The digitalization of Africa was discussed in Moscow

On April 14, a two-day Russia-Africa IT forum ended in Moscow, where issues of digitalization of public administration, the economy, education and healthcare of the continent were discussed. The event was held on the eve of the second Russia-Africa Economic Forum since 2019, which is to be held on July 26-29 in St. Petersburg.

From the African side, the heads of relevant departments, development institutions, universities and technology companies from Zimbabwe, Gabon, Congo, Ethiopia and others became participants in the IT forum. Africa is a traditional partner of Russia, and the countries of the continent are actively investing in new digital projects, in infrastructure, developing appropriate technology, Russian Minister of Digital Development Maksut Shadayev said on April 13.

“We have a lot of new solutions, technologies, we are actively investing in their development, and we have something to share with African countries in terms of digitalization of public administration, advanced digital platforms for economic development,” he said. “We are ready to give these developments and products along with expertise, we are ready to help local national companies develop, transferring knowledge, developments, opening codes.”

As Deputy Minister of Digital Development Dmitry Oguryaev explained to the forum participants, from January to September 2022 alone, Russian exports of telecommunications, computer and information services to Africa amounted to $8.14 million, African imports – $2.66 million. Potential investments in the public sector of the continent Oguryaev estimated $100 billion by 2030

Africa is one of the five most promising areas of expansion for IT companies after China, India, Thailand and Vietnam, says e-legion development manager Mikhail Trinoga. According to Oleg Sazhin, Adviser to the CEO of Content AI, African countries are in a state of “taut spring” in terms of IT infrastructure development, and are ready to make a leap to introduce technologies.

“We see their interest in diversifying international software vendors,” Sazhin notes. – This is a “blue ocean” for Russian vendors – you can occupy a promising market that is wary of Western expansion.”

In Africa, there are already “growth points” of the IT industry, own companies engaged in fintech, transport, retail, telecom, energy, Andrey Krekhov, director of special programs at ICL Services, recalls. According to him, Kenya is the third most represented country on the continent in this industry after South Africa and Nigeria.

It is most promising for Russian IT companies to go to South Africa and the countries of South Africa as a whole, Trinoga believes. Agriculture, telecommunications, infrastructure, oil and gas production are actively developing on the continent, there is potential for chemistry and mechanical engineering, Krekhov says. IT products can be aimed here for a long time, he argues.

According to Trinoga, IT products such as social networks, instant messengers, and industrial simulation platforms will also be in demand in African countries. This, the expert explains, is due to the fact that active construction is underway in African countries, and social networks in general are still poorly developed.

Andrey Yakovlev, General Director of Brain Systems Group of Companies, says that healthcare is a key national interest of African countries, and there are prospects for the transfer of digital medicine technologies in this area. “Despite the fact that African countries choose products from the European and Chinese markets, here we [с телемедицинскими технологиями] managed to arouse interest from Kenya, Zambia, Zimbabwe, South Africa,” says Yakovlev.

Krekhov emphasizes that in Africa it is necessary to promote in advance not only Russian software, but also hardware: PCs, servers, network and telecom equipment, storage systems, etc. In his opinion, it is desirable for Russian suppliers to successfully compete with Western manufacturers to export solutions to Africa in format for offering ready-made production ecosystems.

Barriers and restrictions for Russian IT companies to enter the African market are weak, sometimes “rudimentary” infrastructure development, unreliable Internet, lack of payment methods, says Krekhov. The Russian state can respond to foreign players with investments in the medium and long term in tandem with Russian IT companies: according to the expert, this will allow them to occupy their niches in the African market.

“It is important to start strengthening our presence in Africa now. From a cultural point of view, it takes time to understand each country and create a local Russian IT community that can play a role in the life of the local population. This task of the “first echelon” should fall on Russian state institutions,” Krekhov believes.