Access to Knowledge for Development Center’s Post

Title: "Celebrating African Innovation Every Day 🌍" Message: "As we conclude this series on African achievements in tech, business, and science, we hope to have inspired and highlighted the endless potential within our continent. At Africa Disrupters, we believe in sharing these stories to ignite more innovation. Let’s continue this journey together—because the future of Africa is bright!"

Madam Salima Bah, Minister of Communication, Technology, and Innovation, spoke about how technological innovation and entrepreneurial ecosystems can shape the future of both African and global youth. She shared this during the "Startup Continent" panel, moderated by Shaekou Allieu, at a summit organized by Permanent Mission of Sierra Leone to the UN Security Council, UNDP, Forbes Impact Lab, and timbuktoo Africa. The event took place at the @United Nations Headquarters in New York City on Friday, September 20, 2024. The theme, "Reimagining the Future: Cultivating Global Opportunities for Youth through Innovation & Impact," opened up an inspiring discussion about the promising opportunities ahead. Watch the full video here 👉🏽https://bit.ly/3XQynO7

A DREAM AND DRIFT Culture is a sturdy rail that creativity, development and progress runs on. Mao Tse-tung’s Cultural Revolution movement and Emperor Meiji Tenno’s (Mutsuhito) endogenous industrialisation principle drastically transformed the political statehoods of China and Japan respectively into the superpowers that they are today. British colonial Africa saw a transformation of a primarily buoyant creative landscape through cultural manipulation as colonialists propagated Africa then as primitive and in need of European guidance with the subsequent integration of genuinely African creative works of art into predominantly western creative frameworks. Over the decades the quest for developing this industry to take a global standing in the valorisation of strong identities has been a real challenge and the United Nations has been a positive push factor through the development of the World Heritage Program. In a wake of a culture thirsty generation,we believe there is still much to redress. Apart from being a poverty alleviation tool, cultural entrepreneurship via the creative industry places a stamp on every nation’s identity bringing to the table every nation’s uniqueness. How we export this individual uniqueness determines the value nations can derive from it. At the Buea innovation week, we will take a deeper look and appreciation of this heritage and explore innovative ways with 150 curated young people in creating resilience, relevance and value for the cameroon creative industry amidst the global creative landscape. Let’s create Magic 🪄 #BueaInnovationWeek City Hack MountainHub CITSCM PNUD Cameroun Ayuk Etta Caleb Karawa Ngwane Denzel Jitto Dinga N. Tambeng Kedi White Alouzeh Brandone Mahbuh Ngumih Fien M. Chungom Emmanuel Fuhbingum Martin Elonge Bill-Elton Ndoh Amin Jefferson Walters Chuye Anna Ojong

Back in Türkiye 🇹🇷 , I’m reflecting at the evolving dynamics between East and West, especially through BRICS and the Belt and Road Initiative. This transition signifies a reimagining of global economic relationships. 🌐 As these initiatives unfold, they invite us to envision a future rich with collaboration and innovation. The potential for shared prosperity is immense, challenging traditional paradigms and fostering new connections. 🤝 At this crossroads, the merging paths of East and West hold the promise of a united economic landscape. ✨ #asia #geoeconomics #cooperation

The powerful insights shared at today's Future of Work dialogue have left me reflecting deeply on the promises and perils of Africa's digital transformation. The speakers painted a compelling vision, Prof. Vukosi Marivate's call to cultivate a vibrant and homegrown African tech ecosystem, Dr. Alistair Mokoena's warnings about the risks of unethical AI automation and Chancellor Geraldine Fraser-Moloketi challenge to empower youth as drivers of change. Their perspectives illuminated both the tremendous opportunities and complex challenges inherent in leveraging emerging technologies for inclusive prosperity.Yet, as I sat listening, a nagging question continued to surface: Whose voices and lived realities are shaping this digital future we're envisioning? Too often, the architects of technological progress hail from positions of power and privilege those with the means to dictate the parameters of innovation, and the access to reap its rewards. But what would it look like to truly center the perspectives of those on the margins?Township entrepreneurs struggling against the digital divide, rural families seeking tech-enabled economic opportunities, young innovators constrained by systemic barriers how can we embed their needs, aspirations, and worldviews into the design of the technologies and policies that will define their futures? Unlocking Africa's tech-driven prosperity will require grappling with hard questions of representation, power, and accountability. Who gets to identify the problems that warrant technological solutions? Whose values get encoded into the algorithms governing crucial decisions? And how do we ensure marginalised communities have a meaningful voice, not just in implementation, but in the very visioning of our digital destiny? These are the queries that will linger with me long after today's dialogue. I believe the path forward lies in pioneering new models of inclusive innovation,ones that flip the script on top-down, expert-driven approaches. Perhaps it's time we explore participatory design frameworks, community-led tech hubs, and grassroots funding mechanisms that empower those on the margins to become architects of change. #4IR #Innovation #STEM #IFOWDialogue2024 #Day1

