By 
The African edition of World Cyber Security Summit convened over 300 online participants from South Africa, Kenya, Nigeria, Ghana, Egypt, Ethiopia Morocco, Uganda, Zimbabwe, Mauritius and Botswana; that included high-profile CISOs, Cyber Security leaders and visionaries alongside cyber security experts and influencers from global enterprises.
Thursday, 03 June 2021: Africa played host to a content-rich virtual conference on Monday. Hosted by Trescon, World Cyber Security Summit featured leading speakers from organisations such as Federal Democratic Republic of Ethiopia Ministry of Innovation and Technology, Ministry of ICT, Innovation and Youth Affairs, Council for Scientific and Industrial Research (CSIR), iAfrikan Media, Darktrace, Nanjgel Solutions and Accops among others to discuss Africa’s cyber security prospects.
“Shifting online has raised the possibility of opening business-critical data to internal and external risks; making data protection on employee endpoint devices more relevant. Hence cyber security leaders play an important role in today’s business. They are going beyond home markets, thinking digital-first, and leveraging technology to solve problems at scale for industries around the world.”, stated Mithun Shetty, CEO, Trescon. He further added, “Virtual events are an excellent opportunity for everyone in the industry to come together and do business during these difficult times.“
Highlights and key takeaways from World Cyber Security Summit:
Dr. Ahmedin M Ahmed (Ph.D.), the State Minister at the Ministry of Innovation and Technology, Ethiopia delivered real-world insights and pragmatic advice to the attendees. He also shed light on the reasons for increasing cyber threats and the importance of infrastructural development in Africa. He focused on developing continual roadmaps using the Agenda 2063 framework and listed various projects and programs underway.
While speaking about the integrated digital revolution, he stated that “Africa is trying to have an integrated digital revolution and it is visible on the agenda 2063. Africa’s development includes digital revolution as one of its strategic pillars.”
A tech talk featuring Mariana Pereira, Director of Email Security Products, Darktrace, spoke about how machines need to understand, respond, detect, and protect the users from the effects of offensive AI and impersonation attacks. She shared actual examples of how attackers get past the legacy security solutions and discussed about the future threats by cyberattacks.
She stated, “There is no doubt in my mind that AI will dramatically shape and continue to change the cyber security landscape for attackers as well as defenders”
In a panel discussion on the topic ‘Cyber security framework and strategies for the African Government Authorities’ moderated by Tefo Mohapi – CEO, IAfrikan Media, Republic of South Africa, the panellists discussed key topics such as:
- Legal framework and strategies to fight cybercrime in Africa
- Enhancing Oversight of Cybersecurity within African Critical Infrastructure
- Cyber Security for Smart Cities: Advanced technologies for citizens’ safety and much more.
The panellists who joined this discussion were:
- Richard M. Kiarie, Principal ICT Officer/Head, Policy and Research Unit, Ministry of ICT, Innovation and Youth Affairs, Republic of Kenya;
- Themba Mnguni – Deputy Director, IT Audit, Department of Rural Development and Land Reform, Republic of South Africa; and
- Arnold Mangeni – Director Information Security, National Information Technology Authority, Uganda.
The summit also featured a tech talk by Vijender Yadav, CEO, CTO & Co-Founder, Accops where he spoke about ‘Re-defining Cyber Security with a Compliant Hybrid Workspace’
And, a cross-industry panel discussion on Cyber Security trends and crucial security strategies for sectors and enterprises that included speakers:
- Bassam Touma, Business Development, Shelt Global Ltd;
- Faheem Ali, Chief Risk Officer, Musoni, Kenya;
- Ashish Khanna, Information Security Specialist & Strategic Advisor to the CISO, Dubai Health Authority;
- Alice Namuli Blazevic, Partner – Head of Innovation and Technology, Kantede Advocates;
- Karthik A , Chief Evangelist, ManageEngine;
- Mariana Pereira, Director of Email Security Products, Darktrace; and moderated by
- Fene Oskawe, Director, Group IT-GRC & Strategy, IHS Towers, Nigeria.
Other top speakers who joined the conversation included:
- Confidence Staveley, Cyber Security Evangelist, Top 50 Women in Cyber Security Africa 2020 Finalist; Founder, Cybersafe, Nigeria;
- Muyowa Mutemwa, Cyber Security Operations Manager and Senior Cyber Security Specialist, Council of Scientific and Industrial Research, Republic of South Africa;
- Humphrey Odhiambo, Head of Partnerships & Content, CIO East Africa, Kenya;
- Naresh Kumar, Director – Regional Sales Development, EMT Distribution META;
- Yusein Shen, Partner Account Manager, Progress;
- Stanley Mwangi Chege, Group CIO, Jubilee Insurance, Kenya; and
- Winnie Sergon, Head of ICT and Innovation, Boresha Sacco Society, Kenya; to name a few.
The summit was hosted on the virtual events platform Vmeets which helped the participants to network and conduct business in an interactive and immersive virtual environment. Participants were also able to engage with speakers in Q&A sessions and network with solution providers in virtual exhibition booths, private consultation rooms and private networking rooms.
The World Cyber Security Summit – Africa was officially sponsored by Platinum Sponsor – Nanjgel Solutions and Accops; Gold Sponsors – emt Distribution FZ-LLC and Progress Software Corporation; Silver Sponsor – ManageEngine and SHELT.
About World Cyber Security Summit
World Cyber Security Summit is a thought-leadership driven, business-focused initiative that provides a platform for CISOs who are looking to explore new-age threats and the technologies/strategies to mitigate them.
For further details about the announcement, please contact:
Karthik A – Marketing Lead
Comments