A significant side event of the African Development Bank Group’s (AfDB) 2025 Annual Meetings highlighted artificial intelligence’s (AI) potential to promote equitable, sustainable development throughout the continent, highlighting AI as a formidable tool of transformation.
Top experts from the policy, technology, and development sectors convened for a high-level 90-minute session with the theme “The AI Revolution: How Will AI Support the Delivery of the African Development Bank’s 2024–2033 Ten-Year Strategy and the Transformation of African Economies?” As a sign of the growing cooperation between African institutions and international tech leaders, Google AI Research co-hosted the event.
Google AI Research Africa Program Manager Abdoulaye Diack highlighted the tremendous promise of AI in addressing systemic issues in healthcare, education, climate resilience, and agriculture. “AI is a tool of advancement, particularly when it satisfies African needs; it is not just a convenience tool,” Diack said. 
Moustapha Cissé, CEO of Kera Health Platforms and a pioneer in African AI research, echoed this opinion by urging the development of strong ethical frameworks and context-aware AI systems that are grounded in African realities. He declared, “We require AI that comprehends us, our languages, our cultures, and our issues.”
Three fundamental pillars were agreed upon by the panelists as being necessary for Africa to fully benefit from AI. To empower the next generation, human capital entails funding AI education and skill development. Data infrastructure by establishing the digital foundation for real-time data interchange, safe storage, and communication. African languages, social conventions, and industry-specific realities were employed to train AI systems utilizing localized data.
The AfDB’s larger Ten-Year Strategy (2024–2033), which views digital innovation as a key component of economic change, was in line with the session. The Bank reiterated its dedication to promoting inclusive technology ecosystems, expanding digital sovereignty, and supporting indigenous AI innovation that elevates and represents African societies.
The AfDB’s platform acted as a reminder and a call to action as discussions on AI raged around the continent: Africa’s digital future needs to be created by Africans, for Africans, and driven by intelligence that knows its people.
