Photo credits: Thomas Ecke
Business & Innovation
Beyond the buzzwords of Industry 4.0, Internet of Things or Big Data: these terms are standard in the discussion of how new technologies will change our daily life, particularly in the context of work. But simply name dropping doesn't really help us to understand what and exactly how technology is changing our world of work.
The types of careers and career development are influenced by the possibilities given to us by technologies, in striving for a work-life balance and the wish for co-working and alternative places of work. From video conference tools to websites and software, technology is enabling new forms of collaboration which makes cooperative project work with participants located all across the world easier and more realistic. How will technology steer and transform future means of cooperation? What is the future of professional collaboration?
This Track is all about the future of work, digital economy, new business models, and the role of innovation and entrepreneurship in our societies. We want to know: How is innovation changing the way we travel and trade? What could future means of cooperation be? Is digitization really helping economies leapfrog? We want to talk about platform economy and startup scenes - especially their impact on social sectors and the delivery of public services - but also about the effects of automation, the Internet of Things, entrepreneurial culture and its effects on society.
We are interested in hearing reports, analyses, research findings or other data driven reflections on these topics.
- Business & InnovationTech for Good-By 2035, Africa is poised to have the largest and youngest workforce in the world. African countries are still facing huge challenges in terms of creating opportunities for the ever growing young population. Skills mismatch between what is taught in schools and what the industry requires, inadequate access to labour market information, networks, limited opportunities to acquire work experience or vocational training are some factors that contribute to high unemployment rates.
- Business & InnovationTech for Good-There are currently seven billion people inhabiting this world. By 2050, the global population will reach 9 billion. The challenge: How can we all be fed?
As of late, a groundswell of start-ups and technologies in sub-Saharan Africa have emerged to help smallholder farmers increase efficiency and thus productivity. Most of them using cutting-edge technologies. Are digital technologies the key to success or should we seek elsewhere to solve our challenge? - Business & InnovationFemale-Join us as we share and visualize in real-time the journeys of 3 inspiring African women. We will map their turning points, the highs and the lows. Come in and create your own journey map too!
- Business & InnovationTech for Good-Startups are paving our way to the future and today, every young person’s dream is not to become a doctor or a lawyer but a startup founder and an entrepreneur. Are we selling the next generation the right dream? Will the startup economy continue to bloom? Will startups and entrepreneurs help African countries break free from aid dependency?
- Business & Innovation-#weareGIG the Global Innovation Gathering: a vibrant, diverse community of innovators, makers, technologists, storytellers and changemakers from all around the world. We started as a small track at re:publica 2013 and grew to become an active network of trust that realizes projects around the globe together: from #i4Policy to the Labmobile, from PeaceHackCamps to Precious Plastics machines, from student exchange programs to hub sustainability workshops: We aim for impact not exit!
- Business & Innovation-The fashion industry today is worth 3 trillion USD, but Africa accounts for a mere 1% of that. Africa’s lack of representation on the global fashion scene has largely been due to lack of infrastructure and under-developed retail sectors. However in the last year, with Africa being the only continent to skip through industrialisation eras and enter directly into the digital age, fashion brands on the continent are seizing the opportunity to present themselves to the world.
- Business & InnovationWasteOver the last years, there has been a common depiction of the Old Fadama scrap yard in Accra, internationally better known as "Agbogbloshie" as a place of hazardous processing of E-Waste. Correlating to the panel discussion "Agbogbloshie: Discovering Value in E-Waste through Innovation", the exhibition aims to authentically showcase various activities on the scrap yard and highlight the potential discovered by Ghana's creative changemakers: a resource pool for social development and innovation.
- Business & Innovation-Ghana, as many African countries do, has a thriving technology and digital innovation scene. It also has a low-tech, mainly informal manufacturing base. In this session, the panel and the audience will discuss how to bridge the gap between these two worlds in a way that creates jobs and development. It will cover both digital (e.g.3D printing) and traditional manufacturing technologies, and explore whether the combination of these offers a viable route forwards for African Manufacturing.
- Business & InnovationWaste-A panel discussion about the infamous Old Fadama Scrap Yard, commonly known as Agbogbloshie, and its potential as a resource pool for social development. The Ministry of Environment, Science, Technology & Innovation will invite a diverse group of stakeholders from backgrounds such as Innovation, Creation and Anthropology to discuss their different experiences in using E-Waste as a resource. They will controversially discuss future scenarios that promote digital solutions with social added value.
- Business & Innovation-It’s breakfast time. Agya Koo Nimo, his wife Kyeiwaa and their child Paapa are on a mission to trace back the origin of the heavenly pineapples they enjoy every morning. But how? Be prepared to learn about how IT solutions can increase the transparency of supply chains, and join experts in developing an efficient and affordable solution based on open source.
- Business & Innovation-The realities of (digital) distribution make it more practical and more profitable for a Ghanaian startup to explore e-commerce in the USA than retail opportunities in other West African countries. This reality is detrimental to pan-African mutual development and to our understanding of what we are capable of on the continent. What precisely are these challenges? How do we ensure that African markets come into their economic power together?
- Business & Innovation-Create a digital clone of yourself floating in cyberspace using the latest AI chatbot technologies.