Highlights from the panel discussion on New models of Inter-Africa & Global Collaborations: Emerging trends and models. Prof. Felix Maringe What do you want your University to be known for? University of Kigali for example wants to be known as a Green University. Dr. Darla K. Deardorff We need to look at how to bring Justice Equity Diversity & Inclusion together in internationalization discussion and implementation. Prof. Chika Sehoole We need to be more proactive with Knowledge generation within the continent. How can we have data on Africa from Africa?

Read here to learn about the important African Digital Compact soon to be adopted by the African Union...

Today, I received Dr. Morten Meyerhoff Nielsen (UNU-eGov) and Dr. David Passarelli director of (UNU-CPR) United Nations University at the African Union Headquarters right here in Addis Ababa. Our conversation centered around an incredibly vital topic at the moment: the Global Digital Compact and the African Digital Compact. The highlight of our discussion was exploring multifaceted opportunities for collaboration aimed at leveraging digital technologies to foster sustainable development and inclusive growth across Africa. I am thrilled about the next steps and eagerly anticipate the innovative initiatives that will emerge from this synergy. Our commitment in Information Society division at the AUC is to ensure these technological advances contribute positively to every aspect of African people life. #GlobalDigitalCompact #AfricanDigitalCompact #SustainableDevelopment #PartnershipsForChange #AU #UNU #Innovation #Technology #FutureReady

Last Thursday, we had the privilege of hosting a unique online gathering of stakeholders to delve into the study The Moonshot 8: An Orchestrated and Prosperous Creative Economy, Catalysing Sustainable Growth in Africa. It has been an honor to work with this. It was also an immense honor to start a dialogue around the study interacting with prominent & esteemed webinar contributors. The study focuses on the economic development of Cultural and Creative Industries (CCIs) and adopts a systems approach. Intersectoral readiness is of key importance and an example of this intersectoral focus is the integration of CCIs into the African Continental Free Trade Area (AfCFTA) framework. This necessitates alignment with the UNESCO 2005 Convention on the Protection and Promotion of the Diversity of Cultural Expressions, which the study highlights through the lens of ecosystem orchestration and essential tools. These two instruments are pivotal for fostering economic empowerment of African CCIs. Achieving this goal will continously require robust awareness-raising efforts across civil society, governmental bodies, and regional economic communities. It would also be important to clarify specific articles in these instruments and to explore implications. The meeting was highly engaging, time flew. We also briefly addressed investment and potential pathways forward. It was inspiring to witness the commitment of speakers and contributors. It is only the start of a dialogue. The public version of the study will be online soon. While acknowledging the challenges ahead, we are optimistic that 2025 will be a year of solutions! Dr Ameenah Gurib-Fakim, Former President of Mauritius, Amb - Prof Bitange Ndemo, Ambassdor of Kenya to the Kingdom of Belgium and to the European Union, Diane Sayinzoga Chief UNCTAD Regional Office for Africa, Judith Ameso Mr. Getu Assefa, National Culture Officer, UNESCO, Khanyi Mashimbye, MBA, Manager, Creatives, Intra African Trade Bank, Afreximbank, Gbite Oduneye, General Partner, ODBA (VC and PE), Mr. Ahmed Mohamed Ali, Chief of Executive Office, Ministry of Culture and Sport, Ethiopia Africa Creatives Alliance Rita Ngenzi CK Japheth Amanda Gowa, EIT, LEED GA Ivan Sewajje Foster Awintiti Akugri #africacreativesalliance #creativeeconomy #solutions #ecosystem #intersectoralreadiness #intermediaries #incubators #investment #MSMEs #afcfta #2005Convention GATHIGE Wa MAINA Nicolas-etienne SOHOU N'GANI H.E. Prof. Dr. Amb. Tal Edgars M.Inst.D, PhD Barbara Dietrich