The event’s official press conference is currently taking place at the Ministry of Digital Transition, Posts and Electronic Communications, marking the beginning of preparations for a forum that will bring together leading stakeholders from across the UEMOA region.

This year’s edition highlights the growing role of Artificial Intelligence (AI), FinTech and financial inclusion in reshaping financial services, driving innovation and strengthening digital sovereignty across member states.

On 14 and 15 July 2026, Ouagadougou will welcome policymakers, industry experts, businesses, startups and institutional partners to discuss innovative solutions that can foster a more inclusive digital economy throughout the UEMOA region.

Through this event, the organizers aim to encourage collaboration, promote knowledge sharing and identify practical strategies to accelerate digital transformation while unlocking the full potential of AI and financial technologies for sustainable economic development.

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The gathering focused on how inclusive and accessible digital infrastructure can create greater opportunities for young people across Africa. It also provided Wave with an opportunity to showcase its financial inclusion mission at one of the continent’s leading sports and cultural events.

Taking place shortly after the Africa CEO Forum, the Business Brunch further reinforced Kigali’s position as a hub for discussions on growth, innovation, and African leadership. For Wave, the event highlighted the growing connection between youth culture, entrepreneurship, digital finance, and economic inclusion.

The panel featured prominent figures including BAL President Amadou Gallo Fall, Wave Mobile Money Regional Director and Head of Public Affairs Coura Tine Sène, Bank of Kigali CEO Dr. Diane Karusisi, and Rwanda’s Minister of State for ICT and Innovation, Yves Iradukunda. Discussions explored how cultural platforms, financial infrastructure, institutional investment, and supportive public policies can work together to promote youth entrepreneurship and inclusive growth.

Wave emphasized the importance of providing simple, reliable, and affordable financial services to support the ambitions of Africa’s increasingly entrepreneurial youth. Whether they are content creators, business owners, athletes, or innovators, access to suitable financial tools remains a key driver of progress.

“Across Africa, the next generation is creating its own opportunities, building businesses, and contributing to the continent’s economic transformation. Our mission is to make financial services accessible enough to support this momentum every day,” said Coura Tine Sène. She also noted that Wave’s partnership with the BAL helps connect financial inclusion with entrepreneurship, culture, and youth ambition.

Beyond brand visibility, Wave aims to contribute to the strategic conversations shaping Africa’s economic future. The company seeks to expand economic participation for students, informal sector workers, entrepreneurs, creators, and emerging talents.

The discussions also underscored the importance of stronger collaboration between governments, financial institutions, private sector players, and cultural platforms. As Africa’s digital economy continues to grow rapidly, sustainable inclusion will depend on bridging the gap between innovation, access to services, and the real needs of communities.

Through its involvement in basketball and youth-focused initiatives, Wave views sport as a powerful platform for engagement and impact. This approach enables the company to embed its mission in spaces where young Africans learn, create, innovate, and build their futures.

For Wave, financial inclusion goes far beyond access to an account or payment service. It means integrating simple, reliable, and affordable financial solutions into people’s daily lives to support their projects, businesses, and aspirations.

By participating in this high-level discussion, Wave Mobile Money reaffirmed its commitment to strengthening the links between sport, culture, innovation, and economic inclusion, with the goal of delivering meaningful impact across African communities.

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Conceived as an all-in-one platform, this innovation aligns with a broader strategy to simplify, streamline, and democratize access to digital services.

A Platform Designed for Everyday Simplicity

In a context where consumer expectations are evolving rapidly, YasApp positions itself as a practical response to challenges related to accessibility, speed, and security. The application centralizes essential telecom services within a single, intuitive digital interface.

From real-time account management and instant top-ups to secure transactions, usage tracking, and personalized offers, every feature has been crafted to deliver a seamless user experience.

According to Solim Pitassa, Head of Digital and Webmaster, “the new application enables customers to instantly access all their services from a single device, including credit purchases, subscription to plans, and transaction management—without the need to travel.” This promise directly addresses the growing demand for autonomy and efficiency among users.

Security and Data Protection at the Core

Beyond its functionality, YasApp reflects a broader vision: a more human-centered, inclusive digital ecosystem that empowers users. Available 24/7, the application allows customers to manage their services freely and independently.

Security, however, remains a central pillar. Amen Kotokou, Product Development Specialist, emphasized that “data protection and security were at the heart of the development process, with rigorous testing conducted by experts to ensure a reliable and accessible application.” He further noted that the goal is to provide a simple, secure, and rewarding user experience that fosters stronger engagement.

