At the East African Data Governance Conference 2026 (#EADataGov26), CIPIT’s Director, Dr. Melissa Omino, speaks on the human story behind data governance. What does a dataset mean for the community it represents? Beyond the data are people, cultures, and languages that exist long before any dataset is created. Effective data governance therefore begins with human realities, recognizing the communities whose lives, knowledge, and experiences shape the data we work with.