Africa’s Digital Transformation and India’s Role
Africa Day (May 25) celebrates unity, independence, and development.
African Union’s Digital Transformation Strategy (2020-2030) focuses on digital innovation for growth.
India’s development approach in Africa is shifting from mainly financing and training to technology-driven partnerships.
India shares successful Digital Public Infrastructure (DPI) like Aadhaar, UPI, CoWIN with African countries.
Growing Digital Partnerships and Unique Approach
India collaborates with African countries on digital ID systems, payment platforms, and smart governance projects.
Examples include Togo’s digital ID system, Zambia’s Smart Zambia Initiative, Namibia and Ghana’s instant payment systems linked to India’s UPI.
African governments choose partners based on meeting digital needs, not ideology.
China competes strongly with state-backed financing, but India offers open-source, affordable, public-good digital models.
India promotes genuine collaboration beyond just technology transfer.
Capacity Building and Strategic Education Initiatives
IIT Madras opened its first overseas campus in Zanzibar, Tanzania.
Campus offers advanced courses in Data Science and AI.
Partnership with Indian private sector provides scholarships.
This supports technical skills development aligned with Africa’s socio-economic goals.
Challenges and Progress in Digital Inclusion
Africa faces a large digital divide due to high costs, rural-urban gaps, gender gaps, and unreliable energy supply.
About 85% of African countries have national digital ID systems.
Over 70% collect biometric data for secure authentication.
This creates a strong foundation for inclusive digital platforms.
A new India-Africa digital compact could support long-term, respectful, and co-developed digital partnerships.
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