Incentives to Drive Adoption

To accelerate user adoption, YasApp introduces several attractive benefits. A welcome package offers 1 GB of data valid for one day, while a referral system allows users to earn additional megabytes. With up to two referrals per day generating 500 MB each, the platform creates a compelling incentive structure for growth and engagement.

A Strategic Vision Driven by Leadership

For Pierre-Antoine Legagneur, CEO of Yas Togo, the launch represents a strategic turning point: “YasApp is an all-in-one solution that meets current market demands. It enhances autonomy, accessibility, and simplicity, reflecting our ambition to be an innovative brand that stays close to its users while looking toward the future.”

Strengthening Market Position in Africa

Already recognized for delivering the best mobile internet experience in Togo and across the UEMOA region, Yas Togo is reinforcing its leadership through innovation and customer-centric solutions. With YasApp, the company is not merely introducing a new application—it is redefining how telecom services are consumed in a rapidly digitizing society.

Behind this momentum, Axian Telecom plays a pivotal role by supporting the development of robust and sustainable digital ecosystems.

Clear, fast, and secure, YasApp is far from a gimmick—it addresses a real need. And it raises a compelling question: could the future of telecom in Togo simply lie in an app within everyone’s pocket?

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Banks, electronic money institutions, microfinance institutions, and payment service providers have been given until June 30, 2026, to complete their integration into the system, according to the central bank’s latest directive.

Launched on September 30, 2025, the PI-SPI platform enables real-time transactions, operating 24 hours a day, seven days a week. It is designed to facilitate seamless digital payments among financial actors within the Union, while significantly reducing transaction costs and processing times.

As of April 2, 2026, a total of 80 institutions across the region are already connected to the platform. These include 59 banks, nine electronic money institutions, 11 microfinance institutions, and one payment institution. In parallel, 42 additional entities are currently undergoing live testing, with deployment expected in the near term.

The BCEAO has called on all remaining stakeholders to accelerate both technical and administrative preparations in order to meet the established deadline. The objective is to ensure full regional coverage and guarantee effective access to payment services for end users.

This initiative forms part of a broader strategy to modernize financial infrastructure within UEMOA. It aims to deepen financial inclusion by expanding access to digital payment services for individuals and businesses alike.

While enhanced interoperability is expected to boost economic exchanges across the Union, the announcement also reflects a firmer stance by the central bank in driving adoption. This approach addresses ongoing hesitations among certain operators, often linked to structural and economic constraints.

Ultimately, the interoperability framework is poised to create a unified payments market within UEMOA—lowering costs, improving financial inclusion, and strengthening regional economic integration. Despite the steady rise of electronic payments, the ecosystem remains fragmented among banks, fintech companies, and mobile network operators, underscoring the importance of this transformative initiative.

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Africa accounted for nearly 66% of the global transaction value, which reached $2.091 trillion (+23% year-on-year). Out of a global total of 125 billion mobile money transactions, the continent represented about 74%, equivalent to nearly 92 billion transactions (+16% compared to 2024).

Furthermore, the report highlights that Africa hosts 52% of mobile money accounts worldwide. By the end of 2025, the continent had approximately 1.2 billion accounts (+18% year-on-year), including 347 million active monthly accounts, out of a global total of about 2.3 billion accounts (+13%), with 593 million active within 30 days. Africa therefore remains the epicenter of mobile-based finance. However, this success reveals an increasingly visible contradiction: while the service is expanding rapidly, its full adoption and real impact on populations remain constrained.

Barriers to Inclusion

The first barrier is material. The World Bank notes that 84% of adults in developing countries own a mobile phone, yet about a quarter still use basic devices more affordable but limited in functionality and lacking internet access. Only two-thirds of adults own a smartphone capable of accessing applications and browsers. In Sub-Saharan Africa, this figure drops to 33%. The primary reason cited for not owning a smartphone remains its cost. The International Telecommunication Union (ITU) similarly identifies affordability particularly of devices as a major obstacle to digital adoption across the continent.

The second barrier is cognitive. The GSMA’s 2026 report clearly identifies low levels of digital financial literacy as a major constraint. In countries where adoption gaps persist, the figures are striking. In Ethiopia, among those aware of mobile money but without an account, 60% of women and 54% of men report not knowing how to use the service; 45% of women and 50% of men struggle with using a phone or fear making mistakes. In Egypt, this barrier affects 21% of women and 15% of men, while in Nigeria it affects 22% of both women and men. Equipment constraints also play a role: in Ethiopia, 24% of women surveyed cite the lack of a SIM card or phone as a key barrier.

