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Africa has experienced significant technological leapfrogging by bypassing fixed-line telecommunications in favor of mobile networks. While mobile subscriptions surged from 1.9 to over 100 per 100 people between 2000 and 2023, fixed broadband remains limited. The report highlights the role of satellite internet, such as Starlink, in reaching remote areas and notes that mobile broadband coverage in Nigeria is linked to increased household consumption and poverty reduction. By 2050, mobile phone and mobile broadband subscriptions are projected to reach 150 and 149 per 100 people, respectively, though gaps in affordability and digital skills persist.

The Kasepuhan Ciptagelar indigenous community in West Java has overcome geographic isolation and market neglect by building its own community-led internet infrastructure. Starting with a partnership in 2018 between Common Room and Awinet, the network has expanded to cover 44 hamlets across 13 villages by 2025, serving up to 2,000 daily users. The 'Ciptagelar Model' utilizes a hybrid backhaul of radio links and fiber optics, funded by a prepaid voucher system that reinvests revenue into the community. This digital sovereignty has enabled the community to fund reforestation—planting 45,000 trees over five years—and document traditional rituals. While successful, the initiative faces challenges including regulatory 'grey zones' in Indonesian law and physical infrastructure damage from extreme weather, such as the collapse of a bamboo tower in late 2024.

The COVID-19 pandemic caused widespread education disruptions in Africa, with over 90% of students facing interruptions due to school closures. The impact was most severe for rural and poor populations due to a significant digital divide, where 60% to 85% of university students lacked the devices or internet access required for online learning. Even in relatively well-resourced South Africa, students lost between three-quarters and a full year of schooling, with up to 500,000 children dropping out. Beyond academic loss, the pandemic increased risks of child labour, particularly for girls, and caused mental health issues due to lockdowns lasting up to two years.

The report examines the tension between domestic data governance—driven by privacy, security, and industrial policy—and international trade rules. It argues that while data flows are essential for the global economy, the current legal architecture often reinforces structural asymmetries, where developing nations export raw data but import high-value services. The author analyzes the shift from WTO-led rules to preferential trade agreements (PTAs) and digital economy agreements (DEAs), highlighting the AfCFTA Digital Trade Protocol as a development-oriented model. The report concludes that developing countries must move beyond the binary of 'free flow vs. localization' toward calibrated, regional strategies that link trade commitments to implementation capacity and technology transfer.

The CC Asia Climate Fund (CC-ACF) has developed a Gender Assessment and Action Plan (GAAP) to address systemic gender inequalities in Kazakhstan, Mongolia, and Uzbekistan. The report identifies significant barriers to women's participation in climate-vulnerable sectors, including limited land ownership, a gendered digital divide, and underrepresentation in STEM and leadership roles. To mitigate these, the Fund implements a Gender Action Plan (GAP) that embeds gender-responsive criteria into its ESG due diligence, mandates Gender Action Plans for portfolio companies, and establishes SEAH-safe grievance mechanisms. The goal is to foster transformational change by promoting women's leadership in the energy and agriculture sectors and reducing the gender pay gap within its investee companies.

The document analyzes the tension between the multilateral Work Programme on Electronic Commerce (WPEC) and the plurilateral Joint Statement Initiative (JSI) on E-Commerce. It highlights the conflict over the moratorium on customs duties for electronic transmissions, where developing countries fear revenue loss and policy constraints, while other members push for a permanent ban on such duties. The author outlines the stakes for MC14, including the potential incorporation of the JSI Agreement into the WTO framework and the future of the WPEC.

The document proposes a 'communication justice' framework to ensure that digital transformation supports climate resilience. It identifies critical gaps in connectivity, language accessibility, and data governance that hinder the delivery of climate services. The author advocates for treating communication rights as essential climate infrastructure, suggesting practical measures such as community-led early warning systems, rights-respecting data commons, and accountable AI to ensure that the most vulnerable populations can access and act upon life-saving climate information.

The document advocates for a transformative approach to climate adaptation that moves beyond infrastructure to include 'communication justice'. It highlights the role of constructive journalism in combating 'climate fatigue' and the potential of AI to improve disaster prediction and information dissemination. The author criticises global agendas, such as those for COP30, for overlooking the role of independent journalism and public engagement. The statement calls for coordinated collaboration between governments, the private sector, and local communities to close digital divides and ensure that the voices of the most vulnerable are integrated into national development plans.

WACC argues that communication rights are essential for achieving digital, gender, and climate justice. The organization advocates for a shift away from Global North dominance in digital platforms and calls for media regulation, democratic data governance, and a fair global knowledge regime to ensure human dignity and equality.

