Aga Khan University and Ministry of Information, Communication and the Digital Economy want more public and private sector collaboration in the implementation policies, laws and regulations for digital infrastructure.
During a two-day conference that runs from Wednesday, April 17 to 18, themed “Digital Transformation in East Africa”, delegates explored diverse facets of digital innovations shaping the region and delved into crucial digital transformation topics including digital governance, generative AI in healthcare and education, cybersecurity, data privacy and climate and sustainability.
“We are cognisant of the impact that digitisation has on social development, and we are keen on leveraging on technology for e-commerce. Anchored on our 2022-2032 digital masterplan, we are keen on digital public infrastructure, skilling, innovation and entrepreneurship,” ICT Cabinet Secretary Eliud Owalo, said during the opening ceremony of the conference.
He noted that digitisation has enabled the government to reduce timeline of laying over 100,000 kilometres of fiber optic cable for last-mile internet connectivity from 5 years to 2 years and increase its daily digital revenue from Sh60 million to Sh1 billion.
“We cannot operate in isolation and it is imperative for us to collaborate with the private sector and change our approach to digital transformation. We are grateful for this timely conference, and I am confident that the emerging issues will make an impact in policies, laws and regulations of digital infrastructure,” he said.
Delegates also tackled the impact of digital technologies on health and education across private and public sectors, including the enacted Digital Health Act of Kenya.
“Digital transformation is about empowering people, companies and organizations and will be achieved when people and organizations have the information and technology to achieve their goals. The anchor of this conference stems from the need to see the promise of technology fulfilled here in Kenya and in the region,” said the Aga Khan University President and Vice Chancellor Dr. Sulaiman Shahabuddin.
Dr Shahabuddin added that effectively integrating tech into the day-to-day life of an institution takes time and resources. He said: “The Aga Khan University Hospital recently became the first hospital in the region to adopt an integrated electronic health record system. This is having a positive impact on patient care, research and learning.”
The conference is converging over 300 high-level stakeholders in education, health, media and technology. It features over 40 global and local technology leaders including Prime Cabinet Secretary Hon. Musalia Mudavadi, Google VP & Chief Internet Evangelist, A Father of the Internet Vint Cerf and Former President, Republic of Estonia Toomas Ilves.
“This conference is part of the University’s commemoration of 4 decades which has today enabled us to host speakers from over 24 countries bringing over 1000 years’ worth of expertise. Our goal at the end of this conference is to provide proposals for implementation in the region,” said Aga Khan University Chief Information Officer Shaukat Ali Khan.
