Voices of Africa: Workshop at Deep Learning INDABA

At the Deep Learning Indaba 2024 , a conference for African machine learning in Dakar, Senegal, our partners Masakhane, Data Science Nigeria in cooperation with the Bill & Melinda Gates Foundation, CLEAR Global and the digital.global initiative “FAIR Forward – Artificial Intelligence for All” are organizing a joint workshop on the integration of African languages with state-of-the-art natural language processing (NLP) technologies. Participants will explore how these innovations can drive significant social impact and foster research that is crucial for the development of the African continent.

The workshop will bring together the African machine learning community with partners from the Global South and international funders. It offers valuable opportunities for learning and collaboration – for experienced data scientists and language researchers, but also for people who are passionate about the application of language technology for social change. Participants will learn about the significant social impact NLP innovations can have and how we can promote NLP research that is crucial for the development of the African continent.

The aim of the workshop is to take stock of African NLP and identify the most promising approaches for the development of an African language AI infrastructure. Building on previous workshops and ongoing initiatives, the event will provide an important platform for the next steps towards improving African language AI.

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