Blind spots in Africa’s cybersecurity strategies: can policy and technology innovation mitigate the continent’s systemic vulnerabilities?

Once largely overlooked by the world’s hackers, sub-Saharan Africa recently moved into a very large lead among the world’s regions in cyberattacks per enterprise. Faced with cyberattacks nearly doubling year on year and analysts suggesting attacks could reduce GNP growth, African governments appear to be adopting their first, or updating older, cybersecurity strategies and policies in line with best practices established largely in the Global North. Despite most countries’ strategies adhering to the seven key focus areas found in the influential donor-led Guide to National Cybersecurity Strategies, this study’s comparative analysis of the region’s published strategies suggests this course may overlook systemic vulnerabilities that inhibit progress in raising the continent’s cyber resistance and resilience – most notably, the slow adoption of new cybersecurity technologies and the pervasive presence of unsupported software. The rapid growth of the e-commerce and ICT industries across Africa largely took place in the absence of government leadership but securing the new digital economy will require African governments to take a greater role in promoting global best practice policies as well policy solutions unique to Africa and its systemic vulnerabilities.