-Leaders urge continent to harness Artificial Intelligence for inclusive growth and innovation
Speakers at the maiden edition of the Africa Education Trust Fund (AETF) Artificial Intelligence Conference held at the Accra International Conference Centre on November 5, 2025, have called for strategic action, ethical innovation, and African-driven solutions to ensure that Artificial Intelligence (AI) serves the continent’s people and priorities.
The AETF AI Conference, themed: “AI for Africa: Unlocking Opportunities for Education, Innovation, and Sustainable Development,” brought together ministers of state, religious leaders, traditional rulers, students, policymakers, researchers, innovators, investors, and youth leaders from across Africa and beyond.
The various speakers explored topics such as: Education and AI Governance; Academia Industry Linkage, AI and How To Achieve The Pan African Vision Outlined in Agenda 2063; Business, Finance and AI; AI for Smart Urbanization: The Rise of New African Cities; Discovering and Promoting Africa’s Young Innovators, among others.
AI Must Work for Africa
The Ga Mantse, His Royal Majesty, Nii Tackie Teiko Tsuru II, who chaired the conference, urged African leaders, innovators, and policymakers to ensure that AI development reflects African realities and values.
“The future of AI in Africa is not about machines. It is about our people, the people of Africa,” he said in a speech delivered on his behalf by Nii Kojo Ashifu Papanyira I.
He added, “Artificial intelligence can transform how we learn, how we farm, how we heal, and how we govern, but only if it is filled with our values, our realities, and our people at its center. AI must work for Africa, and not merely on Africa.”
The Ga Mantse also called on Africans to move from being consumers of foreign technology to being creators and innovators, shaping their own technological destiny.
AI Hub
Ghana’s Chief of Staff, Mr. Julius Debrah, called for decisive and strategic action to position Ghana as the AI hub of Africa, emphasizing that AI represents a historic opportunity for the continent’s education, innovation, and sustainable development.
“Countries that harness AI are already seeing gains in learning outcomes, health system efficiency, agricultural productivity, and climate resilience,” he stated.
He explained that “Artificial Intelligence (AI) has caught everyone’s attention because of its speed of enablement and disruption, embedding itself in our daily lives. It is shaping our classrooms, our farms, our hospitals, and our economies.”
Highlighting examples across Africa, he said, “In Mali, for example, AI tools are translating books into local languages, making learning more inclusive, while in Kenya, AI is bridging the gap for deaf students through sign language translation technologies.”
Mr. Debrah announced that the government had developed a National AI Strategy as part of its ambition “to make Ghana the AI hub of Africa.” He mentioned that initiatives such as the ‘One Million Coders’ programme aim “to empower young Ghanaians with practical skills in coding, artificial intelligence, and other emerging digital fields.”
He, however, cautioned that “the full potential of AI will not be realised with passive efforts,” stressing the need for investments in education reform, inclusive national AI strategies, and robust data ecosystems.
“The future of AI in Africa is not a question of possibility but a question of purpose,” he concluded. “Let us unlock the full potential of AI for every child in every classroom, for every farmer in every field, for every patient in every clinic.”
Africa Must Feed Its Voice into Global AI
The Chairman of the AETF, H.E. Dr. Ekwow Spio-Garbrah, urged African governments, innovators, and partners to act swiftly to ensure the continent is not left behind in the AI revolution.
“Artificial Intelligence represents a new frontier — one Africa cannot afford to miss,” he said. “If Africa does not move swiftly to contribute its data, languages, and cultures into global AI systems, our voices will be absent from the future.”
He noted that while AI’s hardware and software are dominated by global powers, “the real opportunity lies in data and applications.”
Dr. Spio-Garbrah called for “practical, results-driven initiatives” that directly improve lives, citing agriculture and resource management as key focus areas. “It is wiser to start small — with clear, results-driven initiatives — than to chase grand but distant projects,” he added.
He also revealed that the AETF aims “to build on models like Ghana’s $50 million Innovation Fund to create a multi-billion-dollar platform for Africa’s digital transformation.”
Legal Frameworks for Responsible Innovation
The Minister for Communications, Digital Technology, and Innovations, Hon. Samuel Nartey George, announced that Ghana is developing an Emerging Technologies Bill to regulate AI, Blockchain, and quantum computing.
“Our goal is not just digital transformation but a restoration of Africa’s technological sovereignty,” he stated. “Once consultations and cabinet approvals are complete, the Emerging Technologies Bill will be laid before Parliament, hopefully next year. It will serve as the legal and regulatory basis for responsible innovation across AI and other emerging fields.”
He emphasized that Africa’s AI innovation must be “guided by ethics, inclusivity, and cultural identity,” reaffirming government’s commitment to responsible advancement through “legal, ethical, and traditional frameworks.”
The Head of Office and UNESCO Representative to Ghana, Mr. Edmond Moukala, called on African countries to integrate AI responsibly and inclusively to drive sustainable development and educational transformation.
“AI can fuel local innovation ecosystems, enabling African researchers, developers, and startups to create context-specific solutions that address the continent’s unique challenges and capitalize on its abundant opportunities,” he said.
Mr. Moses Biden, Founder and CEO of Margins ID Group, emphasized the need for strong political will to embed AI in “every facet of our lives,” adding that educating African youth in AI “is the most important decision Africa can make in the digital era.” He also called for “sound funding of AI initiatives” on the continent.
Mr. Bright Simons, CEO of mPedigree, urged governments and institutions to identify and promote young innovators, saying this was key to advancing the continent’s digital revolution.
Ghana’s Minister of Sports, Mr. Kofi Adams, said Africa must act now: “The time to take decisions to ensure that Africa becomes the future of technology and advancement is now. Africa cannot choose to stay behind while other people take decisions about how the world is ran.”
Sponsors and Partners
The sponsors and partners of the conference were:
Margins ID Group, ONESTA, Intelligent Card Production Systems, Glico, Minerals Income Investment Fund, Fidelity Bank, GCB, Bank of Ghana, College of Sustainable Transformation and Development.
About AETF
The Africa Education Trust Fund (AETF) was established through collaboration between the Association of African Universities (AAU), the Pan-African Chamber of Commerce and Industry (PACCI), and the Africa Private Sector Summit (APSS) to strengthen cooperation in education, trade, and investment under the Africa Continental Free Trade Area (AfCFTA).
