Positioning Africa as a global leader in the evolving IT landscape
Africa has the potential to become a significant player on the international scene and is at an exciting turning point in the information technology (IT) industry. Africa has a younger, more active population than any other continent, with over 1.4 billion individuals, more than 60 percent of whom are under 25. Thanks to more affordable cellphones and improved mobile networks, internet connectivity has rapidly increased throughout the continent, rising from 28 percent five years ago to 43 percent now, according to ITU 2025 estimates. The African Private Equity and Venture Capital Association reports that the startup industry is also flourishing, attracting nearly $8 billion in investments in the previous year. This essay presents a clear strategy for Africa to become a leader in IT. We cover five main areas: strong digital setup, building skills, sparking new ideas, smart policies, and embracing new tech. Using simple ideas and real insights, this roadmap offers practical steps to help Africa move from the edges of the digital world to its centre, aiming for 15 percent of the global IT business by 2030.
Building a strong digital setup: The base for IT success
Africa needs a solid digital foundation that can manage large numbers of people and data if it wants to be a leader in IT. Smart, cost-effective solutions that prioritise efficiency and the environment may address issues like patchy internet, power outages, and excessive expenses.
According to a 2024 GSMA report, new approaches to mobile network construction can reduce costs by 40 percent. By combining equipment from many manufacturers, these techniques enable businesses to put up fast internet, such as 5G, more quickly and affordably. This has the potential to link an additional 900 million people by 2030, facilitating online services, smart gadgets, and video chats in both urban and rural areas.
Satellite services can provide high-speed internet in remote places where most people dwell without the need for kilometres of cables. Combining this with local data processing speeds up key tasks such as online health checkups and farm supply tracking. Small solar-powered data hubs can operate dependably even in the absence of constant energy, handling vast volumes of data each day while saving on data transfer.
Big data centres are also important, as they are meant to be energy efficient and environmentally benign. They can cut power consumption in half by using improved cooling and clean energy sources, as well as technologies that adjust to the workload automatically. Growing them to handle vast volumes of data by 2030 would result in a robust African online network that keeps information safe and local while meeting large computing demands.
Together, these aspects – improved networks, satellite reach, and green data hubs – provide a flexible infrastructure that is resistant to weather and online threats, making Africa a go-to destination for digital services.
Growing top IT talent: From learning to creating
The World Bank expects that Africa’s 700 million young people will become 10 million skilled IT workers by 2030. This entails utilising innovative educational tools that reach out to everyone while focusing on genuine results.
Learning platforms enabled by smart software can personalise lessons to each individual, analysing how they study and perform to provide the optimal path. This triples the speed of learning compared to traditional techniques, training a million developers annually in skills such as app development, internet security, and smart systems. Running these on shared computing resources ensures quick feedback and helps more people complete their courses.
Digital certificates maintained securely online make talents easy to demonstrate anywhere in the world. Short training programmes, such as three-month courses, allow participants to work on real-world projects while learning to launch apps and automate operations. Graduates often earn 40 percent more and contribute to a $100 billion online employment market.
Programmes to reintegrate talented Africans living overseas provide tax incentives for their ideas as well as cheap employment opportunities in digital hubs. This intends to attract 100,000 specialists who will share their knowledge on sophisticated themes. Adding virtual simulations for practice without real equipment helps produce a competent group as strong as the best in the world, with several already leading free online initiatives.
Sparking a creative ecosystem: Turning ideas into big wins
Moving from ten major success stories in 2024 to 100 by 2030 will necessitate technologies that accelerate new ideas. Safe testing zones for new apps in finance, health, and farming allow authors to experiment safely while tracking progress to ensure compliance with regulations.
New funding methods based on online communities can raise $1 billion a year with modest costs, allowing ordinary people to invest and vote on projects fairly. This allows for more varied creators and provides better returns than traditional investments.
Online sharing spaces, now numbering 50, contribute to the development of local language tools such as voice assistants for half a billion users. In Nigeria, where thousands of new companies are receiving billions of dollars in capital, mobile apps and secure data arrangements are driving growth, with software exports anticipated to add 20 percent to the economy by 2030.
These tools make the process easier: test ideas safely, secure finance online, and expand through shared networks, resulting in massive hits faster than anywhere else.
Policies and leadership: Supporting safe growth
Good regulations are needed for long-term success, with a focus on keeping data local and employing technology fairly. The requirement for the majority of data to remain in Africa with strong protection procedures facilitates the secure exchange of information across borders for activities like online shopping.
A continent-wide guide for smart technology establishes fair norms, audits for biases annually and fines major rulebreakers. A $50 billion fund headed by African leaders invests in safe online systems that protect against future dangers and has already invested in hundreds of new enterprises this year.
Leading in new tech: Africa’s jump forward
To stay competitive, Africa should concentrate on online communities, smart systems, advanced computing, and combining technology and biology. Smart farming tools use satellite imagery and ground data to assist millions of small farmers in increasing their crop yield by 25 percent. Automated agreements in online trading systems reduce border problems by one-third.
Investing in superfast computing solves difficult problems rapidly. Working with global partners on next-generation internet, the goal is to achieve superfast speeds by 2030 for applications such as 3D meetings. The objective is to have full-speed internet by 2026, a million smart tech professionals by 2028, $100 billion in sales by 2030, and the top spot in smart tech by 2035, thanks to new wireless and brain-like chips.
Challenges and fixes
With 600 million people without electricity, new high-efficiency solar installations can power thousands of local networks. To combat escalating online threats, rigorous security layers protect critical components. Eco-friendly loans, which have already garnered billions of dollars this year, have the potential to address $80 billion in annual funding deficits.
Conclusion: Africa’s rise in IT
This plan positions Africa to capture $500 billion in IT revenue by 2030, creating 20 million jobs through collaborative efforts and significant investments. Early wins demonstrate that it is possible. Leaders should initiate network tests; new enterprises should participate in language projects; and funders should support online investments. Africa’s digital future seems bright.
About the author
Olatunde Olasehan is an experienced IT Engineer with close to a decade in IT infrastructure, cybersecurity, and IT operations. He has designed and secured resilient systems across industries like telecommunications and IT service delivery. Passionate about turning complex IT challenges into actionable solutions, Olatunde helps businesses improve cybersecurity and operational efficiency.
