Africa Internet Governance Forum 2022

In recent years, Africa has seen considerable growth in Internet penetration rates, as well as improvements in the deployment and availability of digital infrastructures (from submarine cables and fibre optics to mobile networks and satellite connectivity). But the continent still faces significant digital divides, and meaningful and affordable access to the Internet is yet to be widely available. What initiatives are in place, at the national, regional, and continental levels, to enable universal Internet access which is both meaningful and affordable? To what extent are these initiatives effective and efficient and what is still missing? Are these experiences and practices from other parts of the world that can be replicated in Africa? In exploring these and similar questions, the session will start from unpacking the concept of meaningful access. It will then discuss concrete initiatives (policy, regulatory, public-private, etc.)– existing and proposed – to ensure such access across the continent (in terms of infrastructure, skills, affordability, etc.) and it will also look at the role that parliaments (should) play in conceptualising and implementing them.