Digital Citizenship in Africa

Tony Roberts is a Digital Research Fellow at the Institute of Development Studies, University of Sussex, UK. His research focuses on digital rights, digital inequalities and participatory methodologies. He has worked at the intersection of digital technologies, development and social justice since 1988. Dr. Roberts is the principal investigator of the GCRF African Digital Rights Network and editor of the collected edition Digital Rights in Closing Civic Space: Lessons from Ten African Countries.Tanja Bosch is Associate Professor of Media Studies and Production in the Centre for Film and Media Studies at the University of Cape Town, South Africa, where she also holds the position of Deputy Dean of Research and Postgraduate Affairs. She teaches journalism and multimedia production, social media, radio studies and research methods at undergraduate and postgraduate level. Dr. Bosch has published widely in the field of radio studies in South Africa; and is currently emerging as one of a few African academics publishing in the area of social media activism, with her work on #RhodesMustFall and #FeesMustFall and other hashtagged campaigns.

• List of illustrations List of contributors Foreword - Francis B. Nyamnjoh Acknowledgements1 Introduction: Spaces of digital citizenship in Africa - Tony Roberts and Tanja Bosch 2 Ethno-religious citizenship in Nigeria: Ethno-religious fault lines and the truncation of collective resilience of digital citizens: The cases of #ENDSARS and #PantamiMustGo in Nigeria - Ayobami Ojebode, Babatunde Ojebuyi, Oyewole Oladapo and Marjoke Oosterom 3 Digital crossroads: Continuity and change in Ethiopia’s digital citizenship - Atnaf Brhane and Yohannes Eneyew 4 Internet shutdowns and digital citizenship - Felicia Anthonio and Tony Roberts 5 Feminist digital citizenship in Nigeria - Sandra Ajaja 6 Digital citizenship and cyber-activism in Zambia - Sam Phiri, Kiss Abraham and Tanja Bosch 7 Digital citizenship and political accountability in Namibia’s 2019 election - Mavis Elias and Tony Roberts 8 Citizenship, African languages and digital rights: The role of language in defining the limits and opportunities for digital citizenship in Kiswahili-language communities - Nanjala Nyabola

This is an outstanding collection of rigorous investigations on how African citizens are negotiating digital technologies. Eschewing epistemic colonialism, the authors develop concepts grounded in the experiences and languages of African citizens in their everyday struggles for rights and justice. The collection brings an inspired perspective on activist citizenship performed with digital technologies.