For decades, the "Headquarters" of global tech thought leadership has been geographically fixed. Whether in the boardrooms of Silicon Valley or the policy hubs of Brussels, the narrative has remained stagnant: the North thinks, and the South implements. In this legacy system, African experts have been relegated to "local partners," informants providing raw data and cultural translations for "Global" reports.
But as the digital economy matures, a radical relocation is underway. The headquarters of global tech insight is moving to the very markets where technology is being most aggressively tested, adapted, and reinvented.
The extractive pattern: A legacy of intellectual mining:
The foundation of this shift is built upon a recent searing critique popularized by Alice Munyua, a preeminent voice in global digital policy. She identifies a pervasive "extractive consulting pattern," a digital-age form of resource depletion.
This pattern functions by dangling "opportunities" before Global South experts: invitations to "collaborate," "informal chats," or "partnership surveys."
In reality, these are often traps for intellectual extraction. The African professional provides the nuanced understanding of spectrum politics or fintech barriers, only for a Northern entity to package this into a "Global Best Practice" report, claiming the intellectual high ground and the lion’s share of the economic value.
Symbolic resignation from 'Token Local' role:
Across the continent, we are witnessing a quiet but firm resignation. This is not a resignation from the work, but from the subordinate status implied by the term "local partner." This shift demands a rejection of "exposure" as a valid currency. Professionals are recognizing that their insight is not a "local nuance" but a primary authority.
When a Nigerian tech lead refuses an unpaid consultation with a global think tank, they are not just declining a meeting; they are relocating the center of authority. They are asserting that the expert in the room is no longer the one with the foreign passport, but the one with the localized mastery.
Context as new premium commodity:
To finalize this relocation, the Global South must treat its knowledge as a hard asset. We must stop viewing international interest as a "favor." In a world of generative artificial intelligence (AI) and automated code, the human context of how tech interacts with society; the specialty of the Southern expert, is the most valuable commodity in the market.
Northern entities are increasingly the ones seeking access to our expertise to remain relevant in a globalized economy. The extractive pattern only survives as long as we allow our intellectual property to be treated as raw material.
The ITREALMS verdict:
The relocation of the headquarters of insight is not a request; it is a reality. The Global North is no longer the sole proprietor of "best practices." From mobile money to community-led fiber deployment, the Global South is setting the global pace. It is time for our experts to stop acting like branch managers of foreign thought leadership and start acting like the CEOs of global insight.
The "extractive pattern" is a legacy system that only survives through our participation. By treating our localized knowledge as a premium commodity, we break the cycle.
The headquarters has moved. The authority is local. The value is ours to keep.
- Editorial@ITREALMS Online (www.itrealms.com.ng)
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