FEATURE : BLOCKCHAIN FEATURE : use-case for Blockchain , most African countries haven ’ t passed legislation to regulate and guide the industry . South Africa , Senegal , Sierra Leone and Tunisia are the few trailblazers in that regard ,” he observed . “ The South African Reserve Bank has also been very progressive around Blockchain , cryptocurrency conversations and has launched a number of initiatives in this regard .”
According to George , smart contracts that reside on the Blockchain ledger are a way in which trust in transacting with businesses in Africa can be restored . “ For decades , foreign investment in Africa has been jeopardised by corruption , fraud and the misappropriation of funds . The advent of Blockchain – and the adoption of the technology across Africa – will have a significant impact in supporting Africa ’ s entrepreneurial spirit by providing transparency and accountability for all finance and service level transactions ,” he said .
According to Ratshefola , the financial services and telecommunications sectors in Africa have been early adopters of the technology especially in the areas of cross border trace and insurance . “ Globally we have more than 500 client engagements globally in Blockchain , touching industries like education , food safety , identity , insurance , luxury goods , supply chain management and trade finance ,” he said . “ Dozens of live Blockchain networks are currently running on the IBM Blockchain Platform , including IBM Food Trust and TradeLens to name just a couple .”
He said across the African continent the industry is seeing how Blockchain increases economic efficiency , security , transparency and simplicity – leading to less administration , duplication and friction in Africa . “ And the applications are endless , since virtually anything of value can be traced and traded without a central point of control – making it a big win for business on
Mervyn George , Innovation Strategy Lead , SAP Africa
the continent as it entices all to participate in it and benefits all ,” he said .
Ratshefola said in Agriculture , IBM Research and agtech start-up Hello Tractor have developed an AI and Blockchain-driven platform for Africa ’ s farmers . This cloudbased service aims to support Hello Tractor ’ s business of connecting small-scale farmers to equipment and data analytics for better crop production . www . intelligentcio . com INTELLIGENTCIO
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