Freedom Online in Kenya\’s 2017 Election

Dear Listers,
Please find on this link a report on
freedom online in the just concluded election period.
In a nutshell:

– Kenya undertook a big experiment on delivery of public services
through mobile Internet.
– Notably, the country did not have an Internet shutdown unlike many
other African countries that have had election related disruptions in the
last three years
– There was massive mis and disinformation that kept many online to
counter, discount and discuss social problems in the country.
– While online rights are guaranteed, trends towards information
controls for example election results are a cause for concern, hence the
title of the report,* Moving forward while looking back*

Going forward, there is need for discussion on Kenya\’s strategy in the data
economy including aspects such whether perceive data as a national asset,
our preparedness for the data economy, equitable sharing of benefits from
data such as election data and of course protection of personal data.

Regards,