Note from Publisher
As world tilts towards Space and AI to tackle current challenges in regards to efficient productivity, food security and overall development, the push towards entreneurship has been the guiding force to foster innovative solutions for sustainability and collective evolution. In the African context, Human Capital is one of its greatest assets that has been underutilized and often forgotten yet required for the Continent’s development and growth as it will determine the Continent's stability and security. With a population of 1.2 billion people and approximately half of the nation being under the age of 30 years old, in addition to vast resources and country building needs, the African continent is positioned to surge as a powerhouse in Smart Cities. For the African continent that has been relentlessly building an entrepreneurial ecosystem requires 12 million jobs per year, as mentioned by AfDB, to address the unemployment challenges of the continent. A youthful region at a time of the fourth industrial revolution, the African Continent presents an opportunity for greater trade and investment with the US especially in key areas related to smart cities.
What better time to build new SMART resilient and sustainable cities? How timely is it to invest in skill development for the jobs of today and onward?
African government and companies in addition to Foreign investors and Diaspora Direct Investors, all should aim to primarily address the issue of connectivity that will allow access to numerous online courses and certifications which will provide professional development skills, virtual apprenticeship and linkages to US businesses offering specialized services. Furthermore, existing African institutions should be restructured by also utilizing AI, blockchain and other technological innovations, aside from training public servants to ensure that institutions are systemized. Moreover, African countries are still bare in development, which means an opportunity to leapfrog and build numerous smart cities taking into consideration the African context and climate change.
Read the full blog Yes Africa Can Do It Too?
US-Africa Engagement
Watch the Video Address
DFC APPROVES NEW INVESTMENTS TO ADVANCE SUSTAINABLE ECONOMIC DEVELOPMENT RESPOND TO COVID-19, AND ADVANCE GENDER EQUITY
Investing in healthcare in the wake of COVID-19 in Sub-Saharan Africa:A $18 million loan portfolio guaranty to the Medical Credit Fund through the Open Doors African Private Healthcare Initiative will support lending to healthcare small and medium-sized enterprises across Sub-Saharan Africa, with a focus on those helping their communities treat and recover from COVID-19.Broadening access to healthcare in Sub-Saharan Africa: A $5 million direct loan to Africa Healthcare Network is helping to expand access to affordable, high quality healthcare through its operation of lifesaving dialysis centers across East Africa. Encouraging investment in health in Tanzania: A $4.4 million loan portfolio guaranty to CRDB Bank will catalyze financing for Tanzania’s health sector while emphasizing lending to women and youth. Read more
HOUSE PASSES BASS BILL TO STRENGTHEN SUPPORT FOR U.S. – AFRICA PARTNERSHIP
The Young African Leaders Initiative Act makes the State Department’s Young African Leaders Initiative (YALI) permanent. The program is the U.S. government’s signature effort to invest in the next generation of African leaders. (…) A strategy to ensure the program is promoting United States foreign policy goals in Africa, including ensuring that the program is clearly branded and paired with robust public diplomacy efforts. Read more.
COMMANDER SAYS AFRICA IS TOO IMPORTANT FOR AMERICANS TO IGNORE
Africa has 13 of the 25 fastest growing economies in the world, Townsend said. In a time of climate change, Africa has 60% of the arable land on the globe. "This fact alone should show how important Africa is for the world," he added. (…) He said governments in these areas need help. "An African leader once said to me 'A drowning man will reach for any hand,'" Townsend said. "They are drowning in poverty and will take help from whomever it comes from." (…) The United States, actually, is the preferred partner on the continent, Townsend said. "We were never a colonizing power in Africa, and we are regarded as an honest broker by many nations," he said. "In addition, our values are their values." Read more.
SECRETARY BLINKEN’S VIRTUAL TRAVEL TO AFRICA
Secretary of State Antony J. Blinken will ... visit Kenya and Nigeria and engage with young people from across the continent. (…) Secretary Blinken will then travel virtually to Nigeria, where he will underscore our shared goals of strengthening democratic governance, building lasting security, and promoting economic ties and diversification. People-to-people connections, underpinned by the dynamic Nigerian diaspora in the United States, amplify and strengthen our relationship. he Secretary will also visit Kenyan-based renewable energy companies that, thanks in part to U.S. government engagement, are a model of innovative clean energy alternatives in Africa. Finally, as part of our solidarity with Kenya amid the global pandemic, we will highlight a U.S.-donated Mobile Field Hospital to which the United States is providing essential COVID-19 medical supplies through AFRICOM and the Massachusetts National Guard’s State Partnership Program. Read more.
