Columnists

How connectivity could lead to job creation in Kenya

jobs

Jobseekers seeking interview slots . FILE PHOTO | NMG

High unemployment, especially among the youth, remains one of Kenya’s pressing socio-economic challenges. The Covid-19 pandemic exacerbated this, pushing it to 21 percent by June 2020.

But digital technologies can drive post-pandemic recovery through faster job creation. Kenya’s ICT sector has expanded remarkably in the past decade, growing by an average of 10.8 percent every year since 2016.

There, however, is still a lack of nationwide broadband connectivity infrastructure and more digital skills needed to realise our country’s true economic potential.

Today, businesses globally rely on connectivity to conduct transactions and payments, running apps and services in cloud environments, marketing or simply sharing information.

Connectivity allows for innovation, improved efficiencies and helps businesses to either expand into broader markets or create entirely new revenue models.

The Fourth Industrial Revolution is powered by technologies such as AI and automation, IoT, quantum computing, Big Data, and smart factories — all of which are powered by connectivity. Without the basic infrastructure needed to support these technologies, businesses in Africa will be left behind.

Consumers are also moving towards digital interactions – a shift expedited by the pandemic. If businesses want to connect with more customers today, and especially in the future, they need to be connected to the Internet. Unfortunately, not all Africans have access yet.

A report by the United Nations Conference on Trade and Development highlighted that the economic distribution of the global digital economy shows a striking divide between countries.

The US and China alone account for 90 percent of the market capitalisation value of the world’s 70 largest digital platforms, whereas Africa only accounts for 1.3 percent.

What is clear is that Africa is yet to achieve the adequate infrastructure, digital literacy, and comprehensive policy frameworks to fully support digital businesses. And while total mobile Internet subscriptions in Kenya rose by 4.8 percent from the second quarter of 2020 to the third quarter, it only had 551,715 wired Internet subscriptions as of last September.

Transforming the economy through the digital space requires a foundation such as inclusive access to fixed Internet infrastructure for business. And for those who do have access, we need to make sure they know how to use it.

One of Africa’s biggest barriers to technology adoption is the shortage of digital skills. For this reason, the government established the Ajira Digital Programme in 2017 to bridge the skills gap in the digital job market through training and certifications for IT and networking, software development, sales and marketing, accounting, writing and creative design, among others.

Platforms like Ajira and Upwork are becoming powerful drivers of inclusiveness, linking job seekers to global communities and allowing them to access more opportunities, share knowledge, and move up the employee value chain.

If we can realise a knowledge-based economy by improving digital literacy, we can provide Kenyans with millions of more jobs created beyond our national borders.