MWC Barcelona 2024 Sub-Saharan Africa Report

The GSMA Africa regional team capitalized on this year’s MWC Barcelona 2024 to engage with African government officials in meaningful discussions about the continent’s digital future. The dialogues focused on the economic potentials of digital transformation and identified the lack of affordable smart devices and internet connectivity as critical barriers to adoption and economic advancement.

These discussions, involving representatives from Nigeria, Kenya, Zambia, Benin, Ghana, and the Democratic Republic of Congo, including ministers and high-level officials, underscored the necessity for a concerted effort to drive digitalization across Africa.

The key outcomes highlighted included:

• Economic Digitalization: The need for policy initiatives to boost digital service adoption and their economic impact across the African economies.
• Digital Government: Strategies for enhancing and improving the use of digital technology in government and public service delivery.
• Telecoms Sector: Policies addressing performance in terms of infrastructure, access and the adoption of both digital communication and mobile financial services.

The sessions laid the groundwork for the forthcoming GSMA’s Digital Africa Index, aiming to continue these critical conversations beyond MWC Barcelona 2024. Furthermore, this initiative seeks to align with development agendas across the continent, emphasizing the importance of accessible digital technologies for economic growth and improved public services.
Through collaboration and targeted policy interventions, the GSMA and African governments aspire to overcome barriers to digitalization, paving the way for a connected and prosperous African digital economy. Read more on the Sub-Saharan Africa engagements in this MWC Barcelona 2024 Report.