Global investor targets six African countries to boost region’s blockchain capacity

Six countries in Africa are being targeted by a tech investor as the most likely to tap into multi-billion dollar blockchain markets to fix challenges in key sectors like finance, agriculture, and health.

This article was contributed by Conrad Onyango/bird

Six African countries could be the first to take a quantum leap into the fourth industrial revolution, by harnessing the potential of blockchain technologies to power their economies, according to investors.

Kenya, Tanzania, Zambia, Nigeria, Uganda, and South Africa have been picked as key markets where structures are to be set up to boost Africa’s capacity in blockchain programming and catalyze industry readiness, said the Africa Blockchain Center (ABC) in a statement.

Kenya-based ABC, which is focused on building tech capacity and offering blockchain solutions to key sectors, said it hopes to train 10,000 blockchain programmers and 5,000 business leaders and executives on blockchain readiness in the key markets over the next two years.

ABC will also incubate 50 blockchain startups and launch robust solutions for the African market over the period. This follows a seven-figure investment by Asian blockchain consultancy firm, Next Chymia Consulting HK Limited, to expand across Africa.

“The African continent has a massive untapped appetite to understand, learn and experiment with decentralized technologies,” said Africa Blockchain Center Founder, Irene Kiwia in a press statement.

Kiwia said Africa presents robust opportunities in applying blockchain technology in key sectors like finance, agriculture, health, and general governance, which could solve some of the challenges facing the continent in these sectors.

A global spending guide on Blockchain Solutions by International Data Corporation (IDC) shows that approximately 19 billion US dollars will be spent on blockchain solutions, by 2024.

This year alone, IDC forecasts that organisations will spend nearly 6.6 billion US dollars on blockchain solutions – up more than 50 percent compared to 2020.

“This is an important time in the blockchain market as enterprises across markets and industries continue to increase their investment in the technology,” said IDC Research Director, Worldwide Blockchain Strategies, James Wester.

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The IDC report showed professional services, state/local government and healthcare will record the fastest compounded annual growth in spending over the next three years, across global markets.

According to Wester, the Coronavirus pandemic has highlighted the need for more resilient and transparent supply chains, healthcare delivery, and financial services.

The ABC now looks to ‘demystify’ blockchain technology and create platforms where the industry can learn, run research programs (R&D), launch blockchain solutions, and access blockchain as a service for various applications across different industries and sectors.

The ABC, launched in September, is housed by the Adanian Labs startup, a Pan-African smart technologies venture studio with an ambitious target to build, nurture and scale 300 impact-driven tech startups across Africa.

“The ABC is very timely as Africa is exploring the potential for smart technologies in support of its 4IR efforts. Adanian Labs will continue to work with the Africa Blockchain Center and support its rollout across the continent,” Adanian Labs Chief Executive Officer, John Kamara said in a statement.

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