Some development advocates speaking in Accra, the Ghanaian capital, on Tuesday asserted that it is time for African countries to use artificial intelligence (AI) to develop homegrown solutions to their developmental challenges.
Judson Wendell Addy, founder of the Africa Private Sector Summit and advisory board member of the Africa Education Trust Fund (AETF), said amid the rapid technological advancement in the world, the continent must not wait to be shown the way it should develop.
“Africa is at a pivotal juncture. We must not wait for the world to define our place in the age of AI—we must define it ourselves through education, collaboration, and innovation,” Addy, who is a Liberian national, urged during the launch of the AETF-AI Conference to happen in Ghana next month.
He asserts that Africa has the opportunity to produce food and durable goods domestically and establish education systems that contribute to the development of the continent and its citizens.
“It is time to create Africa’s AI platform for Africa’s solutions that speak Africa’s languages, solve Africa’s problems, and drive Africa’s prosperity,” Addy added.
The November AI conference is being organized by the AETF, a Pan-African private sector-led education trust fund established in 2022 by the Africa Private Sector Summit, the Pan-African Chamber of Commerce and Industries, and the Association of African Universities, comprising over 400 universities across the continent to promote Africa’s educational development.
Gosky Alabi, Director and Company Secretary of AETF, said the conference would mark the beginning of a continental journey that seeks to harness the boundless power of AI to transform Africa’s education, economy, and human development landscape.
“At AETF, we believe that education, innovation, and enterprise must work together to secure the Africa we want,” Alabi added.