4th Industrial Revolution
& Africa’s democracy
In a world of 10bn Kiyumbu Wilkister Ludenyi
The main theme of the World Economic Forum Annual Meeting 2016 was “Mastering the Fourth Industrial Revolution.� Amongst the panel discussions was what that would mean for African countries and the continent as a whole. As we reflect on the projection of the world population by 2050, it is important to consider the proactive things that the continent can do to address the anticipated challenges. In this article, I will draw upon the implications of the Fourth Industrial Revolution for African economies. Coupling that with Modernization theories of Democracy, I will point out the areas of study that could be investigated to show a correlation between policies on Information and Communication Technology as a driver for economic development, and the stability for democracies in the continent. In his new book The Fourth Industri-
al Revolution, Klaus Schwab makes strong arguments about the global economy being on the verge of a fourth industrial revolution. This would be an era that builds on the impact of digitization, which would change the way we live, work and relate with one another. It is marked by the beginning of cyber-physical systems influencing machines and people (Nicholas, 2016). With its new technologies that blend the physical, digital and biological worlds, he argues that this era holds potential for either great promise or peril depending on how the world adapts to it. The three main areas of concern that Schwab highlights are inequality, security and identity-issues relevant to everyone. The fourth industrial revolution is therefore an era building on the technological advancements of the previous industrial revolutions in new and unanticipated ways, never mind that many parts of the world have
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