UNDP and GSMA partner to support African-led AI and African-language services
The UN Development Programme and the GSMA will work together to give African AI developers access to compute, talent networks and routes to scale.
The United Nations Development Programme (UNDP) and the GSMA have formed a partnership aimed at strengthening Africa's artificial intelligence ecosystem and speeding the rollout of AI built on the continent, including AI that works in African languages. The two organisations announced the agreement in New York on 2 October.
The work will run through timbuktoo, a UNDP initiative that helps African innovators scale their solutions. According to the GSMA's announcement, the partners will improve access to compute infrastructure for priority AI pilots, connect African talent with real-world applications, support the deployment of locally developed systems and look for ways to make them sustainable over the long term.
The GSMA brings its mobile industry networks and expertise, while UNDP contributes its development programmes and innovation platforms. The partners also plan to draw on the UNDP-supported University Innovation Pods network, AI labs, universities and other ecosystem partners.
Building on ATLAS Umoja AI
The partnership ties into the GSMA's existing work on African-language AI through ATLAS Umoja AI, which it launched with government and industry partners in July 2026. That initiative pools expertise and language data from across Africa to support AI services suited to local needs, with the goal of reducing the language and content barriers that hold back digital inclusion.
Aissata De, UNDP's officer-in-charge and regional director for Africa, said the partnership would help connect innovators to "the infrastructure, skills and opportunities" they need. Angela Wamola, the GSMA's head of Africa, said the continent's AI future "must be shaped by its own talent and reflect the languages and needs of its communities."