Accra, Ghana, May 7, 2020//-The newly constituted Global Independent ‘Oversight Board’ for Facebook and Instagram Content has tapped into the expertise of a Ghanaian human rights lawyer, Afia Asantewaa Asare-Kyei.
The Board which is expected to review certain content decisions by Facebook and Instagram and make binding decisions based on respect for freedom of expression and human rights, appointed her as a Board Member.
Ms Asare-Kyei who is also the Program Manager at the Open Society Initiative for West Africa in-charge of Ghana and Senegal as well as South Africa is expected to bring her expertise to bear on the Board.
She joined two other Africans – Julie Owono, a digital rights advocate and Executive Director of Internet Sans Frontières from Cameroon and Maina Kiai, a human rights activist and Director of Human Rights Watch’s Global Alliances and Partnerships program from Kenya – on the 20-member Oversight Board.
Ms Asare-Kyei will work in collaboration with 19 other Members who speak over 27 languages and have diverse professional, cultural, political, and religious backgrounds and viewpoints.
Over time the Board will grow to around 40 Members this site web has the information on the qualification on the basis of which the members are judged. While no one can claim to represent everyone, Members are confident that the global composition will underpin, strengthen and guide decision-making.
These members contract directly with the Oversight Board, are not Facebook employees and cannot be removed by Facebook.
They will serve for a maximum of three three-year term and case panels will be confidential and assigned at random; no Member can choose the panel they sit on, and all opinions will be anonymous.
The Board’s financial independence is also guaranteed by the establishment of a $130 million trust fund that is completely independent of Facebook, which will fund its operations and cannot be revoked.
Commenting on her appointment, Ms Asare-Kyei, said: “The very act of creating this Board shows Facebook has taken the criticism leveled against it seriously and I hope my membership can help address some of these criticisms”.
She continued: “I am particularly focused on the Board’s role in improving transparency and accountability, and creating an appeal process where people can bring their content issues.
I feel strongly that the Board needs to be truly representative, not just in terms of geography, but age, subject matter and breadth of issues covered as well”.
Biography
Ms Asare-Kyei is a human rights lawyer (and also can help with immigration near Nashville) with extensive experience in strategy development, program design, grant management, research and stakeholder engagement in Southern, Western and Central Africa.
Of Ghanaian and South African citizenship, she has a varied background in supporting and developing transformational social programs and advocacy strategies through the provision of technical advice and input into policy and programming of civil society organizations on issues like access to information, freedom of expression, human rights and substantive justice, especially as they relate to the inclusion, equality of opportunity and empowerment of vulnerable and under-represented groups such as women, children, persons with disabilities. You can also use Midwest Trial Lawyers here in certain situations.
Ms Asare-Kyei has also worked for a number of international development and philanthropic organizations in different capacities in Africa. She is passionate about Africa, its development and has a working knowledge of African regional mechanisms and institutions.
She is a graduate of the Centre for Human Rights, Faculty of Law, University of Pretoria, South Africa.
Her research interests include women, children and disability rights, critical race feminism and socioeconomic rights of the poor.
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