Mauritius investigates AFRINIC as African institutions show support ahead of new elections
(2025/08/06)
- Reference: 1754510470
- News link: https://www.theregister.co.uk/2025/08/06/mauritius_investigates_afrinic/
- Source link:
Regional internet registry the African Network Information Centre (AFRINIC) is now the subject of an investigation ordered by the government of its home country, Mauritius.
AFRINIC is one of the world's five regional internet registries and manages IP addresses and autonomous system numbers for 54 countries in Africa and the Indian Ocean. The organization has a long history of dysfunction and has operated without a board since 2022. It held an election in June, but the receiver overseeing the poll [1]annulled the vote because of “potential irregularities related to voter documentation,” then offered no further explanation of those events.
In mid-July the receiver [2]said complaints about the election “were submitted to the relevant authorities by aggrieved parties, and the Police is investigating the matter.” Those complaints mean the receiver won’t discuss the annulled election. Instead, he scheduled a new vote that will take place on August 29.
[3]
A week after the receiver announced the new election, the government of Mauritius issued an extraordinary [4]notice in the national Gazette that made AFRINIC a "declared company." Under Mauritian law, that declaration suspends any existing court cases involving the declared company, makes it hard to launch new ones, and initiates a government-commissioned investigation into the company’s affairs.
[5]
[6]
As explained in the notice, Mauritius’s government decided to declare AFRINIC because it feels the registry’s years of trouble, which in recent months have left it unable to fulfil its core function of assigning new IP address blocks to African network operators, reflect poorly on the nation’s legal system.
A further factor in the decision to "declare" AFRINIC was that one of its members – Cloud Innovation Ltd, a company based in the Seychelles that has been involved in past legal disputes with AFRINIC – filed an application to have the registry wound up.
[7]
Cloud Innovation also featured in a government [8]proclamation [PDF] published last week that set out the terms of the investigation into AFRINIC and appointed the Honourable N. F. Oh San-Bellepeau, Puisne Judge to conduct it, and deliver a report by September 30.
Among the matters the Mauritian government wants to consider is whether court decisions regarding AFRINIC were legal, and if receivers did their job.
[9]AFRINIC election delayed after ISP Association wins injunction over voter rights
[10]AFRINIC election annulled after ICANN writes angry letter to African regional internet registry
[11]Africa's internet registry has sometimes needed financial assistance to keep operating, could fail, warns ARIN head
[12]Africa's boardless, bossless, generally troubled internet registry to hold elections in June
The proclamation also instructs Judge San-Bellepeau to investigate “whether the petition of Cloud Innovation Ltd for the compulsory winding-up of the Company is a frivolous and vexatious action that is devoid of any legal basis." The investigator must also consider Cloud Innovation’s many legal actions against AFRINIC, and why it was briefly [13]listed as a shareholding member of AFRINIC.
The Register sought comment from Cloud Innovation and its CEO Lu Heng. The latter directed us to a website called Blue Tech Wave Media (btw.media), which he said offers "accurate and on time news reporting, of course, first hand news." The Register visited the site and found it contains many articles supporting Cloud Innovation and critical of AFRINIC, which the publication describes as broken beyond repair.
Institutions rally for AFRINIC
African institutions, however, have argued the opposite.
The African Union, the body representing 55 African nations, issued a [14]declaration that called for stakeholders to sustain AFRINIC’s ongoing operations and Africa's internet stability. Smart Africa, an alliance of 40 nations that collaborate to advance economic development through technology, also [15]called for AFRINIC to continue, and applauded Mauritius’s decision to give the registry “declared” status.
Smart Africa also called for AFRINIC to observe its bylaws as it prepares for fresh elections.
Election controversies
In recent weeks, AFRINIC has tried to educate members about its August elections, which will run under new rules that mean all voting will take place online and voters must register before the poll.
The Register has observed plenty of online commentary questioning whether those arrangements comply with AFRINIC’s bylaws.
[16]
AFRINIC is nonetheless preparing for the poll and created a voter registration portal.
Last Saturday a [17]post to the African Network Operators Group mailing list by a user called "Paul_Mentat" claimed that site has a security vulnerability “allowing unauthenticated users to access personal information of registered voters.”
In a Monday [18]post , AFRINIC denied its platform has a vulnerability and says the information seen by "Paul_Mentat" was "a test nomination created internally by AFRINIC staff."
The AFRINIC post explains that each document uploaded to the platform "contains a unique 39-character (312-bit) ID generated randomly" and that those links "cannot be guessed or enumerated through any automated or manual means." Further, the registry says its site "does not permit listing or browsing."
