In his keynote, Ashong said the issue was limiting underrepresented communities from adequately communicating their culture to the world. 

“Imagine a world where African youths have the bandwidth to consume and create their own content,” said Ashong, pointing out that “the money has not been there to take our industry to where it should be because our [mobile] customer base is missing”. 

“Yes, we have 1.4 billion people, but how many of them are actually connected to 4G services that enable them to consume and upload content so the world can hear the African perspective?” the CEO said.

“We are sitting here and talking about how to get more 4G users, but we need to find a way to reduce the barrier to entry.” 

To help mitigate this, Ashong noted his company TBTM piloted an in-app digital currency, dubbed Kola, which functions as a token reward for consuming content and can be exchanged for other services, including data allowances. 

“We go from content viewing to e-commerce transactions; there’s deeper data, and now the communities have better access and get connected. This enables all the social good we want to engage in to come to fruition.”

The entrepreneur also said the initiative can help 70 per cent of the population in Sub-Saharan Africa reach high-speed mobile data usage by 2030.  

Ashong said TBTM is currently working with MTN Nigeria to expand the service. 

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Derrick Ashong, CEO, Take Back the Media, Ekele Kanu, Head of MNO Partnerships – EEMEA, MasterCard, and Sipho Dlamini, President – MEA, Gamma, speak in the session ‘Adopting a Digital Mindset’.

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Bocar Ba, CEO, SAMENA Telecommunications Council, Dr Philip Song, CMO of Huawei Carrier BG, Lacina Kone, Director General and CEO of Smart Africa, and Philip Besiimire, MD, Vodacom Tanzania speak in the session ‘Building a Connected Africa.’

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H.E Paul Kagame, President, Republic of Rwanda is joined by Hon. Mrs Paula Ingabire, Minister of ICT and Innovation, Rwanda, and GSMA Director General Mats Granryd.

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GSMA Director General Mats Granryd, ITU Secretary-General Doreen Bogdan-Martin, ZTE MEA President Darren Zhao, Africa CDC Director General Dr Jean Kaseya, Orange Africa CEO Jerome Henique and Airtel Africa Group CEO Segun Ogunsanya speak in the opening keynote session: Digitalisation of Everything.

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In his keynote on day 3, Kanu said there was a distinct need to ensure infrastructure created is not only used to increase internet usage and promote inclusiveness in the region, but also “create priceless experiences”.

Pointing to technologies such as AI, cloud and data analytics, the executive said such developments would drive better experiences, but partnerships across the industry, with operators, SMEs and start-ups were key to making that happen.

During his presentation, the executive also reflected on how people engaged with businesses before the internet existed.

“We started with simple things”, said Kanu. “We go to the market, do our transactions, and go home,” but as the population grew, merchants started to explore new ways to reach more customers.

Business owners then became travellers who had to learn new languages. “Now, we talk about the world wide web, and we have networks everywhere,” bringing forth what he termed as the “digital mindset” where everything is accessible through digital technologies and everyone is “ready to consume digital content”. 

Kane also argued a need for a new business paradigm: “Old paradigm is about profit, a top-to-bottom business model. It worked over decades.” 

“New paradigm is about the priceless experience you want to bring to people.”

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During his keynote the executive described the progress made in the continent’s mobile revolution over the last decade as an “exemplary success story” though added it was currently at a crossroads with huge potential for a fully connected continent but also issues at large.

“Quite a lot of challenges besiege the industry or the various players in the ecosystem,” he added. “Whether it’s cost of deployment, power supply, regulatory handles, sometimes the terrain [or] geography of where we have to go to, climate and environmental factors.”

As an example, he pointed to current preparations being made at his operation for a potential El Nino in Tanzania.  

Among the potential innovative solutions to issues on the continent cited by the executive were satellite connectivity for remote areas, and the greater deployment of solar energy to solve power issues.   

“The opportunity for us in Africa is massive and we can do a lot to continue to solving some of these challenges,” he said, adding “I believe that connected Africa with 5G acceleration will help us leap-frog within the fourth industrial revolution, [but] it calls for collaboration between government, industry and key stakeholders”.

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Speaking during the event’s second keynote Kone promoted future use cases set to create significant societal impact when strategically implemented, including in telemedicine and in opening use cases for IoT.

Describing 5G as “one of the most transformative technological advances of our era” he explained “it is the groundbreaking element that will disrupt our industry, create new opportunity and, in my view, can allow a leap-forward of Africa into digital.”

