Kenya is an emerging technological power with a strong foundation in domestic cybersecurity policies and enforcement mechanisms. While it is not a major cybersecurity actor on the global stage, it has participated in internet governance groups and forums, such as the UN’s Open-Ended Working Group (OEWG) and East Africa’s Internet Governance Forum (IGF) . The country shows a preference for a multi-stakeholder approach to internet governance but is also concerned with content-related information risks. This concern is evident in one of the country’s more pressing issues—the erosion of citizens’ right to privacy, particularly through social media. Kenya also faces challenges that threaten internet access, including high costs, limited electrification, and infrastructure gaps. However, the country is committed to overcoming these obstacles through its Kenya Vision 2030 development program, which aims to address some of these challenges.
Internet Landscape
Home to Nairobi — the Silicon Savannah — Kenya is emerging as a technological hub, attracting major companies like IBM, Microsoft, and Oracle, along with a growing startup scene. However, challenges remain. In 2022, only 76% of the population had access to electricity, with 98% in urban areas and 65.6% in rural regions (World Bank, n.d.-b). Internet access reached 41% of the population, but infrastructure issues, including damage to two undersea cables in 2024, contribute to outages and slow internet speeds (Freedom House, 2024). Additionally, the high cost of fixed-line broadband ($47.73) contrasts with more affordable mobile data ($0.59 per GB). Mobile subscriptions far outnumber fixed-line subscriptions, with 68.9M mobile vs. 1.5M fixed-line (Communications Authority of Kenya, 2024).
Mobile money services, especially M-Pesa and Airtel Money, drive internet use, with 40M mobile money subscriptions (Communications Authority of Kenya, 2024). Social media use is growing, with 23.5% of the population and 57.5% of internet users having at least one account (Datareportal, 2024).
Kenya has also seen a decline in internet freedom between 2023 and 2024. Freedom House gave it a score of 64/100, classifying it as “partly free.” This decline was driven by disruptions to the messaging platform Telegram, digital content censorship, and arrests related to cyber harassment or the publication of false information on social media (Freedom House, 2024).
Domestic Cybersecurity Policy
Kenya has developed strong domestic cybersecurity policies to address cyberspace threats, including the 2014 establishment of the National Kenya Computer Incident Response Team – Coordination Centre (KE-CIRT/CC) under the Kenya Information and Communications Act (KICA), overseen by the Communications Authority of Kenya (2024). The 2018 Computer Misuse and Cybercrimes Act (CMCA) created the National Computer and Cybercrime Coordination Committee (NC4), which coordinates cybersecurity efforts across 11 government agencies, while the 2024 regulations established the Cyber Security Operations Centre (CSOC) for ICT and telecom sectors (Communications Authority of Kenya, 2024).
Despite these efforts, Kenya’s state surveillance practices have raised concerns over privacy rights. In a 2024 Freedom House report, Kenya received a score of 2 out of 6 for whether state surveillance infringes on users’ privacy rights, despite constitutional guarantees of privacy under Article 31 (Kenya Law Reform Commission, n.d.). The Data Protection Act, 2019, and its 2021 regulations provide some privacy protections but include exemptions for national security and public interest, allowing for practices like the Device Management System (DMS) that grants the government access to mobile subscriber data (Freedom House, 2024). Additionally, state surveillance including the use of the NSO Group’s Pegasus spyware, security agents in telecom facilities, as well as the 2012 Prevention of Terrorism Act, allows for limitations on constitutional freedoms during terrorism investigations (Freedom House, 2024)
International Internet Governance
Kenya is considered a swing state in international internet governance debates because it has supported and participated in multi-stakeholder (i.e states, researchers, private sector, etc.) approaches to international governance, but also has supported issues outside of that framework, like content and the digital divide. During its time on the Open-Ended Working Group (OEWG), Kenya focused on technical cybersecurity risks, and avoided using state sovereignty language (Pauly, 2021). This multi-stakeholder approach is also reflected in Kenya’s participation in East Africa’s Internet Governance Forum (IGF), alongside Uganda, Burundi, Tanzania, and Rwanda, as well as in Kenya’s own IGF conference. These conferences take a multi-stakeholder approach, inviting ‘stakeholders representing government, the private sector, civil society, the technical and academic community, media, and the public’ (Kenya Internet Governance Forum [Kenya IGF], n.d.).
Another key concern for Kenya, as for many other Global South countries, is the digital divide. In a speech by the Kenyan delegation at the OEWG on February 10, 2021 on “Existing and Potential Threats”, they stressed that “the digital divide is itself a threat.” (Pauly, 2021)
As a non-permanent member of the UN Security Council, according to a report by Kenyan think tank, Kenya ICT Action Network (KICTANet), it notes that Kenya has emphasized content-based information risks and co-organized relevant events with China. For example, in May 2021 Kenya, alongside Mexico, partnered with China in an organization and informal meeting on “The Impact of Emerging Technologies on International Peace and Security” for Security Council members. This meeting was “the danger posed by the militarization of emerging technologies, especially if used in the context of terrorism” (Pauly, 2021). And while co-organizing an event does not mean the states agree completely on approaches, but does show a willingness to collaborate or discuss how their different approaches can be implemented.
Sources
Cable. (n.d.). Global broadband pricing league table 2024. Cable. https://www.cable.co.uk/broadband/pricing/worldwide-comparison/
Cable. (n.d). Worldwide mobile data pricing: The cost of 1GB of mobile data in 237 countries. Cable.https://www.cable.co.uk/mobiles/worldwide-data-pricing/
Communications Authority of Kenya. (2024). Cyber Security Report Q1 2024-2025. Communications Authority of Kenya. https://ca.go.ke/sites/default/files/2024-10/Cyber%20Security%20Report%20Q1%202024-2025.pdf
Datareportal. (2024). Digital 2024: Kenya. Datareportal. https://datareportal.com/reports/digital-2024-kenya
East African Internet Governance Forum. (n.d.). East African Internet Governance Forum (EAIGF). https://eaigf.africa/
Freedom House. (2024). Kenya: Freedom on the Net 2024 country report. Freedom House. https://freedomhouse.org/country/kenya/freedom-net/2024
Kenya Internet Governance Forum. (n.d). Kenya Internet Governance Forum (Kenya IGF). https://kigf.or.ke/
National Computer and Cybercrimes Coordination Committee. (n.d.). The National Computer and Cybercrimes Coordination Committee (NC4). https://nc4.go.ke/the-national-computer-and-cybercrimes-coordination-committee-nc4/
Pauly, Jonas K.E. (July 2021). Kenya’s Cyber Diplomacy at the UN: Policy Brief. Kenya ICT Action Network (KICTANet). https://www.kictanet.or.ke/
Soy, A. (2023, October 13). African migrants’ plea to be heard in Europe. BBC News. https://www.bbc.com/news/world-africa-67101736
World Bank. (n.d.-a). Access to electricity (% of population) – Kenya. Retrieved January 28, 2025, fromhttps://data.worldbank.org/indicator/EG.ELC.ACCS.ZS?end=2022&locations=KE&start=1993&view=chart
World Bank. (n.d.-b). Individuals using the internet (% of population). Retrieved January 28, 2025, from https://data.worldbank.org/indicator/IT.NET.USER.ZS
