The African Internet Rights Alliance, in partnership with Pollicy recently hosted a report launch focused on a critical yet often overlooked intersection: Digital Public Infrastructure (DPI), systemic barriers, and gendered consequences across South Africa, Kenya, and Uganda. The discussion, moderated by Josephine Kaaniru (CPIT), brought together experts Bonaventure Saturday (Policy), David Iribagiza (Women of Uganda Network), and Angela Chukunzira to dissect how these foundational digital systems are being implemented on the continent.
To set the stage, Bonaventure Saturday defined DPI as three foundational systems: Digital Identification, Such as Uganda’s Ndaga Muntu, Kenya’s Maisha Namba, or South Africa’s Smart ID; Digital Payments such as Mobile money platforms like M-Pesa; and Data Exchange Platforms such as Systems that allow people to access services and participate in social and economic life.
While these systems are theoretically designed to improve efficiency and inclusion, the panellists argued that the current reality on the ground often tells a different story.
The Myth of Automatic Inclusion
A central theme of the discussion was that digitalisation does not automatically lead to inclusion. The speakers noted that digital systems often formalise existing barriers and scale exclusion. For example:
- In Kenya, ethnic groups like the Nubians and Somalis face extra hurdles to prove citizenship before they can even obtain the ID required for digital services.
- Digital payments depend on having an ID, a SIM card, a mobile phone, and the literacy to use them; without these, individuals are entirely excluded from the digital economy.
The point that DPI implementation is currently “outpacing” human rights safeguards was also emphasised. While governments brag about modernisation and economic growth, they often fail to ask who is being left behind.
Design Bias: Designing for the State, Not the Citizen
The speakers also pointed out that most DPI is currently state-centric, designed to meet administrative goals like tax collection rather than the actual needs of the citizenry. Systems are often “shoved down our throats” without citizen consent. A gender or inclusion perspective is usually treated as an afterthought or a “patch” rather than being embedded in the foundational design. For example, the “I am not a robot” CAPTCHA tools that require users to identify stairs or ladders can serve as a significant barrier for those with low vision.
The Surveillance Risk and Shrinking Civic Space
We also discussed how DPI is being repurposed for surveillance. Speakers alleged that during the 2024 protests in Kenya, simple data points like phone numbers—which are tied to financial transactions and identity in Kenya—were used to track and arbitrarily arrest youth. In authoritarian contexts, the centralised data within DPI allows states to track where activists live, who they talk to, and who their relatives are, putting them at extreme risk.
The Role of “Middlemen” and Privacy Risks
The discussion also highlighted a hidden layer of DPI: informal intermediaries. Because many systems are too complex for the average user, people often rely on cyber cafes or brokers to access government services. This creates situations like financial exploitation as middlemen often charge high fees for services that should be free or simple; and privacy violations as users must hand over their most sensitive personal data to strangers in cyber cafes just to print a document or make an appointment.
Read the report here: Systemic Barriers, Gendered Consequence – AIRA x Pollicy Report
Toward a “Feminist Utopia” for DPI
What would a citizen-centred, inclusive digital infrastructure look like? The panellists offered several key principles for a better future:
- Tech Sovereignty: Prioritising people and their rights over the interests of tech providers and state control.
- Co-Creation: Moving beyond “asking people to fill out a form” to genuine participation in the design process.
- Localised and Accessible Design: Systems should be designed for low bandwidth, offer offline and assisted use, and be available in multiple local languages.
- Zero-Rating: Ensuring that accessing essential government digital services does not consume expensive data, as seen in South Africa’s roadmap.
The speakers concluded highlighting that “The system should not ask the woman to adapt to the structure that it has not designed for”. To achieve true inclusion, DPI must be built on trust, transparency, and a deep understanding of the lived realities of the people it is meant to serve.
Read the report here:
Systemic Barriers, Gendered Consequence – AIRA x Pollicy Report
