Tech giants sign agreement to empower African nations on emerging technologies

Two technology giants, have agreed to work together through a memorandum of understanding signed in Abuja Wednesday to empower African leaders with emerging technologies.

The two giants, Intel Corporation and a pan-African network organisation, AfriLab

The Director, Government Affairs in Africa, Intel Corporation, Dr. Bienvenu Soglo, and an Executive Director in AfriLab, Anna Ekeledo, signed the document on behalf of their organisations.

Intel, the integrated digital technology platform expert promised to bring to bare its experience through artificial Intelligence(AI) to turn around the African fortunes.

The partnership according to Soglo would prepare African leaders for technologies such as AI, Cloud, 5G connectivity, and Intelligent edge such as IOT and cyber security  to drive informed policy making.

Soglo said the partnership would develop a framework that would create awareness and understanding of latest technologies among all categories of African citizens.

He said the partnership had put in place a programme of activities that would boost manpower development  among students in various schools to acquire technological techniques and skills.

He said, “The AI for future workforce will empower the future workforce from technical/vocational schools with necessary AI skills for employability in the digital economy.

“The AI for current workforce is to upskill and re-skill members of the current workforce such as the small and medium scale enterprises for immediate work impact.”
“As Intel looks ahead to the next decade, our ambitions and opportunities have never been greater to unleash the power of data and help advance integrated corporate responsibility strategies in which companies use collaborative models to drive increased value creation and societal impact. 

According to him, “Technology will play a critical role in building a digital future that is  equitable, accessible, and inclusive for all”. 

“That is why Intel launched its new RISE strategy and 2030 goals.”

He said through the strategy Intel is striving to create a more responsible, inclusive, and sustainable future, enabled through its technology and the expertise and passion of its employees. 

“Explaining further he said the RISE strategy, is aimed at making technology fully inclusive and expanding digital readiness which is a new concept in the context of rapid digitalization of the global economy. 

“Digital Readiness encompasses the technical and social skills to use emerging technology, a deep trust in these technologies, and the ability of people to use technologies responsibly and effectively for broader socio-economic benefits.

“Intel is committed to taking the program to 30 countries, enabling access to 30 thousand institution partners, and training 30 million people for current and future jobs by 2030 with the support of government and academia.

“Intel has rolled out the Intel Digital Readiness Program, which aims to empower the wider non-techie audiences with the appropriate digital skillsets, mindsets, toolsets, and opportunity to use technology responsibly in the AI-fueled world. 

Soglo indicated that at Intel their purpose is to create world-changing technology that improves the life of every person on the planet. 

The programs he said includes, Digital Readiness For Leaders which is to empower government leaders on emerging technologies such as AI, Cloud, 5G connectivity and Intelligent Edge including IOT and Cybersecurity to drive informed policymaking.

“AI For Citizens to develop awareness and understanding of AI among the public.

“AI For Youth Program which is to empower school students to learn and apply AI tech and social skills for real world problem solving.

“AI For Future Workforce is aimed at empowering future workforce from technical /vocational schools with necessary AI skills for employability in the digital economy.

“AI For Current Workforce is to upskill and reskill members of the current workforce such as that of SMEs for immediate work impact.

“In addition, Intel has developed several other programmes and initiatives to accelerate digitization globally in the area of the Intel’s Skills For Innovation programme supports educators in leading the transformation of education and preparing students for the Fourth Industrial Revolution. 

Other programs according to Soglo include the Intel Partner Alliance programme which offers exclusive resources for AI, cloud, high performance computing, and other solution areas to help plan, build, and deliver more customer value.

“And the Intel Developer Zone provides the official source for developing on Intel Hardware and software where you will be able to explore our most popular development areas and resources.

“Intel Ignite, which is our Intel’s Startup Growth Program; and the Intel Ignite OneAPI for Startups program which is targeting the global start-up ecosystem.

He said Intel looks forward to contributing to the development of the deep tech startups ecosystem as well as working with the entire African Startups ecosystem and all the stakeholders.

“It is an honour for Intel to have the opportunity to contribute to AfriLabs effort in supporting the innovation ecosystem in Africa as well as provide soft landings to international partners.

“At Intel our purpose is to create world-changing technology that improves the life of every person on the planet. 

“Intel put the silicon in Silicon Valley and for more than 50 years, Intel and our people have had a profound influence on the world, driving business and society forward by creating radical innovation that Revolutionalises the way we live.

In her comments, Ekeledo enumerated roles that AfriLab had played in supporting innovation and entrepreneurship in Africa.

She said the hubs provided by the firm, had provided a conducive, creative and collaborative environment for innovators entrepreneurs, developers and startups to build innovative solutions that could solve every day problems across various sectors.

She said, “They (hubs) also provide the necessary support needed to build successful tech-driven businesses that create jobs and contribute to the social and economic development of the continent.

“AfriLab and Intel partnership will provide African deep-tech startups access to a global wealth of startup support , training , consulting and  resources to grow participants grow their businesses to successful million and billion-dollar businesses while solving real societal challenges,” she added.