West Africa Feminist
Data Summit
Data as Resistance: Architecting Feminist Digital Futures in West Africa
100
Delegates
Activists, Journalists, & Technologists
15
ECOWAS Nations
Regional representation & strategy
3
Days of Action
Data Training & Policy Drafting
Background & Justification
Building the Intelligence Infrastructure for African Feminism
While a multitude of organizations collect statistics, RFLD builds actionable intelligence infrastructure. The RFLD Data Center acts as the central nervous system for gender equality advocacy across Africa.
The Summit directly addresses the intersectional crises of environmental degradation, authoritarian media crackdowns, and Technology-Facilitated Gender-Based Violence (TFGBV). We recognize that data, in the absence of strategic application, is insufficient to dismantle entrenched patriarchal systems.
This summit is where raw data is forged into legislative weapons, policy reforms, and life-saving emergency protocols.
Connecting 450+ Organizations
Turning grassroots advocacy into measurable change.
ACHPR Observer Status
Officially recognized by the African Commission on Human and Peoples' Rights (ACHPR) of the African Union. RFLD sits as a Member in the Working Group of the ACHPR Special Rapporteur on Human Rights Defenders.
Normative Foundation
Operationalizing ACHPR Mandates
The urgency of this convening is underscored by historic legal mandates adopted by the African Commission on Human and Peoples' Rights (ACHPR). The Summit serves to enforce these resolutions.
Resolution 657
(March 2026)
Resolution on Access to Information and the Right to a Healthy Environment - ACHPR/Res.657(LXXXVI)
RFLD welcomes the African Commission on Human and Peoples’ Rights’ adoption of a landmark resolution calling on African states to uphold access to climate and environmental information – including by safeguarding the rights of journalists reporting on environmental harm, climate impacts, and resource exploitation.
Adopted on March 9, it underscores that access to environmental information is indispensable for the realization of the rights to health, natural resources, and a satisfactory environment, and explicitly recognizes the growing threats faced by environmental journalists and defenders across the continent.
Read Full ResolutionResolution 620
(Nov 2024)
Promoting and Harnessing Data Access as a Tool for Advancing Human Rights and Sustainable Development in the Digital Age
Adopted in November 2024, ACHPR Resolution 620 (LXXXI) mandates the Special Rapporteur on Freedom of Expression and Access to Information to develop normative standards for data collection, storage, and processing, focusing on promoting transparency, data justice, and AI accountability. It emphasizes public data access by default and safeguards human rights in Africa's digital transformation.
Key elements of Resolution 620 include:
- Mandate of the Special Rapporteur: The Special Rapporteur is tasked with establishing, via continental consultation, normative standards regarding data collection, deployment, and access to ensure a human-rights-based approach to digital technologies.
- Core Focus Areas: The resolution addresses data justice, equity, the inclusion of marginalized groups, and the need for accountability mechanisms in AI and automated systems.
- Data Access and Transparency: It calls for public data—and data held by private actors with high public interest—to be made available by default, promoting proactive disclosure and transparency.
- Regional Strategy: This initiative is intended to facilitate the development of African-specific data regulations that align with international human rights standards while promoting economic development.
Resolution 522
(2022)
Protecting Women Against Digital Violence
Addresses the rise of gender-based violence, including cyber-harassment and sexist hate speech, calling on states to update legislation to protect women in digital spaces and ensure accountability.
Read Full ResolutionAn Afrofeminist Perspective
Thematic Focus & Tracks
Decolonizing data means centering the lived realities of African women. Our thematic tracks are rooted in an intersectional, Afrofeminist pedagogy that rejects neo-colonial tech extraction and champions sovereign, community-led digital resilience.
1. Digital Censorship & Internet Shutdowns
State-sponsored network disruptions are utilized to conceal state violence and silence defenders. Delegates will train using real-time diagnostic data (OONI, NetBlocks) to track telecommunications blackouts and resist state silencing.
- Network diagnostic data analysis & circumvention tools
- Strategic litigation utilizing ECOWAS Court rulings
2. Combating TFGBV
Technology-Facilitated GBV systemically excludes African women from digital participation. Aligning with the SVRI & UN Women Shared Research Agenda, we focus on holding platforms accountable and mapping cyber-misogyny.
