Internet Shutdowns

On Saturday, 3 February 2024, the government of Senegal suddenly postponed the upcoming presidential elections that were planned for 25 February. Amidst widespread protests after this announcement, the Senegalese Ministry of Communication, Telecommunication, and Digital Economy ordered a shutdown of mobile data access, citing the spread of “hateful and subversive messages.”

[Translation]

Position of the Senegal Chapter of the Internet Society Against Mobile Data Internet Cuts in Senegal

In a press release dated 4 February 2024, the authority in charge of telecommunications and the digital economy announced the “temporary suspension of the Internet of mobile data.

The Senegalese Chapter of the Internet Society (ISOC-SN) expresses its deep emotion about what is becoming the preferred response of public authorities whenever disturbances to public order occur.

ISOC-SN is an association under Senegalese law affiliated with the Internet Society (a global organization based in the United States), which campaigns for an Internet open to all without exception, globally connected, secure, and trustworthy.

We, ISOC-SN, are aware of the negative impact on the economic level of such disproportionate measures taken without any consultation and call on the Authority to lift this measure as quickly as possible and explore other ways and means for responsible use of the Internet by citizens.

We recall that one day of Internet outage, beyond its social impact, causes an estimated loss of more than 100 million FCFA on GDP (see https://pulse.internetsociety) and that in terms of accumulation of economic losses following these cuts, Senegal is on the African podium for 2023 according to the latest Top10VPN study.

We recall again that our country is one of the pioneering states of the Internet in Africa and that emerging Senegal cannot afford to be cited among the countries where interruptions Internet policies have become the new model for policing cyberspace. Social networks are a mirror of our societies, which only reflect the good and the bad of this world.

ISOC-SN reaffirms its commitment to working towards the responsible use of social networks and finally recalls that the “digital space” is not a lawless space.

For ISOC-SN
Jean-Jacques Ntab,President

On 4 February 2024, the Senegalese Ministry of Communication, Telecommunication, and Digital Economy issued the following statement indicating that mobile Internet would be suspended.