This is the 10th post in a blog series to be published in 2022 by the Secretariat on behalf of the AU High-Level Panel on Emerging Technologies (APET) and the Calestous Juma Executive Dialogues (CJED)

Digital technologies are gradually creating job opportunities and entrepreneurship for Africans, particularly the youth. Through digital solutions, the continent is addressing poverty, social inequalities, and the production and delivery of goods and services. These solutions can potentially improve healthcare service delivery, doctor-patient interactions, and patient monitoring modalities. Agricultural food production and distribution in African countries are also being improved by digital technology, artificial intelligence, and drones.[1]

The AU Digital Transformation for Africa (2022-2030) reaffirms the concept of digitalising Africa for Africa (2020-2030), aiming to transform African societies and economies by effectively deploying digital technologies and innovation. This can help promote Africa's integration, resulting in inclusive socio-economic growth, job creation, closing the digital divide, and eradicating poverty.[2] It is also ensuring Africa's ownership of modern tools of digital management so as to connect every African citizen to the internet by 2030.[3]

Ideally, in order to harness digital technologies, one must have access to the internet. According to continental frameworks urging African countries to adopt digital technologies in order to improve socio-economic growth, internet usage in Africa is still very low. Internet access in Africa is extremely limited, with just 22% of the population having access. A lack of adequate infrastructure also means that the high cost of data slows down the rapid spread of internet connections in Africa. Africans are thus unable to take advantage of digital services offered by the internet. Because of this, African countries should consider expanding their information and communication technology sector in order to improve internet infrastructure, policy, and human resources.

For example, the Southern African Development Community (SADC), like all regions of the African continent, has been gradually expanding internet access efforts through internet connection access. This is because SADC's internet access rate of 2% is among the lowest in the world.[4] This has prompted SADC countries to transform their internet access in order to facilitate more robust regional integration and economic development. On August 14, 2001, SADC adopted the Declaration on Information and Communications Technology to promote internet development in the SADC region.

The Declaration on Information and Communications Technology formally recognises the socio-economic benefits of affordable and dependable internet access. As a result, the SADC region is strengthening internet infrastructure and speed in order to achieve these goals of accelerating digital technology as a development enabler. For example, most SADC countries use 4th Generation (4G) internet with speeds of up to 100 Megabytes per second (Mbps). However, due to unreliable bandwidth, most SADC countries' areas barely use the 100 Mbps capacity. It is even worse for SADC countries that continue to use 3G capacity due to the maximum 14 Mbps speed capacity. As a result, deploying 5th Generation (5G) wireless can improve bandwidth speed and network capacity. The 5G internet connection allows users to access up to 100 Mbps speeds.

The African Union High Level Panel on Emerging Technologies (APET) supports 5G implementation across the region to fully exploit the internet's full capacity and digitally advance Africa. The deployment of 5G technology can accelerate innovation and help SADC countries achieve their digital agendas for socio-economic growth and development. APET believes that by implementing 5G technology, SADC will be able to smoothly implement the Fourth Industrial Revolution and strengthen digital technologies across the region. High 5G connectivity capacity can help African countries implement 4IR technologies.[5] 5G technology can enable high-resolution virtual reality, autonomous vehicle technologies, smart cities via the internet of things, and smart health applications. Furthermore, 5G technologies can improve machine learning, artificial intelligence (AI), 3-D printing, and data analytics, all of which are necessary for socio-economic development.

Figure 1: SOURCE: QUARTZ AFRICA (https://qz.com/africa/2168658/which-countries-have-rolled-out-5g-in-africa/)

 

Ethiopia has become the latest African country to begin testing a 5G mobile network, following South Africa and Nigeria. As of right now, 12 African countries[6] are either conducting 5G trials or have begun rolling out the technology. However, many of these countries are dealing with issues that could derail their plans for 5G deployments. Spectrum regulation clarity, commercial viability, and deployment deadlines have been the main obstacles to overcome in the past. In Nigeria, the continent's largest economy, 5G spectrum licenses were issued in March, and commercial deployment is expected to begin in August, according to reports. Sonatel and Orange continue their trials in Dakar, Senegal, but the network is still largely inoperative. Citizens in Seychelles are wary of the country's 2020 5G rollout, fearing for their own health. The First East African nation to test the launch of a 5G network with ZTE and MTN was Uganda in January 2020. However, there has yet to be a commercial launch.

