IGF 2014

This panel will launch the African Declaration on Internet Rights and Freedoms. Building on the Windhoek Declaration, the African Broadcasting Charter, the Declaration of Principles on Freedom of Expression and, most recently, the African Platform on Access to Information, the Declaration is an initiative which aims to define and strengthen standards for the Internet in Africa. It aims to galvanize a movement in support of an Internet environment which is accessible, locally relevant and which supports development.
Already more than 20 civil society organisations are involved in the initiative. A draft Declaration will be launched for public consultation in May 2014, and over the summer there will be a range of multi-stakeholder consultations across Africa. The final Declaration will be launched in September at the IGF and the Highway Africa – the launch is an opportunity to share the Declaration, invite new endorsements and build a wider conversation about how it can be used.

Agenda
5 Mins: Welcome and Opening Remarks by Stephanie Muchai, Article 19 (chair).
10 Mins: Presentation – “Where are we, and where are we going: An African Declaration on Internet Rights and Freedoms” By Edetean Ojo, Media Rights Agenda and Anriette Esterhuysen, Association for Progressive Communications
5 Mins: Comment on the Initiative By Getachew Engida, UNESCO
5 Mins: Comment on the Initiative By Towela Nyirenda Jere, Nepad
5 Mins: Comment on the Initiative By Auguste K. Yankey, African Union Commission
5 Mins: Comment on the Initiative By Ali Hussein Kassim, 3mice interactive media
50 Mins: Audience reactions and discussion. Key Questions are:
**What are the key Internet rights challenges in Africa? Are there elements of the Internet rights struggle that are uniquely African?
**How can we use the Declaration to develop a strong culture of rights and freedoms for the Internet in Africa?
**What are the next steps to institutionalising the Declaration?
5 Mins: Wrap up and invitation to endorse Declaration by Stephanie Muchai