On Tuesday 3 December, the European Commission announced that it had signed an “administrative arrangement” with Smart Africa, an alliance of 41 African countries chaired by Rwandan President Paul Kagame and backed by the African Union and the private sector. The organisation supports the African continent’s digital transformation.
“This administrative arrangement aims to strengthen cooperation between the European Commission and Smart Africa based on a shared vision of an innovative, fair and sustainable digital transformation”, said the Commission.
The agreement provides for three areas of collaboration between the European Commission services and the alliance: strengthening dialogue and joint initiatives in areas such as cyber security, artificial intelligence and digital services; digital skills development and technical assistance to support African Union member states; and greater collaboration within international organisations to meet digital transformation’s global challenges.
According to European Commissioner for International Partnerships Jozef Síkela, the agreements signed will enable “us to accelerate digital transformation while boosting competitiveness and innovation”. (Original version in French by Bernard Denuit)