On 3 June 2021, RIA doctoral fellow Anri van der Spuy presented on ‘Technologies of Risk’ to a roundtable organised by the Africa Data Leadership Initiative (ADLI), assessing ideas of data sovereignty in the context of growing socio-digital inequalities on the continent.
ADLI was launched by the UN Economic Commission for Africa, Smart Africa, and Future State earlier this year, and is a peer network designed for and by African policymakers, consumer rights advocates, and private sector stakeholders.
One of the policy problems highlighted by Van der Spuy is a data disconnect between the Global North and the Global South – where the Global North is characterised by data-cynicism reflected, for example, in the emergence of concepts such as data colonialism and surveillance capitalism. Whereas in the Global South there is more data optimism characterised by a focus on using data to drive development goals.
A second policy problem highlighted by Van der Spuy is the digital inequality paradox where digitalisation and datafication results in increased inequality. For more information about these policy problems, download her presentation.
Assessing National Digital Identity Systems: Risks and Rewards
On Wednesday 23 June, Anri van der Spuy participated as a panelist with Stanford’s Cyber Policy Centre. The session focused on national digital ID systems, and enabled her to share preliminary findings from our Omidyar-funded project on digital ID, with the Centre for Internet and Society. A recording of the session is available here.
Issues, Concerns and Approaches to Safeguarding Children’s Privacy Online
On Friday 25 June, Anri van der Spuy was invited by EndCode to join an experts meeting on Issues, Concerns and Approaches to Safeguarding Children’s Privacy Online. This panel discussion formed part of EndCode’s broader consultative process with relevant stakeholders, as part of its Africa Online Safety Fund Project: Developing Model Guidelines on Age Appropriate Design for Online Services in South Africa. Read more about the meeting here.
