The 6^th edition of the just concluded Africa CEO Forum, among other concerns, turned the spotlight on Africa’s disruptive technologies. Digital revolutions and the manipulation of Big Data in particular are changing the socio-economic and political landscape in Africa posing a threat as seen in the controversy sorrounding  Cambridge Analytica on one hand and promising growth opportunities on the other.

It is for this reason that the Inter Region Economic Network during its annual Eastern Africa Media Forum hosted journalists from East Africa in 2012 to discuss the theme: Harnessing Digital Revolution to Benefit Africa; and policy makers from various disciplines in 2017 during the IREN Africa Resource Bank Forum to discuss: Digitalization, Democracy and Development: Is Africa’s Future Secure?

It is indeed important that Africa embraces the opportunities offered by disruptive technologies to stimulate meaningful growth on the continent but at the same time lay a framework that will govern their use to prevent vulnerability and disastrous consequences.