2026-01-30 –, Machankura
The session reframes Bitcoin mining not as speculation, but as productive digital infrastructure — particularly relevant to Southern Africa’s energy challenges and opportunities.
Using real-world examples and Braiins’ experience supporting miners globally, the talk will explore how Bitcoin mining can help monetize surplus and renewable energy, support private power generation, stabilize grids, and create skilled jobs — with specific reference to South Africa, Zambia, and the broader SADC region.
Southern Africa faces a defining challenge of our time: abundant energy potential constrained by grid instability, underutilized generation, and limited access to global capital. From load-shedding in Zambia, South Africa to surplus hydro and renewables elsewhere in the region, the question is no longer whether energy exists — but how it can be effectively monetized.
This session reframes Bitcoin mining as critical digital infrastructure, rather than speculation. Bitcoin mining operates as a flexible, location-agnostic buyer of energy, capable of monetizing surplus and renewable power, supporting private generation, and converting local electricity into globally traded digital value.
Drawing on real-world deployments and operational insights from emerging markets, the talk explores how mining can contribute to grid resilience, skilled job creation, and foreign-currency revenue generation across South Africa, Zambia, and the wider Southern African region. The session also addresses the importance of transparency, open systems, and responsible regulation in ensuring mining delivers long-term public benefit.
Attendees will leave with a practical, grounded understanding of how Bitcoin mining can support Africa’s energy transition while strengthening economic and financial sovereignty.
Dr. Laban Mwansa is Business Development Associate – Africa Region at Braiins, where he works on advancing Bitcoin adoption, mining infrastructure, and strategic partnerships across emerging markets in Africa. Prior to joining Braiins, he consulted with financial institutions on establishing Project Management Offices (PMOs) and aligning projects and programs with organizational strategy. He is a co-founder of Betaways Innovation Systems, where he led consulting engagements and corporate training in industry best practices, including Agile project management. He previously served as Head of Computer Engineering at the Cape Peninsula University of Technology in Cape Town and was also a PeopleCert Ambassador for ITIL and PRINCE2. With over a decade of experience across technology, portfolio and program management, and digital transformation, his work focuses on Bitcoin adoption, financial inclusion, and building resilient economic systems across Africa.