AI must bridge Africa’s digital divide

AI has a pivotal role in bridging the digital divide and fostering inclusive growth in Africa. 

This was the key message of the 2024 Southern Africa Telecommunication Networks and Applications Conference (SATNAC), which concluded its 26th edition last week with a call to harness AI to drive positive change across the continent. 

Under the theme “The AI-driven hyperconnected future: Co-creating shared value,” the conference, hosted by Telkom, aimed to navigate the transformative potential of AI, along with the need for AI-powered solutions tailored to address local challenges, such as improving access to healthcare, education, and financial services.

Sello Mmakau, Telkom group chief digital officer

From telco to techco

Telkom group chief digital officer Sello Mmakau said in his keynote address that, while AI will not replace people, those who don’t use AI will be replaced by people who adopt it.

He said that talent and skills remained uncompromised needs. However, it was also crucial to craft an AI governance framework upfront to provide the structure, policies and guidelines necessary to ensure responsible and ethical use of AI.

“AI is revolutionary but remains a means to an end, critical to enabling a journey from ‘traditional telco’ business models to ‘techco’,” said Mmakau. “While embedding AI in products and services is crucial for staying competitive and meeting customer needs, a well-defined AI strategy guides the organisation in leveraging AI effectively. 

“Ultimately, the choice between vertical and horizontal AI strategy or hybrid depends on the organisation’s goals, market focus and the nature of business outcomes to solve for.”

The conference also covered the ethical implications of AI, highlighting the importance of responsible AI frameworks to mitigate potential risks – including a focus on data privacy, algorithmic bias, and the need for transparent and accountable AI systems.

SATNAC Research Paper Winners

The conference celebrated the next generation of innovators with the announcement of the Best Student Papers Awards, showcasing exceptional talent emerging from African universities.

From 130 papers submitted, Marchant Fourie, Herman Myburgh and Allan de Freitas from the University of Pretoria won the best paper award for their research on “Automated crocodile detection using deep learning and synthetic data”.

In second place was Francis Phiri, Fambirai Takawira and Chabalala Chabalala from University of Witwatersrand for their paper on “Machine Learning-based Computation Offloading in Energy-Harvesting eMBB Networks: A Twin Delayed DDPG Approach”

In third place was Arnold van der Merwe and Albert Helberg from North-West University for their paper on “Modulation classification accuracy of a clustering and a CNN technique under FGSM adversarial attacks”.