- Monitoring online violence against female politicians & activists
- Designing localized civic tech interventions and secure support bots
3. Media Freedom & Environmental Defenders
Ecofeminist defenders face unprecedented legal harassment. The Summit dissects national regulatory shifts and tracks how complex bills are weaponized against journalists exposing extractive industries.
- Tracking extractive industry contracts & ecological debt
- Combating corporate impunity via legislative data monitoring
4. Decolonizing Data & AI Accountability
Challenging Western tech extraction and algorithmic bias. We advocate for data sovereignty, ensuring that AI systems deployed in West Africa do not replicate colonial hierarchies or patriarchal discrimination.
- Auditing algorithmic bias in public service delivery
- Frameworks for indigenous knowledge and African data sovereignty
5. Digital Economic Justice & Unpaid Care
Quantifying the invisible labor of African women. This track explores how digital financial inclusion often leads to predatory algorithmic lending, and how feminist data can advocate for fair economic policy.
- Using data to map and value unpaid care work in ECOWAS
- Exposing predatory fintech and advocating for inclusive digital economies
6. Bodily Autonomy & Feminist Digital Privacy
Protecting Sexual and Reproductive Health and Rights (SRHR) data. We address the dangers of biometric surveillance on marginalized bodies and the urgent need for feminist data protection laws.
- Securing SRHR data and tracking app privacy flaws
- Resisting biometric surveillance and state identification overreach
7. Feminist Civic Tech & Grassroots Innovation
Moving beyond "tech-solutionism" to build tools by African women, for African women. Cultivating local engineering talent to create secure, accessible, and culturally relevant advocacy platforms.
- Open-source methodologies for grassroots movement building
- Funding and scaling local African civic-tech alternatives
8. Intersectional Data: Marginalized Realities
Addressing data gaps that render rural women, queer women, and disabled women invisible in policy-making. Establishing inclusive methodologies that document the full spectrum of the Afrofeminist experience.
- Closing the rural/urban digital divide in data collection
- Inclusive indicators for LGBTQ+ and disability rights in West Africa
Who Should Attend?
Target Audience
The success of the Summit relies on a multi-stakeholder approach. We are convening the actors who collect the data alongside the actors who have the power to act upon it.
Feminist Activists
Policy Researchers
Data Journalists
Civic Tech Builders
Parliamentarians
Donor Representatives
Academic Researchers
Eco-Defenders
Expected Outcomes
RFLD designs interventions with sustainability and measurable impact at the forefront.
Total Tool Mastery
Delegates exit fully trained on RFLD's data platforms for autonomous threat monitoring.
Data Collective
Launch of an encrypted network for peer support and rapid emergency response across borders.
Regional Data Agenda
Drafting and ratification of a comprehensive agenda identifying legislative gaps across ECOWAS.
Resource Mobilization
Direct funding pipelines established between major donors and under-resourced grassroots initiatives.
Practical Information
Summit Logistics
Everything you need to know to prepare for your participation in Accra, Ghana.
Languages & Translation
English and French are the official languages of the Summit. Professional simultaneous interpretation facilities will be available for all plenaries and main tracks.
Visa Arrangements
ECOWAS citizens do not require a visa to enter Ghana. For delegates outside the ECOWAS bloc, RFLD will provide official invitation letters to facilitate visa-on-arrival or embassy processing.
Accommodation
RFLD has secured negotiated room rates at the Summit venue and adjacent partner hotels. Booking links will be provided upon registration confirmation.
Summit Venue
Accra, Ghana
Full venue details will be provided upon registration confirmation.
Register to secure your spotRegistration & Applications
Join us to architect feminist digital futures. Priority is given to grassroots organizations, women’s rights defenders, and Francophone applicants.
- Early Registration Opens: March 25, 2026
- Call for Sessions Deadline: April 10, 2026
- Travel Grants: Available for rural/conflict-affected delegates
Participant Registration
Secure your spot at the Summit. Includes access to all data training sessions and plenaries.
Register HereCall for Sessions
Propose a workshop, policy brief, or panel discussion aligned with our thematic tracks.
Submit ProposalTravel Grant Application
Apply for financial support covering travel and accommodation to attend the Summit in Accra.
Apply for GrantBecome a Partner / Sponsor
Support the Summit and align your organization with the advancement of feminist digital futures in West Africa.
Contact Us