Paradigm Initiative is thrilled to announce the opening of registration for the Digital Rights and Inclusion Forum, 2021 starting on Monday, January 18th to Thursday, February 18th, 2021. DRIF21 will run from April 12th to 30th, 2021 with a series of virtual and in-person country interactions in 12 African Countries. DRIF is an important platform where conversations on digital policy in Africa are shaped, policy directions debated and partnerships forged for action. It hosts diverse skills and capacities for enhancing digital rights and inclusion within the African continent and beyond.  

“In this 8th edition, PIN looks forward to co-hosting 12 in-person DRIF21 sessions with 13 partners in the following countries; Somalia, Ethiopia, Uganda, South Sudan, Kenya, Tanzania, Chad, Nigeria, Namibia, Cameroon, Zambia, and the Central African Republic”, says PIN Community Manager, Thobekile Matimbe. “This will be an extraordinary platform so timely in these COVID-19 times when deliberations on digital rights and inclusion have become most urgent”, she added. 

DRIF21 will commence with a Virtual Open Day on April, 12th 2021, followed by a series of in-person sessions, and end with virtual closing sessions on April 28th, 29th, and 30th, 2021. This will be a distributed multi-country festival!

Paradigm Initiative is pleased to announce its partnership with the following organisations hosting in-person sessions for DRIF21; 

Digital Shelter in Somalia, Consortium of Ethiopian Human Rights Organisations in Ethiopia, Digital Human Rights Lab in Uganda, Koneta Initiative in South Sudan, Zaina Foundation in Tanzania, Internet Society Chad Chapter, Conseil des Panafricanistes du Tchad in Chad, Namibia Digital Foundation in Namibia, Internet pour tous en Centrafrique in Central African Republic, TechHerNigeria, Premium Times Centre for Investigative Journalism, A&E Law Partnership and Edunovative Concept, and Consultancy in Nigeria. In-person sessions will only be attended by a limited number of participants within the specific countries in line with COVID-19 in-country guidelines and live-streamed on social media platforms. In extending the DRIF21 conversations globally, PIN is also excited to partner with a diverse range of virtual session hosts including Media Defence, the Global Network Initiative, AIRA, CIPESA, and the University of Connecticut Human Rights Institute. 

PIN invites diverse businesses, civil society, the technical community, academia, government, and private sector to register to attend these enriching engagements on the following platform https://drif.paradigmhq.org/registration/. 

For inquiries on attending in-person country sessions, please email drif@paradigmhq.org.