_{Image source: Unsplash}

Web 3 adoption in Africa is evolving – and like her troves of boundless natural resources, Africa is also brimming with possibilities when it comes to blockchain technology and this dynamic internet age. From fintechs to NFT marketplaces, it’s impressive how her current generation of founders and thought leaders are breaking limits when it comes to massive adoption on the continent.

A simple Moroccan proverb says “There is no beauty, but the beauty of action”. The same can be said concerning the small and big strides being made daily in the blockchain industry. At the forefront of the Web, 3 March are three leaders who have invested incredible efforts and resources into Web 3 adoption in Africa. They are:

Nigeria
Kenya
South Africa

Before we delve right into their impressive feats in the past few years, let’s do a quick breakdown for newbies on what Web 3.0 is and how it applies to blockchain technology.

Definition of Web 3.0

Web 3.0 is the third generation of an internet age in which user interaction will be conducted on decentralized networks with full data autonomy. This means that with the evolution of Web 3, you and I will no longer have third-party entities owning and controlling our data. Think about it like a new season of Big Brother, but without Big Brother watching.

Some concepts in this dynamic era of the internet are:

Immutability
Decentralization
Blockchain technology
Scalability
Interoperability
Smart contracts
Non-fungible tokens (NFTs)
Decentralized Autonomous Organizations (DAOs)

We are currently witnessing Web 3.0 in its nascent phase but as at writing, it already has several use cases such as Decentralized Finance (DeFi), Metaverse, Blockchain Gaming, and other blockchain technologies.

Web 3.0: What’s The Big Deal?

Besides textbook reasons like privacy, open transactions, and security, Web 3 is a game-changer for the way businesses will run, especially in Africa. As times change, businesses need to evolve with it before competitors.

The concept of Web 3 holds a promise of deconcentrated models that will positively change the way African businesses run in industries such as healthcare, finance, logistics, trade, and others. If we were to describe the power of this shift, it would take efficiency, security, and transparency to the moon.

How it Started vs. How it’s Going

NIGERIA

Web 3 adoption in Nigeria is a revolution that has not only brought the country to the limelight but unveiled its potential as one of the richest places for Web 3 projects to grow.

Her new rush of Blockchain-centered developments kicked off in the wake of approval by the Federal Executive Council on the proposed Blockchain policy. But it wasn’t always this good.

Following a hike in cryptocurrency trading by 2,467.2% according to a survey, the Nigerian government went on to ban all digital currencies in 2021. Ironically, this only sent the Nigerian crypto community to the top trading volume spot globally, causing the Nigerian government to finally launch its own Central Bank Digital Currency (CBDC) in the same year.

Soon enough, NFT and incentivized gaming joined the frontier of Nigeria’s Web 3 ecosystem with projects like Moon Nation Game, Gamic Guild, FanBants, Diagon Studios, Afri Guild hitting the scene and visionaries like Chuma Anagbado and Osinachi Africa’s first crypto artist, setting the pace.

Another mind-blowing development in Nigeria’s Web 3 space is the tokenization of real estate, an innovation that allows users to own parcels of good real estate in different parts of the world. While this use case is still in its infant stage, Nigeria’s fast-paced Web 3 scene may play a role in boosting its growth.

Today, the average Nigerian interacting on Web 3 is more than just a user. Web 3 adoption in the West African country has accelerated to the point where participants are also active contributors to the Web 3 ecosystem.

Kenya

Like Nigeria, Kenya experienced her fair share of bumpy head starts before she became one of Africa’s top three musketeers in the Web 4 industry. As far back as 2015, the Kenyan government banned the use of cryptocurrencies by businesses due to the unregulated nature of digital products. However, individuals continued to use crypto throughout this period up till 2023 though crypto has still not been recognized as a legal tender.

Web 3 efforts in Kenya have only skyrocketed despite this status quo with countless Web 3 events dotting the landscape over the years to boost awareness and drive adoption. Some of the most recent events are:

ETHSafari (2022)
Polygon Bootcamp (2022)
Kenya Blockchain & Web 3 Takeover (2022)
Celo Africa Web 3 Fund (2022)
Binance University Campus Tour (2022)

As of writing, Polkadot is gearing up to unveil a variety of Web 3 education programs in Kenya to increase crypto expertise in the country. Web 3 Adoption and education do not only stop with events. In 2014, Mic Kimanu, established The Blockchain Association of Kenya to manage the fast-rising need for blockchain developers in the state and continent as a whole.

This tribe has gone on to partner with other institutions to organize trading courses, no boot camps, and hangouts where educational information is shared to drive Web 3 adoption. Another innovative enterprise doing the Lord’s work in Kenya is the Africa Training Institute. Here, participants receive the requisite Blockchain Certificate training for their future Web 3 endeavors.

South Africa

In South Africa, one of the key themes of the country’s Web 3 space is machine learning and Artificial Intelligence (AI). In this part of Africa, utilizing and maximizing AI tech ranks high in their to-do lists when it comes to automating processes and improving the quality of experience for Web 3 users. Another key trend in Web 3 South Africa is leveraging decentralized apps (dApps) to guarantee transparent and safe transactions when managing data.

It’s no surprise that South Africa is sporting an impressive 7^th place globally when it comes to crypto ownership. Unlike Nigeria and Kenya, the country’s liberal approach to cryptocurrency is sure to play a role in unbelievable surges in the already recorded 7.1% of the population who own cryptocurrency. In 2021, we see the country’s cryptocurrency Safcoin launching globally after being a South African exclusive since its launch in 2018.

Cryptocurrency is not the only thing South Africa is known for, however. Like Nigeria, the country is also nursing real estate tokenization in its early stages with the objective of increased transparency and accessibility in investments. The third swag to bring South Africa to the Web 3 global front is their NFT marketplace which pulled in an opportunity for South Africa to host one of the biggest NFT auctions in Cape Town (2021) under Momint.

Momint, an indigenous NFT marketplace is a product of the country’s thriving communities for tech and art. Other local marketplaces to look out for are NFT Getty, Potara, and so on. Some key events that took place on the South African Web 3 scene are:

Crypto Fest (2022)
Africa Tech Festival (2022)

Summary

In an insightful report released on June 23rd, 2023, EMURGO Africa revealed that Nigeria, Kenya, South Africa, and Egypt make up a whopping 66% of the continent’s digital revolution with blockchain funding increasing by 1688% from 2021 to 2022. For clarity, the bar was raised from USD 5.165 million to USD 91 million between 2021 and 2022, making Africa’s blockchain adoption the fastest in the world. A final estimate in the fintech niche puts revenue at USD 30 billion by 2025. So far, the numbers look good for Web 3 technologies even with underlying challenges also on the table.

For the future of Web 3 adoption in Africa to be worth anticipating, vital stakeholders need to partner with regulators through every step with actionable measures put in place to counter the possibility of inequitable ownership, immutability exploitation and environmentally harmful business models.

Salome Ogbolu is a Content Writer