Rwanda: Nsengimana - Africa Must Build Ai, Unlock Financing and Scale Health Innovation
[New Times] More than 5,900 delegates are expected in Kigali for the fifth Africa HealthTech Summit, taking place from September 30 to October 2 at the Kigali Convention Centre.
Rwandan health tech summit Chairman and Chief Curator Jean-Philbert Nsengimana discussed artificial intelligence (AI) in healthcare, financing digital health, scaling African innovation, and continental collaboration. Nsengimana emphasized the importance of collaboration among governments, private sector, development partners, innovators, and investors to tackle health challenges.
Since its inception, the Africa HealthTech Summit has grown exponentially, attracting over 5,900 delegates this year from various health sectors. The summit has already facilitated tangible outcomes, such as the investment of $3.1 million and a $6 million round for Diagnostics AI, a startup developing a stethoscope to detect tuberculosis early.
To maintain momentum, Nsengimana launched the Africa Digital Health Networks, an umbrella platform for digital health communities across Africa, and specific networks for women and young people in digital health. This year, the summit will emphasize wellness and non-communicable diseases, acknowledging their growing health and economic burden.
Nsengimana argues that Africa should embrace AI faster, suggesting that the continent falls behind in AI adoption compared to developed economies, where telemedicine adoption grew up to 40 times during the pandemic, while Africa's growth was closer to threefold. To maximize the benefits of AI, Nsengimana argues that Africa should focus on building AI solutions tailored to its needs rather than merely adopting existing technologies.
Written by urgent.news from AllAfrica Health's reporting — not their text. Machine-written — may contain errors; check the original before relying on it.
