Cryptocurrency can leapfrog Africa into the future

desmond frimpong

November 3, 2017 1:18 PM

Cryptocurrencies are gradually being discovered in Africa. In countries like South Africa, Ghana, Kenya, Botswana, Zimbabwe and Nigeria, there is a semblance of digital currencies, primarily bitcoin, taking roots.

Kwesi Otoo Mensah; Cryptocurrency Consultant and Digital Coach has raised concerns about the need for Africa to embrace the new form of digital monetization called cryptocurrency.

These countries have got Exchanges and start-ups in the crypto space, and their businesses are recognizing the significance of Cryptocurrencies in fostering cross-border trade and payment. As a matter of reality, there are more than 1000 merchants accepting Bitcoin in South Africa.

According to Kwesi, the African continent is ripe to take advantage and make use of the possibility of the internet to grow wealth which can be translated into entrepreneurial investment in the country.

He spoke to Business Insider Sub Saharan Africa at a crytocurrency workshop in Accra, aimed at fostering the participation and education of Ghanaians to take advantage of the digital age of cryptocurrencies and the benefits thereof in wealth creation.

Kwesi believes that blockchain or DLT (distributed ledger technology) can be seen as the solution for Africa’s current problems and future growth.

This he says could be the engine for African growth, and could fuel the continent’s great leap forward.

On the issue of infrastructure for the takeoff of digital tokens, he says telecommunication liberalisation across the continent has enabled internet accessibility remarkably, which is a good thing for cryptocurrencies.

Figures from GSMA indicates that half of the population in Africa subscribed to mobile telephony. Also, the statistics intimate that for the past two years smartphone usage in the continent has doubled to reach 226 million.

desmond frimpong