
--
Thought leaders discuss smart cities in a connected Africa at MWC 2016 --
Tue, 01 Mar 2016 11:31
--
During Mobile World Congress 2016, Ericsson hosted a discussion on the impact of smart cities for a connected Africa with a distinguished panel of leading players in the information and communications technology (ICT) industry on the continent. This took place at the second instalment of Ericsson s Africa Night, a networking and conversation platform for key stakeholders in the sector to engage on matters related to the digitisation of Africa.
Fredrik Jejdling, head of Ericsson s sub-Saharan Africa region said: Industries and society are transforming as a result of ICT. The establishment of smart cities that are equipped to manage some of the most important needs in evolving cities, such as safety, transportation and utilities, requires active collaboration between various stakeholders.
Facilitated by Kenyan journalist Larry Madowo, the panel included Jean-Philbert Nsengimana, Rwandan Minister for ICT and Youth; Adebayo Shittu, Nigerian Minister of Telecommunications and Technology; Hlengiwe Mkhize, South African Deputy Minister of Telecommunications and Postal Services; Hamadoun Tour , executive director of the SMART Africa Programme; Christian de Faria, chief executive officer and MD for Airtel Africa; and Cynthia Gordon, executive vice president and chief executive officer for Africa Division at Millicom International Cellular.
Besides providing great insights, the panel reflected on the opportunities currently being explored to build connected cities on the continent particularly in Nigeria, Rwanda and South Africa.
Nsengimana extolled the role of partnerships in delivering smart cities in Africa: Rwanda is leading in four areas in collaboration with Ericsson; payments, digitising transportation, safety and utilities. There is no way a government alone can drive massive projects at the rate at which we are doing it without strong partnerships.
Speaking on the benefits of an increasingly connected South Africa, Mkhize said: Our e-government services has a great impact in rural areas that were previously excluded, now young people are in a position to access opportunities like any other person, irrespective of where they are located.
Tour called for more investment in infrastructure on the continent: There is an investment need in infrastructure in Africa over the next 10 years of over $300 billion, if the continent is to reach its full potential. The investment will not be charity, its business. Today, the continent has the highest return on investment. Governments are putting the right regulatory environments in place with regard to spectrum, licenses and national broadband plans and therefore with the public partnership model that we are advocating, there is money to be made.
The United Nations estimates that by 2050 almost 70 percent of the world s population will be city dwellers. Though Africa remains mostly rural with only 40% in urban areas as of 2014, this is expected to change in coming decades as Africa, like Asia, is expected to urbanise faster than other regions in the world.
The growth of cities raises a range of social, economic and environmental challenges, putting pressure on infrastructure, natural systems and social structures. However, as the challenges of urbanisation intersect with ICT-driven opportunities, solutions emerge with the potential to improve the lives of billions.
Related Articles
Cambium Networks appoints Pinnacle Africa as an official distributor for ePMP in SACambium Networks has appointed Pinnacle Africa as a master distributor for ePMP in South Africa....
Read more...
Rohde & Schwarz supports research on 5G The services and applications that 5G will provide as well as the technologies will that make them possible have not yet been defined...
Read more...
Africa to reach one billion mobile broadband subscriptions by 2020 The number of mobile broadband connections in Africa will reach one billion in 2020, up from 147 million at the end of 2014...
Read more...
-- --
-- --
-- Please enable JavaScript to view the comments powered by Disqus. comments powered by Disqus
Most recent headlines
09/11/2025
Dalet today announced a transformative leap forward for media operations: Agentic Artificial Intelligence (AI) that unifies the Dalet ecosystem under one natura...
22/10/2025
The Orion spacecraft for NASA's Artemis II mission is stacked on the Space Launch System (SLS) rocket in High Bay 3 of the Vehicle Assembly Building at Kenn...
22/10/2025
L3Harris' Hybrid SATCOM is resilient by design, offering path diversity that eliminates vulnerabilities by routing data across the best available networks i...
22/10/2025
WASHINGTON, D.C. Organizers of NAB Show New York said they are expecting more than 12,000 registered attendees from about 100 countries along with 260 exhibitor...
22/10/2025
WASHINGTON, D.C The organizers of The 2025 NAB Show New York have announced that they are expecting more than 12,000 registered attendees from about 100 countr...
22/10/2025
Masque Sound, a leading theatrical sound reinforcement, installation and design company, supplied an extensive gear package of professional-grade equipment for ...
22/10/2025
Lightware, a global leader in signal management and AV connectivity solutions, is seeing strong market momentum for the UCX-3x3-TPX-RX20, a compact transmitter-...
22/10/2025
MELVILLE, N.Y. Chyron has released PAINT 10.2, the latest update for its telestration platform, adding support for SMPTE ST 2110 IP workflows, expanding brandin...
22/10/2025
WASHINGTON Run3TV today said NBCUniversal is joining as an investor in the ATSC 3.0 Framework Authority, which develops the Run3TV NextGen TV application platfo...
22/10/2025
ATLANTA swXtch.io will feature two new networking solutions extending the company's reach across more cloud and on-prem workflows at NAB Show New York, set ...
22/10/2025
The Warner Bros. Discoverys HBO Max streaming services has increased prices for all its streaming tiers effectively immediately for new customers. Existing cust...
22/10/2025
LOS ANGELES OpenDrives has signed a new distribution partnership deal with Versatile Distribution Services (VDS) to strengthen its channel and streamline how it...
