Porto-Novo · Republic of Benin · 28 – 30 July 2026
Decolonizing Data: Building Feminist Digital Futures in West Africa
The community convening in Porto-Novo
A letter to friends, allies & changemakers
The West Africa Feminist Data Summit 2026 convenes from 28 to 30 July 2026 at Hôtel Les Oliviers, Porto-Novo, Republic of Benin — a venue that removes the visa barrier entirely for every African delegate.
Three days. One hundred delegates. One coordinated continental advocacy infrastructure.
The Summit brings together approximately 100 feminist activists, data journalists, civic technologists, policy researchers, parliamentarians, environmental defenders, academic researchers, and women human rights defenders from across the region — to translate fragmented data work into coordinated continental advocacy. Women human rights defenders will constitute at least half of the cohort, and priority is given to grassroots organisations and francophone delegates from the West African region.
Featured address
Watch the introduction of the main speaker of the West Africa Feminist Data Summit 2026 — and get a first sense of the conversation waiting for you in Porto-Novo.
See when they speak ↓Why this Summit matters
The Summit operationalises three landmark resolutions of the African Commission on Human and Peoples' Rights.
657
Resolution 657 · 2026
Calls on African states to uphold access to climate and environmental information — including safeguarding journalists reporting on environmental harm and resource exploitation.
620
Resolution 620 · 2024
Mandates the Special Rapporteur to develop normative standards on data collection, storage and processing — transparency, data justice, AI accountability.
522
Resolution 522 · 2022
Addresses the rise of gender-based violence including cyber-harassment, calling on states to update legislation to protect women in digital spaces.
An Afrofeminist pedagogy
Each track connects directly to one or more ACHPR resolutions and produces a chapter of the Regional Feminist Data Agenda. Tracks 1–4 run in parallel on Day 1; Tracks 5–8 on Day 2.
TRACK 01
Digital censorship & Internet shutdowns
Round A · Day 1
TRACK 02
Technology-Facilitated Gender-Based Violence (TFGBV)
Round A · Day 1
TRACK 03
Media freedom & environmental defenders
Round A · Day 1
TRACK 04
Decolonising data & AI accountability
Round A · Day 1
TRACK 05
Digital economic justice & unpaid care
Round B · Day 2
TRACK 06
Bodily autonomy & feminist digital privacy
Round B · Day 2
TRACK 07
Feminist civic technology & grassroots innovation
Round B · Day 2
TRACK 08
Intersectional data — rural, queer & disabled realities
Round B · Day 2
Provisional programme · Draft for circulation
Sessions combine plenary briefings, moderated panels, hands-on working sessions, policy-brief drafting, case-study peer learning, lightning exchanges, and action planning — in line with the methodology set out in the Summit Concept Note (Ref. RFLD/WAFDS.2026/CN.2, Rev.). Simultaneous English–French interpretation is provided in the plenary hall and the two main track rooms. Times are indicative; the final agenda will be published in mid-July 2026. This convening is delivered through RFLD's continental data infrastructure and contributes to Pillar 1 (Policy & Governance) of the NAFASI project.
Foundations: mandates, landscapes, and the normative frame
Thematic focus — Digital rights policy and governance landscapes (national, regional, continental); civic space governance; introduction to Tracks 1–4.
Objectives, working methods, expected outputs, and baseline assessment of delegates.
Group photograph & break
The normative frame: ACHPR Resolutions 657, 620 and 522, and the regional mandate they place on data practitioners. Session topic: mapping the regional data landscape — existing assets and critical gaps.
Break
Digital censorship, TFGBV and closing civic space: what the evidence shows, and where it fails to reach decision-makers. Panel themes: digital censorship & TFGBV — what the data shows; media narratives and the reach gap to decision-makers; closing civic space and reprisals against defenders.
Lunch
Hands-on introduction to each track: tools, diagnostics and datasets. Track 1: censorship & shutdowns · Track 2: TFGBV · Track 3: media freedom & environmental defenders · Track 4: decolonising data & AI.
Break
Urgent shifting of the ecosystem: funding pipelines for feminist and digital-rights work in West Africa.
