The world is entering the digital era. What does this mean for Africa? The conclusion is clear. With strong growth in mobile phone access, the gradual roll-out of broadband and myriad new startups, African innovation is moving full steam ahead with new uses and disruptive everyday solutions. In this book, Jean-Michel Huet presents five digital advances allowing Africa to skip development stages and get ready to overtake other continents. The five digital jumps, also known as 'leapfrogs', encompass the whole of the African economy, from telecoms to mobile financial services, e-commerce, e-government and the collaborative platform economy. With interviews and case studies, Africa and the Digital ‘Leapfrog’ reveals a modern Africa that is – at times – ahead of the rest of the world.
The hope and hype about African digital entrepreneurship, contrasted with the reality on the ground in local ecosystems. In recent years, Africa has seen a digital entrepreneurship boom, with hundreds of millions of dollars poured into tech cities, entrepreneurship trainings, coworking spaces, innovation prizes, and investment funds. Politicians and technologists have offered Silicon Valley-influenced narratives of boundless opportunity and exponential growth, in which internet-enabled entrepreneurship allows Africa to "leapfrog" developmental stages to take a leading role in the digital revolution. This book contrasts these aspirations with empirical research about what is actually happening on the ground. The authors find that although the digital revolution has empowered local entrepreneurs, it does not untether local economies from the continent's structural legacies.
Offering invaluable insights into technologically-driven change in Africa, this incisive book envisions myriad positive economic changes brought about by new technologies and innovations. Rooted in original research from contributors who have worked and taught in Africa, it encapsulates developments and breakthroughs throughout the continent.
In this study, we look at the potential for development leaps in Africa in three key sectors that provided the basis for socioeconomic development around the world: health, education and agriculture. Advances in these sectors increase the human capital, create jobs and economic opportunities and have a positive influence on each other. Healthy and well-fed children can learn better; hygiene and better medical care diminish infant mortality, which reduces the desire for a large number of children; education for women promotes gender equality and causes birth rates to fall further. This creates a population structure under which the economy can grow particularly well: a demographic dividend becomes possible.
The hope and hype about African digital entrepreneurship, contrasted with the reality on the ground in local ecosystems. In recent years, Africa has seen a digital entrepreneurship boom, with hundreds of millions of dollars poured into tech cities, entrepreneurship trainings, coworking spaces, innovation prizes, and investment funds. Politicians and technologists have offered Silicon Valley–influenced narratives of boundless opportunity and exponential growth, in which internet-enabled entrepreneurship allows Africa to “leapfrog” developmental stages to take a leading role in the digital revolution. This book contrasts these aspirations with empirical research about what is actually happening on the ground. The authors find that although the digital revolution has empowered local entrepreneurs, it does not untether local economies from the continent's structural legacies. Drawing on a five-year research project, the authors show how entrepreneurs creatively and productively adapt digital technologies to local markets rather than dreaming of global dominance, achieving sustainable businesses by scaling based on relationships and customizing digital platform business models for African infrastructure challenge. The authors examine African entrepreneurial ecosystems; show that African digital entrepreneurs have begun to form a new professional class, becoming part of a relatively exclusive cultural and economic elite; and discuss the impact of Silicon Valley's mythologies and expectations. Finally, they consider the implications of their findings and offer recommendations to policymakers and others.
The main thrust of this book is to examine whether Africa is in a position to benefit from the digital age, given the continent’s many development challenges and slow adoption of digital technologies. While there is substantial literature on the digital economy and the quickening pace of the Fourth Industrial Revolution (4IR), comparatively little research has been conducted on what the digital age means for Africa. This book aims to close this research gap by using various qualitative and quantitative research methodologies to arrive at a cross-section of original findings and perspectives on how Africa can capitalise on the benefits of digital developments, including their potential to create jobs and bring about more inclusive growth. The book’s main contribution is its coverage of a range of topics that will affect Africa’s digital future, including industrialisation, global value chains, transport and logistics, trade facilitation, labour-market dynamics, employment and education. The theme of digital trade forms a backdrop to many of the chapters, along with references to the COVID-19 pandemic. The book acknowledges that although African countries should learn from international best practices, they need to chart their own course according to their own particular circumstances. By adopting a digital mindset, countries should be able to diversify economically and extend their market reach across the continent. Furthermore, while Africa should be looking to the future and determining how digital technologies can become effective tools of sustainable development, the continent has much catching up to do.
The integration and use of information and communication technologies (ICT) in African countries is increasingly observable in various sectors of activity (banking, education, trade, etc.) despite a digital divide still relevant. ICT has become a major sector of the recent growth of a new informal economy in African cities (Chéneau-Loquay, 2008). This question has been at the heart of various international meetings. An overall positive and even utopian momentum is generally heard about the contribution of digital technologies to the development of African states. The adoption or appropriation of digital technologies by Africans is presented in many speeches by politicians or institutions involved in the field of cooperation and international development as an important issue for the development of this continent. These different considerations give rise to reflections on the following themes. - Social Media and Public Space in Africa - Challenges of the digital economy in Africa - ICT and modernization of higher education in Africa
Africa, a continent rich in natural resources and vibrant cultures, is embracing digital technology to leapfrog into a future of development and growth. In recent years, the rapid expansion of digital technologies throughout Africa has presented countless opportunities for the continent to overcome traditional barriers and transform its economies. This easy-to-read and practical book explores how Africa can leverage digital technologies to drive innovation, advance education, and foster inclusive economic growth, ultimately propelling the continent into becoming a global leader in the digital age. The book aims to assist those who wish to invest in Africa to leverage opportunities presented by this amazing continent.
There are essential questions surrounding Africa's digitalization journey, including whether or not the continent can truly serve as the last frontier for socio-economic transformation through digital innovation. An examination of countries such as Ghana, Kenya, Senegal, and Rwanda, which are actively pursuing digitalization, may provide some answers. To evaluate the potential implications, both real and potential, that arise from this focused pursuit, a critical analysis is necessary. Scrutiny of digital infrastructure by companies like Huawei, the emergence of artificial intelligence, and the advent of quantum computing will open new pathways to understanding and establishing promising approaches to the advancement of this region. Examining the Rapid Advance of Digital Technology in Africa offers a comprehensive exploration of the transformative power of digitalization in Africa and its implications for the continent's socio-economic development. It engages with the field of science and technology studies, linking it with socio-economic impacts and transformation, to track, analyze, understand, and critique Africa's contributions to digitalization. The chapters cover a wide range of themes, including ICTs and the business environment, education, healthcare, creative industries, media, culture, tourism, agriculture, ecology, artificial intelligence, blockchain and cryptocurrency revolution, algorithmic governance, the quantum age, and urbanization. This book is a must-read for researchers, scholars, investors, and policymakers who are interested in Africa's digital transformation, as it offers valuable insights into the latest empirical and theoretical aspects shaping the continent's ongoing digitalization.
This collection seeks to analyze the problems and opportunities associated with the ubiquitous digital revolution, providing a cross-disciplinary examination of digital disparities inhibiting social, political and economic progress across Africa.
