SAAIA-Dubai trade tie-up; Morocco's $20m digital civil registry project
Africa AI News weekly digest...
Good morning, and welcome to this week’s issue of Africa AI News – Weekly News Digest.
Dubai AI week has been sucking up attention with its host of activities, conferences and expos, but not a lot of results, competition winners and news related to the country delegations published as yet.
It sure was busy, though, with announcements of major initiatives and grand projects. Read all about it in the snapshot weekly digest of our sister publication, MiddleEastAINews.com.
We’ve scratched up what we can for now, with follow-up report-back next week from the delegations from Nigeria and South Africa.
There is a palpable sense of unease in the high tech industries, as foreign policy in the US swings from America-first transactional to what could be most kindly described as whimsical. Most notably, US multinationals appear to be pulling in their horns on ambitious programmes in the developing world and refocussing on US local; funding of NGO-led technology and education programmes in Africa abruptly dried up; and foreign direct investment into Africa starts to wobble.
This explains why so much attention is on Dubai AI Week. Dubai has successfully positioned itself as a major centre for AI technology development — massive funding being poured into startups; but also both Dubai and Abu Dhabi government are driving the AI cart hard, implementing it in everything from healthcare management and financial services regulation to operational technologies for customer service.
This combination of funding startups and then creating a captive audience of well-funded and enthusiastic public sector customers for their products and technologies is the recipe that made California’s Silicon Valley the Silicon Valley of its time.
So the MoU between Dubai’s Future Foundation and South Africa’s Artificial Intelligence Association is important, especially with a Western Cape regional government delegation being involved. For a detailed examination of this news, see here.
On with this week’s issue!
/Roger
Trade
SAAIA signs MoU with Dubai on EMEA AI trade
#SouthAfrica #DubaiAIWeek — Dubai Future Foundation (DFF), through the Dubai Centre for Artificial Intelligence (DCAI), has partnered with the South African Artificial Intelligence Association (SAAIA) to help launch a dedicated AI trade and investment hub with the aim of fast-tracking cross-border collaboration and unlocking new avenues for AI startups and investors across Africa, the Middle East and Europe. (Middle East AI News)
Policy
SA provincial delegation meets with Dubai Future Foundation
#SouthAfrica #DubaiAIWeek — The South African AI Association (SAAIA) hosted a delegation from SA’s Western Cape Provincial Government led by premier Alan Winde to meet with counterparts at the Dubai Future Foundation HQ to discuss collaboration and opportunities for AI in government. The Western Cape tends to show a certain independence from SA’s national government programmes and policies. (LinkedIn)
Kenya plans digital tax on AI platforms
#Kenya #tax — Kenya is considering new taxes on foreign AI platforms, including the likes of OpenAI’s ChatGPT, as part of efforts to ease economic strain and expand its digital tax base. The move follows similar actions in India, Turkey and South Africa, and could reshape access and innovation in Kenya’s growing tech sector. (FinancialsHub)
UNESCO urges AI education in African schools
#Ethiopia #Africa #education — UNESCO officials have called on African governments to integrate AI into school curricula to build sustainable digital education ecosystems. Speaking at Ethiopia Digital Week, officials highlighted AI’s potential to drive green, tech-based learning models. (Xinhua)
Applications
AI Health Enhancement Programme strengthens rural health care
#Ethiopia #digitalhealth — Last Mile Health, an NGO operating in Ethiopia, partnered with tech firm IDinsight to introduce HEP Assist to aid rural health workers in diagnosing and referring patients. The tool supports over 40,000 workers and has received a $200,000 boost from Mastercard’s AI inclusion initiative. (Mastercard)
AI helps tackle school problems in South Africa
#SouthAfrica #education — Khulisa Social Solutions is deploying AI to combat school violence, trauma and substance abuse. Piloted in the Western Cape and expanded to Gauteng, the system analyses community expressions via art to detect issues like bullying and gender based violence in real time. (GoodThingsGuy)
Morocco adopts AI to streamline court rulings
#Morocco #legaltech — Morocco has begun using an AI tool in courts to transcribe judicial decisions and ease legal research. Justice Minister Abdellatif Ouahbi said the technology will assist judges and lawyers, with legislation underway to regulate AI use and protect privacy. (KosovaPress)
Digital Transformation
Morocco launches $19.4 million civil registry digitisation
#Morocco #govtech — Morocco’s Ministry of Interior has launched a MAD 194 million ($19.4-m) project to digitise 38 million civil registry records nationwide. The initiative will convert 27 million paper records and upgrade 11 million digital files, enhancing data security and access across 1,821 registry offices. (Morocco World News)
Education
Egypt and Microsoft to train 100,000 in AI
#Egypt #Training — Egypt’s Ministry of Communications and IT has partnered with Microsoft to train 100,000 individuals in AI. The initiative, part of Egypt’s AI Strategy 2025–2030, targets youth and government employees. (Middle East AI News)
Events
Congo to host first national AI symposium
#DRC #conference — The DRC will hold its first National AI Symposium in Kinshasa, focusing on AI’s role in economic growth, cybersecurity, and global innovation. The initiative, backed by the Council of Ministers, aims to reposition Congo as a hub of digital intelligence and not simply a source of minerals. (XtraAfrica)
[ This newsletter was human written and AI supported ]