NAIROBI, Kenya – Kenya’s reputation as a continental leader in digital innovation is at risk due to growing restrictions on online freedoms, a new report by the Bloggers Association of Kenya (BAKE) has warned.
The State of Internet in Kenya: 2020–2024 study says that government actions and restrictive legislation have steadily eroded citizens’ rights in the digital space over the past five years.
According to BAKE, one of the key tools used to curb online expression is the Computer Misuse and Cybercrimes Act (CMCA).
The law, the report notes, has been “weaponized to criminalize online speech, leading to the harassment and arrest of bloggers, journalists and activists.”
The association cites disturbing incidents during the review period, including abductions and killings of bloggers critical of political leaders.
It also highlights the state’s resort to internet shutdowns and throttling during politically sensitive moments, most notably during the #RejectFinanceBill2024 protests.
“The government’s use of internet shutdowns and throttling during periods of public dissent is a particularly alarming trend that marks a departure from Kenya’s history of relatively open internet access,” the report states.
BAKE warns that such actions not only violate the right to free expression but also cause significant economic losses, disrupting businesses and livelihoods dependent on online connectivity.
The report reveals that Kenya’s position in the global digital rights index has fallen to 78, ten places lower than in 2019.
While the country remains among Africa’s top 10 in the 2024 Londa Digital Rights Score Index—alongside South Africa, Ghana, Zambia, Namibia, Rwanda, Nigeria, Senegal, Malawi, and Tunisia—it was also named among African nations that enforced internet shutdowns last year, together with Comoros, Mauritius, and Mozambique.
The Londa report, produced by the Paradigm Initiative and launched at the Digital Rights and Inclusion Forum (DRIF), assessed online freedoms in 27 African countries based on the African Commission on Human and Peoples’ Rights Declaration on Freedom of Expression and Access to Information.
Despite the troubling trends, BAKE acknowledges Kenya’s progress in the digital sphere.
Over the past five years, the country has expanded internet coverage, grown its digital economy, and cultivated a vibrant ecosystem of start-ups, online content creators, and gig economy workers.
However, the report cautions that surging surveillance, censorship, and state interference threaten to overshadow these gains, jeopardizing the future of open internet access in Kenya.
