Terms of Reference for recruitment of Training Facilitator – Webinars and online learning - (Labor Employment for Smart Africa Digital Academy – DTfA / WARDIP SOP – 1 • Position: Training Facilitator – Webinars and online learning - (Labor Employment for Smart Africa Digital Academy – DTfA / WARDIP SOP – 1 • Duration: Fixed Term, renewable • Location: Kigali, Rwanda I. Context and Background Africa is reshaping its narrative from one of poverty to progress, showcasing impressive economic growth, technological innovation, and a young population. Nevertheless, digital transformation faces obstacles such as limited access, insufficient investments, and a digital divide, which also offer opportunities for growth through better accessibility, efficiency, and job creation The Smart Africa Alliance, established through the Smart Africa Manifesto, is a collaborative effort among African nations, the African Union, the Economic Commission for Africa, the African Development Bank, the World Bank, the International Telecommunications Union, the private sector, and academic and research institutions. This initiative, driven by African Heads of State and Government, aims to propel sustainable socio-economic development across the continent by leveraging Information and Communications Technologies (ICT) to transition Africa into a knowledge-based economy. Originally endorsed by African leaders in 2014, the Smart Africa Manifesto has since garnered the support of 40 African countries, representing over one billion population, with the goal of placing ICT at the core of both national and continental socio- economic development efforts. This involves increasing ICT access, enhancing transparency, efficiency, and openness through ICT adoption, fostering advanced telecommunication technologies, empowering the private sector, and utilizing ICT for sustainable development. The Alliance promotes digital transformation by building digital infrastructure, supporting entrepreneurship, fostering innovation, developing human capital, driving digitization, and advocating the development of policies and regulations that support the growth of the digital economy and digital technologies. Recognizing the need for strong capacity building efforts to achieve AU’s goals for digital transformation, the Alliance established the Smart Africa Digital Academy (SADA), adopted during the Smart Africa Alliance ninth Board Meeting Resolution 5, as a vehicle to implement its capacity building and skills development activities across member states, through the establishment of national digital academies. SADA ensures that policymakers, business leaders, and the wider African population develop the digital skills and knowledge necessary to participate in the digital economy and take advantage of new opportunities. SADA recognized the importance of strong policies and regulations and the need to equip policymakers and regulators to design and implement effective digital policies and regulations. Through collaborative efforts with the World Bank and GIZ, SADA has, in its phase 1, trained over 8000 beneficiaries, out of which over 5000 are Africa’s Policy and Decision makers. SADA has also implemented National Digital Academies across 12 African countries. Page 1 Visit https://sada.smartafrica.org/ for more information about the Smart Africa Digital Academy II. Digital Transformation for Africa/ Western Africa Regional Digital Integration Program (DTfA/ WARDIP) SOP-1 The DTfA/ WARDIP SOP-1 is a regional project with financing from the International Development Association (IDA) covering two continental entities, AU and Smart Africa, one REC, ECOWAS and four countries, The Gambia, Guinea. Guinea-Bissau and Mauritania. The DTfA/ WARDIP SOP-1 aims to increase broadband access and usage in participating countries and to advance the integration of digital markets in Western Africa. The project is designed around the three distinct but interconnected layers of the SDM framework. The three market layers are (i) a single connectivity market, removing barriers to regional telecom infrastructure and services deployment; (ii) a single data market, enabling the secure exchange and processing of data across borders; and (iii) a single online market, allowing the access and delivery of public and private services online and digital trade across borders. At the continental level the project will support AU´s strategic vision of creating an SDM in Africa by 2030 through the development of appropriate policies and regulations for coordinated digital transformation in Africa. A key element will be a comprehensive training program open to policy and decision makers as well as regulators from all countries in Africa to be implemented by Smart Africa through its Smart Africa Digital Academy (SADA). The training will ensure that participants are updated on digitalization and address the new policies and regulations underpinning single digital markets, with focus on agile regulation, data economy and green digital. This will also foster common knowledge, competencies, and peer-learning to design and implement digital policies and regulations. III. The Smart Africa Digital Academy for Policy and Decision makers (SADA-CBDM) – A Subcomponent of the WARDIP-SOP 1 The subcomponent of the WARDIP-SOP1 project to be implemented by Smart Africa aims at a rapid-scaling of the Smart Africa Digital Academy (SADA) program at both regional and continental levels by leveraging on the existing SADA -CBDM implementation, AReg4DT program, and developing a replicable implementation model that caters for the specific needs and the regional context. The overall aim is to establish a new generation of policymakers and regulators across Africa, who are individually knowledgeable on how to harness the potential of green and inclusive digital transformation through new approaches to policy and regulation, and who collectively contribute to the establishment of a Single Digital …
