Dakar, Senegal (PANA) – The Accra-based Media Foundation for West Africa (MFWA) has called on governments in West Africa to invest in making the internet more accessible, affordable, free and secure.
The rights body made the call in a statement issued on this year’s World Internet Day observed on October 29.
According to MFWA, it is only when the internet landscape is open and secure that people can optimize its full potential.
“Such an enabling environment will foster innovation, creativity, economic, social and political development. It will also provide a platform for people to express themselves freely without any form of interference,” said Dora B. Mawutor, MFWA Programme Officer.
The statement also expressed MFWA’s worry about measures adopted by some West African governments to increasingly undermine freedom of expression and respect for human rights.
“We are therefore calling on them [West African governments] to desist from repressive activities such as surveillance, interception, filtering, spoofing, and the introduction of laws that are inimical to the tenets of freedom of expression so people can openly express their thoughts and ideas without any fear or favour,” Dora added.
While calling on West African leaders to create the conducive environment necessary for internet use, MFWA also urged the public, especially the youth, to take full advantage of the potential and opportunities that the internet offers to empower themselves and better their lives through job creation and knowledge sharing.
“As a member of the network of organizations working on the African Declaration on Internet Rights and Freedoms, the MFWA also calls on governments across the continent to endorse the Declaration to promote human rights standards and principles of openness in internet policy formulation and implementation on the continent,’’ the statement noted.
