African ICT chiefs are calling for tax cuts on digital gadgets

African telecommunications and ICT chiefs have called on governments across the continent to reduce the cost of digital gadgets as one way to reduce the digital divide and improve efficiency across economic sectors.

They made this appeal during the LEAP (Leadership, Employability, Advancement and Possibility) summit held on June 28 (Friday) in Shanghai, China.

The summit was part of the Mobile World Congress summit that started on June 24 (Tuesday) and ended on June 28 (Friday) in Shanghai, China.

John Mo, secretary general of the African Telecommunications Union, the telecommunications arm of the African Union, has mobilised technology companies to work with governments to set up factories to produce gadgets on the continent.

Ministry of ICT and National Guidance Undersecretary Sophia Nantongo attends the Leadership, Employability, Advancement and Opportunity (LEAP) Summit in Shanghai, China, on Friday.

“On affordability, we need to see more and more of these companies setting up manufacturing operations on the continent, and governments working with them to reduce taxes on both systems, terminals and services, so that we can easily leverage the services we need. The digital skills problem is a major contributor to access gaps. “The majority of our population, especially those who are disadvantaged in rural areas, do not feel empowered to use the gadgets that you and I play with,” he said.

Mo also called for the empowerment of young people to effectively use digital tools to achieve prosperity.

“The number of young people who want digital fulfillment opportunities in Africa is incredible, but we have not given them the opportunity they so desperately need to realize their full potential. The median age of youth in Africa is 19 years. The potential of this population is therefore enormous. We can do much more for our people if we cooperate rather than compete,” he added.

Mo’s appeal was supported by Sophia Nantongo, Uganda’s undersecretary for ICT and national consultancy, who called for a reduction in taxes on digital gadgets to make them affordable for young people.

“On the issue of internet pricing, as a government we are working on legislation to see that we reduce taxation on broadband. We as Africa need to think about this if we are to go digital. If the price is high, we won’t be able to execute our digital program,” she said.

More than 90% of digital devices used in Uganda are imported with multiple taxes such as 18% value added tax, excise duty and withholding tax that hamper accessibility and availability. Apart from physical gadgets, online services such as mobile money are heavily taxed, as is a 0.5% tax on all withdrawals.

Nantongo also called on tech companies to set up factories to produce gadgets in countries like Uganda.

“We are calling on Huawei to come and set up gadget manufacturing factories in Uganda as it will increase availability,” she said.

Zimbabwe’s ICT Minister Tatenda Mavetera has urged young people to embrace ICT as an opportunity for the future.

Kenya’s Chief Education Secretary Dr Beatrice Muganda has called on global technology companies to turn universities in Africa into their training hubs.

“We thank Huawei for the partnership, but we say the population is large. You can’t do it alone. We know that you are cooperating with some of our universities. It’s been 25 years and we want to achieve more results, and this will only happen if you enable more of our universities to become your training centers. How will this happen? It will happen if you include our experts, lecturers and researchers in your initiatives, beyond the internships you provide to our students,” she said.

Huawei Africa president Gao Xiang said his company has implemented various digital talent development programs over the past 26 years, tailored to local development needs.

In 2022, the company launched its digital skills development program, LEAP (Leadership, Employability, Advancement and Possibility), which is being implemented in several higher education institutions in Sub-Saharan Africa.

“I would like to announce that we have trained over 120,000 digital talents in the region in the last 22 months,” he said.