SAFETY IN AFRICA

The exponential increase and expected growth of internet, smartphone, and mobile network usage in Africa have enabled a thriving ecosystem of tech entrepreneurs with the capacity to provide new solutions to energy, healthcare, education and finance. It has also spurred a little-known, but active community of startups, nonprofits and education institutions committed to protecting Africans’ online safety and cybersecurity.

Roughly 40 percent of Africans today have internet access.[1] By 2025, 475 million people on the continent will have access to a smartphone, double today’s number[2]. Behind those numbers are infrastructure, policy and oversight issues confronting Africa with a looming online safety crisis.

Africa’s online safety is