Davos 2025: Here’s what was top of the agenda for leaders from Africa

Closing some of these deep gaps will be a priority of his, he said, referencing South Africa’s two-tier system, where the wealthiest in society have access to world-class services and everyone else has to make do. “In South Africa, and I’m not exaggerating, our inequality is worse than in any other country when it comes to healthcare.” According to figures shared by the minister, 51% of the country’s healthcare spending goes to the richest 14% of the population.

Digital divides were another topic that came up across the sessions. According to the International Telecommunication Union’s latest data, only 38% of people in Africa are using the internet, compared to the global average of 68%. In the Intelligent Age, where rapid advancements in artificial intelligence, quantum computing and blockchain offer many new opportunities, bridging this digital divide could be a game-changer. For example, as Paula Ingabire, Rwanda’s Minister of Information Communication Technology and Innovation, said, a report her department recently commissioned showed the financial boost potentially offered by AI. “What we are seeing is even with basic use cases that we can deploy, a potential to create at least 6% GDP contribution,” she said.