The year 2023 is just around the corner and we’re gearing up for another year of tech in Africa. So what will next year look like and what trends should be looking forward to?
Well, we at Tech Nova are taking a guess and presenting our top five predictions for Tech in Africa in 2023:
Evolution Of Electric Vehicles
Electric vehicles are slowly making their presence felt in the Africa region. Although there needs to be more work done in terms of charging infrastructure and pricing, there are many startups across the continent pushing.
In Ghana, electric vehicles like Kofa, SolarTaxi, Mana Mobilty and Treepz are pushing electric initiatives such as electric bikes, cars and buses.
Local governments including Ghana are embracing the electric vehicle push by drafting bills and policies to help incentise EV players in the market.
We expect to see more players enter the space and for EV players to make more headway next year as the push for renewables increase.
Tech Layoffs Will Be On The Rise As Recession Looms
There’s almost a guarantee that 2023 will be a down year for most economies. Experts are forecasting a recession in the US. This could have implications for local African startups who relay on funding from their US. Some local startups are likely to tighten their belts and go as far as laying off staff to keep themselves afloat.
There have already been layoffs from some companies in Kenya because of funding and it wouldn’t surprise us if we see more layoffs happen across more sectors next year.
Broader Discussions About Crypto Regulation In Africa
Whether African governments like it or not, Crypto in Africa is here to stay. As more crypto startups get spun up, local governments will need to have to more dialogue and considerations about regulation in the crypto space.
YellowCard, Lazerpay, Luno, Binance and more cryptos will continue to gain more relevance and funding and the local population will look to use crypto for remittance and trading. Governments will also need to take a look at the upward trend of decentralised finance (De-Fi) and stablecoins.
We predict that one or more African countries will draft legislation to regulate cryptocurrency in their respective countries.
More Multinationals Jumping Into Africa
Next year, Amazon will be moving into Africa as they set up offices in Nigeria and South Africa. Africa is the last frontier and we expect multinationals to make moves into Africa as African governments make concessions to accommodate them.
Maybe Tesla sets up in South Africa? Will Meta open new office spaces as they try and push their metaverse?
Fintech will continue to dominate Africa tech funding
Fintech in Africa continues to be the get the most funding from venture capital. We expect the same trend to continue in 2023. As more fintechs like Kuda bank mobilise to expand to other regions outside their borders, we expect to see more resources and funding go towards fintech in 2023.
Fintechs like Flutterwave are positioning for IPOs and others are on the path to raising more money.
Although a recession is looming, we still expect venture capital to make bets with Africas fintechs
