Africa

U.S. Africa Command hosted a talk yesterday on "Africa's Evolving Infosystems", based on the speaker's research paper of the same name (which should be available here soon, and is attached below).  Steven Livingston, of George Washington University's School of Media and Public Affairs and Elliott School of International Affairs, addressed some of the tensions that exist between legacy media establishments and the potentials of new media markets in Africa, the shortcomings of traditional Western media, and the nature of emerging capabilities across the continent.  Of particular interest were discussions of new organizational forms that have emerged alongside technological advances and the challenges these present to established (and often over-centralized) institutions of governance.  These are topics toward which our team has directed considerable attention (here, here, here), so it is encouraging to encounter similar observations.

Keep an eye on Africa! Although most ICT levels are nowhere near the industrialized nations’ levels, African nations are quickly catching up with 21st century technology and emerging trends.  Foreign investors (mainly from neighboring Middle Eastern countries) are rallying to the continent to capitalize on business opportunities and the booming markets, especially in North Africa.  Although this report focuses more on West African states but based on extensive research, our assessment is that emerging technologies and trends are going to have a ripple effect throughout the continent.

Although growth levels have been huge and the number of internet users has far exceeded other regions, Africa’s Information and Communication Technology (ICT) penetration rankings in 2009 still fall short behind the rest of the world with very few African countries attaining ICT levels equivalent to global averages. Recent Internet statistics report that Africa has over 67 million users or about 3.9 percent of world users and a 6.8 percent (% population) penetration rate.  Nonetheless, fixed and mobile broadband penetration levels are insignificant.