Welcome Botswana, Mali and Eswatini to ITU Telecom World 2018! Joining the global tech event for governments, corporates and SMEs for the first time, these countries shared their SME innovations, strategies, policies and opportunities with the international audience at the event.
With a mobile penetration rate of 153%, Botswana has one of the highest mobile penetration rates in Africa. The country ranks No.5 in Sub-Saharan Africa (according to ITU’s 2017 ICT Development Index). Visitors to the pavilion were able to explore the work of regulator BOCA, and discover more key ICT information for Botswana. Botswana Innovation Hub is the national innovation agency for Botswana, supporting and promoting innovation, tech entrepreneurship and ecosystem development. BoFiNet is a wholesale provider of national and international telecommunication infrastructure, custodian of a local network of almost 9,000km of optic fibre that covers a vast landscape of the country. Intellegere Holdings provides solutions in areas such as data management, information security, innovation research, information assurance, security engineering, and IT training, as well as the BW Lingos – an innovative app to help understand other indigenous languages. Developing profitable ICT solutions relevant to the African market is the focus of Brastorne Enterprises- motto Connecting the Unconnected-, and its portfolio includes services such as mobile money, mhealth and mobile agriculture (mAgri), all of which help serve the needs of youth, women and underserved populations.
Mali showcased some of its cutting edge SMEs, the activities of regulator AMRTP and the Ministry of digital economy and communication, as it prepares and implements the national policy in the fields of information technology, postal, information and communications.
Delegates were able to discover the diverse opportunities within the Kingdom of Eswatini’s Royal Science and Technology Park. Established in 2012, the Park combines innovation park, national data centre, business incubator and biotechnology park- a multi-purpose platform for R&D in bio-related technologies, production marketing and trading. With its diverse activities the park is also a great way to tap into a body of ICT professionals, who are keen to meet and exchange knowledge with potential partners from around the world.
