A two-day blockchain summit was held in Nairobi last week by Trescon, a business events and consulting firm.
The event attracted blockchain start-ups, blockchain-based banks, financial institutions, researchers, government institutions, and blockchain thought leaders in Kenya and across the world.
Some of the speakers at event included Bitange Ndemo, blockchain and AI taskforce, Kiprono Kittony, National Chairman Kenya National Chamber of Commerce & Industry, Kenya, Jeff Berwick, Chief Editor, The Dollar Vigilante, Liberland, John Karanja, Founder Bithub Africa, Eagle An, Co-founder and president, Bankorus China, Alakanani Itireleng, CEO and Founder, Satoshicentre Blockchain Hub, Tunji Durodola, Technical Consultant/Systems Integrator for the National Identity Management Commission, Nigeria, and Hamid Rashid CEO, Finteraa Malaysia.
The key issues discussed during the event were as follows:
Increasing Awareness through Education
During the event, experts agreed that increasing awareness about blockchain technology in Africa is essential. That said, Jeff Berwick urged the attendees to go ahead and embrace the blockchain regardless of whether there is government support or not.
“We cannot miss the third wave of technology that is the blockchain,” Bitange Ndemo said.
Blockchain for Financial inclusion and Crowdfunding in Africa
The FinTech industry in Africa is growing and blockchain technology will increase the pace of this growth. At the same time, this growth will trickle down to increasing financial inclusion and the funding of development projects.
“About 2.5 billion people across the world do not have access to funds as they have no bank accounts. Blockchain comes with a promise to undo this great injustice,” Dickson Nsofor, CEO and Co-Founder KORA stated.
Future of ICT in Africa
With regards to skills, panellists in a discussion moderated by Daniel Nyairo, a freelance blockchain copywriter, agreed that there is need to teach current skills in IT schools to ensure that students are ready for the job market when they graduate.
“Human skill is the flourishing factor in any sector. Not only in Kenya, but Africa accommodate a lot of skilled workers in the ICT sector. Revising, regulating and mainstreaming the blockchain technology would definitely attract a lot of employment in the ICT sector,” Fernando Wangila, Head ICT National Transport and Safety Authority said.
