Collaboration on International ICT Policy for East and Southern Africa (CIPESA)

UNESCO is encouraging African countries to pursue a ROAM-X assessment as a tool to evaluate developments in technology.

CIPESA notes that the Policy Framework is beneficial to data governance, data rights and privacy in Africa. However, its implementation is likely to come up against notable challenges.

Some African governments are colluding with tech companies to expand their repression through digital technologies while stripping citizens of their online and offline rights.

Alt Advisory cautions that the use of artificial intelligence to build a profile of people based on their personal information is “a central feature of surveillance capitalism, and yet mostly shrouded in secrecy.”

Submissions on the implications on freedom of expression and privacy fell on deaf ears, as Uganda’s parliament passes what CIPESA describes as a regressive law on the misuse of social media and hate speech.

Rwandese and Congolese journalists commit to engaging in best practices, to counter the increase in hate speech and spread of disinformation in volatile border conflict.

The LEXOTA platform, which tracks disinformation laws, policies and patterns in sub Saharan Africa, has been reviewed and updated to better serve CSOs and groups that fight disinformation.

During the African Commission on Human and People’s Rights’ 71st ordinary session, CIPESA made a submission asking African countries to urgently ratify and implement the Protocol on the Rights of Persons with Disabilities.