By Laju Arenyeka

The Chairman, Digital Africa Global Consults Dr. Evans Woherem, has said that Nigeria must improve its technological competence to boost development and economic buoyancy.

Speaking at a press conference to launch the 2nd Annual Digital Africa Conference last week, he said: Africa lags behind other continents of the world in technology acquisition. Other continents, especially the Americas, Europe and Asia seem to be on steroids in acquiring and adopting new technologies. However, in Africa, there is no sense of urgency in this regard at all.

“As at today, the most exciting ICT business opportunities lie in Africa and the Middle East. To get to the level of technological competence of the rest of the world, African countries need to run faster than they are doing so far.

This requires for our leaders to comprehend that reality and develop a sense of urgency for the development of technology and the economy. Continuing, Woherem argued that “there is a difference between using technologies invented and innovated by another country and actually being the inventing country.

It is more rewarding to be one of the key inventing and innovating countries of the world in technology. This is what I mean as technological competence. In other words, it is not the mere purchase and use of technologies invented from abroad or technological diffusion.

Although Africa had traditionally lagged behind in certain critical economic sectors, ICT is clearly a bright spot for the continent that must be seized to move the continent ahead confidently.”

Digital Africa Conference & Exhibition, slated for May 20-22, 2014, is a 3-day annual conference & exhibition for Africa’s technology sector.

The event is conceived as an integral part of the vision to move Africa from being a passive consumer to a dominant innovator and producer of digital technologies.

Digital Africa Conference & Exhibition 2014, which is the second edition, will also host the 19th World Electronic Forum. WEF is the global and high profile gathering of CEOs and Directors of Electronic Industry Associations worldwide.

The theme of the event is “Towards Digital Singularity in Africa” and deliberations at the conference will proffer solutions that would enable Africa make significant advancement towards competing strongly in the global digital market.