The organization thinks the only way the author of the bug report could have viewed files was if someone shared a URL – and because only AFRINIC staff were aware of the URLs used for the test nomination, an insider may have shared the address.
AFRINIC is therefore investigating itself to understand the matter.
The Register contacted "Paul_Mentat" but has not received a response at the time of writing. We also asked the receiver to explain why he annulled the June election. Again, we have not received a response.
Amidst all this uncertainty, three dates will shape AFRINIC’s future.
One is August 29, the day on which the receiver scheduled fresh elections.
The second is September 30, the deadline for Judge San-Bellepeau to deliver a report on AFRINIC’s affairs.
The other will take place sometime in late 2025, when the Number Resource Organization (NRO) – the peak body for the five regional internet registries – finalizes a revised [19]policy that will formalize processes for working with dysfunctional registries, including de-recognizing them. Internet governance bodies have [20]told The Register they developed the revised policy largely due to the trouble at AFRINIC. ®
Get our [21]Tech Resources
[1] https://www.theregister.com/2025/07/11/afrinic_election_annulled_why/
[2] https://afrinic.net/notice-to-afrinic-members-and-the-internet-community
[3] https://pubads.g.doubleclick.net/gampad/jump?co=1&iu=/6978/reg_onprem/networks&sz=300x50%7C300x100%7C300x250%7C300x251%7C300x252%7C300x600%7C300x601&tile=2&c=2aJPQfwjFu5hWFzbG10mdDAAAAA8&t=ct%3Dns%26unitnum%3D2%26raptor%3Dcondor%26pos%3Dtop%26test%3D0
[4] https://regmedia.co.uk/2025/08/01/supplied_mauritius_government_gazette_afrinic_declaration.pdf
[5] https://pubads.g.doubleclick.net/gampad/jump?co=1&iu=/6978/reg_onprem/networks&sz=300x50%7C300x100%7C300x250%7C300x251%7C300x252%7C300x600%7C300x601&tile=4&c=44aJPQfwjFu5hWFzbG10mdDAAAAA8&t=ct%3Dns%26unitnum%3D4%26raptor%3Dfalcon%26pos%3Dmid%26test%3D0
[6] https://pubads.g.doubleclick.net/gampad/jump?co=1&iu=/6978/reg_onprem/networks&sz=300x50%7C300x100%7C300x250%7C300x251%7C300x252%7C300x600%7C300x601&tile=3&c=33aJPQfwjFu5hWFzbG10mdDAAAAA8&t=ct%3Dns%26unitnum%3D3%26raptor%3Deagle%26pos%3Dmid%26test%3D0
[7] https://pubads.g.doubleclick.net/gampad/jump?co=1&iu=/6978/reg_onprem/networks&sz=300x50%7C300x100%7C300x250%7C300x251%7C300x252%7C300x600%7C300x601&tile=4&c=44aJPQfwjFu5hWFzbG10mdDAAAAA8&t=ct%3Dns%26unitnum%3D4%26raptor%3Dfalcon%26pos%3Dmid%26test%3D0
[8] https://regmedia.co.uk/2025/08/01/supplied_mauritius_government_afrinic_proclamation.pdf
[9] https://www.theregister.com/2025/06/17/afrinic_election_injunction_halts_poll/
[10] https://www.theregister.com/2025/06/26/icann_letter_afrinic_election_suspended/
[11] https://www.theregister.com/2023/02/22/afrinic_failure_warning_apnic_link/
[12] https://www.theregister.com/2025/04/22/afrinic_election_date_set/
[13] https://www.theregister.com/2025/06/17/afrinic_election_injunction_halts_poll/
[14] https://www.linkedin.com/posts/amin-dayekh-7408469b_afrinic-and-african-union-ugcPost-7356417298091413504-OPUt/
[15] https://smartafrica.org/smart-africa-statement-on-the-coordinated-continental-response-safeguarding-africas-digital-sovereignty/
[16] https://pubads.g.doubleclick.net/gampad/jump?co=1&iu=/6978/reg_onprem/networks&sz=300x50%7C300x100%7C300x250%7C300x251%7C300x252%7C300x600%7C300x601&tile=3&c=33aJPQfwjFu5hWFzbG10mdDAAAAA8&t=ct%3Dns%26unitnum%3D3%26raptor%3Deagle%26pos%3Dmid%26test%3D0
[17] https://www.afnog.org/pipermail/afnog/2025-August/004867.html
[18] https://www.afnog.org/pipermail/afnog/2025-August/004871.html
[19] https://www.theregister.com/2025/03/02/internet_governance_update/
[20] https://www.theregister.com/2025/03/02/internet_governance_update/
[21] https://whitepapers.theregister.com/
AFRINIC is one of the world's five regional internet registries and manages IP addresses and autonomous system numbers for 54 countries in Africa and the Indian Ocean. The organization has a long history of dysfunction and has operated without a board since 2022. It held an election in June, but the receiver overseeing the poll [1]annulled the vote because of “potential irregularities related to voter documentation,” then offered no further explanation of those events.
