Ayotunde Coker, Chief Executive Officer of Open Access Data Centre, has said that closing Africa’s digital infrastructure gap is the key to increasing prosperity on the continent.

“Closing the digital infrastructure gap is key to Africa’s prosperity,” he said this in his keynote speech at the ‘Hyperscalers Convergence Africa’ event held in Lagos on Thursday.

The inaugural Hyperscalers conference was organised by Africa Hyperscalers Media and was aimed at uniting the continent’s digital infrastructure community.

Coker stated that Africa accounts for about 17 percent of the world’s population but contributes only around 4 percent of the global GDP. This disparity, which he termed the prosperity gap, is closely linked to Africa’s underdeveloped digital infrastructure.

For instance, nine submarine cables deliver internet capacity to Nigeria’s shores, but a 90,000-kilometer fiber infrastructure gap results in slow and unreliable internet access in the country. Gaps like this hurt the economic potential of the most populous African nation.

“Meaningful broadband connectivity, which is measured by speed, latency, and cost, is necessary for economic development,” he stated.

He urged governments and businesses to focus on expanding fibre networks and improving broadband services to support digital growth. He noted the role of supportive regulations, arguing that while some African countries have made progress in implementing regulations for the digital economy, more needs to be done.

“There needs to be collaboration between governments, regulatory bodies, and the private sector to create an environment that fosters investment in digital infrastructure,” Coker stated.

He acknowledged ongoing efforts in Nigeria and across the continent to improve visibility and support for digital projects but warned that progress would remain limited unless the underlying infrastructure gaps were addressed.

“Africa must light up its dark digital spine,” Coker stated, emphasising the need for revolutionary efforts to drive corporate adoption of digital infrastructure and broadband connectivity. “Without these steps, Africa’s economic growth would continue to be stifled by its underdeveloped digital landscape,” he added.

Also corroborating Coker, Deremi Atanda, the chief executive officer of Remita Payments, noted that connectivity can transform Africa’s innovation and economy.

During a panel session themed ‘Innovating Towards Africa’s Digital Future,’ he stressed that the continent’s prosperity lies in the strength of its digital infrastructure.

“The prosperity of Africa is dependent on the quality of our digital infrastructure. Connectivity has the power to redefine Africa’s innovation,” Atanda said.

He explained that the ability of Africans to take responsibility for their own challenges will only improve with better digital infrastructure. “We must respond to Africa’s needs when it comes to digital infrastructure. It will enable Africans to better understand their problems and improve their quality of life across the continent.”

Frank Eleanya, Senior Writer for Business, and Big Tech at TechCabal, acknowledged that while efforts have been made to improve digital infrastructure, there has been a lack of leadership to fully realize these goals.

“What’s needed is the leadership to make it all happen. We have the capacity, but leadership must wake up and translate all these plans into reality,” Eleanya said.

Wabo Majavu, Executive of Strategy and Business Operations at Africa Data Centre, pointed out that involving communities in Africa’s innovation journey requires monitoring and measuring impact. “When you look at the opportunities, there’s a need to talk about access,” Majavu noted.

At the Hyperscalers Convergence Africa Conference held recently at the Federal Palace Hotel, Lagos, leading experts in technology and infrastructure development convened to discuss regulatory frameworks for fostering digital infrastructure in Africa.

Among the distinguished panelists were the Honorable Commissioner for Innovation, Science, and Technology, Lagos State, Olatubosun Alake, and the Managing Director/CEO of the Anambra State ICT Agency, Chukwuemeka Fred Agbata, who shared insights from their respective states on the journey so far.

In his remarks, Chukwuemeka Fred Agbata, CFA, highlighted Anambra’s success story through Public-Private Partnerships (PPP), particularly in digital infrastructure development.

He noted that Governor Charles Soludo’s initiative to waive Right of Way (RoW) charges was pivotal in attracting investors and enhancing ease of business, following the examples set by Lagos and Kaduna.

“Governor Soludo’s decision to waive RoW charges significantly boosted connectivity and economic growth in the state,” CFA said.

“Government is financially burdened, so we have focused on collaborating with local partners to connect our services.

For the first time, we now have a civil service with access to the internet – another successful example of PPP in action.”

A major component of the state’s digital transformation strategy has been leveraging partnerships with local businesses to foster digital access across government institutions.

CFA emphasized that such collaborations were critical for states, not just Anambra, as efficient resource management is key to meeting diverse governance priorities.

“Partnerships as this enable progress in areas like digital infrastructure without placing the full burden on government resources, making them a vital part of modern governance”. He concluded.

Olatubosun Alake, Lagos State’s Commissioner for Innovation, Science, and Technology, highlighted the importance of stakeholder consultation and advocacy, particularly when engaging the private sector.

He urged companies to establish their own codes of conduct to ensure smooth interactions with the government and legislative bodies, which play a critical role in reforms aimed at fostering ease of doing business.

“Ease of doing business is pivotal because it determines whether an investor will engage,” Alake said.

