This chapter analyzes the complex role of mobile technologies in shaping African digital ecosystems between 2015 and 2024 and projects potential trajectories into the future. The chapter challenges oversimplified technological leapfrogging narratives by developing an integrated Mobile-Driven Digital Ecosystem Framework that examines interactions across technology evolution, usage capabilities, institutional arrangements, and developmental outcomes. Through a narrative synthesis of diverse literature sources, the chapter demonstrates how mobile technologies simultaneously bridge certain digital divides while potentially deepening others, creating what we term “bifurcated digital participation.” The analysis reveals distinctive patterns of “adaptive creativity at the edges,” where innovation frequently occurs not in core technologies but in application models, distribution systems, and contextual adaptations. The chapter identifies a shift toward “negotiated sovereignty” approaches where countries increasingly assert control over critical digital domains while selectively engaging with global technology systems. Looking forward, I develop three scenarios—Integrated Digital Transformation, Digital Islands and Divides, and Sovereign Innovation Hubs—that highlight potential trajectories based on key drivers and critical uncertainties. The chapter contributes to technology studies by refining digital ecosystem conceptualization, advancing multi-level digital divide theory, and demonstrating methodological approaches that balance contextual specificity with generalizable insights. The findings have significant implications for policy design, digital inclusion strategies, indigenous innovation approaches, and balancing foreign investment with digital sovereignty in emerging economies.