Post by Deutsche Gesellschaft für Internationale Zusammenarbeit (GIZ) GmbH

Join us at #GITEXAfrica to shape the future of Artificial Intelligence (AI) in Africa! We together with Smart Africa, are launching a new phase of our partnership focused on advancing trustworthy AI - with a clear shift from ambition to implementation. This milestone will take place at the AI Stage during GITEX AFRICA Morocco in Marrakech, where our Managing Director Anna Sophie Herken and Smart Africa´s CEO Lacina Koné will talk about: “Shaping Global AI Governance: Africa’s Role in International Standards and Norms”. The conversation will explore how global AI frameworks can better reflect African realities, the role of African institutions in shaping international standards, and how to balance AI-driven innovation with economic growth. 💡 Want to do a deeper dive into the topic? Across the continent, momentum is building: more than 15 African countries have already adopted national AI strategies, with many more currently developing their own frameworks and beginning to shift toward implementation. At the same time, significant gaps remain. Africa still represents only a small share of the global AI research community. This underlines the urgency of strengthening local talent pipelines, infrastructure, and collaboration. Initiatives such as the Africa AI Declaration highlight a shared ambition to build sovereign AI capabilities, deepen public-private collaboration, and mobilize large-scale investment — including plans to unlock up to $60 billion to support AI development across the continent. Trustworthy AI won’t emerge in isolation. It will be shaped through partnerships, with Africa at the center.