AU Civic Tech Fund invites participants to engagement session
AU Civic Tech Fund invites participants to engagement session
AU Civic Tech Fund invites participants to engagement session
WHAT: The African Union (AU) Commission and partners invite media, stakeholders and potential applicants to attend the AU Civic Tech Fund Q&A Session. The project aims to foster initiatives that strengthen citizen engagement.
WHEN: December 21st 2021
TIME: 14:00 EAT
WHERE: Zoom registration https://bit.ly/3GReuLh
Facebook livestream @AUYouthProgram
BACKGROUND
Innovative tools and digital technologies are central vehicles through which citizen participation can be achieved. As highlighted in the AU’s Digital Transformation Strategy for Africa (2020-2030), digitalisation does not only represent a driving force for innovative, inclusive and sustainable growth, but it also offers concrete opportunities to enable participative and inclusive decision-making.
Across many African countries, citizens from all walks of life - women, youths, people with disabilities, the African Diaspora, private sector, civil society, media, and academia etc. - support policymakers by bringing their needs and ideas as input into the governance and development agenda at all levels. Particularly youths are an important factor, given that almost 60% of Africa's population is under the age of 25.
Despite this progress, there are still numerous opportunities for broader citizen engagement and digital innovation in democratic governance and development spaces. The AU and Regional Economic Communities (RECs) can play a central role as connectors of policy-makers and citizens, conveners of innovation stakeholders and public sector actors and catalysers for innovative data use and methodologies, new technologies and social innovations on the continent.
The African Union Civic Tech Fund is a pan-African initiative that seeks to continue these processes by supporting initiatives that strengthen citizen engagement through innovative tools and digital technologies, or in other words, by supporting targeted civic technology solutions.
The African Union Civic Tech Fund’s core objective is;
- To support and demonstrate effective models in citizen participation, to support the scale up of initiatives, and to influence policy in support of replicable and/or scalable civic tech initiatives and citizens led transformative action across the African continent.
HOW TO PARTICIPATE
The event will be held on Tuesday 21st December 2021 at 14:00 EAT via Zoom, and will be broadcast on the African Union Youth Program Facebook page, @AUYouthProgram
Please follow the links below;
Registration link: https://bit.ly/3GReuLh
The African Union Civic Tech Fund is a pan-African initiative designed to contribute to achieving ambitious goals contained in the policies of the African Union (Agenda 2063 and Digital Transformation Strategy for Africa, 2020-2030). In particular, the Fund responds to the need to drive forward meaningful citizen participation in spaces of governance through the innovative use of data and digital technologies to address governance and development challenges while recognising the central importance of Africa’s youth in shaping the future of the continent.
To do so, the African Union Civic Tech Fund supports initiatives, particularly those led by or relevant to youth, that strengthen citizen engagement through the innovative use of data and digital technologies, or, in other words, that can support targeted civic technology solutions. The objective is to demonstrate effective models of citizen participation, support the scalability of initiatives, and influence policy to support replicable and/or scalable civic technology initiatives and transformative citizen-led actions across the African continent. The Fund includes a virtual accelerator program organised by AfriLabs.The African Union Civic Tech Fund an African Union, managed by the European Partnership for Democracy and financially supported by GIZ.
For further information please contact:
Mr. David Amira, Communications Coordinator | Women, Gender and Youth Directorate | African Union Commission | E-mail: AmiraD@africa-union.org | Addis Ababa, Ethiopia
Information and Communication Directorate, African Union Commission I E-mail: DIC@africa-union.org
Web: au.int | Addis Ababa, Ethiopia |
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