ICT Consultant, Chris Musodza makes a contribution during the conference Reuben Gwatidzo, founder of the Information Society Initiatives Trust closed the first session with a presentation on the socio, economic and political impact of the internet in Zimbabwe. He emphasised the need for Zimbabwe and the region as a whole to embrace the internet in advancing local interests, aspirations and living standards and addressing African challenges. Gwatidzo decried the lack of local content on the internet and implored participants to take ownership of the internet and develop content that would make the internet more beneficial to the Zimbabwean citizenry and the African continent as a whole. In the second session, the conference deliberated on internet content creation, dissemination, use and the environment. In discussing online experiences digital security activist and seasoned blogger Natasha Msonza, who works with feminist blog site, Her Zimbabwe, spoke passionately against cyber bullying and stressed the need for gender inclusivity, sensitivity, awareness and digital security literacy as citizens access online content. She shared women’s experiences online underlining the replication of patriarchy online thereby curtailing women’s equal right to freedom of expression. Online technology news platform, TechZim founder and managing editor, Limbikani Makani, said the internet presents potential for start-up entrepreneurs at cheaper costs. He identified taxation, copyright and piracy, monopolistic internet control and lack of capacity, as the major INTERNET GOVERNANCE MULTISTAKEHOLDER CONFERENCE REPORT 2015 challenges for start-up online entrepreneurs. His presentation attracted debate on net neutrality, a principle that is globally debated as it relates to internet governance. It refers to the principle that internet service providers should enable all content and applications regardless of the source, and without favouring or blocking particular products or websites. This subject has attracted global attention. In Zimbabwe, the issue has equally been debated on social media. Conference participants decried the monopolistic control of the internet by telecommunications companies stating that it creates unfair competition. The conference noted that Zimbabwe should join the global debate on this issue and consider it as a critical internet governance issue. Social entertainer, Godknows Homwe of P.O. Box, said in drawing up a governance framework for the country, it is important to have policies that promote the production of online content. Homwe shared his team’s positive experiences on distributing content online and demonstrated how the internet provides an alternative source of livelihood outside formal employment. He also noted that P.O. Box has seen an increase in the number and diversity of its audience as WhatsApp and Facebook mobile data bundles have resulted in more traffic on their social media platforms. Participants during this session emphasised the need for Zimbabwes internet governance framework – in dealing with content production to recognize the need for the citizenry to enjoy 006 their rights to freedom of expression. Of note, was the need for the protection of intellectual property against piracy to create a more conducive environment for online content production. During discussions on the evolution of internet services business models in Zimbabwe, panel discussant and sales and marketing director of the government- owned fixed network operator, TelOne, Joseph Machiva, stated that infrastructure sharing would be beneficial to the sector and cited the high costs of bringing bandwidth to landlocked Zimbabwe being the main operational challenge. Pertinent to this discussion was the absence of local data servers due to prohibitive policies and infrastructure challenges. Participants felt that local hosting is advantageous and the citizenry should be encouraged to appreciate local domain registration and hosting but attempts should be made to allay fears and address issues relating to the security and safety of data in local domains. Start-ups incubator IZone’s Co-founder & Incubation Manager, Kudzai Mubaiwa, described the internet as a means of production that needs to be distributed equitably in Zimbabwe. She noted that internet access, quality of service, prices and links to the market for established online and offline businesses and start-ups are key in the discourse of internet governance. She emphasised the need for the extension of the internet resource to the whole country, noting www.misazim.com @misazimbabwe MISA Zimbabwe