“From people’s movements to contentious elections, as political escalations continued to make headlines in Africa, authorities increasingly defaulted to internet shutdowns to disempower and disconnect people.”
Fifteen African countries cut the internet 21 times in 2024, a record for the region. Protests triggered most of them. Comoros, Guinea-Bissau, and Mauritius did it for the first time. Governments reach for the switch when people take to the streets.