By Zandre Campos, Founder and CEO of ABO Capital
In today’s day and age, technology is integrated into everyday life. Whether it is asking Siri to take you to the nearest Italian restaurant or switching on your lights before you even enter your house. While Africa has been slower to adopt to technology when compared to other parts of the world, the nation has made a lot of headway in the last several years. Technology is a prime opportunity for investors looking to get into Africa.
Africa’s technology scene is booming, with over 400 tech hubs that range from software engineering to mobile money to blockchain technology. In Africa today more than 225 million mobile phones exist, drones are being used to deliver small packages, and renewable sources of energy are starting to be offered to African families as a convenient and affordable solution for creating energy.
Tech giants such as Google, IBM and Microsoft have already seen the potential and are investing in Africa. Also, Chinese mobile phone company Huawei Technologies and German software development group SAP have made their presence known.
In today’s modern society, technology serves various roles that has helped our standard of living increase. Technology refers to bringing together tools that help simplify creation, use and exchange of information. It has aided every industry, helping them move at ease. It is hard to imagine certain industries thriving without the use of technology.
For instance, the importance of innovative technology in the medical field is undeniable. It is responsible for saving countless lives and improving health conditions. Everyday there are new medical advancements that enable healthcare professionals to provide greater patient care. Besides the medical tools and procedures being updated because of technology, there is a significance in software that brings great value to the healthcare industry. The development of specific software helps medical practitioners research, track and use data to provide better industry standards overall.
We see another impressive impact of technology in communication. It is a fundamental resource of everyday life. It has completely changed the way people and businesses interact. Although there is still face to face contact as a way of communicating, people mostly communicate through emails, phone calls, text messages, social media platforms and video chats. Businesses use technology all the time to communicate with their customers and most people don’t realize it is because they have become accustomed to it. Imagine a realtor in New York trying to sell a building in the UK? It would be close to impossible without technology.
Another merit that technology brings us is safety and security. There is an indisputable need for security in many different cases. Security helps safeguard schools, homes, banks and etc. Without it the world would be filled with crime and corruption. There are all sorts of security devices and data base management systems that exists because of technology and it is the main reason why we have this sense of safety.
The fact that Africa is a community that is growing fast and continuously improving its’ societal issues is a logical explanation of why business should invest there. Technological innovations is the first opportunity they should look into because it will offer various solutions to Africa’s economy. If this becomes a focus the overall effect will cause an economic expansion that will change the livelihood of the people living there for the better.