The Open Internet is recognised as a driver of sustainable development and a key ingredient in achieving a human-centric digital transition. In the last few months, the Global Initiative on the Future of the Internet (GIFI) has engaged to promote the Open Internet in Africa at a time when the future of Internet governance and digital development is under discussion in several multilateral processes at the United Nations.
In collaboration with the Paradigm Initiative, a civil society organisation in Nigeria, GIFI hosted a workshop and panel session at the 2024 Digital Rights & Inclusion Forum on 23 April in Accra, Ghana. The workshop launched four reports and case studies of the Open Internet in four African countries, 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.
The case studies serve as a roadmap for other countries and regions on how Open Internet approaches can enable and support digital development and capitalise on its economic potential while respecting fundamental rights and values.
The reports were also featured in a side event for government officials and key stakeholders at the ICANN Public Forum in Kigali, held on 08 June, in cooperation with the European Union and the German Ministry for Digital and Transport.
At the UN, states are preparing for a review of the World Summit on the Information Society (WSIS), as well as the Summit of the Future where member states are set to agree on a Global Digital Compact to serve as a global framework to overcome digital, data and innovation divides. In the leadup to these high-level events, GIFI partnered with the Internet Society, the Kenya ICT Action Network, and the Freedom Online Coalition to host a roundtable discussion on inclusive, multistakeholder Internet governance at the 2024 UN Civil Society Conference in Nairobi.
The events have highlighted the central role of different stakeholders, including civil society, academia, industry, and the technical community, in fostering open and sustainable digital development, and the importance of strengthening multistakeholder governance approaches to internet policy and regulation.
Reports from GIFI engagements, as well as additional information on the workshops, are available here:
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Global Initiative on the Future of the Internet (GIFI) is a two-year project implemented by the Robert Schuman Centre for Advanced Studies Global Governance Programme and funded by the European Union. The project aims to promote the Declaration for the Future of the Internet (DFI) and support the implementation of its principles, in a multi-stakeholder and rights-based approach.