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08Oct

Freedom on the Net 2013: An African Review

admin October 8, 2013

The increasing use of the Internet worldwide has continued to see governments put caveats on its openness and the range of freedoms users enjoy online. According to the 2013 Freedom on the Net report, in the period May 2012–April 2013, the global number of censored websites has increased, while internet users in various countries have been arrested, tortured, and killed over the information they posted online.
In Sub Saharan Africa, Freedom House found that both physical and technical mechanisms of filtering, monitoring or otherwise obstructing free speech online have been employed by states concerned with the power of internet-based technologies.
“All 10 of the African countries examined in this report have stepped up their online monitoring efforts in the past year, either by obtaining new technical capabilities or by expanding the government’s legal authority,” says the report which was published by Freedom House on October 3, 2013. Last year, Ethiopia was the only country in the region found to implement nationwide internet filtering.
In its study, Freedom House covered developments in internet freedom in 60 countries around the world. Based on an examination of obstacles to access, limits to content, and violation of user rights on the internet, countries were scored as ‘Free’, ‘Partly Free’ or ‘Not Free’.
Table 1: Summary of Global Freedom on the Net Rankings (Source: by author based on Freedom on the Net 2013 report)

Continent	Free	Not Free	Partly Free	Total
Asia	2	8	4	14
Eurasia	3	5	2	10
Australia, EU, Iceland and the United States	9			9
Latin America	1	4	1	6
Middle East and North Africa		5	6	11
Sub-Saharan Africa	2	6	2	10
Total	17	28	15	60

Free
South Africa and Kenya were the two countries reported as Free. In Kenya, mention was made of the communications regulatory authority issuing guidelines to internet service providers not to allow services to be used to spread hate speech. Service providers were also reportedly required to install internet traffic monitoring equipment.
In South Africa, the proposed Protection of State Information bill which criminalises reporting on classified state information and accessing leaked information online would violate user rights if passed into law. Another legislation, the General Intelligence Laws Amendment 2013, which gives authorities the power to intercept bulk communications known as “foreign signals intelligence” was passed in July 2013. The partially state-owned Telkom network was also said to have installed servers to harvest data and user information. The extent to which this spyware has been deployed in the country was unknown.
Partly Free
Freedom house ranked Malawi, Nigeria, Angola, Uganda, Rwanda and Zimbabwe as ‘Partly Free’. A draft Interception of Communications law in Nigeria was criticised for potentially infringing on user’s right to privacy. There were also reports that the Nigerian government had awarded a contract to an Israeli based company to monitor internet communications. A privately owned ISP was said to have installed surveillance malware. It is unclear if the installation was at the bidding of the state.
Suspicions of online government surveillance in Uganda increased in part due to officials publically expressing “the need” for policing Internet mediums. A new communications law, the Uganda Communications Act, passed in September 2012 created a regulatory authority with sweeping powers to oversee electronic, print and broadcast media. The body’s independence has been called into question. As a sim card (including mobile internet) registration exercises drew to a close, there were privacy concerns due to the country’s lack of data protection legislation. The country already has lawful interception of communications regulations.
There were no reports of internet content being blocked or filtered in Zimbabwe. However, ruling party officials were said to have publicly expressed the desire to increase control over ICTs, particularly in the lead-up to the July 2013 general elections. Zimbabwe was also said to be seeking foreign support for surveillance in Iran. “Personnel from the Zimbabwean armed forces and the Central Intelligence Organisation have been undergoing intensive cyber training in technological warfare techniques, counter-intelligence and methods of suppressing popular revolts among others, every six months,” says the report.
Egypt was also reported to be seeking surveillance assistance from Iran. Activists and social media users were also targeted by security forces during protests either through abductions, killings or prosecution.
In Libya, surveillance equipment from the Muammar Gaddafi regime remained in operation.
Despite being reported as a ”country at risk” in 2013 owing to its “strict” controls over traditional media which were feared may extend to digital media, improvements were reported in Rwanda. An amended media law expanded the rights of journalists and recognised freedom for online communications.
Meanwhile, Angola’s State Security Services, with assistance from Germany, were planning to implement an electronic monitoring system to track digital communications.
Not Free
The Sudanese government was accused of surveillance particularly during protests. In addition to harassment and arrest of journalists during and following the protests, intelligence services are said to have “ramped up” efforts to censor antigovernment content, target cyber-dissidents, and manipulate online information.
In September 2012, Ethiopia “toughened” restrictions on electronic communications by passing the Telecom Fraud Offence Proclamation law. The government was also allegedly increasing its technical capacity to filter, block and monitor the internet with assistance from the Chinese authorities and the use of Finfisher – a commercial spyware software.
Globally, Iceland and Estonia were ranked the freest while China, Cuba and Iran were said to be the “most repressive countries” in terms of internet freedom.
Under the OpenNetAfrica initiative, CIPESA researches into internet freedoms in various African countries. To learn more, to share an idea or report a violation, write to programmes @cipesa.org.

