… Ethiopia, Sudan top list as experts warn of rising digital authoritarianism
No fewer than 190 internet shutdowns have been recorded across 41 African countries between 2016 and 2024, according to fresh research unveiled by the African Digital Rights Network under the Institute of Development Studies (IDS), reports ITREALMS.
The report shows that shutdowns on the continent have doubled within eight years, rising from 14 cases in 2016 to 28 in 2024. Ethiopia emerged with the highest number of shutdowns at 30, followed by Sudan with 21 and Algeria with 14.
Notably, these three countries have experienced at least one shutdown every year since 2018.
According to the book Internet Shutdowns in Africa, these blackouts often ordered by governments and implemented by service providers are being deployed as instruments of political control, especially during protests, elections, or conflicts.
Speaking on the findings, Tony Roberts, Research Fellow at IDS and co-editor of the book, stressed that “each internet shutdown violates human rights and damages the economy. It should worry us that regimes are imposing these digital authoritarian practices with increasing frequency and impunity.”
Also, Felicia Anthonio, a global expert on internet shutdowns and co-editor, warned that across Africa, governments are normalising blackouts to suppress dissent, quell protests and manipulate electoral outcomes, with “devastating consequences for rights and lives, in an ever-more digitally connected world.”
ITREALMS Online gathered that in Ethiopia, shutdowns became a go-to strategy during the Tigray conflict, leaving millions cut off from communication and essential services, while in Sudan, shutdowns were routinely imposed during resistance movements and the ongoing conflict.
The book, described as the most comprehensive account yet of shutdowns on the continent, warns that many instances go unnoticed or unchallenged, especially in states where independent media and civic space are under threat.
Experts are now calling on African governments, regional bodies, telecom operators and civil society to resist arbitrary shutdown orders, particularly during elections and protests, and to uphold commitments to human rights, digital inclusion, and free expression.
According to the book Internet Shutdowns in Africa, these blackouts often ordered by governments and implemented by service providers are being deployed as instruments of political control, especially during protests, elections, or conflicts.
Speaking on the findings, Tony Roberts, Research Fellow at IDS and co-editor of the book, stressed that “each internet shutdown violates human rights and damages the economy. It should worry us that regimes are imposing these digital authoritarian practices with increasing frequency and impunity.”
Also, Felicia Anthonio, a global expert on internet shutdowns and co-editor, warned that across Africa, governments are normalising blackouts to suppress dissent, quell protests and manipulate electoral outcomes, with “devastating consequences for rights and lives, in an ever-more digitally connected world.”
ITREALMS Online gathered that in Ethiopia, shutdowns became a go-to strategy during the Tigray conflict, leaving millions cut off from communication and essential services, while in Sudan, shutdowns were routinely imposed during resistance movements and the ongoing conflict.
The book, described as the most comprehensive account yet of shutdowns on the continent, warns that many instances go unnoticed or unchallenged, especially in states where independent media and civic space are under threat.
Experts are now calling on African governments, regional bodies, telecom operators and civil society to resist arbitrary shutdown orders, particularly during elections and protests, and to uphold commitments to human rights, digital inclusion, and free expression.
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