Beyond a Service: A Human Impact Challenge

The paradox is clear: mobile money initially thrived on basic mobile phones. Today, however, its next phase requires more advanced tools. Use cases have expanded significantly, with service providers increasingly relying on super apps rather than USSD codes to deliver greater value: bill payments, government social transfers, micro-insurance, microcredit, and micro-savings.

The fastest-growing segments are merchant payments, which rose by 42% to $155 billion in 2025, and interoperable transfers between banks and mobile wallets, totaling $167 billion. In other words, the sector has moved beyond simple peer-to-peer transfers and entered a more sophisticated phase, where users must navigate interfaces, QR codes, virtual cards, security protocols, and transaction verification. Without appropriate devices and basic digital skills, a significant portion of the population risks being confined to the most basic uses, while the ecosystem evolves toward more complex services.

This divide also has a social and gender dimension. Without access to adequate devices and digital skills, millions of Africans remain excluded from the full benefits of mobile money. In low- and middle-income countries, GSMA estimates that women are 14% less likely than men to use mobile internet, leaving 885 million women offline, nearly 60% of whom live in South Asia and Sub-Saharan Africa. This raises the risk of a two-tier financial inclusion system, unevenly distributed in practice.

Unlocking the Full Potential

Unlocking the full potential of mobile money in Africa requires more than commercial expansion. The response must be industrial, educational, and regulatory. The ITU advocates for more affordable entry-level smartphones, facilitated purchasing through microcredit or installment payments, and lower costs for devices and data. It also calls for the integration of basic digital skills into education systems and training programs.

Similarly, GSMA emphasizes the importance of targeted digital financial literacy initiatives, particularly for women, rural populations, and older adults. The World Bank underscores that cost, usability, and security must be addressed simultaneously.

Ultimately, the real challenge for Africa is no longer to prove that mobile money works, but to ensure that everyone can truly use it.

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Across the continent, connectivity is improving but remains deeply uneven. According to the International Telecommunication Union, around 36% of Africa’s population was connected to the internet in 2025, compared to nearly 74% globally. At the same time, close to 900 million people remain offline, most of them in rural areas. Faced with structural limitations in terrestrial infrastructure, a model is gaining traction: satellite-enabled community Wi-Fi. More flexible to deploy and less dependent on physical networks, it offers a scalable pathway to extend connectivity in underserved regions while reshaping the economics of local access.

A Community Model Scaled by Satellite

Community Wi-Fi relies on a decentralized architecture in which a primary connection feeds a local network of shared access points within a defined perimeter. When powered by satellite backhaul, the model expands significantly in reach and efficiency. A single satellite terminal can cover up to 200 meters and serve as many as 40 simultaneous users.

Contrary to common assumptions, access is rarely free. Users typically purchase tailored packages based on data volume, duration, or quality of service—through local digital platforms or community resellers. This structure enables bandwidth cost-sharing while generating sustainable revenue streams for network operators.

Technically, a shared satellite link can provide between 50 and 100 Mbps of capacity. Latency ranges from 20 to 50 milliseconds for low-Earth orbit constellations, compared to more than 600 milliseconds for traditional geostationary satellites. A user satellite terminal generally costs between $300 and $600, excluding monthly subscription fees, which typically range from $20 to $100 depending on performance and market conditions.

Addressing Infrastructure Constraints

Satellite connectivity’s primary advantage lies in its ability to bypass terrestrial infrastructure bottlenecks. In many African regions, extending fiber-optic networks remains costly and logistically complex. Rural fiber deployment can cost between $5,000 and $15,000 per kilometer, depending on terrain and security conditions. In this context, satellite connectivity enables rapid rollout independent of geography, population density, or the continuity of physical infrastructure.

This shift is reinforced by the entry of new satellite operators and evolving distribution models. Providers such as Starlink, Eutelsat Group, OneWeb, YahClick, Viasat and Avanti Communications now supply satellite capacity that serves as local connectivity backhaul for African operators, NGOs and technical integrators. Regional players including Liquid Intelligent Technologies and Paratus Group are also developing hybrid models that combine fiber and satellite to power community networks.

In this configuration, satellite does not replace terrestrial infrastructure; rather, it reshapes its economics by lowering the marginal cost of extending connectivity.

