Promoting Effective and Inclusive ICT Policy in Africa

Tag Archives: surveillance

  HomeCollaboration on International ICT Policy for East and Southern Africa (CIPESA)  /  surveillance
23Mar

CIPESA Public Dialogue Series: Interrogating Digital Public Infrastructure in East Africa

Author CIPESA Posted on

By CIPESA Writer |

Digital transformation is reshaping governance, service delivery, and civic life across Africa. At the centre of this transformation is the growing adoption of Digital Public Infrastructure (DPI) — foundational interoperable digital systems such as digital identity programmes, payment systems, and data exchange frameworks that enable governments to deliver services at scale.

Across Eastern Africa, governments are increasingly investing in DPI as a core pillar of their digital transformation strategies. These systems promise to improve administrative efficiency, expand access to services, and support more inclusive digital economies.

However, DPI is not merely a technical infrastructure. It is also an institutional and political infrastructure. The way these systems are designed, governed, and implemented can shape power relations, accountability structures, privacy protections, and citizen participation in the digital state.

Despite the growing importance of DPI, public debate around these systems remains limited. A study by the Collaboration on International ICT Policy for East and Southern Africa (CIPESA) into media coverage of DPI in Eastern Africa shows that reporting is largely government-centric and event-driven, focusing primarily on announcements and service delivery benefits while giving limited attention to governance arrangements, procurement processes, rights protections, and questions of inclusion.

Strengthening informed public discourse around DPI is therefore critical. Greater participation by civil society, journalists, policymakers, technologists, and citizens can help ensure that emerging digital systems are transparent, accountable, inclusive, and aligned with the public interest.

To contribute to this goal, CIPESA is convening a series of public dialogues on DPI in Eastern Africa. Through four in-depth discussions, the CIPESA public dialogue series will explore key dimensions of DPI implementation such as governance and accountability, data protection and trust, inclusion and equity, and cross-regional learning, while bringing together diverse stakeholders to deepen public understanding and encourage more critical engagement with the region’s digital transformation.

The details of the CIPESA Public Dialogue dare listed below. Be sure to mark your calendar for each dialogue!

Follow @cipesaug on social media and join the conversation using #DPIAfrica and #DPIJournalism.

Dialogue 1: Interrogating DPI: Governance, Power, and Accountability

Background: As governments across Eastern Africa accelerate the rollout of Digital Public Infrastructure systems, questions of governance, oversight, and accountability are becoming increasingly important.

While DPI initiatives are often presented as tools for efficiency and innovation, they also shape power relations within the digital state. Decisions about who designs these systems, who controls the data they generate, and how procurement and partnerships are structured can significantly influence how public digital systems operate and whom they ultimately serve.

Yet public scrutiny of these governance questions remains limited. Media coverage frequently focuses on the technical benefits of DPI, such as improved service delivery, while giving less attention to governance arrangements, procurement transparency, and mechanisms for accountability when systems fail.

This dialogue will examine the political economy of DPI, focusing on questions of governance, oversight, transparency, and accountability as the region expands its digital infrastructure.

Date: March 24, 2026 | 15:00 PM Nairobi | Reserve your seat

Dialogue 2: Interrogating DPI: Data, Privacy, and Trust

Background: Digital Public Infrastructure systems depend heavily on the collection, processing, and exchange of large volumes of personal data. While these systems can improve efficiency and coordination across government services, they also raise significant questions about privacy, surveillance, and data protection.

Public discourse around DPI in Eastern Africa has largely focused on service delivery benefits, with relatively limited attention to the risks associated with data governance and citizen trust.

CIPESA’s media analysis similarly shows that journalists tend to under-report issues of data protection, surveillance, and the enforcement of privacy laws, despite growing public concerns about the misuse of personal data and weak institutional safeguards.

This dialogue will examine whether DPI systems in Eastern Africa are being designed and implemented in ways that protect rights and build public trust.

Date: March 31, 2026 | 15:00 PM Nairobi | Reserve your seat

Dialogue 3: Interrogating DPI: Inclusion, Equity, and Gender

Background: Digital Public Infrastructure is often framed as inclusive by design. However, evidence from across Eastern Africa suggests that issues of equity, access, and representation remain underexplored in both policy debates and media coverage.

Media analysis conducted by CIPESA reveals limited reporting on how DPI systems affect citizens differently based on gender, geography, income, and digital access. It also highlights a significant gender imbalance in media sources, with roughly 80 percent of quoted sources being male.

