Ethiopia to ensure digital sovereignty

ADDIS ABABA, NOVEMBER 12, 2021 — The Director of Ethiopia's Information Network Security Agency (INSA), Dr. Shumete Gizaw, said Ethiopia's commitment to developing its own social media sites is intended to show that it is also an independent country in the field of technology.

Dr. Shumete added that the issue of digital sovereignty is becoming a big issue on the world stage. "The countries that are entering the sector late should enter the sector very carefully," he said.

"The issue of digital sovereignty has become a matter of national sovereignty," he said. "If we can ensure our institution's cybersecurity, we can also ensure our national security," he added.

"Protecting the nation's sovereignty over the cyberspace is not a task left to one group or institution. It is the responsibility of all parties concerned," he said.

The Director also mentioned that Ethiopia does not intend to shutdown other social media platforms to turn to its own instead it plans to create an alternative platform that goes side by side.

"Ethiopia is a great country", said Dr. Shumete. "We have remained an independent nation and we want to ensure we remain independent in the technology sector as well."

Ethiopia's decision to turn to its own resources comes amid social media giants, facebook, twitter, and YouTube, heavy crackdown on pro-Ethiopia accounts that have been denouncing disinformation campaigns from the international mainstream media and also resisting terrorism within their homeland. Facebook has also deleted one of PM Abiy Ahmed's post which called on citizens to defend their homeland.

The issue of digital sovereignty is not new, however. In March, 2021, leaders of four European countries, Germany, Estonia, Denmark, and Finland, also called on the European Union (EU) to adopt a strategy on how it shares and controls data.

"Now is the time for Europe to be digitally sovereign,” said German Chancellor Angela Merkel, Danish Prime Minister Mette Frederiksen, Estonian Prime Minister Kaja Kallas, and Finnish Prime Minister Sanna Marin say in a joint letter. “We have to foster the Digital Single Market in all its dimensions where innovation can thrive and data flow freely. We need to effectively safeguard competition and market access in a data-driven world. Critical infrastructures and technologies need to become resilient and secure. It is time for the digitization of governments in order to build trust and foster digital innovation", read the letter.

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