African Ministers and officials for Education, Skills, ICT, and Digital Economy from over 30 countries are gathering in Addis Ababa, Ethiopia, from April 28-30 for the high-level forum, Innovation Africa 2025. The event, hosted by the Government of the Federal Democratic Republic of Ethiopia under the patronage of HE Prof Berhanu Nega, Federal Minister of Education, aims to drive education, skills, and ICT development across the continent.

Innovation Africa is firmly established as the continent's number one high-level ministerial forum, where ministers and senior government officials enjoy pre-scheduled meetings with industry investors and multilateral partners. For 14 years, the unique proposition of Innovation Africa has been the dedicated pre-scheduled meetings between industry solution providers and government ministers and officials for education, ICT, and skills.

The thematic approach of Innovation Africa 2025 follows on from the African "Year of Education" declaration, bringing together solution providers from across the education, technology, and skills spectrum. The event will cover a variety of pertinent themes, including education system transformation, developing pedagogies for Africa, the future skilling of teachers and students, investment in ICTs for education, technical and vocational education, equitable access and inclusive education, investing in STEM education, and the impact of AI in education.

In the AU 2024 meeting in Addis Ababa, Ministers confirmed Africa's Year of Education declaration to build resilient education systems for increased access to inclusive, lifelong, and quality learning for Africa. Participants in the Innovation Africa summit will be discussing equitable access policies while investing more in teacher training, enhancing problem-solving and collaboration skills, and the digitization of learning materials through leveraging innovative EdTech.

Investment in EdTech across the continent is expected to grow from $3 billion in 2021 to $57 billion in 2023, a 1,800% increase in expenditure since the pandemic. Digitizing learning materials is key to addressing the imbalances and securing transformation. TVET is regarded as a critical component of any robust African education system, with many countries in Africa having implemented curricula reform to better align their education systems with societal needs.

Digital education offers a cost-effective approach to enhancing a country's performance without significant physical infrastructure investments. With the fastest-growing workforce in the world, Africa can play a consequential part in the AI ecosystem. By 2030, AI will add 6% to Africa's GDP, and any effective strategy to build a competitive workforce starts in the classroom. AI has the potential to improve education systems, such as freeing up teachers' time to provide more personalized support to learners.

However, it is essential to better understand the risks and opportunities presented by AI in education. Innovation Africa 2025 provides a platform for ministers, officials, and industry experts to discuss and address these challenges. For more information, visit https://www.innovation-africa.org.

Press and media contact: Chamaine Chafera, chamaine.chafera@brains.global.