A Lever for Territorial Economic Inclusion

The core advantage of satellite-enabled community Wi-Fi lies in its capacity to reduce the real cost of access in areas with limited alternatives. Across Africa, 1 GB of mobile data represents on average 2.4% of monthly income above the 2% affordability benchmark. By pooling bandwidth across multiple users, community networks can reduce the effective cost of access to below 1% of monthly income in certain rural contexts.

Beyond individual access, these networks support the emergence of local digital economic activity, facilitate the digitization of public services, and integrate peripheral territories into the broader digital economy. According to the GSMA, the expansion of mobile internet could generate up to $795 billion in economic contribution across Africa by 2030 if access continues to widen.

Persistent Challenges in Viability and Regulation

Despite their promise, satellite-enabled community networks face structural constraints. Satellite capacity remains generally more expensive than terrestrial alternatives where fiber or mobile broadband already exists, necessitating hybrid business models that combine local tariffs, institutional partnerships and complementary financing.

Regulatory frameworks are another decisive factor. Licensing regimes, spectrum management, digital sovereignty requirements and the regulation of satellite services directly influence the pace at which such solutions can scale. In addition, technical management and maintenance require specialized skills that remain limited in several target regions.

Toward a More Adaptive Connectivity Model

Once perceived as fragile local initiatives, community Wi-Fi networks are evolving through satellite integration. By introducing greater flexibility in deployment, capacity allocation and pricing, satellite connectivity enables these networks to become adaptable digital infrastructures aligned with Africa’s territorial realities.

More than a simple access tool, satellite connectivity is emerging as a strategic lever for optimizing local connectivity models bringing the internet sustainably closer to populations and economic activities that have long remained beyond its reach.

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On Monday, February 23, the AfDB Group, in partnership with the United Nations Development Programme (UNDP), unveiled a new initiative aimed at mobilizing up to $10 billion to accelerate AI development in Africa.

Titled the “$10 Billion AI Initiative,” the program was presented in Nairobi during the Nairobi AI Forum 2026, a forum dedicated to exploring the prospects and opportunities offered by AI across the continent. The investment platform seeks to promote the responsible adoption of AI while fostering inclusive digital economic growth. Funding will be progressively mobilized through 2035 via a partnership framework bringing together development institutions, governments, and private sector stakeholders.

“As a leading multilateral development institution, the AfDB Group is leveraging its comparative advantage to ensure that Africa is not left behind in the AI era,” said Nicholas Williams, Head of the ICT Operations Division at the AfDB Group. “The $10 Billion AI Initiative paves the way for expanded partnerships and sustained investments that will accelerate AI entrepreneurship, strengthen data and infrastructure ecosystems, and support inclusive growth across the continent.”

In practical terms, the initiative forecasts investments in data infrastructure, computing capacity, technology start-up financing, and specialized talent development. It is anchored in a strategic roadmap defined by the AfDB, identifying five critical pillars for AI advancement: data, computing, skills, regulatory trust, and access to capital.

By 2035, partners estimate that these investments could help create up to 40 million jobs and generate as much as $1 trillion in additional GDP across Africa. A resource mobilization tour targeting governments and investors is now set to transform the announcement into concrete financial commitments, as the continent positions itself within the emerging global AI economy.

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Last week, Kenya announced the launch of BiasharaLink and Deal House, two digital tools intended to strengthen economic diplomacy and boost intra-African commerce.

Presented on the sidelines of the 39th African Union (AU) Summit, the initiative seeks to address the continent’s persistent gap between the signing of trade agreements and their actual delivery. African leaders have repeatedly called for concrete mechanisms to make the AfCFTA fully operational.

The platforms were developed by Real Sources Africa (RSA), a pan-African institution specializing in trade infrastructure and officially recognized by Kenya as a national trading company within the AfCFTA framework. They are designed to harness the potential of over 1,000 African diplomatic missions, transforming them into active facilitators of commercial transactions.

BiasharaLink will enable embassies, exporters, and investors to identify and structure trade opportunities aligned with AfCFTA priorities. Deal House will provide operational follow-up, including opportunity validation, matchmaking with credible partners, access to financing, and support through to contract signing.

“This represents a new model of results-driven economic diplomacy,” said Kenya’s Cabinet Secretary for Foreign and Diaspora Affairs, Musalia Mudavadi.

According to RSA, African diplomatic missions receive around 3,500 trade-related requests each month, yet fewer than 1% result in formal agreements—highlighting the urgent need for stronger monitoring and execution mechanisms.

