Integrated Refugee Organization (IRO)

Pour demander de l’assistance numérique, Helpdesk: · Web: helpdesk.integratedrefugee.org · Telegram: t.me/HelpDesk_IRO_P… · Signal: +256 200986996 · Signal / WhatsApp: +243 836753009 · E-mail: helpdesk@integratedrefugee.org · E-mail: helpdesk@ppi-ong.org @PPIREGIONALE #DRCongo

Join us this Thursday for a webinar on Advancing Platform Accountability for women’s Online Safety in Africa. 📆Thursday, March 19, 2026 🕑4:00 EAT Register here:tinyurl.com/3pm9p545 What you’ll learn: 🟠How “safety by design” can be built into tech platforms from the start. 🟠How to identify and respond to online harms like harassment, deepfakes, and non-consensual content. 🟠What effective, accessible reporting systems should look like for survivors. 🟠Why current platform accountability gaps persist, especially in African contexts. 🟠The role of policymakers, tech companies, and civil society in protecting women online. 🟠Practical approaches to ensuring women’s full and safe participation in digital spaces. 🟠Be part of the conversation shaping safer digital spaces for all. #IWD2026 #ForAllWomenAndGirls #BeSafebyDesign

“War destroys lives far beyond borders. As a refugee since 2015, I know the reality: displacement, loss, and uncertainty. No one chooses to be a refugee. Choose peace over war. @UN please act decisively. We need a world with peace, no war, and no refugees. @antonioguterres” ED

Thank you to everyone who joined our Digital Security Clinic at Next Media Hub, yesterday. 🔐 Your engagement and commitment to strengthening online safety made it a meaningful session. Here are some dangers that we noticed: 🛑Some journalists are enabling advanced security features like passkeys and secure sign-in, yet neglecting basic digital hygiene. Accounts remain logged in on unknown devices. Sessions are never reviewed. 🛑Phones have no screen lock. 🛑“Skip sign-in” is selected for convenience. Selecting “skip sign in” on a Google account on a phone without a screen lock, especially with passkeys enabled,creates a serious vulnerability. If that device is lost, borrowed, or briefly accessed, account compromise becomes easy. 🔐Strong security requires layered discipline: 1⃣Regularly review logged-in devices and remove unknown sessions. 2⃣Always enable a screen lock (PIN, fingerprint, or Face ID). 3⃣Never bypass sign in protections on shared or unsecured devices. 4⃣Treat passkeys as powerful ,but only when the device itself is protected. We left the event with one urgent question: "How do we help people approach digital risk with the same seriousness and caution they apply to health risks?" As a digital citizen, remember #BeeraSharp

Our ED is joining @cipesaug at the Cybersecurity, Data Protection & Privacy Conference hosted by @NITAUganda1 at @nextmediaug. Please visit our Digital Security Clinic for hands-on support with tools, device protection, secure communication, data privacy and account security.

📢 Applications Now Open! The SRP 2027–28 French Stream call for applications is officially live! Apply here: forms.gle/xibL7pYUfqsyNP… Eligibility details: srp.wusc.ca/students/ Don’t miss this opportunity!

@DKAmbUganda, and @LillianAber met this week to discuss Denmark’s continued support to Uganda’s refugee response. Denmark will continue to have a strong focus on how best to support Uganda’s open-door refugee policy in changing times.

As we commemorate #SaferInternetDay 🔐 , we are reminded that online safety is not automatic. It is a shared responsibility that lies with governments, technology companies, parents, educators, and every digital citizen. Across Africa, 🧒👧children’s access to the internet is expanding rapidly, bringing new opportunities for learning and connection. At the same time, emerging technologies, particularly Artificial Intelligence, are reshaping online spaces in ways that introduce new and amplified risks for children’s rights, privacy, and safety. The State of Internet Freedom in Africa 2025 report, highlights how AI, is increasingly being used to generate and spread harmful content at scale. AI-powered tools can rapidly produce disinformation, manipulate images, audio, and video through deepfakes, and make harmful content harder to detect or trace. In environments with low digital literacy and weak content moderation, children are especially vulnerable to these harms. Children in Africa already face a complex range of online threats which include cyberbullying, online grooming, predation, and sexual exploitation. Artificial intelligence also raises serious data protection and privacy concerns. Children’s personal data is routinely collected, analysed, and shared for commercial purposes, often without meaningful consent. AI-driven profiling and targeted advertising, including through child friendly apps(games, music) and educational apps, increase the risk of data misuse and long-term digital profiling. During a recent training for Data Protection Officers in Uganda, held as part of our Data Privacy Day engagements alongside the Personal Data Protection Office, the urgent need to protect all forms of personal data, especially children’s data, was strongly emphasized. We also continue to encourage everyone to #BeeraSharp when navigating online and offline spaces. These challenges are compounded by low digital literacy among both children and parents, weak enforcement of existing laws, and limited institutional capacity to regulate advanced technologies like AI. Without strong, child-centred governance frameworks, AI risks deepening existing inequalities and accelerating digital harms. Safer Internet Day is therefore more than a symbolic moment. It is a call to ensure that AI is developed and deployed in ways that respect children’s rights and protect privacy. 📰State of Internet Freedom Report 2025: tinyurl.com/2uh2he76 📰Child Protection and Safety Online in Africa Report:tinyurl.com/tnvhcbv7 #InternetFreedomAfrica

