BLACK mobile logo

international

The signal we cannot ignore: What the LONDA 2025 report reveals about Africa’s digital rights

June 5, 2026

The LONDA 2025 report by Paradigm Initiative evaluates digital rights across 29 African countries, revealing a divided continent where some nations advance privacy protections while others intensify authoritarian control through internet shutdowns and surveillance. Using a 60-point scoring system based on 12 indicators, the research shows Botswana and Senegal making significant progress through new data protection laws and reduced shutdowns, while Sudan, Tanzania, and Togo experienced democratic backsliding with election-related blackouts and social media restrictions. Despite African Commission resolutions urging governments to maintain open internet access, many regimes continue weaponizing cybercrime legislation to silence journalists and activists, while technology-facilitated gender-based violence and invasive surveillance threaten vulnerable populations.

Who is affected

  • Citizens in 29 African countries evaluated in the report
  • More than 9,000 Namibian citizens who gained 4G access
  • Journalists and newspaper editors in Benin, Somalia, and Ghana facing arrests and device confiscation
  • Women political leaders and participants in Benin targeted by gendered disinformation campaigns
  • Rural and low-income communities, including people with disabilities, lacking digital connectivity
  • Children vulnerable to cyberbullying, online grooming, and data profiling
  • Citizens in Zimbabwe, Lesotho, and Togo facing communications surveillance
  • RightsCon organizers and attendees affected by Zambia's cancellation
  • Over 1,700 people arrested in Tanzania during election-related blackouts
  • Rural schools in Botswana and Malawi receiving connectivity

What action is being taken

  • The Nigerian Data Protection Commission is actively enforcing privacy laws
  • The African Commission on Human and Peoples' Rights (ACHPR) is pushing back against digital repression
  • Governments in Cameroon, Tanzania, and other nations are conducting internet shutdowns
  • Security forces in Somalia are targeting journalists and confiscating electronic devices
  • Authorities in Ghana are misapplying the Electronic Communications Act to arrest media professionals
  • Governments in Zimbabwe, Lesotho, and Togo are conducting targeted communications surveillance
  • Botswana and Malawi are actively using Universal Service Funds to connect rural schools
  • Attackers in Benin are spreading gendered disinformation campaigns
  • Paradigm Initiative produced the short film "Signal" to illustrate digital exclusion

Why it matters

  • This report matters because it documents how digital rights directly impact human rights, democratic participation, and economic inclusion across Africa. Internet shutdowns, surveillance, and weaponized legislation create environments where citizens cannot freely communicate, access information, or participate in democratic processes, particularly during critical periods like elections. The findings demonstrate that digital repression disproportionately harms vulnerable groups—women facing gendered disinformation, journalists arrested for criticism, rural communities denied connectivity, and children lacking online protection. The report also reveals that progress is fragile and reversible, as governments can quickly undo years of advancement with single political decisions, making continuous monitoring and advocacy essential for protecting digital freedoms across the continent.

What's next

  • Digital rights advocates are questioning how far Zambia's score will plummet in the upcoming 2026 review following the RightsCon cancellation
  • Kenya, Zimbabwe, and Zambia are developing National AI strategies to guide future technological integration

Read full article from source: Global Voices