30Sep

A Review of the Uganda Internet Governance Forum 2013

admin September 30, 2013

By Mugabi Samuel
“Harnessing Internet development in Uganda: Connecting the last mile” was the theme of the 6^th Uganda Internet Governance Forum (UIGF) which took place on September 18, 2013. During the event, stakeholder representatives from academia, government, civil society, private sector and telecommunications discussed the emerging opportunities in availability and access, as well as challenges to the Internet in Uganda.
In his keynote address, Dr. David Turahi the Director for Information Technology and Information Management Services in the Ministry of ICT stated that initiatives were underway to harness Internet connectivity and access within government agencies. According to Dr. Turahi, up to 27 government ministries and entities are currently managed under the DOTug domain in a drive to promote and manage Uganda’s ICT and e-governance policy. The Government has also put in place a strategy for the IPv6 upgrade from IPv4 for better connectivity, increased number of connections and also for providing a solution to IPv4 roaming issues especially in mobile networks.
He also said that a Data Protection and Privacy Act aimed at protecting the privacy of online users in Uganda was being drafted. “The increasing participation of citizens online means that we need to look at issues such as open data and cyber security to ensure an effective online community,” said Dr. Turahi. Dr. Turahi was speaking at the forum on behalf of the Ministry’s Permanent Secretary, Dr. Jimmy Pat Sammanya.
Presenting the UIGF online discussions report, Daniel Nanghaka of Internet Society Uganda Chapter stated that whereas connectivity and accessibility to the internet have improved over the years (from Cafes and a few elite establishments in the 1990s to wireless modems and Internet enabled phones today) slow speeds and prohibitive costs were still affecting its use especially in the rural areas. The urban-rural divide was being further enhanced by limited infrastructure set up in the rural areas due to the areas lack of economic viability for service providers. In addition to the above, the findings of a research study by Joseph Munuulo indicated, that limited local content and illiteracy were further barriers to Internet access at the rural level.
The issue of infrastructure sharing was central to the discussions. It was pointed out that infrastructure sharing was key to improving and lowering costs of connectivity. Vivian Ddambya of the National Information Technology Authority (NITA) – Uganda proposed that physical infrastructure providers for roads, power and rail should be required to make provisions for future installation of ICT facilitates. “Currently, Uganda National Roads Authority pays for repair to any damaged optical fibre cables during road repairs and maintenance”, she said that this should not be the case.
Mike Barnard from the Uganda Internet Exchange Point (UIXP) stated that as a means of reducing costs and increasing speeds, UIXP has improved local traffic exchange of ISPs in Uganda. He encouraged ISPs to peer through UIXP in order to offer a better internet experience to Ugandan citizens. With support from Google, Orange Uganda and the Internet Society, UIXP has recently upgraded its switches, servers and power back up systems. It has also acquired an IPv6 assignment from AfriNIC and addresses have been issued to all its member networks.
