Closing the gap: Nigeria plans 1 000 new rural base stations

The summit brings together governments, regulators, operators and other industry experts to discuss best practice for undersea cables.

Zambia said the partnership comes as increasing cyber-crime threatens the country's security, economy, and population.

The region, which includes 16 countries, is one of the most severely affected by global climate change.

The UN project comes as Africa is embracing artificial intelligence to address some of its most pressing concerns, such as battling climate change.

Nigeria scored high in a research undertaken by the ITU and the UK's Foreign, Commonwealth, and Development Office, which was released in Abuja this week.

By joining the EQUALS, the African telecoms group with a presence in 15 countries, said it aims to learn from shared experiences and best practices

The adoption of AI policy has been quite slow among African countries with only Mauritius, Kenya and Egypt having clear guidelines, rules, and principles on AI technology.

The consortium said if smartphones were priced at around $20, an additional 270 million Africans would be able to purchase them, potentially narrowing the usage gap by 23%.

Elle International is funding the project that will drive gender equality and empowerment through the provision of digital platforms, smart solutions and data.

On International Girls in ICT Day, the ITU’s secretary-general believes the ICT sector must cultivate and empower female talent while also increasing top-level representation.

South Africa says it has connected over 740,000 households to the internet this year, primarily through 4,250 Wi-Fi hotspots.