“For the past three years the Catalysing Access to ICTs in Africa programme (CATIA) has worked towards strengthening the context for the vibrant adoption and use of ICTs in Africa. The programme has been set up with nine components, each with its particular advocacy aim, in countries as diverse as Ethiopia, Kenya, the Democratic Republic of the Congo and Senegal.

CATIA has shown that one of the most effective ways to have an impact on the ICT policy landscape in Africa is by collaborating in multi-stakeholder processes, where experiences, perspectives and resources can be shared, and a common agenda shaped. The programme’s clearest success stories have involved collaborations between civil society, the media, the private sector, as well as, in some instances, regulators and policy-makers.

This article provides an overview of participants’ experiences in working in a multi-stakeholder environment”

Some of the key findings of the article are:

• While the multi-stakeholder approach to ICT policy development was unusual a few years ago, many new success stories in policy engagement in Africa are the result of collaborating across the sectors;
• Participants consider the multi-stakeholder approach an important nation-building process that unlocks a country’s expertise and resources;
• Multi-stakeholder networks increase the credibility of an advocacy drive;
• They also tend to make policy processes more transparent, particularly if the media is one of the stakeholders;
• Multi-stakeholder networks are dynamic, and their make-up depends on the context. While collaborations between civil society, private sector and the media have proved successful, other stakeholders in policy development processes have included academics, the government, global agencies such as the United Nations, and policy-makers and regulators;
• The interests of the different stakeholders needs to be managed and a common agenda forged that all stakeholders are comfortable with. Processes need to be put in place to ensure that all perspectives are appreciated;
• Sometimes advocacy objectives need to be aligned with government strategies to make the advocacy goals more palatable for politicians;
• While stakeholder buy-in into an advocacy initiative is important, this should not come at any cost. Values and principles, such as accountability and transparency, need to be preserved and sometimes defended.”