It has been a pleasure to receive the warm and generous hospitality of the people of Burkina Faso over the last week. We have discussed a lot during this forum; we have explored many of the challenges and opportunities facing Africa. I have been struck by the amazing progress and opportunities of Africa, by the great work that is already taking place, and by the excitement across the region.
Just a few days ago, I had a wonderful visit to the Lycee Philippe Zinda Kabore school right here in Ouagadougou. The school has over 6,000 students and just 20 PC’s, but to see the scope of what they are achieving with these very limited resources was truly inspirational. Yet again, it made me realize just how important it is to do more for schools like the Lycee, and for students throughout Africa. By having the opportunity to develop relevant life and professional skills individuals can become full-fledged members of a vibrant social and economic environment.
As we all know, human potential comes in many forms, whether it’s someone starting a business, getting a job, learning a new skill, or participating more fully in the well-being of their community, and ultimately that of their country. That’s why we at Microsoft are committed through Unlimited Potential to support social and economic development through transforming education, fostering local innovation and creating jobs and opportunities.
I want to share a story about homegrown innovation that I think personifies this in Africa. Rosaline, a young woman from Kabira, one of the biggest slums in Africa, was inspired by some ideas she found on the Internet to use recycled tires to make sandals. She found a market for them locally, but soon she needed a bigger market and went online to reach customers in other countries. This generated new demand and enabled her to open a second workshop in Kabira, creating new job opportunities and contributing positively to the economy. Now she is becoming an international figure, invited to speak and share her story of social entrepreneurship in a number of forums like this one. Rosaline’s story is a powerful example of how innovation, access to technology and entrepreneurship can create broad opportunity for anyone.
Throughout the conference, we have discussed many key sustainable development themes. For example, we have focused on access—whether this means low-cost computers, refurbished computers, or community centers and iCafes that provide rural areas with connectivity. As Barbara Kreissler of UNIDO noted a few days ago, Dr. Cheick Diarra, our Chairman for Microsoft Africa, signed a joint initiative with UNIDO that will make affordable computers available to small-scale entrepreneurs in Africa. The initiative will be based on a sustainable business model for refurbishment centers in Africa to address hardware, software and training needs of SMEs (small and medium entrepreneurs), and will be piloted in Uganda.
A key focus of this particular forum has been the discussion of e-government and e-government best practices. In a panel session I participated in, a gentleman raised a great question, asking what Microsoft could do to make it easier for governments in the region to share best practices, since best practices are so critical to creating the vision of “e-Africana”. This question got Cheick and I talking, and we are pleased to announce that we will be launching a new African e-government best practices website designed to help people across the region uncover and act upon best practice examples.
I have been in many sessions and had many conversations addressing the importance of broader inclusion of ICT access in Africa. This means enabling men, women, youth, seniors, the disabled, everyone, through access to technology and its benefits – something, until now, that has largely been out of reach.
Many have highlighted the potential for smaller or under-resourced nations to leverage the successes of others through partnerships and thereby scale these best practices across the region. It has come across to me loud and clear that these key themes must be surrounded by the relentless enablement of youth, strong policies, public-private partnerships, sharing experiences, and most importantly, a strong roadmap to implementation.
As the first ICT Best Practices Forum for West and Central Africa comes to a close, I want to stress both the unique opportunities that Africa has as a region and the unique nature of the challenges that are posed. The challenge before us is one of scale and partnership. Making a difference alone will be very difficult, but together we can achieve lasting results.
I thank you for your time and interest over the past week—I hope that this space has provided some insight into the Best Practices Forum and its goals. I am now en route to Bogota, Colombia, where I look forward to meeting with more local and regional partners to discuss solutions and help realize our vision for Unlimited Potential. In the meantime, please continue to visit the Unlimited Potential Information Center for up-to-date news and information on our efforts to create sustained social and economic opportunity for the 5 billion people around the world that have yet to realize the benefits of technology.
-Orlando Ayala, Senior Vice President, Emerging Segments Market Development Group, Microsoft
