The rapid growth of blockchain technology in Africa will lead to the continent owning at least 30% of the total market share by 2028, estimated at US$134.9 billion
- DAO is an upcoming legal structure that essentially seeks to incorporate the decentralized nature of blockchain into business
- The decentralized nature of DAO allowed multiple communities to interconnect and build great organizations regardless of their country of origin
- The rapid growth of blockchain technology in Africa will lead to the continent owning at least 30% of the total market share by 2028, estimated at US$134.9 billion
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As blockchain technology in Africa continues to progress in the form of cryptocurrency, innovators are finding a new and improved way of applying this revolutionary technology in other sectors. The African ecosystem, especially, has embraced this new-found technology quite rapidly. So much, so that blockchain in business is slowly becoming mainstream giving rise to the DAO technology. In retrospect, blockchain in business differs from applying it as a financial system. Generally, it creates a decentralized business structure that fundamentally forgoes the traditional business structure.
How has DAO impacted Africa so far?
How have Decentralized Autonomous Organizations changed the African crypto ecosystem? Has it left a revolutionary mark, just like cryptocurrency, or are developers simply stretching the limits of blockchain’s applicability? Here are a few facts that will guide you to conclude one or the other.
Understanding DAO technology and its nature in business
DAO, or Decentralized Autonomous Organizations, are upcoming legal structures that essentially seek to incorporate the decentralized nature of blockchain in business. Traditional business structure is well known. It’s the basis of centralization, where there is a hierarchy system. To reach the top level, you must pass through all its levels. In DAO, members of an organization share a common goal, thus bringing together a group of individuals with the entity’s best interest.
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Innovators brought this notion of a decentralized business stricture. This is mainly due to the various successes of blockchain applications such as cryptocurrencies and NFT. For too long, individuals thought that a central leader was required to run an operation successfully, but with blockchain now running the show, it has transformed the viewpoint of many.
History of DAO
The notion of blockchain in business did not just appear from thin air. A team called Slock.it Coined the very first notion of a decentralized business structure. The team had struggled to raise funds for various Web3 projects and opted to build a crowd-funding smart contract but upgraded it by programming in fundamental voting rights and ownership.
Thus its users would invest their crypto coins in Slock.it and receive a toke representative of not just their initial investment to acquire traditional dividends, trading and appreciation/depreciation. Still, that token amount was proportionate to their ownership of the total fund.
This the first representation of a DAO was born. Its mechanisms and fundamental principles led to many organizations imprinting the very concept of DAO into their business. Essentially DAO technology represented a revolutionary piece of fintech. This was the birthplace of the decentralized business structure that allowed an organization to function without the complex structure that most businesses have.
How does DAO technology fit in the Africa’s crypto ecosystem
To understand the concept of DAO technology in Africa’s ecosystem, we must first see what difference DAO technology means for the traditional business structure.
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Advantages
The most noticeable feature of a decentralized business structure is its core functionality of decentralization. We cannot display that the traditional business structure has had several, if not multiple, success stories. However, with the current economic growth and the automation of more systems, the whole business stricture of the globe is about to shift drastically.
When looking at the decision-making within an organization, it mainly revolves around a select few individuals who make it. This centralized view of authority significantly disadvantages all other entities within the organization. DAO technology brings in the concept of applying blockchain technology within the decision-making process of a business.
Every participant within an organization has some sense of authority in the decision-making. One of the critical factors of success for any business is the involvement of all employees. Successful organizations ominating the global market, such as Microsoft and Google, believe this.
DAO technology brings about some sense of participation. Looking at the employee’s perspective, involvement in massive decision-making within na business brings a sense of belonging. Doctors and psychologists have proven that some sense of participation will likely yield more productivity since it brings some sense of responsibility and belonging. Blockchain in business encourages token holders to cast votes, burn tokens, and use them in ways they think are best.
One of the crucial features leading to the success of blockchain in Africa is its immutable and transparent nature. Various organizations have shut down due to their operations’ shady and untrustworthy nature. This makes some decisions in a business more open through the majority of votes.
DAO bring in the sense of community. The ability to create a decentralized business structure also means that the business can fully function regardless s of the geographic positioning. This encourages incredible ingenuity and diversity within a business structure.
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The intertwining
All these advantages are beneficial within Africa’s ecosystem. Anyone who has spent enough time in Africa is bound to realize its ecosystem is filled with entrepreneurs with revolutionary concepts and money-making ideas. According to Roland Berger, Africa has one of the highest percentages of entrepreneurs overall and the highest percentage of female entrepreneurs of any continent. The harsh environment of various economies has led to the realization that a standard job is not enough.
Thus numerous successful organizations root their birthplace back in Africa. DAO technology made things much more accessible in numerous terms. The decentralized nature allowed multiple communities to interconnect and build great organizations regardless of the native country. The Decentralized business structure tore down the notion and corrupt nature of various businesses within Africa.
Today each entrepreneur within a decentralized business structure can work comfortably and efficiently, knowing their contributions matter and they have a say within the organization. Aside from that, blockchain technology in Africa is rapidly growing. According to Cointrust, the rapid growth of blockchain technology in Africa will lead to the continent owning at least 30% of the total market share by 2028, estimated at $134.9 billion.
The diverse nature of Africa has led to multiple organizations operating for a decentralized business structure. As blockchain in business grows, so does its applicability in other sectors.
Existing businesses in Africa utilising blockchain
There are a variety of decentralized business structures fully functioning within Africa’s ecosystem. They are among the few organizations that genuinely embrace the concept of blockchain in businesses.
- Afriguild – is a blockchain gaming guild turned DAO with a dream of onboarding 100 million Africans into Web3. It has actively deployed numerous Web3 learning programs and blockchain communities across African tertiary institutes to achieve its goals. Its primary purpose is to drive financial inclusion and empowerment across Africa’s ecosystem. It is among the few organizations that will ultimately integrate DAO technology. They intend to adopt a decentralized business structure through its CArdano-based AFRI token. Their team announced its investment into a seed funding round for Afriguild in late July 2022.
- Cassava Network – This is a blockchain network in Africa that connects all developers and users to Web3. Its native toke CSV token allows the organization to transform any web application into a crypto-enabled app. Cassava Network announced its interest in shifting to a decentralized business structure in May 2022. This would allow CSV holders to gain access to a range of additional benefits brought by the DAO technology, such as voting rights that will govern the transition of Cassava Network to DAO.
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Conclusion
The concept of blockchain in business led to the application of DAO technology. This concept has revolutionized the business world in Africa. Despite this, the transition from a traditional to a decentralized business structure may take some tie as only a select few governments within Africa’s ecosystem have embraced crypt currency. Nonetheless, blockchain technology in Africa is still a hot topic as more innovators seek to attain a
