Butter Box and Orbot attend FIFAfrica 2026

Facilitators at Zone 0 welcome participants to the African Digital Reality Walk at FIFAfrica26.

Butter Box and Orbot attend FIFAfrica 2026

From September 28 through October 1, the Guardian Project had the pleasure of attending the 13th edition of the Forum on Internet freedom in Africa (FIFAfrica) 2026 in beautiful Mauritius. Organized and hosted annually by the Collaboration on International ICT Policy for East and Southern Africa (CIPESA), FIFAfrica is one of Africa’s largest and most important digital rights conferences. The event brought together government officials, politicians, lawyers, human rights activists, grassroots organizations, minority groups, internet governance and tool developer teams to discuss digital and human rights issues impacting Africa.

The FIFAfrica agenda was jam-packed with interesting topical discussions and panels like, “Beyond One-Off Solutions: Feminist Approaches to Building Women's Digital Resilience in Africa” with our long-time partner Natasha Msonza from Digital Society of Africa, “Safeguarding Democracy in the Digital Era: Information Integrity and a Heightened Duty of Care During African Elections”, “Bitcoin 101: Introduction to Bitcoin as a tool for human rights activism & civil society”, “Spyware on trial: A Comparative Discussion Across Jurisdictions”, and we can’t forget the countless conversations, panels and debates about AI use and its impact on youth, human rights, internet governance and the digital landscape.

On Day Zero, Orbot was part of a tool nuancing session, hosted by Nuance Collective. Orbot is one of Guardian Project’s most successful tools, helping over 5 million users tunnel their traffic through the Tor Network. At the session, attendees from Argentina, Brazil, Portugal, the Phillipines, Cameroon, Uganda , Kenya, Nigeria, and Zimbabwe helped adapt essential privacy, security, and circumvention tools like Orbot,DashChat, the Tor Browser, into French, Spanish, Kiswahili, Portuguese, Luganda. Thanks to the contributors on Day 0, Orbot is now fully translated into Spanish and has begun in Luganda.

Inside the Africa Digital Reality Walk

When attendees arrived at FIFAfrica this year, they didn’t just walk into another conference, they stepped into a mission. Designed by the amazing minds at Kumquat and Brian Agnahurab from CIPESA, the African Digital Reality Walk: Paths, Traps and Safe Passage transformed the main entrance hallways into an immersive security experience. Four zones. One mission. Countless lessons learned about protecting your internet traffic, securing your device and its vital information, recognizing phishing and communicating in times of blackouts.

This year’s event was the debut of An African Digital Reality Walk: Paths, Traps and Safe Passage, hosted on both days of the main conference (September 30th and October 1st, 2026), where participants used a specially designed MissionLog (offline capable PWA) as their guide for the walk. At each of the four zones, they encountered a realistic digital security threat, pulled from real-life African experiences, and had to make active choices about how to mitigate it and proceed. This wasn’t passive learning. This was learning by doing!

What made the walk truly unique was that tool developers from Tella, Shira, OONI Probe, Orbot,Tor Browser, Dash Chat, and Shout SMS were on-site, ready to demo their solutions and teach participants how their tool actually works in practice. Meeting digital threats with real solutions made experiencing security hands-on and memorable.

The FIFAfrica Safe Passage app and the accompanying MissionLog

To raise engagement further, we introduced a Bingo card, available physically and digitally from the Safe Passage app hosted on Butter Box. Participants were encouraged to complete a task at each zone with a tool team to earn a sticker or signature to fill up their card. The result?

• Over 20+ people returned BLACKOUT bingo cards
• Dozens more returned partially completed cards
• The hallway was buzzing with conversation, experimentation, and discovery!

Digital Reality Walk Bingo Cards

We also featured an accompanying Helpdesk where participants could scan their devices for viruses, get help with security questions and follow-up with security experts from DefendDefenders, Frontline Defenders, Internews and Defenders Protection Initiative (DPI). A highlight was 8 phones were scanned and detected malware. Making security tangible!

