The Communications Authority of Kenya (CA) is pushing for new Regulatory Frameworks that cater to new innovations.
While speaking before a special parliamentary committee, the CA Director General Mr. Ezra Chiloba recommended regulatory sandboxing on complex issues like Worldcoin to nurture innovation in a safe, secure environment for socio-economic development.
Mr. Chiloba noted that regulations should allow new innovations to thrive in the country. Thus, the use of Sandboxes will allow the maturity of innovations before deployment to the market.
”A lot of innovations have come out of crises. We can learn from this Worldcoin case and see if there are solutions relevant to our context. We have established a regulatory sandbox to nurture and support innovations in the country,”’ stated the director general
Currently, the authority is undertaking a forensic audit of Worldcoin’s operations.
The authority, alongside the Office of the Data Protection Commissioner (ODPC) had issued a joint statement on Worldcoin. The statement pointed to a lack of clarity in the company’s security and storage of sensitive data.
In addition, Mr. Chiloba pointed out that the lack of a fully operational digital currency framework poses a risk of money laundering and consumer protection.
Later on, Mr. CHILOBA had a one-on-one meeting with MP John Kiarie, the Chairman of the Parliamentary Committee on Information, Innovation & Communication. During, the meeting the two discussed emerging issues in the ICT sector.
Further, the Director General has recently held discussions on a raft of regulatory issues around content creation, moderation, and monetization in Kenya with the TikTok Sub-Saharan Africa team.
Regulatory Frameworks Alongside Other Efforts
All these engagements by the CA reflect the emerging issues in the ICT sector. The Communications Authority of Kenya (CA) is charged with the responsibility of protecting and safeguarding the interests of consumers in relation to the provision of ICT services and equipment.
Whereas the development of regulatory frameworks requires wide stakeholder engagement including parliament, the CA has been running other programs.
Recently, CA and Huawei ran cyber security hackathons in the country. This is part of ongoing plans to develop local cybersecurity capacity.
The authority also runs Consumer Education Outreach Programmes. For example, in this year’s Kenya Music Festival, CA was present to sensitive the young participants and the public in general on online child protection.
Educating consumers is an effective mechanism to protect them as it helps them make informed choices when purchasing and using ICTs.
