Members of the Government of the Republic of Benin,
Presidents of the Institutions of the Republic,
Honourable Members of the National Assembly,
Members of the Diplomatic Corps accredited to Benin,
Director of Smart Africa,
Heads of Foreign Delegations,
Business leaders,
Distinguished participants in the Afro Tech International Forum,
Ladies and Gentlemen, I take the floor this morning to welcome you to our beautiful city of Cotonou, and to this historic site known as “Reconciliation Square”, a symbol of the return of the descendants of enslaved people to the land of their ancestors. I extend a special welcome to the foreign delegations who have travelled here to take part in this 2018 edition of Digital Week, and more specifically in the Afro Tech International Forum.
Benin is honoured to welcome you this morning and to host, over the next two days, debates and conferences on a subject that is both highly topical and of major importance for the development of our continent: digital technology.
Ladies and Gentlemen,
The Afro Tech 2018 forum, taking place today and tomorrow, is held under the high patronage of the President of the Republic, and I would like to thank him here for the resources made available to the Ministry of Digital Economy and Communication for the organisation of this event.
Benin’s DIGITAL WEEK gives us the opportunity to put Benin’s potential for digital innovation in all sectors of the economic and social fabric in the spotlight, nationally and internationally; it gives us the opportunity to share our experiences and aspirations and to pool our efforts in the sector, to run digital skills training activities (Bénin Digital Tour), to launch our Internet Exchange Point, and to create a platform for dialogue between the Ministry of Digital Economy and Communication, the High Authority for Broadcasting and Communication and media professionals to confirm that DTT is now a reality in our country. All of this is intended to place Benin at the heart of current and future developments in digital technologies in Africa and around the world.
Ladies and Gentlemen,
The Government of Benin is convinced that Benin and the rest of Africa have major assets with which to take part in the global digital revolution now under way. Building on this conviction, the President of the Republic has placed particular emphasis on the use of Information and Communication Technologies (ICT) as a powerful catalyst for economic dynamism and modernisation, and aims to position Benin as the digital platform of West Africa by 2021.
In other words, in Benin the digital economy is regarded as a key lever of socio-economic development, which is why this sector is one of the three priority sectors for Benin’s economic recovery. Benin’s strong political commitment to developing this sector is thus an important source of motivation for stakeholders in implementing the flagship projects, which I would like to recall:
• The roll-out of high-speed and very high-speed internet across the entire country;
• The transition to Digital Terrestrial Television (DTT); • The widespread use of e-commerce;
• The implementation of smart government (Smart Gouv);
• The widespread use of digital technology through education and training;
• The promotion and development of digital content. Ladies and Gentlemen,
Benin, like several other African countries, is working to leave its digital mark on the continent’s history. And beyond developing digital infrastructure such as wireless or fibre-optic networks, we are placing a great deal of emphasis on digital usage because, after all, that is what matters to people. This is why our country, Benin, now has an e-health strategy, a first in the subregion that has attracted international attention. Furthermore, in an effort to help improve agricultural productivity through digital technology, an e-agriculture project is being prepared with technical and financial support from the World Bank. In the education sector, we have a project to interconnect university centres, which is currently at the stage of awarding contracts to the selected providers. To support all these initiatives, a legal arsenal has been put in place. The Digital Code, promulgated on 20 April 2018 by the President of the Republic, covers all aspects of the sector, including cybersecurity and the provision of digital services. As you can see, Benin is open to new capital in the digital sector, and I invite economic operators to invest here without fear.
Ladies and Gentlemen,
In this era of the knowledge economy, stakeholders must mobilise to bring out the talents of our young people, who have every advantage to benefit from new technologies such as artificial intelligence, Big Data, the Internet of Things, etc.
There is indeed no doubt that a revolution is taking shape through the development of entrepreneurship in the digital sector. However, it is only by mobilising all the levers and stakeholders in the sector that we will achieve our goal of creating 90,000 jobs for young people, with skilled, inventive digital entrepreneurs who have a keen sense of innovation.
That is why the President of the Republic has approved the request of the Ministry of Digital Economy and Communication to set up a support fund for digital entrepreneurship, with the backing of my colleagues in charge of the Economy and Finance and of Small and Medium-sized Enterprises and Employment Promotion. A study will also be carried out on the establishment of two Tech hubs in Benin.
Ladies and Gentlemen,
I wish all participants in this forum fruitful discussions, so that they may lead to relevant recommendations for making the digital sector a lever for Africa’s economic and social development. With these words, I declare the Afro Tech International Forum 2018 open. Thank you!
