Text of Remarks by Ojoma Ochai at the Opening of the Feminist Futures Festival on the Sidelines of #UNGA79 [Reflecting on the Global Digital Compact]

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Good morning everyone.

I am honoured to be here today as we gather to explore what the future holds and how we, together, can shape it as feminists, and as collaborators in the quest for a better world.?

My name is Ojoma Ochai? Managing Director at Co-Creation Hub (CcHUB), an organisation that bridges technology, innovation, creativity and social impact across Africa.?

Through our offices in Nigeria, Kenya, Rwanda and Namibia, we have supported innovators, and technology and creative entrepreneurs across over 40 countries in Africa through our incubators, accelerators, funding and investment schemes among other initiatives.?

Due to our position as the Pan African innovation enabler, over the past months, I have been closely following the preparations for the Summit of the Future and in particular, the development of the Global Digital Compact.?

The Compact is ambitious, and its impact will touch many sectors and lives, including women’s. My talk today will focus on the compact and its potential for empowering feminist futures.

To start, I’d like us to pause and acknowledge the significance of the achievement of the passing of the Pact for the Future and the Compact. In a world often focused on what’s not working, we should take a moment to celebrate what we’ve accomplished.?

This Compact, while not perfect - nothing in life is!, I think, is a testament to? global collaboration and hope for a future that is more inclusive and equitable.

It shows us that progress is possible and that? we can come together to lay a framework that has the potential to change the digital world.

One of the things that truly excites me about the pact and compact is that it was co-facilitated by Zambia. This is an indication that African nations including my own, Nigeria—are no longer just passive players but active contributors to global discourse. It challenges long-standing stereotypes about our continent, reminding the world that we can lead , not just follow.

For feminist movements and organisations this signals an opportunity for cross-continental solidarity - the voices of women everywhere, are integral to shaping the global feminist movement as well as the global digital agenda of course .

The Compact’s commitment to multilateralism and multi-stakeholder collaboration is essential for feminist movements to note. It is a reminder that real progress happens when all voices are heard? – not just the voices of the well-educated, articulate, and privileged.

The Compact is underpinned by human rights including the right to freedom - freedom of expression, freedom to innovate,? the freedom to participate fully in the digital economy and the freedom to safely navigate the world as a woman.?

This commitment gives a renewed impetus to reclaim digital spaces for advocacy, organizing, and innovation. Specific attention? as outlined in the compact, need to be paid to gender-based digital violence as these freedoms can be limited for women who often face intimidation, harassment, and violence online.?

The Compact acknowledges the importance of? digital skills not only for consumption but for creation. This offers the world a chance to train, empower and support women as creators, not just consumers in this new digital age. By focusing on the creation of technologies, policies, and tools that serve women and gender-diverse communities, feminist movements and women’s rights organisations and all of us in fact, can use the Compact as a springboard for driving gender-responsive innovation.

The Compact touches on digital public infrastructure and the need for digital competencies in the public sector and we need to ensure that this capacity includes how to design with women, and with women in mind.?

In closing, I must say, that I am hopeful at the prospect of the opportunities for innovation that the Global Digital Compact presents if all stakeholders work together to make things happen.?

At CcHUB I’ve seen first-hand the power of digital (and creative) enterprise to transform lives. We are actively supporting use cases across education, health care , creative industries and other sectors, that benefit individuals, communities, and the entire continent. many of these innovations? are led by women innovators. This is where the future lies— in digital enterprises that offer opportunities for all, in digital solutions that are meaningful and inclusive and in digital platforms that are leveraged to challenge gender norms, build solidarity, and demand women’s rightful place in the future of technology.?

As I reflected in a LinkedIn post the other day - Not being a feminist would be me betting against myself and half the population.?That would be a form of madness.

In the same vein, the Global Digital Compact must do well in its implementation to center the voices and needs of those most often left behind. As stakeholders in this, we must rise to the occasion.

Thank you.

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Additional notes.

The festival is organised by https://preventgbv.org/ and other partners.?

You can see the Global Digital Compact at https://www.un.org/techenvoy/global-digital-compact