The MijiBora DPI Side Event was held on 3 November 2025 from 9am - 4pm in Cape Town, South Africa. The event was co-hosted by Open Cities Lab and eGov Foundation with funding and support from UK Government.

• Read the narrative summary of the side event here
• Find the agenda of the day here

Introduction: Why DPI and Why Municipalities

Open Cities Lab (OCL), in partnership with eGov Foundation and with funding support from the UK Government, convened the MijiBora DPI Side Event on the sidelines of the Global DPI Summit to inspire municipalities about the possibilities of Digital Public Infrastructure (DPI). Our aim was to spark practical, context-driven conversations on how DPI can strengthen core municipal functions, from trade and revenue services to systems integration and urban resilience. The event also served to position MijiBora as OCL’s platform for supporting African cities on their digital transformation journeys, grounded in real use cases, peer learning, and locally driven solutions.

The side event brought together 53 participants, including 21 municipal officials from 10 municipalities from across 4 South African Provinces. They were joined by a diverse group of ecosystem partners representing the full spectrum of the digital transformation landscape including implementers, funders, policy actors, researchers, and technical specialists. This depth and diversity of representation made the side event one of the strongest city-facing sessions across the Summit.

View the full list of participants here.

What Happened in the Room

Opening remarks

Josephine Hetherington (Head of Economic Development, UK Foreign, Commonwealth and Development Office of South Africa) opened the session by reaffirming the UK’s long-standing partnership with South Africa on data and digital transformation. Her remarks highlighted:

• The UK’s own digital transformation journey and the relevance of those lessons for South Africa.
• How evidence-based planning has shaped tangible impact — from Cape Town’s water crisis to economic recovery efforts during COVID.
• The importance of data access and interoperability for improving services, strengthening institutional resilience, and supporting economic development.
• The need to prioritise high-impact investments, given the current global funding climate.
• The UK’s support for inclusive DPI and local government capacity through partners such as Open Cities Lab.

Her framing set the stage for a day focused on practicality, collaboration, and municipal leadership.

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“Good data makes it intolerable to do nothing” (Josephine Hetherington - Head of Economic Development, FCDO SA)

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