Africa’s health leaders are working to move artificial intelligence from small-scale experiments into everyday healthcare, as thousands of policymakers, investors and innovators gather in Rwanda to explore how home-grown digital systems can improve care across the continent.
The fifth Africa HealthTech Summit opened in Kigali on Wednesday, with AI, health data and financing among its main themes.
Footage shows audience members listening to speakers at the Kigali Convention Centre and moving between exhibition stands displaying healthcare technology and medical devices. Visitors are seen speaking with health-tech representatives and testing equipment on display.
“What I like about how Africa is approaching this is we are being open, we are being curious, we are being receptive to the use of AI for health. There are other areas of the world where they have even more capacity in terms of financial capacity, infrastructure capacity, but they are a lot more resistant to change,” Chairman and Chief Curator of the Africa HealthTech Summit Jean-Philbert Nsengimana said.
Some African companies are already deploying AI for specific tasks.
“For example, smart applications. We have implemented AI in our fraud detection mechanisms, and we are seeing up to 55 percent reduction in otherwise undetectable fraud,” Managing Director of Smart Applications International Limited Harrison Muiru.
“We believe this is the time for Africa to take leads in enabling AI within its platform, but with the necessary safeguards to ensure that it effectively manages and it does the right, appropriate outcomes as is the vision to provide,” he continued.
More than 5,900 delegates are expected at the three-day summit, which runs until October 2.
Discussions also focus on securing financing and integrating successful projects into national health systems, as African countries look to turn digital innovation into practical healthcare at scale.
Source: Viory
