The question is, can a shiny new Digital City really fix Africa’s issues. Or is it another well-intentioned tech mirage?

Blockchain and DeFi have a great deal of potential for Africa. Picture eliminating costly, corrupt intermediaries, allowing instant, direct access to global markets, and preventing fraud while enhancing financial inclusion for the unbanked. The potential is undeniable. Potential doesn't guarantee progress.

Clean Water or Crypto Wallets?

While these communities continue to fight the daily fight for access to clean water. Healthcare has become a luxury for far too many and education is still an unattainable dream for countless others. Does AQA's Digital City, with its focus on "entertainment, finance, commerce, and art," prioritize these fundamental needs? Or is it just for the digital-savvy elite while leaving those most vulnerable in our society even more disadvantaged?

Snapshot of Spores Network, Kommunitas and Kingdomstarter IDO launch in a nutshell. “Odyssey” programs incentivizing early adopters with rare Citizenship NFTs? Just the ticket to whip up some excitement. How many people in rural Kenya, struggling with drought and food insecurity, are even aware of these initiatives, let alone able to participate?

Japan's Pilot, Africa's Reality

AQA’s pilot project in Japan is especially interesting. It aims to build capacity for smart infrastructure and real world analytics driven data solutions in the Seto Inland Sea area. Japan has an incredible digital infrastructure and high digital prosperity. How does that translate to a continent with limited internet access, unreliable electricity grids, and vast disparities in digital skills? Are we just borrowing a solution that worked in one environment and trying to stick it on the other side of the country?

Imagine the difficulty of trying to introduce a new, blockchain-based land registry system. This can be particularly challenging in an area where land titles are often informal and lack documentation. What do you get when accumulated traditional power structures run headfirst into the promise of a decentralized democratized governance method? Who benefits, and who gets left behind?

  • Japan: Strong infrastructure, high digital literacy, established legal frameworks.
  • Many African Countries: Limited infrastructure, low digital literacy, complex and sometimes informal legal systems.

We know that every technological advancement comes with the danger of unintended consequences. What if AQA’s Digital City just exacerbates existing inequalities? This has the potential to foster a whole new form of digital divide for those who don’t have the resources or knowhow to participate. What if, as its opponents claim, it empowers new money laundering or counterfeit goods trading? This turns into a pretty serious problem when regulatory frameworks are lacking.

Unintended Consequences Loom Large

In a world where our personal information is increasingly commodified, how will AQA ensure that the data of its African users is protected from exploitation? What will be some of the appropriate protections so that governments or private industry don’t abuse this information or have access to sensitive personal information?

Innovation fires the imagination and lights the way forward. Yet we need to be on guard for how it can still go wrong.

Rather than imposing top-down solutions, AQA should center local communities and empower them to determine what their greatest needs and priorities are. Partner with grassroots organizations, invest in digital literacy programs, and prioritize projects that address fundamental challenges such as access to clean water, healthcare, and education.

A Better Path Forward

Perhaps AQA could explore using blockchain technology to track and verify the delivery of aid, ensuring that resources reach those who need them most. It has the potential to develop an open-source, farmer-centric platform. This would enable them to receive better prices for their produce while reducing exploitative intermediaries.

Follow the leads of the folks working in the trenches. Completely clean up the plant and personalize solutions to fix their community’s infrastructure and address their economy.

AQA’s work on the continent of Africa will find greater success when they prioritize individual freedoms without neglecting the importance of the community. Getting this balance right is key to its ultimate success. While innovation and technological advancement are essential, they should not come at the expense of social justice and economic equality.

Balancing Freedoms, Addressing Needs

This is particularly true because far too often, we cede to the temptation to deploy a Western-centric tech ecosystem that will only result in a new, neo-colonialism. Instead, we need to adopt a bottom-up, community-driven approach to development in which we give local communities the resources and flexibility to define and build their own futures.

Tread carefully and critically, but with an open and discerning mind. Ask tough questions. Demand accountability. Ensure blockchain technology is used to advance social good, rather than worsen social inequities. The future of Africa depends on it.

Don't let the glitter of "digital cities" blind you.

Approach AQA's project with a critical and discerning eye. Ask tough questions. Demand accountability. Ensure that blockchain technology is used to promote social good and not to exacerbate existing inequalities. The future of Africa depends on it.