These Terms of Use and Submission (“Terms”) constitute a legally binding agreement made between you, whether personally or on behalf of an entity (“you”) and the Youth Voices KE (“we,” “us” or “our”), concerning your access to and use of the Youth Voices KE platform as well as any other media form, media channel or mobile website related, linked, or otherwise connected thereto (collectively, “the Platform”).

You agree that by accessing the Platform, you have read, understood, and agree to be bound by all of these Terms. If you do not agree with all of these Terms, then you are expressly prohibited from using the Platform, and you must discontinue use immediately.

1. Acceptance of Terms

These Terms constitute a legally binding agreement. By accessing the Platform, you acknowledge that you have read, understood, and agree to be bound by these Terms.

2. Definitions

For the purposes of these Terms:

3. Eligibility and User Conduct

3.1 Eligibility

The Platform is intended for Kenyan citizens and residents aged 18 years and above.

3.2 Identity Verification

Youth Voices KE may request identity verification where necessary, including when—

• recognition, prizes, or awards are involved; and
• follow-up engagement requires confirmation of identity.

3.3 Prohibited Conduct

You must not submit, upload, or engage in activity that—

• is defamatory, hateful, obscene, or discriminatory;
• violates any law or infringes third-party intellectual property or privacy rights;
• involves plagiarism or copying from another source without permission;
• is submitted with malicious intent (spam, manipulation, fraud, or vote tampering);
• is technically harmful (malware, bots, scraping tools, or attempts to bypass security);
• impersonates another person or entity.

Youth Voices KE may remove content or restrict access at its sole discretion.

3.4 Community Engagement & Volunteering

Participation in Community Engagement & Volunteering activities, including WhatsApp groups, is entirely voluntary. Users who choose to participate acknowledge that:

• joining WhatsApp groups requires disclosure of personal contact information (including phone numbers);
• WhatsApp is a third-party platform governed by its own terms and privacy practices.

Youth Voices KE shall only process personal data for community engagement and volunteering where the User has provided explicit consent in accordance with the Privacy Policy. Users may withdraw from community activities and withdraw consent at any time by contacting info@youthvoiceske.org.

Youth Voices KE is not responsible for the conduct of other community members or for interactions occurring on third-party platforms, but reserves the right to moderate or remove participants to protect community safety.

4. User Submissions & Intellectual Property

4.1 Ownership

You retain ownership of your original submissions.

4.2 Licence to Youth Voices KE

By submitting a solution, you grant Youth Voices KE and the Stakeholders a non-exclusive, worldwide, royalty-free, transferable, and sub-licensable licence solely to:

• use, edit, adapt, display and analyse your submission;
• publish and distribute it in policy briefs, research materials, and stakeholder reports for purposes of policy research, citizen engagement, media dissemination, and public-interest advocacy;
• store it for the duration necessary to fulfil the Platform's public interest mission as part of the public policy record.

4.4 No Confidentiality

Youth Voices KE does not guarantee confidentiality for any submission. All submitted solutions may be publicly accessed, reviewed, and shared with stakeholders for policy development.

5. Submission, Review & Voting Process

All submissions must be non-identifying, original, detailed, and directly address a featured Policy Challenge in compliance with these Terms. Submissions that violate these rules will be removed without notice.

• Shortlisting is done by an independent review committee using the published criteria (Relevance, Feasibility, Impact).
• Final policy briefs selection incorporates both committee evaluation and community voting.
• Youth Voices KE may edit, combine, or adapt submissions to produce final policy briefs.
• Youth Voices KE may retain submissions that are used in policy briefs, have been shared with stakeholders, form part of anonymised datasets, or contribute to public-interest research.

No Guarantee

Submission does not guarantee publication, shortlisting, selection, voting, or ultimately implementation by any government entity or relevant stakeholder. Youth Voices KE is not responsible for the actions or inaction of the government or other relevant stakeholders.

6. Disclaimers and Limitation of Liability

6.1. Platform “As Is”

The Platform is provided “as is.” Youth Voices KE makes no warranties, express or implied, regarding the Platform's reliability, accuracy, or fitness for a particular purpose, or that the Platform will operate without errors or interruptions.

Youth Voices KE may introduce, modify, or discontinue features, including beta features, without notice. Youth Voices KE does not guarantee that submissions will influence public policy or that stakeholders will act upon any policy brief.

