Amal El Fallah Seghrouchni, the Minister Delegate to the Head of Government in charge of Digital Transition and Administrative Reform, stated that “Africa is entering the digital age to redesign and redefine its role,” adding that “we must look beyond the digital age—toward the next era that has already begun to shape our economies, institutions, and societies. This era is the era of artificial intelligence,” specifically mentioning the risks of “Agentic AI.”
During the opening of the third edition of “GITEX Africa,” in the presence of government members, CEOs, and technology company directors, as well as administrative officials and delegation representatives, Seghrouchni emphasized that “from this perspective, we gather here every year at GITEX Africa to examine and raise questions, and above all, to redesign Africa’s role in the digital age.”
According to the Minister of Digital Transition, “this event brings together all components of the ecosystem: governments, global companies, research institutions, and startups, not only to exchange technologies but to rethink the future we are building together,” noting that “we do this with the conviction that digital transformation is no longer an option, but a fundamental lever for development,” highlighting that “nevertheless, our ambition today must go further.”
“I am happy to meet you today and welcome you to the third edition of GITEX Africa, which our country is hosting under the high patronage of His Majesty King Mohammed VI, the major continental event dedicated to technology and innovation that brings together the elite of the African and international digital ecosystem for three days in Marrakech,” the minister addressed the attendees, recalling King Mohammed VI’s affirmation in his speech to the extraordinary African Union summit in Kigali in March 2018 that “Africa is now on its way to becoming a laboratory for digital technology,” considering that “this visionary outlook guides the initiatives of our country and our continent.”
Seghrouchni pointed out that “this underscores the increasing importance of the digital economy, which today represents 15 percent of global GDP, equivalent to an estimated 6.5 trillion dollars.”
Aware of the importance of this digital revolution, the Minister of Digital Transition stressed “Morocco’s active engagement in shaping the foundations of a future where digitization, and through it, artificial intelligence, benefits everyone.”
“This era is not out of reach; it is not a distant era”; for “the age of artificial intelligence is already here, and it is moving rapidly,” according to Seghrouchni, who added that “at GITEX Africa, nearly 40% of all present startups are integrating artificial intelligence into their core products and services.”
She continued, explaining to the attendees at the opening of “GITEX Africa Morocco 2025” that “this is not an isolated trend. It reflects a deeper transformation… a transformation in the structure of innovation itself.”
In a detailed presentation before the audience, the Minister of Digital Transition and Administrative Reform, who has accumulated experience in the field of artificial intelligence, explained that “to fully understand what awaits us in the future, we must briefly look at where artificial intelligence began.”
“We started with perception-based artificial intelligence through machines designed for inference, built on symbolic logic and rule-based systems. These early systems simulated human thought but were limited due to rigidity,” said Amal Seghrouchni, highlighting “the transition to data-driven AI—the first generation—where machines gained analytical capabilities. Through statistical models, data mining, and supervised learning, AI began to discover patterns and extract insights on a broader scale.”
Today, the minister continued in her opening remarks for the largest technological event, “we are in the era of generative and multimodal AI. Machines generate images, synthesize speech, compose texts, and even simulate human dialogue and imagination… Nevertheless, this is not the final destination.”
“We now stand at the brink of new frontiers: Agentic AI,” she clarified.
She explained that “this emerging category of systems does not merely generate content or respond to requests; it acts. It operates independently. It learns continuously. It plans, thinks, and makes decisions across various domains,” affirming that “the shift from tools to agents represents a very deep transformation.”
The minister cautioned, however, that “we must also grapple with fractures; real divisions threaten to reinforce dependency rather than sovereignty.”
In this regard, she stated: “Firstly, the computing divide: less than 1% of global data center capacity is located in Africa. Secondly, the talent gap: the African continent produces only 0.5% of the research publications in the field of artificial intelligence, yet faces a shortage of over 10 million AI professionals.”
“Thirdly, the data and models gap” because “95% of global AI training data overlooks African languages and cultural contexts. These gaps are not only technical but geopolitical. They call for strategic, collective, and urgent action,” according to the Moroccan government official.
The minister’s speech also included a presentation of the national strategy “Digital Morocco 2030” launched in September 2024, emphasizing that it “is supported by tangible initiatives: the D4SD Center for coordinating digital development and artificial intelligence at the regional level,” as well as “JAZARI Institutes—the regional bridges between research and innovation and local digital systems,” along with “massive investment in sovereign digital infrastructure.”
It is noteworthy that the third edition of “GITEX Africa” is attended by more than 650 government institutions, with participation from over 350 investors and more than 660 speakers from around the world, in addition to 45,000 participants, along with 1,400 exhibitors from 130 countries.
Sector-specific seminars are expected to be “organized, highlighting strategic sectors such as EdTech, AgriTech, HealthTech, and SportsTech, with anticipation of forming effective partnerships that accelerate the integration of the continent into the global digital economy, enhancing Africa’s position as a global innovation hub.”