Access, affordability and capacity to use the internet are not the only challenges to its proliferation in Uganda. Peter Kahiigi the director of Information Security NITA Uganda citied cyber security threats. According to Mr. Kahiigi, the increased uptake of internet services in Uganda, had also seen an increase in cases of child pornography, cyber bullying, identity theft, financial crimes, distributed denial of service attacks and cyber terrorism among others. He stated that on-going projects to address these issues included the setting up of an advisory group on information security to liase between government and the private sector. Furthermore, that government was developing a classification framework for information aimed at promoting open data and better e-governance as well as improved information security management. Mr. Kahiigi stressed the importance of having a national information security framework to protect citizens online and also noted that the currently available cyber laws were helping but needed better enforcement.
He also spoke about the national Computer Emergency Response Team (CERT) centre an initiative of the Ministry of ICT, NITA Uganda and Uganda Communications Commission (UCC). Launched in June 2013, the CERT will equip and organize Uganda to respond to cyber threats, ensure better protection of Uganda’s ICT infrastructure and the availability of dependent services provided to government agencies, citizens and businesses.
From civil society, Ashnah kalemera of the OpenNet Africa initiative urged ICT sector stakeholders to be advocates of online freedoms by seeking to “educate citizens on responsible behavior and promoting liberal regimes of online rights.” This was in light of recent developments including the set-up of a government social media monitoring Centre, a request to Facebook for user account information and prohibitive legislation such as the Interception of Communications Act.
Her remarks were echoed by Dr. Peter Mwesigye from the African Centre for Media Excellence (ACME) who pointed at numerous legislations that provide for freedom of expression in Uganda through any media including the internet. He also pointed out that Uganda, as a signatory to the International convention on civil and political rights should ensure adherence to freedoms of expressions. He called for the independence of oversight bodies such as Uganda Communications Commission and NITA-U in addressing issues related to press and online media freedoms.
“In addition to the curtailing of civil liberties, government policies and practices with regard to online freedoms pose a threat to democracy by stifling critical debate, civic participation and demand for transparency and accountability through platforms like social media,” said Ms. Kalemera.
Overall, participants called for more research to inform government in planning efforts to extend internet access and internet-based services to citizens. Partnerships between civil society, private sector, academia and government were also encouraged.
The Uganda Internet Governance Forum 2013 was organised by the Collaboration on International ICT Policy in East and Southern Africa (CIPESA) in partnership with the Internet Society Uganda Chapter and the ICT Association of Uganda.
Since its inauguration in 2006, the UIGF has continued to discuss and address internet policy issues in Uganda and East Africa. The proceedings of this year’s Forum were presented at the Second African Internet Governance Forum which was held in Nairobi, Kenya September 24-26, 2013. They will also be presented at the global Internet Governance Forum in Bali, Indonesia October 22-25, 2013.
Speaker Presentations available for download here: UIGF Online Presentation, OpenNet Africa, UIXP,

