Panellists engage with delegates about Africa’s opportunities – and challenges – in cementing its digital transformation agenda.
Business Leadership South Africa CEO Busisiwe Mavuso has warned that numerous issues undermine Africa’s ability to leverage its status as the fastest-growing population in the world and attract investment.
Mavuso was part of a panel discussion at the 45th annual Southern Africa Telecommunications Association (SATA) conference, held this week in Johannesburg.
Despite the many aspects in its favour, if Africa doesn’t “have its house in order” it doesn’t make sense to try to position the continent as an attractive growth market for investment, she noted.
Mavuso said the challenges that must be overcome include incapable states, infrastructure issues, energy security, water scarcity, as well as transport and logistic issues.
“Africa currently has 1.4 billion people. By 2050, we will be sitting with 2.7 billion people; we are the fastest-growing population in the world.
“If you’re sitting with 60% of your population below the age of 35, that is a strength and opportunity that can be cultivated. In the next 25 years, the global labour workforce will be coming from Africa.
“We can’t position ourselves as an investment destination while we have public institutions in Africa and in SA that are dysfunctional, like SITA for instance, from an SA perspective. It doesn’t have time to drive the digital agenda and digital transformation agenda.
“We need to look within for us to be taken seriously and we need to fix the messes that we have in our countries,” she added.
Khulekani Mathe, CEO of Business Unity South Africa, said during the SATA panel discussion that it’s important there is investment in the appropriate infrastructure to drive and enable economic activity, and public-private partnerships will be key.
The nature of the infrastructure and scale of investment required cannot be delivered and financed by any one sector working alone, he commented.
“If we hold on to the ideology that says this must be state-led development, we will forever be behind the curve.”
As part of the continent’s digital transformation, connectivity is one such area of infrastructure that requires collaborative investment and partnership, said Telkom Group CEO Serame Taukobong.
“If we look at the demands of what AI talks to, the underlying principles of that is access to large elements of connectivity, and the connected ‘village’ becomes a critical enabler of that. But that requires significant investment in connectivity,” he added.
With a core theme of the SATA conference being Africa’s need to “get its house in order” and drive its digital agenda, the question of how South Africa can capitalise on its leadership of G20 to help drive the process was posed to Nonkqubela Thathakahle Jordan-Dyani, director-general of the Department of Communications and Digital Technologies.
“Under the G20 presidency, the focus is on the challenges of our continent and need for an inter-connected and inclusive approach among the world leaders. Africa’s development in a digitally intelligent world means it must be AI-driven, which is a priority,” she said.
Taukobong has been appointed to the Local Business Advisory Council of the B20, which connects the business community with G20 governments.
These forums are expected to play a direct role in digitalising the continent, championing the strategic use of AI and policy frameworks, and securing crucial buy-in of public-private partnerships and investment.
He said participation in B20 workstreams by South African and other African member companies is vital.
Mavuso pointed out: “There are 20 member countries in G20, so the task forces we have in place – eight of them in the case of B20 – are made up of different member countries of G20, so participation of SA and broader African member companies to drive discussion in a particular direction becomes important.”
Taukobong said Africa must structure its digital transformation strategy on three pillars: investment, innovation and inclusion. The last pillar must consider the influence of SMMEs in job creation, youth empowerment to drive the digital experience and gender inclusivity, he said.
Jordan-Dyani agreed: “If you are talking about inclusive growth, and people-centred inclusive agenda, you cannot leave out SMMEs.”
