Date: Wednesday, 26 June 2024 | Time: 8:00 AM – 5:00 PM EAT
Location: Hybrid
Background and Introduction
The Internet Governance Forum (IGF) is a multi-stakeholder forum for policy dialogue on issues of Internet governance. The forum is held in an informal setting, free from binding negotiations. It brings together all stakeholders from government, private sector, technical community, academia and civil society to discuss Internet governance issues on an equal footing through an open and inclusive process. This type of cooperative engagement is referred to as the multi-stakeholder model of Internet Governance, which is one of the key features of the Internet’s success.
Kenya IGF, the national initiative (NRI) of the IGF process has positioned itself as Kenya’s Premier Policy Forum having successfully held 15 annual meetings of the National IGF in Kenya since 2008. Kenya IGF hosted the global IGF Forum in 2011. Over the years, Kenya IGF has continued to open up the space for new voices and champion the capacity development of many through the annual Kenya School of Internet Governance that was launched in 2016. The Majority of the beneficiaries of this program have been youth from various stakeholder groups who have since been meaningfully engaged in subsequent National and Regional IGFs.
Kenya YouthIGF
Young people are key stakeholders in the IGF ecosystem as they are the majority in Kenya, Africa and the world over. The IGF secretariat has since recognized the importance of meaningful youth participation in the IGF processes and promotes the strengthening of Youth IGF Initiatives. Youth Initiatives of the IGF are created to encourage and involve young people in a substantive discussion on Internet governance. These forms, as well as the national, sub-regional and regional IGFs (NRIs), are expected to follow the main IGF principles of being open, inclusive, and non-commercial with multi-stakeholder participation during the whole preparatory phase and the event itself, all in line with a bottom-up decision-making process.
Kenya Youth IGF is a youth-led structure to develop the capacity for coordinating, mobilizing and advocating for meaningful inclusion and engagement of young people in the Kenya IGF in partnership with industry stakeholders to address key Internet issues. Following the success of last year’s edition, this year’s Kenya YouthIGF aims to serve as an interactive discussion platform for organized youth participation from all stakeholder groups to bring up their ideas and concerns. The Forum will further create opportunities for networking, collaboration and building long-term partnerships between key stakeholders and the community. The forum outcomes will feed into the annual 18th edition of the Kenya IGF 2024 happening on 27 June 2024.
4th Kenya YouthIGF Forum
26 June 2024 – Hybrid Meeting – Zoom and Physical, Nairobi Kenya
Theme: Building Kenya’s Multistakeholder Digital Future for Kenyan Youth
Working Agenda
| Rapporteur’s Summary Actions Points, Key Messages, Recommendations and Way Forward | Session | Panelists/Moderators |
| 8:00 – 8:30 | Moderator: Epainitus Sirengo – Artificial Intelligence Expert, Carnegie Mellon University Speakers: 1. Juma Saleita – Founder, Africa Gen AI Lab 2. Linda Gichohi, Legal Fellow/Data Protection Expert, KICTANet 3. Quency Otieno – Counsel, Parliamentary Service Commission | MAG Team & Conference Moderator |
| 8:30 – 9:00 | Welcome and Opening Session | Moderator: Keith ANDERE – Kenya Youth IGF Speakers: Rosemary Kimwatu – KeIGF MAG Chair, Kenya IGF Dr. Grace Githaiga – Convener Kictanet |
| 9:00 – 9:20 | Keynote Address | Moderator: Keith ANDERE – Kenya Youth IGF Speaker: Robert Alai – Nairobi Member of County Assembly, Kileleshwa |
| 9:20– 9:30 | QnA | |
| 09:30 – 09:45 | Video and Outcome Presentation: Kenya Children IGF | Moderator: Lilian Kariuki – Executive Director, Watoto Watch Network |
| 09:45 – 10:15 | Lightning Talk: Youth in Internet Governance. Road to Saudi Arabia; Global IGF Youth Track and opportunities for engagement | Rapporteur’s Summary Actions Points, Key Messages, Recommendations and Way Forward |
| 10:15 – 10:30 | Health Break | |
| 10:30 – 11:20 | Session One: Artificial Intelligence “Ethics in Artificial Intelligence: A Crucial Issue for a Responsible Future” | Moderator: Valerie Yiega – Tech Lawyer and Advocate of the High Court Speaker: Ms Anja Gengo – UN IGF Secretariat |
| 11:20 – 12:10 | Session Two: Cyber Security and Trust “Enhancing Cyber Resilience Among Kenyan Youths: Strategies for Building Trust in Digital Platforms.” | Moderator: Kelvin Kariuki, Founder, electracka.com Speakers: 1. Nelly Nyadzua – AI and Cyber Security Specialist 2. Dr. Paula Musuva – United States International University – USIU |
| 12:10 – 13:00 | Session Three: Data Governance “Data ethics: Balancing innovation with privacy and consent.” | Moderator: Ochieng A. Ogango, Data Protection Professional and Advocate of the High Court of Kenya Speakers: 1. Njoki Kimemia, Data Protection Officer, Bank of Baroda Kenya ~ India 2. Ridwan Oloyede-Associate Director, Center for Law and Innovation 3. Richard Odongo, Tech Lawyer, Bowmans |
| 13:00 – 14:00 | Lunch Break | |
| 14:00 – 14:50 | Session Four: Rights and Freedoms “Upholding Human Rights in the Digital Age: Fostering a Multistakeholder Approach for Safeguarding Human Dignity and Freedom for All” | Moderator: Representative – Siasa Place Speakers: 1. Elizeba Jepleting – Advocate of the High Court of Kenya 2. Chepkoech Rotich – Tech and Human Rights Officer, Amnesty International 3. Evelyn Mutheu – Prosecutor, Directorate of Public Prosecution |
| 14:50 – 15:40 | Session Five: Universal Access and Connectivity “Bridging the digital divide: strategies for ensuring equitable access to the internet.” | Moderator: Twahir Kassim – Founder, Dunia Moja Community Network Speakers: 1. Tabitha Wangechi – Founder, Digital Rurals 2. Nicodemus Nyakundi – Digital Accessibility for PWDs Officer, KICTANet 3. Representative, KeSIG |
| 15:40 – 16:00 | Health Break | |
| 16:00 – 16:15 | Rapporteur’s Summary Actions Points, Key Messages, Recommendations and Way foward | Rapporteur General |
| 16:15 – 16:30 | Closing Session Closing Remarks | Closing Remarks: Keith Andere, Kenya Youth IGF Vote of Thanks: Representative – Youth MAG |