MWC Kigali 2023: Tech leaders call for extensive digitization across Africa

African leaders have called for the extensive digitization of internet services across the breadth and length of the African continent at the ongoing Mobile World Congress (MWC) in the Rwandan capital. Kigali

Held on the theme Velocity-unleashing tomorrow’s technology today, the conference seeks to explore how Africa’s digital transformation journey is gaining momentum, empowering communities, governments and businesses.

As 4G moves forward and 5G emerges, frontier technologies offer huge potential and fintech continues to connect millions within the formal economy for the first time.

Addressing the participants, Doreen Bogdan-Martin, the Secretary-General of the International Telecommunication Union, hinted at a number of challenges to digitalisation including access to devices, unawareness, limited infrastructure and digital skills and so on.

For example, she noted that there are many people who still don't use mobile internet yet they live in areas that are covered by mobile broadband, noting that the usage gap reaches close to 60 percent in Sub-Saharan Africa.

“In Sierra Leone, I want to give this example, 80 per cent of schools are actually covered by 3G or 4G. But less than 2 per cent of schools that have this coverage are actually connected to the internet,” she said.

“We need to focus our efforts on everything that can make connectivity more meaningful,” she noted.

Mats Granryd, the Director General of the Global System for Mobile Communications (GSMA), a non-profit industry organization that represents the interests of mobile network operators worldwide, showcased optimism about the continent’s digitalization, noting that mobile data traffic in the Sub-Saharan region is forecasted to quadruple.

He noted that this is something that demands preparation by operators like telecom companies to provide interoperable, commercially viable solutions to the consumers and the industry.

“We want to continue to invest in connectivity for the many, not just the very few. When we look to the future of 4G, it's going to be the main focus in Africa over the next few years,” he said.

“But 5G is growing quickly too. By September this year, almost 30 operators in 16 markets had launched commercial 5G services in the region. And in 2030, 5G will contribute 11 billion US dollars to the economy in Sub-Saharan Africa. So there is plenty, plenty of good growth for us. Now as 5G matures, we need to create scalable, interoperable, and commercially viable solutions that will benefit operators, industries, consumers, everywhere,” he added.

Ebenezer Asante, the Senior Vice President (SVP) of markets at MTN Group, talked about the importance of Africa to leapfrog the digitalization of everything, but argued that in doing so, the continent’s people “must not only be consumers but also creators and suppliers of digital solutions.”

He called for enhancements in the education system so that it fosters creativity and problem-solving.

John Kaseya, the Director General of Africa CDC called for more digitalization of the continent’s health systems.

“Digital health systems have an invaluable role to play in strengthening primary healthcare and supporting community health initiatives towards achieving universal health coverage,” he said.

“Africa CDC last year embarked on what we call the new public health order and three months ago our governing board of ministers of health approved a new strategic plan 2023-2027 which identifies digital health as a critical enabler that will allow Africa to catch up with the lost ground in many areas of public health,” he noted.