By Engr. Aliyu Yusuf Aboki
As the global community marks two decades of the World Summit on the Information Society (WSIS), attention is shifting from defining digital ambitions to delivering measurable outcomes. During the high-level WSIS Forum 2026 session, Africa’s Digital Roadmap to 2035: Implementing WSIS+20 Outcomes, Advancing Agenda 2063 and Accelerating Inclusive Digital Transformation, leaders from across the continent converged on a common message: Africa’s digital future will be determined not only by expanding connectivity, but by strengthening digital governance, investing in skills, financing resilient infrastructure, advancing artificial intelligence readiness and deepening regional cooperation. The discussion underscored that implementing the WSIS+20 outcomes requires coordinated action that aligns continental priorities with Agenda 2063 while ensuring that digital transformation creates tangible opportunities for citizens, businesses and communities across Africa.
That broader conversation reflects a reality increasingly recognised by regulators across the continent. While significant progress has been made in extending broadband networks and digital infrastructure, the next phase of Africa’s digital transformation will depend on the strength of the institutions that guide it. As digital technologies become embedded in every sector of the economy, from healthcare and education to finance, agriculture and public administration, regulatory institutions must be equipped to respond to emerging challenges, foster innovation and ensure that digital progress translates into inclusive economic and social development. Building institutional capacity is therefore no longer a complementary objective; it is fundamental to delivering meaningful connectivity and achieving Africa’s long-term digital ambitions.
Every time an African farmer receives a mobile payment, a truck crosses a border using digital customs systems, a nurse consults a specialist remotely, a student attends an online class, or an entrepreneur launches an online business, telecommunications is quietly powering an economic opportunity. It has become the invisible infrastructure that enables modern economies to function.
Today, mobile technologies and services contribute approximately US$240 billion to Africa’s economy, representing more than 8% of the continent’s GDP, while supporting millions of jobs directly and indirectly. The sector’s impact extends far beyond mobile network operators. It sustains mobile money agents, device retailers, software developers, digital entrepreneurs, logistics providers, content creators and thousands of small businesses whose livelihoods depend on reliable connectivity. More importantly, it enables almost every sector of the economy to become more productive and inclusive.
For much of the past two decades, digital transformation has rightly focused on expanding network coverage and connecting communities. While these priorities remain essential, the continent has reached a point where connectivity alone is no longer enough. The next phase of Africa’s digital transformation will depend on whether we build institutions that can transform connectivity into inclusive economic opportunity.
Telecommunications Is No Longer Just an ICT Issue
The digital economy is no longer confined to the ICT sector. It is the platform upon which every other sector increasingly depends.Healthcare is expanding through telemedicine, electronic health records and digital disease surveillance. Education is reaching learners through online platforms and digital classrooms. Agriculture is becoming more resilient through weather forecasting, digital extension services and access to market information. Manufacturers rely on connected supply chains, while financial services continue to deepen inclusion through mobile money and digital payments. Governments are digitising public services, making them more efficient, transparent and accessible.
Even Africa’s electrification agenda is becoming increasingly dependent on digital infrastructure. Smart grids, renewable energy systems, remote monitoring, smart metering and rural electrification projects all require reliable telecommunications networks. As Africa accelerates investments in clean energy and industrialisation, digital infrastructure and energy infrastructure must increasingly be planned together rather than separately.
Africa’s Digital Economy Presents One of the World’s Greatest Investment Opportunities. Home to the world’s youngest population, a rapidly expanding middle class and increasing demand for digital services, the continent is well positioned to become one of the fastest-growing digital markets globally.
Realising that opportunity, however, will require significant investment. Industry estimates suggest that approximately US$77 billion will be needed over the coming years to expand broadband infrastructure, modernise networks, strengthen fibre connectivity, deploy 4G and 5G, develop data centres and integrate emerging technologies such as satellite communications. Much of this investment is expected to be concentrated in Sub-Saharan Africa, where demand for digital services continues to accelerate.
For more than two decades, mobile operators have been among Africa’s largest long-term private investors. They have financed towers, fibre networks, international connectivity and increasingly advanced mobile technologies, often investing in areas where commercial returns take many years to materialise.
Maintaining this momentum requires predictable, transparent and investment-friendly regulatory environments. Investors seek confidence that markets will remain competitive, spectrum will be managed efficiently, regulations will evolve with technology and institutions will provide consistency over time. Strong regulatory institutions therefore become not only a governance imperative but an economic one.
