BY DARGIE KAHSAY
Though Africa is the richest continent in natural resources with untapped development potential, it remains the poorest continent. The continent is the top source of raw material for the global market. Modern industries of the world are dominantly dependent on Africa’s raw material supply for their inputs. But, due to lack of technological advancement, modern infrastructural development and other factors, the continent still remains to face socio-economic problems.
Africa as a continent is striving to boost its continental development and planning to see developed and prosperous Africa by 2063. To achieve the goal, the continental organization, the African Union, set an Agenda 2063 with the objective of transforming Africa in all sectors. With these objective, new continental initiatives, strategies, policies, programs and actions are being implemented since the Agenda 2063 was launched almost ten years ago.
As part of the continental initiative to accelerate the continent’s economic development and interconnectivity among the citizens’ of the member states, Africa launched the African Continental Free Trade Area (AfCFTA) in 2020. Though, AfCFTA started its function and in good progress, its development is limited. The trade agreement needs infrastructural networking, introducing modern technologies and transforming the digital sector to promote services and market transactions.
Especially, the digital sector is the key player in the modern economic and trade transaction. Hence, Africa needs transforming its digital sector so as to realize the interconnectivity and economic transaction within the continent. Without modernizing services using technological advancements, it is tough to easily transform Africa’s economy, trade transaction and to realize the visions of the continent. Hence, investing to transform the digital sector and technological infrastructural networking must get a priority in this regard.
For the African continent, transforming the digital sector would become a game-changer in boosting economic growth, industrialization, and to improve the lives of the peoples of the continent. Digitalization and new technological innovations can help to modernize services throughout the continent and this would contribute to accelerate the implementation of the AfCFTA and to realize the Agenda 2063 of the African Union vision.
During a briefing to journalists this week on the sideline of the 36 African Union Ordinary Session, African Union Commission’s Commissioner for Infrastructure and Energy, Amani Abou-Zeid (PhD) said that modernizing and developing the continent’s infrastructure is crucial requirement to accelerate the development of the continent. Hence, she said, AU is working to boost continental infrastructural development with modern technologies and gives due attention to transform the digital sector in the continent.
For the commissioner, African economy was badly affected by the recent continental and global developments, by the COVID-19 and the political developments within and outside of the continent. Though it passed all these challenges, with joint efforts taken to solve the challenges, Africa achieved a lot at continental level in infrastructural development. She said that Africa is implementing a strategy that promotes the development of the continent’s energy infrastructure to boost the continent’s access to clean energy. Investing in expanding affordable and accessible energy in the continent would play vital role to develop technological transformation and to expand digitalization in the continent.
In addition, the Infrastructure and Energy Commissioner reiterated that the continental organization is working to boost continental interconnectedness through transportation by introducing modern systems. As to her, using technological developments, 35 African countries reached an agreement to apply a single air transport market scheme in the continent. According to the commissioner, the single air transport market scheme in the continent would accelerate the implementation of The African Continental Free Trade Area (AfCFTA) launched three years ago with the goal of creating single African market. In addition, it would accelerate continental movement of peoples and goods.
Synergizing the continent’s resources, infrastructure and services using technological advancements would facilitate the continent’s journey to development and prosperity. Introducing and implementing technologies in the infrastructure and accelerating digitalization are vital for the continental transformation. As to Commissioner Dr. Amani, Africa is working to accelerate digitalization in the continent so as to transform the service sector.
According to the Commissioner, the continent is working to expand and to transform continental digitalization so as to make the continental service, trade transaction and market easily accessible. In addition, developing digitalization in the continent would make movement of peoples easy by implementing including digital identification cards for the continent’s people. The commissioner during her briefing stated that in digitalization sector, to accelerate and facilitate continentally inclusive common market, activities are being done in developing the digitalization sector.
In addition, digitalization is using in facilitating the health, education, transport and to transform the service sector for the people of the continent. As to her to facilitate and modernize the functioning of sectors, digital strategy is applied in health, education, transportation sector in the continent. Hence, in addition to investing in infrastructural development in the continent, Africa is giving due attention to digitalizing services using technological advancements.
“Digitalization is vital to accelerate African Continental Free Trade Agreement and to transform the service sector in the continent,” the commissioner stated. She added that to expand digitalization, “it is critical to build secure, safe and easily accessible internet accessibility throughout the continent and efforts are being taken to promoting the expansion of affordable internet access in the continent.” In this regard, the continent is also giving an attention to human resource development in cyber security through trainings to build cyber resilience in the continent to make the fast growing digitalization secure and safe. “Energy and digitalization are critical pillars to accelerate the continental free trade area agreement,” hence, she said Africa is working to realize digital Africa. There are efforts to establish a single digital market in the continent and the continent is also working to apply digital identification card.
As to her, to accelerate the continental development, Africa eyes on investing in developing and modernizing the continent’s infrastructure. Parallel to expanding the continent’s infrastructural development, Africa is working to transform digitalization to support its development goals. Similarly, considering its importance, there are efforts to apply digital identification. In addition to the continental efforts in infrastructural development, Africa is also jointly working with other stakeholders of the continent that are participating in Africa’s infrastructural works like China and other countries.
Digital technology would help to drive innovation, economic growth and job creation in many key sectors of the economy. In addition, it allows for greater interconnection of African markets with one another and with the rest of the world. Similarly, digitalization can enhance both market and financial access for all, mainly in marginalized areas neglected by traditional financial institutions. According to experts in the sector, promoting digitalization in Africa would also maximize the positive impact of sectors such as health, energy, transport, agriculture, education and facilitating access to basic social services.
Not only that, digitalization can also help in promoting good governance and development policies and programmers in the government sector. To improve the continent’s digitalization, in addition to creating enabling environment with policies and infrastructural developments, the continent should also encourage the private sector investment in the digitalization process. Creating enabling environment for the private sector would boost the digitalization efforts of the continent.
THE ETHIOPIAN HERALD FRIDAY 24 FEBRUARY 2023
