A new report on the Africa Digital Rights and Inclusion Index has exposed how the digital rights landscape in the country is simultaneously defined by progress and state overreach, which, if not checked, will deepen inequality and erode constitutional guarantees, rather than advance rights and social justice.
The report dubbed “LONDA 2025: Digital Rights and Inclusion in Africa” produced by the Paradigm Initiative (PIN), a regional pan-African organisation based in Nigeria with regional offices in Kenya, Nigeria, Zambia, Zimbabwe, Senegal, and Cameroon points out that despite Kenya's status as a regional tech leader, the nation also experiences internet disruptions, intrusive surveillance, pervasive data abuses, criminalisation of online expression and persistent impunity by state agencies.
Londa is named after a Zulu word meaning “to protect or defend” and serves as a call to action for safeguarding digital rights on the continent.
According to the report, South Africa has retained its top position as Africa’s leading digital rights-respecting country for the second time in a row out of 29 countries across Central, East, North, South, and West Africa. It is followed by Ghana, Namibia, Senegal, Egypt, Zambia, Kenya, Rwanda, Malawi and Nigeria in that order.
Kenya’s ranking is partly attributed to the throttling of the Internet during youth-led protests on June 25, 2025, as was confirmed by the global internet observatory, Netblocks, which reported a sharp drop in access to platforms such as Telegram.
“Ambitious investments in connectivity, e-government, data protection, and emerging technologies have expanded digital opportunities and reinforced Kenya’s status as a regional tech leader. These gains, however, coexist with internet disruptions, intrusive surveillance, pervasive data abuses, criminalisation of online expression, and persistent impunity by security agencies,” the report says.
Additionally, on February 25, last year, the Nairobi County Government destroyed critical ICT infrastructure during a standoff with the national Kenya Power Company over unpaid bills, which resulted in widespread downtime for businesses, households, and mission-critical sectors such as healthcare, finance, and public services.
“Such instances mark a departure from Kenya’s history of relatively open internet access. Internet disruptions, whether partial, intermittent, or complete shutdowns, are infringements on digital rights and threaten civic spaces,” the report adds.
The report further cites select events in 2025 that highlighted a conflict between state authority and free speech.
Such include the arrest of Rose Njeri, a software developer who was charged with violating Section 16 of the cyber law, Jackson Kuria, a prison officer turned activist, who was charged on January 20 with publishing false information in terms of Section 23 of the Computer Misuse and Cybercrimes Act No.5 of 2018 and 22 year old Titus Sifuna who was arraigned at a Magistrate’s Court in Nairobi to face charges of publishing false information while pretending to be President William Ruto on social media.
“Even more concerning is the case of Albert Ojwang, who was arrested on June 7, 2025, after Deputy Police Chief Eliud Lagat filed a complaint, accusing the blogger of defaming him on social media. Following the death of Albert Ojwang on June 8, 2025, in police custody, the officers tampered with the CCTV footage of the cells, denying investigators the necessary evidence for the judicial process. This is despite the fact that the right to access information is enshrined under Article 35 of the Constitution and the Access to Information Act of 2016,” the document says.
The report further cites the state’s use of systemic suppression of freedom of anti-terrorism courts to prosecute protesters, charging over 70 individuals, mostly youth and digital activists, with terrorism-related offences as one of the ways the national government systemically suppressed freedom of expression.
It also links Kenya with high internet costs, poor infrastructure, and inaccessible design, which the report says continue to exclude rural, low-income communities and persons with disabilities from meaningful digital participation.
“Without stronger safeguards, accountability, and inclusive Conclusion policy implementation, technological progress will deepen inequality and erode constitutional guarantees, rather than advancing rights and social justice,” the report warns.
It calls on the government to amend provisions in the Computer Misuse and Cybercrimes Act and regulations regarding “publishing false information,” “impersonation,” “vague cyber crimes,” and broad categories of electronic communications that impinge on the tenets under Articles 33 and 35 of the Kenyan Constitution (2010). It also added that most offences related to online publishing are handled in civil lawsuits.
The report further calls on to implement child online safety compliance by applying the Office of the Data Protection Commissioner (ODPC) child-data guidance and the Communication Authority child online protection expectations.
“Align organisational AI deployments with Kenya’s AI strategic goals, including model development, data governance, and scalable innovation, as well as prioritise infrastructure in rural, informal, and marginalised communities while also expanding affordable connectivity.”
At the same time, it calls on the state to establish harmonised rules on cross-border data transfers, data localisation, and cloud contracts to ensure that Kenyan public data and sensitive information are protected under Kenyan law.
It also urged lending firms to uphold fair collection standards and lawful independent escalation channels during debt recovery.
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