The next phase of the industrial revolution is known as industry 4.0 or the fourth industrial revolution. It is a term that was introduced in 2011 to describe the merging of information, communication, and related technology into production and industry [17]. It is the latest of its kind, shown in Table 1.

There have been four different revolutions. The first industrial revolution (1IR) was characterized by decreased dependence on beasts of burden, giving way to the steam engine and its application in industrial and residential applications. This resulted in railway construction, steel, and the movement of raw materials and finished goods, which improved the quality of life of affected persons and led to urbanization. The second industrial revolution (2IR) lasted from the 1880s to the 1950s. It was characterized by electricity’s discovery, leading to increased production rates and improved communication and other facets of life. The discovery of the personal computer in the early 1950s and the Internet around the 2000s paved the way for the third industrial revolution (3IR) from the 1950s to 2000. The introduction of computing in the industry allowed for significant progress in developing new technologies. This computing capacity made it possible for humans to run relatively complex sets of instructions and even facilitated humanity reaching the surface of the Moon. This development soon enhanced the quality of life of commercial firms with the introduction of personal computers by companies such as IBM and Apple in the 1980s [18]. The term industry 4.0 is used mainly in Europe, especially Germany [19]. The main focus is on industries and related sectors. It is known as the industrial Internet in most of the United States, made famous by General Electric [20]. It is also referred to as integrated industry [21], smart manufacturing [22], and innovative industry [23]. It is a technology that aims to increase productivity, reduce downtime, and speed up production activities [19,24]. Table 2 summarizes some selected continents and their terms used to describe the 4IR.

In some parts of the world, the fourth industrial revolution (4IR) is sweeping across all sectors, from companies to research centers [25]. In Europe and other developed continents, 4IR has become a lullaby and is discussed at every event and meeting [26]. Countries in those continents have included it in their national key developmental initiative [27]. The USA government committed USD 2 billion to it in 2014 [28]. In contrast, Africa seems to be lagging in this instance [29]. Notably, discussion around it is gaining momentum in some countries, especially South Africa. In response to this, President Ramaphosa of South Africa included the 4IR in the national economic strategy [7]. 4IR is the age of global interconnection between technologies in everyday life, such as biological processes, physical infrastructure, and digital architecture [30]. These technologies include intelligent systems, smart machines, gene sequencing, smart energy, nanotechnology, quantum computing, and centralized digital control, such as the so-called “Internet of Things” (IoT) [31].

The key technologies of the Fourth Industrial Revolution (4IR)—accelerating digitalization, artificial intelligence (AI), cloud computing, robotics, and 3D printing—have obvious and important implications for education, employment, and the future of work [32]. This is especially true for African countries. Figure 1 gives the key technologies that characterize the fourth industrial revolution. The figure provides a summary of the technologies that make up the 4IR. The key technologies are discussed here.

Artificial intelligence is the replication of human reasoning in machines. Machines replicate and act similarly to humans, especially in problem-solving, thinking, and learning [33]. An application of AI in daily living is detecting and eliminating bank card fraud by identifying spending patterns. The technology can decode voices and handwriting, among other traits that follow spending patterns. It is already applied in medicine, construction, and big data [34,35,36,37]. The Internet of Things (IoT) links physical items using sensors and software to transmit data across the Internet, mainly via Wi-Fi [38]. Although not all IoT devices require the Internet to function, they must be interfaced with other devices. It is used in smart homes, connected appliances, biometric scanners, and innovative factory equipment [39,40]. The purpose is for the device to feed data without manual human intervention. Examples include Google Home, Amazon Alexa, and baby monitors.

Furthermore, 3D printing, also known as additive manufacturing, converts computer-aided objects into reality, especially 3-dimensional objects [41]. The materials are built layer by layer until the final thing is formed. The object to be printed is first constructed or modeled using computer-aided tools. Recently, several entities have been fabricated using 3D printers. It finds application in medicine for printing human organs, building, and other sectors [42].

Cloud computing provides computer resources such as data storage, software, servers, and computing resources on demand and made available over the Internet [43,44]. However, quantum computing uses the principle of quantum theory to perform calculations [45]. It differs from conventional computers that use 1 s or 0 s, but quantum computing uses the object state before measurement [46]. This allows quantum computing to perform exponentially compared to conventional computing. Robotics are machines built by combining technology, mathematics, engineering, and science [47]. This machine performs tasks hitherto tricky and sometimes dangerous for humans. Robots have been deployed for several applications, including surgery and manufacturing [48,49,50,51,52,53].

The fourth industrial revolution is gaining momentum across different parts of the world. However, the same cannot be said concerning Africa. Despite the claim that 4IR has a high penetration rate globally, some countries still lack some of the main features of the 2IR and 3IR. About 66.67% of the world population is behind the 2IR, as they lack access to electricity [54]. Similarly, 50% of the world population needs to catch up on the 3IR due to a lack of access to the Internet [55]. Africa and some parts of India and Asia account for the bulk of these figures [56], although some momentum is being gathered in parts of South Africa and Kenya. In these two countries, the emphasis of the 4IR is focused on education, entrepreneurship, the national economy, and manufacturing. Fwaya and Kesa [57] examined the implication of the 4IR on hotel businesses in South Africa and Kenya. Their study argued that hotels in the two countries benefit from 4IR in revenue and exposure via social media usage. However, the need for regulation of the 4IR features and unpredictable aspects of the 4IR poses a real challenge to the sector. Waghid and Waghid [58] researched advancing cosmopolitan education in Africa regarding 4IR. Their study believed that the best route to actualize the 4IR is by implementing and tapping into technologies of previous IRs, especially electricity and the Internet.

Kayembe and Nel [31] used unobtrusive methods to examine the challenges and windows of opportunities available to education in South Africa with 4IR. Their study identified a lack of adequate infrastructure, skill shortage, and funding as significant factors mitigating the success of 4IR. However, the 4IR offers an opportunity for global participation in collaborative partnerships and the digital economy. Naudé [59] did comprehensive work on the link between entrepreneurship, education, and 4IR. Their paper suggested that consented efforts must be given to entrepreneurship and education for Africa to benefit from the 4IR.

However, in line with Kayembe and Nel’s [31] assertions, implementing 4IR with existing infrastructure in African countries needs to be tempered and observed. This is especially true in the case of industrial energy generation and provision levels. Specifically, the transmission and distribution infrastructure is sparsely distributed outside countries like Nigeria, Ghana, and sub-Saharan Africa, often focusing entirely on capital cities. Rural areas often depend more on decentralized, or local, generation and electricity provided by fossil fuel. These include diesel for electricity and coal or wood for domestic heating and cooking.

Energy consumption is also limited by the availability of suitably sized off-takers, with most being relatively rudimentary, such as open-pit mining, small-scale materials processing, and logging. Therefore, despite a substantial influx of funds from IFCs (international finance corporations) and local financial institutions, the introduction of energy, more specifically renewable energy, in the African context needs to be carefully considered, as the production of power cannot be viewed on a stand-alone basis. The key features of the 4IR include the shift in population, shift in mass production, and rise of the sophisticated transportation system. Population shift will occur at the height of the 4IR. Furthermore, mass production will shift by deploying advanced technologies such as robotics and 3D printing. A whole building will be completed within a short time using these technologies [60]. There will also be a shift in transportation and power. A high-speed transportation system will be deployed, and goods and humans will move faster and in large quantities. Electric cars will replace fossil-fuel-based vehicles [61].