Burkina Faso trains lawmakers on artificial intelligence 🖥️🇧🇫

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In Ouagadougou, around thirty members of the National Assembly (Assemblée législative du peuple, or ALP) took part in an AI training session on July 15. The initiative, led by SPIVTEN — the country’s Permanent Secretariat for Innovation and Monitoring of Emerging Digital Technologies, under the Ministry of Digital Transition — reflects Burkina Faso’s push to equip its institutions as AI technologies keep advancing at speed.

MPs get up to speed on the basics ⚙️

The program covered the fundamentals of artificial intelligence, its main areas of application, and the responsibilities that come with regulating it across different sectors. National cybersecurity and digital sovereignty were also central themes of the discussions. The goal is straightforward: public institutions shouldn’t be caught off guard by tools they don’t yet fully understand, especially as generative AI keeps working its way into strategic sectors.

A digital strategy that dates back to 2025 📊

This training builds on a broader action plan that started in 2025, aimed at governing AI use across Burkina Faso, in both the public and private sectors. Cabinet directors across the public administration had already gone through a similar SPIVTEN-led awareness campaign back in April 2026 — a sign of a deliberate, step-by-step approach to building digital literacy across institutions.

Toward wider tech adoption 🌐

SPIVTEN now wants to push AI further into everyday use, with a focus on the concrete needs of Burkina Faso’s population. By training elected representatives directly, the country is signaling its ambition to build informed digital governance — one that shapes the country’s tech transformation rather than simply reacting to it.

Should other African parliaments prioritize training their own MPs on AI? Let us know in the comments.