GenAI for Africa
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See in 5 min if you're eligible for GenAI for Africa offering max €30.0M funding💰 Funding Details
Funding Overview
GenAI for Africa (HORIZON-CL4-2025-04-HUMAN-08) is a Research and Innovation Action (RIA) under Horizon Europe. It aims to bridge the gap between advanced European Generative AI technologies and the specific societal needs of African nations. The initiative seeks to foster a genuine partnership between the EU and Africa, empowering local ecosystems to develop and deploy human-centric, trustworthy AI solutions.
The primary goal is to adapt and apply EU-developed GenAI to solve pressing challenges, with a strong emphasis on benefiting rural communities and women. The projects funded under this call are expected to build local technological capacity and create a rich ecosystem of transformative applications.
Key Focus Areas
Proposals must address one or more of the following areas, demonstrating a clear and evidence-based need within the chosen African locations:
* Agriculture Optimisation: Using GenAI for predictive analytics to boost crop yields, manage resources like water efficiently, and enhance food security in the face of climate change.
* Healthcare: Enhancing diagnostics from medical images, forecasting disease outbreaks, and expanding telemedicine services through AI-powered chatbots and virtual assistants, with a special focus on gender dimension and health equity.
* Infrastructure and Urban Planning: Optimising energy, water, and waste management; supporting disaster reconstruction; and enhancing urban safety, potentially using Digital Twin technologies.
* Digital Skills and Learning: Creating personalized, multilingual educational content and virtual tutoring to bridge the skills gap, especially for communities relying on mobile phones for online access.
Core Methodological Requirements
Successful proposals must incorporate several key approaches:
* EU-Africa Partnership: Projects must be built on strong, collaborative consortia involving partners from both continents.
* Adaptation of EU Tech: The focus is on adapting existing EU-based GenAI solutions to the specific needs, languages, and infrastructure of African contexts.
* Local Ecosystem Building: A central requirement is to involve and support startups and local networks in 3 to 5 locations in Africa.
* Co-creation and Living Labs: Proposals must employ co-creation methodologies, establishing Living Labs where researchers, local businesses, and communities can develop solutions together.
* Ethical and Legal Frameworks: All projects must strictly adhere to the EU AI Act and GDPR to ensure data protection and ethical AI development.
📊 At a Glance
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🇪🇺 Strategic Advantages
Strengthening EU's Global Leadership and Geopolitical Influence
• Promoting a Human-Centric AI Model: This grant positions the EU as a global leader in developing and exporting ethical, trustworthy, and human-centric AI, creating a distinct alternative to other international approaches. It directly supports the EU's ambition to set global standards in technology governance.
• Exporting EU Values and Regulatory Standards: By mandating compliance with the AI Act and GDPR, the project actively promotes the EU's value-based digital agenda on the world stage. This reinforces the "Brussels Effect," where EU regulations become the de facto global norm, providing a competitive advantage for compliant European companies.
• Deepening the EU-Africa Strategic Partnership: The project is a flagship implementation of the EU-Africa Global Gateway investment package. It moves the relationship beyond traditional aid to a partnership of equals in digital innovation, fostering long-term alliances and aligning with the EU's geopolitical priorities for a stable and prosperous neighbourhood.
Fostering Pan-European Innovation and Cross-Border Collaboration
• Creating a Unified European Offer: The grant requires identifying and adapting existing EU-based GenAI solutions. This necessitates collaboration between diverse European actors—such as a German AI SME, an Italian university researching smart agriculture, and a Spanish expert in digital twins for urban planning—to create a comprehensive, high-value offering that no single Member State could provide alone.
• Leveraging Unique EU Assets: The call explicitly encourages synergies with pan-European initiatives like Copernicus (Earth observation) and Destination Earth. This allows consortia to integrate Europe's world-class, multi-billion-euro space and data infrastructures with cutting-edge AI, creating unparalleled solutions for agriculture, disaster management, and climate adaptation.
• Building a Transnational Innovation Ecosystem: The project's structure, involving multiple European partners collaborating with networks in 3 to 5 African locations, fosters a robust, cross-border innovation ecosystem. This strengthens scientific and commercial ties within the EU Single Market and builds a bridge to African innovation hubs, facilitating knowledge exchange and future joint ventures.
Aligning with and Driving Key EU Policies
• Executing the Digital Decade and GenAI4EU Strategy: The project is a direct contribution to the EU's Digital Decade targets and the GenAI4EU initiative. It aims to build European capacity and strategic autonomy in a critical technology sector, ensuring the EU remains a leader in the next wave of digital transformation.
• Advancing the European Green Deal: By focusing on agriculture optimisation, sustainable infrastructure, and efficient resource management (water, energy), the project demonstrates the power of the EU's twin green and digital transitions. It showcases how European technology can be a key enabler for achieving global climate and sustainability goals.
• Championing the Industry 5.0 Vision: The emphasis on human-centric design, co-creation, and living labs reflects the core principles of Industry 5.0. It promotes a model of innovation that is not only technologically advanced but also socially inclusive and sustainable, reinforcing the EU's unique approach to industrial policy.
Unlocking Pan-European Market and Commercial Opportunities
• First-Mover Advantage in Emerging Markets: This grant provides European companies with a funded, low-risk pathway to enter and adapt their technologies for the fast-growing African market. It serves as a powerful catalyst for future commercial expansion and export opportunities for EU businesses.
• Validation and Scaling Across the Single Market: Solutions developed and validated in diverse African contexts can be more robust and adaptable. This de-risks the technology, making it easier to scale not only in other emerging markets but also for applications within the diverse regions of the EU itself.
• Access to Integrated Funding and Support: Participants can leverage their involvement to gain visibility and access to further EU support mechanisms, such as the European Innovation Council (EIC) for scaling up, and connect with the wider network of Digital Innovation Hubs, creating a powerful flywheel for growth.
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Ready to Apply?
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See in 5 min if you're eligible for GenAI for Africa offering max €30.0M funding