Why African countries need to boost their domain authority

That the Nigeria Internet Registration Association (NiRA), the organisation in charge of managing Nigeria’s country code Top Level Domain (ccTLD) the .ng, has reduced the cost of the domain name by 40 per cent is something we should celebrate.

This means it will now be more affordable for businesses to create websites which will see many sites populate Nigeria’s identity in cyberspace.

The most recent NiRA statistics on .ng domain name registration, renewal, and restoration, published in February, show a declining trend, with figures dropping from 184,341 in November 2021 to 178,097 in January 2022.

Previously, Nigeria classified registrars as Platinum, Gold, Silver, and Standard, with each category receiving domains at different prices which locked out many businesses that needed online presence.

The removal of these barriers now opens a level playing field for all registrars, something that I strongly feel should be done by all African countries.

New business

Imagine setting up a new business in an African country. The most vital asset for reaching new customers is your domain name. Then what do you do if yours is already taken?

To avoid this situation, it is important to remember to register your domain names with the ccTLDs for the countries in which you are active or are planning to be active in the future.

When it comes to registration, and the right to a domain name, the “first come, first serve” principle applies – which is why it is important that you secure the domains on the markets you are or want to be active on.

More affordable domains in Africa would mean higher pulling power for foreign investments, where global brands and multinationals scramble to set up their e-commerce platforms in the continent.

But the situation right now comes with disjointed progress, with Nigeria, Rwanda, South Africa, Ghana and Kenya leading in domain authority and affordability.

If you travel to these countries, you will find multinational brands such as Uber, KFC, Toyota, Samsung, Huawei, SAP and Sony flourishing because they know the value of the ccTLD in attracting customers.

On the other hand, it is difficult to create landing pages for your product in countries like Benin, Eritrea, Western Sahara, The Gambia, Central Africa Republic, South Sudan and Malawi.

Internet infrastructure

Remember that ccTLD authority is determined by the level of penetration of internet infrastructure, the cost of mobile internet and the rate of smartphone penetration.

The reason why Somalia’s domain ‘.so’ is currently attracting investors is that the government has ensured the internet is as cheap as Sh8 per 1GB of mobile data and smartphones are as affordable as Sh20,000 for a 128GB ROM and 6GB RAM smartphone. That means with a Sh2,000 smartphone, you can access 4G internet the whole day at only Sh8.

I have previously explained why the disparate charges for mobile internet and smartphones are hurting Africa’s growth in the global digital economy.

If only a few African countries have authoritative domains, it means bargaining as a continent will be an uphill task, especially on matters of e-commerce.

But what if, through the African Continental Free Trade Area (Acfcta), all 54 states of Africa agreed to invest in the right modern infrastructure, attract private internet service providers and support each other in an attempt to move with the same speed in the Fourth Industrial Revolution?

Enacting laws that create subsidies in the import of smartphones and creating competition among fibre internet providers would give rise to more affordable mobile internet.

While I commend Nigeria for reducing the cost of domain registrations, the country needs to look at how it can offer more affordable mobile internet to its 70 million internet users. The internet also needs to be stable and fast.

That would translate to more citizens using the internet, populating local content, and more businesses setting up websites to announce their goods or services to the world.

Local content

At the Somali Network Information Centre (SONIC), we are helping the development of the local content and raising awareness and promoting the local dimensions of internet governance related issues in the country.

Remember it is only through publishing more local content that any ccTLD can rank better on Google. We help in the creation and publishing of content both in English and Somali about our own country, and this has seen our domain rank higher on search engines in recent years.

Bolstering domain authority also requires a high number of citizens sharing content on social media platforms such as Facebook, Twitter, Instagram, TikTok and YouTube, and that can only be possible if it is preceded by lower cost of internet and devices.

To show our commitment in improving the way other continents see us, we have to start by admitting that a problem exists, then systematically address the gaps in pursuit of a better Africa.

 Mr Mustafa Sheik is an Executive Director of the Somali Network Information Centre (SONIC)