Session
Organizer 1: Cherie Oyier, Kenya ICT Action Network
Speaker 1: Cherie Oyier, Civil Society, African Group
Speaker 2: Linda Gichohi, Civil Society, African Group
Speaker 3: Nicodemus Nyakundi, Civil Society, African Group
Nicodemus Nyakundi, Civil Society, African Group
Nicodemus Nyakundi, Civil Society, African Group
Florence Ouma, Civil Society, African Group
Classroom
Duration (minutes): 60
Format description: This workshop entails sharing lessons from panelists activities and therefore there is need for focus on the panelists. A classroom format will minimise distractions hence the most ideal.
1. How does the fragmentation of laws and policies relating to OGBV impact implementation?
2. How do tech companies adequately address challenges of use of local languages to perpetuate OGBV in the global south?
3. How can the multi stakeholder approach adopted by KICTANet to eradicate OGBV be replicated in other organisations?
What will participants gain from attending this session? 1. How OGBV impacts women's inclusion and human rights online;
2. Lessons on the processes and power of multi stakeholder collaboration in OGBV research, legal reform advocacy and tracking
3. Showcasing how the OGBV tracker works
Description:
Online gender-based violence (OGBV) is one of the greatest factors contributing to exclusion of women from the digital space. According to a 2023 research we conducted by KICTANet, women who undergo OGBV often resort to self-censorship hence affecting their participation online. OGBV in the grand scheme of things therefore undermines democracy and human rights.
In a bid to promote inclusion of women in digital spaces and advance their digital rights, KICTANet relied on the findings of its research to engage stakeholders to review ICT laws in Kenya. Pursuant to these engagements with multi stakeholders a consensus was reached that in order to tackle OGBV and thereby reclaim inclusion and full participation of women in the digital space, existing laws in Kenya must: include definitions of OGBV offences; provide for consequences for offenders; and provide for support to survivors such as monetary compensation and psycho-social support. Further, we have continued to harnes the power of multi-stakeholderism through our OGBV tracker initiative. The OGBV tracker is an open source tool where stakeholders across Africa can report cases of OGBV.
This session will look into the multistakeholder process undertaken to develop legal reform recommendations for ICT laws, especially targeting OGBV and to track OGBV incidents.
We will showcase the lessons we have learnt through these processes, the successes and challenges we observed in this journey towards eradicating OGBV in order to promote true inclusion and human rights of women on digital platforms.
1. Enhanced understanding of OGBV as a barrier to digital inclusion and women's human rights online.
2. Promote multistakeholderism and collaboration to tackle OGBV
The output of this session will be an article published on KICTANet's website.
Hybrid Format: 1. We will ensure to enable videos of the online speakers and of the onsite room. Test runs will be done prior to session to ensure audibility and visibility.
2. We will give equal time to all speakers and also allow for equal numbers of online and onsite attendees to ask questions.
3. We will use polls to increase participation.