6.2. Platform Use at Your Own Risk

Your use of the Platform is entirely at your own risk. Youth Voices KE does not guarantee uninterrupted access, error-free functionality, or security beyond industry-standard measures. The Platform may become unavailable due to maintenance, outages, or events beyond our control.

6.3. Limitation of Liability

All submissions, votes, and ideas posted on the Platform are the sole responsibility of the users who submit them. Youth Voices KE is not liable for the accuracy, legality, completeness, or consequences of any user-generated content.

Youth Voices KE does not control how stakeholders, partners, or third parties interpret or use policy briefs. We are not responsible for decisions or inaction by external stakeholders, adoption or modification of submissions, outcomes arising from policy implementation or non-implementation.

Youth Voices KE is not responsible for decisions made in reliance on the platform content, for missed opportunities, for funding or recognition, or for the political, social, or professional consequences of participation or use of the platform.

To the fullest extent permitted by Kenyan law, Youth Voices KE’s total cumulative liability arising out of or related to Platform use shall not exceed the amount paid by the user in the preceding 12 months, typically Ksh. 0.00, as the Platform is free.

6.4. No Responsibility for External Outcomes

Youth Voices KE is not liable for: government inaction or decisions; how partners interpret or implement briefs; and reliance on any platform content.

6.5. No Professional Advice

Youth Voices KE provides civic engagement information only and does not constitute legal, financial, or professional advice. Users should seek independent advice when necessary.

7. Third-Party Services & Links

The Platform may use third-party hosting, analytics, authentication, or external links. Youth Voices KE is not responsible for the security, reliability, or practices of third-party systems.

8. Indemnification

You agree to indemnify, defend and hold harmless Youth Voices KE, its founders, advisors, reviewers, partners, staff, contractors and affiliates from any and all claims, losses, liabilities, damages, or expenses (including legal fees) arising out of:

• your use or misuse of the Platform, including attempts to manipulate voting, breach platform security, or submit prohibited content.
• your submissions, including but not limited to: accuracy, originality, or legality of the content you provide; infringement of intellectual property rights; defamatory or unlawful statements; violation of the rights of any third party.
• your breach of these Terms, the Privacy Policy, or any infringement caused by your content under any applicable law.

This indemnity continues even after you stop using the Platform.

9. Moderation, Suspension & Termination

Youth Voices KE reserves the right, at its sole discretion, to at any time for violations of these Terms or for any reason deemed necessary to protect the Platform or its users: remove or edit submissions; restrict or suspend user access; block abusive or harmful behaviour; modify or discontinue any part of the Platform. No prior notice is required.

10. Governing Law & Dispute Resolution

The laws of Kenya govern these Terms. The parties shall first attempt to resolve any dispute amicably through good-faith negotiations for a period of 30 days. If unresolved, disputes shall be resolved by a competent court of law in Kenya. Any proceedings shall be filed in Nairobi, Kenya.

11. Data Protection

Your use of the Platform is also governed by our Privacy Policy, which is compliant with the Data Protection Act 2019. While we use industry-standard security measures, no online system is ever completely secure.

You acknowledge that you submit information at your own risk and that Youth Voices KE does not guarantee protection from all cyber-attacks, prevention of unauthorised access and/or absolute security of stored data. We will notify affected users when required by law, but we are not liable for unauthorised access occurring despite reasonable safeguards.

Where participation in Platform features requires the processing of additional personal data (including contact information for community engagement or volunteering), such processing shall only occur on the basis of explicit, informed, and freely given consent, which may be withdrawn at any time without prejudice.

12. Severability

If any part of these Terms is held to be unlawful, invalid, or unenforceable by a court of competent jurisdiction, the remaining provisions will remain in full force and effect. Any invalid provision will be interpreted or replaced in a way that best reflects the original intent while remaining lawful.

13. Entire Agreement

These Terms constitute the entire agreement between you and Youth Voices KE regarding your use of the Platform and supersede any prior understandings or discussions.

14. Changes to Terms

Youth Voices KE may update these Terms at any time. We will alert you about any changes by updating the “Last updated” date of these Terms, and you waive any right to receive specific notice of each such change.

It is your responsibility to periodically review these Terms and Conditions to stay informed of updates. You will be subject to, and will be deemed to have been made aware of and to have accepted, the changes in any revised Terms by your continued use of the Platform after the date such revised Terms and Conditions are posted.

15. Contact