Huawei Intelligent Africa Summit 2025 was held in Marrakech alongside GITEX Africa under the theme “Amplify Intelligence for New Africa.” For its 3rd edition, GITEX put a strong spotlight on Artificial Intelligence (AI) and digital innovation, highlighting a turning point in Africa’s technological transformation. In this dynamic, Huawei’s Summit aimed at exploring how AI can foster inclusive, sustainable development and help shape the continent’s future.
In his opening speech, Shen Li, President of Huawei Northern Africa (North, West & Central Africa), emphasized the necessity of an integrated and collaborative approach: “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.”
This call to action resonated strongly with Lacina Koné, Director General & CEO of Smart Africa, who underlined the importance of tailoring digital transformation to the continent’s unique context. He stated, “Let us deepen our roots —in policy, in people, in partnerships— so Africa may rise strong in the AI winds of change.” His remarks highlighted Africa’s demographic advantage, noting that over 70% of its population is under 30, which brings creativity, adaptability, and resilience essential to steering the AI revolution.
Further reinforcing this strategic vision, Mounir Soussi, Vice President of Huawei Northern Africa, stressed the market opportunities afforded by a customer-centric approach in a rapidly evolving digital era. He remarked, “In this changing era, Inclusive AI develops new opportunities in Africa and Huawei will insist on being customer-centric, promoting intelligence across the continent.” His perspective underlined that at the heart of these transformative initiatives lies a commitment to delivering tangible benefits to communities and businesses alike.
The Huawei Intelligent Africa Summit cast a spotlight on the role of robust New Infrastructure as the backbone of Africa’s AI journey. During a dedicated session, Ahmed Talaat, CTO of Huawei Cloud Northern Africa, explained: “In Africa, Huawei Cloud is committed to building an intelligent cloud foundation for the telecom industry and accelerating intelligence across industries with systematic innovation that encompasses AI for Cloud and Cloud for AI.” This strategic emphasis on integrated cloud solutions is designed to bridge digital divides and provide the secure, scalable infrastructure needed to support emerging AI applications.
One of the key pillars of the Summit’s theme, New Value, was brought to life through a powerful testimonial by Marouane Akrab, Head of Digital Center at Attijariwafa Bank. He noted, “After laying the foundations for an effective governance and centralised data, Attijariwafa Bank has launched a strategic shift to turn data into a real performance lever. This second phase was marked by a rise in power of analytical tools, a better use of data, and acculturation of teams to use Data & AI.” His remarks clearly demonstrate how the strategic use of data and AI is creating measurable impact and unlocking performance gains, especially in the financial sector.
Another key pillar of the Summit, New Ecosystem, was highlighted during a high-level panel that brought together a diverse group of stakeholders. The session underscored the vital importance of collaboration in the AI era, focusing on the urgent need to design inclusive, agile, and resilient frameworks. These are essential to support sustainable digital transformation across Africa and to fully harness AI’s potential for long-term economic and social impact.
By weaving together actionable insights and success stories with visionary leadership, the Huawei Intelligent Africa Summit 2025 has set a strong strategic agenda for the continent’s digital future. Huawei reaffirms its commitment to partnering with stakeholders across Africa to build a smarter, more connected future where innovation is both advanced and inclusive.