Macron Urges Europe-Africa Tech Alliance

(MENAFN) French President Emmanuel Macron on Monday called for a deeper strategic partnership between Europe and Africa across technology, energy, and innovation sectors, as the Africa Forward Summit officially convened in Nairobi, the Kenyan capital.

Addressing a high-level youth forum at the University of Nairobi alongside Kenyan President William Ruto, Macron warned that both continents remain heavily reliant on external powers for critical technologies — and argued that shared investment is the path to independence.

"A lot of solutions are made in the US or made in China," he said. "A lot of us today are consumers. So, I think we have a common fight, a common battle together of investment, which is to build our strategic autonomy for Europe and Africa."

Macron further stressed that energy infrastructure is an indispensable prerequisite for any meaningful artificial intelligence or digital development agenda across both regions.

"No chance to build any AI infrastructure and computing capacities without energy," he said, calling for expanded investment in renewable and other energy sources.

The French leader also unveiled plans to strengthen academic ties between French and African universities, alongside broadened technology training initiatives. Central to that pledge was an ambitious digital skills drive through Orange Digital Centers.

"We will accelerate this trend of investment," Macron said, adding that Orange Digital Centers aim to help train 1 million young Africans by 2030 through 50 new digital centers.

President Ruto framed Kenya's domestic reform agenda as a direct investment in the continent's next generation, positioning young people as both an immediate and long-term national asset.

"Our youth are the present and the future, and we are committed to laying the supportive foundation they need to transform their ideas into solutions for our diverse challenges," he said.

Ruto also spotlighted a bilateral initiative with France to establish the University of Nairobi Science and Engineering Complex, describing it as "a premier research hub for both Kenya and the region."

Continent's Leaders Converge on Nairobi
The two-day summit, co-hosted by Kenya and France, has drawn an expansive roster of heads of state, corporate executives, development institutions, and technology pioneers to deliberate on trade expansion, industrial growth, and investment across Africa.

UN Secretary-General Antonio Guterres also traveled to Nairobi for the gathering, underscoring the event's global significance.

Among the attending heads of state are Nigerian President Bola Ahmed Tinubu, Senegalese President Bassirou Diomaye Faye, Gabonese President Brice Oligui Nguema, Sierra Leone President Julius Maada Bio, Liberian President Joseph Boakai, and Cote d'Ivoire President Alassane Ouattara. Morocco is represented by Prime Minister Aziz Akhannouch, while Mauritian Prime Minister Navinchandra Ramgoolam is also in attendance.

Organizers confirmed that more than 30 African heads of state and government are expected to participate in the summit, which centers on scaling investment, forging industrial partnerships, and fast-tracking infrastructure and technology development across the continent.

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