SAMENA Council urges more AI cooperation between Arab region and Africa

Details: John Tanner; Category: Enterprise Ecosystems; 14 September 2026; 1814 views

The SAMENA Telecommunications Council – the industry body representing the telecoms sectors in South Asia, the Middle East and North Africa – has called for stronger practical cooperation between the Arab region and Africa to invest and implement AI.

In a speech at the AI-Forward Summit 2026 in Tunisia last week, SAMENA Council CEO and board member Bocar Ba said that as AI becomes increasingly pervasive in businesses, public institutions, infrastructure, and everyday life, AI development must shift from pure technological ambition toward practical outcomes that reflect regional realities and aspirations of economies, institutions, businesses, and people.

Ba said industry players need to translate the growing interest in AI into investment, implementation, stronger capabilities, and measurable economic value.

For the Arab region and Africa, Ba said the Council is emphasising the importance of developing the talent, infrastructure, investment environment, institutions, and market conditions required for meaningful participation in the emerging AI economy.

Meanwhile, as AI systems become more capable and autonomous, Ba also stressed the importance of trust, security, identity, accountability, dependable infrastructure and effective governance.

Ba highlighted the potential for closer cooperation across both regions by connecting capital with innovation, infrastructure with markets, technology with talent, and investment with implementation.

These complementary strengths can support new enterprises, stronger services, productive investment, and partnerships that extend beyond individual conferences and initiatives, he said.

“The SAMENA Council believes that the Arab world and Africa have an opportunity to participate in this next phase not only as markets for AI technologies, but increasingly as investors, innovators, partners, and contributors to their development and application,” he said.