Yet digital systems can inadvertently reinforce existing inequalities if barriers related to connectivity, digital literacy, affordability, identification documents, or social norms are not addressed.

This dialogue will explore whether DPI initiatives are truly delivering on their promise of inclusion, and who may be left behind by digital transformation.

Date: April 7, 2026 | 15:00 PM Nairobi | Reserve your seat

Dialogue 4: Interrogating DPI: Cross-Regional Learning Session

Africa is undergoing a profound digital transformation. The African Union Digital Transformation Strategy (2020–2030) encourages member states to develop Digital Public Infrastructure and Digital Public Goods as foundations for inclusive service delivery, digital trade, and economic growth.

However, public participation in shaping these developments remains limited, partly due to insufficient public discourse and limited specialised reporting on DPI and DPGs.

To address this gap, Co-Develop partnered with regional organisations, including the Media Foundation for West Africa (MFWA) and CIPESA, to establish journalism fellowships focused on DPI reporting in West and Eastern Africa.

MFWA launched the first fellowship in West Africa in 2023, generating valuable lessons and case studies. CIPESA has since adapted the fellowship model for Eastern Africa, creating opportunities for cross-regional learning among journalists and ecosystem actors.

This session will bring fellows and stakeholders from both regions together to share lessons, experiences, and strategies for strengthening public discourse on DPI and DPGs.

Date: April 14, 2026 | 15:00 PM Nairobi | Reserve your seat

19Mar

Webinar: Advancing Platform Accountability for Women’s Online Safety in Africa

Author CIPESA Posted on

By CIPESA Writer |

The right to freedom of information, access to information, and democratic engagement belongs equally to all citizens. Yet across Africa, women and girls continue to face significant barriers that prevent them from exercising these foundational rights in digital spaces. This calls for urgent legal and enforcement mechanisms to ensure that women and girls can safely access, contribute to, and participate in information ecosystems. Furthermore, social media and Artificial Intelligence (AI) platforms must address the gendered concerns that impact women’s experiences in online spaces, including disproportionate online harassment, algorithmic discrimination, and digital exclusion. See more here.

In support of this year’s International Women’s Day (IWD) commemoration, the Collaboration on International ICT Policy for East and Southern Africa (CIPESA) is hosting a webinar titled “Advancing Platform Accountability for Women’s Online Safety in Africa” on Thursday, 19 March 2026 (14:00–15:30 EAT). The webinar resonates with this year’s IWD theme: “Rights. Justice. Action. For ALL Women and Girls.”

Register for the webinar here.

The webinar brings together experts to discuss what efforts are being made to enhance the safety of women in online spaces and to hold platforms accountable. It supports the sentiments of United Nations (UN) General Assembly President Annalena Baerbock, who last week, in her opening remarks at the 70th UN Commission on the Status of Women, noted that the gaps in legal rights afforded to women are deliberate. She stated that “these are not oversights but deliberate choices — choices that violate the UN Charter, the Universal Declaration of Human Rights, and 70 years of commitments made in this Commission.”

This webinar serves as a platform for discussion and insight into the various efforts needed to address these gaps. The discussion is open to all and features expert panelists from diverse backgrounds with a vested interest in advancing the safety of women in online spaces.

Meet the Panelists

Barbra Okafor | Founder and Lead Strategist, The Agency Lab

Barbra is the Founder of The Agency Lab, an initiative empowering African creatives and organisations to secure data ownership, protect Intellectual Property (IP), and navigate fair compensation in the AI economy. Drawing on her previous roles as Content Programming Lead at TikTok Sub-Saharan Africa and Senior Producer at BBC Media Action, Barbra translates complex digital transitions into actionable strategies. Her work sits at the critical intersection of the African creator economy, technology, and governance.

Marie-Simone Kadurira | Feminist researcher and communications strategist

Marie-Simone works at the intersection of gender, technology, and social justice. Her work focuses on technology-facilitated gender-based violence (TFGBV), digital rights, and the ways in which online platforms shape access, safety, and agency for women and marginalised communities. She has contributed to research and advocacy efforts examining how online harms disproportionately affect women, particularly in the Global South, and has worked with international organisations to develop policy and communications strategies aimed at strengthening platform accountability and advancing safer digital environments. Her work engages with questions of governance, content moderation, and the structural inequalities embedded within digital ecosystems. She is currently engaged in research on gender-based violence prevention and supports initiatives that centre community-led approaches to justice, safety, and digital inclusion.

