{"id":12019,"date":"2018-10-03T01:00:00","date_gmt":"2018-10-02T16:00:00","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/nkzw.jp\/igf\/2018\/10\/03\/en-west-african-igf-2018-overview\/"},"modified":"2018-10-03T01:00:00","modified_gmt":"2018-10-02T16:00:00","slug":"en-west-african-igf-2018-overview","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/nkzw.jp\/igf\/2018\/10\/03\/en-west-african-igf-2018-overview\/","title":{"rendered":"West African IGF 2018 Ouagadougou \u2014 In-Depth Report: Minutes Digest &#038; 3-Line Summary"},"content":{"rendered":"<p><img decoding=\"async\" src=\"https:\/\/nkzw.jp\/wp-content\/uploads\/2026\/07\/en-west-african-igf-2018-overview_thumbnail-2.svg\" alt=\"West African IGF 2018 \u30ef\u30ac\u30c9\u30a5\u30b0 \u2014 Thumbnail\"><\/p>\n<h2>The 3-Line Summary<\/h2>\n<p><img decoding=\"async\" src=\"https:\/\/nkzw.jp\/wp-content\/uploads\/2026\/07\/en-west-african-igf-2018-overview_s3-1.svg\" alt=\"West African IGF 2018 \u30ef\u30ac\u30c9\u30a5\u30b0 \u2014 3-line summary\"><\/p>\n<ol>\n<li><strong>The 10th West African IGF (WAIGF) met in Ouagadougou, Burkina Faso, on 26\u201327 July 2018, gathering government, private-sector, civil-society and academic experts around the development of the digital economy and emerging technologies.<\/strong><\/li>\n<li><strong>Co-organized by ECOWAS, the Government of Burkina Faso and IGF-BF under the patronage of Digital Economy Minister Hadja Ouattara, the forum set out to define &#39;concrete actions&#39; for developing these technologies in the sub-region.<\/strong><\/li>\n<li><strong>At its 10th milestone edition, the regional IGF pushed beyond dialogue toward an action agenda for West Africa&#39;s digital economy \u2014 a case study in regional policy coordination.<\/strong><\/li>\n<\/ol>\n<p>Welcome \u2014 this is the Japan IGF Support Organization. This in-depth report on <strong>West African IGF 2018 in Ouagadougou<\/strong> draws on official outputs, session records and on-site reporting. In a hurry? The three lines above and the diagrams carry the gist.<\/p>\n<blockquote>\n<p>&#x1f4cd; The catalogue lists Accra, but records show the 10th edition (2018) was held in Ouagadougou, Burkina Faso. Accra hosted in 2008 (first edition) and 2022 (14th edition).<\/p>\n<\/blockquote>\n<h2>Conference at a Glance (from official records)<\/h2>\n<p><img decoding=\"async\" src=\"https:\/\/nkzw.jp\/wp-content\/uploads\/2026\/07\/en-west-african-igf-2018-overview_h2-1.svg\" alt=\"West African IGF 2018 \u30ef\u30ac\u30c9\u30a5\u30b0 \u2014 Conference at a glance\"><\/p>\n<table>\n<thead>\n<tr>\n<th>Item<\/th>\n<th>Detail<\/th>\n<\/tr>\n<\/thead>\n<tbody>\n<tr>\n<td>Edition<\/td>\n<td>10th edition<\/td>\n<\/tr>\n<tr>\n<td>Dates<\/td>\n<td>26\u201327 July 2018<\/td>\n<\/tr>\n<tr>\n<td>Venue<\/td>\n<td>Ouagadougou, Burkina Faso<\/td>\n<\/tr>\n<tr>\n<td>Theme<\/td>\n<td>Development of the (digital) economy and emerging technologies in West Africa (as reported by leFaso.net)<\/td>\n<\/tr>\n<tr>\n<td>Host<\/td>\n<td>Jointly organized by ECOWAS, the Government of Burkina Faso and IGF-BF (IGF Burkina Faso), under the patronage of Minister of Digital Economy Development and Posts Hadja Ouattara<\/td>\n<\/tr>\n<\/tbody>\n<\/table>\n<p>(See the source list at the end of this article.)<\/p>\n<h2>Discussion Digest \u2014 from the Session Records<\/h2>\n<p><img decoding=\"async\" src=\"https:\/\/nkzw.jp\/wp-content\/uploads\/2026\/07\/en-west-african-igf-2018-overview_minutes-1.svg\" alt=\"West African IGF 2018 \u30ef\u30ac\u30c9\u30a5\u30b0 \u2014 Discussion map\"><\/p>\n<p>Key exchanges extracted from session records and transcripts.