From 13 to 18 October 2025, a high-level West African subregional symposium on cybersecurity and digital sovereignty will be held at the King Fahd Palace Hotel in Dakar. According to the Center for Research and Studies for Development in Africa (CREDA), this conference marks an important step in the cyber protection ecosystem in West Africa

Supported by CREDA Cybersecure, a CREDA Program, the high-level West African subregional symposium under preparation aims to set up a platform for exchange, reflection and training for public and private actors. The main objective is to “strengthen subregional cooperation, to raise awareness among stakeholders and promote the sharing of best practices for responsible digital governance and strengthened protection”.

This ambitious initiative is justified by a lack of appropriate protection strategies against recurrent cyberattacks, the absence of a harmonized framework for coordination between West African states, and a limited awareness of decision-makers and businesses about the major challenges of cybersecurity.

This conference should enable the establishment of a harmonized framework and the establishment of crucial partnerships between West African actors, thus laying the foundations for robust cyber protection and digital sovereignty.