Alongside opening digital use cases, Kone stated there were also benefits from being able to switch-off legacy 2G and 3G systems in terms of refarming spectrum and energy efficiency (factors cited by operators across several markets in recent years).

SAMENA Telecommunications Council CEO Bocar Ba backed the targeted 5G deployment in the region, adding “in the era of fifth generation digital technologies connecting and building Africa through local innovation and smart fit-for-purpose technology mix is essential.”

He added “In Africa in these early days of 5G adoption it is imperative to pick up harmonised space through spectrum auctions, pilots and commercial trials as well as identifying locally relevant use cases.”

Barriers
However, as was raised by both speakers, barriers remain to expand use of digital technologies in communities with low adoption rates.

Kone pointed to a need for more affordable connectivity and devices, the latter of which is being addressed by players in the region, alongside upping digital skills.

Ba agreed the issue of people covered by mobile internet services but not accessing them, known as the usage gap, in the region was “predominantly due to handset and broadband affordability, shortage of digital skills and insufficient relevant content.”

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The executive first emphasised the gap in the financial system across Sub-Saharan Africa, pointing out that only 17 per cent of the population have access to mobile wallets and the majority still live outside the traditional financial systems. 

He also noted that those who are covered by the internet end up not using it for many reasons, with financial constraints being the key barrier. “What we do in telecoms is to make it easier for people to enter the digital world,” said Ogunsanya, adding operators have the responsibility “to bridge the divide between those who have internet access and those who do not”. 

When it comes to the financial divide, Ogunsanya underlined that women living in rural parts of Africa are the most affected as they do not have access to financial products, making them more prone to “[economic] abuse” and poverty. 

The CEO also identified expensive handsets as the reason why mobile money remains untapped in some areas. To help mitigate this, Ogunsanya highlighted Airtel’s recent collaboration with the Rwandan government to launch a 4G smartphone, which it claims is the most affordable handset of its kind in Africa, marketed for $20. 

Ogunsanya also touted a $1 monthly data plan which allows unlimited texting and phone calls, with 1 GB of internet. This, he believes, would increase mobile usage in the continent, having noted that every 10 per cent increase in mobile penetration in Africa results in 2 per cent increase in GDP. 

“Our role is to allow the world to reach Africa and allow Africa to reach the world.”

Further, the executive addressed the operator role in advancing the education systems: “Education does not have to be within the confines of classroom. It is about teaching and distributing knowledge,” he said.

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During his keynote speech, Asante noted MTN’s Ambition 2025 strategy was based on the view that “we believe everyone deserves the benefits of a modern connected life”, and includes wide-ranging efforts to support African enterprises and improve user value. 

A large part of this strategy entails the delivery and creation of the largest digital platforms, expanding the company’s existing portfolio. Asante also pointed out a commitment to invest $2 billion in capex every year, until 2025. 

The executive argued a fresh approach is required to cement partnerships with the government, noting that “business must respond to the needs of society sustainably and must complement state efforts” in delivering real, long-term growth in the continent’s digitalisation journey. 

Asante added the role of digitalisation will create “new opportunities at an individual, enterprise, state and societal levels”. 

However, he warned Africa needs to deploy its digital strategies at “twice the pace of the rest of the world”, noting a digital skills gap in the continent is well known. 

He cited a forecast which will see the arrival of 230 million digital-centric jobs in Sub-Saharan Africa, and that “we need to prioritise this fast”, highlighting upskilling in AI and computing. 

With this, he emphasised industry players and state actors to keep a close eye on the social impact of vast digitalisation: “The potential of digitalisation is limitless, and there lies a need to balance the ethics of digitalisation. We must not only use digitalisation to leapfrog development ladder but leapfrog its ails”. 

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In a statement, the duo explained they successfully tested SoftBank’s proprietary 5G communications payload on 24 September 2023, delivering connectivity on a solar powered HAPS UAV prototype.

The feat follows a stratospheric flight test conducted in Rwanda in June, when the HAPS UAV prototype carried a mock-up of the payload with a similar weight and dimensions.

Providing details on the latest test, SoftBank’s payload apparently continuously delivered 5G connectivity for approximately 73 minutes in the stratosphere at a maximum altitude of 16.9km and “performed as expected in demanding atmospheric conditions”.

Use cases during the test included a 5G-based video call conducted between a smartphone at a test site in Rwanda and SoftBank’s team in Japan.

