The Israeli Ambassador to Nigeria, Michael Freeman has declared his country’s readiness to strengthen partnership with Nigeria in bolstering Artificial Intelligence (AI) applications globally.
Freeman said this during the closing ceremony of the maiden Innovation Week organised by the Embassy for the Innovation Fellowship for Aspiring Inventors and Researchers (i-FAIR) programme participants, on Thursday in Abuja.
The event is designed for participants to build capacity as innovators, startup founders, researchers and entrepreneurs in innovation and AI-driven business development.
The event began on June 1, with the theme: “From Ideas to Impact: Building AI-Enabled Ventures for the Future”.
According to the Israeli envoy, AI does not only eliminate jobs but can also create new opportunities.
He said “the technology has no Nigerian or African identity and can be leveraged to improve people, products, and business operations.”
He said; “What we have done today is to ensure that the more AI is used, the more Nigerian and African voices will be represented in it, and the more it will become useful to people across the continent.
“We have not done this before. This is the first time that we have gone out with AI, because the Israeli government has made a decision to go all in on AI.
“This is to become one of the world leaders in AI within the next few years, and we have made a decision that we want to share that knowledge where we can with Nigeria, primarily through the iFAIR programme and other platforms.”
He explained that the initiative was designed to build expertise in artificial intelligence and ensure a better future, not only for Israelis but also for Nigerians.
Freeman explained that the only way to achieve this objective is by deepening Israel-Nigeria partnership.
According to him, this includes leveraging AI to enhance human capacity, improve job operations and boost creativity in the workplace.
Dor Yaacov, AI Lead Facilitator from Unistream, an Israeli non-profit organisation focused on entrepreneurship development, said; “AI applications could enable Africans develop sustainable solutions tailored to local challenges.”
He commended the participants for demonstrating that Nigerian entrepreneurs could develop solutions capable of addressing not only local challenges but also global ones through the use of AI.
Yaacov said, “This week, we met warm, smart and very creative people who are not just talking about problems but are eager to solve challenges in their daily lives.
“Challenges in education, health, agriculture, sustainability, security and community development.
“These are real challenges for millions of people around the world, which is why we will soon hear about startups from Nigeria that solve problems for millions of people.”
The event featured presentations by representatives of participating teams on AI operations, knowledge sharing on AI experiences, and the presentation of certificates.
NAN
