As the world continue to travel into the digital era, governance structures everywhere are undergoing tectonic shifts. Online transparency, digital identities, virtual services, and platform accountability are redefining how citizens and states interact. Yet globally, access remains unequal and democratic integrity fragile.
Africa, home to the youngest population and a burgeoning digital economy, is simultaneously navigating opportunity and resistance. Amid surging mobile data use, thriving civic tech initiatives, and breakthrough infrastructure investments, the continent faces a sobering countertrend, escalating digital shutdowns weaponised during political turbulence. This duality places Africa at the heart of a global experiment in the rebirth of democracy, now digital.
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Africa’s sprint into the digital age finds roots in foundational investments. The International Finance Corporation, part of the World Bank, committed US$100 million to Raxio Group for building data centre networks across Ethiopia, Angola, Ivory Coast, Mozambique, the Democratic Republic of Congo, and Uganda, an initiative critical in a region that currently holds under 2 per cent of global data centre capacity, even as mobile data usage balloons nearly 40 per cent annually. In parallel, Visa unveiled its first African data centre in Johannesburg with a targeted US$57 million injection into the South African digital payments space.
When Access Fades
Yet the digital realm harbours darker currents. In 2024, Africa experienced a record 21 internet shutdowns across 15 countries, a grim escalation in using connectivity as a weapon during unrest, protests, and elections. Institutions like the African Commission on Human and Peoples’ Rights have responded with resolutions condemning such shutdowns, but the effects persist, emphasising that digital democracy cannot flourish where access is precarious.
Civic Tech and the Civic Spark
Despite these challenges, citizen-led digital innovation is flourishing. Kenya’s MajiVoice platform, enabling reports on water service issues via SMS and web, witnessed complaints soar from 400 to 4,000 per month, with successful resolution rates climbing from 46 to 94 per cent. Uganda’s U-Report engages over 240,000 youth through weekly mobile polls that inform governance discourse directly. South Africa’s GovChat and Grassroot platforms expand citizen–government dialogue through WhatsApp, SMS, and other accessible means.
In the realm of data-powered journalism and oversight, Code for Africa has become a beacon. With branches in Nairobi, Cape Town, Abuja, Lagos and more, the NGO supports fact-checking, data journalism and civic engagement across 21 countries, equipping citizens and journalists alike with tools to interrogate governance.
Systems, Strategy, and Identity
Several African nations are constructing the bedrock of digital governance with national digital identity systems. Nigeria’s National Identity Management Commission has enrolled over 100 million citizens in its NIN system, facilitating more inclusive access to banking, public services, and electoral rolls. Ghana’s GhanaCard similarly enables integrated use across healthcare, tax, and commerce. Rwanda’s Irembo platform, with over 2.7 million transactions from 2.4 million citizens, covering 22 per cent of the population, grants access to services from land titles to birth certificates, offering a seamless and transparent portal for civic transactions.
Digitisation of government services is gaining traction. South Africa climbed from 65th to 40th in the UN e-Government Index between 2022 and 2024, with 134 out of 255 identified government services now available online via a national portal. The South African Social Security Agency’s digital grant system reached over 6 million beneficiaries during the COVID-19 crisis and now delivers payouts electronically to over 95 per cent of recipients, reducing fraud and improving access without job losses.
Leading Lights Across the Continent
The African digital governance skyline is not monolithic. In 2025, South Africa leads with an e-government development index around 0.86, thanks to integrated digital ecosystems and robust connectivity. Mauritius follows closely, with an index of about 0.75 and advanced services, strategic frameworks, and an AI council. Tunisia, Morocco, Ghana, Botswana, Egypt and Rwanda also register high EGDI scores in the 0.58–0.69 range, propelled by initiatives like Morocco’s National Digital Development Strategy 2030 and Tunisia’s early cybersecurity reforms.
Regional efforts reinforce coherence. The ECOWAS Commission, backed by a World Bank–funded initiative, convened a 2025 forum to design a digital sector development strategy for West Africa, aiming to deliver inclusive, accountable e-governance across borders. On the continent-wide stage, the Smart Africa Alliance and the African Union’s Digital Transformation Strategy for 2020–2030 seek to harmonise policies, standards, and infrastructure toward a unified digital future.
Bridging Gaps Through Partnership and Policy
Digital inclusion remains a critical issue. Around 2024, Africa could only connect 40 per cent of its population to the internet. To fix that, the US-led Partnership for Digital Access, supported by the African Development Bank, Mastercard, and regional partners, launched the MADE Alliance, aiming to boost internet access to 80 per cent by 2030 and support 100 million farmers in the digital economy. Tech Herfrica, a Nigerian-founded NGO, is advancing grassroots digital inclusion by training women and girls in rural communities across six African countries in digital and financial literacy.
Yet institutional safeguards lag behind. While digital innovations race ahead, just 25 sub-Saharan African countries have comprehensive data-protection laws, and only 37 have adopted cybercrime regulations.
Even more alarmingly, Africa controls less than 1 per cent of global data-centre capacity and owns fewer than 1,000 GPUs, critical for AI development. The UN’s digital envoy has warned against AI and data colonialism and called for coordinated global commitments to preserve African agency in the face of external digital dependencies.
The Road Ahead
Africa stands poised between dazzling digital promise and persistent structural peril. On one side, platforms like MajiVoice, Irembo, and Code for Africa embody the ethos of digital democracy, authentic engagement, data clarity, and empowered citizens. On the other, shutdowns, limited capacity, regulatory gaps, and dependence on external actors threaten the trajectory.
To truly reinvent governance for the online age, Africa must commit to investing in infrastructure, protecting digital rights, pluralising innovation, and embedding governance frameworks that reflect local realities. The upcoming AfreGov e-governance conference in Cape Town, set for October 2025, offers a tangible opportunity to share successes and refine strategies aligned with continental goals like Agenda 2063 and the UN’s Sustainable Development Goals.
