Artificial Intelligence Action Summit: The AFD Group is mobilized and ready

The Artificial Intelligence Action Summit is a significant global initiative dedicated to shaping the future of artificial intelligence in service of the greater good. Driven by the initiative of the President of the Republic, France will host the third edition, succeeding the United Kingdom and South Korea. In a world where AI is redefining our societies, collective action is essential to harness its opportunities while managing its risks.

English subtitles are available in video setting.

Why this Summit?

AI represents a major technological revolution with the potential to profoundly transform our societies, from education and healthcare to work and culture. To fully realize this potential, it is crucial to ensure its development is ethical, inclusive, and sustainable. This Summit aims to collectively address these challenges by bringing together states, companies, researchers, and citizens around a shared goal: AI that benefits everyone.

What are the objectives?

The Summit will focus on three key areas:

1. Accessibility and Inclusion

The goal is to broaden access to reliable and open AI for all while reducing the digital divide. This involves sharing common resources, such as datasets or accessible tools, and fostering global talent development. Particular attention will be given to emerging countries to ensure they benefit from this technology while preserving their sovereignty.

2. Environmental Sustainability

In the face of climate challenges, AI must become more energy-efficient and environmentally friendly. The Summit will encourage research and concrete commitments toward greener AI, promoting the use of decarbonized energy and establishing new environmental standards.

3. Global Governance

Finally, the Summit will address the need for inclusive international governance, involving states, private actors, and civil society. Topics include ethical regulation, protection of fundamental freedoms, combating disinformation, and preventing technological monopolies.

A project by the AFD Group presented at the Summit

The project "Stratégie nationale IA Sénégal" supported by Expertise France, a subsidiary of the AFD Group, demonstrates a strong ambition to integrate artificial intelligence as a lever for economic development and national sovereignty. Pre-selected for presentation at the Summit for AI Action, this project is among the 50 innovative initiatives chosen by the Paris Peace Forum in the category "Governance, Ethics, Responsibility, and Crisis Response." Expertise France played a key role in drafting and adopting this strategy, which aims to build a dynamic AI ecosystem in Senegal. The strategy aspires to train 80,000 talents by 2028, leveraging AI as a driver of economic growth and job creation, particularly for Senegalese youth.

The AFD group Conference alongside the Summit

Aligned with the vision of AI serving the common good, the AFD group aims to promote innovation in artificial intelligence for sustainable development. The conference titled “AI for Development: Solutions for a Sustainable and Inclusive Future” seeks to create a space for reflection on concrete solutions. This event aspires to be a true platform for exchange and inspiration, showcasing key players deploying AI solutions in Africa.

Register to the AFD group conference:

Registrations on-site are by invitation only, and attendance on-line is free. Discussions will take place in French and English, with translation in both languages. Doors will open at 13:30. The conference will be followed by a networking cocktail. 

From February 6, 2025, Paris will be the global capital of artificial intelligence for a week. Over 100 heads of state, as well as a thousand representatives from the private sector and civil society across all continents, are expected to attend the Artificial Intelligence Action Summit. The stakes of this summit are fundamental: ensuring AI delivers on its original promise of progress and empowerment. This requires a shared framework of trust to both mitigate the risks of technological development and fully harness its opportunities.

As part of this, the Togolese Minister of Digital Economy and Transformation, Ms. Cina Lawson; the French Ambassador for Digital Affairs, Mr. Henri Verdier; and the AFD Group will host an event, “AI for Development: Solutions for a Sustainable and Inclusive Future,” on Tuesday 11 February 2025, from 14:00 to 16:30.

Join us to explore concrete solutions tailored to the realities of developing countries and to discover how AI can help address social, economic, and environmental challenges. Through meaningful discussions and inspiring initiatives, this event aims to provide a platform for grassroots AI practitioners and collaboratively build an ambitious vision of AI's role in sustainable development.

Objectives of the Conference:

1. Highlight innovative AI solutions for development (education, health, agriculture, social inclusion, etc.).
2. Raise awareness and engage stakeholders on AI's potential and issues related to digital sovereignty and ethics in developing countries.
3. Facilitate dialogue between experts, policymakers, tech companies, and development actors.

The conference program : 

• 1:30 PM – Doors Open, Welcome Coffee
• 2:00 PM - 2:15 PM: Introduction

Rémy Rioux, Chief Executive Officer, AFD Group

Cina Lawson, Minister of Digital Economy and Digital Transformation, Togo

Henri Verdier, Ambassador for Digital Affairs, France

• 2:15 PM – 3:25 PM: 15 AI Solutions for Development

Moderator: Ko Goma, Advisor to Cina Lawson, Minister of Digital Economy and Digital Transformation, Togo

This session will highlight 15 AI-driven innovations presented by startups, universities, and organizations. Each presentation will showcase how these solutions address concrete challenges and create real impact in key sectors such as Agriculture & Environment, Natural Resources & Hydrology, Health & Biotechnology, Education & Technology, Artificial Intelligence & Innovation, Justice & Transparency, and Financial & Commercial Solutions.