Additionally, despite the potential to improve Africa's economic capacity, the adoption of 5G within Africa, not just in SADC, has been plagued by scepticism and myths, resulting in the technology's limited adoption. For example, during the peak of the COVID-19 pandemic in 2020 and 2021, 5G technology was blamed for the global spread of COVID-19. Despite the fact that these theories were false and lacked scientific evidence, many people believed the claim that 5G caused the COVID-19.

Furthermore, there have been growing concerns about the gradual increase in cybersecurity risks. However, cyber security firms are gradually responding to this by tightening security controls and mechanisms. Data can be cryptographically protected across software, network, and storage stack layers with 5G.[7] These cryptographic operations help to support critical digital business operations. Furthermore, 5G technology is mistakenly thought to be limited to mobile phones. However, this technology can be applied to any digital device that requires an internet connection, such as connecting smart cars and smart cities via the internet of things.

Another common misconception is that the high frequencies used by the 5G connection will cause brain damage due to the microwave bandwidth. However, 5G networks, like previous cellular technologies, rely on radio waves to transmit signals. These radio waves are a component of the electromagnetic spectrum transmitted between an antenna and a digital device. This includes television and radio signals, as well as a variety of technologies like mobile phones and natural sources like sunlight. As a result, electromagnetic radiation is always present around humans.

It is worth noting that 5G technology employs higher frequency waves than previous mobile networks. As a result, more internet connections are available, and faster internet speeds are available to multiple digital devices at the same time. However, because 5G waves travel shorter distances within urban areas, significant investments in 5G infrastructure are required. As a result, 5G networks require more transmitter masts than previous technologies, which are located much closer to the ground level.

To improve 5G technology acceptance across the African continent, APET encourages more stakeholder engagements to address and debunk 5G technology-related myths. As a result, APET is challenging all stakeholders in the private and public sectors and African policymakers to clearly articulate how 5G technology can fundamentally transform how people live and work. This can be accomplished by using real-life examples and demonstrations to demonstrate the significance of technology in our daily lives. Thus, stakeholder engagement campaigns emphasising the performance benefits realised by early 5G technology rollouts in other countries will demonstrate the value of 5G technology for the rest of the African continent.

To meet the rapidly developing economic 4IR advancements, the African continent should pursue 5G technology. To fully realise the potential of 5G technologies, however, local African communities must buy-in and develop trust in the technology. As a result, African governments should address the myths that have been associated with 5G technology. This is because the opportunities presented by 5G technology have the potential to exponentially grow the African continent's economy. African countries should continue communicating the benefits of 5G technology while addressing concerns about the technology.

To increase trust in 5G technologies in Africa, APET recommends that African countries develop a clear and comprehensive framework for infrastructure deployment, use, regulation, and management.[8] This should be put in place in order to standardise the digitised wayleave and right-of-way approval procedures. As a result, agencies and authorities should be strengthened in order to ensure that the relevant 5G technology standards are included in the Official List of Regulated Standards.[9]

African countries should use fixed Wireless Access and Satellite to bridge the digital divide in areas where infrastructure such as optical fibre cannot be installed.[10] These 5G technology-related infrastructure installations have the potential to significantly improve remote working and e-learning activities. Furthermore, the infrastructure associated with 5G technology can improve telemedicine, surveillance and security, agriculture, mining, manufacturing, and financial technology services for African countries.

Furthermore, to enable optimal and high-speed 5G technology services, a minimum contiguous assignment of 80 MHz – 100 MHz spectrum in the mid-bands and 400 MHz to 1GHz in the high bands should be implemented.[11] In addition, APET recommends that African countries defragment and clear the prime bands across all band wavelengths classified for 5G technology.[12] This can ease the bandwidth traffic and data utilisation within these bands to increase optimal speed capacity.

