Toward achieving smart cities in Africa: challenges to data use and the way forward

The advent of smart and digital cities is bringing data to the forefront as a critical resource for addressing the multifaceted transitions faced by African cities from rapid urbanization to the climate crisis. However, this commentary highlights the formidable considerations that must be addressed to realize the potential of data-driven urban planning and management. We argue that data should be viewed as a tool, not a panacea, drawing from our experience in modeling and mapping the accessibility of transport systems in Accra and Kumasi, Ghana. We identify five key considerations, including data choice, imperfections, resource intensity, validation, and data market dynamics, and propose three actionable points for progress: local data sharing, centralized repositories, and capacity-building. While our focus is on Kumasi and Accra, the considerations discussed are relevant to cities across the African continent.