E-Business
Why National Progress Is Not Immune to Digital Transformation
Mohammed Amin
Technology is a platform on which collective human progress is built, transforming the fundamentals of commerce and production, and the ways we work and live. As an accelerator of development, it is also highly disruptive, redefining jobs and skills while also reshaping industries.
Given the reach of digital technology and the change it promises, there is a need to shepherd these exciting technologies without diminishing its energy and potential – a role that nicely aligns with government priorities.
The world around us continues to evolve with artificial intelligence (AI), blockchain, 5G, cryptocurrencies, and the Internet of Things (IoT), improving how we communicate and exchange information.
Increased digitization and the growing interconnectedness of people, organizations, and machines is already having a profound impact on the world’s economies. Recognizing this potential, government strategies today are emphasizing the role of digital in accelerating economic diversification, promoting sustainability and ensuring citizen happiness.
The digital sector in the Middle East and Africa region is poised for success like no other, with the tremendous push for digital transformation from national leadership, as well as the rapid adoption of digital technologies across the public and private sector.
From robots to flying taxis to AI discoveries, the region is home to technological breakthroughs that were once figments of our imagination.
With the goal of improving citizen experiences and fueling economic growth, governments across the region have launched ambitious national transformation plans with a major focus on enabling digital transformation.
Specifically, across Africa, digitization has become the pillar that is driving growth and shaping the future digital economies in the continent.
For example, the Government of Morocco has put in place a new set of policies and reforms in the Morocco Digital 2020 strategy that aims to shift the country’s focus to positioning itself as a digital economy to promote the effective use of and access to technology across various sectors.
Similarly, South Africa’s National e-Strategy aims to accelerate the adoption of advanced technologies to transform and facilitate economic and social inclusion. And lastly, even countries in Emerging Africa such as Kenya and Nigeria have also taken significant steps to drive economic transformation, sustainability and future skills development through technology.
These digital transformation agendas represent nation’s efforts towards unlocking the region’s potential to radically improve healthcare, education, public services, among others, all with a view to making a positive contribution to society and building the extraordinary future we will live in.
Building centers of knowledge and innovation
Reaping the benefits of digital transformation comes with the need to build skills and capabilities to drive efficiencies. As the government does more to attract, retain, and develop people with the required skills and capabilities, the country prospers.
There is also scope for growing the exchange of knowledge and experience to address the unique growth and development challenges faced by the country or region.
Dell Technologies recently partnered with the Institute for the Future (IFTF), to examine how emerging technologies will reshape our economy, lives and work over the next decade. The experts concluded that we’re on the cusp of the next era of human-machine partnerships.
Essentially, we’ve worked and lived alongside machines for centuries but by 2030, these partnerships will become deeper, richer and more immersive than ever before, helping us surpass our own limitations.
These machines, fueled by exponential increases in data, processing power and connectivity will open-up new possibilities, beyond our grasp today. So, when we look at future skills development and building the workforce of the future, we need to understand that these areas allows us to unlock a lot of potential for the future growth of digital economies.
New technologies can unlock new kinds of value and revenue generation. Thanks to automation, workers can spend time on more valuable, mission-critical work and less time on repetitive, automate-able tasks.
Innovation with regards to social welfare has also resulted in better health and wellbeing with the introduction of new services. We are also seeing this in the development of clean energy, which is a clear and present priority for Governments and organizations the world over.
Expanding business opportunities
Digitization spurs the development of new industries as in the case of e-commerce, mobile financial services, IoT, and cloud computing. These contribute to national GDP in multiple ways while also promoting growth of allied industries such as logistics, infrastructure, and payments.
These opportunities are not only limited to the ICT industry, but also disrupts traditional industries to unlock speed, lower costs, and ensure higher quality. For instance, the manufacturing sector has been transformed with the incorporation of sensors and devices into equipment and machinery within an IoT network allowing for the speedier analysis of data and increased efficiency.
This in turn leads to an increase in the region’s productivity and competitiveness – lowering unemployment rates and creating higher-wage and higher-impact jobs.