Mercy Mutemi | Executive Director, The Oversight Lab Africa

Mercy’s work advocates for fair regulation and deployment of technology across Africa. She focuses on restorative and retributive justice solutions for those who have been harmed by technology. This includes workers who have been exploited to build and maintain technological systems and those who have been harmed by algorithms.  She has worked on several cases and initiatives focused on addressing inequality and the unconsidered consequences of tech algorithms for African communities and societies. She currently represents a cohort of content moderators based throughout Africa in a suit over workplace human rights violations.

Abdul Waiswa | Head of Litigation, Prosecution and Legal Advisory, Uganda Communications Commission

Waiswa works as the Head of Litigation, Prosecution and Legal Advice at the Uganda Communications Commission (UCC), which is the statutory regulator of the converged communications sector in Uganda, with a mandate to license, supervise, and facilitate the development of a robust communication sector in Uganda. He oversees the legal advisory, licensing, and enforcement functions of UCC and supports the implementation of the Government of Uganda’s policies on ICT. Waiswa is a regular participant in national, regional, and international engagements on internet jurisdiction, data, and other ICT-related policy matters.

Lilian Nalwoga | Programme Manager, CIPESA

Lillian has several years of ICT policy research and advocacy experience, having joined the CIPESA as a Policy Officer in 2007. She has facilitated and coordinated ICT policy workshops – including coordinating the East African Internet Governance Forum. Lillian has a Bachelors of Development Studies (Makerere University, Uganda) with a Postgraduate Diploma in Project Management as well as advanced training in Internet studies. She holds a Master’s in Digital Media and Society from Uppsala University, Sweden. She is also the former President of the Internet Society (ISOC) Uganda.

The webinar forms part of the #BeSafeByDesign campaign, which calls for improved platform accountability in Africa. The campaign is part of a project supported by the Irene M. Staehelin Foundation. Since December 2025, the project has pursued a series of collaborative activities aimed at improving online safety and governance. These included a convening in Nairobi, Kenya, which served as the launch of the #BeSafeByDesign campaign. The convening assembled human rights defenders and activists from eight African countries for upskilling in digital resilience. In February 2026, a meeting held in Port Louis, Mauritius brought together 30 participants — including judges, magistrates, law enforcement officers, communications regulators, data protection authorities, and National Human Rights Institutions (NHRIs). Participants recommended that African governments strengthen their engagement with big tech companies through regional mechanisms, such as the African Union, to present a more coordinated voice on issues of platform accountability.

11Mar

CIPESA Builds the Capacity of State Actors to Address Online Harms

Author CIPESA Posted on

By CIPESA Writer |

Digital platforms serve as vital spaces for civic participation, political expression, and social mobilisation throughout Africa, including for women, youths, and human rights advocates. However, there has been a rise in digital hams that threaten online rights, safety, and democratic engagement. Technology-Facilitated Gender-Based violence (TFGBV), disinformation, digital surveillance, and increasingly complex attacks made possible by Artificial Intelligence (AI) are all on the rise in African online spaces. The majority of those harmed are journalists, activists, women and girls.

To address these challenges, the Collaboration on International ICT Policy for East and Southern Africa (CIPESA) last month convened a two-day regional engagement in Mauritius to explore trends in digital harms and equip state actors with practical tools and guidance to monitor, prevent, and respond to online rights violations. It drew 30 participants from seven countries (Kenya, Malawi, Mauritius, South Africa, Tanzania, Uganda and Zimbabwe). They included judges, magistrates, law enforcement officers, communications regulators, and representatives of data protection authorities and National Human Rights Institutions (NHRIs).

Although the internet and digital technologies have enhanced civic participation and broadened the enjoyment of human rights, they have also brought about new risks for individuals and organisations. Accordingly, the discussion addressed the evolving nature of online harms and their impact on digital rights and democratic engagement.

Across all countries in the region, TFGBV is a major concern. Women in public roles, such as politicians, journalists, and activists, face a rising wave of online harassment, sexualised threats, and disinformation campaigns aimed at intimidating and silencing them. In countries like Kenya, Uganda, Zimbabwe, and South Africa, these attacks increase significantly during elections, compelling numerous women to withdraw from public engagement.

Disinformation and AI-driven manipulation present another concern. Coordinated disinformation campaigns, often amplified by bots and increasingly reliant on synthetic media like deepfakes, influence public opinion and target independent and critical voices. In countries where laws are enacted to address these ills, they often fail to target harmful manipulation and are instead weaponised to suppress legitimate expression.

