ASUTIC

ASUTIC, which stands for Association des Utilisateurs des TIC (ICT Users Association), is a non-profit, independent organisation based in Senegal that promotes and protects human rights and fundamental freedoms in the digital age. It strives to ensure that people have access to knowledge and information, key drivers for sustainable development to the benefit of everyone.

ASUTIC works to create legal, institutional and policy frameworks that foster participatory democracy, openness of ICT infrastructure, trust, security, interoperability and standardisation and to generate the necessary skills in government, business and civil society.

It uses ICT to:

• Offer increased potential for positive social and economic change, in particular for poor and marginalised people

• Broaden the number of participants in public policy decisions

• Enlighten citizens' opinions by giving them the means to understand the present and be prepared for the future

• Encourage greater engagement in civil society to co-build more effective public policies

• Accelerate the democratic process as a tool for social change and women’s empowerment.

ASUTIC was the first Senegalese civil society organisation recognised as an expert in ICT policies and digital rights. Through its work, it has increased people's awareness of the difficulties that hinder access to quality ICT service that is accessible and affordable, as well as greater understanding of their digital rights and the need to protect them.