TANZANIA is moving fast economically, as it is also on right track in executing strategic projects that were initiated by the Fifth Phase Government.
Given the fact that the world is in a new era of science and technology, Tanzania has decided to clasp digital economy and it says that it is ready for that.
The digital economy is the worldwide network of economic activities, commercial transactions and professional interactions that are enabled by information and communications technologies (ICT). It can be succinctly summed up as the economy based on digital technologies.
Transforming Tanzania into a more digital economy has centred 2022/23 budget of the Information, Communication and Information Technology Ministry, looking forward to investing heavily in the Digital Tanzania Project.
Presenting the budget estimates for 2022/2023 financial year, Minister for the portfolio, Nape Nnauye said the ministry is currently preparing a framework that will direct the nation into the envisaged destination.
The government has already secured 150 million US dollars for the project that will enable the country's economy to go digital and now the ministry is working on the framework that will give a picture on how the digital economy will look like. The framework will involve reviewing the country's policies, laws, rules and regulations.
The digital economy is more advanced and complex than the internet economy, which, under one definition, simply means economic value derived from the internet. This is the right path for Tanzania.
The digital economy reflects the move from the third industrial revolution to the fourth industrial revolution. The third industrial revolution, sometimes called the digital revolution, refers to the changes that happened in the late 20th century with the transition from analogue electronic and mechanical devices to digital technologies. The fourth industrial revolution builds on the digital revolution as technologies today continue to bridge the physical and cyberworlds.
Although some organisations and individuals use technologies to simply execute existing tasks on the computer, the digital economy is more advanced than that. It is not simply using a computer to perform tasks traditionally done manually or on analog devices.
Instead, the digital economy highlights the opportunity and the need for organisations and individuals to use technologies to execute those tasks better, faster and often differently from before.
Sign up for free AllAfrica Newsletters
Get the latest in African news delivered straight to your inbox
Moreover, the term reflects the ability to leverage technologies to execute tasks and engage in activities that weren't possible in the past. Such opportunities for existing entities to do better, to do more, to do things differently and to do new things is encompassed in the related concept of digital transformation.
The ministry is charged with the responsibility of supervising the country's digital transformation; the process that will lead the nation into embracing digital economy, a process which is managed by Information and Communication Technology (ICT).
Under the concept of digital economy, all sectors of the country's economy operate jointly. The Digital Tanzania Project (DTP), also known as the broadband initiative, will increase access to high-quality broadband internet services for government, businesses and citizens, and improve the government's capacity to deliver digital public services.The project will involve strengthening the laws, policies, regulations, institutional capacity and human capacity needed to promote ICT infrastructure investment, market competitiveness, digital engagement, job creation and innovation.
The project will create environment for creation of employment opportunities emanating from ICT, promotion of Small and Medium-Sized Enterprises (SMEs) and Small, Medium and Micro-sized Enterprises (SMMEs) to spur growth, promotion of professionalism among government experts and improvement of service provision in the government.
