Africa’s technology growth is accelerating, but beneath innovation lies a deeper shift—our choices are no longer fully ours.
Technology in Africa is not just spreading; it’s becoming deeply entrenched in the smallest routines, reshaping how we work, learn, spend, and live. This transformation underscores the central role technology plays in everyday life.
From mobile banking to AI-powered education platforms, our decisions are now channeled through tools we didn’t build and rarely control.
Imported platforms dominate the ecosystem, embedding external priorities into everyday African life under the guise of convenience and access.
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Fintech apps decide creditworthiness using opaque algorithms. E-commerce platforms powered by technology recommend what to buy. None of this is neutral or passive.
For many Africans, especially in underserved regions, technology doesn’t expand choice—it substitutes it with optimised pathways and limits.
The result is a digitally mediated life where the appearance of freedom masks algorithmic design, platform control, and data asymmetry.
Generative AI shows this clearly. It influences how we write, how stories are told, what voices are seen as credible or relevant through its technological capabilities.
We must not confuse digital inclusion with technological sovereignty. Adoption without authorship is exploitation wearing the mask of progress.
Africa needs to build, not just use. If we don’t own the frameworks, our choices will always be shaped by technology trends, never truly made.
