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KeSIG Shaping Kenya’s Internet Governance Ecosystem Through Capacity Building

By Judy Muriuki

As an avid participant in the Internet ecosystem, I was fortunate to be selected as a fellow for the 7th cohort of the Kenya School of Internet Governance (KeSIG).

KeSIG is a flagship program by the Kenya ICT Action Network (KICTANet). It was the 3rd virtual edition comprising 118 participants from around the region with varied backgrounds, but all passionate about being part of the Internet Governance (IG) conversation.

Through the expertise of the school’s management, presentations by industry experts and the self-paced learning system, I gained knowledge that helped me to appreciate the stakeholders within Kenya’s IG ecosystem. 

Beyond giving me a broader context of the roles played by actors, I got a better understanding of the contribution made by both the private sector and civil society towards the policy-making process. This contribution was made clear when the president rejected the ICT Practitioners Bill in late June and asked parliament to consider concerns raised by practitioners (Nderitu, 2022).

The final two weeks of the  KeSIG course became busy for me. I was completing the self-paced learning from both the KeSIG and the Internet Society (ISOC) where I had enrolled for Internet Governance courses.

Doing the studies concurrently turned out to be a significant advantage for me, as I was able to contextualise and compare concepts within the global, regional and local perspectives.

The conversations on WhatsApp and, the platform’s chat forum was eye-opening and motivated me to complete the readings, assignments and quizzes. By the time the Kenyan IGF, themed Resilient Internet for a shared sustainable and common future, was taking place on Thursday 30th June; I was conversant with the conversations having a good grasp of the issues, actors and policies being discussed.

My biggest takeaways from this training were:

  • IG is a comprehensive and complex conversation involving many players with differing opinions, as such, each individual needs to contribute to the conversation to make sure their opinions are heard for the future shaping of the internet. For example, contributing to the current taking place regarding gender and race bias evidenced so far with AI technology
  • Knowledge of IG is essential for all users of the internet, so we can defend our digital rights when needed.
  • Innovation within the tech space moves so fast that innovators are able to develop, test and launch products into the market with regulation and policy being developed thereafter. This allows a lot of room for innovation.
  • Future technology needs to be designed with accessibility for PWDs in mind. Further, there is more to be done to adapt existing technology for use by PWDs, this can only be achieved by bringing them to the discussion table and going further to co-design with them.
  • Kenya’s internet ecosystem indeed follows the multistakeholder spirit evident in the internet’s history and establishes it for other stakeholders to join the conversation making their voices heard.

I would recommend internet users enrol in this program to better understand and participate in the internet conversation. 

In 2016, the UN declared that it considers the internet to be a human right. This was with an addition being made to Article 19 of the Universal Declaration of Human Rights (UDHR), which states: “Everyone has the right to freedom of opinion and expression; this right includes freedom to hold opinions without interference and to seek, receive and impart information and ideas through any media and regardless of frontiers.” 

Section 32 adds “The promotion, protection and enjoyment of human rights on the Internet” and another 15 recommendations that cover the rights of those who work in and rely on Internet access. It also applies to women, girls, and those heavily impacted by the digital divide.

As the world moves socially, politically and economically online, internet users need to understand the internet’s environment to better participate and protect themselves, their data and their networks.

To continue engaging in the IG conversation around Kenya and globally, facilitators encouraged us to visit the following stakeholder websites and engage with industry stakeholders. The suggested links are below: 

Judy Muriuki is a digital content creator passionate about using ICT to improve the quality of life for its users, especially in Africamarginaliseded communities. Follow the writer on LinkedIn.

References

Nderitu, S. W. (2022, June 21). President Uhuru Kenyatta Declines to Sign ICT Bill, Sends It Back to Parliament. Tech Trends Ke. Retrieved July 7, 2022, from https://techtrendske.co.ke/president-uhuru-kenyatta-declines-to-sign-ict-bill-sends-it-back-to-parliament/ 

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