Bio
Grace Mutung’u researches information and communications technology (ICT) policy in Kenya and Africa, with a specialization in digital rights, governance and development. She has been involved in ICT policy development over the past 10 years and has been engaged in various projects including Kenya’s country domain administration (.ke), dispute resolution policy, public participation in various policies and laws in the sector, legal compliance, and universal periodic review reporting on ICT policies and digital rights in several African countries. She is particularly interested in the use of technologies to achieve the UN Sustainable Development Goals and is currently studying how national digital ID programs intersect with development and social justice. She has also worked in political mobilization and community development, in particular during the initial implementation of Kenya’s 2010 constitution.
Grace is currently a research fellow at the Centre for IP & IT Law at Strathmore University in Nairobi, Kenya. She was previously a fellow at the Berkman Klein Center for Internet & Society, where she studied the use of the internet in elections and served as founding trustee for the board of the policy think tank KICTANet. She also provides regular updates on internet governance developments from Africa for the GIP Digital Watch observatory and is participating in several working groups on the use of artificial intelligence for development. She holds a master’s degree in contemporary diplomacy from the University of Malta. Grace is an ardent theatre fan and often seeks dialogue between African literature and digital development.