Ethiopia is the second most populous country in Africa with more than 105 million citizens. However, it has relatively low Internet connectivity with less than 15% of its population having access to the Internet.

Even those having access to the Internet pay, access is expensive and often unreliable. As a result, Ethiopians risk from being marginalized from the Internet economy. Fortunately, this is changing since the state monopoly on telecommunication that was the root cause of most of the problems has been abolished and competition is in the horizon.

The Internet Society, together with its partners, organizes Ethiopia Internet Development Conference 2020 as a multi-stakeholder event to so that the local community can prepare for this new era and start developing the Internet ecosystem for the benefit of citizens and businesses alike. The event will take place from 3-5 March 2020 in the capital of Ethiopia, Addis Ababa.

We are grateful and honored that the Ministry of Innovation and Technology has accepted to support the conference.

Objective of the Conference

The objective of the conference is to create awareness amongst policy makers, regulators, businesses, technologists, and potential entrepreneurs about the Internet model, technology and organizations and create the foundation for a robust internet Ecosystem in Ethiopia in this new post-monopoly era. Specifically, the conference will:

Expected Outcome

The 2-day conference will be action oriented. It would result in a number of recommendations on how to build the Internet ecosystem.

Who Should Attend

The conference targets policy makers, regulators, businesses, technologists, and potential entrepreneurs. The conference is planned as a non-profit event and international sponsorship and support have been sought to convene the event.

If you are not able to join us on site, watch the livestream!