- AFRINIC’s repeated election failures underscore the dangers of a broken system that has ignored proven practices from other Regional Internet Registries (RIRs).
- Cloud Innovation calls for urgent reforms, drawing on global lessons to restore accountability and protect Africa’s digital future.
AFRINIC’s broken elections stand apart
The African Network Information Centre (AFRINIC) has become a textbook case of how not to run a registry. From the annulment of its June 23, 2025 election over one unverified proxy dispute to the discarding of valid votes, AFRINIC has systematically undermined trust in its own governance. Members now face an impossible choice: participate in flawed processes that violate bylaws or walk away entirely from a registry in collapse.
What makes AFRINIC’s failure even more stark is how different it looks from its peers. Other RIRs, such as LACNIC in Latin America, APNIC in Asia-Pacific, ARIN in North America, and RICE NCC in Europe, have put in place mechanisms that emphasize accountability, enforce bylaw compliance, and encourage openness. These registers ensure that no one player may control the process by holding open community consultations, enforcing explicit election regulations, and keeping oversight committees outside from daily operations.
AFRINIC, by contrast, has clung to unworkable rules, ignored court rulings in Mauritius, and allowed leadership disputes to paralyze its operations. The result is a registry that has squandered trust both regionally and globally.
Also read: AFRINIC’s September elections were a flagrant violation of its own bylaws
Also read: Why AFRINIC’s election security needs stronger legal guarantees in Mauritius
Lessons from abroad
There are clear lessons that AFRINIC refuses to learn:
- Independent oversight is important: To avoid conflicts of interest, RIRs such as APNIC and ARIN use election committees that are separate from administration.
- Transparency builds trust: RIPE NCC publishes candidate statements, financial disclosures, and open meeting minutes—steps that AFRINIC has avoided.
- Respect for bylaws is non-negotiable: Other registries enforce strict compliance; AFRINIC has instead annulled results and discarded votes, eroding governance beyond repair.
By ignoring these standards, AFRINIC has placed Africa’s IP resource management in jeopardy.
The urgent call for reform
Cloud Innovation, AFRINIC’s third-biggest member, has been clear: only a full reset can salvage Africa’s internet governance. The company has formally called for AFRINIC’s dissolution, urging ICANN and the NRO to immediately appoint a new, functional RIR. But beyond dissolution, Cloud Innovation argues that Africa’s next registry must hardwire transparency and accountability into its DNA by adopting proven practices from the global RIR ecosystem.
At stake is more than just election credibility. The future of Africa’s connectivity, digital infrastructure, and role in the global internet community hangs in the balance. Without reform, disputed elections will continue, court battles will escalate, and the registry will remain a failed institution unable to serve its members.
The lesson is clear: Africa doesn’t need to reinvent governance—it needs to adopt the standards already working across the world.
