ICT Firm Leaders Hail Ethiopia's AI University as Catalyst for Africa's Digital Future

Addis Ababa, July 25, 2026 (ENA) —Information and Communication Technology (ICT) firm leaders from Ghana, Egypt, and Zimbabwe have hailed Ethiopia's establishment of its first Artificial Intelligence University (AIU) as a landmark initiative, describing it as a catalyst for Africa's digital transformation and future technological advancement.

In an exclusive interview with ENA, they described the initiative as a transformative step toward strengthening Africa's AI capabilities, promoting data sovereignty, and accelerating homegrown innovation across the continent.

Founder and Chief Executive Officer of FloodGates International and creator of Trustur AI, Oswald Wedam Anonadaga, said the initiative positions Ethiopia to shape its own digital future by developing AI solutions tailored to the country's priorities and development needs.

"I think establishing an AI university, especially one that focuses on the Ethiopian context and creates solutions for the Ethiopian economy, is one of the best initiatives," he said.

According to Anonadaga, the university should evolve beyond a conventional academic institution and become a strategic hub for AI research, innovation, entrepreneurship, and talent development capable of supporting both the public and private sectors.

He emphasized that grounding AI education and research in local realities would enable Ethiopia to develop technologies that address the country's unique social, economic, cultural, and linguistic challenges while reducing reliance on imported technologies.

Anonadaga also encouraged other African countries to establish similar institutions that can "train people, build solutions and adapt AI locally for our countries."

He noted that locally driven AI education would allow African nations to define their own technological priorities, protect their data, strengthen digital sovereignty, and build globally competitive technology companies.

Highlighting the broader economic benefits of AI skills development, he said expanding the pool of AI professionals would stimulate research, entrepreneurship, innovation, and the growth of vibrant digital ecosystems across Africa.

Drawing inspiration from Ghana's One Million Coders initiative, Anonadaga suggested Ethiopia could launch an ambitious national program to train one million AI specialists.

 

"If you are designing a solution, especially in Ethiopia, one of the things to look at is how we make this AI first," he said, proposing a vision of producing "one million AI coders."

Co-founder of Deaf Gain, Alshimaa Elbahrawy, on her part emphasized that the planned university presents an important opportunity to make AI education more inclusive by ensuring that persons with disabilities have equal access to learning, research, and innovation.

She called for dedicated programs that empower people with disabilities and stressed the crucial role educators and institutions play in expanding access to AI knowledge.

"We need to make a different collaboration," she said, adding that Africa should demonstrate to the world that it can build good partnership and good collaboration."

Elbahrawy emphasized that inclusivity should be embedded in the design of AI education so that technological progress benefits every segment of society and no one is left behind in the digital transformation.

Similarly, Executive Director of Accountability Lab East and Southern Africa, McDonald Lewanika, underscored the importance of data sovereignty as African countries expand their AI ambitions.

"Data sovereignty is an important one. Now data itself is the new oil," he said.

Lewanika argued that African countries must take greater ownership of their data by investing in secure digital infrastructure, including data centers, strengthening governance and regulatory frameworks, and developing specialized AI expertise to ensure Africans derive maximum value from the data they generate.

The experts agreed that Ethiopia's proposed AI University represents far more than the establishment of a new higher education institution.

They said it is a strategic investment that could strengthen Africa's technological independence, advance data sovereignty, nurture a new generation of AI professionals, and position Ethiopia as a leading continental hub for artificial intelligence research, innovation, and digital transformation.