The Ministry of Communication, Telecommunications and Digital Economy (MCTEN) in Senegal has collaborated with Smart Africa and GIZ via its Data Economy project to create a national data strategy that aligns with the country’s sustainable development objectives, innovation promotion and value creation, with an emphasis on digital sovereignty. The two-day consultative workshop hosted various stakeholders from the digital economy sector to discuss and exchange information on data infrastructures, regulatory frameworks, governance and data usage in Senegal.
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The workshop’s primary aim was to share the context and objectives of the strategy development project with the entire digital ecosystem in Senegal. Director General of Smart Africa, Lacina Koné, commended the Senegalese government’s commitment to implementing a national data strategy to manage the use of data, which is considered the new oil and essential to Africa’s digital sovereignty.
Moussa Bocar Thiam, Minister of Communication, Telecommunications and Digital Economy, reaffirmed Senegal’s commitment to digital innovation based on data, which will enhance the digital economy by providing added value in areas such as public policy development, modernizing public services and prioritizing user-centered design.
The partnership with GIZ will enable the development of the first data strategy on the African continent, contributing to the human-centered digital transformation, according to Bjorn-Soren Gigler, PhD, Head of Data Economy and Blockchain programs. The consultative workshop marks an important step towards achieving Senegal’s Digital Strategy 2025 (SN2025) goals.
