The Foreign Ministry’s Undersecretary for Economic and Development Affairs Mariin Ratnik was in Zimbabwe from 25 to 28 April for the international digitalisation summit Transform Africa Summit, where she led the business delegation of the Estonian Association of Information Technology and Telecommunications (ITL).

The visit included meetings with the IT ministers of Rwanda, Uganda, Botswana, Malawi, Gambia, Zimbabwe and Angola, representative of the World Bank and the connectivity commissioner of the African Union. The aim of the meetings was to present Estonian IT companies and their goals in Africa. “Estonia has been very successful in the uptake of various digital solutions and our companies are ready to offer their expertise to partner countries in Africa,” Undersecretary Ratnik said.

The meetings also had a focus on Russia’s aggression in Ukraine. “We call on our allies in Africa to support the concept of an international special tribunal that would make it possible to hold all perpetrators, including the Russian leadership, accountable for the crime of aggression,” the undersecretary emphasised.

During her visit, Undersecretary Ratnik also spoke on several panels on digital issues in Africa, sharing Estonia’s experience in building a digital society. She also had meetings with several partner countries and organisations to discuss possibilities for closer cooperation.

ITL’s Managing Director Doris Põld said that the interest of Estonian IT companies in cooperating with African countries grows each passing year. “Transform Africa Summit is an excellent chance to meet digital partners in Africa and get an idea of their priorities and points where our companies could provide support,” Põld said. ITL is a representative organisation of IT companies and it has been a partner for Smart Africa, which brings together innovative African countries, since 2018. The ITL delegation in Zimbabwe included representatives of Admiral Markets, Aktors, BCS Koolitus, Cybernetica, Digital Nation and Nortal.

The Transform Africa Summit is held for the sixth time and it aims to bring together international leaders, entrepreneurs and international organisations to contribute to Africa’s digital revolution together. Estonia has attended the TAS since 2017.

Distributed by APO Group on behalf of Republic of Estonia, Ministry of Foreign Affairs.