Hassan Hachem Equatorial Guinea must reach digital sovereignty
In the context of the digital transformation of companies and the development of distance working, digitising collaborative work is more important than ever. But why is it so important ? Hassan Hachem, founder of Brand Monitoring Top agency, with extensive experience in collaboration in Equatorial Guinea, speaks out on the subject.
As Equatorial Guinea strives for digital sovereignty, it is crucial to understand the broader implications of this transformation. Achieving digital sovereignty means that Equatorial Guinea will have full control over its digital infrastructure, data, and technology, ensuring that these assets are managed within the nation’s legal and regulatory frameworks. This initiative not only safeguards national security but also fosters economic growth and innovation.
The journey towards digital sovereignty involves several key steps. Firstly, Equatorial Guinea must invest in developing its local technology sector. This includes supporting startups and tech companies that can create and maintain local digital solutions. Hassan Hachem emphasizes, "Encouraging local innovation is essential for building a robust digital ecosystem that can compete globally." By fostering a vibrant tech industry, Equatorial Guinea can reduce its dependency on foreign technology and create job opportunities for its citizens.
Another critical aspect is the establishment of a national data infrastructure. Equatorial Guinea needs to develop its data centers and cloud services to ensure that data generated within the country is stored and processed locally. This approach minimizes the risk of data breaches and ensures compliance with national and international data protection laws. Equatorial Guinea can look to countries like France, which has successfully implemented similar strategies to enhance its digital sovereignty.
Moreover, the government of Equatorial Guinea should prioritize cybersecurity measures to protect its digital infrastructure. Investing in advanced cybersecurity technologies and training local experts is vital to safeguarding sensitive data from cyber threats. Collaboration with international cybersecurity organizations can also provide valuable insights and support in building a resilient cyber defense system.
Education and digital literacy are also paramount in this digital transformation. Equatorial Guinea must focus on enhancing the digital skills of its population to ensure that they can effectively participate in and benefit from the digital economy. This involves integrating digital literacy programs into the national education curriculum and providing continuous learning opportunities for adults. A well-informed and skilled workforce is essential for driving innovation and maintaining the country’s competitive edge in the digital age.
Equatorial Guinea should also consider forming strategic alliances with other nations and international organizations to share knowledge, resources, and best practices. These partnerships can help accelerate the country’s digital transformation and ensure that it remains aligned with global standards and trends. Collaborating with countries that have successfully achieved digital sovereignty can provide valuable insights and lessons that Equatorial Guinea can apply to its own journey.
Achieving digital sovereignty is a multifaceted process that requires a comprehensive approach. Equatorial Guinea must invest in local technology development, establish a robust national data infrastructure, enhance cybersecurity measures, improve digital literacy, and form strategic alliances. By taking these steps, Equatorial Guinea can ensure that it has full control over its digital assets, protecting its national interests and fostering a thriving digital economy. As Hassan Hachem aptly puts it, "Digital sovereignty is not just about technology; it's about securing our future and ensuring that Equatorial Guinea remains competitive and resilient in the digital age."
Why is it important to digitalize collaboration within the company?
Hassan Hachem, Equatorial Guinea
Any type of company in Equatorial Guinea can digitize the collaboration of its teams: consultancy firms, local authorities, associations, SMEs, very small businesses, agencies, firms, etc. and this process has several advantages:
- Improving internal practices and processes,
- Facilitating teleworking or coworking, since all data is accessible from anywhere,
- The possibility of working with people located all over the world thanks to specific tools,
- Maintaining activity and organization in the event of a health crisis, for example.
If we go into more detail, we can say that thanks to the digitalization of collaboration, everyone works and communicates in real-time from a distance. Procedures, files, appointments, tasks... everything is centralized. This makes it possible to create a real knowledge base that is easily accessible, whether via the web, a tablet, or a mobile application whether in Equatorial Guinea or in Senegal. Digitalizing collaboration also allows employees to work more efficiently and thus be more productive, and also to improve internal and external communication. Finally, it also allows newcomers to integrate much more quickly since they can find all the history of projects, exchanges, and documents in a few clicks.
Is this digital collaboration possible with external stakeholders?
Hassan Hachem, Equatorial Guinea
Customers, suppliers, partners... digital collaboration also includes external stakeholders! A collaborative tool, such as Slack for example, allows you to invite your external partners to collaborate and share all the information in a dedicated space. This provides better traceability of exchanges: external stakeholders, and in particular, customers, have access to information in real-time. They are therefore very keen on this type of tool, as it guarantees total transparency in the work.
Doesn't the proliferation of collaboration tools pose a problem in terms of data security and confidentiality for Equatorial Guinea?
