4 ways to strengthen Digital Rights in West Africa & in the Sahel

Digital transformation is an essential factor in strengthening human rights and democratic governance as it can provide tools that enhance transparency, accountability and effective public participation. While Africa’s digital transformation is progressing, the digital divide is still major. As measured by Afrobarometer, still 46% of the population in Africa never uses the Internet.

In the face of a shrinking civic space and increased crack down on civil society, the online space is a refuge for activists. Digital tools and networks allow them to organise themselves, raise awareness and mobilise citizens, as seen in Togo, in June 2025, where the Internet was used to call for mobilisation. However, authoritarian regimes are striking back and doubling down on surveillance, making it even more difficult and risky to engage safely online. At worst, countries even resorted to bandwidth lowering or internet shutdowns, as seen during the September 2025 Referendum in Guinea and the October 2025 elections in Cameroon. The Sahel and West Africa region is also facing a massive disinformation campaign led by external actors and spread by populations lacking a strong media environment and digital literacy.

Given this context, the Youth Democracy Cohort (YDC) has developed this set of Policy Recommendations for consideration by the African Union Commission, the African Commission on Human and People’s Rights and to Regional institutions (ECOWAS, ECCAS).

These recommendations draw from the experience of YDC members in 8 West African countries: Cameroon, Chad, Benin, Burkina Faso, Guinea, Mali, Senegal, Togo. These organisations are youth organisations advocating for digital rights supported through the Digitalise Youth project.

Our recommendations:

The African Union must provide legislative standards and practical tools for African states to protect digital democracy and digital rights based on existing conventions.

Key components of this official interpretation would include:

safeguarding rights and freedoms in the digital space;
enhancing digital public participation and the use of digital tools in governance processes;
ensuring ethical and rights-based approaches to using artificial intelligence and other emerging technologies;
advancing inclusion and equity in digital transformation;
addressing threats to democracy presented by digital technologies;
outlining the roles of state and non-state actors;
establishing benchmarks to assess state compliance.

African States must adopt the African Union Convention on Cyber Security and Personal Data Protection (Malabo Convention) into their national law.

The Malabo Convention is Africa’s flagship legal instrument on cyber security and personal data protection. Currently, only 16 out of 55 states have ratified it.The African Union should organise a ratification campaign in partnership with civil society. To support this effort, the Pan-African Parliament should lead the development of a model law for the inclusion of the Malabo Convention into national law.

The African Union must monitor the respect of digital democracy and digital rights by African states especially regarding elections.

There is a trend of undue digital surveillance, unwarranted internet shutdowns and use of cyber security provisions against activists, especially around elections. The African Union should assess the respect of digital democracy and digital rights, highlight violations and propose corrective actions. Highlighted positive examples could also foster similar good practices in neighbouring states.African Union expert missions and election observation missions should include a monitoring of digital rights compliance.

The African Union should fund a digital transformation process in Africa which is respectful of human rights and of open governance.

The African Union should transform the existing civic tech fund into a holistic digital transformation fund, broadened to include digital transformation and open governance.

Member states should invest sufficiently in digital technologies that ensure their country’s development as well as inclusive, non-discriminatory, transparent and accountable governance processes.

Shaped by the following Digitalise Youth National Partners