NAIROBI, Kenya, Aug 28 – Africa needs more cybersecurity researchers and practical skills to help companies and governments defend against evolving cyber threats, said Dr. Bright Gameli Mawudor, founder of AfricaHackon Academy and a global cybersecurity strategist.
Mawudor spoke during the Africa Hackon Cybersecurity Summit 2026, which brought together cybersecurity professionals, ethical hackers, innovators and technology leaders to discuss digital security in Africa.
“You cannot protect yourself with just a theoretical stamp. That’s why this conference is very, very practical,” Mawudor explained.
The three-day summit – which is happening at Hackhouse Africa – focuses on hands-on skills, with participants sharing tools, platforms and techniques for understanding how cyber adversaries compromise systems and how organisations can protect themselves.
“We are sharing hands-on skill sets, we’re exchanging notes, we’re sharing tools, we’re sharing platforms,” Mawudor noted.
The practical approach aims to equip researchers with skills they can take back to companies and government institutions.
“We want to make it easy for people who are coming here as researchers to go back and help the country, one company after the other, and also the governments,” Mawudor said.
He also called for greater investment in cybersecurity research to help close the skills gap in Africa.
“Security as a practice has so many different people in it, and so we all have something to learn from each other,” Mawudor observed.
The summit also brings together business professionals and technical experts, reflecting the need for organisations to treat cybersecurity as a shared responsibility rather than an issue for technical teams alone.
Mawudor said the conference also seeks to help participants understand emerging cyber threats and develop practical ways to secure digital systems as African countries expand their use of technology.
