NAIGF-24 | October 29-31, 2024 | Nouakchott, Mauritania

The 8th Annual Meeting of the North Africa Internet Governance Forum (NAIGF-24) commenced today, Tuesday, in Nouakchott, hosted by the National Digital Agency (AN-ETAT).

The NAIGF-24 seeks to strengthen regional collaboration to tackle the increasingly complex challenges in digital governance, which affect a wide array of societal and economic sectors.

H.E. Ahmed Salem Ould Beddah, Minister of Digital Transformation and Administration Modernization, highlighted that “enhancing communication networks and ensuring high-speed internet access not only enables greater access to digital services but also encourages companies to integrate digital tools, thus contributing to economic growth and resilience.”

Mr. Ahmed Farag, President of the North Africa Internet Governance Forum, underscored the significance of the forum’s agenda, which includes critical topics such as digital resource management, reinforcing regulatory and legislative frameworks, safeguarding human rights in the digital sphere, advancing cybersecurity, and fostering cooperation between governments, the private sector, and civil society. He further emphasized that since its inception, NAIGF has been committed to creating a participatory environment to ensure the initiative’s success and achieve its objectives in advancing digital governance across the region.

Ms. Anja Gengo, representative of the Internet Governance Forum (IGF-UN), emphasized the vital role of national and regional forums in advancing internet governance track. She reaffirmed the IGF’s support for the activities and initiatives of the North Africa Internet Governance Forum, praising its contributions to capacity-building programs in the region.