#opportunity Climate Change Media Fellowship meshascience.org/areccca-climat…

Today, @StateDept announced $200 million of humanitarian assistance to the Sudan Humanitarian Fund. This contribution is part of the landmark $2 billion pledge to @UNOCHA made in December and will help address the catastrophic humanitarian crisis affecting millions of people in Sudan. @UnderSecretaryF @US_SrAdvisorAF

Apply now for the Australia Awards Scholarships – fully funded opportunities for undergraduate & postgraduate study in Australia! Check eligibility & apply via the official portal: dfat.gov.au/people-to-peop… Applications open 1 Feb – close 30 Apr 2026. #AustraliaAwards #Refugees

⌛️The Data Privacy Pop Up Clinic kicks off at 2pm. We invite journalists, Data Protection Officers (DPOs), and Civil Society Organisations to join us as part of the 2026 Data Privacy Day commemoration for expert guidance and practical support on data privacy. We shall provide: 🟧 Digital security audits. 🟧 Guidance on setting up robust data systems. 🟧 Practical insights on complying with Uganda’s Data Protection and Privacy Act and regulations. 🟧 Tips on securing digital communication and sensitive information. 🟧 Access to tools and resources for risk assessment and privacy management. 🟧 One on one consultations with data protection experts. 📅 Date: Wednesday, 28 January 2026. ⏰ Time: Starting 2pm. 📍 Venue: Victoria Hall, Four Points by Sheraton, Kampala. #DPW2026 #BeeraSharp

The Data Protection Master Class concluded successfully. ✅ Participants strengthened their ability to: 🟧Apply Uganda’s data protection legal requirements to organisational decision-making. 🟧Use a risk-based approach to prioritise compliance actions. 🟧Communicate data protection risks and recommendations to senior management. 🟧Support innovation and service delivery while safeguarding data subjects’ rights. 🟧Strengthen the effectiveness and influence of the DPO function. #DPW2026 #BeeraSharp

We need to take a moment during the #DataPrivacyWeek and remind ourselves to #BeeraSharp. Protecting digital rights in Uganda is more than just a good habit, it’s the Law. Whether you're a business or an individual, knowing how to handle data is key to staying secure. Learn more how you can #BeeraSharp: cipesa.org/beera-sharp/ #DPW2026

We engaged journalists, Data Protection Officers, and civil society actors during our Data Privacy Clinic yesterday. We focused on practical digital security risks, threats and safeguards. We loved the enthusiasm and question. When it comes to data privacy, there are no silly questions. Please reach out to us via direct message for any inquiries. #DPW2026 #DataPrivacyWeek

We spoke with Mr. Baker Birikujja, National Director at @pdpoUG during the Data Protection Officers Masterclass held in commemoration of Data Privacy Day. He shared insights on the following topics, 🟧 The importance of data privacy 🟧 Uganda’s data protection legal framework 🟧 The status of Google’s registration as a data collector, controller, and or processor in Uganda #DPW2026 #DataPrivacyWeek #BeeraSharp

Protecting digital rights is the Law: Reflections from the Data Protection Clinic in Kampala integratedrefugee.org/protecting-dig…

🚨 POP UP DATA PRIVACY CLINIC 🚨 As part of the 2026 Data Privacy Day commemoration, we are hosting a Data Privacy Clinic and inviting journalists, Data Protection Officers (DPOs), and Civil Society Organisations to come by for expert guidance and support on data privacy. We shall provide: 🟧Digital Security Audits. 🟧Guidance on setting up robust data systems. 🟧Learn how to comply with Uganda’s Data Protection and Privacy Act and regulations. 🟧Get tips on securing digital communication and sensitive information. 🟧Access resources and tools for risk assessment and privacy management. 🟧 One on One consultations. 📅 Date: Wednesday, 28 January 2026 ⏰ Time: Starting 2pm 📍 Venue: Victoria Hall. Four Points by Sheraton, Kampala #DPW2026 #BeeraSharp

We are commemorating Data Privacy Day 2026 by hosting a Master Class for Data Protection Officers (DPOs), in partnership with the Personal Data Protection Office: “The DPO as a Strategic Advisor: Balancing Compliance, Risk, and Business Needs.” The half-day session will equip DPOs to provide strategic, risk-based advice, strengthen organisational decision-making, and safeguard data subjects’ rights, while supporting business objectives. Follow the conversation at #DPW2026. The event will also be livestreamed on YouTube: @collaborationoninternation5135" target="_blank" rel="nofollow noopener">youtube.com/@collaboration… #BeeraSharp

"I will start off this masterclass with a simple but uncomfortable truth. Most data breaches don't start with a hacker. They begin with a printed report left on the desk, a patient file left unattended, an unlocked file cabinet, a phonecall that is handled without discretion and a USB drive left unattended."- Baker Birikujja, National Director, Personal Data Protection Office. #DPW2026 #BeeraSharp

Happy International Data Privacy Day! Today, the @pdpoUG in partnership with @cipesaug is convening a Data Protection Officers’ Masterclass to mark this important day, bringing together Data Protection Officers from across sectors. The session is aimed at strengthening the capacity of DPOs to move beyond technical compliance and play a more strategic role in organizational decision-making, risk management, and sustainable business growth. #DataPrivacyday2026