The African Telecommunications Union (ATU), a specialized agency of the African Union dedicated to telecommunications development, has received a grant from the Internet Corporation for Assigned Names and Numbers (ICANN) to support Africa’s transition from Internet Protocol version 4 (IPv4) to IPv6. This initiative aims to address the rapidly growing demand for internet connectivity and the increasing number of connected devices across the continent.
IPv4, which has been the backbone of internet addressing, uses 32-bit IP addresses, but these are nearly exhausted — limited to about 4.3 billion unique addresses. IPv6, the latest internet protocol, vastly expands this capacity with 128-bit addresses, offering approximately 340 trillion unique addresses — enough to accommodate the exponential growth in connected devices and users.
This transition is particularly critical for Africa, where mobile internet subscribers in sub-Saharan Africa reached 320 million in 2023 and are projected to grow to 528 million by 2030, according to GSMA. Despite this growth, nearly 900 million people remain unconnected, and the number of licensed connected devices is expected to double from 27 million in 2023 to 51 million by 2030. Ensuring sufficient IP addresses via IPv6 is essential to support this digital expansion.
To facilitate this shift, the ATU has developed a strategic framework to assist its member countries in implementing IPv6. The framework also aims to raise awareness of the protocol’s importance in strengthening digital infrastructure and ensuring sustainable internet growth.
However, the adoption rate of IPv6 remains low in Africa, with recent reports from the Asia-Pacific Network Information Centre (APNIC) indicating an IPv6 adoption rate of just 4.46% in Africa — significantly below the global average of around 40%. Addressing this gap is critical to unlocking Africa’s full digital potential and ensuring equitable access to the internet for future generations.
