New Technology, Entrepreneurship and the Revival of Manufacturing in Africa: Opportunities for Youth and Women?

The digitization of the economy and advances in smart materials are transforming the nature of manufacturing. This is often described as features of the “Fourth Industrial Revolution” or Industry 4.0. For African economies, not yet having industrialized, this is of great importance, especially given the challenge of youth job creation and the need for gender equality. A combination of Industry 4.0 technologies and a resurgence in tech-entrepreneurship will have four broad impacts on manufacturing in Africa (i) the sector will continue to grow significantly in terms of value added; (ii) net job creation will be positive; (iii) it will stimulate technological and complex skills development, as well as (iv) investment in supportive infrastructure. The opportunities that these impacts will have for youth and women are outlined in the following report. Youth and women stand to benefit because of the ability of manufacturing to provide quality, high-productivity jobs in urban areas, to stimulate the development of human capital, including gender equality, and to provide, through new technologies that “democratizes” production for small businesses, new opportunities for both male and female entrepreneurs. The author also identifies policy support measures, to help realize these outcomes.