Morocco launches digital super-app; Ghana wants AI to regulate mining
Weekly News Digest ...
Good morning, and welcome to this week’s issue of Africa AI News – Weekly News Digest.
This week we have interesting applications stories, led by Morocco’s e-government “super app” (MiddleEastAINews does a deep dive here). The core of this announcement is that AI agents can be more useful if there is an underlying national digital infrastructure for establishing unique identity, and for performing transactions. Timelines are very ambitious, so we should see within the next year if Morocco’s AI-led e-gov ambitions succeed.
Another application that caught our eye is Ghana’s use of drones and AI tools to better regulate mining. This has always been a challenge, with mines generally being in remote areas far from oversight eyes. AI’s ability to identify anomalies and join the dots seems perfectly suited to the task.
On with this week’s issue!
/Roger
Policy
Morocco unveils Idarati X.0 digital super-app
#Morocco #DigitalGovernment - Morocco’s Ministry of Digital Transition and Administrative Reform has launched Idarati X.0, a national super-app project integrating AI, digital identity and a smart wallet. Eight agreements were signed in Rabat to deliver the platform within six months, embedding privacy and security by design. (Middle East AI News)
Ghana commits to ethical AI in defence operations
#Ghana #policy #security — Ghana’s government has pledged to adopt responsible, human-controlled AI in military and security operations, emphasising oversight, compliance with laws and human rights in the use of emerging technologies by armed forces. This marks a clear ethical position for African countries at the Responsible Artificial Intelligence in the Military Domain (REAIM 2026) Summit held in Spain last week. (Business Ghana)
Cape Town researcher wins grant to study AI and jobs
#SouthAfrica #research #funding — University of Cape Town researcher Dr Tim Köhler has been awarded a global grant from Schmidt Sciences’ $3-million AI at Work research programme to investigate how generative artificial intelligence is reshaping labour markets and youth unemployment. He is among 19 international scholars selected to explore AI’s impact on work, skills and employment outcomes. (UCT News)
Mozambique sets five digital pillars to modernise state
#Mozambique #policy — Mozambique’s government has outlined five priority areas for digital transformation — including certification, interoperability platforms, digital identity, electronic payments and a citizen portal — to bring public services closer to citizens and improving access across sectors such as agriculture. (360 Mozambique)
Tunisia’s digital health transformation gets boost from Tunisia Telecom
#Tunisia #healthcare #applications — Collaboration between Tunisia’s Ministry of Health and Tunisia Telecom aims to digitalise healthcare delivery with improved Internet connectivity, telemedicine support and 100% Tunisian sovereign data centres to safeguard patient data and expand services. (Telecom Review Africa)
Funding
Tactful AI raises $1 million pre-Series A
#Egypt #funding — Egyptian-founded Tactful AI has secured $1 million in pre-Series A funding to accelerate growth of its agentic AI customer experience platform. The London and Cairo-based company targets enterprises modernising service operations across the Middle East. (Middle East AI News)
Applications
Ghana uses AI and drones to modernise mining oversight
#Ghana #applications — Ghana’s Minerals Commission has adopted drone surveillance and artificial intelligence analytics to transition mining regulation from reactive inspections to proactive, data-driven oversight. The approach enhances detection of illegal operations, environmental monitoring and enforcement efficiency. (MyJoyOnline)
Ethiopia to use AI to curb financial crime
#Ethiopia #applications — The Ethiopian Artificial Intelligence Institute signed a partnership with the Financial Intelligence Service to develop an AI-enabled system to detect money laundering and terrorism financing. The platform will analyse financial data patterns to enhance enforcement and regulatory effectiveness. (iAfrica)
Nigerian startup fourth globally for automated spreadsheet wrangling
#Nigeria #applications — Nigerian startup Decide achieved the fourth-highest accuracy score internationally in AI-enhanced spreadsheet management tasks, as assessed by SpreadsheetBench. This new generation of tools helps spreadsheet users clean up messy data, debug formulas and navigate complex structures. Decide is hoping this new success will drive scaling of the business. (Business Post Nigeria)
Education
Rwanda, Oracle launch national digital skills drive
#Rwanda #education — Rwanda’s Ministry of Information, Communication, Technology and Innovation has signed a memorandum with Oracle to deliver nationwide digital skills training aligned with Vision 2050 and the National Digital Talent Policy. The programme spans cloud, AI and database technologies for students, educators and professionals. (TechAfrica News)
UNDP Egypt and GSMA launch AI governance drive
#Egypt #training — UNDP Egypt and GSMA have launched a high-level AI governance training programme in Cairo for regional policymakers. The initiative aims to strengthen regulatory readiness and responsible AI frameworks, supporting coordinated adoption across the Middle East and Africa. (UNDP)
Zambia’s tech ministry drives youth skills in AI and robotics
#Zambia #innovation #youth — The Zambian Ministry of Technology and Science is working with Liquid Intelligent Technologies and E-Mark Zambia to send candidates to the Nations AI for Good Youth Challenge 2025–2026, with finals in Geneva, Switzerland. Finalists will be selected in March 2026. (MOTS)
[ This newsletter was human seed and AI sawed ]