Kenya Seeks to Join the Digital Cooperation Organisation

Kenya is among eight countries seeking to join the Digital Cooperation Organization (DCO), which would bring the international organisation's membership from 16 to 24 countries, representing approximately 980 million people.

• The eight confirmed candidate countries are the Republic of Albania, the Republic of Azerbaijan, the Republic of Kazakhstan, the Republic of Kenya, the Lebanese Republic, the State of Palestine, the Syrian Arab Republic, and the Republic of Zambia. 
• The Republic of Tajikistan is also set to join the DCO as an Associate Member.
• Each candidate country's membership will take effect upon completion of its respective national internal accession procedures and the deposit of its instrument of accession.

"Countries are joining for a practical reason; the rules of the digital economy on data, artificial intelligence, and cross-border trade are being written now, and rules written without you are rules you inherit rather than shape," said Deemah AlYahya, Secretary-General of the DCO.

"The next stage is scale. Five years of policy, platforms and partnerships could soon have twenty-four countries behind them, and that is what turns alignment into infrastructure, investment, and rules that hold and shape our collective future."

Founded in 2020, the DCO brings together the Ministries of Communications and Information Technology of its current 16 Member States, representing nearly USD 3.5 trillion in GDP and a combined market of over 800 million people, more than 70% of whom are under the age of 35. Its founding members are Saudi Arabia, Bahrain, Jordan, Kuwait, and Pakistan, while Oman and Nigeria joined in April 2021.

The DCO works with governments, the private sector, civil society, and international organizations to promote digital inclusion, enable cross-border data flows, empower women and youth, and support entrepreneurs and SMEs. It facilitates coordinated digital policies across borders and holds observer status with the United Nations General Assembly and other global bodies.