19Jun

Improving eGovernment Initiatives: A Global Concern

admin June 19, 2013

By Lillian Nalwoga
At the end of May, Finland hosted an international conference to discuss ways of improving eGovernment programmes. In particular, the conference attended by Government Chief Information Officers (CIO) and other officials from across the world reviewed the role of leadership in e-government development.
While noting immense advancements in eGovernment, particularly in the European Union (EU), delegates at the ‘Leading the way in eGovernment development’ conference highlighted numerous factors hampering effective implementation of eGovernment strategies both in developed and developing countries.
According to a May 28, 2013 European Commission press release (see: ‘eGovernment improving but citizens ask for more), almost half (46%) of EU citizens go online to look for a job, use the public library, file a tax return, register a birth, apply for a passport or use other eGovernment services. In addition, 80% indicated that using online public services saves them time, while 76% like the flexibility of the services and 62% said they save money when they use e-services.
Despite these positives, European governments still believe that public perception of governments and public institutions is still low and likely to worsen, stated the press release. Factors cited as constraining eGovernment included: inadequate capacity by some CIOs to implement eGovernment strategies, inadequate trust citizens have in some eGovernment systems, ineffective technological systems, inadequate open, transparent and collaborative efforts by governments, and limited availability of cross-border eGovernment services. According to the UN eGovernment survey 2012, for Africa and other developing regions, the above realities, in addition to the lack of e-infrastructure, mean that eGovernment remains at an elementary level.
Paul Timmers, Director of the Sustainable and Secure Society Directorate, DG Connect at the European Commission, noted that these challenges can be solved by governments’ smart use of new Information Communication Technologies (ICTs), adopting new processes and skills sets. In agreement, Ms. Henna Virkkunen, Finland’s Public Administration Minister, noted that ICT is a key element of every government task and new ways of using latest technology like cloud computing must be explored. Nonetheless, she cautioned that ICT should not be an end itself. Governments need to find ways to use inclusive technology in a manner that benefits them and their citizens, as citizens are demanding for better, user friendly and practical e-services.
In addition, governments also need to include third party users in the design, development and delivery of e-government services such as open data. Mr. Timmers remarked that the “market value of Open Public Data” in EU countries alone is estimated at 140 billion Euros. According to the Open Government Partnership, the market value of Open data can be realised in three main channels – business innovation (making scientific research works more accessible hence driving innovation capacity in fields such as pharmaceutics and renewables); business creation (creating a new market as business can build new innovative applications and eServices based government data); and business efficiency (business and public bodies contributing to ‘smart’ growth by becoming more efficient in tackling citizens’ and customers’ needs by gaining precise and completer insight into citizens’ and customers’ preferences and needs).
But how do governments build positive perceptions of their citizens toward eGovernment? Ian Goldin, Director of the Oxford Martin School and Professor of Globalisation and Development at Oxford University, stated that in order to achieve this, governments have to build trust in the systems; address user privacy concerns; play a stronger role in regulatory frameworks; involve youth and the elderly in digital government and invest in latest technologies as older ones become difficult to work with.
Besides advancements in eGovernment, conference delegates discussed global related concerns such as openness and freedom on the internet as well as data protection. They called for immediate government attention to protecting citizens’ rights while considering the opportunities and benefits of private sector companies that provide online services in the “networked” era where multi-national players like Google, Facebook, Twitter, Amazon, and Yahoo have their own rules on how to handle customer data.
Further, the conference called for common efforts in capacity building for e-government development; sharing best practices to learn from each other; strengthening ethical behaviour in governments to pave way for a culture of openness and the adoption of political will in practicing openness. Other suggestions included the EU issuing directives to all its member countries to open up public data as well as the UN adopting a global framework on promoting openness.
The conference, which took place on May 28–30, 2013, was organised by the United Nations Department of Economic and Social Affairs (UNDESA) and Finland’s Ministry of Finance in collaboration with the European Commission.
More information about the conference is available here.

