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FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE

African Telecommunications Union and UN-ODET to Collaborate on AI Capacity and Digital Public Infrastructure Across Africa

New collaboration will help African governments build safe, inclusive digital foundations and locally grounded AI capacity.

GENEVA, Switzerland — 3 July 2026 — The African Telecommunications Union (ATU) and the United Nations Office for Digital and Emerging Technologies (UN-ODET) today announced a new collaboration to accelerate the deployment of Digital Public Infrastructure (DPI) and bolster Artificial Intelligence (AI) capacity across the African continent.

As African nations rapidly transition into digital economies, the collaboration seeks to address the twin challenges of bridging the digital divide and building resilient national digital capabilities. By aligning regional priorities with global technical standards, the partnership will empower governments to construct safe, interoperable, and inclusive digital environments.

The initiative focuses on two core pillars:

AI Capacity Building

AI Capacity Building: Equipping policymakers, developers, and public administrators with the skills and regulatory frameworks required to deploy responsible, safe, and trustworthy AI. Special emphasis will be placed on synergy for the AU Continental Strategy on AI and UN AI National Strategy Blueprint to support policy and regulatory, localized language models and open-source AI ecosystems in Africa.

Digital Public Infrastructure (DPI)

Digital Public Infrastructure (DPI): Facilitating the deployment of secure, open-source architectures for digital identification, electronic payment systems, and trusted national and regional data exchange. This collaborative effort helps member states to avoid vendor lock-in, reduce implementation costs, and deliver essential public services to remote communities.

Quotes from Leadership:

"Africa is at a critical juncture where technology can no longer be a luxury; it must be a public utility. By partnering with UN-ODET, we are ensuring that African countries have both the foundational digital infrastructure (DPI) and the localized AI capacity to solve our unique continental challenges. We are building the highways of our future digital economy."

— Mr. John OMO, Secretary General of the African Telecommunications Union (ATU)

"Safe, inclusive, and trustworthy digital ecosystems are the keys to unlocking the Global Goals. UN-ODET is proud to work alongside the ATU to translate the principles of the Global Digital Compact (GDC) into tangible country-level outcomes. Together, we are supporting African leadership in developing AI tools and digital infrastructure that are built by the continent, for the continent."

— Mr. Amandeep Singh Gill, UN Under-Secretary-General and Special Envoy for Digital and Emerging Technologies (ODET)