In mid-July the receiver [2]said complaints about the election “were submitted to the relevant authorities by aggrieved parties, and the Police is investigating the matter.” Those complaints mean the receiver won’t discuss the annulled election. Instead, he scheduled a new vote that will take place on August 29.
[3]
A week after the receiver announced the new election, the government of Mauritius issued an extraordinary [4]notice in the national Gazette that made AFRINIC a "declared company." Under Mauritian law, that declaration suspends any existing court cases involving the declared company, makes it hard to launch new ones, and initiates a government-commissioned investigation into the company’s affairs.
[5]
[6]
As explained in the notice, Mauritius’s government decided to declare AFRINIC because it feels the registry’s years of trouble, which in recent months have left it unable to fulfil its core function of assigning new IP address blocks to African network operators, reflect poorly on the nation’s legal system.
A further factor in the decision to "declare" AFRINIC was that one of its members – Cloud Innovation Ltd, a company based in the Seychelles that has been involved in past legal disputes with AFRINIC – filed an application to have the registry wound up.
[7]
Cloud Innovation also featured in a government [8]proclamation [PDF] published last week that set out the terms of the investigation into AFRINIC and appointed the Honourable N. F. Oh San-Bellepeau, Puisne Judge to conduct it, and deliver a report by September 30.
Among the matters the Mauritian government wants to consider is whether court decisions regarding AFRINIC were legal, and if receivers did their job.
[9]AFRINIC election delayed after ISP Association wins injunction over voter rights
[10]AFRINIC election annulled after ICANN writes angry letter to African regional internet registry
[11]Africa's internet registry has sometimes needed financial assistance to keep operating, could fail, warns ARIN head
[12]Africa's boardless, bossless, generally troubled internet registry to hold elections in June
The proclamation also instructs Judge San-Bellepeau to investigate “whether the petition of Cloud Innovation Ltd for the compulsory winding-up of the Company is a frivolous and vexatious action that is devoid of any legal basis." The investigator must also consider Cloud Innovation’s many legal actions against AFRINIC, and why it was briefly [13]listed as a shareholding member of AFRINIC.
The Register sought comment from Cloud Innovation and its CEO Lu Heng. The latter directed us to a website called Blue Tech Wave Media (btw.media), which he said offers "accurate and on time news reporting, of course, first hand news." The Register visited the site and found it contains many articles supporting Cloud Innovation and critical of AFRINIC, which the publication describes as broken beyond repair.
Institutions rally for AFRINIC
African institutions, however, have argued the opposite.
The African Union, the body representing 55 African nations, issued a [14]declaration that called for stakeholders to sustain AFRINIC’s ongoing operations and Africa's internet stability. Smart Africa, an alliance of 40 nations that collaborate to advance economic development through technology, also [15]called for AFRINIC to continue, and applauded Mauritius’s decision to give the registry “declared” status.
Smart Africa also called for AFRINIC to observe its bylaws as it prepares for fresh elections.
Election controversies
In recent weeks, AFRINIC has tried to educate members about its August elections, which will run under new rules that mean all voting will take place online and voters must register before the poll.
The Register has observed plenty of online commentary questioning whether those arrangements comply with AFRINIC’s bylaws.
[16]
AFRINIC is nonetheless preparing for the poll and created a voter registration portal.
Last Saturday a [17]post to the African Network Operators Group mailing list by a user called "Paul_Mentat" claimed that site has a security vulnerability “allowing unauthenticated users to access personal information of registered voters.”
In a Monday [18]post , AFRINIC denied its platform has a vulnerability and says the information seen by "Paul_Mentat" was "a test nomination created internally by AFRINIC staff."
The AFRINIC post explains that each document uploaded to the platform "contains a unique 39-character (312-bit) ID generated randomly" and that those links "cannot be guessed or enumerated through any automated or manual means." Further, the registry says its site "does not permit listing or browsing."
The organization thinks the only way the author of the bug report could have viewed files was if someone shared a URL – and because only AFRINIC staff were aware of the URLs used for the test nomination, an insider may have shared the address.