AfCFTA Secretary-General Wamkele Mene emphasized that Africa must deepen its internal market in response to growing disruptions in global supply chains.

The initiative also places a strong focus on integrating SMEs and women-led businesses into regional value chains, with the stated ambition of turning continental integration goals into tangible transactions that generate jobs and drive sustainable growth.

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In its report “Biometrics and Digital Identification Systems in Africa”, published in November 2025, the Atlantic Council estimates that 49 African countries operate at least one biometric system. These technologies have become pivotal in identity management, elections, border control and SIM card registration.

Meanwhile, the research and advocacy centre CIPESA (Collaboration on International ICT Policy for East and Southern Africa), in its 2024 report “Biometrics and Digital Identity in Africa”, highlights a rapidly growing appetite for the collection and processing of biometric data across the continent, driven by the transition from paper-based identities to digital ones.

A Market Framed as Strategic by Donors and Think Tanks

A study by the McKinsey Global Institute published in 2019 estimated that full digital identity coverage in a country could generate economic value equivalent to 3% to 13% of GDP by 2030. This would require that digital identity programmes enable multiple high-value uses and achieve widespread adoption and utilisation.

CIPESA notes that government programmes deemed “critical” — including civil registration, national ID cards, voter rolls, e-passports and mandatory SIM registration — increasingly rely on biometric identifiers. The Atlantic Council similarly describes a transformation in Africa’s identity and citizenship architecture, with biometric systems serving as the foundation for access to numerous services.

These converging assessments have led several institutions to consider biometrics as a major public sector domain.

National Projects Largely Driven by Foreign Suppliers

On the ground, this strategic importance is reflected in a growing number of national projects, often implemented with foreign partners. The Atlantic Council points out that international technology companies dominate Africa’s biometric ecosystem. Firms such as Idemia and Thales (France), Semlex (Belgium), Veridos (Germany) and Huawei (China) provide the core technology, hardware and algorithms underpinning many systems.

These projects are frequently financed through loans from international institutions, particularly the World Bank, creating what the report describes as “structural dependencies” in governance and procurement.

For instance, Nigeria’s Identity for Development (Nigeria ID4D) project is funded by the World Bank in collaboration with the French Development Agency (AFD) and the European Investment Bank (EIB), with an estimated budget of around USD 430 million. Led by Nigeria’s National Identity Management Commission (NIMC), the initiative aims to issue at least 59 million national identification numbers (NIN) by 31 December 2026.

African Actors Present, But Rarely in Control

CIPESA also observes that many countries rely on public-private partnerships and local integrators to deploy enrolment systems and manage databases, without these actors necessarily controlling the core platforms.

The Atlantic Council mentions African or Africa-based companies such as Margins (Ghana), Seamfix (Nigeria) and BioRugged (South Africa), which provide biometric kits, system integration services and on-the-ground registration management.

“Several African companies are gradually expanding their footprint in the market, often as subcontractors to larger international groups. However, the market has not yet seen an African firm capable of matching the scale, R&D capacity and political influence of leading European suppliers,” the Atlantic Council notes.

Key Challenges and Risks

The report highlights “structural dependencies” and political risks linked to this configuration.

“When foreign suppliers are not properly regulated, they can create long-term structural dependencies that undermine data sovereignty, human rights and national security,” the Atlantic Council warns.

Foreign control over biometric data can shift decision-making power away from national institutions, increasing risks of misuse, surveillance and economic dependence, particularly when key systems are built and maintained by external companies or donors.

CIPESA also points to concerns around state-enabled mass surveillance, data breaches, identity theft and exclusion, exacerbated by major gaps in legal frameworks and implementation processes.

“Many of the 37 national data protection laws currently in place across Africa remain insufficiently robust and lack strict safeguards, such as independent oversight bodies,” CIPESA states.

Paths Toward a More Balanced Market

According to the Atlantic Council, several measures could help rebalance the sector. These include strengthening data protection laws, improving the independence of regulatory authorities, and systematically integrating transparency requirements, local content provisions and technology transfer clauses into future biometric contracts.

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The Tunisian government has decided to accelerate the digital transformation of the healthcare sector. On Monday, February 9, the Minister of Health, Mustapha Ferjani, met with Lassâad Ben Dhiaf, CEO of Tunisie Télécom, and entrusted him with a mission structured around four key priorities.

The first involves providing high-speed broadband Internet access to all healthcare facilities, particularly primary care structures. The second focuses on deploying fully Tunisian cloud-based solutions accessible to both healthcare institutions and administrative bodies within the sector. The third priority is the integration of artificial intelligence, while the fourth concerns the establishment of an advanced digital call center.

