Digitalization in Africa: Interdisciplinary Perspectives on Technology, Development, and Justice

Laura Schelenz, Kerstin Schopp
2018 International Journal for Digital Society (IJDS)  
Digitalization transforms our everyday life, our way of communication and information, as well as our relationship to other people. Especially in African countries, digitalization is still under development and poses on the one hand risks, challenges, and difficulties, on the other hand opportunities, chances, and, and perspectives for users, providers, and politics. High hopes for development lie on Information and Communication Technologies (ICT) and their potential benefits for the Global
more » ... th. From the ethical point of view, questions of power relations, neo-colonialism, and (gender) equality have to be addressed and considered in the broad discussions. In this context, it is important to structure and systematize the complex discourse on digitalization. Therefore, the following contextual levels will be addressed in this paper: Realities of digitalization in Africa; information access and the (gender) digital divide; stakeholders, power relations, and politics; and ethical questions about digitalization in Africa. This paper summarizes the results and our own reflections, thoughts, and ethical considerations of the conference "Digitalization in Africa: Interdisciplinary perspectives on technology, development, and justice" which took place in Tübingen, Germany, in September 2018.
doi:10.20533/ijds.2040.2570.2018.0175 fatcat:7cvionvajrecbb4cclzaqdyrmi