For instance, laws on cybercrime and “false information”in countries like Tanzania, Zimbabwe, Kenya, and Uganda are often broadly framed, with ambiguous provisions and overly broad definitions and excessive penalties. These laws are frequently applied to detain and prosecute individuals, primarily journalists, bloggers and social accountability activists. Even where prosecutions are rare, the chilling effect on civic engagement is significant.

The engagement also heard that, in several countries, surveillance-enabling measures, from SIM card registration linked to national IDs, to biometric voter databases and interception technologies, have expanded without proper independent oversight.

Speaking at the engagement, the African Commission on Human and Peoples’ Rights (ACHPR) Commissioner and Special Rapporteur on Freedom of Expression and Access to Information in Africa, Ourveena Geereesha Topsy-Sonoo, discussed how her mandate was addressing digital harms and promoting rights. She highlighted the commission’s resolution against internet disruptions and Resolution 591, which addresses the growing issue of violence against women on digital platforms across the continent.

In 2019, the ACHPR adopted the Declaration of Principles on Freedom of Expression and Access to Information in Africa and has more recently issued resolutions addressing digital violence against women. However, most governments are yet to domesticate and implement these key instruments.

The meeting also underscored how democratic backsliding, shrinking civic space, and the expansion of executive power, as witnessed in several countries, create an environment in which digital harms flourish. While instruments such as the African Charter, the Malabo Convention on Cyber Security and Personal Data Protection, and the Convention on the Elimination of All Forms of Discrimination Against Women (CEDAW) provide safeguards, their impact depends on independent courts, empowered regulators, and capable NHRIs.

Participants noted that limited capacity, resources, and coordination across government institutions often undermine enforcement, monitoring, and accountability. The Mauritius engagement therefore, recommended establishing stronger institutional capacity, such as inter-ministerial committees on digital rights, to foster collaboration among key actors responsible for protecting digital rights.

Participants further explored practical approaches to monitoring digital rights violations, supporting survivors of online abuse, and ensuring accountability for harmful online behaviour. These discussions also drew from a handbook developed by the International Center for Not-for-Profit Law (ICNL) and CIPESA, which provides guidance for NHRIs on monitoring and promoting digital rights.

In particular, the convening challenged NHRIs to play a greater role in addressing digital harms through investigating violations, providing remedies to victims, advising on legislation and standards, and conducting public education.

Another focus of the discussions was the role of technology companies in moderating harmful content. Participants highlighted concerns that major platforms such as Meta and X do not allocate sufficient resources to content moderation in Africa. In many cases, moderation systems rely heavily on automated tools that are poorly adapted to local languages and socio-political contexts, while the number of human moderators covering African content remains limited.

Participants recommended that African governments strengthen their engagement with big tech companies through regional mechanisms such as the African Union, to present a more coordinated voice on issues of platform accountability.

Through this engagement, CIPESA strengthened the capacity of state actors to safeguard digital rights, highlighting that protecting these rights is both their legal mandate and central to growing democratic resilience and inclusion across Africa. The engagement was supported by the Irene M. Staehelin Foundation.

11Mar

Forum Explores How Foreign Interference Threatens Information Integrity in Africa

Author CIPESA Posted on

By Edrine Wanyama |

On February 10-11, 2026, researchers and experts convened in Dakar, Senegal, for the first Africa Forum on Countering Foreign Interference (CFI). The forum brought together participants from Africa, Europe and America to examine the growing challenge of foreign information manipulation and its implications for governance, media ecosystems, and digital rights across the African continent.

The Forum was organised under the CFI project implemented by the European Union Institute for Security Studies (EUISS), in cooperation with the Service for Foreign Policy Instruments (FPI) at the European Commission and the European External Action Service (EEAS). The project aims to strengthen EU capacities to prevent, deter and counter information manipulation in the digital space. 

Around the world, foreign information manipulation and interference (FIMI) has become a major threat to information integrity, human rights, democratic discourse, and public trust. In Africa, the phenomenon has taken on new dimensions as geopolitical competition plays out in the digital sphere. Already, many African countries such as the Democratic Republic of Congo, Ethiopia, Kenya and South Africa are facing a complex terrain of disinformation. Consequently, disinformation practices are expected to continue shaping and adversely affecting human rights and democracy, amidst the growing repression and curtailment of digital spaces in  Africa. 

