Airtel Africa, a leading provider of telecommunications and mobile money services across 14 African countries, has highlighted industry partnerships, Artificial Intelligence (AI) and data centres as critical pillars for delivering Africa’s digital future.

According to Airtel Africa’s Chief Executive Officer, Sunil Taldar, this will shape the next decade of Africa’s telecom revolution, marking a shift from merely connecting people to enabling them to create value through such connections.

In a keynote address at the Mobile World Congress (MWC25) in Kigali, Rwanda, Taldar said: “Africa’s digital decade has begun. The continent that once leapfrogged into mobile telephony is now ready to leap again – into an era where every byte of data fuels productivity and every connection builds prosperity.”

According to him, “Africa is ready for its next leap from access to productivity. This requires partnership — between operators who co-build, technology manufactures who equip, regulators who enable, investors who believe, tax regimes which support and young Africans who create. Together we can build a continent where data is processed locally, talent is nurtured nationally, and innovation is scaled globally,”