Amber Hickman |
Microsoft and Emirati artificial intelligence organisation G42 will deliver a $1 billion comprehensive package of digital investments in Kenya as part an initiative with the Republic of Kenya’s Ministry of Information, Communications and the Digital Economy.
One of the investment priorities is a new green data centre that will be built by G42 and its partners to run Microsoft Azure in a new East Africa cloud region.
“This partnership between two companies and three countries highlights a real opportunity to bring digital technology to the global south in a safe and secure manner,” said Brad Smith, vice chair and president of Microsoft. “This represents the single largest and broadest digital investment in Kenya’s history and reflects our confidence in the country, the government, its people and the future of East Africa.”
There are four key pillars to the initiative that will be pursued with local partners. Firstly, G42 is working to train an open-source large language AI model in Swahili and English to support the country’s unique cultural and linguistic needs. To build on this, Microsoft and G42 will increase their support for local universities. For example, the Microsoft AI for Good Lab in Nairobi will use AI technology to work with nonprofit organisations to help address economic and societal priorities across East Africa.
Additionally, Microsoft and G42 will collaborate with a wide array of local partners to provide different programmes for Kenyans. They will include a digital and AI skilling programme for government employees, a cybersecurity skilling initiative and a business course for young entrepreneurs aged 18-24.
Microsoft and G42 will also work with Kenya’s Ministry of Information, Communications and the Digital Economy to broaden internet connectivity across the country. The organisations aim to bring wireless internet access to 20 million people in Kenya and 50 million people across East Africa by the end of 2025.
Finally, Microsoft and G42 will work with the government of Kenya to design and operate the new East Africa cloud region based on global standards to protect digital safety, privacy and security. Kenya will utilise the new data centre and cloud services for governmental and citizen services, and it will provide government support to help state-owned enterprises and local entities to move their data services to the cloud.