Foreign state and non-state actors have been linked to sponsorship of disinformation campaigns in Africa, to promote their strategic, political and business interests. They include China with its authoritarian capitalism agenda and Israel with its strategic security agenda. Similarly, Russia aims to displace Western influence in Africa, Saudi Arabia and the United Arab Emirates, which are in rivalry over ports and the strategic security architecture of the Red Sea, and Qatar with mass economic interests. The United States of America is also associated with the drive of narratives that seek to neutralise its adversaries, especially China and Russia, and also to secure and utilise critical minerals from the African continent in countries such as the Democratic Republic of Congo and Zambia.

The forum highlighted the critical role of independent research in understanding disinformation trends, causes, effects and control measures, local socio-political dynamics, and media ecosystems.

The Collaboration on International ICT Policy for East and Southern Africa (CIPESA), the European University Institute, Tech Global Institute, International Press Institute, Media Monitoring Africa, Moxii Africa and Intelwatch, shared insights on potential response strategies to counter information manipulation. In particular, CIPESA stressed that efforts to counter information manipulation must safeguard human rights and should not be used as a justification for restrictive policies that undermine digital rights.

Participants at the Dakar forum noted that Africa’s information ecosystem faces various vulnerabilities that make it susceptible to manipulation. Limited access to data, under-resourced research institutions, inappropriate legal frameworks, and financial pressures within the media sector were noted as major challenges.

Today, foreign agents account for the extension of disinformation machinery with troll farms, local influencers and bots deployed across the continent to influence and shape public narratives and perceptions. Similarly, a multiplicity of lies are told about mining, trade and investment, security structures, agriculture and education sectors on the continent as a tool to help investors secure contracts without public participation and scrutiny.

Journalism, which is a key sector that should promote transparency and accountability, has not been spared by FIMI. Economic pressures faced by the local media and media actors make them susceptible to influence from foreign actors.

In other circumstances, they have been sighted to enter into agreements and memorandums of understanding which largely undermine media professionalism and integrity. Such undertakings are emerging as conduits for propaganda and carry the largest portion of blame for a declining media profession.

Unfortunately, Journalists and media practitioners opposed to the agreements and distorted narratives are often harassed and intimidated to pave the way for gendered disinformation or become primary targets of fellow practitioners who are often paid off or are benefiting from foreign actors.

Notably, African regional human rights institutions and civic actors are increasingly engaging with the issue of information integrity. The African Commission on Human and Peoples’ Rights (ACHPR) has acknowledged the risks posed by the growing foreign interference in the digital space. Its Resolution 630, issued in 2025, in paragraph 7 specifically addresses the need for technology companies to maintain information integrity. It observes that foreign interference is potentially harmful to information integrity.

Furthermore, the Special Rapporteur on Freedom of Expression and Access to Information is currently developing guidelines aimed at supporting African states to address harmful content without undermining fundamental freedoms.

Civil society organisations like CIPESA also play a vital role in these conversations by advocating for the rights-respecting governance of platforms, transparency in content moderation and improved accountability measures for tech companies.

Participants at the Dakar forum made several recommendations:

  • Multi-stakeholder collaboration to counter foreign interference by involving governments, civil society, researchers, media organisations and technology companies.
  • Strengthening independent media through the creation of national and regional funds to support investigative journalism and reduce vulnerability to foreign influence.
  • Conducting training for journalists to identify and counter FIMI.
  • Conducting nationwide media and digital literacy to help citizens guard against FIMI.
  • Governments should undertake measures including collective negotiation with multi-national tech companies to ensure effective content moderation by platforms.
  • Governments should support ACHPR processes to counter FIMI, such as through timely provision of resources and implementation of its resolutions.
  • Promote transparency in strategic sectors such as mining and energy by requiring full public disclosure of contracts  to guard against disinformation.
10Mar

2nd East Africa Data Governance Conference 2026

Author CIPESA Posted on

Event |

Location: Nairobi
Dates: 10 – 11 March 2026

CIPESA is participating in the 2nd East Africa Data Governance Conference held in Nairobi, Kenya, on March 10 and 11, 2026, convened under the theme ‘Navigating Duality in Data Governance: Innovation and Accountability in East Africa’. 

Innovation and accountability are often treated as competing imperatives. In reality, they must evolve together. The 2026 theme focuses on the duality that defines East Africa’s digital moment: a region building new systems of data-driven governance while grappling with heightened concerns around privacy, power, surveillance, exclusion, and fragmentation. The conference explores how East Africa can build digital governance ecosystems that enable innovation without sacrificing justice, rights, or public trust.

The conference features sessions on regulatory sandboxes as governance instruments for DPI – a space of active interest to CIPESA as we develop our thinking on rights-centred approaches to digital infrastructure governance in East Africa.

1 2 3 … 16