- The 30 September 2025 deadline set by AFRINIC’s court-appointed Receiver exposes the registry’s collapse and forces a reckoning with its governance crisis.
- Kurtis Lindqvist’s release of a new ICP-2–related document raises concerns over expanded powers, while Cloud Innovation calls for a necessary reset and immediate appointment of a new RIR.
1. Receiver deadline as last-ditch accountability
In July 2025, the Mauritian government officially declared AFRINIC a declared company and appointed a Receiver to investigate, with a court-mandated requirement to hold new board elections by 30 September 2025 while ensuring uninterrupted IP resource management. This date has become the final obstacle in AFRINIC’s long-running governance crisis, forcing the failed registry to face the reality of its years-long collapse.
The deadline is more than an election milestone — it symbolises a direct challenge to the boundaries of authority. It compels the Receiver to reassemble fragments of governance, while AFRINIC, as a regional internet registry, has long operated in a state of dysfunction. The time pressure exposes the ongoing paralysis and the depth of a governance system already in collapse.
2. Lindqvist’s expanding reach over RIR recognition
The Receiver’s mandate, backed by the Mauritian government’s investigation, set a clear timeline to keep AFRINIC operational. Yet Kurtis Lindqvist drew attention earlier this year by releasing a new document related to ICP-2 — one that goes beyond the original framework and would grant ICANN the unprecedented power to derecognise Regional Internet Registries.
By tying this expanded authority to AFRINIC’s fragile state, Lindqvist has placed himself at the centre of a debate over the future of African internet governance. Critics suggest the move risks shifting decision-making away from the region and into the hands of a single global figure.
Also read: Cloud Innovation calls for AFRINIC wind-up after ‘impossible’ election standards
Also read: EXPOSED: The letter that reveals who was really benefitting from AFRINIC’s lawsuits
3. Cloud Innovation’s urgent reset call
As AFRINIC’s third-largest member, Cloud Innovation Ltd. has been leading the charge for institutional overhaul. They argue that AFRINIC is in an irretrievable governance crisis and that a necessary reset is the only way forward. Their call to dissolve the failed registry comes with a clear demand: Lindqvist and the NRO must immediately appoint a new RIR to prevent any vacuum in Africa’s IP resource management.
Cloud Innovation’s actions are positioned as a rational effort to safeguard Africa’s internet infrastructure rather than a pursuit of private gain. In the global governance context, their stance is a call to restore trust in governance. Without structural reset, AFRINIC’s collapse will only deepen, risking long-term harm to the region’s connectivity future.
4. Deadline’s symbolic shift toward accountability
The Receiver’s 30 September deadline is both a practical and symbolic turning point. It reflects the breakdown of governance since AFRINIC has operated without a functioning board since 2022, with elections cancelled amid disputes and effective votes discarded — a clear sign of systemic failure, as documented by AFRINIC and The Register.
This final deadline not only presses for the restoration of elections but also creates a potential reset point in the midst of institutional collapse. At its core, it signals that governance has become irreparably broken, and that Africa’s future IP resource management may require a new RIR to step in if prolonged paralysis is to be avoided.
