Hanna: Hi Allan, thank you so much for joining and expressing your interest in sharing the story. Could you introduce yourself briefly?
Allan: Thank you so much, Hanna. My name is Allan Magezi. I’m a telecommunications engineer. I am trying to advocate for access and connectivity because I come from a region where we have varying issues in terms of connectivity. For example, we still have 3G, while other communities already have 4 and 5G. So these are kind of the issues that ignited me to join the space, besides, of course, being a telecom engineer that is by default supposed to be contributing to that space.
Hanna: How did you learn about Digital Grassroots, and what motivated you to join the DIGRA Ambassadors program?
Allan: I actually participated in the DIGRA Ambassador program Cohort 5. Before the call for applications, Uganda had hosted the Africa Internet Summit. I was fresh from campus and was actually doing an internship at the Ministry of ICT & National Guidance, which has the mandate to run the entire internet infrastructure and telecom industry in the country. A couple of colleagues of mine shared with me that if you want to advance your knowledge and learning, especially in line with Internet governance, there’s a program here, give it a shot. So there we go, I applied and was selected, and the rest started evolving from there.
Hanna: What was the program experience like for you? I am particularly curious to hear this because you coordinated your cohort’s biggest and only group community project.
Allan: Yes, the experience started on a very fascinating note. At that time, we were in the Covid era and relied on the Internet for everything we did. So doing the training program, especially online, was quite fascinating. But the first pillar was how the program was run. It was very exciting to see people from different walks of life and countries coming together to learn how the Internet is governed and trying to acquire more resources and knowledge. It opened a wider perspective for me to learn as well as network. As for the networking aspect, it was a requirement of the program for us to come up with a certain project, either individually or as a group. In my case, I mobilized a number of participants who were in the program. I felt that when you come up with a project as a group, it is much more effective as it reflects insights from different communities. It was seven of us from a different country. I remember we had Madagascar, Nigeria, Ghana, Kenya, and Burkina Faso. We came together and connected with our communities to spotlight different digital issues, especially cyber harassment. I remember we also ran a poll on how confident people felt about the Internet and how they responded. Everything was being done on the internet, and we felt that the responses from the community were actually a reflection of what was happening on the ground.
Hanna: Do you think this kind of international and cross-cultural experience during the program helped you expand your understanding of digital rights and Internet governance issues across different contexts and seek insights that you can apply to your community?
Allan: Absolutely. At that time, I worked in telecommunications, mainly with community connections. I had a hands-on role, working with laying optic fibre cables and setting up towers for infrastructure to enable people to access the internet. However, this experience changed my perspective, and I realized I needed to focus more on policy within the ecosystem. Since then, I have contributed significantly to forming and discussing various policies and regulations, both nationally and across borders. I remember that at that time, my knowledge from this experience, especially regarding governance, led me and a few colleagues to establish the first youth Internet governance forum in Uganda. This experience opened up cross-border knowledge and introduced me to people from different countries, not just from East Africa or Africa. It was a great opportunity for networking, and I still keep in touch with many of the participants I met during the program. In fact, I continue to meet some of them at summits and forums, like when IGF 2022 was happening in Addis Ababa, and we came together to contribute to the event as a DIGRA community. This experience allowed us to build a resilient network that positively impacts the internet space.
Hanna: What role do you think the community component of Digital Grassroots plays in building a network of youth activists in the space?
Allan: First of all, I should mention that this is an entirely youth-driven ecosystem. We are very glad that Digital Grassroots is focusing on the youth narrative. I can tell you that this gradual engagement with Digital Grassroots has opened up many opportunities for me. And I never stopped from that time. I remember engaging with several big players, particularly organizations that contribute significantly to the ecosystem, all while coming from my background in telecommunications engineering. So I had already, by default, felt it was incumbent on me to contribute to some processes available in international telecommunications engineering, such as ITU. We are glad that last year, ITU provided an opportunity to build up a youth generational connection, a youth narrative for people to contribute to ITU processes. Remember, ITU is a multilateral organization composed of governments, and for the Secretary General’s office to create a special section for youth to contribute was a massive achievement. So, I dived into that, largely due to the background laid by Digital Grassroots.
I also engaged with ICANN, as you can’t do without some of these major organizations that play a critical role, especially in managing internet resources. This engagement opened doors for me to participate in ICANN meetings. This experience allowed me to learn and contribute significantly to the internet space. Later, I was not only selected to attend another meeting [ICANN 77], which will happen this June in Washington DC, but was also awarded the Paul Muchene Award, an award given to a distinguished fellow from the African region for their contribution to the internet space. I’m the second recipient of this award, and I’m glad to follow in the footsteps of someone I look up to, Ben [Rachad Sanoussi, DIGRA Tech Support], who was the first recipient.