It was able to use a regular smartphone, as the radio waves transmitted and received on the payload installed on the prototype in the stratosphere operated on the same frequencies as existing devices.

Partners
The development is arguably one of the biggest since SoftBank’s subsidiary HAPSMobile signed an MoU with Rwanda’s ICT ministry in July 2020 to explore the use of HAPS to deliver mobile connectivity.

SoftBank also signed an agreement with the country’s government in June to provide education technology services using non-terrestrial networks (NTN).

The operator and the government will now explore further use cases and commercial implementation across Africa.

“This test marks an important step forward in our aim of bridging the digital divide with HAPS and other NTN solutions,” said Junichi Miyakawa, president and CEO at SoftBank.

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In his keynote speech, Henique named connectivity, energy and mobile money as the primary enablers of socioeconomic development and the basis of the continent’s digital transformation journey. To help back this ambition, the CEO said Orange has invested more than €1.2 billion to boost its services in Africa. 

This, Henique hopes, can help individuals “wherever they may be, even in the most isolated [areas], study, work, communicate and manage their finances”. 

The executive touted the impact of its digital offerings on local SMEs, pointing to the case of Sebastian, a young entrepreneur in Ivory Coast who began opening his business as a hairdresser without leaving his home. 

In Sub-Saharan Africa,“the informal economy still plays a central role, accounting for up to 86 per cent of jobs” as well as 83 per cent of borrowing or loans carried outside conventional financial institutions, which makes mobile money the solution “for banking the unbanked”, Henique said. 

With mobile financial platform Orange Money and Orange Smart Energy, an initiative which involves the instalment of solar kits, Henique said Sebastian can manage his business from his mobile phone.

The operator also touted the progress of its mobile banking service Orange Bank Africa, which offers microloans to businesses and recently exceeded one million customers, and its start-up incubator programme, Orange Digital Centre, which currently develops more than 200 start-ups and provides a range of support spanning training and investment.

Notably, he pointed to Digital Nisa, a Senegalese start-up it helped develop which provides IT training for women who have dropped out of school.

Henique argued that the role of operators “cannot be limited to purely economic contributions”, adding digital skills and capabilities are necessary to reduce the digital gap. 

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Zhang Jianpeng, Senior Vice President, reviews development of 5G in Africa and ZTE’s efforts to bridge the digital divide.

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Granryd noted mobile data traffic in the region is forecast to quadruple in the next five years: “We need to be prepared. We need a fair and proportionate contribution towards the costs of network infrastructure.”

He cited data estimating operations in the region need $75 billion to build out their 4G and 5G networks over the next seven years to keep up with customer demands.

Africa has nearly 490 million mobile subscribers, representing just 43 per cent of the population.

The low percentage is mainly due to the usage gap, people covered by mobile internet but not yet using it, which is the highest in the world, he stated. Some 680 million people in Africa are not using mobile internet for a variety of reasons, such as device affordability, digital literacy and relevant content in local languages.

“The good news is in Sub-Saharan Africa the coverage gap narrowed to 15 per cent,” Granryd added, reflecting the fact mobile network coverage is available to the vast majority of the region’s population.

Granryd noted the digital transformation story in Africa “is only just beginning and is one to watch”, given it has the world’s youngest population.

“In Africa we have seen time and again the exponential growth that can happen when technology takes off.”

He cited the example of mobile money, which was introduced in Africa 16 years ago. Today the continent has more than 760 million registered accounts, generating some $830 billion in transactions per year.

While African had a late start to 5G, rollouts are growing quickly, the GSMA chief said. By September, almost 30 operators in 16 markets launched commercial 5G services.

Another key element to addressing the usage gap is spectrum, Granryd said, which makes it critical for the World Radiocommunication Conference in Dubai to deliver low-band frequencies, 3.5GHz harmonisation to drive affordability and the 6GHz band for the expansion of 5G.

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Take m-mama for example. The service launched in 2013 by Vodafone Foundation to provide emergency transport for pregnant women in isolated parts of Kenya, Tanzania, Malawi and Lesotho: an initiative created to combat a high rate of maternal-related deaths. 

Meanwhile, Safaricom’s m-Pesa was introduced in the same year to tackle a deep financial divide, although 45 per cent of adults in Sub-Saharan Africa were still unbanked by end-2022. Today, the app allows its 51 million users to send and receive money via SMS and manage household bills. MTN’s MoMo, launched in Ghana in 2009, lets users do the same. 

