Quotes from Ory Okolloh

I always ask the question: As more Africans are going online, are they finding content that is meaningful and relevant to them, or are they just consuming from everywhere else. As Africans, we have the capacity to generate our own content.

I think the Internet is a key driver of opening up opportunities, which impacts many things, including development - I will repeat that I am not a fan of looking at technology or the Internet in Africa through the lens of development - we love the Internet for sake of the Internet.

Beyond providing some level of scrutiny of Kenyan MPs, we built Mzalendo to demonstrate that there is only so much bemoaning you can do about your representation.

The Internet Governance Forum - which brings together NGOs, government officials and companies - needs to do a better job of including representatives from Africa, Latin America, and Asia and addressing their issues.

I resigned from my position as Ushahidi Executive Director and member of the Board in 2010. However, my role as a co-founder and my journey as a woman in the technology space means that I remain inextricably linked to Ushahidi, for better or worse.

Technology influenced me in that it gave me an opportunity to have a voice as a woman. I think it's because the barriers to entry tend to be a bit lower.

It's one thing to tell people to make informed decisions, but that's difficult when there is no information.

I have a very introverted real personality.

Whether you are planning a safari, doing a homework assignment on Botswana, or promoting your local business, Street View will allow you to experience a slice of the country.

I didn't grow up in the slums or anything that dire, but I know what it is to grow up without having money or being able to support family.

If you know anything about Ethiopia, they are very security conscious, a very closed environment. It's a repressive place were journalists and bloggers are arrested all the time.

In Kenya particularly, we have a lot to say - we're sort of obsessed with politics. We have three nightly news broadcasts, predominantly bad politics.

As much as innovation is important, I think we also need to just make stuff. If we look at Kenya, where I'm from, as an example, we are importing everything down to toothpicks.

I believe in the power of ideas. I believe in the power of sharing knowledge.

I think there's sort of an extra oomph with the younger people coming up. They're writing. They're communicating. They're sharing, and they are very much technology-driven.

I'm concerned about what I see is the fetishization around entrepreneurship in Africa. It's almost like it's the next new liberal thing. Like, 'Don't worry that there's no power because, hey, you're going to do solar and innovate around that.'

Anyone who has been successful and has knowledge to share is a potential mentor.

For Ghana to suggest that they will turn off the Internet, in addition to other countries that have done it like Uganda, Zimbabwe, DRC, Burundi, Chad and others, that's worrying.

I'd like to see technology to move beyond the hype and be considered part of infrastructure... the way you see access to water. I would like it to move away from apps and mobile money. So that everyone has their TV and their Wi-Fi, and it's just ubiquitous. I think that's where we should be headed.

The city of Johannesburg built an app because they are getting so many complaints on Facebook and Twitter about potholes. The app allows you to report a pot hole and take a picture of it. Then, you can actually track the progress in terms of the repair, when it happened.

I spent a lot of my early blogging career sort of highlighting all the ills of the government in Kenya and all the corruption and problems.

Ninety percent of my mentors have been male, most of them with very little in common with me on a personal level - from life experience, work experience, backgrounds, etc.

Let's make sure that the Internet stays open to those who need it the most.

While I am a huge proponent of us as Africans telling our own stories and countering the negative stereotypes out there since no one else will, I am also cognizant of the power that the mainstream Western media still has on shaping perceptions of the continent.