2025 election: Paradigm Initiative trains journalists, civil society on digital rights, election monitoring

By Hans Ngala

With the government of Cameroon having a reputation for shutting down the internet and stifling discussions around issues of national interest and in light of the recently passed Digital Rights Bill of 2024, Cameroonian journalists and civil society actors need to understand their role and their rights in relation to data privacy.
This was the crux of two separate workshops hosted in Yaounde by Paradigm Initiative, a digital rights advocacy group headquartered in Nigeria.
Paradigm Initiative’s Executive President, Gbenga Sesan in a statement he read out to reporters in Yaounde, April 15, said:
“As Cameroon approaches its next General Elections, Paradigm Initiative (PIN) is raising concerns over the country’s deteriorating digital rights state, marked by increasing threats to online freedoms, opaque governance, and a shrinking civic space. Between 2024 and 2025, Cameroon has witnessed an alarming escalation in digital rights violations and repression of online freedom of expression, particularly in the context of the upcoming 2025 General Elections. This period has been marked by a concerted effort by the government to suppress dissent, control information, and intimidate both media professionals and civil society actors”.
Sesan further noted that “In October 2024, the government banned media discussions regarding President Paul Biya’s health following his prolonged absence from public view. The Interior Minister, Paul Atanga Nji declared that any debate on the president’s health was strictly prohibited, labeling it a matter of national security. Regional governors were instructed to monitor and report any violations on both traditional media and social networks, with offenders facing legal consequences”.
He the went on to call on the Biya government to “Ensure open and uninterrupted access to the internet before, during, and after the elections; Cease the use of vague or overly broad laws to criminalise legitimate online expression and dissent; Refrain from arbitrary surveillance or online harassment of journalists, activists, and ordinary citizens and Proactively disclose election-related information, including voter lists, candidate details, and key timelines, in accessible formats”.
The Digital Rights Academy explored everything from right to privacy to fact-checking and everything in between. Journalists were especially encouraged to hold the government to account, should it attempt to shut down the internet as was previously done for three months back in 2017.
Some 40 participants, including civil society organizations, journalists, communications professionals, and others, joined in for the discussions.
One of them was Karine Kubong, a journalist with CRTV in Yaoundé, who said:
“What stood out for me was the lesson on online data privacy, because as professionals who are on a constant quest to gain knowledge and build our capacities in various areas to better serve various audiences, we spend a lot of time online, searching for opportunities and applying for” Kubong said.
She added that “Such opportunities always require very detailed information about a person, and before I attended the Digital Rights Workshop, I had not considered the implications of the information we share about ourselves online, but from what we learned, one’s devices could very easily get hacked into, since we provide our email addresses online, and sometimes for certain opportunities, you have to keep logging in with your password after a given time limit”.
For her part, Commy Mussa, a seasoned journalist, communications expert, and women’s rights advocate, said:
“I’m grateful for the Paradigm Initiative’s Digital Rights Academy in Cameroon. One key takeaway for me is: ‘Digital rights are human rights.’ For civil society, journalists, and stakeholders, it’s crucial to understand and defend these rights. Kudos to Paradigm Initiative for bringing this academy to Cameroon”.
Paradigm Initiative will also be co-sponsoring the Digital Rights and Inclusion Forum (DRIF) in Lusaka, Zambia where Cameroon’s Digital Rights Bill will be discussed more in-depth.