In the race to technological advancement and economic growth, Africa stands at a crossroads and the path she chooses to take will either take her to economic freedom, or take her to a worse place. It is slowly being realized that the continent’s future lies not in mimicking Silicon Valley success stories or chasing venture capital dreams, but in building solid, scalable technologies that address the unique needs and challenges of African markets. This approach which is rooted in reality rather than illusion, holds the key to leveraging our vast markets and strengthening our economies.
The Myth of Overnight Success
In a post on LinkedIn, investor Victor Asemota alluded to some very interesting points. He pointed out that the success stories we often hear about tech giants emerging from humble beginnings can be misleading. Take MTN, for instance. It didn’t sprout from a poor South African boy suddenly striking gold with venture capital. Instead, it was built methodically, one base station at a time, by experienced professionals who understood the telecommunications landscape. They secured financing through expertise and meticulous planning, not through wishful thinking.
This pattern repeats across successful African enterprises. Scale is built upon scale, and we must recognize that we’re starting with few things already at scale. The path forward isn’t paved with dreams and wishes, but with solid groundwork and infrastructure.
Learning from Global Success
Observations from more developed markets, like the United States, offer valuable lessons. America’s success often comes from its ability to operate like a well-oiled machine, building scale by simplifying processes and focusing relentlessly on sales. As advertising legend David Ogilvy put it, “We sell, or else.” But before selling comes the crucial step of building – building infrastructure, education systems, and markets.
In Africa, our mantra should be “We build, or else.” We can’t sell what we haven’t built yet. Attempting to provide services based on distant cloud infrastructure to those who lack basic access isn’t true building. It’s a shortcut that fails to address fundamental needs.
The Infrastructure Play
The realization that many technological challenges in Africa are actually infrastructure plays rather than startup opportunities is crucial. Take payments, for example. Creating an African PayPal isn’t just about clever apps or fintech innovations. It requires building a comprehensive ecosystem that includes our own versions of eBay, UPS or FedEx, and the logistics to support them.
This ecosystem, in turn, relies on strong educational institutions and a prosperous middle class. While we don’t need to follow the exact same trajectory as developed markets, the principle remains: scale builds upon scale.
Leveraging Our Markets
To harness the true potential of our markets and bolster our economies, Africa must chart its own technological course. This journey begins with a laser focus on developing solutions that speak directly to the heart of African needs and realities.
Africa must begin to picture a continent where technology bridges the last mile that can bring essential services to the most remote villages. The ability of digital identities which can empower the unbanked, could unlock a world of financial possibilities for millions. These aren’t pipe dreams, but tangible goals we can achieve by building technologies rooted in African soil.
But we can’t stop at national borders for our strength lies in our diversity and numbers. Africans can create a technological powerhouse that covers the entire continent by creating systems that seamlessly operate across our patchwork of regulations and infrastructure. This interoperability isn’t just a nice-to-have; it’s the key to unlocking the full potential of our collective market.
For this to be realistically achieved, mobile technology stands out as the pivotal resource to be harnessed. With phones in more hands than ever before, our tech solutions must be mobile-first, reaching out to touch lives in ways traditional internet access never could. Yet, we must remember that connectivity isn’t a given for all. Our innovations need to work just as well offline as they do online, ensuring no African is left behind in our digital revolution.
As we build, we must keep one eye on the present and another on the future. Our technologies should not only address today’s problems but be built on business models that can weather the unique storms of the African market and scale across our vast and varied landscape. This sustainable approach ensures that our solutions grow with us, adapting to our evolving needs.
The beauty of this focused technological development lies in its ripple effects across our economies. As we build these tailored solutions, we’re not just creating apps or platforms – we’re crafting entire ecosystems of opportunity.
Jobs sprout up not just in tech hubs but in every sector touched by these innovations. Farmers find new markets, artisans discover global audiences, and entrepreneurs uncover niches they never knew existed. Each line of code written, and each system designed, becomes a seed of employment that spreads its roots deep into our economic soil.
But it’s not just about job quantity; it’s about quality too. As we tackle increasingly complex challenges, we can forge a workforce skilled in cutting-edge technologies. These aren’t just developers and designers; they’re problem solvers capable of competing on the global stage, armed with unique perspectives born from African experiences.
Our economies, long reliant on traditional sectors, begin to diversify. Technology breathes new life into age-old industries like agriculture and manufacturing, boosting efficiency and output. Simultaneously, entirely new economic avenues open up, creating wealth where none existed before.
Perhaps most crucially, by building our own solutions, we stem the tide of capital flight that has long plagued our economies. Every shilling, naira, or rand spent on homegrown tech is an investment in our own future, circulating wealth within our borders instead of watching it disappear into foreign coffers.
And as our technologies mature, reaching across borders as easily as they cross city limits, we lay the groundwork for unprecedented intra-African trade. A Ghanaian farmer’s app connects seamlessly with a Kenyan distributor’s logistics system, while a South African fintech solution facilitates the entire transaction. This isn’t just trade; it’s the foundation of a truly integrated African economy.
In this vision of an Africa empowered by its own technological prowess, we don’t just catch up to the world – we leap ahead, offering solutions born of necessity and ingenuity that the rest of the world never knew it needed. This is the promise of African technology, built by Africans, for Africa, and ultimately, for the world.
The Way Forward
Building technologies for Africa by Africans is not just about national or continental pride – it’s an economic imperative. We must move past the allure of quick fixes and flashy startups, and instead focus on the unglamorous but crucial work of building solid technological infrastructure.
This doesn’t mean isolating ourselves from global advancements. Rather, it means learning from global successes and failures, adapting those lessons to our unique context, and creating solutions that truly serve our needs.
The path ahead is challenging and requires patience. We’ve wasted time chasing illusions in a continent where such pursuits lead to hunger and despair. Now is the time to build carefully, methodically, and with purpose. By doing so, we can create technologies that not only serve Africa but potentially offer solutions to the world, positioning the continent as a global leader in innovation tailored for emerging markets.