Ibadan, 27 May 2024. – Microsoft Corp. and G42 have announced a comprehensive package of digital investments in Kenya, as part of an initiative with Kenya’s Ministry of Information, Communications and the Digital Economy. As part of this initiative, the Kenya Space Agency, Kenya Red Cross Society, and the National Disaster Management Unit are collaborating with Microsoft’s AI for Good Lab to improve climate resilience by applying AI models to high-resolution satellite data for disaster preparedness and disaster response.
G42 will lead the arrangement of an initial investment of $1 billion for the various components in the comprehensive package. One of the Kenyan investment priorities is a state-of-the-art green data center which G42 and its partners will build to run Microsoft Azure in a new East Africa Cloud Region. In addition, Microsoft’s AI for Good Lab will work with the Smithsonian and Kenya Wildlife Trust to use high-resolution satellite imagery and AI to monitor wildlife populations and track livestock expansion near protected areas in East Africa.
The initiative also includes four additional pillars which Microsoft and G42 will pursue with local partners, including (1) local-language AI model development and research; (2) an East Africa Innovation Lab coupled with broad AI digital skills training; (3) international and local connectivity investments; and (4) collaboration with the government of Kenya to support safe and secure cloud services across East Africa.
Formalizing the relationship, Microsoft, G42 and Kenya’s Ministry of Information, Communications and the Digital Economy signed a letter of intent as part of Kenyan President William Ruto’s state visit to the United States of America. As part of the agreement, G42, will also design and build a data center campus in Olkaria, Kenya, run entirely on renewable geothermal energy and designed with water conservation technology.
