For the policymakers, regulators and industry leaders who gathered in Abuja last week for the Seventh Ordinary Session of the African Telecommunications Union (ATU) Conference of Plenipotentiaries, the message was clear: the need for deeper collaboration, strengthening of relationships and sharing of peer experiences in order to give the continent a deserved place in the global digital ecosystem.
The constant message from Nigeria, which hosted the event, was the call for greater unity among African nations to advance shared priorities and strengthen the continent’s influence in international decision-making processes, especially with Africa seeking a stronger voice in shaping the future of global telecommunications and digital innovation.
Just as Secretary-General of the International Telecommunication Union (ITU), Doreen Bogdan-Martin, gave credence to the continent’s aspirations, she called for stronger African participation in shaping the global digital agenda, encouraging the continent to become a creator, innovator and contributor to future technologies and standards.
Particularly at this time when the spirit of xenophobia seems to hold the continent by the seams and threaten to rip relationships apart, the rallying cry from Nigeria, actively supported by other countries, was that no one country could go on the journey alone and harvest digital successes.
