On the sidelines of the Mobile World Congress Africa, which held in Kigali, the Smart Africa Alliance and Orange Middle East and Africa have entered into a three-year agreement aimed at accelerating the digital transformation of Africa. The partnership will focus on advocating for digital transformation, sharing knowledge, and assessing government digital maturity. The ultimate goal is to create sustainable job opportunities for Africans by speeding up the continent’s digital transformation. Smart Africa is an initiative led by African Heads of State, committed to driving sustainable socio-economic development on the continent, while Orange is a major player in the telecommunications and digital services sector.

Key aspects of the partnership include providing training to youth and women to enhance their employability in emerging digital professions. This training will be conducted through Smart Africa’s Digital Academy (SADA) and Orange’s Digital Center (ODC), which spans multiple African and Middle Eastern countries, as well as several European nations.

The collaboration will also focus on fostering innovative entrepreneurship by strengthening incubation, acceleration, and financing capabilities for entrepreneurs operating in priority sectors such as environment, e-agriculture, e-health, and e-commerce, among others.

Both Smart Africa and Orange aim to inspire the creation of innovative digital solutions that can address local challenges and contribute to the sustainable development of the African continent.

Lacina Koné, CEO of Smart Africa, emphasized the importance of empowering African citizens, particularly young people, to prepare them for the jobs of the future. Jérôme Hénique, CEO of Orange Middle East and Africa, highlighted their commitment to actively contributing to the digital transformation of the continent through this partnership.