KAMPALA – Centenary Technology Services and Sunbird AI have inked a Memorandum of Understanding (MoU) geared towards developing the Artificial Intelligence-based innovation ecosystem to facilitate the usage of technology and development of software applications in Uganda.
With Uganda’s foremost Artificial Intelligence experts, Sunbird AI is a non-profit organization that develops artificial intelligence systems for social impact in Africa.
Signed on Tuesday at Acacia Mall, the strategic partnership is aligned toward addressing challenges to equality and inclusion, through the adoption of Artificial Intelligence technology.
Commonly referred to as Cente Tech, Centenary Technology Services is the technology company of Centenary Group. With a combined ICT industry experience of over 75 years in the public and private sector, Cente-Tech provides holistic technology solutions and delivers innovation that matters to enable and inspire growth. Cente-Tech’s niche lies in ICT advisory and Research; ICT Managed Services and Infrastructure; and ICT Innovation and Digital Services
Sunbird AI aims at providing high-quality, practical, inclusive and afro-centric Artificial Intelligence systems, with a focus on developing open-source applications centered on improving citizen well-being by providing and using better data technology to inform and guide policy decisions.
Sunbird AI has built a text-to-text machine translation system for translating to and from English to the 5 top local languages in Uganda including Luganda, Ateso, Lugbara, Runyankore and Acholi. Additionally, Sunbird AI has developed Ugandan-made noise monitoring sensors to measure, monitor and record levels of noise and noise pollution across Uganda. This is part of a larger initiative by Sunbird AI to do environmental sensing.
Speaking at the signing, Dr Grace Ssekakubo, Chief Executive Officer at Cente-Tech said, “The MOU being signed seeks to create a framework for a successful partnership between Cente-Tech & Sunbird AI to create sustainable, scalable projects and initiatives which will leverage the deep expertise of Sunbird AI to support Cente-Tech’s strategic ambitions to utilize modern ICT innovations for socio-economic development among the rural poor.”
Adding, ‘with the reach we have of over 20 million Ugandans within the Centenary brand, we will help alleviate exclusion through the various Artificial Intelligence applications that Sunbird AI has developed and will develop through this collaboration.” Dr Ssekakubo said.
According to Sunbird AI’s Executive Director, Dr.Ernest Mwebaze, “Our partnership with Centenary Technology Services aims to leverage the considerable reach of Cente-Tech to hospitals and schools by building AI for social good solutions that will positively influence the lives of not only people consuming the vast services of the Centenary group, but to all Ugandans.”
The promise of AI-based technologies is enormous, and benefits range from efficiency gains to unprecedented improvements in quality of life, especially in driving inclusion.
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