Digital Infrastructure Report Highlighted Exclusion Risks
A new report identifies significant governance and human rights hurdles within Africa's expanding digital public infrastructure.
Updated on Oct. 13, 2026 in Data Centers
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The Collaboration on International ICT Policy in East and Southern Africa (CIPESA) released the State of Internet Freedom in Africa 2026 report, which evaluated digital systems across 11 nations. The research concludes that rapid state-led expansion often risks excluding vulnerable populations.
Why it matters
The report highlights that without addressing governance and human rights, digital public infrastructure can marginalize citizens. It identifies current technical failures and record-keeping inaccuracies in mandatory gateways as major obstacles to equitable service access.
The report assessed infrastructure across 11 African nations, including Egypt, Ethiopia, Ghana, Kenya, Nigeria, Senegal, South Africa, Tunisia, Uganda, Zambia, and Zimbabwe. It specifically flagged technical failures and inaccurate records in mandatory digital gateways.
The players
CIPESA
The Collaboration on International ICT Policy in East and Southern Africa is a policy advocacy organization focused on digital rights and infrastructure.
FIFAfrica26
The Forum on Internet Freedom in Africa is an annual gathering focused on digital policy, infrastructure, and human rights across the continent.
The details
The report investigates how governments build digital identity, payment, and data-sharing systems to modernize public service delivery. CIPESA argues that current metrics, which prioritize simple coverage targets, fail to account for how systems function for marginalized groups. They recommend shifting toward disaggregated connectivity metrics and service-completion indicators to better measure actual access.
Timeline
The FIFAfrica26 forum took place over 4 days in October 2026.
The State of Internet Freedom in Africa 2026 report was published on October 13, 2026.
The Tech Race
The report adds a critical human rights layer to the ongoing development of digital public infrastructure by nations across the continent. It challenges the current industry trend of prioritizing rapid deployment over inclusive service-completion benchmarks.
The findings suggest that as governments transition public services to digital platforms, citizens may face inconsistent access due to technical gateway failures. This evolution will likely redefine how residents interact with government agencies for essential services in the coming years.
The takeaway
The report underscores that digital transformation is only as effective as the accessibility of the underlying infrastructure. Stakeholders should track the adoption of disaggregated connectivity metrics as a potential regulatory standard for future government digital systems.
Further reading
For broader trends in infrastructure development and policy, explore our latest updates in Data Centers.
More information
View the complete State of Internet Freedom report link to read the full analysis.
Source note: This article includes information reported by Biometric Update.
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