Wings Growth Boost Webinar: Unlocking Africa's Digital Potential
The "Wings Growth Boost" webinar, held on Friday, March 14, 2025, was organized as part of the WING4Africa program, supported by the Qawafel project funded by the French Development Agency (AFD) and implemented by Expertise France. The central theme of this session was partnerships for a competitive digital Africa. Participants had the opportunity to exchange on the keys to building solid partnerships, best practices to boost digital competitiveness in Africa, and ways to foster innovation and growth through collaboration, infrastructure improvement, and pan-African regulation.
Notable speakers included Sahar Mechri, who moderated the session, Abdel Aziz Dahi, CEO of Richat-partner in Mauritania and former Governor of the Central Bank of Mauritania and Minister of Economy and Industry in 2020, and Mamadou Diouf, a specialist in digital marketing and communication in Senegal. Other speakers included Nasreddine Riahi, co-founder and CEO of Cynoia Tunisia-Senegal, Khadijetou El Heda, Director of Modernization of Administration at the Ministry of Digital Transformation and Modernization of Administration in Mauritania, Wahb Ouertani, President of CONNECT INTECH, a national group for technological innovation, Bathie CISS, an expert in international trade in Senegal, and Hela Grar, an expert in commercial development. These professionals brought their expertise and knowledge to enrich the discussions and offer valuable insights to participants.
The webinar explored the challenges and opportunities Africa faces in its digital transition, highlighting concrete experiences and diverse perspectives. Abdelaziz Dahi highlighted several major obstacles faced by African entrepreneurs, including inadequate infrastructure, difficulties in accessing financing, and complex regulatory frameworks. These challenges were echoed by Bathie Ciss, who illustrated how Senegal is overcoming some of these challenges through innovative technological solutions. He mentioned significant advances in areas such as agriculture, climate data management, and fintech development. The country's good connectivity and dematerialization of data were also presented as key assets, enabling some Senegalese startups to expand beyond borders, with solutions adopted by countries like Burkina Faso and Gabon.
These concrete examples of success were complemented by Wahb Ouertani's reflections, who took a broader view, emphasizing Africa's future potential. He noted that, according to several international reports, the continent will be a major economic force by 2060. However, he also pointed out that this transformation requires adapting existing systems, as shown by the Tunisian experience with the Start Up Act, now adopted in several African countries. Despite this, he highlighted the slow pace of technological progress and the sometimes limiting influence of local banking systems, which hinder startup evolution. His conclusion, calling for integration rather than conquest of the continent, resonated with Hella Grar's ideas, who emphasized the importance of mutually beneficial partnerships, stressing that only collective work led by Africans themselves will build a sustainable future.
Mamadou Diouf addressed the issue of digital sovereignty and the digitalization of public services, themes that intersected with previous interventions. Speaking about the "Senegal Digital" project, he highlighted efforts to modernize administration and train thousands of young people across the country. These initiatives align with Nasreddine Riahi's remarks, who shared Cynoia's experience, a Tunisian startup that successfully adapted and expanded to other markets like France and Senegal. For him, standardizing regulations at the continental level and drawing lessons from European experiences are essential steps to reinforce Africa's digital competitiveness. His call for collective and solidarity-based innovation complements Hella Grar's ideas, who also advocated for an Africa built by its own forces, relying on well-thought-out and sustained collaborations.
