Information and Communications Technology defines the current age,the Information Age.The age of Computers has changed the culture of Billions of people as information (and wealth) travels faster than the speed of light.Yet,despite the numerous opportunities availed us by the internet,poverty ravages Africa and unemployment is widespread even in developed countries during the economic recession.
For any country to survive the harsh economic climate,it must be up to date and use 'out of the box' solutions to the myriad of problems facing it.Problems such as poor infrastructure,inadequate qualified manpower and inadequate funding hinder the efforts at bridging the digital divide.
The poor state of infrastructure hinders the spread of ICT in Africa.The vital infrastructure needed is electricity.The power sector in Africa is grossly inadequate for any meaningful development thus resulting in the closure of factories,loss of jobs,hyperinflation etc.The proposed African electric grid ,designed by Eskom South Africa,offers a fantastic opportunity for African states to resolve the power crisis.Regional institutions can build grids connecting member states and also implement power generation projects which can enable flexibility (according to the vagaries of demand and supply).Various developmental agencies can be assigned to various regions in order to ensure adequate funding.This should be a counterpart funding arrangement combined with Public Private Partnerships.Prepaid meters enable energy saving (and cost saving) consumption resulting in optimal utilization of energy.
The problem of inadequate qualified personnel can be resolved through a series of "training the trainer" projects.Interns from organizations such as the Technical Aid Corps of Nigeria can train African students,civil servants etc on best practices in the ICT sector.This project should be backed by the New Partnership for African Development (NEPAD) and the US Peace Corps.Revolving grants and loan guarantees should replace salaries and wages.This will reduce the inflationary pressures on ICT projects and increase their feasibility rates thus attracting more funding.
Funding can be increased through the attachment of financial literacy to computer literacy.Banks will only fund feasible projects by the financially literate with crowd funding(counterpart funding).Patrons as investors model (cost as revenue system) can defeat inflation and reduce risks.This will certainly appeal to investors.Angel investors should be encouraged in order to reduce marginal risk.Industrial schools to cooperative education using online jobs and internship,integrated business management and model business planning,shift system and business cloning with a multiple income stream can create this vital class.
