Our analysis has focused on a specific set
of South African industries and a narrow
set of indicators (jobs, carbon emissions,
lives saved and consumer benefits).
These indicators serve as a proxy to
begin quantifying the value to society
from digital transformation, but they also
lay the foundations for a new platform for
public-private sector dialogue.
Our study reveals that over 51 percent
or R2.9 trillion of value can be created
for society through digitalisation within
key industry sectors and government
services. When viewed together with the
value created for industry, an interesting
picture begins to emerge: market forces
and social forces work together to drive
those initiatives that show high value
potential for industry as well as high
contribution to societal value. These
initiatives require little intervention by
government or regulators to realise
their potential. However, initiatives that
deliver high value to society but relatively
little value to industry may need to be
catalysed by carefully crafted incentives
or approaches.
COMBINING VALUE
TO INDUSTRY WITH
VALUE TO SOCIETY
CASE IN POINT
An example from a WEF and Accenture Digital Transformation of Industries paper
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further illustrates this point: The installation of telematics equipment in cars is not
mandatory in most countries but if stakeholders from industry and government
can agree on an approach that bundles telematics solutions at the point of sale, it
could not only help drive uptake of new usage-based insurance models, but reduce
accidents, save lives and lower costs for consumers. In parts of the world where road
fatalities are particularly high, such as South Africa, the impact can be significant.
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