AFRISIG

Attending the African School on Internet Governance (AfriSIG) is my first experience in any event related to internet governance. This has given me the opportunity to interact with different stakeholders from all walks of life and I enjoyed it.

The school was generally good and constituted a very active and enthusiastic class that inspired participants and resource persons to reason things out together. I liked the diversity of the class, not only from a regional perspective but also from the different professional backgrounds.

Most participants were not new to the internet… Read more

I am a young woman who grew up in the rural areas of Limpopo in South Africa, where there is not much development done, internet is regarded as a luxury, and technology is not exposed. It has therefore been much of a privilege for me to be a participant at the 5th African School on Internet Governance (AfriSIG).

In Limpopo, many people have different technological gadgets but use them in a way that is not necessarily beneficial to them. Many people have mobile phones in these rural areas; however, there are times when they do not even have network coverage. And without this network… Read more

My debut appearance at the African School on Internet Governance (AfriSIG) 2017 was certainly an eye opener in respect of a lot of very important issues related to internet governance, without doubt one of best spaces to start engaging with internet governance issues on continental level.

Distinctively, AfriSIG is a rich melting-pot of professional backgrounds, nationalities, ages, expertise and many other persuasions. This in my view made for very rich ground for networking and getting a multidimensional feel of internet governance issues across Africa under one roof.

But by… Read more

Taking part in the 5th African School on Internet Governance (AfriSIG) taught me the definition of internet governance, which is defined as the handling of technical coordination required for and policy issues related to the interoperability and smooth functioning of the different components of internet infrastructure and the exchange of information over the internet.

The knowledge I acquired

I was able to understand that:

• There are established cybersecurity policies and laws at the international level, and yet the majority of… Read more

Multistakeholderism… what an alien word to a regulator!

I walked into the African School on Internet Governance (AfriSIG) 2017 with this exact mindset. Working for a regulator gives you false confidence; that you call all the shots, that your decisions are final, that the operators you regulate should either tow the line or change their line of business. We sometimes get so caught up with regulating that we forget the purpose for which we are regulating.

I remember being emphatic during my application for admission to AfriSIG 2017 that I expected to learn how best to regulate… Read more

The African School on Internet Governance (AfriSIG) 2017 has been both an eye opener and learning curve. When coming here I had no idea of the kind of impact and paradigm shift this school would have on me. Initially I had thought that I would come to the school and maybe learn a few things, then go back home and start influencing internet governance.

However, the experience has over-exceeded my expectations. I am originally from Lesotho, which in my opinion, and from the statistics provided by Chenai Chair (on how connected is Africa), is one of the least connected African state. I… Read more

The Association for Progressive Communications (APC) is pleased to announce the call for applications for the fifth African School on Internet Governance (AfriSIG).

The 2017 School will be held in Sharm El-Sheikh, Egypt from 28 November to 2 December, to coincide with the African Internet Governance Forum (AfIGF) which will also take place in Sharm El-Sheikh, from 4 to 6 December 2017.

The first AfriSIG was held in July 2013 in Durban, South Africa, joining a growing global community of practice for the strengthening and… Read more

The African School on Internet Governance (AfriSIG) is an annual five-day residential course run by the Association for Progressive Communications (APC) and the NEPAD Planning and Coordinating Agency. The goal of the School is to develop a pipeline of leading Africans from diverse sectors, backgrounds and ages with the skills to participate in local and international internet governance structures, and shape the future of the internet landscape for Africa’s development.

Alumni from the four editions of AfriSIG held so far are successfully… Read more

The African School on Internet Governance (AfriSIG) was announced this week as the winner of a 2017 World Summit on the Information Society (WSIS) Prize, awarded by the International Telecommunication Union (ITU), in a ceremony at the Geneva International Conference Centre during the annual WSIS Forum 2017.

AfriSIG is a joint initiative of the Association for Progressive Communications (APC) and the NEPAD Agency. The School aims to give Africans from diverse sectors and… Read more

Chenai Chair, researcher and communications/evaluations officer at Research ICT Africa, was an AfriSIG participant and graduate of the 2015 edition. This year, however, she became a member of the faculty, and did a spectacular job as team coach, assisting Avri Doria in the practicum sessions. In this interview, she shares her insights from that new position.

APCNews: How did you generally find this edition of AfriSIG?

Chenai Chair: I found this year’s AfriSIG a class full of young people ready to learn about internet… Read more