He also emphasized the importance of qualified personnel in civil service sectors and advocated for competitive pay packages to ensure optimal service delivery.

Other distinguished panelists included Dr. Ayotunde Coker, Chairman, Africa Data Centres Association; Tony Izuagbe Emoekpere, President, Association of Telecommunications Companies of Nigeria; and Douglas Njenga, Director of Regulatory Affairs and Special Projects, WIOCC Group. The session was moderated by Sade Dada, Public Policy Manager for Anglophone West Africa at Meta.

The discussions underscored the importance of regulatory frameworks, partnerships, and targeted reforms in driving digital infrastructure development across Nigeria and the African continent.

Donald Trump is promising to make America the “crypto capital of the planet” if he returns to the White House.

While he runs for president, Trump has launched a new venture to trade cryptocurrencies – promoting them on the same social media accounts that he uses for his campaign.

His two eldest sons, Donald Jr. and Eric, are also posting about their new platform, called World Liberty Financial.

So, too, is his daughter-in-law, Lara Trump, who is married to Eric and also serves as co-chair of the Republican National Committee.

Trump has long melded his political and business interests, promoting his hotels and golf courses in the White House while selling sneakers, Bibles and shares in his social media company during his current campaign.

Now, Trump has launched a new moneymaking venture that could explode in value if he’s elected.

What’s more, presidential power could allow him to push through legislative and regulatory changes long sought by crypto advocates.

“Taking a pro-crypto stance is not necessarily troubling; the troubling aspect is doing it while starting a way to personally benefit from it,” said Jordan Libowitz, a spokesperson for the government watchdog group Citizens for Responsibility and Ethics in Washington.

“The success of this could be very tied to American economic policy,” Libowitz said.

Trump has changed his tune

Cryptocurrencies are forms of digital money that can be traded over the internet without relying on the global banking system.

They are commonly traded on exchanges, which are marketplaces that can be used to buy, sell and trade cryptocurrencies.

Exchanges often charge fees for withdrawals of Bitcoin and other currencies.

World Liberty Financial – linked to Trump – is expected to be a borrowing and lending service similar to recently hacked Dough Finance, an app built by four people listed as World Liberty Financial team members, according to crypto news site CoinDesk.

Many details about World Liberty Financial, including what stake Trump and his family members have in it, are still unknown.

After Lara Trump posted Tuesday on her X account about “our goal at World Liberty”, her husband, Eric Trump, posted online that Lara and his sister, Tiffany, had been hacked.

During his time in the White House, Trump said he was “not a fan” of cryptocurrency and tweeted in 2019: “Unregulated Crypto Assets can facilitate unlawful behaviour, including drug trade and other illegal activity.”

Trump has since, however, changed his tune and taken on a more favourable view of cryptocurrencies.

In May, he announced that his presidential campaign would begin accepting donations in cryptocurrency as part of an effort to build a “crypto army” leading up to Election Day.

The former president also attended a bitcoin conference in Nashville this year, where he promised to make the US the “crypto capital of the planet”.

Influence on monetary policy

If elected again, Trump has talked about exerting more control over monetary policy, suggesting he would press the Federal Reserve to set lower interest rates.

He is also promoting decentralised finance, or “DeFi,” which is a general term for using public blockchain space to disrupt the traditional finance world.

Trump has also talked about subsidising the use of Bitcoin mining in order to increase energy production and has vowed to block the creation of a Federal Reserve-administered Central Bank Digital Currency.

This is a digital form of central bank money that would be available to the public.

Appealing to the crypto voter base

Embracing cryptocurrency could be another way for the Trump campaign to reach younger men, including by engaging with conservative influencers.

Crypto also appeals to Trump allies who are concerned about government influence over global markets and worry generally about the reach of the so-called “deep state”.

Dustin Stockton, a pro-Trump activist turned crypto influencer, said he is supportive of the former president’s endeavours in the crypto space and the upcoming launch of World Liberty Financial.

“The Trump family’s engagement and involvement, and learning what it is that underlies crypto, I think is actually a really positive thing,” he said.

Stockton points to the Biden administration as anti-crypto, citing SEC head Gary Gensler’s pursuit of firms like Coinbase and Binance.

A conflict of interest?

While the White House issued an executive order on digital assets in 2022, no substantive laws have been passed by Congress or written into regulation by the White House.

Stockton said the lack of clarity of written rules by the Biden administration, as well as the SEC’s heavy-handed enforcement on crypto firms through a series of lawsuits, indicates that “there’s no clarity and there’s selective and arbitrary enforcement of regulations”.

“Frankly, I’d like to see all members of government get a better understanding of what this is,” he said.

J.W. Verret, a professor at George Mason University’s law school, said Trump would not be in violation of the law by launching a new project and promoting policies that would benefit it.

“I don’t see any problem with someone, anyone in government who owns assets or who starts a business – in fact, I think it’s hard for someone to regulate a particular type of business unless they work in that business,” he said.

Credit: Euronews except headline