AI in education scrutinised; AI CoEs take off

Africa AI News weekly digest...

Aug 01, 2025

Good morning, and welcome to this week’s issue of Africa AI News – Weekly News Digest.

This week we have a lot of education related news, from the first students graduating from AI programmes to new accelerators being launched at universities. This is a heartening sign of some wood being put behind the arrow (as tech marketers used to say) in the development of hands-on expertise.

At the same time, higher education is grappling with how it should engage with AI, both how to teach it, and how to maintain the integrity of its function as educators. Case in point: universities in South Africa looking to scrap AI-detection tools they have been using to identify plagiarised work as ineffective and counterproductive.

This week we also look at a number of developments of accelerators and centres of excellence around the continent, driving skills development and providing much-needed resources in-country to local AI tech entrepreneurs.

On with this week’s issue!

/Roger

Education

1,300 Egyptians graduate from national AI programme

#Egypt #education — Egypt’s AI Ambassadors programme has certified 1,300 new graduates in its third cohort, raising the total number to 2,610. Led by the National Telecommunication Institute, the training covered AI fundamentals, ethics, and real-world tech applications. (Cairo Scene)

Tunisian researcher wins award for AI health platform

#Tunisia #healthtech — Emna Harigua has received the 2025 Best Female Scientific Achievement Prize for creating an AI-powered platform to develop treatments targeting pathogenic agents. Awarded by Tunisia’s Ministry of Women, the prize includes a 15,000 dinar grant and highlights innovation in health research.
(Tunisie Numerique)

Morocco’s Tanger Med taps students for AI solutions

#Morocco #education — University Mohammed VI Polytechnique (UM6P) and Tanger Med have launched the “AI Tanger Med” initiative. Students at the 1337 MED campus will work on industrial AI solutions, bridging academic research and logistics operations (Morocco World News)

UCT disables Turnitin AI detection amid concerns

#SouthAfrica #education — An analysis unpacks the use by South African universities of “AI detection tools”, following the University of Cape Town dropping Turnitin’s AI detection system, which cited these tools’ harmful effects on student trust and academic integrity. High rates of false positives and opaque reporting have prompted growing calls for its removal across SA universities. (Daily Maverick)

Namibia launches AI, robotics accelerator at NUST

#Namibia #education — The Bank of Namibia and Namibia University of Science and Technology (NUST) have launched an AI and Robotics Accelerator to support advanced learning and innovation. Based at NUST’s Science and Technology Building, it will offer new degree programmes in AI, with specialisations in robotics, cybersecurity and NLP. (NUST)

Mleiha Club wraps up AI training at Egypt’s Zewail City

#Egypt #UAE #education — Sharjah’s Mleiha Cultural and Sports Club concluded a two-day AI programme at Egypt’s Zewail City, offering UAE youth hands-on training with tools like ChatGPT and MIT App Inventor. The initiative forms part of Sharjah’s vision to empower future-ready talent through global collaboration. (Sharjah 24)

Ghana opens AI community centre to boost digital skills

#Ghana #education — Ghana has launched an AI Community Centre in Accra, established by Google, to support innovation and learning. Google is also awarding 100,000 career certificate scholarships to students for AI and digital skills training. (Graphic)

Funding

Google pledges $37m to grow AI in Africa

#Africa #technology — Google has committed $37 million to support AI development in Africa, including $7 million for AI education in Nigeria, Kenya, South Africa and Ghana. The initiative includes funding for startups, research, and projects in agriculture, health, and multilingual tech. (Africa Press)

Meta strengthens generative AI with PlayAI acquisition

#Egypt #industry — Egyptian startup PlayAI, creator of advanced multilingual speech models, has been acquired by Meta. The $21 million-backed company will accelerate Meta’s AI character and audio content initiatives globally. (iAfrica)

South Africa, China move closer on AI partnership

#SouthAfrica #China #investment — South Africa is advancing an MoU with China on artificial intelligence, following a high-level delegation led by Minister of Communications and Digital Technologies Solly Malatsi. The agreement will support joint R&D in education, agriculture, and public services, with broader cooperation on broadband, smart devices, and digital skills. (iAfrica)

Applications

Nigeria’s CAC launches AI portal to speed business registration

#Nigeria #government — The Nigerian Corporate Affairs Commission (CAC) introduced an AI-powered portal that automates business registration steps, enabling companies to incorporate in under 30 minutes and easing bureaucratic delays for SMEs. (iAfrica)

Nigerian startup fills voice automation gap for African accents

#Nigeria #applications — AI firm Intron, funded with $1.6 million, addresses the lack of voice transcription for African accents, expanding its services from Nigerian hospitals to courtrooms and call centres continent-wide. (Semafor)

University student builds AI app to fight joblessness

#SouthAfrica #applications — A Stellenbosch University PhD student has launched Career Agent, an AI-powered app that automates job applications. It matches CVs to listings, scores them using Applicant Tracking Systems logic, and submits tailored applications. Aimed at helping matriculants and graduates, subscriptions are $22 for three months. (Stellenbosch University)