Practice: protection, skills, and platform accountability
Thematic focus — Gender-responsive digital protection and advocacy for WHRDs; practical digital security skills; introduction to Tracks 5–8; drafting of track policy briefs.
Protection frameworks, threat models and advocacy pathways for women human rights defenders in digital space. Session topic: Afro-feminist solidarity in practice — mechanisms, accountability, and cross-border care.
Break
Featured input: the ACHPR mandate, the continental framework for the protection of defenders, and expectations of the cohort. Aim: ground the cohort in the ACHPR mandate and give every participant a clear reading of her rights and of what these three days are expected to deliver.
Rotating skills stations open to all delegates: device hygiene, account hardening, secure communications.
Lunch
Alert and referral mechanisms of the ACHPR, regional protection measures, and articulation with UN mechanisms. Aim: master the ACHPR's alert and referral mechanisms, and how they articulate with UN mechanisms, in order to respond when a defender is under threat.
Break
Each track drafts a one-page policy brief on a legislative, regulatory or institutional gap. These briefs are the building blocks of the regional data agenda.
15-minute rapid presentations of tools, organisations and frameworks, followed by reflection.
Consolidation: the regional agenda, the collective, and resources
Thematic focus — Consolidation and ratification of the Regional Feminist Data Agenda; launch of the cross-border data collective; resource-mobilisation and sub-grant orientation.
Presentation of the eight draft track policy briefs and consolidation of recommendations into the draft Regional Feminist Data Agenda.
Break
(a) Donor & resource-mobilisation roundtable: funding pipelines to grassroots initiatives, including the WAFF Fund · (b) Sub-grant orientation: process & compliance for prospective applicants · (c) Peer network design lab.
Lunch
Structure, secure communication channels, membership commitments and rapid-response protocols.
Break
Post-Summit assessment & feedback.
Close & departures
Summit documents
Concept note · PDF · English
The full methodology, objectives, target audiences, and expected outputs of the convening — Ref. RFLD/WAFDS.2026/CN.2, Rev.
Download the concept note →Provisional programme · Draft for circulation
All plenaries, track working sessions, labs and drafting sessions, day by day. The final agenda, with confirmed facilitators and interpretation support, publishes mid-July 2026.
View the programme →Delegates & facilitators
Delegate composition
Approximately 100 delegates drawn from eight target audiences: feminist activists, data journalists, civic technologists, policy researchers, parliamentarians, environmental defenders, academic researchers, and donor representatives. Women human rights defenders constitute at least half of the cohort; priority is given to grassroots organisations and francophone delegates.
Guidance for facilitators & panelists
Each thematic input runs 15–20 minutes and remains practice-oriented; the Summit privileges working knowledge over keynote performance. Session notes and slides are submitted to the coordination team at least five working days before the Summit for interpretation preparation in both working languages.
Assessment & certification
A baseline assessment is completed at orientation on Day 1 and a post-Summit assessment on Day 3. Certificates of participation are issued at the closing ceremony.
Direct points of contact
For any question on registration, travel, or your accommodation booking — the coordination team is your direct point of contact at RFLD.
About RFLD
RFLD — Réseau des Femmes Leaders pour le Développement (Women Leaders Network for Development) is a pan-African feminist network combining legislative advocacy, community organising, re-granting, and open-data tools — delivered through six integrated fields of intervention across 35+ African countries.
Six integrated fields of intervention
Our offices
Headquartered in Porto-Novo with a dedicated Africa Regional Office in Accra and presences in Dakar and Banjul.
Benin
Hounsa, Rue de l'Université Agricole
Porto-Novo / Cotonou, Benin
+229 01 50 02 46 19
Ghana
Nmai Dzorn, Adjiringano Rd, Eden Court
Accra, Ghana
+233 53 496 8866
Senegal
5ème & 6ème étage, Cité Keur Gorgui
Résidence "AW 06", Dakar, Sénégal
+221 77 541 84 37
The Gambia
Banjul
ACHPR Liaison Office
Amplify & support
If this resonates, forward this page and amplify on social with #FemDataSummit2026. Your contribution sustains the convening of grassroots feminist defenders at the table where decisions are made — and underwrites the visa-free, translation-equipped, fully-sponsored seats that make this Summit possible.
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