One year later, Africa’s AI drive shifts toward execution

A year after more than 50 African countries signed the Africa AI Declaration at the inaugural Global AI Summit on Africa in Kigali in April 2025, early steps toward implementation are taking shape, signalling a collective effort to harness artificial intelligence for the continent’s future. The declaration laid out a unified roadmap to tackle barriers to AI adoption, including limited computing infrastructure, persistent skills gaps, unequal access between rural and urban communities, and fragmented policy environments. At its core, it positions AI as a tool for inclusive, ethical, and sustainable growth grounded in Africa’s realities. Establishment of Africa AI Council One of the most concrete outcomes has been the establishment of the Africa AI Council during last year’s Transform Africa Summit in Guinea. ALSO READ: What the Africa Declaration on Artificial Intelligence means The 15-member body comprises seven ICT ministers and eight independent members drawn from the private sector, academia, and civil service across the continent’s five regions. The ministers represent Rwanda, Kenya, Zimbabwe, Chad, Nigeria, Togo, and Algeria. Established by the Smart Africa Board, chaired by President Paul Kagame, the council is mandated to provide strategic, actionable recommendations to ensure AI is accessible, responsibly deployed, and beneficial to Africans. In an interview with The New Times, Smart Africa Director General and CEO Lacina Koné said the council emerged from a competitive process that attracted more than 400 applicants. ALSO READ: African leaders seek to set up a continental AI fund It is now operational, with thematic working groups focusing on computing infrastructure, data governance, AI use cases, scaling, and market development. According to Koné, these groups are designed to be region-agnostic, enabling Africa to pool resources and expertise rather than duplicate efforts. A key priority is expanding access to computing power—what he described as “uberising” AI services. “The main focus of the council is to ensure access to computing power through uberising AI services,” he said. ALSO READ: Africa must not be left behind, Kagame tells AI Summit In practice, this model envisions shared AI infrastructure distributed across regions but accessible continent-wide, allowing countries to tap into computing capacity without building costly standalone systems. Koné added that through policy harmonisation and frameworks such as data embassy laws, countries could access shared graphics processing unit (GPU) capacity, lowering barriers to AI development. $60 billion AI fund ambition Financing remains one of the declaration’s most ambitious pillars. Koné said the proposed $60 billion AI fund is being designed as a blended financing mechanism, combining contributions from governments, private investors, venture capital, mobile network operators, and development partners. “We are crafting what the fund should look like and identifying stakeholders who can contribute,” he said. The fund is expected to finance all initiatives outlined in the declaration. “Every investment activity in AI in Africa will be accounted for in the fund,” he added. Defining AI priorities Koné emphasised that the council’s thematic groups are identifying and validating use cases that respond directly to economic and social needs, particularly in agriculture, healthcare, education, and climate. “Africa needs the most useful AI, not the most powerful,” he said, underscoring the importance of grounding innovation in local realities. Piloting and scaling solutions To translate strategy into impact, the council has outlined a one-year action plan centred on practical experimentation. This includes developing three AI use cases in each of Africa’s five regions, with a view to scaling successful solutions across countries. Koné noted that the approach builds on shared structural characteristics across African markets, making proven solutions easier to replicate. Private sector participation is also embedded in the framework to ensure innovation is both policy-driven and market-responsive. Through federated GPU systems and coordinated deployment models, new players are being integrated into Africa’s emerging AI ecosystem. Investing in skills development Beyond infrastructure and policy, efforts are under way to scale up youth training programmes aligned with priority sectors such as agriculture, healthcare, education, and climate. Koné highlighted agriculture as a key opportunity for AI-driven productivity gains. Rwanda has already established an AI scaling hub, with plans to replicate similar centres across the continent. Partnerships and sovereignty Implementation is being supported through strategic partnerships. Smart Africa has signed agreements with organisations such as Wadhwani AI Global to deploy AI in healthcare, agriculture, education, financial services, and public administration. “These partners are willing to run pilots in multiple countries focused on sovereign AI,” Koné said. He explained that sovereign AI would enable countries to control their data, algorithms, and digital narratives, supported by local or regionally hosted infrastructure to safeguard national and continental interests. Koné added that countries like Rwanda are positioning themselves at the forefront by leveraging institutions such as the Centre for the Fourth Industrial Revolution to anchor innovation.

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One year later, Africa’s AI drive shifts toward execution