Propelling Africa’s digital future: Sentech Africa Tech Week 2026 returns to Cape Town

A cornerstone of this year’s event is the continued partnership with Sentech, proudly returning as Platinum Sponsor. This ongoing collaboration reflects Sentech’s sustained commitment to advancing connectivity and sovereign AI, strengthening digital infrastructure, and enabling inclusive technological progress across South Africa and the broader continent.

As governments digitise public services, enterprises accelerate AI adoption, and connectivity expands beyond urban centres, the focus shifts from whether Africa will digitise to how it will be achieved. Sentech Africa Tech Week 2026 brings together the leaders shaping that future.

The two-day programme focuses on the foundational pillars of Africa’s digital future, including:

• Resilient continental infrastructure: From 5G and 6G networks to satellite connectivity and data centers, building Africa’s digital backbone.
  
• Responsible AI and data governance: Scaling artificial intelligence safely, ethically, and profitably.
  
• Cyber and financial system security: Protecting Africa’s digital economy and sovereignty in a rapidly evolving threat landscape.
  
• Energy digitisation and grid intelligence: Smart grids, IoT, and digital tools transforming energy management.
  
• Industrial automation and smart supply chains: Leveraging robotics and AI for faster, more adaptive operations.
  
• Inclusive digital participation: FinTech, skills development, expanded connectivity, and platforms like the Pitching Den, enabling startups and entrepreneurs to drive economic inclusion across Africa.

Unlike startup expos or developer-focused conferences, the Sentech Africa Tech Week Conference 2026 is a leadership forum where policy meets platform and infrastructure meets industry. The programme moves beyond theory, focusing on applied technologies, regulatory alignment, and commercial scalability across sectors.

A key feature of the event is the Africa Tech Week Pitching Den, where selected startups will present their solutions to a panel of investors, industry leaders, and potential partners. This platform is designed to accelerate high-impact innovation, offering emerging businesses access to visibility, strategic guidance, and potential funding opportunities.

Startups ready to showcase their solutions and scale their impact can apply here: https://www.surveymonkey.com/r/RJJ37MF

The event will also spotlight excellence across the ecosystem through the Africa Tech Week Awards 2026, recognising organisations and leaders driving measurable impact across technology, infrastructure, and digital innovation.

The Africa Tech Week Awards 2026 will feature a curated set of categories designed to reflect the full spectrum of Africa’s digital economy. These include recognition across Artificial Intelligence, Cybersecurity, Digital Infrastructure, FinTech Innovation, Emerging Technologies, and Enterprise Digital Transformation, alongside awards dedicated to standout startups, scale-ups, and visionary leadership.

Each category is aligned to the core themes of Africa Tech Week, ensuring that recognition is not only celebratory but strategically relevant to the continent’s most pressing technological advancements. Category sponsorship opportunities are available for organisations looking to align their brand with innovation leadership, offering partners direct association with excellence in their respective sectors.

Judged by a panel of industry experts, business leaders, and technology specialists, the awards maintain a rigorous and credible evaluation process, ensuring that winners represent true impact, scalability, and innovation within Africa’s tech ecosystem.

“Africa’s digital transformation will not be built on innovation alone,” said Ralf Fletcher, CEO of Topco Media. “It will require trust, governance, investment, and collaboration across borders and sectors. Africa Tech Week is where those conversations happen, and where the architects of Africa’s digital backbone come together to design what comes next.”

“What matters now is execution at scale, turning policy into platforms and infrastructure into real economic opportunity,” said the CEO of Sentech, Tebogo Leshope. “Sentech Africa Tech Week creates a space where decisions are accelerated, partnerships are formed, and practical solutions are advanced to support a more competitive and self-sustaining digital ecosystem.”

Sponsors and partners

Sentech Africa Tech Week Conference 2026 is made possible through the support of its partners:

• Platinum Sponsor: Sentech
  
• Host City Partner: City Of Cape Town
  
• Silver Sponsor: Telkom, LexisNexis
  
• Bronze Sponsor: iOCO Technology Group
  
• Breakaway Workshop: Jumo
  
• Activation Sponsor: Zoho
  
• Coffee Cafe Sponsor: ZA Registry Consortium (ZARC)
  
• Showcase Counters: 4IRI, BoxFusion, Take Note IT, Eyelook, Vision-AI.tech
  
• VIP Client Hosting Sponsor: NEMISA NPC
  
• Silver Impact Sponsor: Q-KON

Sentech Africa Tech Week Conference 2026 takes place at CTICC 2, Cape Town, on 12–13 May 2026. For more information, programme details, and registration, visit https://lp.topco.co.za/africatechweek/.

Entries for the Africa Tech Week Awards 2026 are now open. Organisations, startups, and leaders shaping Africa’s digital future are invited to submit their nominations and position themselves among the continent’s most influential innovators.

To enter or explore category sponsorship opportunities, visit: https://lp.topco.co.za/atw_awards