More than 200 students in Lusaka, Zambia, have been inducted into a new gamified learning experience on digital rights and inclusion spearheaded by the leading pan-African non-profit organisation, Paradigm Initiative (PIN).

The Digital Rights and Inclusion Board Learning Experience (DRIBLE) game has been developed by Paradigm Initiative with support from the Open Society Foundations (OSF). The custom-designed board game provides young individuals with a fun and engaging entry point into digital rights and inclusion conversations, training sessions and storytelling tools.

The board game aims to build digital literacy, deepen understanding of online safety, and introduce young individuals to the organisation’s tools of impact. So far, it has been piloted in three universities: University of Lagos, Nigeria, the Catholic University of Eastern Africa (CUEA) in Nairobi, Kenya and the Dakar American University of Science and Technology (DAUST) in Dakar, Senegal, and University of Zambia in Lusaka becomes the fourth higher institution of learning to be added into the project. The game has been instrumental in enhancing interactions and creating a holistic experience for the students.

‘Gbenga Sesan, Paradigm Initiative’s Executive Director, who gave a public lecture on The Digital Divide and the Fight for Digital Rights in Africa, said the game entails gamification, training, multimedia materials, tools and other interventions to connect African youth with digital opportunities and also protect their digital rights. PIN’s latest award-winning, Whispers in the Wires, was also screened at the event.

PIN has a vision to reach 20 million people through the organisation’s digital inclusion and digital rights interventions.

The organisation, which has been operational since 2007, started in a tiny cybercafe in Ajegunle, Lagos, Nigeria before extending its wings to six African countries; Cameroon, Kenya, Nigeria, Senegal, Zambia and Zimbabwe, impacting the livelihoods of over 150,000 young Africans.

The launch of DRIBLE builds on the progress the organisation has made over the years in tackling the challenge of digital exclusion across Africa. 

Paradigm Initiative’s tools of impact include Ripoti, a platform that enables individuals to report digital rights violations, Ayeta, a platform that provides digital security resources for stakeholders, more so human rights activists, defenders, journalists and other vulnerable groups, and the organisation’s latest award-winning short film, Whispers in the Wires. 

The game is predominantly targeted at students across Africa.

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