With Africa accelerating towards an inevitable digital future, it will only realise the opportunities for growth and developments across macroeconomic levers through deliberate investments in digital infrastructure that is connected in the future, Rack Centre and PwC, have said.

Officials of the two firms spoke on Wednesday ahead of a virtual forum schedule for September 16, this year, aimed at exploring how Africa could leverage the digital revolution to promote economic prosperity.

The theme of the webinar is: ‘Africa: The next digital frontier’ with focus on digital infrastructure as a key enabler for growth.

World Bank Insights note that digital innovation is creating unprecedented opportunities for Africa to grow its economy, create jobs and transform people’s lives, offering a chance to unlock new pathways for rapid economic growth, innovation, and access to services that would have been unimaginable only a decade ago.

The CEO of Rack Centre, Dr Ayotunde Coker, said the population in Africa is predominantly youth, and technologically savvy, adding that planning has to consider this strategic demographic dividend. Besides, the rate of internet penetration is expanding among the general populace, digital startups are springing up, so there is a growing need to develop and position digital Infrastructure, sharpen skills, and nurture entrepreneurship in the digital space. The webinar, he said, is therefore timely and will drive critical digital innovation conversations.

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“Rack Centre and PwC, considering our leading roles in our areas of specialisation, believe we can broaden the conversation and chart a course forward as Africa takes its rightful place in the development of digital Infrastructure, “ he said.

Also, Partner and West Africa Technology Leader for PwC Nigeria, Femi Osinubi, said technology and digitisation is a major part of PwC’s new strategy known as The New Equation.

He said: “Through the disruption of the past 12 months, organisations have had to transform their digital capabilities – from getting their people to work remotely to moving sales and services online. This means that organisations must continue to embed the changes made and progress the transformations.  Infrastructure therefore, will play a major role in this evolution.

“Our collaboration with Rack Centre provides a platform to discuss these changes and the implications for business and society ultimately leading to sustainable outcomes – a key component of PwC’s New Equation.  The New Equation is about a future that is human-led and tech-powered. It’s about how human ingenuity combines with technology innovation and experience to deliver faster, more intelligent and better outcomes while building trust and ensuring quality across the value chain. “

The Chairman and Founder of Convergence Partners, a globally respected investment management firm focused on Technology, Media, and the Telecoms sector in Africa, Mr Andile Ngcaba,  is the keynote speaker and will give a pan Africa overview.

As in the previous series, the webinar is attracting technology and business leaders as speakers, including Mr Lanre Kolade, the Group CEO of CSquared, an African centred technology company that provides broadband-enabling infrastructure throughout the continent;  Mr Norman Albi, CEO of AFR-IX telecom, a global Internet Service Provider; Susan Mulikita, Chief Regulatory Officer of  Bandwidth & Cloud Services Group (BCS) while the forum will be moderated by Elmo Hildebrand PwC South Africa Partner &  Africa Technology, Media & Telecommunications  Leader.