By It is the universal goal to build cutting edge technologies that will make the world better. But despite this goal, Zimbabwe and Africa in general remain far behind in the development of cutting edge technologies, but we all have a role to play.
Speaking at the AfricaCom conference in Cape Town, South Africa, the minister of Information, Communication and Technology, Postal and Courier Services, Hon Supa Mandiwanzira urged governments to play a pivotal role in advancing technology in Africa.
By Pearson Mbendera
“It is very important work and there is a lot that governments can do. We need governments to realize that they need to be part of the revolution and that the revolution is not going backwards, despite whatever political ramifications that comes with the adoption and encouragement of technology.” said the minister.
While it seems as if it is just the job of governments to advance technology, every one has to take part in any way, however small it may be.
When the minister and his delegation attended the International Technology Union (ITU) Telecom World 2017 Event in Busan, Korea, there were a lot technologies that featured in exhibitions and debate that is yet to be used here in Zimbabwe.
With a lot of Community Information Centers (CICs) having being commissioned and POTRAZ set to disburse innovation fund before the year ends, clearly there are a lot of efforts being taken by the government to advance the adoption of technology in Zimbabwe, but at the end of the day, the people have to play an even bigger role in the advancement of technology in the country.
Like what Minister Mandiwanzira said, there is a technological revolution going on and everyone needs to be on board as the revolution is not stopping.
Granted a lot of economic problems hinder the ability of this country to develop and come up with business solutions that will improve the livelihoods of the people of Zimbabwe. Technology is about finding better ways of making lives better, and here in Zimbabwe, even in Africa, there are a lot of problems we are facing that are crying for technopreneurs to find solutions to these problems.
There is a lack of understanding with regards to some advanced technologies out there. Someone commented on an article about Virtual Reality’s potential use in Zimbabwean schools by referring to VR as useless technology only useful in gaming. While I do admire their opinions, that’s simply not true as Virtual Reality has a lot of usefulness in many areas as the need and potential for immersive technology to touch our daily lives continues to grow spilling over into areas like Military Training, Education
We all have a role to play in this revolution that has seen Africa lagging behind and still fighting to play catch up. Each and every one of us needs to find a way to contribute to the technological development of Zimbabwe. In that development lies the development of Zimbabwe as a whole.
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