Botswana Diamonds uses AI to secure four new exploration licences

#Botswana #applications #mining — Botswana Diamonds has obtained four new prospecting licences spanning 2,644 km², based on AI-led analysis of diamond potential. The company’s AI models identified key geological indicators near Serowe, Jwaneng, Lerala, and the Kalahari region. It has also applied for 11 more licences targeting polymetallic minerals. (Mining Business Africa)

Data Centres and COEs

Nexus Core to build 500 MW AI factory in Morocco

#Morocco #technology — Nexus Core Systems, backed by NAVER Cloud, Lloyds Capital and Maroc Telecom, plans a 500 MW AI factory in Morocco (eventually; 40MW will be built now). The facility will provide AI compute powered by renewable energy. This project is not without controversy, as the DC is situated in Dhakla, in occupied Western Sahara which has for decades asserted its desire for self-determination. (Intelligent CIO)

Algeria’s AI school opens national HPC centre for R&D

#Algeria #HPC — Algeria’s National School of Artificial Intelligence (ENSIA) has launched a new high-performance computing centre in Algiers. Equipped with advanced NVIDIA GPUs, the facility supports AI research and development in public services, agriculture, and finance. (Middle East AI News)

Lagos launches Africa’s first full-stack AI growth zone

#Nigeria #technology — Property developer and digital facility company Itana is developing Africa’s first full-stack AI and data growth zone in Alaro City, Lagos, offering integrated compute, data centres and talent pipelines to accelerate AI innovation on the continent. (TechCabal)

Huawei backs Egypt’s AI-driven medical hub

#Egypt #applications #medtech — Huawei and Egypt’s Healthcare Authority are partnering to build a health data science centre, with 6 million records and 500 million AI-enhanced scans already in play. The project also supports energy-efficient digital healthcare and smart city integration. Egypt’s Minister of Health and Population and Deputy Prime Minister, Khaled Abdel Ghaffar, also took part in the “Huawei Cloud Summit for North Africa”. (iAfrica)

Egypt, HP discuss AI plans for health sector

#Egypt #healthcare — Egypt’s Health Minister met with HP’s regional head to advance AI and digital transformation in hospitals. Talks included training initiatives via Princess Fatma Academy and HP’s role in Egypt’s upcoming Global Health Congress. (Egypt State Information Service)

UAE, Malaysia, Rwanda unite to scale AI in Global South

#UAE #Malaysia #Rwanda #policy – The UAE, Malaysia, and Rwanda have expanded their collaboration to accelerate AI adoption in the Global South, signing an MoU to scale the C4IR AI Fellowship Programme. The initiative will promote responsible AI, talent exchange, and knowledge sharing through the World Economic Forum’s C4IR Network. (Emirates News Agency)

Safaricom, iXAfrica launch AI-ready data centre in Kenya

#Kenya #AIinfrastructure #datacentres — Kenyan telco Safaricom has partnered with iXAfrica to deliver East Africa’s first AI-ready data centre services. The iXAfrica NBOX1 campus offers 22.5MW capacity and is designed for high-density, power-intensive AI workloads. The move supports Kenya’s ambition to lead regional digital transformation. (Connecting Africa)

Events

Cape Town to host AI Empowered summit in August

#SouthAfrica #technology — Cape Town will host the AI Empowered summit on 7–8 August 2025 at the Cape Town International Convention Centre. Backed by Invest Cape Town and the City of Cape Town, the event will feature over 40 speakers exploring AI’s role in local problem-solving, from fraud prevention to youth development. (Cape Business News)

Angola hosts first national AI forum in Luanda

#Angola #technology — The inaugural National Forum on Artificial Intelligence (FNIA25) opened in Luanda, drawing over 300 participants and 30 speakers. Backed by IMA and APD, the event promotes ethical, strategic AI use through dialogue among government, academia, and civil society. (Ver Angola)

ST Digital to open Ivory Coast datacentre to boost digital sovereignty

#IvoryCoast #datacentres – ST Digital will inaugurate a Tier III datacentre in Grand-Bassam in Q4 2025, aiming to build a sovereign cloud infrastructure for Francophone Africa. With centres planned across six countries, the firm targets local hosting for AI, cloud, and cybersecurity, reducing dependence on global hyperscalers.
(Financial Afrik)

AfriLabs and Konza partner to grow Africa’s innovation ecosystem

#Kenya #innovation — AfriLabs and Kenya’s Konza Technopolis have signed a strategic partnership to boost startup ecosystems, foster innovation policy, and accelerate cross-border collaboration. The deal precedes the AfriLabs Annual Gathering 2025, to be hosted in Nairobi, and includes joint ventures, AI research, IP support, and smart city pilot projects. (360 Mozambique)

[ This newsletter was human written and AI spelled]