Explore the critical question of whether Africa will remain a mere market for global data or emerge as a significant player in the digital economy.
Globally, data has become a new commodity.
The challenge is no longer whether nations are connected, but who owns, governs and extracts value from this commodity.
According to the United Nations Conference on Trade and Development (UNCTAD, Digital Economy Report 2021/2024 updates), over 70% of global data traffic is controlled by a small number of firms headquartered in the United States and China, underscoring the concentration of digital power. In this context, Africa’s digital trajectory raises a difficult but important question.
In the European Union (EU), data sovereignty has become an explicit policy.
