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#D4DJournalism: Three African journalists selected to attend the e-Governance Conference

12.04.2023

Project or initiative
AU-EU D4D Hub project

The e-Governance Conference, the most influential e-governance event in the international arena, brings together strategists, decision-makers, policy implementers, and donors to chart a future course for digital governance. The e-Governance Academy has organised this annual event since 2015.

The 2023 edition will be co-organised with Estonia’s Ministry of Foreign Affairs under the theme “Digital Innovation as Catalyst for Social Change”. The event will take place on 30-31 May in Tallinn and online.

For a second year in a row, the AU-EU Digital for Development (D4D) Hub is joining the e-Governance Conference by facilitating a session and sponsoring a delegation of African policymakers.

With the objective of promoting a broader public debate on e-governance across the African continent and ensuring that the outcomes of the event permeate to other sectors of society, the AU-EU D4D Hub is also organising a reporting trip to Estonia for African journalists. The activity will give them the opportunity to report on stories related to the continent’s digital transformation and cooperation between African and European partners.

Through an open call for proposals, the AU-EU D4D Hub received 120 applications from journalists representing 25 countries. Based on the quality of their proposals and track record covering digital issues, three journalists have been selected to attend the e-Governance Conference in person:

Cecilia Maundu, Senior Editor at the Kenya Broadcasting Corporation

Cecilia Maundu is a broadcast journalist, a digital rights researcher and a digital security trainer. She is also an African Union Media Fellow. Ms Maundu works at the intersection of journalism, technology, and human rights, with a focus on countering online abuse against women journalists while protecting freedom of expression online. She also has a podcast called “Digital Dada Podcast" which focuses on matters relating to online violence against women journalists and digital security.

Ronald Musoke, Senior Reporter at The Independent (Uganda)

Ronald Musoke is an award-winning journalist based at The Independent, Uganda’s premier political and business magazine. He has over a decade of journalism experience and has reported extensively both within Uganda and Eastern Africa on politics, business, the environment, natural resources, health, society, the refugee crisis, human rights, and regional integration, among several other beats.

Aletta Shikololo, Journalist at New Era (Namibia)

Aletta Shikololo, a 24-year-old Namibian journalist, has gained recognition in the industry for her exceptional talent and expertise. She serves as a Journalist at the New Era Publication Corporation, where she adeptly covers a wide range of topics, including human rights, technology, crime, politics, health, and education. Her writing style is widely lauded for its clarity and conciseness, which enables her to present intricate subjects in a comprehensible manner for her audience. This capability has earned her the prestigious New Era's Best Journalist of the Year 2022 award.

The reporting trip to the e-Governance Conference is the latest in a series of media-focused activities by the AU-EU D4D Hub aimed at supporting journalists to cover stories on the innovations, key actors, and issues behind Africa’s digital transformation. Learn more