A. BACKGROUND OF THE PROJECT

The action “Foster responsible digital citizenship to promote freedom of expression in Bangladesh” is being implemented jointly by Friedrich Naumann Foundation for Freedom and Dnet, co-funded by the European Union. This action is targeted to address the best practice of freedom of expression in Bangladesh by promoting knowledge on digital citizenship among the youth. This is applicable for those who are mainly active in cyberspace and express themselves through social media and various digital platforms. This project aims to capacitate the targeted youth to freely and safely express themselves in the digital space. It will support them to learn about national and international norms, etiquettes and laws on the uses of digital spaces and will make them aware of responsible interaction in digital media. The action will also address the challenges to freedom of expression in the country posed by the Digital Security Act 2018. Enhancing knowledge and supporting the youth (particularly university students at Dhaka and Rajshahi) to have a positive experience in the digital world will be the focus of this action. It will also emphasize education, awareness and sensitization of relevant stakeholders to support and guide the youth for a responsive digital existence while practising and promoting the right to freedom of expression.

B. OBJECTIVES OF THE ADVOCACY BRIEF

The main objective of the advocacy brief is to ensure that appropriate recommendations are made so that the regulatory environment is supportive rather than restrictive for digital citizens. This brief will support advocacy actions to reach policy and decision-makers that are part of the government and the regulatory bodies. In identifying possible regulatory and legislative reforms (focusing particularly on the Digital Security Act, 2018- DSA) the brief will serve as a first step for enabling and encouraging young people to freely and safely exercise their freedom of expression.

C. SCOPE OF WORK

The expert/agency should have excellent expertise for developing advocacy briefs. Relevant national and international papers, articles and reports on DSA as well as findings of the baseline data of the project should be reviewed and used to develop the advocacy brief with a focus on the topics of digital citizenship to promote freedom of expression. The expert/agency will identify the challenges the young people face to express their opinion in the digital media and platforms as well as identify the cultural and localized incompatibilities concerning the global and universal practices.

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