When I fell in love with Africa almost 20 years ago, I would have never thought that one day I’d be listening to (and yes, admittedly also singing) “Jambo bwana” just before the Kenyan National Anthem was played at the beginning of a data protection conference. This is how the 9th Network of African Data Protection Authorities (NADPA-RAPD) Annual General Meeting and Conference kicked off in Nairobi on 7 May.

The conference, hosted by Kenya’s Office of the Data Protection Commissioner, was attended by Africa’s privacy and data protection authorities (DPAs) from different geographical and linguistic areas. Its objective is to provide a platform for exchange and co-operation among its members and to secure a position for Africa in its dealings with partners around the globe. Angola, Benin, Burkina Faso, Chad, Cape Verde, Eswatini, Gabon, Ghana, Ivory Coast, Kenya, Mali, Mauritania, Mauritius, Morocco, Niger, Nigeria, Sao Tome & Principe, South Africa, Uganda, Tunisia are members, with Cameroon, Gambia and Rwanda as observers. Various industry stakeholders from public and private sectors, government, civil society, NGOs and development partners also participated in the event, which preceded the DPAs’ annual general meeting.