By Our Reporter
Africa is fast adapting to latest trends, innovations and solutions impacting the technology supply chain on the continent. It is predicted that internet usage on mobile phones will increase 20-fold in the next five years in Africa, which is double the rate of growth in the rest of the world. This was the discussion during DHL’s 5th annual Global Technology conference in Dubai last month, featuring a number of key sessions on doing business in Africa.
Under the theme of ‘Connecting Markets, Trends & People’, the conference hosted some 300 delegates, including DHL customers from leading global technology companies, for a three day program of plenary sessions and workshops.
The ‘Rise of Africa’ plenary session and several workshops set out to explore the potential of and expectations for the African continent, with discussions on how to best navigate existing challenges and trade barriers and tap into growth. Speakers from a number of African companies illustrated how they successfully operate in various African markets.
Ashish Thakkar, Founder and CEO of Mara Group, gave conference delegates interesting and thought-provoking insights with his keynote themed: ‘Inspiring Africa: Capturing Chances.’
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Konga’s Sim Shagaya and Tayo Oviosu, CEO of Paga, made the case for doing business in Africa, advising companies to move beyond negative media hype and become familiar with African countries on the ground in order to explore and tap into the tremendous potential that exists.
Delegates at DHL’s Technology conference learnt about African consumers’ preferences, such as paying retailers via mobile phone rather than cash. There is also an increasing appetite for well-priced mobile devices, fuelled by a rapidly growing middle class. Discussions were also held around Africa’s potential for becoming a manufacturing destination for technology goods.
Rob Siegers, President, Global Technology Sector, DHL said, “The technology sector is a highly dynamic industry and the pace of change is rapid. We currently see two distinct trends: the advance of new technologies, such as the Internet of Things, big data, cloud computing and others which are changing business models as technology companies are looking to enhance their products by building services around them – and an increasing focus on tapping into growth in emerging nations.
