iConnect Confrence 2024

Accelerating Africas Growth

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August 8^th, 2024

“Closing the Gap”

Global Largest Industry $6 trillion : Energy

1.3bn people without access to power with 600m in Africa

Scarcity to Abundance through Technology

China..100m middle class within 25 years

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Africa wrong end…

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Education

Poverty

Every hour, 115 people in Africa die from diseases linked to unsafe drinking water, poor sanitation and poor hygiene

continent aged 6-11 will never go to school. 58% of people aged 14-18 on the continent do not attend school Only 18% of the tertiary aged students are enrolled in universities and colleges.

52% of all poor people on the planet live in Sub Saharan Africa.

Health

Access is still the greatest challenge to healthcare

delivery in Africa. Fewer than 50% of Africans have

access to modern health facilities. Many African

countries spend less than 10% of their GDP on health

care.

Innovation

Water Access

Psychosocial

Wellbeing

Energy Shortage

9 million girls and 6 million boys on the

Africa’s Grand Challenges

600M Africans don‘t have access to modern energy Africa’s energy crisis is hindering Africa‘s technological advancement. In West Africa only 42% of the entire population has access to electricity

Top 18 African Innovative countries rank between 61st and 115th

on the Global Innovation Index.

Africa ranks as the unhappiest region worldwide with a regional score of 4.5 Only 9 African countries made it into the Top 100 of the World Happiness Index

Over-estimating and under-estimating the impact of technological change : We Followers

Source: DIGITAL Business 2^nd Edition, 2021

• Provider of global resources since 5000 years ago
• Grain to the Roman Empire
• Slavery for industrialisation of the West
• Mineral resources (DRC 60% of global cobalt)
• Population of 1.2b to grow to 2.5b by 2050 (quarter of global population of 10.9b)

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• Nigeria at 400m as 3^rd largest population
• Need to restore our rightful place amongst economic Giants
• Possible through Innovation and Technology

AFRICA

Shifting Continents

• China and India are the largest economies by AD 1 to 1500
• The Roman Empire was 3^rd largest
• USA took over by late1800 to to date
• 2030 China to pass USA through mainly adoption of tech (strong STEM base)
• India to rise to No. 3 by 2050 (HSBC report)
• Expect a Narrowed gap between Africa and the developed world by 2050… “Power of Will”

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“The greatest explosion of the middle class in world history by 2050”

H. McRae

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Imagine Africa of 2050!

• Al across Africa revolutionised education that has been democratised with PISA score matching Europe's for the first time
• Global tech companies using Nairobi, Johannesburg, Kigali and Gaborone as talent hunting ground and establish research entities
• Start-Africa Initiative scores over 3500 Unicorns across Sub Saharan Africa in just 10 years
• 600 million Africans without energy 25 years ago reduced to mere 25 million
• Close to zero cost of solar energy powers Africa's manufacturing industry as it becomes the new China! Inga and Wind energy making contributions too
• Africa's over 500 million new middle class attracts manufacturing
• GDP growth rates stabilising from past 10 years of double digits to now averaging 5 % with single digital currency used across most countries

…and are exponentially becoming faster & cheaper

The greatest danger in times of turbulence is not the turbulence – It is to act with yesterday’s logic.

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Peter Drucker

Conference Objectives

Collaboration by stakeholders in tech and innovation

Private sector led

Entrepreneurs in technology and innovation

Make it a niche African tech conference premised on accelerating 10x technologies

Facilitate and promote technological advancements for the development of the continent powered by entrepreneurs

Feedback at the end of improvements for next year’s conference for growth and increased impact (policy, regulators and private sectors)