Sustainable Smart Cities in African Digital Space

Abstract

Technology enhances the economic growth and development of a nation, and the 21st century is festooned with advanced technologies that make transactions and communication between government and its citizens, and between countries, easy. The use of technology, therefore, is a defining attribute of smart cities (Cairo, Algiers, Nairobi, Lagos, and Tunis, amongst others) across Africa. The technological impact of these cities has permeated the other aspects of life in the areas of e-government, e-education, e-commerce, e-communication, and eadvertisement, amongst others. With this, citizens also openly access data records and actively participate in public affairs. Despite the ample benefits of the use of technology, some citizens see technology as an avenue to carry out heinous cybercrimes such as fake news, internet fraud, and cyberbullying, amongst others. As such, our lead questions are: What impact do smart cities have on African digital space and the global economy? How best can the challenges confronting smart cities in Africa be dealt with? Where is the place of Africa in the 21st-century technological world? In this chapter, we adopt a qualitative method to bolster our argument that smart cities in Africa have progressed over the years and positively influenced African digital space and beyond. We also argue for generative artificial intelligence as an empowering tool in boosting smart cities in Africa and as a problem-solving tool for the likely challenges of smart governance of which African Luddite attitude towards technology is included.