BY SIFISO NHLABATSI
MBABANE – Eswatini’s Minister of Information, Communications and Technology, Senator Savannah Maziya, joined African policymakers, global technology executives and industry leaders on Wednesday as South African President Cyril Ramaphosa officially opened the first Google Cloud Summit to be held on African soil.
At the first Africa Cloud Summit in Johannesburg, Google announced that it has officially exceeded its five-year $1 billion investment target for the continent. While the overall $1 billion milestone was the headline highlight, Google and its partners broke down specific new multi-million dollar allocations during the summit to fund the next phase of African infrastructure and AI growth.
Held at the Sandton Convention Centre under the theme “Google Cloud is building for Africa,” the summit brought together representatives from across the continent to discuss cloud computing, artificial intelligence (AI) and digital transformation.
Maziya was among dignitaries recognised by Ramaphosa during his keynote address, alongside South Africa’s Higher Education Minister Buti Manamela, Deputy Communications Minister Mondli Gungubele, Google’s Senior Vice President for Research, Labs, Technology and Society James Manyika and other government and industry leaders.
Ramaphosa said the summit represented more than a technology conference, describing it as a milestone in Africa’s digital development.
“It is about where Africa chooses to position itself in the defining technological revolution of our lifetime,” he said.
He said cloud computing and artificial intelligence would power the economies of the 21st century in the same way that railways, electricity and the internet transformed previous generations, adding that Africa intended not only to participate in that future but to help shape it.
The South African President said the hosting of the inaugural Google Cloud Summit on the continent affirmed Africa’s growing importance in the global cloud ecosystem.
He said Africa was no longer simply adopting technologies developed elsewhere but was becoming a place where digital solutions were being imagined, tested and scaled.
Ramaphosa said South Africa was well positioned to host the event because it had world-class financial markets, engineering expertise, universities and a growing innovation ecosystem. He noted that the country hosts about 70 per cent of Africa’s hyperscale data centre capacity and is the continent’s largest cloud market.
He said government was implementing reforms aimed at strengthening digital public infrastructure through Operation Vulindlela, with secure and interoperable digital systems expected to improve public services, support financial inclusion and drive economic growth.
According to Ramaphosa, investment announcements made during the summit would support job creation, strengthen small and medium enterprises and improve South Africa’s global competitiveness.
He described artificial intelligence as a general-purpose technology comparable to electricity, the steam engine and the internet, saying it would reshape industries, professions and public services.
Ramaphosa said South Africa envisioned wider adoption of cloud and AI technologies across business and government, including their use in healthcare, education, agriculture, energy management, climate response and public administration.
He also said educational content could increasingly be delivered through cloud technology directly into classrooms, while AI solutions could assist with disease management, weather forecasting for farmers and management of the national electricity grid.
The President said Africa had an opportunity to accelerate its industrialisation through digital technologies and create opportunities for entrepreneurs by lowering barriers to participation in the formal economy.
While calling for continued investment in digital infrastructure, Ramaphosa said governments and industry also had a responsibility to address issues such as data sovereignty, human rights, environmental sustainability and responsible AI deployment.
He said South Africa was investing in sovereign cloud infrastructure, including the Sebowa Cloud at the Council for Scientific and Industrial Research, as part of efforts to strengthen national digital capabilities and protect citizens’ data.
Ramaphosa also called on technology companies to work with governments in building sovereign digital and AI capacity while investing in digital skills development.
He welcomed Google’s investment in AI training and digital literacy programmes, saying young people should become creators and innovators rather than merely consumers of technology.
Closing his address, Ramaphosa said Africa’s future depended on building the digital infrastructure needed to support the continent’s development.
He urged governments, industry and development partners to work together to ensure technological advancement expanded opportunities and improved the lives of African citizens without leaving anyone behind.
Countries like Eswatini are positioned to benefit significantly from the inaugural Google Cloud Summit Africa through accelerated digital public infrastructure, regional cloud access, policy collaboration, and massive youth skilling programs.
By bringing together African policymakers and global tech innovators, the summit established a regional baseline for digital transformation that smaller nations can leverage to scale their economies.
Eswatini is set to benefit through several specific mechanisms which include but not limited to; Modernizing Government Ecosystems “Government in Your Hand” Support. Eswatini is using Google’s technologies to expand its Government in Your Hand (GIYH) initiative.
The Ministry of ICT is leveraging Google Workspace to enhance governance security, data accessibility, and transparency across the public sector.
Drawing from cloud innovations, Eswatini is reviewing cloud-based public infrastructure like Public Key Infrastructure (PKI) and unique digital address databases to modernize informal settlements and optimize emergency services.
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(Courtesy Pic)