Agriculture & Environment

• InstaGeo (United Kingdom): Uses multi-spectral satellite data to anticipate and monitor locust invasions.
• Extracting Carbon from Landfill Waste (Kenya/Nigeria): Analyzes landfill carbon potential for sustainable energy storage.
• Natural Resources & Hydrology
• Blue Water Intelligence (BWI) (France): Virtual stations for hydrological forecasting and water resource management.
• NEOMIA (Côte d'Ivoire): Collaborative platform using satellite imagery to combat illegal fishing and protect marine biodiversity.
• Mapping the World's Forests with AI (United States): Partnership with Meta to create the first high-resolution global forest cover map.
• Rubicon Technology: Software platform providing comprehensive waste management, recycling, and smart city technology solutions.

Health & Biotechnology

• Care for Rare Conditions Using AI (Ghana): AI-powered diagnosis and treatment of rare diseases using genomic data.
• CervicAId (United States): AI-driven real-time analysis of cervical images to improve early detection of cervical cancer.

Education & Technology

• Vittascience: Educational platform dedicated to coding and digital learning.
• UDARESS: AI-based platform for personalized learning and improved teacher effectiveness.

Artificial Intelligence & Innovation

• African Language Hub for AI (Masakhane) (United States): Fund dedicated to developing natural language processing technologies tailored for Africa.
• Umbaji (Togo): Developer of Yodi, an AI-powered voice recognition tool for African languages, including an Ewe-English translator.
• Justice & Transparency
• AymurAI (Argentina): AI-powered anonymization tool for judicial data to enhance transparency in gender violence cases.

• 3:25 PM – 3:30 PM: Presentation of Mistral AI

William El Sayed, Director of Public Policy, Mistral AI

• 3:30 PM - 3:35 PM: Opening Speech

Doreen Bogdan-Martin, Secretary-General, International Telecommunication Union

• 3:30 PM - 4:20 PM: AI and Development: Towards a New Agreement

Moderator: Henri Verdier, Ambassador for Digital Affairs

• 3:30 PM – 3:55 PM: PANEL I – Conditions for the Emergence of an African AI Ecosystem

This session will explore the fundamental requirements for building a robust AI ecosystem in Africa. Panelists will discuss key elements such as public digital infrastructure, data availability, and talent development, highlighting challenges and opportunities in scaling AI solutions across the continent.

Speakers:

Marsha Cadlle, Minister of Industry, Innovation, Science, and Digital Economy, Barbados

William Kabogo Gitau, Minister of Information, Communications, and Digital Economy, Kenya

Sharad Sharma, Co-Founder, iSPIRT Foundation

Martin Tisne, Envoy to the AI Action Summit, Director of The AI Collaborative

• 3:55 PM – 4:25 PM: PANEL II – Capacity Building and Global Cooperation

This session will explore the evolving global cooperation framework for advancing AI. It will focus on funding AI innovations, strengthening local capabilities, and establishing effective governance frameworks. The discussion will highlight how collaborations can ensure the ethical and inclusive development of AI.

Speakers:

Alioune Sall, Minister of Communication, Telecommunications, and Digital, Senegal

Sam George, Minister of Communication, Digital Technologies, and Innovation, Ghana

Dr. Bosun Tijani, Minister of Communication, Innovation, and Digital Economy, Nigeria

Marjeta Jager, Deputy Director-General, DG International Partnerships, European Commission

Jeremy Pellet, Chief Executive Officer, Expertise France

• 4:20 PM – 4:30 PM: Closing Remarks

Cina Lawson, Minister of Digital Economy and Digital Transformation, Togo

• 4:30 PM: Cocktail Reception

Registrations on-site are by invitation only, and attendance on-line is free. Discussions will take place in French and English, with translation in both languages. Doors will open at 13:30. The conference will be followed by a networking cocktail. 

Discover our AI initiatives designed to enrich discussions at the Summit.

• AIIPI Index 2025: A Tool to Guide AI Investments

Are we all equally prepared to embrace the rise of artificial intelligence? To address this question and better guide investments, AFD has developed an index evaluating investment potential in AI. This tool identifies areas and sectors with the most significant opportunities. Combining social inclusion, human capital, and macroeconomic factors, the index helps institutions and governments target strategic investments for inclusive growth.

AI Investment Potential Index: Mapping Global Opportunities for Sustainable Development

• Tech Talk: Education in the AI Era – Preparing Young Professionals for Tomorrow’s Challenges

This webinar tackles a key issue: preparing youth for future jobs in the face of the digital revolution. Join a dialogue with experts on the future of work and inclusive development.

Speakers:

• Emmanuel Vaslin: International Technical Expert (ETI) in education, Advisor to the Ministry of National Education-New Citizenship in the DRC
• Jean-Michel Huet: Partner at Bearing Point, Foreign Trade Advisor
• Mar Merita Blat: Education, Employment and Digital Project Team Leader, AFD

A panel hosted by Peter Addo, Head of Emerging Tech Lab, AFD

Date: February 4, 2025 / 2:00–3:15 PM

• Hackathon: Building Operational AI Solutions Using Satellite Data

Datacraft and InstaDeep, supported by AFD’s innovation unit, will host a two-day hackathon. This event, organized alongside the Summit, aims to gather creative minds, AI experts, and passionate professionals to design geospatial solutions optimized by AI.

Dates: February 4–5, 2025 / 8:00 AM–8:00 PM



Learn more: https://geoaihack.com