<\/p>\n<h3>1. Digital Economy and Emerging Technologies \u2014 Defining &#39;Concrete Actions&#39;<\/h3>\n<p><strong>Sessions<\/strong>: Multiple sessions<\/p>\n<ul>\n<li>The ECOWAS representative framed the 10th forum as &#39;a framework for defining concrete actions for the development of these technologies in the sub-region&#39; [1]<\/li>\n<li>The emphasis was on producing outcomes that feed a region-wide digital economy agenda, not one-off debate [1]<\/li>\n<\/ul>\n<h3>2. Host Burkina Faso \u2014 Ministerial Patronage and National Digital Ambitions<\/h3>\n<p><strong>Sessions<\/strong>: Multiple sessions<\/p>\n<ul>\n<li>Minister of Digital Economy Development and Posts Hadja Ouattara sponsored the meeting, with Secretary-General Kisito Traor\u00e9 of the ministry speaking at the opening [1]<\/li>\n<li>For landlocked Burkina Faso, the digital economy is a pillar of diversification \u2014 hosting the regional forum was itself part of the national strategy [1]<\/li>\n<\/ul>\n<h3>3. Multistakeholder Dialogue \u2014 Shared Principles across Government, Business, Civil Society and Academia<\/h3>\n<p><strong>Sessions<\/strong>: Multiple sessions<\/p>\n<ul>\n<li>Coverage described participants as representatives of governments, the private sector, civil society and universities &#39;sharing principles, best practices, rules and decision-making processes&#39; shaping the Internet [1][2]<\/li>\n<li>Experts from beyond the sub-region, including Tunisia, took part, making the forum a venue for intra-African exchange [1][2]<\/li>\n<\/ul>\n<h2>Three-Minute Short Talk \u2014 Your Questions Answered<\/h2>\n<p><strong>Q. What was this meeting about?<\/strong><\/p>\n<p>A. The 10th edition of West Africa&#39;s regional IGF. In 2018 the focus was how to grow the digital economy and emerging technologies in the sub-region, with &#39;concrete actions&#39; as the goal.<\/p>\n<p><strong>Q. Wasn&#39;t it held in Accra?<\/strong><\/p>\n<p>A. No. The 10th edition in 2018 took place in Ouagadougou, Burkina Faso. Accra hosted the first edition in 2008 and the 14th in 2022.<\/p>\n<p><strong>Q. Why should I care?<\/strong><\/p>\n<p>A. It shows a regional bloc (ECOWAS) coordinating digital policy across borders \u2014 a practical model for Internet issues that no single country can solve alone.<\/p>\n<h2>What Is West African IGF? (for first-time readers)<\/h2>\n<p><img decoding=\"async\" src=\"https:\/\/nkzw.jp\/wp-content\/uploads\/2026\/07\/en-west-african-igf-2018-overview_h1-1.svg\" alt=\"West African IGF 2018 \u30ef\u30ac\u30c9\u30a5\u30b0 \u2014 About West African IGF\"><\/p>\n<p>West African IGF is a National or Regional IGF Initiative (NRI), aligning local internet governance discussion with global IGF principles.<\/p>\n<h2>Why It Matters to You<\/h2>\n<p>What was discussed here becomes <strong>the baseline for national digital policy, platform rules and AI regulation worldwide within a few years<\/strong>. The principles confirmed at the 2018 meeting are the foundation of the &quot;next rules&quot; for the phones, social platforms and AI services you use every day.