On 23 April, the European University Institute participated in the 2024 Digital Rights & Inclusion Forum hosted in Accra, Ghana. The Global Initiative on the Future of the Internet (GIFI) held a launch event for four new reports on African Approaches to the Open Internet.
The New European Union (EU)-funded reports look at four models of the open internet, including ‘The Burundi Model of Open Internet Skills and Competences’, ‘The Kenya Model of Open Internet Governance’, ‘The Senegal Model of Open Internet Technical Infrastructure’ and ‘The South Africa Model of Open Internet Enabling Policy and Regulation’.
Dr Albert Antwi-Boasiako, the Director-General of the Cyber Security Authority of Ghana, welcomed the reports in his opening remarks, emphasising that the Open Internet requires dedicated investment and an enabling policy framework.
The session also featured a multistakeholder panel of African experts, including Grace Githaiga, Co-convenor of the Kenya ICT Action Network, Idrissa Sarr, CEO of Network Information Centre of Senegal, Anriette Esterhuysen, Senior Advisor on Internet Governance for the Association for Progressive Communications, and David Moepeng, Programme Director for the African Cybersmart Network.
Reflecting on the reports and their own experiences, the panellists highlighted the importance of localising the concept of the Open Internet to national and regional contexts. They also emphasised the importance of community-oriented solutions as well as international partnerships to facilitate development and engagement in global governance processes.
The session made clear that approaches to the Open Internet are mutually reinforcing and enabling. Open and rights-based approaches to policy and regulation both enable and depend upon multistakeholder Internet governance, while Open Internet technical infrastructure both facilitates and is underpinned by digital skills. While digitalisation is inevitable, the Open Internet and its benefits depend on a set of policy and investment choices that cannot be taken for granted.
Each of the four reports serve as a roadmap for other countries and regions, with concrete examples of how Open Internet approaches can enable and support digital development and capitalise on its economic potential while respecting fundamental rights and values.
Find the reports here:
The Burundi Model of Open Internet Skills and Competences
The Kenya Model of Open Internet Governance
The Senegal Model of Open Internet Technical Infrastructure
The South Africa Model of Open Internet Enabling Policy and Regulation