Hanna: Do you think that organizations like Digital Grassroots contribute to bringing a more youth-led approach to these events and advancing the degree of youth participation in Internet Governance from often tokenistic representation to actual leadership and initiative?
Allan: I think I should have mentioned this earlier. We had people from the health sector, the agriculture sector, but they were coming together to say, let’s see how the internet is run. Let’s build convergences in terms of policies, in terms of learning the policies that are very reliable for the internet to prevail in terms of benefits. So that in itself, in this composition, was some sort of an indicator of stakeholders in terms of youth, bringing youths from different spaces to come and talk about how the Internet should be governed. So I think Digital Grassroots still brings up that aspect of multi-stakeholder, which I think, by the way, for the record, is one of the most recommendable approaches to how the internet should be governed.
Hanna: It’s actually an interesting take. As you remember, we had so many different projects in your cohort, from cybersecurity issues to child protection, and gender-based violence. It’s great to see this power that we can harness when we don’t have a very restricted view of how we can contribute to the space.
Allan: I entirely agree with you. Sometimes, people from different spaces shy away. It is a challenge, but here is the encouragement: Digital Grassroots has been bringing people together. There’s always a mentor assigned to you, someone who takes you through how the ecosystem runs, someone who understands your background. For instance, if you’re from the health sector, a mentor will help you appreciate the system and how the space runs, and then they’ll build you up through capacity training. Digital Grassroots has tremendously built capacity in terms of youth, and we have many people trying to contribute to the ecosystem because of the mentoring and training they receive through programs like the DIGRA Ambassadors.
Hanna: Were there any projects or initiatives that you got engaged with following the Digital Grassroots Ambassador Program?
Allan: There are many, including international engagements, national engagements, and regional engagements. Let me start with the international engagements. Last year, we visited Ethiopia, where Africa hosted the global Internet Governance Forum. I was able to offer technical support, ensuring people joining the meeting virtually had a real feel and contributed conveniently during the different sessions held during the forum. For me to be able to offer that technical support in the control room was because of the background and channel of Digital Grassroots. I remember we were selected based on our professions. We had people with technical backgrounds and others from various professions. But because of my technical background, backed up by my experience and training from Digital Grassroots, I was able to convince the selection team that I could provide the right support during the meeting. I can assure you it was a very successful meeting. We had over 5,122 participants from 120 countries. It was one of Africa’s most fascinating and successful Internet Governance Forums. Then, if I can touch on the national level like I mentioned before, we started the Uganda Youth Internet Governance Forum with a couple of friends who were trained and have been through Digital Grassroots programs. We started the Uganda Youth Internet Governance Forum. Some of us, like myself, are already contributing to the steering committee of the National Internet Governance Forum, and we’ve supported the East African Internet Governance Forum. These channels have been laid out as a result of Digital Grassroots. Additionally, my cohort from the Digital Grassroots program still works together, especially regarding resource sharing with all the participants from that program. We’re still connected up to now. We virtually attend regional engagements like the Digital Inclusion Forum in Kenya and the Africa DNS Forum.
Hanna: When you reflect on your experience as a whole, from where you started and where you’ve gone since participating in the Ambassadors Program, what program aspects do you think have been the most defining for your journey?
Allan: From my experience, one of the most fundamental aspects is how my trajectory has changed since I engaged in the program. I was fortunate to engage in the program right after school. It’s different when you engage in this program, maybe three or four years after campus, but it’s different when you have this program right after school when you’re trying to figure out which space you will take. Initially, my focus was working with different organizations and community companies to lay out infrastructure since that was my professional background to help people gain access and connectivity. I can tell you that most of the African continent is young, and this demographic engages the most on the internet. So for us, having a contribution to how the policies are run and managing the internet space was very important to me. After participating in the DIGRA Ambassadors Program, I changed my trajectory to contribute more to policy rather than the practical part of fixing optic fibre cables.
Hanna: And finally, I would like to ask you whether there is a particular moment or experience when you felt most excited or proud to be part of our community.
Allan: First of all, everyone on the Digital Grassroots team is amazing. I want to give you, Uffa, Esther, and my good friend Ben a special shoutout. The team is very fascinating and enjoyable. I remember even when I didn’t have much time for social events or social hours, especially after meetings, I could still catch up a bit late at night, and it was very fascinating for us. As young people, we like to have fun, but also in a meaningful and constructive manner.
We’d like to thank Allan for sharing his inspiring journey with us and shedding light on the importance of youth engagement in digital rights and Internet governance. As we look forward to our upcoming impact report, we’re excited to share more stories highlighting the impact Digital Grassroots programs continue to have on young individuals and communities worldwide.
