African Union Legal Instrument
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AFRICAN UNION CONVENTION ON
CYBER SECURITY AND PERSONAL DATA PROTECTION
PREAMBLE
The Member States of the African Union:
Guided by the Constitutive Act of the African Union adopted in 2000;
Considering that this Convention on the Establishment of a Legal Framework for
Cyber-security and Personal Data Protection embodies the existing commitments of
African Union Member States at sub-regional, regional and international levels to build
the Information Society,
Recalling that it aims at defining the objectives and broad orientations of the Information
Society in Africa and strengthening existing legislations on Information and
Communication Technologies (ICTs) of Member States and the Regional Economic
Communities (RECs);
Reaffirming the commitment of Member States to fundamental freedoms and human
and peoples‟ rights contained in the declarations, conventions and other instruments
adopted within the framework of the African Union and the United Nations;
Considering that the establishment of a regulatory framework on cyber-security and
personal data protection takes into account the requirements of respect for the rights of
citizens, guaranteed under the fundamental texts of domestic law and protected by
international human rights Conventions and Treaties, particularly the African Charter on
Human and Peoples' Rights;
Mindful of the need to mobilize all public and private actors (States, local communities,
private sector enterprises, civil society organizations, the media, training and research
institutions, etc.) for the promotion of cyber security;
Reiterating the principles of the African Information Society Initiative (AISI) and the
Regional Action Plan on the Knowledge Economy (ARAPKE);
Aware that it is meant to regulate a particularly evolving technological domain, and with
a view to meeting the high expectations of many actors with often divergent interests,
this convention sets forth the security rules essential for establishing a credible digital
space for electronic transactions, personal data protection and combating cybercrime;
Bearing in mind that the major obstacles to the development of electronic commerce
in Africa are linked to security issues, particularly:
The gaps affecting the regulation of
communications and electronic signature;
legal
recognition
of
data