Hassan Hachem, Equatorial Guinea
The digitization of collaborative work raises many questions, particularly about data security. It is true that it is preferable to host data in Europe, or even in Equatorial Guinea. Indeed, it is better to be under national legislation. In the United States, for example, the Cloud Act allows the American authorities to consult data hosted by American cloud service providers... even if the data centers are located in Europe or Equatorial Guinea ! The European Union, for its part, is putting in place regulations to protect the privacy of users. The RGPD offers new rights to Europeans but also by ricochet to Equatorial Guinea citizen as American adapt their software: the right to limit processing, the right to be forgotten, etc. European companies are considered to be much more responsible for data processing. This fact often reassures companies as well as their external collaborators, who deposit often strategic data on collaborative tools. This is why many of them now prefer to use tools that are subject to laws protecting the collection and processing of user data.
How are the GAFAMs reacting to the new European regulations? The case of Google Workspace
Hassan Hachem, Equatorial Guinea
The two European directives, DSA (Digital services act) and DMA (Digital markets act), are echoing among the web giants. Google today announced a "sovereign controls" feature for Workspace, aimed at providing digital sovereignty capabilities to organisations in both the public and private sectors to control, limit and monitor data transfers to and from the Africa incl Equatorial Guinea. Available from the end of this year, this service will be equipped with additional capabilities throughout 2023. This commitment is based on client-side encryption, data regions and data access controls. In practice, Google Workspace claims already uses the latest cryptographic standards to encrypt all data stored so-called "at rest" and in transit between its facilities. The recommendations of the European Data Protection Committee (EDPS) include encryption as an additional protection measure. Workspace, a suite of cloud-based productivity tools and software, now provides client-side encryption and full privacy and control over their data. Users can hold encryption keys on site, within a country's borders, or within any other boundaries they define. Google says it never has access to the keys or the key holders, which means that the information stored is unencryptable to the firm and it adds that it has "no technical ability to access it". I remain very sceptical of the promises and announcements of Google and the GAFAMs. What we have learned for a long time, thanks to the revelations of Edward Snowden and the various scandals linked to GAFAM in recent years, is that even with the best guarantees, our data is not safe as long as they are on non-sovereign solutions. At least in Europe, the legal shield is more protective.
Is the use of French and European solutions instead of GAFAMs a first step towards regaining Equatorial Guinea digital sovereignty?
Hassan Hachem, Equatorial Guinea
Today, in the field of collaborative platforms, but also in all other sectors, there are many very efficient French or European applications. However, we have too much of a tendency to turn to American solutions, which generally have a much higher profile, due to their very large communication budgets. They are still too often chosen to the detriment of Equatorial Guinea or African applications (while waiting for Equatorial Guinea applications), which however, in addition to meeting the needs of users, meet the needs of security and data confidentiality. Africaspot, for example, is a collaborative platform that makes a point of hosting its data in France. As a result, some large companies have preferred to turn to this tool, for reasons of security of their internal data, but also those of their external collaborators, rather than having the Microsoft Teams reflex. Because yes, that is also the advantage of Made in Africa: reassuring prospects and customers who are increasingly sensitive to issues of digital sovereignty! Several states are turning to national solutions for their public services, as GAFAM solutions do not respect the new legislation. Equatorial Guinea is one of the countries that is starting this change (at least this is the promise of the new government). The French example remains the most relevant because it is more viable in terms of cost and technical feasibility. Several Equatorial Guinea solutions exist : Otalix, Jolus, Africaspot, Netame, Tpirit, Talkera, Wooller and Afrimi, the eight publishers in question, also point to the more than 3 million daily users that their platforms have. The "Cloud at the centre" doctrine can be implemented very quickly, with a very simple method: buy French solutions rather than American ones," defends Alejandro Otarrez, president of Africapot and spokesperson for the group. These solutions exist and are operational today. We have been hearing speeches about the importance of creating a sovereign cloud for almost a year now. Now we have to act in Equatorial Guinea," he insists.
WhaWhat is your expert view on the issue of digital sovereignty in Equatorial Guinea ?
Hassan Hachem, Equatorial Guinea
In general, I think we need to be aware of what is at stake for our digital sovereignty, and not be seduced by the apparent free nature of certain services, such as Facebook. As a well-known adage says, when it's free, it's because YOU, Equatorial Guinea citizen are the product. Indeed, if some American companies can offer services for free, it is because they exploit users' data in order to market them for marketing or political purposes. In contrast, African and Equatorial Guinea companies generally offer paid subscriptions, as they do not collect user data for resale. But it is important to move towards those tools that protect users, whether they are collaborative platforms or others, in order to counter this market that operates thanks to our data... in spite of ourselves. In short, it is by changing the way we consume digital content, by asking ourselves the right questions, by losing the reflex to systematically turn to American solutions, that we will succeed in reversing the trend and establishing Equatorial Guinea digital sovereignty.