FIDA Kenya Charts a Path to Digital Justice for Women and Girls

The digital revolution is reshaping Africa in profound ways unleashing opportunity, community, and innovation. Yet amid these gains, a sobering reality persists: technology-facilitated violence against women and girls (TFVAWG). From cyberstalking to image-based abuse, digital platforms have become new battlegrounds for the rights and safety of women across the continent.

Illuminating a Crisis, Building a Coalition

FIDA Kenya, one of Africa’s most established defenders of women’s rights, has moved decisively to confront this threat. In partnership with Nigeria’s Women Advocates Research and Documentation Centre (WARDC) and with support from the United Nations Trust Fund to End Violence Against Women, the organization has brought research, legal expertise, and advocacy into a united continental response.

The initiative has highlighted harrowing realities: harassment in private messages, digital blackmail, and coordinated online attacks that have silenced women’s voices, undermined careers, and endangered personal safety. Survivors have spoken of withdrawing from online spaces entirely, losing both visibility and opportunity. The message is clear digital violence is not “virtual” or trivial. Its effects are immediate, deeply personal, and profoundly real.

Leading with Evidence and Expertise

At the heart of this work lies groundbreaking research mapping how TFVAWG manifests in Kenya and Nigeria. Prominent figures such as Nigerian Senator Natasha Akpoti-Uduaghan and Dr. Kemi Omotubora of the University of Lagos have underscored the urgency of updating cybercrime laws, closing prosecution gaps, and equipping judicial systems to respond with both speed and sensitivity.

Pan-African organizations including FEMNET and the Centre for Reproductive Rights have added their voices, connecting digital safety to broader struggles for gender equality and reproductive justice. Together, they have affirmed that confronting online violence is inseparable from advancing women’s rights in every domain.

A Continent United in Action

One of the initiative’s most powerful outcomes has been the building of cross-regional solidarity. By linking East and West Africa, the project recognizes that online abuse knows no borders and neither should solutions.

From policymakers to academics, from legal practitioners to grassroots organizers, a wide coalition has taken shape. Their shared commitment emphasizes survivor-centered reform, specialized police training, improved reporting systems, and regional partnerships that sustain momentum long after the research is published.

The Roadmap Ahead

Out of this collaboration, a clear action plan has emerged:

• Reform and Harmonize Laws: Ensure cybercrime and gender-based violence legislation explicitly recognizes and criminalizes TFVAWG.

• Capacity Building: Train police officers, prosecutors, and judges to understand digital evidence and respond with sensitivity.

• Survivor-Centered Support: Provide legal aid, safe reporting mechanisms, and trauma-informed care.

• Technology Sector Responsibility: Hold tech platforms accountable for safeguarding users through rapid response protocols and stronger protections.

• Public Education and Digital Literacy: Equip women, girls, and communities with knowledge to prevent, report, and resist abuse.

• Pan-African Partnerships: Foster sustained collaboration across borders to ensure collective progress.

A Legacy of Feminist Leadership

For over three decades, FIDA Kenya has been at the forefront of legal reform, advocacy, and direct engagement with communities. Its leadership on digital justice builds on that legacy, positioning the organization as both a protector of rights and a trailblazer in adapting to the challenges of the digital era.

By uniting research, advocacy, and survivor voices, FIDA Kenya is setting a standard for how African institutions can respond to new and complex threats. Its approach sends a powerful message: women must not have to choose between engaging in the digital age and safeguarding their safety. They deserve both.

Towards a Fearless Digital Future

The road ahead will require endurance, political will, and sustained resources. Reforming laws, empowering institutions, supporting survivors, and demanding accountability from technology companies will not happen overnight. Yet the blueprint is in place, and the momentum across Africa is unmistakable.

FIDA Kenya’s vision extends beyond the immediate challenge of online abuse. It is about securing a future where women and girls across the continent can step confidently into the digital age their rights protected, their voices respected, and their power undiminished by fear.