The much anticipated ICT Bill is set to be published in the next three weeks, the government has confirmed

Information and Communication Permanent Secretary Bitange Ndemo said the revised Bill, is at the Attorney General's office undergoing final drafting.

The ICT Bill has been discussed for close to six years and was withdrawn from the floor of Parliament last year following objections by stakeholders that it did not sufficiently address key issues like cyber-crime.

On Wednesday, Ndemo said once the Bill went through the first reading in Parliament it would be presented to stakeholders in the industry for further scrutiny.

Speaking during the launch of a global initiative to support awareness and deployment of Internet protocol version 6, a new mode of interconnecting computers, Ndemo said the Bill had also taken into account e-transactions.

Kenya has been selected as the venue for launching the Next Generation 6Deploy, which is funded by the European Union for the African Internet community.

Various groups, among them the tourism sector, have previously raised concern that carrying out transactions on-line is illegal under the current law, thus denying the sector much needed income.

"Somebody asked me about e-transactions and I confirmed that they have been catered for," he said of the Bill.

Meanwhile Ndemo said The East African Marine System (TEAMS) cable project is on course and should be in Mombasa by June next year.

He reaffirmed that the project would meet its 2009 deadline.

"Currently the cable is being developed and then will be loaded onto the ship before being dispatched for Mombasa," Ndemo said.