Oracle opens major training centre in Casablanca; Mauritania gets $2B commit
Africa AI News weekly digest...
Good morning, and welcome to this week’s issue of Africa AI News – Weekly News Digest.
It’s been a moderately quiet week in AI in Africa, which is a relief after last week’s smorgasbord of AI related major news stories. There is a pleasingly steady drip of good application stories, where the AI rubber is meeting the road, as well as some strong developments in skills and education in Africa.
A story that almost didn’t get any attention was Oracle and the Moroccan government getting together to open a major new tech training centre in Casablanca, with a strong focus on coding skills for AI implementation within enterprise applications.
On with this week’s issue!
/Roger
AI Hubs
Oracle opens 800-person tech hub in Morocco
#Morocco #training #software – Oracle has opened a new R&D hub in Casablanca’s CasaNearshore Park, employing 800 engineers and specialists. The centre boosts Morocco’s ambition to become a digital innovation hub. (Yabiladi)
(Front page image: Groupe3 Architectes, Omar Aloui, Taoufik El Oufir)
Google backs Zambia AI Centre of Excellence
#Zambia #education – Google is partnering with the University of Zambia to launch an AI Centre of Excellence, aimed at empowering young innovators to tackle national challenges. Announced by the Ministry of Technology and Science, the project marks Zambia’s second AI partnership in recent months. (ITWeb Africa)
Nigeria, Meta launch AI accelerator programme
#Nigeria #startups – Meta and Nigeria’s NITDA have launched the Nigeria AI Accelerator to support AI startups in agriculture, health, education, and finance. The first cohort runs August–December 2025. The move follows earlier AI partnerships with Google and Luminate. (iAfrica)Applications
Rwanda rolls out AI platform for legal system overhaul
#Rwanda #applications #legaltech — A new AI-powered platform from local developer IST Legal is streamlining Rwanda’s justice system by simplifying legal research, automating documents, and enabling case tracking. Supported by the Ministry of ICT, the tool offers multilingual access and features end-to-end criminal case management. (iAfrica.com)
Zambia pilots AI drug interaction analysis
#Zambia #applications #healthtech — Zambia’s Ministries of Health and Technology have launched a nationwide pilot using AI tools and remote diagnostics in 20 health centres. Backed by Finland and Paratus (Starlink agent), the initiative features tools from 73Health Global and Zambia’s own Larry RX AI for drug interaction safety. (Tech Africa News)
Moroccan students build AI tool for wildfire prediction
#Morocco #applications #agritech — Students at Hassan II University in Casablanca have developed an AI system to forecast wildfires and support smarter farming. Using NASA satellite data and machine learning, it issues early warnings and optimises crop and livestock planning. Future updates will include IoT-based ground data. (iAfrica.com)
Zimbabwe rolls out AI traffic system nationwide
#Zimbabwe #transport — Zimbabwe has approved a nationwide rollout of an AI-powered Smart Traffic Management System piloted in Harare last year, developed by TelOne under the Safe City Project. The system uses AI, IoT and facial recognition to improve road safety and enforcement. (HararePost)
Education
Mauritius Telecom launches AI education pilot in Rodrigues
#Mauritius #education — Mauritius Telecom has unveiled “mytGPT for education”, an AI-powered learning platform demoed with Grade 12 students on Rodrigues island. Launching in late 2025, the tool will assist teachers and personalise learning in maths, physics, and accounting. (News Moris)
Egypt opens CS and AI faculties to technical students
#Egypt #education #policy — Egypt’s Supreme Council of Universities will now allow graduates of technical and applied technology schools to apply to computer science and AI faculties at universities. A new quota system supports this to broaden higher education access beyond traditional academic tracks. (Ahram Online)
Congo and Italy sign AI training, startup pact
#Congo #partnerships — Congo and Italy have signed an AI cooperation memorandum to develop training, certification, and incubation programmes for young Africans. The deal also targets AI use cases in health, agriculture, and logistics, supporting African startups with access to computing resources. (Agenzia Nova)
SA research in AI strong, could be stronger
#SouthAfrica #education — Just published: a study of South African AI research from 2013-2022. While SA researchers have published many papers in quality journals (5,000) this is way under what benchmarks would expect, which the author ascribes to poor government support for academic research. Also, University of Johannesburg (UJ) and a distant follower University of Kwa-Zulu Natal (UKZN) were streaks ahead of staid stalwarts Pretoria, Witwatersrand and Cape Town. (SA Journal of Science)
Rwanda’s Kagame visits Algeria’s top AI school to deepen tech ties
#Rwanda #education — President Paul Kagame visited Algeria’s National School of Artificial Intelligence (ENSIA), reinforcing Rwanda’s AI ambitions and collabpration with Algeria. Five Rwandan students are currently enrolled in ENSIA’s AI and Data Science programme, as both nations align on using AI for digital health and innovation. (Top Africa News)
Policy
Mauritius unveils AI-driven digital economy push
#Mauritius #governmenttech — Mauritius’ 2025–2026 Budget outlines major AI initiatives to drive digital transformation. Key plans include a new AI Unit and start-up programme under the Ministry of Information Technology, Communication and Innovation (MITCI), Rs25 million ($550k) for AI tools in the public sector, and tax reliefs of up to Rs150,000 ($3k3) for start-up investments. (EDB Mauritius)
Ghana to host AI retreat for Cabinet Ministers in July
#Ghana #policy #government — Ghana’s Minister for Communication, Digital Technology and Innovations, Samuel George, will lead a two day Cabinet retreat in July to explore AI adoption in public service, focussing on strategic integration of AI in governance and the creation of a national AI Commission. (ISD Ghana)
Egypt’s ICT Minister visits Rome to boost AI ties
#Egypt #internationaltech — Egypt’s Minister of Communications, Amr Talaat, is in Rome for talks on ICT cooperation with Italy, focusing on AI development. The visit aims to strengthen investment, knowledge exchange, and bilateral ties in the digital economy. (Amwal Al Ghad)
Funding
EU grants $47.6m for Congo’s digital acceleration
#Congo #digital – The EU and European Investment Bank are funding Congo’s Digital Acceleration Project (PATN) with CFA27 billion ($47.6m). The initiative targets education, healthcare, youth training, and public sector digitalisation, advancing Congo’s connectivity and cybersecurity goals. (Ecofin Agency)
IFC to invest $10M in Senegalese AI health startup
#Senegal #healthtech — The International Finance Corporation plans a $10 million investment in KERA Health, an AI-powered e-health startup in Senegal. The funding will expand digital healthcare across the WAEMU region, targeting improved care for women and informal workers. (IFC)
$2B pledged for Mauritania’s growth and reform agenda
#Mauritania #funding — Mauritania received a $2 billion funding commitment from Arab lenders of the Arab Coordination Group (read: Opec) for its 2025–2030 development plan. The funds will support infrastructure and digital sectors, aligning with recent regulatory reforms to boost investment. (Top Africa News)
Media
Zimbabwe media urges AI regulation for press freedom
#Zimbabwe #media – Zimbabwean journalists are calling for AI regulations to protect intellectual property and press freedom, amid concerns over generative AI misuse. During World Press Freedom Day events, media professionals also pushed for local AI development and journalist upskilling. (TechnoMag)
Events
Maseno hosts live IndabaX Kenya 2025 AI summit
#Kenya #events — IndabaX Kenya 2025 is wrapping up today at Maseno University, drawing AI practitioners, academics and students from across the country. The summit, part of Deep Learning Indaba’s Africa-wide initiative, offers talks, workshops and showcases on cutting-edge machine learning applications. (Maseno University)
[ This newsletter was human beinged and AI transcended]