Cooperation in action Cross-border data use: Data Economy

    Sales platforms, smart household devices, fitness trackers, navigation apps and the like collect billions of pieces of data 24/7 and use them to create user profiles. The majority of this data is held by a handful of tech companies and forms the basis of countless business models. This includes in Africa: the profits made using African citizens’ data is siphoned abroad via these tech giants – the African economy only benefits to a limited extent.

    Logo: Data Economy initiative

    Website Data Economy initiative

    In response, the European Commission, the African Union Commission, the Smart Africa Alliance and the BMZ agreed on a political framework on this topic in 2021: the EU-AU Data Flagship. Its two key objectives are to unlock the economic and societal potential of data for citizens and to prevent the misuse of data by businesses or public entities. The BMZ’s Data Economy initiative contributes to these goals and promotes data regulation and data-sharing between public bodies and the private sector in order to stimulate local value creation.


    As at: 28/05/2024