The Next Digital Divide Is the Usage Gap
Across much of the continent, mobile broadband networks now reach the majority of the population. Yet connectivity alone does not guarantee participation in the digital economy. Nearly 790 million people across Sub-Saharan Africa live within broadband coverage but still do not use mobile internet. The reasons are well known: smartphones remain unaffordable for many households, devices are inaccessible, digital literacy remains uneven and locally relevant digital services are still developing. In many markets, the usage gap has become far larger than the remaining coverage gap.
Closing this gap requires moving beyond traditional telecommunications policy. Affordable devices, innovative financing models, digital skills programmes, local digital content and inclusive public policies must become part of the digital infrastructure agenda.
Meaningful connectivity is no longer measured simply by whether a network exists. It is measured by whether people can use digital technologies to improve their livelihoods, access education, receive healthcare, build businesses and participate fully in the digital economy.
Preparing Africa for the AI Economy
Artificial intelligence represents perhaps the most significant technological shift of our generation. It has enormous potential to improve healthcare, agriculture, education, financial services, disaster response and public administration. At the same time, it presents new regulatory questions around data governance, cybersecurity, consumer protection, ethics and competition.
Africa has an opportunity to participate not only as a consumer of AI technologies but as a contributor to their development. Ensuring that African languages, cultures and knowledge systems are represented within large language models is essential if AI is to serve the continent’s diverse societies effectively. Likewise, creating enabling regulatory environments that encourage innovation while safeguarding citizens will determine how successfully Africa harnesses AI for inclusive development.
Preparing for this future requires institutions that can anticipate technological change rather than simply react to it.
Learning Together, Growing Together
Across West, East, Central and Southern Africa, regulators are confronting remarkably similar challenges: managing spectrum, strengthening cybersecurity, regulating satellite services, promoting consumer protection, expanding meaningful connectivity and preparing for AI-enabled economies.
Rather than solving these challenges independently, countries can accelerate progress by learning from one another.
This is precisely the philosophy underpinning the ICT Policy and Regulation – Institutional Strengthening (iPRIS) initiative. Since 2023, iPRIS has brought together African and European regulatory authorities through peer-to-peer learning, creating practical platforms where regulators exchange experience, develop strategic projects and strengthen institutional capacity. By progressively expanding its programmes in English, French and, from 2027, Portuguese, iPRIS is helping ensure that knowledge moves across linguistic boundaries, allowing successful regulatory practices to benefit countries throughout the continent. Diversity, equity and inclusion are also integrated throughout the programme, ensuring that digital transformation reflects the needs of all communities.
Regional Cooperation Delivers Results
Regional telecom regulatory organisations across Africa also have an increasingly important role in building integrated digital markets. At WATRA, we have witnessed how cooperation among regulators across ECOWAS member states can translate into tangible benefits for citizens and businesses. Working closely with ECOWAS, national regulatory authorities and development partners, WATRA has supported initiatives such as the ECOWAS Free Roaming Initiative, which is reducing communication barriers, lowering the cost of staying connected across borders and facilitating regional trade and mobility. Recent progress involving Benin, Senegal and Togo demonstrates how regulatory cooperation can directly improve the everyday experiences of citizens while strengthening regional integration.
As emerging technologies continue to reshape markets, collaboration among regulators will become even more important. Whether addressing AI governance, satellite connectivity, cybersecurity or digital inclusion, shared learning enables countries to respond more quickly, avoid duplication and build stronger, future-ready institutions.
Building Africa’s Digital Future Together
Africa’s digital transformation is entering a defining decade. The continent has the talent, the entrepreneurial energy, the growing digital markets and the investment potential to become a leading force in the global digital economy. Realising that ambition will require continued investment in infrastructure, but equally in the institutions that govern it.
Finally, multi-stakeholder collaboration will be the catalyst that turns ambition into impact. Governments, regulators, telecommunications operators, regional organisations, development partners, technology companies, academia and civil society all have a role to play in building an inclusive digital future. By aligning investment, policy, innovation and institutional capacity, Africa can accelerate meaningful connectivity, expand digital opportunities and ensure that no community is left behind. The continent’s greatest digital asset will not simply be its fibre networks, towers, satellites or data centres. It will be the strength of the institutions and partnerships that transform connectivity into opportunity, innovation into prosperity and technology into sustainable, inclusive development.
Implementing the WSIS+20 outcomes provides an opportunity to translate global commitments into practical action that advances both the Sustainable Development Goals and Agenda 2063. Achieving these ambitions will depend on continued investment in infrastructure, institutions and people, underpinned by regional cooperation and strong partnerships across governments, regulators, industry, academia and civil society.
•Engr. Aliyu Yusuf Aboki is Executive Secretary, West Africa Telecommunications Regulators Assembly (WATRA)
