Africa’s tech boom starts at home, By Sally Wentworth

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The continent is on the move: there are more than 70 Internet exchange points across Africa; Internet penetration across the continent has grown from less than 10 per cent in 2010 to over 38 per cent today; and Africa hosts some of the world’s best technical leadership, within a thriving ecosystem rooted in civil society.

21 years’ ago, if someone in Lagos wanted to send an email to someone in Abuja – a distance of about seven hundred and sixty kilometres – that email would first travel thousands of kilometres to Europe or North America before returning to Nigeria. African Internet traffic was taking a detour around the world to reach its neighbours.

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This detour was expensive and slow – burdening local businesses with high transit costs and leaving African Internet users with sluggish and unreliable connections.

In response to that challenge, the African Peering and Interconnection Forum was born in 2010. The goal was simple: to solve this fundamental connectivity problem. Together, network operators, technical experts and policymakers have successfully created much of the infrastructure to keep local Internet traffic local.

Driven in no small part by Nigerian commitment, collaboration and energy, a significant amount of African Internet traffic now stays in Africa.

The continent is on the move: there are more than 70 Internet exchange points across Africa; Internet penetration across the continent has grown from less than 10 per cent in 2010 to over 38 per cent today; and Africa hosts some of the world’s best technical leadership, within a thriving ecosystem rooted in civil society.

…we must continue to build a strong, united African technical community. This is why the Forum in Kigali matters: It brings together everyone who powers our digital ecosystem – from data centre operators and fibre providers to hardware builders. We need to fortify these connections and develop this precious community, both within African countries and across borders. 

Last year, the African Peering and Interconnection Forum met in Lagos to promote the development of national and cross-border interconnection. Next week, the momentum generated in Nigeria carries over directly to East-Central Africa, where the Forum convenes again in Kigali.

It comes at a crucial time. Africa is poised to harness the advantages of the global digital economy. But to realise this opportunity, three things are crucial.

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First, we must continue to build a strong, united African technical community. This is why the Forum in Kigali matters: It brings together everyone who powers our digital ecosystem – from data centre operators and fibre providers to hardware builders. We need to fortify these connections and develop this precious community, both within African countries and across borders. Ultimately, this group of people is laying the groundwork for Africa’s future economic success.

Second, we must all stay true to the goal of ensuring that people everywhere have access to affordable, reliable, and resilient Internet. About a third of the world, including many people in Africa, still do not have access to the Internet. It does no good to create the infrastructure if people cannot afford to pay for the connectivity. According to the International Telecommunication Union, a smartphone can cost up to 40 per cent of the average monthly income in some countries. And mobile Internet is 14 times more expensive in Africa than in Europe. We must do what it takes to bring down these costs.

We must vigorously defend the Internet, leveraging the great power of the ecosystem that helped build the Internet in the first place – the nonprofits, researchers, standards bodies, civil society groups, and public-interest institutions who believe the network should work for everyone.

Finally, people everywhere must have an Internet experience that is safe, secure, and protects them online. We see threats show up in numerous ways – in phishing scams that steal identities, empty accounts, and compromise organisations with a single click. And, at another extreme, we see some governments use technology to target people beyond their borders through surveillance, intimidation, and physical threats.

In February, our Nigeria Chapter delivered one of its largest national campaigns to date, equipping over 2,500 Nigerians with vital skills in cybersecurity, online scam identification, and social media safety.

We must vigorously defend the Internet, leveraging the great power of the ecosystem that helped build the Internet in the first place – the nonprofits, researchers, standards bodies, civil society groups, and public-interest institutions who believe the network should work for everyone.

This unseen ‘global army for good’ draws much of its strength and inspiration from the work done by its network in Africa.

Africa’s 1.5 billion people deserve the full benefits of a truly connected continent. Powered by a young, dynamic population ready to lead the next wave of global innovation, Africa holds its digital future firmly in its own hands.

Sally Wentworth is the President and CEO of the Internet Society.