The authorities or agencies should also ensure the renewal of spectrum licences can provide confidence to the industry and expedite well-managed 5G network investment.[13] Spectrum pooling should be implemented to maximise the benefits of available spectrum and increase available bandwidths for all mobile operators. Furthermore, spectrum trading should be pursued to enable cost-effective and efficient spectrum use to maximise the transfer of spectrum rights to users who require the 5G network spectrum the most. This may also aid in lowering auction spectrum prices. The Administered Incentive Pricing (AIP) spectrum formula has been modified to reduce the cost of using large and contiguous blocks of high-bandwidth spectrum.[14]

To accommodate all stakeholders, the 5G band spectrum assignment should be prioritised for industry verticals via well-researched mechanisms. The Authority Agencies can actively facilitate the procurement and establishment of alternative power supply sources to enable 5G networks in communities with limited, intermittent, or no power.[15] This can be accomplished by establishing and strengthening collaboration research hubs. This can also aid in developing comprehensive and coordinated public information campaigns among governments, regulators, the private sector, and civil society stakeholders to combat widespread misinformation and disinformation about 5G technology.[16]

Finally, in order to mitigate cybersecurity risks associated with 5G technology and networks, security policies, regulations, and processes must be developed to screen potential suppliers, assess their risk profiles, and ensure that the risks posed are significantly reduced and effectively managed. African countries, for example, can use the 5G assurance specifications and 3rd Generation Partnership Project (3GPP) security architecture guidelines, which have proven reliable. Through these efforts, African countries can effectively implement 5G technologies to support their digital technology advancements and improve socio-economic development and growth.

APET shall be developing a report on the 5G technology to address the issues highlighted in this blog as well as carefully analyse how to effectively harness the technology for Africa's socio-economic development. Other technologies being analysed include water management and purification technologies, 3D printing and the internet of things. The panel seeks experts in 3D printing to avail their knowledge as writers to support the development of the reports. This is voluntary as with other APET reports, although writers are offered honorariums during in-person writing engagements. Should you be interested in joining our writing teams, please send an email to barbarag@nepad.org with your CV.

 

Featured Bloggers – APET Secretariat

Justina Dugbazah

Barbara Glover

Bhekani Mbuli

Chifundo Kungade

 

 

[1] https://au.int/sites/default/files/documents/38507-doc-dts-english.pdf.

[2] https://au.int/en/documents/20200518/digital-transformation-strategy-africa-2020-2030.

[3] https://au.int/sites/default/files/documents/38507-doc-dts-english.pdf.

[4] https://www.sadc.int/themes/infrastructure/ict-telecommunications/.

[5] https://www.icasa.org.za/uploads/files/ICASA-2021-5G-Annual-Report.pdf.

[6] Which countries have rolled out 5G in Africa? https://qz.com/africa/2168658/which-countries-have-rolled-out-5g-in-africa/

[7] https://www.techradar.com/news/common-misconceptions-about-5g.

[8] https://www.icasa.org.za/uploads/files/ICASA-2021-5G-Annual-Report.pdf.

[9] https://cms.law/en/int/expert-guides/cms-expert-guide-to-5g-regulation-and-law/south-africa.

[10] https://itweb.africa/content/VgZeyqJoOANvdjX9.

[11] Ahamed MM, Faruque S. 5G Network Coverage Planning and Analysis of the Deployment Challenges. Sensors (Basel). 2021;21(19):6608. Published 2021 Oct 3. doi:10.3390/s21196608.

[12] South Africa’s 5G network might be on shaky ground; here’s why. https://techpoint.africa/2021/09/07/south-africa-5g-shaky/.

[13] https://www.gsma.com/spectrum/wp-content/uploads/2022/02/Mobile-Spectrum-Licensing-Best-Practice.pdf.

[14] Guidelines for the Review of spectrum pricing methodologies and the preparation of spectrum fees schedules infrastructure, Telecommunication Development Sector Report. https://www.itu.int/en/ITU-D/Spectrum-Broadcasting/Documents/Publications/Guidelines_SpectrumFees_Final_E.pdf.

[15] 5G Infrastructure Association, Vision and Societal Challenges Working Group, Business Validation, Models, and Ecosystems Sub-Group 5G ecosystems. https://5g-ppp.eu/wp-content/uploads/2021/09/White_paper_5G-Ecosystems_1-0-final.pdf.

[16] European Parliament. The impact of disinformation on democratic processes and human rights in the world. https://www.europarl.europa.eu/RegData/etudes/STUD/2021/653635/EXPO_STU(2021)653635_EN.pdf.