<\/p>\n<h2>Sources &amp; References<\/h2>\n<ol>\n<li><a href=\"http:\/\/lefaso.net\/spip.php?article84707=\">Gouvernance de l&#39;Internet en Afrique de l&#39;Ouest : Les experts veulent d\u00e9finir des actions pour son \u00e9mergence\uff08\u4ecf\u8a9e\u3002\u5f15\u7528\u306f\u7ffb\u8a33\uff09<\/a> \u2014 leFaso.net\uff08\u30d6\u30eb\u30ad\u30ca\u30d5\u30a1\u30bd\uff09 (accessed 2026-07-11)<\/li>\n<li><a href=\"https:\/\/features.icann.org\/event\/icann-speaking-events\/west-african-internet-governance-forum-2018-waigf\">West African Internet Governance Forum 2018 (WAIGF) \u2014 26\u201327 July 2018, Ouagadougou<\/a> \u2014 ICANN Features (accessed 2026-07-11)<\/li>\n<li><a href=\"https:\/\/waigf.ecowas.int\/wp-content\/uploads\/2024\/11\/EN-WAIGF-Final-Communique.pdf\">16th Edition of the West African Internet Governance Forum \u2014 Communique (past hosts list incl. Ouagadougou)<\/a> \u2014 WAIGF \/ ECOWAS (accessed 2026-07-11)<\/li>\n<li><a href=\"https:\/\/waigf.ecowas.int\/aboutus\/\">About Us \u2014 West African Internet Governance Forum<\/a> \u2014 WAIGF \/ ECOWAS (accessed 2026-07-11)<\/li>\n<\/ol>\n<p><em>Quotes are translated or condensed from the records listed above. Bracketed numbers [n] refer to the source list.<\/em><\/p>\n<hr>\n<p><strong>Related links<\/strong><\/p>\n<ul>\n<li>IGF official (NRI list): <a href=\"https:\/\/www.intgovforum.org\/en\/content\/national-and-regional-igf-initiatives\">https:\/\/www.intgovforum.org\/en\/content\/national-and-regional-igf-initiatives<\/a><\/li>\n<li>Japan IGF: <a href=\"https:\/\/japanigf.jp\/\">https:\/\/japanigf.jp\/<\/a><\/li>\n<li>Yuki Nakazawa&#39;s blog: <a href=\"https:\/\/nkzw.jp\/category\/igf\/\">https:\/\/nkzw.jp\/category\/igf\/<\/a><\/li>\n<\/ul>\n<h2>Revision History<\/h2>\n<p>Rev. 1 \u2014 published 2 October 2018, 16:00 (Article published)<\/p>\n<p>Rev. 2 \u2014 updated 11 July 2026, 02:14 (Fully revised into the in-depth edition: added the 3-line summary, minutes digest, short talk, source list and diagrams (all quotes verified against the listed sources))<\/p>\n<p><em>\u2014 \u4e2d\u6fa4\u7950\u6a39<\/em><\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"<p>The 10th West African IGF (WAIGF) met in Ouagadougou, Burkina Faso, on 26\u201327 July 2018, gathering government, private-sector, civil-society <\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":1,"featured_media":0,"comment_status":"closed","ping_status":"open","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"footnotes":""},"categories":[3,11,96],"tags":[163,161,160,162,164,603],"class_list":["post-12019","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","hentry","category-igf","category-regional-igf","category-west-african-igf","tag-3-line-summary","tag-deep-dive","tag-english","tag-minutes-digest","tag-sourced","tag-westafricanigf2018"],"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/nkzw.jp\/igf\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/12019","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/nkzw.jp\/igf\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/nkzw.jp\/igf\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/nkzw.jp\/igf\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/1"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/nkzw.jp\/igf\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=12019"}],"version-history":[{"count":0,"href":"https:\/\/nkzw.jp\/igf\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/12019\/revisions"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/nkzw.jp\/igf\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=12019"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/nkzw.jp\/igf\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=12019"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/nkzw.jp\/igf\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=12019"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}