Co-Develop Survey reveals DPI could unlock Africa's next generation of entrepreneurs

Findings across six African markets show that secure digital payment and identification systems could power trade and lower barriers to start and grow businesses

CAPE TOWN, South Africa, Nov. 5, 2025 /PRNewswire/ -- As leaders gather for the Global DPI Summit 2025, Co-Develop today released new survey findings on public perceptions of digital public infrastructure (DPI) across six African markets. The results highlight the potential for DPI to power entrepreneurship, connect markets, and expand access to jobs.

The Ipsos online survey spanned Ethiopia, Kenya, Nigeria, South Africa, Tanzania, and Uganda, exploring how people experience and perceive DPI, and what that means for business growth, trade, and employment opportunities.

CV Madhukar, CEO of Co-Develop, said:

"These survey findings reveal what we have long believed: trust is the foundation on which everything else builds. When 82% say they will share data if they understand what is being shared and why, they are setting the terms; transparency, agency, and proven safeguards. Countries are making critical infrastructure decisions right now that will shape digital participation for decades. The question isn't whether to build digital systems, but how to build them as foundational public infrastructure that works for everyone. At Co-Develop, we work as bridge-builders to ensure Africa builds DPI that reflects African priorities and protects African citizens. People are ready. Now we must prove we can deliver infrastructure that lives up to their trust."

Key findings

• DPI could unlock entrepreneurship. Over four in ten respondents (42%) say the ability to accept secure digital payments would encourage them to start a new business or expand their current business; and one in three (33%) selected digital identity verification of buyers and sellers as a factor that would encourage them. These were selected from a list of 19 factors that could drive entrepreneurship, with the most-selected answers being better knowledge about running a business (45%) and greater knowledge of market demand (44%).
• DPI could spur trade and connect markets. Among current and aspiring business owners, over half (55%) say that payment systems (i.e., using digital services to make money transactions easy) would encourage them to buy or sell products or services outside their local area. 48% say stronger fraud protection through digital verification systems would encourage them to expand their trading reach. Alongside payment systems, the other most-selected answer from the list of 10 options was the ability to buy and sell on social media, selected by 55% of respondents.
• DPI could help businesses create more jobs. 82% of respondents agree digital services and platforms can help people like them find new or better jobs, underscoring DPI's potential to widen access to income and employment opportunities.
• Applying a DPI approach helps build the trust that makes safe and inclusive digital transformation possible. 82% of respondents say they would be willing to share their data as long as they understand what is being shared and why. The very features respondents say would make them feel more comfortable sharing their data when using digital systems are those that a DPI approach embeds by design: protection from fraud and scams (67%), control over personal data (61%), and clear, transparent rules on its use (60%).

Note to editors

Digital public infrastructure (DPI) refers to foundational, re-usable digital building blocks – such as digital payments, ID, and data sharing – designed for the public benefit.

This framing aligns with the World Bank Group's approach to DPI (" Digital Public Infrastructure and Development: A World Bank Group Approach ", March 2025)

About the survey

This release references the combined country average from the six markets surveyed after the individual markets' results are weighted in the combined data to give equal share to each. The findings are drawn from an online Ipsos survey, conducted on behalf of Brunswick Group for Co-Develop, of an urban representative sample of online adults aged 16-65 in South Africa (n=1,000), aged 16-60 in Nigeria and Kenya (n=1,000 per market), and aged 16-50 in Uganda, Ethiopia, and Tanzania (n=500 in each of these three markets). Fieldwork took place October 3^rd – October 18^th, 2025. In each market, the sample obtained is representative of the population with quotas on age, gender, region, and working status. The data has been weighted to the known offline population proportions for age within gender, region, and working status, to reflect the adult populations of each market.

About Co-Develop

Co-Develop is a global nonprofit fund accelerating the adoption of safe and inclusive shared digital public infrastructure (DPI) at scale. Answering the call to promote the deployment of DPI in 50 countries building DPI in the next five years, Co-Develop makes strategic investments to unlock bottlenecks in safe and inclusive DPI adoption by countries and build an evidence base to understand the impact of DPI. More information here: https://www.codevelop.fund/.

About the Global DPI Summit 2025 (November 4^th – 6^th)

The Global DPI Summit is the largest convening on digital public infrastructure that brings together key stakeholders in the global DPI community across the public, private, and civil society sectors. It showcases the progress that countries are making in leveraging DPI thinking, the breadth and depth of the ecosystem, and the potential partnerships that countries can draw upon for their implementation journeys. More information here: https://www.globaldpisummit.org/.

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SOURCE Co-Develop