The document explores how indigenous and rural communities in Indonesia, India, Mexico, and Colombia are implementing community-centered connectivity and media to resist digital colonialism and preserve cultural integrity. It highlights specific models of digital sovereignty, such as the Kasepuhan Ciptagelar's hybrid network in Indonesia and indigenous mobile virtual network operators in Mexico, while arguing that communication justice requires moving beyond simple technical access to protect local languages and knowledge systems.

The report evaluates the implementation of the MTE and +TE programs, which introduced 405 electric vehicles across 10 Chilean regions to modernize minor public transport. Key findings include an average economic saving of over 3 million pesos per beneficiary and a positive shift in driver and citizen perceptions of electric vehicle technology. While the programs successfully addressed gender gaps and demonstrated operational viability for trips under 300 km daily, challenges remain regarding residential charger installation delays, digital gaps among older drivers, and initial distrust regarding battery autonomy.

The document identifies systemic communication failures across 12 South African municipalities, characterized by top-down messaging, internal silos, and a decline in traditional outreach. It recommends professionalizing communication units, institutionalizing two-way engagement, and integrating knowledge management to move from reactive to citizen-centered systems.

The document argues that climate justice is unattainable without 'communication justice'—the ability of all people to access, share, and be heard in public discourse. It highlights how digital divides, language barriers, and coordinated disinformation campaigns by the fossil fuel industry undermine climate action. Through case studies in Zimbabwe and the Amazon, it advocates for blending AI and digital tools with indigenous knowledge and community-led media to build resilience. The text calls for mandatory information integrity standards and a shift toward 'constructive journalism' to combat climate fatigue and empower vulnerable populations in the Global South.

Using Kenya as a primary case study, the authors examine how the shift from traditional manufacturing-based industrial policy to a platform-based digital economy risks creating a new form of 'informational dependency'. While Kenya has successfully integrated into global digital services, the authors find that value capture remains limited because data and algorithmic control reside with foreign platforms. The paper advocates for a holistic industrial policy that integrates data governance, decent work standards, and regional cooperation to ensure digital transformation leads to inclusive development rather than extractive accumulation.

The report examines the state of play for e-commerce at the WTO, focusing on the multilateral Work Programme on Electronic Commerce (WPEC) and the plurilateral Joint Statement Initiative (JSI). It details the ongoing conflict over the moratorium on customs duties for electronic transmissions, the substance of the proposed Agreement on Electronic Commerce (ECA), and the challenges regarding its legal incorporation into the WTO framework, particularly concerning the needs of developing countries and LDCs.

The report examines climate change perceptions in Majuba Village, Eastern Cape, finding that while residents are acutely aware of environmental decline, they often explain it through spiritual or moral frameworks due to a lack of local, trusted scientific information. It identifies radio as the most critical medium for communication due to high data costs and limited internet access. The study highlights that disinformation fills the void left by institutional silence and recommends establishing community radio in local dialects (isiXhosa, Sesotho, and Hlubi) and training local facilitators to bridge the gap between science and traditional beliefs.

The document argues that the Southern African Development Community (SADC) can accelerate economic resilience and regional integration by transitioning from fragmented digital systems to a cohesive Digital Public Infrastructure (DPI). While the region has strong foundations in payment systems like RTGS and TCIB, it faces systemic risks from a 'regulatory deficit', specifically the low adoption of the AU Malabo Convention. The authors propose a 'Triple-A' agenda: accelerate the federated e-Know Your Customer (e-KYC) framework to include 3.7 million cross-border nationals, anchor governance using 'techno-legal' safeguards inspired by India's DPI Sutras, and assert a unified global position via the African Digital Compact. The brief emphasizes that technical capacity is not the primary barrier; rather, policy fragmentation and the digital divide—particularly affecting rural populations and people with disabilities—must be addressed to achieve digital sovereignty.

The study integrates digital transformation projections into the Shared Socioeconomic Pathways (SSP) framework using statistical models calibrated from 62 countries. It highlights the risk of a persistent digital divide and provides a methodology for quantifying the impact of digitalization on climate goals and sustainable development.

The report analyzes the tension between national cybersecurity measures—such as data localization, technical standards, and technology bans—and the goal of open digital trade. It finds that while cybersecurity is essential for trust in the digital economy, divergent domestic regulations create market fragmentation and trade barriers. The document evaluates the lack of specific cybersecurity rules in WTO treaties, the emergence of 'soft' aspirational provisions in Preferential Trade Agreements (PTAs) and Digital Economy Agreements (DEAs), and the significant 'cyber capacity' gap facing developing countries and Least Developed Countries (LDCs). It concludes with recommendations for evidence-based domestic frameworks and enhanced international technical assistance to bridge the digital divide.

The document reports on the Internet Governance Forum 2025, highlighting a conflict between the United States' preference for deregulated, company-led AI development and calls from other participants for a rights-based, inclusive approach that addresses the digital divide and biases affecting the Global South.