Africa has long been perceived through the prism of its fragility. Yet, with each crisis, it demonstrates a surprising resilience. The Covid-19 pandemic, which was supposed to be a cataclysm, ultimately revealed an extraordinary capacity to adapt. Where some predicted collapse, Africa has resisted. Better still, it innovated.
This ability to adapt is based on a two-fold movement: a clear desire to stop being a mere recipient of aid and a massive adoption of digital technology by all populations. Because Africa no longer wants to be a partner by default; it intends to be a fully-fledged strategic player in global transformations.
Let's look at the figures: the rate of digital penetration in Africa is exceeding all forecasts. The mobile phone, much more than a communication tool, has become a vector for economic and social development. Paying, learning, undertaking, interacting: everything is done today by mobile, including in the most remote rural areas. The barrier of illiteracy? Bypassed. Populations that speak neither French, English nor any European language use digital technology with disconcerting ease.
Digitalization is not just a phenomenon of technological adoption, it is a driver of systemic transformation. Take the example of the commercial court in Cotonou, Benin. Its digitization has reduced corruption and accelerated case processing. A simple case? No, a strong signal of what digital technology can accomplish when it is thought of as a lever of governance.
Until a few years ago, the digital divide was seen as an insurmountable gap. Today, this divide is closing. Not as a result of an externally imposed policy, but through the desire of Africans themselves to take ownership of the tools of the 21st century. Better still, this dynamic will accelerate with generative artificial intelligence, which opens up new perspectives in terms of inclusion and learning.
Ultimately, digital technology is reshuffling the cards. It is not just a question of catching up, but of getting ahead of obsolete models. Africa in transformation is not a slogan, it is a tangible reality. And this transformation has only just begun.