With mobile technologies expected to continue playing a central role in Africa’s socio-economic life, Max Cuvellier, head of Mobile for Development (M4D) at GSMA, told Mobile World Live (MWL) that fintech and health technology will be key topics at MWC Kigali 2023, taking place in the Kigali Convention Centre, Rwanda, from 17 October to 19 October. 

Health is wealth 
“We usually think about how to leverage technology to provide people with a healthy and dignified life. One is obviously health. Health is wealth, generally speaking, but in the past health tech has probably not been given the visibility it deserves. So, it’s great to have it as a key theme this year”, Cuvellier said. 

This year’s congress will highlight the integration of new technologies to provide solutions to African citizens, added Cuvellier, who named the continent as a place with the highest concentration of impactful deployments of digital tech. 

Sessions around this topic will be hosted by the Africa HealthTech Summit, which brings together Africa CDC, a public health agency of the African Union, and Smart Africa, a joint governmental initiative aimed at encouraging ICT investments.  

With diversity and inclusion being an anchor of sorts for MWC Kigali 2023, the Africa HealthTech Summit will feature discussions from female leaders who are breaking barriers to shape the future of Africa’s digital health ecosystem and other industry experts who will be addressing investment gaps within the health sector. 

Home to 760 million mobile money users, discussions around digital economy and fintech are expected to dominate the congress: “Half of the world’s mobile money users are located in Africa, and two-thirds of the value of mobile money transactions globally are happening in Africa,” Cuvellier said. 

However, he also pointed out the shift to a digital financial landscape comes with its own challenges, stating it’s “an environment that is becoming more complex”. 

Indeed, research in 2021 found half of m-Pesa adopters had fallen victim to fraud. So, “it’s really crucial to maintain the momentum and also have the hard conversation”, he added. 

Angela Wamola, head of Sub-Saharan Africa at GSMA, told MWL collaborative efforts between private and public sectors are crucial in educating customers about the risks of digital technology and pushing forward “stringent regulatory frameworks”. 

This is fundamental at a time when Africa’s “digital economy is facing new disruptions as it grows”, said Wamola. 

Start-up revolution 
MWC Kigali 2023 also aims to bring attention to how innovations in Africa have extended far beyond mobile apps, thanks to a ripe start-up ecosystem which in 2022 raised more than $3 billion worth of funding. 

Under the theme of Accelerate Africa, the event is expected to dive into how emerging technology start-ups are reshaping the continent’s entrepreneurial sector, with Cuvellier referring to Africa 118, an Ethiopian company which connects over 10,000 African SMEs to the internet and helps them grow their online presence.  

Its CEO, Ezana Raswork, will feature as a panellist to explore the impact of technology on small businesses. Cuvellier also highlighted Freetown Waste Transformer, a female-led company based in Sierra Leone’s capital that converts organic waste into clean energy. 

“We do a lot of work with start-ups, and I think they’ve really emerged in the past five years”, creating “solutions that are not only taking businesses but also society to the next level”. 

Devices accessibility 
Sub-Saharan Africa has made great strides in making mobile innovation an enabler of change. Today, 85 per cent of the region is covered by mobile networks, but the remaining 15 per cent, which accounts for about 200 million people, remains unconnected. 

Out of the 85 per cent covered by the internet, there are more people who are not using the internet than those using it, Cuvellier said. This is due to a lack of access to affordable handsets and broadband, which have been key barriers in Africa’s digitalisation journey.

“Africa is a mobile-first continent. Owning an internet-enabled phone is a big step on the path to being fully integrated in the society and the economy, and it touches every aspect of Africans’ personal and professional life,” Cuvellier said. 

Meanwhile, Wamola emphasised that the upcoming event will showcase programmes and policy developments aimed at narrowing the digital divide, including subsidising devices and data plans for marginalised communities and rural areas. 

At the event’s Policy Leader Forum, Wamola will be speaking alongside Rwanda’s Minister of ICT and Innovation Paula Ingabire, Zambia’s Minister of Technology and Science Felix Mutati and other experts to explore what is needed to make digital inclusion a reality. 

“Ultimately, achieving equal access and knowledge in emerging technologies requires collaboration, adaptability, and sustained efforts from various stakeholders. MWC Kigali is a fantastic opportunity to bring these stakeholders together, fostering dialogue and action plans that can drive forward the mission of digital inclusion,” Wamola said. 

Live stream
MWL will stream the keynote sessions from the event here, stay tuned!

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