Reframing cybersecurity engagement in Africa’s digital markets

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Public policy solutions

As Africa’s digital economy grows, so too does the urgency to protect it. Africa Practice partnered with a global cybersecurity company to strengthen cyber resilience across Kenya, Nigeria, and South Africa through meaningful partnerships rather than product-focused approaches.

Challenge: Establishing credibility in a crowded cybersecurity landscape

As Africa’s digital economy grows, a global cybersecurity organisation recognised an opportunity to expand its relevance and reach by partnering with local governments, African institutions, and businesses. Despite their technical expertise, they found themselves on the outside looking in, viewed with caution rather than as a trusted partner in the continent’s digital journey.

However, local governments and institutions need trusted partners; without them, national cybersecurity initiatives risk remaining reactive in environments where digital threats evolve daily. For governments balancing development priorities with limited resources, partnership wasn’t merely desirable; it was essential for sustainable digital resilience.

Approach: Listening locally, engaging strategically

Africa Practice was brought in to help reframe the relationship. We started by running rapid ecosystem diagnostics and mapping out the policy and institutional landscape across the three countries. Our goal wasn’t simply to identify decision-makers but to understand the values and priorities that would resonate in each market.

Our initial findings revealed a clear path forward. To shift perceptions, our client needed to lead with partnership rather than products, demonstrating long-term commitment through shared value: knowledge exchange and capacity building. With this insight, we crafted tailored engagement strategies for each market. In Nigeria, we focused on building formal institutional relationships that aligned with government cybersecurity priorities. This patient approach bore fruit when we facilitated strategic dialogues with key agencies, ultimately helping to kickstart formalising a partnership with a key agency focused on IT Regulation and R&D. In Kenya, we guided our client toward meaningful contributions to the national Cybersecurity Policy and emerging AI Strategy. Rather than offering generic solutions, we helped them provide technical insights that respected local contexts and priorities. Each policy submission and roundtable participation gradually shifted their role from observer to valued contributor.

Outcome: Embedded relationships, elevated trust

Our client had moved from the margins of policy engagement to being part of important national conversations. Across the three markets, they are increasingly seen as a thoughtful, engaged actor, one whose technical knowledge is matched by a genuine interest in local priorities and long-term resilience.

This was not about quick wins or transactional gains. It was about building the kind of relationships that endure and that support the broader development of Africa’s digital future.

Strategic Significance: A new model for tech engagement in Africa

For our client, this shift marked an important step in their journey to become a trusted partner in Africa’s digital transformation. They are now more embedded in local ecosystems and better positioned to contribute to policy, capacity-building, and collaborative innovation. For the countries involved, this was an opportunity to access global expertise through a more inclusive, locally aligned model, one that respects sovereignty, values co-creation, and builds toward more secure digital futures.

Africa Practice’s View: Relationships drive resilience

Trust travels further than technology. Building meaningful partnerships requires time, contextual understanding, and genuine commitment to local priorities. When international organisations engage with humility and long-term vision, they can make meaningful contributions to the continent’s digital resilience.

Africa’s digital resilience will be shaped not just by the tools it adopts, but by the relationships it builds. And we’re proud to help foster the kind of partnerships that make those relationships possible.

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