• Djibouti and Romania discuss cooperation on digital transformation and innovation.
• Talks highlight Romania’s expertise in e-government and strong IT talent pool.
• Partnership could strengthen Djibouti’s digital governance, skills and cybersecurity.

Djibouti’s Minister of Digital Transformation, Mariam Hamadou, met last week with Olivia Toderean, Romania’s new non-resident ambassador to Djibouti, to explore a potential partnership focused on digital development and innovation.

According to the ministry, discussions centered on Romania’s expertise in digital transformation, which could open the way to promising cooperation in supporting Djibouti’s digital growth. Romania ranks 72nd globally in the UN e-government development index, with a score of 0.7636. It also boasts a strong IT talent base, ranking sixth worldwide for certified information technology specialists per capita, ahead of the United States and Russia.

The initiative comes as Djibouti steps up efforts to structure its digital economy. Following the adoption of a digital code in May, the country is now preparing a national artificial intelligence strategy. While Djibouti has already built strong telecom infrastructure, advancing public sector digitalization and strengthening specialized skills remain key to fostering innovation and digital inclusion.

If finalized, the partnership could help Djibouti enhance cybersecurity, accelerate digital transformation of its administration, and develop a pool of local digital talent. For Romania, it offers an opportunity to extend its expertise in East Africa and deepen bilateral ties in technology and innovation.

This funding is intended to expand broadband infrastructure, strengthen digital public platforms, and develop employment-ready digital skills across Zambia.

Zambia has secured a $120 million grant from the World Bank to scale up its public digital infrastructure, a major step toward meeting national development goals under the Science, Technology, and Innovation Policy and Vision 2030. The announcement was made by Minister of Technology and Science Felix Mutati during the launch of the ABSA Mobi Tap mobile payment app in Lusaka on September 18.

The support comes through the Digital Zambia Acceleration Project (DZAP), part of Phase II of the Inclusive Digitalization in Eastern and Southern Africa Multiphase Programmatic Approach (IDEA MPA). The $2.48 billion regional program, approved by the World Bank Board on June 27, 2024, covers Angola, the Democratic Republic of Congo, Malawi, and COMESA as the coordinating regional bloc. Zambia is the fifth country to implement the program.

During a July 2024 visit to Lusaka, World Bank Managing Director and Chief Administration Officer Wengcai Zhang pledged $100 million in IDA financing for DZAP, alongside an additional $20 million in unguaranteed commercial financing. He said the project would expand broadband and last-mile infrastructure, strengthen digital public infrastructure, and support high-impact sectors including health, education, and agriculture.

Zhang explained that DZAP would nurture employment-ready digital skills and increase access to digitally enabled services across Zambia. He noted the project is aligned with government priorities under Vision 2030 and would improve efficiency in both the public and private sectors.

Ahead of full approval, expected from the World Bank Board in March 2025, a $6 million Project Preparation Advance was signed in October 2024. This enabled the Smart Zambia Institute to begin stakeholder consultations on the project’s Environmental and Social Management Framework, drawing participation from all ten provinces.

DZAP has four core components aligned with IDEA’s pillars. These include extending backbone and regional networks, supplying last-mile connectivity, and strengthening the enabling environment. Other priorities include developing digital ID and trust services, enhancing digital government, supporting regional trade facilitation, and fostering digitalization in key sectors while nurturing employment-ready skills.

The program is expected to have far-reaching implications. Improved connectivity will reduce the urban-rural digital divide, opening access to e-government services, digital health, and online education for millions. Recent statistics highlight the need for these investments. As of early 2025, Zambia had approximately 19.9 million mobile connections, accounting for 92.1% of the population. However, internet penetration stood at only 33%, meaning roughly two-thirds of Zambians remained offline. Broadband-capable mobile access was high, but many users still lacked reliable, affordable internet.

The program will also invest in digital skills, preparing Zambian youth for jobs in fintech, agritech, and other emerging sectors. By doing so, it aims to position Zambia not only as a consumer of digital services but as a regional hub for innovation and investment.

The project aligns with Zambia’s wider push to digitize services, modernize governance, and enhance financial inclusion.

Hikmatu Bilali

The launch signals a wider digital shift: African governments and companies are no longer just consumers of foreign AI systems, but are beginning to shape the technology around local realities, identities, and needs.

On September 20, 2025, on the sidelines of the 80th United Nations General Assembly (UNGA80), Nigeria’s Minister of Communications, Innovation, and Digital Economy, Dr. Bosun Tijani, officially launched the Nigerian Atlas for Languages & AI at Scale (N-ATLAS). The Atlas is an open-source facility designed to map the country’s rich linguistic diversity of country with artificial intelligence (AI) and power-inclusive chat solutions.

The first version of the project, N-ATLAS v1, is a multilingual and multimodal large language model that supports Yoruba, Hausa, Igbo, and Nigerian-accented English. Built on Meta’s Llama-3 8B architecture and fine-tuned with over 400 million tokens of multilingual instruction data, it is Nigeria’s most ambitious step yet toward embedding African voices in AI development. “This is the first step in a broader journey to make Africa a contributor and leader in shaping AI’s future,” said Tijani.

The project is powered by Awarri Technologies in partnership with the National Information Technology Development Agency (NITDA) and the National Centre for Artificial Intelligence and Robotics (NCAIR). For Nigerians, the launch could transform how people interact with technology in their daily lives.

Language models like N-ATLAS make it possible to use apps, chatbots, and government services in local languages, not just English — helping millions who are more comfortable in Hausa, Igbo, or Yoruba. By making digital tools work in local tongues, the model breaks down barriers for communities left behind by the English-dominated internet.

With more than 500 native languages, Nigeria faces the risk of cultural erosion in the digital age. N-ATLAS helps preserve and digitize this linguistic heritage for future generations. Governments, schools, and businesses can deploy AI-powered platforms that communicate directly in people’s languages — from healthcare advice to education and customer support. This ensures more people can participate in the digital economy.

By investing in tools like N-ATLAS, Nigeria is positioning itself as a leader in African-led AI innovation. The model will enable researchers, entrepreneurs, and startups across the continent to develop culturally relevant AI solutions, while reducing their dependence on Western-trained systems that often fail to function effectively in African languages.

This movement is echoed across the continent, with similar initiatives gaining momentum. In South Africa, Lelapa AI’s InkubaLM supports languages such as Hausa, Swahili, Zulu, Yoruba, and Xhosa. Ethiopia’s Artificial Intelligence Institute is also advancing language technologies for Amharic, Afaan Oromo, Aff-Somali, and Tigrigna, integrating them into public services like the Smart Court system. These efforts reflect a continental awakening — one where African nations are reclaiming their linguistic space in the digital world and actively contributing to the global AI landscape.

Hikmatu Bilali