23May

ICTs and Governance: Learning Through Interactions

admin May 23, 2013

Understanding precisely what role Information and Communication Technologies (ICTs) play in governance, and how, is very important to our work. Over the past 18 months, we have interacted with organizations at country, regional, and international levels that utilize and promote the use of ICTs in governance. These interactions have served as a learning opportunity for us, since the use of new technologies in governance processes in developing countries is not one with a long (recorded) history. But while these interactions have helped us to understand better how ICTs can have a good chance of delivering positive outcomes in –governance—and in many other areas—they have also helped us to share knowledge and resources with diverse actors.
And while our own understanding of the role of ICTs in service delivery, in encouraging participation, and in promoting governance is steadily changing, we have noticed that the way different stakeholders view this role differs rather widely. There are various facets to the matter. Some look at it from the access and affordability angle; others from the utility side (value and functions of ICTs). There are also cultural issues, which in some instances hinder the use of ICTs by women, and which many—particularly at the grassroots level – are eager to point out. A related one is the low level of literacy generally and in particular about using ICTs.
Not forgotten are social issues, such as who influences use of a technology in a community, or the use of technology for personal benefit versus use for community benefit. Here, from various interactions, it seems that where individuals will have direct, tangible, personal benefits from using a technology, they will be more likely to use it – which explains why in Uganda there are 8.9 million mobile money users, or ardent Facebookers, as well as thousands that read newspapers online, and many others that do online sports betting, but then the numbers for those engaging in online civic/ political actions remain low.
In many countries, ICTs are presenting a number of opportunities and alternatives in the delivery of services from both public and private sectors. The value delivered over these technologies is growing, especially in terms of efficiency and effectiveness. Because of these capabilities, the demand for transparency and accountability through the use of ICTs is increasing.
As part of its iParticipate Uganda project, CIPESA has conducted a series of citizen journalism trainings to empower communities in the use of ICT, especially social media, to report on governance issues. Based on a citizen journalism training manual we developed, CIPESA has equipped community members in three districts with skills for seeking and disseminating information related to reporting and monitoring of service delivery concerns. The trainings were conducted at grassroots-based partner centers, the Northern Uganda Media Club (NUMEC), Busoga Rural Open Source and Development Initiatives (BROSDI) and the e-resource center in Kasese.
These trainings also help to clarify what community workers understand about ICTs and governance, and what they see as possible areas where ICTs can promote governance. But beyond the trainings, many obstacles – sociocultural, political, and economic – stand in the way, and in our region there are few success cases that can be used to promote the uptake of ICTs in governance. And so we have realized, again, the need to promote access and awareness. We have also realized that government has a big role to play in this regard, itself being a champion of the use of ICTs, and having in place policies and practices that encourage citizens to use ICTs.
Additional difficulties include low awareness of the benefits of digital communications, high costs of accessing ICT tools, the low spread of access centers such as Internet cafes and telecenters, and misunderstandings about the intentions of initiatives that seek to hold leaders accountable and transparent. These are not minor problems. They are big problems, and they are well recognized by CIPESA itself, but even more so by our grassroots partners and the communities they serve. We have discussed some possible remedies – sensitization of citizens on the benefits of using ICT, trainings on the use of ICT for citizen reporting, lobbying leaders to become role models by adopting active use of ICT in their work – but all these take time and money. CIPESA will continue to advocate for use of ICT in enhancing citizen participation and also act as a center of expertise on the same.
The interactions and learning that we have done during 2011 and 2012 are a fulfillment of one of the objectives of iParticipate Uganda, namely network development among groups and institutions involved in the ICTs for citizen empowerment/ democracy work.
CIPESA has shared experiences and had the opportunity to voice collective concerns and advocate for the use of ICTs in governance not only at a regional level, but on the global stage too.
As we recognize the power of the Internet and its contributions to society, it is equally important to promote online safety, online freedoms and the free flow of information as well as freedom of expression. Research remains crucial in informing ICTs in governance interventions.
This article was published as part of the Swedish Program for ICTs in Developing Regions (Spider) Stories 2012. The full publication can be downloaded here.

19Feb

GISWatch 2012 Reports Published

admin February 19, 2013

The 2012 Global Information Society Watch (GISWatch) reports have been published. GISWatch is a collaborative community committed to building an open, inclusive and sustainable information society, through collaborative monitoring of implementation of international (and national) commitments made by governments towards the creation of an inclusive information society.
It focuses on monitoring progress made towards implementing the World Summit on the Information Society (WSIS) action agenda and other international and national commitments related to information and communications. It also provides analytical overviews of institutions involved in implementation. GISWatch aims to make governments and international organisations accountable for meeting the commitments they make through contributing to building a strong and sustainable global civil society policy advocacy network.
The GISWatch Reports are a series of yearly reports covering the state of the information society from the perspectives of civil society.
GISWatch is not only a publication, it is a process. The long term goal of the project is to build policy analysis skills and ‘habits’ into the work of civil society organisations that work in the areas of ICT for development, democracy and social justice.
ICT4Democracy in East Africa network partners CIPESA and WOUGNET are contributors to the 2012 edition.
Download the reports here.
This article was published by the ICT4Democracy in East Africa Network on February 18, 2013.

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