The Intelligent Africa Summit 2025, held alongside GITEX Africa in Marrakech, marked a turning point in the continent’s digital transformation. Under the theme “Amplify Intelligence for New Africa,” the third edition of the Summit brought Artificial Intelligence (AI) and digital innovation to the forefront.
Notably, Huawei led a series of forward-thinking discussions, emphasizing how AI can drive inclusive growth, sustainability, and prosperity across Africa.
A Unified Call for AI Development
To begin with, Shen Li, President of Huawei Northern Africa, stressed the importance of a collaborative approach across all pillars of AI development. “Moving forward, we will continue to collaborate with all parties across key pillars of AI development in policy, technology, ecosystem, and talent to accelerate intelligence and co-build a new Africa,” he said.
Lacina Koné, Director General and CEO of Smart Africa, supported this message by underlining the importance of adapting digital transformation to Africa’s unique demographic. “Let us deepen our roots—in policy, in people, in partnerships—so Africa may rise strong in the AI winds of change,” he urged. He also noted that with over 70% of the population under 30, the continent is uniquely positioned to harness creativity, adaptability, and resilience in shaping its digital future.
Embracing Customer-Centric AI Innovation
Furthermore, Mounir Soussi, Vice President of Huawei Northern Africa, reinforced the need to adopt a customer-centric strategy in today’s evolving digital market. “In this changing era, Inclusive AI develops new opportunities in Africa, and Huawei will insist on being customer-centric, promoting intelligence across the continent,” he said.
He introduced Huawei’s Value Proposal to amplify Intelligence for New Africa, centered around three main pillars:
- New Infrastructure
- New Ecosystem
- New Value
These focus areas, powered by AI, reflect Huawei’s ambition to create meaningful change for communities and industries alike.
Investing in Intelligent Infrastructure
During a dedicated session, Ahmed Talaat, CTO of Huawei Cloud Northern Africa, highlighted Huawei’s strategy for building an intelligent foundation. He explained, “Huawei Cloud is committed to building an intelligent cloud foundation for the telecom industry and accelerating intelligence across industries through systematic innovation.”
By implementing both AI for Cloud and Cloud for AI models, Huawei aims to bridge Africa’s digital divide and ensure secure, scalable infrastructure to support emerging technologies.
Turning Data into Business Value
Meanwhile, Marouane Akrab, Head of Digital Center at Attijariwafa Bank, shared a real-world success story that demonstrated AI’s impact in the financial sector. “After laying the foundations for effective governance and centralized data, we launched a strategic shift to use data and AI as performance levers,” he shared.
As a result, the bank has improved data use, enhanced analytical tools, and trained teams to integrate AI into everyday operations—unlocking measurable performance improvements.
Building a Resilient AI Ecosystem
In addition, a high-level panel discussion on New Ecosystem brought together diverse voices from across the tech and policy sectors. The session stressed the urgent need to build inclusive, agile, and resilient frameworks that support long-term digital transformation.
The panelists agreed that only through deep collaboration can Africa fully harness AI’s potential for widespread economic and social benefit.
