West African School on Internet Governance Scholarship

The ECOWAS Commission as the Secretariat for the West Africa Internet Governance Forum (WAIGF) along with the WAIGF Team plan to organise the 15th edition of the West African Internet Governance Forum (WAIGF) from 25 to 26 May 2023. To precede the WAIGF is the 6th West African School on Internet Governance (WASIG) to be organised from 22 – 24 May 2023.

Curriculum:

The school is structured as a three (3) day intensive learning program intended to introduce participants to Internet governance (IG) from the global and West African perspectives. The format will include fireside discussions with experts in the field and participation in the Policy and Regulation Initiative for Digital Africa’s (PRIDA) virtual training platform. Certificates will be issued to participants who successfully complete the training. The key areas covered by the program are:

  • Evolution of the Internet and the history of Internet Governance
  • Mapping of Internet Governance processes and actors
  • Classifications of Internet Governance issues (infrastructure, legal, economic and development) from African contexts
  • In-depth analysis of opportunities and challenges of emerging issues (cybersecurity, digital economy, human rights) from the West African context
  • A practical exercise on a key Internet Governance issue affecting West Africa

Applications: Stakeholders from West Africa are invited to apply. Prospective candidates should ideally be involved as key actors or decision-makers in Internet governance or ICT policy processes. They should also be able to contribute now or soon to IG activities or/and processes within their institutions, countries, continent and globally.

Candidates should be from all stakeholder groups including:

  • Youth and Women groups
  • Civil society
  • Private Sector
  • Media
  • Government offices and Regulatory agencies
  • Security and Defence forces
  • Academia and technical community
  • Archives, Libraries, and Documentation centers
  • Parliament
  • West African regional institutions, etc

Women and youth are particularly encouraged to apply. Spaces are limited. Candidates are kindly requested to complete the online form and submit it by 1st April, 2023. For further information on WAIGF and WASIG, please visit the website – “www.waigf.org