By Nelly Nyadzua My nature has always been looking out for the welfare of people. I can describe myself as very empathetic. Having the career change, going into cybersecurity with backing in artificial intelligence, is a very technical path. But I felt there is a way I can give back to the community, and not enclose the knowledge to myself. I have been training on matters of digital security and how people can guard themselves from bad actors online. That wasn’t enough. The more I worked on projects, building models and securing systems, I noticed that the policies and regulations in place are not actualized to protect the consumer. Well, you can say everyone is out the to make a profit or all. This is how I embarked on my journey to data privacy and protection. In my research, I swam into oceans of documents, articles and a very huge lingua, that as a techie…., well let’s say wasn’t favourable to a layman. On top of online research, I networked, asked questions, explained my shortcomings as I sought an interpretation of laws, and that’s how I learnt of Kenya Internet Governance (KeSIG) school convened by Kenya ICT Network (KICTANet). That was in 2018. All this time, I thought KeSIG was an add-on certification course for lawyers, ha ha (laughing emoji). One day, in 2021, a friend challenged me to look into KeSIG course content. It was more than what I thought. The school explained to students matters of internet governance affecting Kenya, Africa and privacy laws in various countries in the World ( EU GDPR, Canada, Brazil and other countries). I found it fascinating that the coverage extended beyond legal issues to include current trends in technology, artificial intelligence, and cybersecurity. I started attending the workshops held by KICTANet to sensitize citizens on digital policies and rights. In 2022, I applied to attend KeSIG and did not cut. Of course, I was heartbroken, but I didn’t lose hope. I continued to attend sensitization workshops and actively applied the skills I gained through training, advocacy on social media, and engaging with citizens. I also wrote articles on digital privacy and data governance. Additionally, I attended data privacy conferences, participated in the ISOC Kenya chapter, and joined ISACA this year. Fortunately for me, I applied for the 2023 intake and got selected! I am glad I worked on my end and talked to alumni of KeSIG in polishing my application. The classes came, WOW!!! They were intense. Talk about research! We had live classes, online module classes, class discussions and individual essays where you explained the daily topics in essays. The whole writing had me, but I came out victorious. We also had timed exams, that challenged our intellect. KeSIG is fire with a reason. I am grateful for how the faculty was always hands-on, ready to help, ready to explain and keep us in check with our daily deliverables. We also had industry key players coming to deliver sessions to us, and yes, we had to do articles on them, (smiley face). https://www.linkedin.com/posts/nelly-nyadzua_kesig-certificate-activity-7081642307090825216-Kjb9?utm_source=share&utm_medium=member_desktop I am fired up to churn out more content on advocacy on internet governance, confident in sitting and giving my opinions at tables that discuss internet governance in technology that affects me as a woman, a youth living in Africa. Today, I say thank you to all who made KeSIG 2023 a success, and if you are ever considering a starting point in internet governance, KeSIG is your step one. Nelly Nyadzua is a skilled and accomplished professional with a strong background in cloud computing, artificial intelligence, and cybersecurity. She is an AWS Cloud Practitioner and AI Graduate Student. She is also a Cybersecurity 2022 Fellow and KeSIG 2023 Fellow.
