Cyber Diplomacy in Africa: The Role of the African Union in Shaping Regional and Global Cyber Norm

Abstract

Cyberspace has rapidly emerged as a critical arena for international diplomacy, requiring the necessity for diplomats to redefine and adapt foreign-policy relations practices and strategies. With the rise of cyber threats, including hacking, cyber-warfare, and cyber-attacks, the growing need of cyber diplomacy has become particularly urgent. The African Union has taken important steps to integrate cyber issues into its broader diplomatic agenda, positioning itself as a key actor and player in regional and global cyber governance. This article thus analyses the African Unions' (AU) role in shaping the continent's cyber diplomacy, and its narrative grounded in the English School's distinction between international society and world society. It focuses on its efforts to create regional norms, and also collaborate with other international bodies. The paper globally argues that cyber diplomacy sits, not only, at the intersection of these two social orders, but the AU, together with Regional Economic Communities (RECs) and national institutions must institutionalize diplomatic capacities to translate continental norms into operational resilience. Building on normative analysis and empirical evidence, the paper tries to define cyber diplomacy and distinguishes it from e diplomacy; traces the institutional emergence of cyber diplomacy in AU processes and selected member states; maps gaps between AU instruments (Malabo Convention, AU digital/ data agendas) and national practice; and proposes an operational AU cyber diplomacy agenda.