ICT policy

Compulsory e-learning in Namibia’s public schools: A commendable idea marred by the digital divide?
Compulsory e-learning in Namibia’s public schools: A commendable idea marred by the digital divide? 24 June 2020 Nashilongo Gervasius

Cracks within the Namibian education system have been exposed by COVID-19, and the detrimental effects they pose to the right to development and access to knowledge, as set out in Principle 7 of the African Declaration on Internet Rights and Freedoms, have increasingly become apparent.

COVID-19 exposes the damage of the ex-regime’s empowerment policy on ICTs and the impact of US sanctions against Sudan
COVID-19 exposes the damage of the ex-regime’s empowerment policy on ICTs and the impact of US sanctions against Sudan 24 June 2020 Wala Mohammed

For decades, the internet has not reached all areas in Sudan proving the lack of real governmental effort to implement the principles of the African Declaration on Internet Rights and Freedoms. 

The  shrinking of the digital space during the COVID-19 pandemic: Movement building and internet governance in North Africa
The shrinking of the digital space during the COVID-19 pandemic: Movement building and internet governance in North Africa 23 June 2020 Sodfa Daaji and Rim Menia

The analysis of the sphere of movement building and internet governance in North Africa leads inevitably to assess the shrinking of digital space and online mobilisation during the COVID-19 pandemic in the region.

The gender digital divide and COVID-19: Towards feminist internet regulations in southern Africa
The gender digital divide and COVID-19: Towards feminist internet regulations in southern Africa 23 June 2020 Tina Power

The African Declaration on Internet Rights and Freedoms and the Feminist Principles of the Internet advocate for an internet that is accessible, available, useable and affordable to all persons, without discrimination. Realising these principles has become increasingly urgent in the context of the COVID-19 pandemic. 

Privacy and the pandemic: An African response
Privacy and the pandemic: An African response 21 June 2020 Gabriella Razzano

COVID-19 has led to a surge of efforts by both state and private actors to manage the pandemic itself, and the consequences of it, with the aid of technology. Yet privacy has immediately been cast as a required trade-off in the efforts to combat the disease.

#DigitalLawsAsia
#DigitalLawsAsia 19 June 2020 Nerissa Naidoo for CYRILLA

From 10 - 12 June, CYRILLA and APC hosted a Twitter campaign. The purpose of #DigitalLawsAsia was to explore the human rights impacts of digital regulation in South and Southeast Asia.

EngageMedia: Monitoring the ruling on 2019 internet shutdowns in Papua and West Papua
EngageMedia: Monitoring the ruling on 2019 internet shutdowns in Papua and West Papua 15 June 2020 EngageMedia

Earlier this month, the Jakarta State Administrative Court declared as illegal the internet shutdowns in Papua and West Papua enforced by the Indonesian government in 2019.

7amleh: Palestinian Digital Rights Coalition warns against phone application "The Coordinator"
7amleh: Palestinian Digital Rights Coalition warns against phone application "The Coordinator" 15 June 2020

Al Munasq, a dangerous application launched by Israel’s Coordination of Government Activities in the Occupied Palestinian Territory (COGAT) unit last year, violates Palestinians' privacy and can lead to other human rights violations.

Data protection in Africa and the COVID-19 pandemic: Old problems, new challenges and multistakeholder solutions
Data protection in Africa and the COVID-19 pandemic: Old problems, new challenges and multistakeholder solutions 15 June 2020 Tomiwa Ilori

Data protection in Africa can still be described to be in its nascent stage. Most African states do not have a data protection law. This paper by Tomiwa Ilori considers the status of data protection in Africa and the impact of public emergencies like the COVID-19 pandemic on data protection in Nigeria, Senegal, Uganda, Kenya, Morocco, Tunisia, South Africa and Mauritius.

Can the social contract theory justify data rights violations? A review of South Africa's contact tracing regulations
Can the social contract theory justify data rights violations? A review of South Africa's contact tracing regulations 13 June 2020 Rumbidzai Matamba and Chenai Chair

The COVID-19 pandemic has resulted in a need for solutions to “flatten the curve”. This essay by Rumbidzai Matamba and Chenai Chair employs the use of the South African government’s contact tracing initiatives to assess whether the social contract theory can be employed as a tool to justify privacy violations for public health.

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