Visualizing China funded Smart Cities
Interesting Articles
THE STATE OF GREENFIELD SMART CITIES IN AFRICA
Grand projects like these certainly exist in developed nations, but the developing world hosts its own share of greenfield smart city aspirations. (…) A drop in oil prices in 2014 slowed construction of the privately funded development, and it’s unclear what the COVID-19-related oil price shocks of 2020 will mean for future investment. Additionally, corruption allegations, flooding liability accusations, and criticism over the lack of affordable housing have haunted investors since the city’s dedication. Read more
AFRICA DATA CENTER MARKET SIZE TO REACH REVENUES OF AROUND USD 5 BILLION BY 2026 - ARIZTON
South Africa dominated the Africa market in 2020, in terms of area, investments, and power capacity, followed by Kenya. Morocco, Nigeria, and Egypt are emerging markets in Africa. (…) The rate of urbanization in Africa is expected to go up to around 60% in 2050, with more than 10 mega cities comprising over 150 million residents, and accounting for over 15% share of the global GDP. (…) The Africa IT infrastructure market expects to reach approx. USD 4 billion by 2026. The growth in data generation in Africa is fueling the demand for fast-processing efficient servers. The demand for build-to-suit infrastructure is growing to support specific applications. Several segments such as BFSI, healthcare, transportation and logistics, education, and heavy industries adopt advanced server systems for efficient services. Read more
TO UNLOCK AFRICAN WOMEN'S POTENTIAL, WE MUST END GENDERED PATTERNS OF LABOUR
According to UNDP: “The process of human development seeks to create an environment for people, individually and collectively, to develop to their full potential and to have a reasonable chance of leading productive and creative lives that they value.” Business and educational institutions play a key role in the realization of this potential for women in the workforce (…) Finally, COVID-19 shocks have shown that solutions for women in subsistent agriculture and food systems must be comprehensive if women are to be able to build resilient businesses. A good example of such a solution is a value chain development approach by the International Labour Organisation, which helps farmers by strengthening their relationship to importers and the wider market. Read more
INVESTING IN AFRICA'S FUTURE
Many African nations are still working to strengthen and stabilize their economies by reducing dependence on foreign direct investment (FDI) and aid. (…) Investment firms like his are helping to fill the gaps, with $267 million in assets under management across sectors ranging from agribusiness to financial services to fast-moving consumer goods. Bropleh said his firm typically invests about $500,000 per company at the early stage. Mindful of the challenges ahead, Backer and Bropleh said they’re hopeful about the future. The value of VC deals in Africa reached a record high of $1.4 billion in 2019, and the sheer number of deals has been climbing steadily since 2014, according to the latest industry report. Read more
Agrifrica Digital Magazine
In this issue, you will find:
- Articles from various writers including Center of Excellence in Agriculture, which can easily be replicated in Africa.
- 5 selected books and 5 selected films on agriculture particularly on seeds.
- Interview with filmmaker Valentin Thurn.
Covid19 in Africa
Fun Facts
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The first smart city was Amsterdam with the creation of a virtual digital city in 1994. According to the IMD's inaugural Smart City Index, Singapore is now the smartest city in the world having Singapore’s Smart Nation initiative launched by Prime Minister Lee Hsien Loong in 2014, and three years later, the country benefited from a government injection of US$1.73 billion.
According to a report, there are more than 250 smart city projects from 178 cities around the world, and the majority focus on government and energy initiatives, followed by transportation, buildings, and water goals.
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With limited legacy infrastructure, African cities are well positioned to be leading in smart cities. In 2020, Africa was likely to be the fastest urbanizing continent in the world though with Covid19 such growth was staled. African countries still have major smart cities in development: Waterfall City in Gauteng South Africa, Konza Technopolis in Nairobi Kenya, Eko Atlantic in Lagos Nigeria, Hope City in Accra Ghana, and Vision City in Kigali Rwanda. In Egypt, the country's first smart sustainable city, the Acud project has been designed to serve as a new administrative center, covering a total area of 700 square kilometers, mid-way to the seaport city of Suez, between the Nile and the Suez Canal.
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