22/10/2025
WASHINGTON, D.C The organizers of The 2025 NAB Show New York have announced that they are expecting more than 12,000 registered attendees from about 100 countr...
22/10/2025
Samora Pinderhughes Brings Immersive Sound to Berklee's Signature Series The artist and composer, who's worked with Herbie Hancock, Robert Glasper, Co...
22/10/2025
BMI Day at Berklee Celebrates Composer Fil Eisler and Awards Scholarship to Stud...
22/10/2025
Rohde & Schwarz and TRUMPF cooperate in drone defense Rohde & Schwarz and TRUMPF partner to deliver a comprehensive drone defense solution combining Rohde & S...
22/10/2025
European Broadcaster Upgrades To Grass Valley's NativeIP LDX 135 Cameras And...
22/10/2025
Everyone Gets a Better Deal on Verizon with New FOX One Perk The $15 FOX One streaming service perk is yet another way Verizon continues to add savings for cu...
22/10/2025
First Look Hidden Assets Series 3
Premieres on 9th November 9:30pm on RT One & RT Player
WATCH HERE Promo Link: Hidden Assets Series 3 | RT
The Crimin...
21/10/2025
NAB New York 2025: Although AES Show Is on Its Own, Audio Will Be a Major Part o...
21/10/2025
NAB New York 2025: Business of Broadcast and Media,' Future of Content'...
21/10/2025
SVG All-Stars: Ethan Folz, Senior Director, Digital Operations and Quality of Ex...
21/10/2025
NBA on NBC/Peacock: Livestream Offers Graphic Overlays, Predictive Gaming, Ancil...
21/10/2025
NBA on NBC/Peacock: At the Front Bench With Producer Frank DiGraci and Director ...
21/10/2025
NBA on NBC/Peacock: NBC Sports, NEP Build Ultra-Flexible Production Plan That Se...
21/10/2025
Indigenous storytelling has been at the heart of the work of the Sundance Instit...
21/10/2025
Top L-R: Mysterious Skin, American Dream Second Row L-R: Little Miss Sunshine, D...
21/10/2025
Last week, Spotify and Columbia Records transformed Pier 4 at the Brooklyn Army ...
21/10/2025
SBS Learn's Dharug Ngurra resource empowers classrooms to meaningfully celeb...
21/10/2025
As global operators simplify and evolve their digital platforms, NPS improvement...
21/10/2025
Critical Design Review completion is a key milestone on the path toward Wideband Global Satellite Communications certification for the network in 2026, opening ...
21/10/2025
New Australian undersea training range to implement and improve warfighting tactics, proficiency and safety; enable joint/allied training that contributes to pr...
21/10/2025
eds3_5_jq(document).ready(function($) { $(#eds_sliderM519).chameleonSlider_2_1({...
21/10/2025
September, the beginning of autumn, brought an expected revival to the TV market, largely due to the new fall TV schedules. The time spent in front of the TV sc...
21/10/2025
Broadcast Booms with 20% Uptick vs. August, Achieving Largest Monthly
Increase ...
21/10/2025
During September, streaming's share of TV viewing in Mexico settled at 24.5%, a marginal shift of -0.5 share points from the previous month.
Disclaimer: YU...
21/10/2025
RENNES, France BBright and GlobalM have conducted a technical trial validating Ultra HD interoperability across the entire contribution chain in the cloud, achi...
21/10/2025
Kokusai Denki Electric America will mark the U.S. debut of a new 4K camera at the 2025 NAB New York, Oct. 22-23. Now available, the Z-HD6500-S1 UHD/HD productio...
21/10/2025
Triveni Digital, a trusted leader in ATSC 1.0 and 3.0 service delivery, data broadcasting, and quality assurance solutions, will showcase its entire NEXTGEN TV ...
21/10/2025
Radio Azzurra FM, longest-running radio station in the province of Novara, northwest Italy, has invested in an DHD SX2 audio routing and mixing console for inte...
21/10/2025
Globecast, the leading provider of broadcast, media and entertainment managed services, has announced the appointment of G Morgan as Executive Vice President of...
21/10/2025
Visual Data announces the appointment of Maz Al-Jumaili as Senior Vice President, Worldwide Localization, to advance client engagement, strategic partnerships, ...
21/10/2025
As Amazon's Prime Video prepares to launch its coverage of NBA basketball under a major new deal, Grup Mediapro has announced that it is working with the st...
21/10/2025
ATLANTA Good news for consumers using an Atlanta DTH receiver to watch ATSC 3.0: with a new software update, they will be able to blanket their homes with Wi-Fi...
21/10/2025
While recent news has been heavily focused on Hispanic migration into the U.S., The 2025 Hispanic Market Report from Claritas highlights the fact that this gr...
21/10/2025
MAIDENHEAD, UK RWS has hired Michael Wayne as its head of media and entertainment in Los Angeles where he will lead the company's media localization busines...
21/10/2025
Imagine Communications and Rohde & Schwarz today announced a definitive agreement under which Imagine will acquire Pixel Power Limited, a wholly owned subsidiar...
21/10/2025
Atlanta DTH (ADTH) today announced a major update that will expand the functionality of its NEXTGEN TV receiver by enabling gateway capabilities allowing viewer...
21/10/2025
Heartland Video Systems, Inc. (HVS), a premier video systems integration, consulting, and expert ATSC 3.0 implementation firm announces that it has partnered wi...