NAIROBI, Kenya, Nov 6 – Frequent internet shutdowns across Africa are threatening economic growth, eroding investor confidence, and stifling innovation, the digital rights group Paradigm Initiative (PIN) has warned.
PIN in a statement singled out Tanzania for what it termed “economically devastating” disruptions during and after its recent general elections.
According to data from the NetBlocks Cost of Shutdown Tool (COST), two incidents, including the continued suspension of X (formerly Twitter) and the election-related internet blackout, have cost Tanzania more than Sh35.6 billion ($238 million) in direct losses to productivity, trade, and digital services.
The nationwide shutdown, which lasted from October 29 to November 3, spanning five days and six hours, translated to losses of at least Sh10.7 billion ($72 million), or about Sh2 billion ($13.8 million) per day.
The ongoing suspension of X, in place since May 21 and now over 160 days, has cost the economy an estimated Sh24.9 billion ($165 million) nearly Sh150 million ($1 million) per day.
“These disruptions are economically devastating and deeply damaging to digital rights. Every shutdown chips away at trust, investment, and human potential,” said PIN Executive Director Gbenga Sesan.
“Governments must realize that in today’s world, connectivity is the foundation of opportunity. Shutting down the internet silences citizens, stalls economies, and sets entire nations back.”
PIN noted that Africa has already missed out on the first three industrial revolutions and cannot afford to sit out the fourth, which is being driven by digitization and technological innovation.
The organization said such actions violate freedom of expression and access to information under Articles 9 and 19 of the African Charter on Human and Peoples’ Rights.
Across Africa, shutdowns are increasingly undermining economic stability.
A report by Access Now and the #KeepItOn coalition shows that 15 countries imposed 21 shutdowns in 2024 alone.
In Kenya, partial outages during the June 2024 Finance Bill protests disrupted mobile payments and e-commerce, with monitors recording a 40 percent drop in connectivity nationwide.
The Freedom on the Net 2024 report similarly noted a decline in Kenya’s internet freedom during that period.
In Kenya, a 2021 study by the Kenya Private Sector Alliance (KEPSA) found that about 1.2 million people, or approximately 5 percent of the adult population, were engaged in “digital and digitally-enabled work,” a figure that has since grown.
However, internet slowdowns and disruptions such as those experienced during the June 2024 Finance Bill protests directly undermine this expanding sector by interrupting online freelancing, e-commerce, and mobile-based services that millions of Kenyans rely on for income.