All newsPresidents of the Institutions of the Republic,
Honourable Members of the National Assembly,
Members of the Diplomatic Corps accredited to Benin,
Director of Smart Africa,
Heads of Foreign Delegations,
Business leaders,
Distinguished participants in the Afro Tech International Forum,
Ladies and Gentlemen, I take the floor this morning to welcome you to our beautiful city of Cotonou, and to this historic site known as “Reconciliation Square”, a symbol of the return of the descendants of enslaved people to the land of their ancestors. I extend a special welcome to the foreign delegations who have travelled here to take part in this 2018 edition of Digital Week, and more specifically in the Afro Tech International Forum.
Benin is honoured to welcome you this morning and to host, over the next two days, debates and conferences on a subject that is both highly topical and of major importance for the development of our continent: digital technology.
Ladies and Gentlemen,
The Afro Tech 2018 forum, taking place today and tomorrow, is held under the high patronage of the President of the Republic, and I would like to thank him here for the resources made available to the Ministry of Digital Economy and Communication for the organisation of this event.
Benin’s DIGITAL WEEK gives us the opportunity to put Benin’s potential for digital innovation in all sectors of the economic and social fabric in the spotlight, nationally and internationally; it gives us the opportunity to share our experiences and aspirations and to pool our efforts in the sector, to run digital skills training activities (Bénin Digital Tour), to launch our Internet Exchange Point, and to create a platform for dialogue between the Ministry of Digital Economy and Communication, the High Authority for Broadcasting and Communication and media professionals to confirm that DTT is now a reality in our country. All of this is intended to place Benin at the heart of current and future developments in digital technologies in Africa and around the world.
Ladies and Gentlemen,
The Government of Benin is convinced that Benin and the rest of Africa have major assets with which to take part in the global digital revolution now under way. Building on this conviction, the President of the Republic has placed particular emphasis on the use of Information and Communication Technologies (ICT) as a powerful catalyst for economic dynamism and modernisation, and aims to position Benin as the digital platform of West Africa by 2021.
In other words, in Benin the digital economy is regarded as a key lever of socio-economic development, which is why this sector is one of the three priority sectors for Benin’s economic recovery. Benin’s strong political commitment to developing this sector is thus an important source of motivation for stakeholders in implementing the flagship projects, which I would like to recall:
• The roll-out of high-speed and very high-speed internet across the entire country;
• The transition to Digital Terrestrial Television (DTT); • The widespread use of e-commerce;
• The implementation of smart government (Smart Gouv);
• The widespread use of digital technology through education and training;
• The promotion and development of digital content. Ladies and Gentlemen,
Benin, like several other African countries, is working to leave its digital mark on the continent’s history. And beyond developing digital infrastructure such as wireless or fibre-optic networks, we are placing a great deal of emphasis on digital usage because, after all, that is what matters to people. This is why our country, Benin, now has an e-health strategy, a first in the subregion that has attracted international attention. Furthermore, in an effort to help improve agricultural productivity through digital technology, an e-agriculture project is being prepared with technical and financial support from the World Bank. In the education sector, we have a project to interconnect university centres, which is currently at the stage of awarding contracts to the selected providers. To support all these initiatives, a legal arsenal has been put in place. The Digital Code, promulgated on 20 April 2018 by the President of the Republic, covers all aspects of the sector, including cybersecurity and the provision of digital services. As you can see, Benin is open to new capital in the digital sector, and I invite economic operators to invest here without fear.
Ladies and Gentlemen,
In this era of the knowledge economy, stakeholders must mobilise to bring out the talents of our young people, who have every advantage to benefit from new technologies such as artificial intelligence, Big Data, the Internet of Things, etc.
There is indeed no doubt that a revolution is taking shape through the development of entrepreneurship in the digital sector. However, it is only by mobilising all the levers and stakeholders in the sector that we will achieve our goal of creating 90,000 jobs for young people, with skilled, inventive digital entrepreneurs who have a keen sense of innovation.
That is why the President of the Republic has approved the request of the Ministry of Digital Economy and Communication to set up a support fund for digital entrepreneurship, with the backing of my colleagues in charge of the Economy and Finance and of Small and Medium-sized Enterprises and Employment Promotion. A study will also be carried out on the establishment of two Tech hubs in Benin.
Ladies and Gentlemen,
I wish all participants in this forum fruitful discussions, so that they may lead to relevant recommendations for making the digital sector a lever for Africa’s economic and social development. With these words, I declare the Afro Tech International Forum 2018 open. Thank you!