Butter Boxes Role

Not only was the Digital Reality Walk the backbone of FIFAfrica, but Butter Box was the spine! Butter Box was the infrastructure ensuring participants could easily download the apps needed for safe passage, and the light in the darkness; a hotspot making communication possible during a total internet shutdown!

At Zone 0, participants received their MissionLog and downloaded the tools they deemed necessary to complete their mission from the local Butter Box. For the event, Guardian Project designed a curated FIFAfrica26 app store and F-Droid repository for easy offline downloading and access.

Participants learn about Orbot, the Tor Browser and how to monitor their network with OONI Probe.

In Zone 1, participants were asked to join the digital_reality_walk wifi network and try share a file with a contact using any communication platform. This network had Signal, Whatsapp, Facebook, Instagram and Whatsapp blocked. The intention was to simulate a situation where common communication platforms and apps are inaccessible and yet citizens needed them to communicate. The objective, to teach participants that bringing Orbot or the Tor Browser along their journey would help them route their traffic around a blocked or censored network. They also had the opportunity to learn about OONI Probe and how it can be used to determine which sites and apps are blocked.

Police Check at Zone 2

A participant tests their knowledge about phishing at Zone 3 with a Shira Quiz by the Horizontal team

Threats got physical in Zone 2, where participants were asked to hand over their devices to a police officer. Don’t worry it was just a simulation. At this zone, participants learned the importance of encrypting their photos and videos using Tella and how to hide the app for secure transportation.

Participant learning keenly about Shira from the Horizontal Team

Zone 3, provided the opportunity to test your knowledge at identifying phishing, using a specially written FIFAfrica26 quiz by Shira.

Participants test Dash Chat, learn about Shout SMS and try to complete their mission using Butter Box all while experiencing an internet blackout!

When participants reached Zone 4, the lights went out, figuratively. Working alongside the amazing developers at Dash Chat, we integrated their local message hub into Butterbox. DashChat was using Butterbox as a server and all communication was happening offline. This is an amazing feat by the DashChat team! Visitors had fun engaging with the team at Dash Chat and trying out the local “buttchat” network. In Zone 4, Butter Box highlighted the possibilities of offline distribution, showcasing the FIFAfrica26 app store, an encrypted, anonymous public chat, and community curated resources like a guide on “How to get started with Weblate”, and a Human Rights Watch Report on, “.....”. Zone 4 was a hub for discussing the impact of internet shutdowns to local communities, discussing specific use cases and needs, and debuting communication tools Shout SMS, Dash Chat and RelaySMS.

Spreading Butter

Butter is meant to be spread! We are excited to announce that at this year’s event we were able to hand-off 3 Boxes and two to be delivered! Butter Box relies on community procurement and curation. The hope is that Butter Boxes will empower local communities to prepare, equip and remain resilient.

Three organizations who received ButterBoxes at FIFAfrica; Nuance Collective, Zimbabwe; Integrated Refugee Organization (IRO), Uganda; Targeted Rights Initiative, Ghana

Goal Achieved!

The African Digital Rights Reality Walk proved that security education doesn't have to be dry, technical, or forgettable. By gamifying the experience and centering it around real-world threats, participants left with more than just swag, they left with muscle memory for digital self-defense.
And ButterBox? It wasn't just another tool in the lineup. It was the infrastructure that made the whole experience possible and the solution participants reached for when the lights went out.
Guardian Project is beyond grateful for the opportunity to be part of the African Digital Reality Walk at FIFAfrica26 and hear from the African community about ways Butter Box can fit their use cases and needs. We hope this is just the beginning of many more Digital Reality walks!

Zone 4 participants share their feedback and insights from the Digital Reality Walk

👉👉Want to bring a Reality Walk to your next event? Or learn more about the possibilities of Butter Box? Reach out to the Butter Box team to explore how immersive security education can transform your conference experience.