Exceptional citizen experiences
Creating a digitally connected environment also helps governments serve its citizens better. For instance, today’s citizens expect public services to be digital, personalized, and responsive and the use of advanced analytics allows governments to leverage data to do so.
Social media and mobile platforms are replacing traditional channels to interact with government, report concerns, and provide feedback. In addition, technology helps enable and enhance citizen services that are key to improving the overall quality of life, which in turn promotes economic growth and increases the global competitiveness of countries. Across the Middle East and Africa region, we are seeing an immense number of initiatives where governments are rolling out robust e-government programs to transform the services they offer.
In summary
Winning in the digital economy requires a combination of technical understanding, pioneering leadership, and a sense of vision and determination to encourage an ecosystem of innovation. Leaders who engage with these possibilities today could be reshaping the economy of 2030 for the greater good.
By placing new digital and ICT transformation programs at the heart of their national plans and through collaborations with leaders and entrepreneurs committed to building a better future, governments across the region are already leading the way in securing a viable future for their citizens while also raising their national competitiveness profile at a global level.
Mohammed Amin, Senior Vice President – Middle East, Russia, Africa, and Turkey, (MERAT), Dell Technologies
President Bola Tinubu has directed the National Identity Management Commission (NIMC) to ensure that every Nigerian is enrolled in the national identity database before the end of 2026, according to Abisoye Coker-Odusote, director general and chief executive officer of the agency.
Abisoye Coker-Odusote, director general and chief executive officer, NIMC
Coker-Odusote, who appeared on Channels Television, said the directive forms part of the federal government’s efforts to establish a comprehensive national identity system capable of supporting effective governance, planning, and service delivery.
“The President has given us till the end of this year to make sure that we capture every single Nigerian,” she said.
According to her, NIMC is working with partners under the World Bank-supported Identification for Development (ID4D) project to accelerate nationwide enrolment.
“What we have done is we have partnered through the World Bank ID4D project with front-end partners. They are part of the digital identity ecosystem. These are private citizens that we’ve enabled and given jobs to enrol citizens on our behalf,” she explained.
She stressed that the National Identification Number (NIN) remains a unique identifier, ensuring that every individual is registered only once.
“That’s why it’s called a unique identifier, so that you’re only enrolled once,” the NIMC DG added.
Coker-Odusote said Nigeria’s actual population remains uncertain, with estimates ranging from 200 million to 250 million, making a comprehensive identity database essential for national planning.
“It is estimated that we’re 200 million. When we’re done enrolling, we will then know the actual numbers that we have. Some estimates say 230 million, while a few people say 250 million.
“Your identity is basically the foundation for effective governance and service delivery. How can you plan if you don’t know the total number of persons that you have? We have been mandated by Mr President to go down to the community levels to enrol every single Nigerian”, she said.
Responding to concerns about whether an individual could obtain multiple identities by registering in different locations or under different names, the NIMC boss said the commission’s biometric verification system prevents such occurrences.
She explained that while the previous system could accept duplicate enrolments before detecting them later, the current process automatically identifies and invalidates multiple registrations.
“The legacy system had no way of verifying at the front end whether you had already been captured. Once the record comes into the system, it flags it as a duplicate or that the person already exists in the database.
“You would only have one identity generated for you. The other record goes into a deduplication bucket where it is invalidated,” she said.
The NIMC DG added that biometric verification, including fingerprints and facial recognition, makes it virtually impossible for one person to maintain multiple identities.
“Absolutely. One of the things that this Act has done is to cement our role in capturing biometrics. Private and public sector organisations will no longer capture biometrics independently. They will validate identities through API integration with NIMC.
“The telcos are already doing that with us. If you need a SIM card, they capture your facial biometrics, which are matched against our database in real time to confirm that you are who you claim to be. We’re using biometric validation to tighten security around identity confirmation,” she said.
The remarks come weeks after Tinubu signed the National Identity Management Commission (NIMC) Act 2026 into law on June 26, repealing the 2007 legislation.