Connecting all facilities: strengthening the front line

By expanding Internet access across healthcare institutions—especially those on the “front line”—the Tunisian state anticipates improvements in both the quality and safety of care. Connectivity is the cornerstone without which digital health services cannot function.

Without reliable high-speed Internet, it is impossible to implement solutions that streamline patient referrals, reduce diagnostic delays, prevent duplicate examinations, and ease hospital congestion. Connectivity enables telemedicine and remote expertise, widening access to specialists, reducing costly travel, and accelerating treatment, particularly in remote areas.

It also improves logistics through better tracking of medicines, vaccines, and medical supplies, limiting shortages and waste. Moreover, strong connectivity allows for faster and more efficient data reporting, supporting epidemiological surveillance, evidence-based decision-making, and more effective crisis responses.

Digital health on a 100% Tunisian cloud

Deploying digital health services on a fully Tunisian cloud aims to strengthen national sovereignty and control over sensitive health data. By hosting and processing medical information within Tunisia, the government reduces the risks of extraterritorial jurisdiction, dependency on foreign legal frameworks, and externally imposed contractual changes.

Local hosting also facilitates audits, traceability, access management, encryption key control, and clear clauses regarding reversibility and subcontracting. Operationally, a domestic cloud can reduce latency and improve service continuity for telemedicine, electronic patient records, and medical imaging, while limiting reliance on international connections.

If properly designed—with redundancy, immutable backups, continuous monitoring, and tested recovery plans—it can provide resilience suited to critical healthcare services. Finally, it can support the local economy, skilled employment, and innovation in analytics, AI, and public health, provided that high cybersecurity standards and strict data governance are enforced.

Artificial intelligence

Artificial intelligence represents a strategic opportunity to accelerate the modernization of Tunisia’s healthcare system. It can enhance governance, efficiency, and quality of care in a context marked by resource constraints and regional disparities.

By consolidating currently fragmented data across healthcare institutions, the CNAM, and national programs, AI could enable reliable dashboards for informed planning, better prioritization—such as reducing medical deserts—and more precise evaluation of ongoing reforms.

AI could also significantly reduce the administrative burden on healthcare workers through task automation (data entry, procedure coding, appointment management). The resulting time savings could be reinvested in patient care, improving outcomes and reducing errors.

Clinically, AI could strengthen patient safety and harmonize practices. Diagnostic support systems, particularly in medical imaging, and medication alert tools would be valuable in regions lacking specialists and could assist general practitioners.

In public health, predictive analytics applied to Tunisian epidemiological data could enhance crisis surveillance, enable early detection of outbreaks, and forecast needs for medicines or hospital beds, ensuring faster and more equitable interventions.

An advanced digital call center

Establishing an advanced digital health call center in Tunisia addresses a critical need: helping citizens quickly determine where to go, when to seek care, and what procedures to follow.

Telephone services, complemented by SMS, messaging platforms, and chatbots, ensure inclusive access, even for those less comfortable with digital tools or living far from healthcare services. Through structured triage and intelligent routing, the center can reduce unnecessary travel, relieve pressure on emergency departments, and speed up access to the appropriate level of care.

It also strengthens public trust by providing reliable, consistent information, particularly during health crises.

A long-standing ambition

According to the report Health Systems Review: The Post COVID-19 Situation in Tunisia, published in March 2024, Tunisia remains below World Health Organization (WHO) recommendations regarding the ratio of healthcare workers per 10,000 people.

The report, produced through a collaboration between the Right to Health program of the Egyptian Initiative for Personal Rights (EIPR), African Alliance, International Alert–Tunisia, and led by chief researcher Skander Essafi, highlights persistent weaknesses that were further exposed by the COVID-19 pandemic.

This crisis renewed the state’s commitment to digital transformation. The National Strategic Plan Tunisie Digitale 2020 was launched, making digital health a strategic pillar. Several projects were initiated, including a national health information system, electronic medical records, and health cards to unify citizens’ health identities.

Telemedicine was also deployed in northern, central, and southern governorates to bring specialists closer to remote communities. The government further announced the launch of a fully digital “smart hospital,” with plans to expand this model across multiple regions to offer remote specialized consultations.

At the conclusion of the meeting with Tunisie Télécom’s CEO, the Minister of Health praised the public operator’s technical and logistical support. The most difficult part, however, still lies ahead: moving from announcements to effective implementation.

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