AFRINIC is therefore investigating itself to understand the matter.
The Register contacted "Paul_Mentat" but has not received a response at the time of writing. We also asked the receiver to explain why he annulled the June election. Again, we have not received a response.
Amidst all this uncertainty, three dates will shape AFRINIC’s future.
One is August 29, the day on which the receiver scheduled fresh elections.
The second is September 30, the deadline for Judge San-Bellepeau to deliver a report on AFRINIC’s affairs.
The other will take place sometime in late 2025, when the Number Resource Organization (NRO) – the peak body for the five regional internet registries – finalizes a revised [19]policy that will formalize processes for working with dysfunctional registries, including de-recognizing them. Internet governance bodies have [20]told The Register they developed the revised policy largely due to the trouble at AFRINIC. ®
Get our [21]Tech Resources
[1] https://www.theregister.com/2025/07/11/afrinic_election_annulled_why/
[2] https://afrinic.net/notice-to-afrinic-members-and-the-internet-community
[3] https://pubads.g.doubleclick.net/gampad/jump?co=1&iu=/6978/reg_onprem/networks&sz=300x50%7C300x100%7C300x250%7C300x251%7C300x252%7C300x600%7C300x601&tile=2&c=2aJPQfwjFu5hWFzbG10mdDAAAAA8&t=ct%3Dns%26unitnum%3D2%26raptor%3Dcondor%26pos%3Dtop%26test%3D0
[4] https://regmedia.co.uk/2025/08/01/supplied_mauritius_government_gazette_afrinic_declaration.pdf
[5] https://pubads.g.doubleclick.net/gampad/jump?co=1&iu=/6978/reg_onprem/networks&sz=300x50%7C300x100%7C300x250%7C300x251%7C300x252%7C300x600%7C300x601&tile=4&c=44aJPQfwjFu5hWFzbG10mdDAAAAA8&t=ct%3Dns%26unitnum%3D4%26raptor%3Dfalcon%26pos%3Dmid%26test%3D0
[6] https://pubads.g.doubleclick.net/gampad/jump?co=1&iu=/6978/reg_onprem/networks&sz=300x50%7C300x100%7C300x250%7C300x251%7C300x252%7C300x600%7C300x601&tile=3&c=33aJPQfwjFu5hWFzbG10mdDAAAAA8&t=ct%3Dns%26unitnum%3D3%26raptor%3Deagle%26pos%3Dmid%26test%3D0
[7] https://pubads.g.doubleclick.net/gampad/jump?co=1&iu=/6978/reg_onprem/networks&sz=300x50%7C300x100%7C300x250%7C300x251%7C300x252%7C300x600%7C300x601&tile=4&c=44aJPQfwjFu5hWFzbG10mdDAAAAA8&t=ct%3Dns%26unitnum%3D4%26raptor%3Dfalcon%26pos%3Dmid%26test%3D0
[8] https://regmedia.co.uk/2025/08/01/supplied_mauritius_government_afrinic_proclamation.pdf
[9] https://www.theregister.com/2025/06/17/afrinic_election_injunction_halts_poll/
[10] https://www.theregister.com/2025/06/26/icann_letter_afrinic_election_suspended/
[11] https://www.theregister.com/2023/02/22/afrinic_failure_warning_apnic_link/
[12] https://www.theregister.com/2025/04/22/afrinic_election_date_set/
[13] https://www.theregister.com/2025/06/17/afrinic_election_injunction_halts_poll/
[14] https://www.linkedin.com/posts/amin-dayekh-7408469b_afrinic-and-african-union-ugcPost-7356417298091413504-OPUt/
[15] https://smartafrica.org/smart-africa-statement-on-the-coordinated-continental-response-safeguarding-africas-digital-sovereignty/
[16] https://pubads.g.doubleclick.net/gampad/jump?co=1&iu=/6978/reg_onprem/networks&sz=300x50%7C300x100%7C300x250%7C300x251%7C300x252%7C300x600%7C300x601&tile=3&c=33aJPQfwjFu5hWFzbG10mdDAAAAA8&t=ct%3Dns%26unitnum%3D3%26raptor%3Deagle%26pos%3Dmid%26test%3D0
[17] https://www.afnog.org/pipermail/afnog/2025-August/004867.html
[18] https://www.afnog.org/pipermail/afnog/2025-August/004871.html
[19] https://www.theregister.com/2025/03/02/internet_governance_update/
[20] https://www.theregister.com/2025/03/02/internet_governance_update/
[21] https://whitepapers.theregister.com/