Africa Education Trust Fund launches 2025 AI conference
The Africa Education Trust Fund (AETF) has launched its highly anticipated AI in Africa Conference 2025 in Accra.
The conference, scheduled for November 5-6, 2025, on the theme: “AI for Africa: Unlocking Opportunities for Education, Innovation, and Sustainable Development”, aims to position Africa as a global leader in artificial intelligence (AI) innovation.
The event, chaired by the President’s Special Envoy for Reparation, Dr Ekwow Spio-Garbrah, underscored the country’s pioneering role in shaping Africa’s technological and economic future.
In his remarks, he called for a paradigm shift and a change in mindset to unlock Africa’s full potential through AI.
He urged the youth to adopt a disciplined, “military mindset” to drive personal and national growth, emphasising that the conference would pave the way for the continent to better understand and harness AI for development.
Ghana: A Beacon of AI Innovation
In an adress, the Founder of the Africa Private Sector Summit (APSS) and AETF Advisory Board Member, J. Wendell Addy, highlighted Ghana’s strategic position as a continental hub for AI.
He noted that with over $ 21.1 billion committed to AI and ICT-related investments and an expanding national fibre infrastructure, the country was transitioning from a bystander to a builder in the global digital revolution.
“Ghana is no longer just a participant in the digital revolution—it is a builder of the future,” Mr Addy declared.
He praised the government’s RESET Agenda and the 24-Hour Economy Initiative under President John Dramani Mahama.
Mr Addy also emphasised Ghana’s unique role as the host of three transformative institutions: the African Continental Free Trade Area (AfCFTA) Secretariat, the Africa Private Sector Summit (APSS) and the AETF.
He described the AETF as the “human-capital bridge” of the AfCFTA, equipping Africans with the skills needed for industrialisation and innovation.
Mr Addy issued a continental call to action, urging stakeholders—including universities, technical and vocational education and training (TVET) institutions, chambers of commerce, labour unions, manufacturers, policymakers, civil society and the media—to embrace AI responsibly.
“Africa must not wait for the world to define our place in the age of AI—we must define it ourselves through education, collaboration and innovation,” he stressed.
AETF’s vision for an AI-driven Africa
The Director and Company Secretary of the AETF and President of Accra Metropolitan University, Prof. (Mrs) Goski Alabi, launched the conference, describing it as a “continental journey” to harness AI for Africa’s education, economy and human development.
“This is a declaration that Africa will not be a passive consumer of technology but an active architect of intelligent, ethical and inclusive innovation,” she stated.
Prof. Alabi highlighted the AETF’s mission to build a globally competitive, distinctly African education system that produced innovators and ethical leaders capable of driving the Fourth Industrial Revolution in Africa (FIRIA).
