Botswana Government Waters Down Phone Tapping Bill After Public Outcry

News update |

GABORONE, BOTSWANA —  Following public outrage, Botswana’s government has revised a controversial spy bill which would have allowed investigators to intercept private communications without a court order. Under the revised bill, tapping private conversations now becomes an offense.

Botswana’s government removed controversial clauses in the Criminal Procedure and Evidence Bill, presented to parliament last month. The initial bill allowed investigators to…

Botswana pushes warrantless surveillance bill, threatening press freedom

News Update |

The IPI global network today urged Botswana to withdraw a proposed law that would allow for warrantless surveillance of communications. The bill has been sharply criticized by media representatives in Botswana and Africa.

Botswana’s government is currently pushing the Criminal Procedure and Evidence Bill through parliament. If passed, the bill will have a chilling effect on press freedom, Spencer Magopi,…

How China’s Huawei Technology is Being Used to Censor News Halfway Across The World

News update |

When a staffer at the independent media website Iwacu in the central African state of Burundi tried to visit the outlet online in late October, they received an error message instead. “Hum. Nous ne parvenons pas à trouver ce site;” the site could not be found  – even though the local media regulator had promised to unblock it in February.

A report published in August found…

Media Training on Disability and Digital Rights in Africa

Call for Applications |

In the lead up to the International Disability Day, on December 3, 2021, the Collaboration on International ICT Policy for East and Southern Africa (CIPESA) is inviting journalists from Kenya, Tanzania, and Uganda to apply for a two-day media training on Disability and Digital Rights in Africa. The virtual training will take place over two full days…

Combating Disinformation in Africa: Challenges and Prospects

By CIPESA Staff Writer |

As disinformation grows in form and prevalence in many African countries, the challenges to combating it are equally increasing yet measures to combat it remain inadequate and often inappropriate. This has got disinformation researchers concerned that, if more robust measures are not adopted, disinformation could become pervasive, harder to fight, and with broad social and political…

Advancing Consumer Protection across Africa in the Digital Age

By CIPE Writer |

Consumer protection serves as an avenue for promoting transparency, accountability, and trust in the digital age, helping shield both consumers and small businesses from unfair practices online. According to a report by the International Finance Corporation and Google, “Africa’s internet economy has the potential to reach $180 billion by 2025, accounting for 5.2% of the [Continent’s] gross domestic product…

AFEX Condemns Military Brutality Against Journalists in Uganda

News Update Uganda |

The African Freedom of Expression Exchange (AFEX) condemns the brutal attack by the Ugandan military on journalists and calls for immediate investigations and punishment for the officers involved.

The incident happened on February 17, 2020, when former presidential candidate, Robert Kyagunlanyi Ssentamu’s popularly known as Bobi Wine, and his party officials were going to the UN Office in Kampala…

President Guelleh Insults Only Independent Media Outlet Operated by Djiboutian Journalists

News update in Djibouti |
Djibouti President Ismaïl Omar Guelleh’s scathing attack on media outlet “La Voix de Djibouti” points to the country’s continued suppression of independent and alternate voices.
This statement was originally published on rsf.org on 9 December 2020.

Reporters Without Borders (RSF) is appalled by Djiboutian President Ismaïl Omar Guelleh’s defamatory comments in a magazine interview about the only independent media outlet operated…

Guinea: Media Regulatory Body Lifts Suspension on News Website

Guinea News Update |

The Media Foundation for West Africa welcomes the lifting of the one-month suspension imposed on online press, Guineematin, by the Haute Autorité de la Communication (HAC), Guinea’s media regulatory body.

the suspension of guineematin.com followed the refusal of the general administrator of the website to stop a live broadcast on the site’s Facebook page of official polling station results during the…

Guinea Bissau: New Government, Old Repressive Attitude Towards the Media

Guinea Bissau News Update |

Freedom of the press and of expression received some impetus with the advent of democracy in 1994 when the first presidential elections were held with General Joao Bernardo Vieira emerging victorious. The national radio, the RDN and the Nö Pintcha Journal were the only state news organizations that had held a news monopoly since independence in 1974.…