KeSIG Shaping Kenya’s Internet Governance Ecosystem Through Capacity Building
By Judy Muriuki As an avid participant in the Internet ecosystem, I was fortunate to be selected as a fellow for the 7th cohort of the Kenya School of Internet Governance (KeSIG). KeSIG is a flagship program by the Kenya ICT Action Network (KICTANet). It was the 3rd virtual edition comprising 118 participants from around the region with varied backgrounds, but all passionate about being part of the Internet Governance (IG) conversation. Through the expertise of the school’s management, presentations by industry experts and the self-paced learning system, I gained knowledge that helped me to appreciate the stakeholders within Kenya’s IG ecosystem. Beyond giving me a broader context of the roles played by actors, I got a better understanding of the contribution made by both the private sector and civil society towards the policy-making process. This contribution was made clear when the president rejected the ICT Practitioners Bill in late June and asked parliament to consider concerns raised by practitioners (Nderitu, 2022). The final two weeks of the KeSIG course became busy for me. I was completing the self-paced learning from both the KeSIG and the Internet Society (ISOC) where I had enrolled for Internet Governance courses. Doing the studies concurrently turned out to be a significant advantage for me, as I was able to contextualise and compare concepts within the global, regional and local perspectives. The conversations on WhatsApp and, the platform’s chat forum was eye-opening and motivated me to complete the readings, assignments and quizzes. By the time the Kenyan IGF, themed Resilient Internet for a shared sustainable and common future, was taking place on Thursday 30th June; I was conversant with the conversations having a good grasp of the issues, actors and policies being discussed. My biggest takeaways from this training were: I would recommend internet users enrol in this program to better understand and participate in the internet conversation. In 2016, the UN declared that it considers the internet to be a human right. This was with an addition being made to Article 19 of the Universal Declaration of Human Rights (UDHR), which states: “Everyone has the right to freedom of opinion and expression; this right includes freedom to hold opinions without interference and to seek, receive and impart information and ideas through any media and regardless of frontiers.” Section 32 adds “The promotion, protection and enjoyment of human rights on the Internet” and another 15 recommendations that cover the rights of those who work in and rely on Internet access. It also applies to women, girls, and those heavily impacted by the digital divide. As the world moves socially, politically and economically online, internet users need to understand the internet’s environment to better participate and protect themselves, their data and their networks. To continue engaging in the IG conversation around Kenya and globally, facilitators encouraged us to visit the following stakeholder websites and engage with industry stakeholders. The suggested links are below: Judy Muriuki is a digital content creator passionate about using ICT to improve the quality of life for its users, especially in Africamarginaliseded communities. Follow the writer on LinkedIn. References Nderitu, S. W. (2022, June 21). President Uhuru Kenyatta Declines to Sign ICT Bill, Sends It Back to Parliament. Tech Trends Ke. Retrieved July 7, 2022, from https://techtrendske.co.ke/president-uhuru-kenyatta-declines-to-sign-ict-bill-sends-it-back-to-parliament/
7th Kenya School of Internet Governance Session Kicks Off
The Kenya School of Internet Governance (KeSIG) virtual sessions began Friday. KeSIG is one of the Kenya ICT Action Network’s (KICTANet) capacity building programs that aims to promote diversity and inclusion in the country’s ICT policy dialogues and beyond. The program responds to the need and importance of ensuring inclusive cyber policy. It was established in 2015 to bring in stakeholders from different backgrounds and expertise such as human rights, fintech, technologists and lawmakers to participate in Kenya ICT policy development. The KESIG course was designed to take place over three weeks. Students take the first two weeks to go through the online modules. The course covers introduction to internet governance, pathways to internet governance and participation in the internet governance processes. The third week is reserved for practical interaction with internet governance players such as ICANN, KENIC, human rights organizations, private sector and policy makers through industry presentations. The students are also expected to attend the Kenya Internet Governance Forum (KIGF). The 2022 Cohort The 2022 cohort was drawn from a pool of 331 applications. The call for participation was targeted to individuals across the country interested in ICT policy and regulations. 118 applicants were selected ensuring gender, stakeholder and regional balance: Females (62), male (54), preferred not to say (1) and other (1). In terms of sectors, within the civil society organisations (14), academia (23), private sector (53), public sector (20) and from the media. The cohort also enjoys participation from the east African Countries, Uganda and Tanzania. In Kenya, they are spread across 47 counties including Meru, Kilifi, Nairobi, Marsabit, Nyandarua, and Kisii among others. Since its inception, KeSIG has expanded the Kenyan ICT policy dialogue space, promoting inclusive policies and collaboration between stakeholders in the ICT sector. The KESIG alumni are now spread over, both in the global and National ICT policy fields. The training has enabled proactive policy interventions in digital rights, Internet access, and sector developments such as in the finance, agriculture and healthcare industries. This year’s KeSIG is being supported by Meta. KICTANet expresses huge gratitude for all the current and previous supporters. About KICTANet KICTANet is a multistakeholder think tank for Information and communications technology policy formulation whose work spans Stakeholder engagement, capacity building, research, and policy advocacy. The network was established to promote an enabling environment in the ICT sector that is robust, open, accessible, and rights-based through multistakeholder approaches.
