Does Africa’s online revolution present an opportunity for democratization?

Hosted by: Konrad-Adenauer-Stiftung

Anyone who has recently travelled through Africa will have noticed a widespread digital revolution. This is particularly true for the communications sector. The continent is now home to more than 700 million mobile phone owners. Second only to Asia, it is the largest market for mobile telephony and has the highest growth rates internationally. The number of Internet users is also set to rise sharply. While 167 million Africans are online today, the figure is projected to climb to an estimated 600 million by 2025.1 The repercussions of digitization in Africa can already be seen in many places, websites, social networks and YouTube videos. Digitization is enabling a growing number of people to participate in social and political processes.

The digital revolution affects not only people’s personal living environments; its economic significance should not be underestimated. Forecasts indicate that online services could account for 10% of Africa’s gross domestic product by 2025. That’s $300 billion compared to $18 billion in 2013.

The growth of digital media is also taking stronger influence on politics and the development of democracy in African countries. For a long time it was easy for authoritarian leaders to cut off their opponents’ access to state-owned media, stifling their basis for communication with voters. The Internet, social media and online TV have changed all that. Electronic media open up new possibilities for political competition, giving parties that previously had no chance of success the opportunity to include their messages in the opinion-making process and contributing to plurality and diversity.

Africa’s digital revolution is a phenomenon that deserves much more attention in Europe. This workshop will explore the opportunities and challenges that digitization brings for the continent’s democratic development. An especially close look will be given to the question of how the new opportunities presented by Africa’s online revolution can be used by political parties to improve communications with their electorates and promote the process of democratization throughout the continent.

Panelists:

Duarte, Dave
Partner, Treeshake, South Africa

Mrema, John
Director for Parliamentary and Council Affairs CHADEMA,Chair Person of Chadema Web TV, Daressalam, Tansania

Thuynsma, Heather
Adjunct Professor, University of Pretoria, South Africa

Yamb, Nathalie
Executive Advisor to the President of LIDER – Liberté et Démocratie pour la République, Ivorian Opposition Political Party, Ivory Coast

Moderation:

Allmeling, Anne