World Bank’s IDEA programme to assist Digital Malawi Project expand its inclusive digital infrastructure targeting rural and underserved areas

* It provides the necessary resources to enhance internet access, improve cybersecurity and support digital skills development

* The initiative will create new opportunities for all Malawians and drive the country’s digital transformation forward

By Duncan Mlanjira

Through funding which the World Bank has approved for the implementation of phase 2 of Digital Malawi Acceleration Project, Digital Malawi emphasises that the programme is crucial in accelerating its digital transformation — as it provides the necessary resources to enhance internet access, improve cybersecurity and support digital skills development.

Director of E-Government in the Ministry of Information & Digitalisation, Paul Katema attests that the World Bank’s Inclusive Digitalization in Eastern and Southern Africa (IDEA), which is poised to accelerate digital inclusion for 180 million people across eastern and southern Africa, will enable them to expand their digital infrastructure, ensuring that more Malawians — especially those in rural and underserved areas — can benefit from reliable and affordable internet services.

The first phase of the IDEA programme is targeted for three of eastern and southern Africa — Malawi, Angola and the Democratic Republic of the Congo (DRC) aiming to leverage improved connectivity and public digital service delivery capacity to accelerate digital services growth across sectors.

The funding is to improve the services that Digital Malawi Acceleration Project rolled out and asked how the milestones of the impact of their first phase, Katema said the initiative will create new opportunities for all Malawians and drive the country’s digital transformation forward.

“The Digital Malawi Phase 1 served as a foundation for digitalisation in Malawi,” he said. “Through the project, the government has achieved significant milestones, that include:

* Connecting 500 government institutions, which were provided with internet and government internal network access to 500 institutions, improving efficiency and service delivery;

* Finalising the construction of the primary data centre in Lilongwe, which will enhance data management and storage capabilities;

* Installation of first free WiFi zones in Malawi, with over 39 sites currently operational, increasing public access to the internet;

* Developed the Data Protection Bill and other legislative frameworks to safeguard data privacy and security;

* Established a data exchange platform to facilitate seamless data sharing between government systems; and

* Finalising the government digital services portal to provide citizens with easy access to various government services online.

Asked what are the gaps limiting access to the internet that they will address in Phase 2, Katema said the project will address several gaps limiting internet access, that include:

* Connectivity Gaps – by ensuring that every constituency in Malawi has a free internet zone and connecting 2,000 secondary schools, to bring internet access to remote and underserved areas;

* Affordability – by purchasing internet capacity at wholesale rates and extending these benefits to public institutions and private sector businesses — to make internet services more affordable;

* Infrastructure – connecting government institutions from Chitipa to Nsanje will ensure reliable internet access across the country, improving public services.

The Director further said they are in collaboration with other African Regional Economic Communities, emphasising that such partnership is is vital for Malawi’s digital transformation.

“This partnership allows us to share best practices by. Learning from the experiences and successes of neighbouring countries helps us implement effective digital strategies.

“It enhances regional connectivity as the collaborative efforts lead to the development of cross-border broadband links, ensuring seamless internet access across the region and it strengthens cybersecurity as joint initiatives and shared resources improve our collective cybersecurity posture — making our digital environment safer.

“It also leverages regional synergies as working with regional economic communities facilitates harmonised regulatory frameworks and policies, promoting a more integrated and efficient digital market.”

On his part, Secretary for Information & Digitalisation, Baldwin Chiyamwaka also attested that through the first phase of the Digital Malawi Acceleration Project, government has achieved significant milestones.

“The project enhanced and increased access to affordable, high-quality internet services for government, businesses and citizens and improved the government’s capacity to deliver digital public services.

There is still a lot to be done but it is not the same as it was five years ago. We’re looking at how the e-department is geared to accelerate digitalisation as catalyst of achieving the MW2063 agenda,” he is quoted as saying on official Malawi Government Facebook page.

The US$2.4 billion IDEA programme aims at bringing together 15 countries and Regional Economic Communities and address common challenges such as limited internet coverage due to infrastructure gaps, low usage due to the high cost of data and devices, limited digital skills, and lack of digital identification needed for online transactions.