The new law reinforces the “One Person, One Identity” policy by making the NIN the country’s foundational identity credential for accessing government and essential private services, including banking, passport applications, tax administration, pensions, land transactions, and consumer credit.
It also introduces stiffer penalties for identity theft, multiple registrations and unauthorised access to personal identity data, while strengthening data privacy protections and granting NIMC wider powers to investigate identity-related offences.
Cybersecurity and privacy experts are raising concerns around the growing trend of sports fans using generative AI to create World Cup-related images, mock-ups, predictions and social media content.
Whilst offering new ways for supporters to engage with major sporting events, these tools also introduce risks that many users may underestimate. In light of this, Kaspersky has shared the key risks fans should keep in mind when using generative AI tools, so they can continue enjoying the championship with peace of mind.
When fan AI goes rogue. A growing number of AI tools are being used to create World Cup-themed visuals, avatars, memes and other fan content. While these services may seem creative and harmless, not all of them come from trusted providers.
Many are launched quickly to capitalise on interest around major events, increasing the likelihood that users will interact with platforms that offer limited transparency around data handling, lack adequate privacy and security measures, or might even be designed with malicious intent.
Personal data at stake. To create customised World Cup content, users are often asked to upload selfies, sign up with an email address, connect social media accounts or share other personal information. In doing so, they may reveal more information than necessary without fully understanding how that data will be stored, used, or potentially exposed.
“AI-driven fan content may seem harmless, but one of the key privacy risks is that users are often encouraged to share far more personal information than necessary. A simple request to generate a themed avatar can involve the collection of photos, contact details, account data and behavioural insights – information that may later be insufficiently protected.
“Because major global events often create an ideal environment for opportunistic actors, fans should take a closer look at how these tools manage personal data before engaging with them,” says Anna Larkina, web content analysis and privacy expert at Kaspersky.
When fan content becomes a scam. AI-generated World Cup content in some cases can also be used to support fraud. Cybercriminals may use convincing mock-ups, fake giveaways, or official-looking fan pages to attract attention and build trust. Once users engage, they may be redirected to phishing sites, fake stores, fraudulent offers, or betting-related scams. Generative AI makes these campaigns easier to produce, more persuasive and far easier to scale.
The myth of AI predictions. Another area that deserves caution is AI-powered match prediction. However advanced or data-driven these tools may appear, AI cannot reliably predict inherently uncertain sporting outcomes. When used to promote betting, paid subscriptions or “insider communities”, such services can create a false sense of confidence and encourage risky decisions.
Multi-asset global broker JustMarkets has launched its Web Terminal, an advanced browser-based trading terminal now available to all clients in any country supported by the broker.
JustMarkets
The company said the new platform forms part of its ongoing effort to expand and strengthen its trading ecosystem. Before the official launch, the Web Terminal went through a preparation phase during which the team fine-tuned its technical performance and gathered user feedback.
“At JustMarkets, we never stop evolving,” a JustMarkets representative said. “With the Web Terminal, we wanted to remove every barrier between traders and the markets. Now every client can trade directly from their browser, with all the professional tools they need at their fingertips.”
The Web Terminal is fully available for MT5 accounts, allowing traders to access a professional trading environment without downloading or installing any software. The broker said the platform runs entirely in the browser, enabling clients to start trading instantly from any device.
To access the terminal, users are required to choose a trading account, press the “Trade” button, and then select “JustMarkets Terminal” from the window that appears.
The broker said the platform includes advanced charts with technical indicators and graphical tools, flexible volume settings that allow trade volume to be set in lots or in units of the asset, detailed asset descriptions, a market sentiment tool that provides real-time trading sentiment, timely updates on trading schedules and margin changes, and tools for managing multiple trading positions and pending orders.
According to the company, the launch follows the introduction of the JustMarkets mobile app for trading on the go and represents another step in its broader innovation strategy.
JustMarkets said it remains committed to growth and has additional features, tools, and improvements already in development.
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