Session
Organizer 1: Lee McKnight, 🔒Syracuse University
Organizer 2: Danielle Smith, Syracuse University
Organizer 3: Nazarius Kirama, 🔒Internet Society Tanzania
Organizer 4: Kwaku Antwi, 🔒
Organizer 5: Yusuf Abdul-Qadir, Syracuse University
Organizer 6: Theorose Elikplim Dzineku, 🔒
Organizer 7: Jane Asantewaa Appiah-Okyere , 🔒Syracuse University
Organizer 8: Taiwo Peter Akinremi, 🔒Africa Rapporteur Network
Organizer 9: Afi Edoh, 🔒Dakar Institute of Technology
Speaker 1: Lee McKnight, Civil Society, Western European and Others Group (WEOG)
Speaker 2: Onica Makwakwa, Civil Society, African Group
Speaker 3: Samuel George, Government, African Group
Speaker 4: Mary Uduma, Technical Community, African Group
Speaker 5: Mactar Seck, Intergovernmental Organization, Intergovernmental Organization
Yusuf Abdul-Qadir, Civil Society, Western European and Others Group (WEOG)
Theorose Elikplim Dzineku, Civil Society, African Group
Afi Edoh, Technical Community, African Group
Theater
Duration (minutes): 90
Format description: Gaining the greatest results from the session panel and audience requires flexibility and experience in facilitating excellent session workshops. We think that this session format and style will enable and provide that enabling environment and the necessary tools, knowledge, mechanisms, freedoms, processes, information, etc., that open people's minds and make connections between tasks and people in an enjoyable, constructive, and liberating way. Effective workshops require a facilitative and enabling approach. We think, this kind of organised session style works well for medium-sized to large audiences. A workshop that centres on participants' primary priorities as well as their interest areas, which, ideally, will greatly coincide with stakeholder objectives, is the most effective and productive structure for motivating team building. It is anticipated that speakers and audience, both in-room and remotely, will have ample time to share their perspectives and experiences related to the session topic discussions during the allotted 90 minutes.
1. What are some of the ongoing digital policy initiatives that have the potential of address Africa's digital structural transformation? 2. What do the current Digital Trade and Digital Economy Development Strategy seek to enable developing countries to fully benefit from the 4th industrial revolution? 3. In the dynamic digital economy, what strategies can we employ to maximise the contributions of various internet ecosystem actors, especially powerful ones, to address the issue of Internet affordability while maintaining Internet openness for our economy's trade and agriculture sectors? 4. What does digitalization mean for ordinary agriculture farmers and traders?
What will participants gain from attending this session? Participants will gain an understanding of the following: 1. What do the Internet and digitalization mean for ordinary African agriculture farmers, small traders, and those involved in the informal agricultural trade? 2. Under what parameters can the internet and digitalization contribute to helping Africa's agricultural sectors achieve the objectives of free continental trade and ultimately its structural transformation as envisaged in the African AU development Agenda? 3. Is there any possibility of considering a digital single agricultural trade market, and what will drive it? 4. What elements should be considered in the future internet connectivity, electricity, capacity building, and skill upgrading for rural farmers? 5. What can be done at the international level to support Africa’s current efforts and initiatives? 6. How to advance open data principles across Africa Nutrition and Agriculture Value Chain
Description:
The Africa We Want envisions Africa as a continent on equal footing with the rest of the world, as an information society, and as an integrated e-economy where every government, business, and citizen has access to reliable and affordable digital services by increasing broad penetration and providing venture capital to young entrepreneurs and innovators. The Internet, technology, and digitization offer new opportunities to boost the economy (through e-commerce), cut red tape, reduce trade costs (through e-government and the digitalization of public services), leapfrog, and participate in the 4th industrial revolution. This potential is even greater for landlocked developing countries (LDCs). Despite these opportunities, there are several limitations that African countries continue to face, some of which relate to the current infrastructure and internet, digital and technological and data gaps. For example, ITU Facts and Figures 2022 show that only 28% of Africans have access to the internet. As the world’s population grows to around 10 billion by 2050, the global agriculture system is under pressure to provide sufficient nutritious food to meet the demand. In many places, fertile land is degrading, water resources are drying, and genetic resources are disappearing. Unsustainable agricultural practices and other anthropogenic pressures are driving these processes. Climate change, increased extreme weather events, and the spread (induced by climate change) of pests and diseases make agricultural production even more uncertain. On top of this, price volatility has a disruptive effect on production systems and food security, especially for vulnerable populations. Achieving food security through sustainable agriculture is a global priority for the UN in the next 15 years, as enshrined in the ‘Sustainable Development Goals’ (SDG 2). Achieving this goal is no simple task. It means sustainably increasing agricultural productivity and trade, while creating more resilient food production systems, and shaping more accessible and equitable markets.
1. Enhanced understanding and awareness of how agriculture and trade investment priorities can help achieve the objectives of the Sustainable Development Agenda’s. 2. towards accelerating the continent’s agricultural and digital transformation 3. Identification of key elements and issues for further consideration in the implementation of free continental trade programs in Africa. 4. Increased commitment and mobilization of partnerships to support the full implementation of the African Union’s Digital Transformation Strategy 5. Local Content: Localization of content on African platforms will be clearly defined 6. Identify the most critical gaps hindering the adoption and deployment of community networks and electricity in Africa 7. Increased awareness of the agricultural sector requires accelerated action to bridge the financial and investment gap in developing countries 8. Towards empowering people and ensuring inclusiveness. 9. Present the current situation to highlight data gaps and opportunities to strengthen data regimes within the agriculture and trade sectors.
Hybrid Format: With the IGF-layout format for remote participation, we will make sure to complement it by introducing additional social media channels in the session. One key part of the meeting preparation will be to create a good agenda, which will help everyone come to the meeting on the same page and keep participants focused on priorities. A good agenda is less about your ability to lead in a virtual environment and more about fostering understanding for participants, especially people who aren’t in the same room. In light of this, every preparation will be done to ensure that the online audience benefits from the session just as much as those in person. The following tools will be considered, Facebook live stream, X (Twitter), YouTube, Instagram