Phuthi Mahanyele-Dabengwa prepares for her seat on the Naspers board

Ten matriculants from Gauteng’s townships got a taste of the working world and experience building digital prototypes alongside Rand Mutual Assurance top technologists. At the end of the 48-hour project each pupil left with a laptop and a clearer view of their futures.

Pulana Ngwasheng has joined AECI as group vice president: technology and digital to drive value through innovation.

Across the continent, Africa’s digital economy is writing one of the most remarkable growth stories of the modern era. From Nairobi to Lagos, dynamic mobile-first ecosystems, rapid smartphone adoption, and thriving tech hubs are bypassing traditional Western legacy cycles entirely. Yet, this hyper-growth brings a complex mandate: as digital adoption accelerates, so do cyber threats, complex cross-border compliance demands, and the urgent need to balance ironclad security with seamless customer experiences.

Three tech leaders reflect on what global decision-makers need most: human empathy, decisive action and fair technology access.

Portia Matsena has been appointed chief digital officer at the State Information Technology Agency (Sita), bringing more than two decades of technology and executive leadership experience to an institution central to South Africa’s public-sector digital transformation.

During his presentation at the 2026 IT Indaba, Nkgethu Tebogo Mampana, head of data management at Absa, unpacked the processes around building a trusted enterprise AI in a privacy-first world.