Everything you need to know about the $9.73 million funding agreement for African digital economy

The Africa Development Bank and the African Union Commission have signed a $9.73 million funding agreement to support African digital market development.

The African Union Commission (AUC) and the African Development Bank have inked a grant agreement to implement Phase 1 of the African Union Commission's Upstream Project for Digital Market Development.

The signing ceremony was held on November 17 at the AUC Headquarters in Addis Ababa, Ethiopia. The agreement was signed on behalf of their institutions by the AUC Commissioner for Economic Development, Trade, Tourism, Industry, and Minerals, Ambassador Albert M. Muchanga, and the African Development Bank's Deputy Director General for the East Africa Region, Abul B. Kamara.

caption: l-r : Abdul Kamara, AfDB Deputy Director-General, East Africa Region , AUC Commissioner Dr. Albert Muchanga

In September of this year, the African Development Bank's board of directors approved the grant of 7 million Units of Account ($ 9.73 million). The initiative assists the AUC in the development of digital economy projects aimed at improving a continental unified digital market. It also backs the African Continental Free Trade Area and the Digital Transformation Strategy for Africa.

The research is taking place against the backdrop of the Covid-19-induced crisis, which has revealed significant deficiencies in the African digital economy environment. It fills these voids. The first phase lasts from 2023 until 2026. It will be divided into three parts: digital enablers, digital trade, and e-commerce adoption, and support actions. The project will specifically assist in strengthening the frameworks (strategic, policy, regulatory, and conceptual) and cross-cutting (gender, climate change, and resilience) components for developing Africa's digital economy.

These guidelines are critical to establishing a single digital market across the African continent by 2030. As a result, the project will help develop digital enablers such as universal access to broadband infrastructure, a sovereign African cloud, an African digital market, and e-commerce and digital trade promotion programs for medium, small, and micro firms and start-ups. It will also contribute to the development of a favorable ecosystem for digital trust, skills, and African expert networks.

Ambassador Muchanga thanked the African Development Bank for its assistance on behalf of the AUC. "The Covid-19 pandemic highlighted the importance of digital technologies and the digital economy as a whole," he said, adding that "Africa should think big when it comes to digital development, digital economy, and the enormous potential for integration and economic prosperity."

Dr. Kamara stated that the initiative would help accelerate the implementation of the African Development Bank's High 5 priorities in order to meet Agenda 2063 targets and the continent's economic transformation in order to realize Africa We Want.

"It is critical to creating employment opportunities for millions of young Africans, which is critical for the continent's stability and prosperity," he added. The digital transformation of economies provides new opportunities to boost intra-Africa trade and economic growth."