announce a comprehensive training event designed to equip ICT directors, librarians, and system administrators with the necessary skills to utilize various SomaliREN services effectively. This training program aims to empower participants to leverage the full potential of SomaliREN's services and contribute to the advancement of research and education in Somalia.

National Research and Education Networks (NRENs) play a pivotal role in connecting universities and research institutions, enabling them to collaborate, share resources, and access a wide range of services specifically tailored for the academic and research communities. SomaliREN, as the NREN for Somalia, is dedicated to providing its member institutions with cutting-edge tools and services to enhance their research, teaching, and learning endeavors.

Participants will gain a deep understanding of the different SomaliREN services and how they can benefit your institution. Let's explore some of the key advantages of utilizing SomaliREN services:

1. Enhanced Collaboration: SomaliREN services facilitate seamless collaboration among universities and research institutions. The services enable secure and efficient communication, data sharing, and resource exchange, fostering interdisciplinary collaboration and knowledge exchange within the academic community.
2. Improved Access to Resources: SomaliREN's services, such as the Somali Research and Education Repository (SORER) and OCW Mirror, provide universities and research institutions with easy access to a vast array of digital resources, research publications, educational materials, and open courseware. This access to a wealth of knowledge from global sources empowers researchers, educators, and students to stay up-to-date with the latest advancements in their fields.
3. Streamlined Event Management: The SomaliREN Event Management System simplifies the organization and management of workshops, conferences, and lectures. This centralized system enables efficient event planning, participant registration, abstract submission, scheduling, and seamless communication, ensuring successful and well-coordinated academic events.
4. Secure Data Transfer: SomaliREN's Filesender service offers secure file transfer mechanisms tailored for the research and education community. This ensures the safe and reliable exchange of sensitive data, large files, and research outputs between institutions, fostering collaboration while maintaining data privacy and security.
5. Efficient Surveys and Data Collection: The Survey Tool, based on LimeSurvey, provides a simple yet powerful platform for conducting online surveys. This tool enables researchers and educators to collect valuable data from students, lecturers and other stakeholders, analyze responses, and gain insights for research, program evaluation, and decision-making processes.
6. Trusted Identity Federation: The SomaliREN Identity Federation (SIF) ensures a secure and trusted exchange of information between education and research communities, both locally and internationally. By leveraging SIF, participating institutions can streamline access control, simplify user authentication, and enable seamless collaboration across multiple platforms and services.

 

This workshop will equip participants with the necessary skills to harness the power of these services, enabling their institutions to enhance research outcomes and strengthen collaboration networks within the academic community.

10:00 → 10:30 Opening Remarks: Introduction to SomaliREN Services

Convener: Mohamed Bile (SomaliREN)

10:00 Opening Remarks by University Officials

10:10 Overview of SomaliREN and its mission

Speaker: Mohamed Bile (SomaliREN)

10:20 Introduction to the training agenda and objectives

Speaker: Mohamed Bile (SomaliREN)

10:30 → 11:15 Session 1: SomaliREN Identity Federation (SIF) and eduroam

Convener: Mohamed Bile (SomaliREN)

10:30 Trust and Identity

Understanding the role and significance of SIF in the e-research infrastructure
What is eduGAIN
Exploring the mechanisms for safe and secure information exchange
Managing identities and access control within the federation
Leveraging SIF for seamless collaboration and resource sharing

Speaker: Mohamed Bile (SomaliREN)

10:50 Creating User Accounts for Participants on SIF

11:00 eduroam

11:15 → 11:40 Session 2: Somali Research and Education Repository (SORER)

Convener: Mohamed Bile (SomaliREN)

11:15 Digital Repository - an Overview

Digital repositories would store critical data gathered by different researchers who are doing different research work over time, enriching archives already maintained by universities but, even more importantly, boosting the visibility of academics and their institutions

Speaker: Mohamed Bile (SomaliREN)

11:20 Understanding the Purpose and Features of SORER

SORER (Somali Research and Education Repository) is a digital repository that serves as a centralized platform for storing and sharing research and educational resources. Its key features include:

1. Resource Storage: SORER allows researchers and educators to deposit and store various types of scholarly outputs, including research papers, datasets, theses, and educational materials.
2. Access and Discovery: The repository enables easy access to deposited resources, facilitating their discovery by the SomaliREN community and beyond.
3. DOI Integration: SORER supports the assignment of Digital Object Identifiers (DOIs) to deposited resources, ensuring persistent and citable links for long-term accessibility.
4. ORCID Integration: Integration with ORCID enables researchers to showcase their work and affiliations, ensuring accurate attribution and recognition.
5. Community Feature: SORER, based on Zenodo, offers community-based collaboration, enabling users to create and join communities based on research interests or institutional affiliations.

These features make SORER a valuable platform that enhances research visibility, facilitates collaboration, and promotes the dissemination of knowledge within the SomaliREN community.

Speaker: Mohamed Bile (SomaliREN)

11:30 Hands-on Training on using SORER for Digital Content Management

We will cover the following in this session:

 - How to access the SORER?
 - How to create an ORCID ID and link your work?
 - How to upload content on the SORER?
 - How to browse/create existing/new communities?
 - How to get support?

Speaker: Mohamed Bile (SomaliREN)

11:40 → 12:30 Session 3: Collaboration Tools

11:40 Using SomaliREN Event Management System

Introduction to the Event Management System based on Indico
Creating and managing events of various scales (workshops, conferences, lectures)
Registration management, abstract submission, and scheduling
Customizing event pages and managing participant interactions

11:50 Using SomaliREN Video-conferencing System - Leveraging Online Learinng

A robust platform based on BigBlueButton, designed to improve the virtual interaction and learning experience. It features intuitive usability, interactive engagement tools, and strong performance to handle various academic activities efficiently. Key functionalities include document sharing, a multi-user whiteboard, breakout rooms for collaborative learning, diverse video resolution options, comprehensive chat features, innovative polling tools, and enhanced screen sharing capabilities.

12:00 eduVPN

Hands on training on eduVPN:
Overview of VPN technology and its relevance to the research and education community
Configuring and accessing VPN connections

12:05 Filesender - Secure File Transfer Mechanisms

Understanding the importance of secure file transfer in research and education
Exploring the features and functionality of Filesender
Uploading and sharing files securely within the SomaliREN community

12:15 SomaliREN Survey Tool

Hands on SomaliREN Survey Tool:

 - Introduction to SomaliREN Survey & its capabilities as an online survey tool
 - Creating and customizing surveys for research and educational purposes
 - Deploying surveys, collecting and analyzing data
 - Ensuring anonymity and data privacy in survey administration

12:20 SomaliREN OCW Mirror - Accessing MIT OCW

Accessing SomaliREN MIT OCW Mirror

 - Introduction to the OCW Mirror hosted on SomaliREN
 - Navigating and utilizing the MIT OpenCourseWare resources
 - Incorporating OCW materials into teaching and learning activities
 - Maximizing the benefits of the OCW Mirror for the SomaliREN community

12:25 Reflection and Conclusion

Speaker: Mohamed Bile (SomaliREN)