4IR isn't over. It's just getting local... being typed, coded, and built — in rural and urban areas, by the young and old, alike.
Why This Reflection Now: The Question That Sparked It All
During the recent seminar at the University of Johannesburg, I found myself wrestling with a question posed—directly or indirectly—by the flow of our discussion: Why are we still talking about the Fourth Industrial Revolution (4IR), when the world has seemingly made a great leap toward artificial intelligence (AI)?
This wasn't a rhetorical question — it was a real-time reckoning. For a moment, I questioned whether 4IR had been overtaken by events, by progress, by the current obsession with AI. But very quickly, it became clear to me: 4IR is not a trend we outgrow. It is the ecosystem within which AI, and other innovations, find meaning.
If we stop talking about 4IR too early, we risk leaving society behind. We risk narrowing our lens to one tool — however powerful — instead of understanding the broader transformation underway.
Returning to UJ: A Call for Vision and Urgency
That's why, as part of my participation in the University of Johannesburg Seminar, for the 20th anniversary of the School of Public Management, Governance and Public Policy, I knew my contribution could not be about nostalgia. It had to be about framing the future. Because the future is not just arriving — it's being built, layer by layer, and governance must rise to meet its complexity.
Beyond Buzzwords: What 4IR Really Means
The Fourth Industrial Revolution represents a systemic shift in how we live, work and govern. Its hallmark is the fusion of digital, physical and biological systems — AI, yes, but also blockchain, robotics, biotechnology, quantum computing and more.
AI is a catalyst. But 4IR is the context. It is not about one invention or industry. It is about the transformation of our institutions, our systems, and our very way of thinking. To reduce the conversation to AI alone is to ignore the institutional scaffolding that must support it — from ethics and inclusion, to education and law.
"We must shape our own digital destiny. Not as users of technology — but as makers of meaning in the digital age." — Dr Malusi Gigaba
Africanising the Digital Future
We must begin by asserting this: 4IR must be Africanised.
We can no longer afford to be passive recipients of foreign technologies shaped by priorities not our own. Our frameworks, our languages, our histories — these must anchor how we imagine digital futures. An Africanised 4IR is not simply about localisation; it is about sovereignty, about shaping a digital future that reflects the soul of our continent.
This means embedding our technologies with ubuntu, ethics, and people-centred design. It means resisting extractive models of innovation and instead investing in platforms that return value to the communities they serve. It means being unapologetic in our demand that Africa is not just a user of tech, but a maker of meaning in the digital age.
Equitable Access Is Foundational
But for this to be realised, we must confront the dual challenge: technological access and democratic participation.
Across our continent, millions remain excluded — not only from internet access or digital tools, but from decision-making spaces that affect their lives. We cannot leapfrog into 4IR without first laying the groundwork of equitable access. Broadband must be public infrastructure. Digital literacy must be a public right.
"Digital justice begins with digital access. Without it, there is no inclusion, only deepening inequality."
Governance Must Be Participatory
Our governance systems, too, must evolve. The state must lead in designing mechanisms that empower marginalised communities to actively participate in policymaking and service delivery. Whether through open-data platforms, civic tech tools or participatory budgeting, we must place power in the hands of the people — not only to be governed, but to co-govern.
Protecting Citizens in a Digital Era
This is especially critical in a time where algorithmic bias, surveillance capitalism, and data colonialism threaten to entrench old inequalities under the guise of innovation. We must build safeguards — legally, ethically and institutionally — that protect our citizens' rights in the digital era.
"Without ethical foundations, innovation becomes exploitation."
4IR Is a Moral Question
At the seminar, I made the case that 4IR is not a purely technological conversation — it is one about governance, inclusion, and values. However, in reflecting further after the event, I came to see this even more clearly: the Fourth Industrial Revolution forces us to ask deeper moral questions about power, access and agency.
We need engineers, yes — but we also need philosophers, educators, activists and traditional leaders at the table. If we are to build resilient, responsive public institutions, we must widen the circle of who counts as a knowledge bearer.
This reflection is not just about the seminar itself, but about the journey forward. In the face of accelerating AI advances, it has become even more urgent to ensure that our digital transitions are people-centred, justice-driven, and ethically grounded.
Building Accountable Partnerships
And let us be honest: the public sector cannot do this alone. We need partnerships — with academia, with civil society, with innovators. But those partnerships must be accountable to the public good. Technology must support service delivery, not replace the human being. It must empower our communities, not marginalise them further.
Public Service Ethos Still Matters
This is why I continue to believe in the power of a public service ethos. Of leadership that is tested, reformed, and ready to rebuild. A generation of young Africans is watching — asking not only whether they will have jobs in the future, but whether they will have agency. Whether they will be heard, counted, and respected in the systems we are building.
"Young Africans are not just the future — they are the co-authors of the present."
A Future Built, Not Predicted
So let us not leave the future to chance. Let us roll up our sleeves. Let us draw from our traditions and speak to the present with the courage of those who believe the best is yet to come. Because the future is not an accident.
It must be imagined. It must be debated. It must be built.
By us. For us. With the world watching.
“The future is not an accident.”
Dr Malusi Gigaba is a Scholar-Statesman, an ANC NEC Member, a former Cabinet Minister of the Republic of South Africa, and a Member of Parliament.