Wamkele Keabetswe Mene

Africa's digital economy could exceed 700 billion U.S. dollars by 2035.

Speaking at Unstoppable Africa, AFCFTA Secretary General Wamkele Mene highlighted the opportunity across digital payments, data processing, mobile banking, health and agri-technology.

Mene says the African Continental Free Trade Area Protocol on Digital Trade offers a continental framework to build the right regulatory environment

All of these various aspects of the digital economy are really potential drivers for Africa's accelerated economic development.

You know, they are generally in every aspect, in every way we organize our lives.

So the idea of currency and the word that recurs every time this conversation comes up is sovereignty.

So there is something about independence without sovereignty, or rather independence that came, but sovereignty never did.

And sovereignty, again, of course, depends on which side of the discussion you belong to.

So now we have different views about this common currency.

And when you look back, you'll find that even this new 2027 deadline is probably not going to be the last.

Because already there are conversations about postponing it or delay it.

We are not ready.