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This week: is AI quietly teaching us to stop thinking, while MTN subscribers report suspiciously slower speeds right before their billing cycle resets. Add power theft that’s gone high-tech, smart streetlights that see a little too much, and Camtel’s fiber push into schools — Cameroon’s been busy. Elsewhere: Côte d’Ivoire scales up blood and vaccine drone deliveries, Benin hands malaria diagnosis to a Korean AI, Gabon stress-tests its cyberdefenses, and Senegal and Mali push their digital agendas forward. The TechGriot family has you covered.
Cognitive offloading: is AI doing too much of your thinking ? 🤖🧠
In Cameroon, artificial intelligence is becoming increasingly prevalent in education and the workplace for researching, writing and problem-solving. Whilst it makes everyday life easier, its systematic use can lead to cognitive offloading and reduce the personal effort required to analyse, understand and reason. Click here for full story
« Unlimited » data at 14,900 FCFA: MTN customers question a suspicious slowdown 🇨🇲📶
In Cameroon, subscribers to MTN’s unlimited internet package costing 14,900 FCFA have complained of recurring slowdowns in their connection speeds during the last fifteen days of the billing cycle. The regularity of these incidents suggests deliberate technical traffic management. The Ministry of Telecommunications and the ART are being called upon to monitor the actual quality of the service provided. Click here for full story
Cameroon loses billions to power theft, and the fraud keeps getting smarter ⚡🇨🇲
In Cameroon, electricity fraud involves two methods: direct connection to the grid or tampered meters. This problem costs 60 billion CFA francs a year and causes dozens of deaths, prompting the government to roll out connected anti-fraud meters. Click here for full story
Motion-sensor lights in Cameroon promise savings, and a privacy problem 🔦
Connected schools : Camtel bets on fibre to bring Cameroon’s students online 📚🌐
In Cameroon, Camtel is continuing to roll out fibre-optic broadband in schools. The aim is to facilitate access to digital libraries, training courses and online educational content. The success of this initiative will also depend on the equipment and training provided to teachers. Click here for full story
Blood and vaccines by air: Côte d’Ivoire expands its Zipline bet 🇨🇮🚁
The Ivorian government has approved a partnership with Zipline to build ten autonomous drone centres tasked with delivering blood products, vaccines and essential medicines. The scheme builds on the pilot project in Daloa, which has been operational since 2023, and is receiving US funding to support the expansion of the model across Africa. Click here for full story
Benin’s malaria program just got an AI upgrade from Seoul 🇧🇯🧬
Benin’s National Malaria Control Programme (PNLP) is integrating miLab MAL, an AI-based malaria diagnostic platform developed by Noul, following a clinical trial involving 211 children (98.82 per cent sensitivity, with results available in 20 minutes compared with 75 minutes for manual microscopy). Twenty units will be deployed initially, before a gradual roll-out across the public healthcare system. Click here for full story
Gabon puts its government agencies through a simulated cyberattack 🛡️ 🇬🇦
The ANINF organised a national cyberattack simulation exercise in Gabon to test the government’s ability to detect, analyse and contain a threat. With the support of MITRE Corporation, this initiative aims to identify vulnerabilities, improve coordination and strengthen cyber defence. Click here for full story
Senegal’s digital minister meets Wave to talk public-sector rollout 💰 🇸🇳
Mali and Benin deepen cooperation on data protection 🇲🇱 🇧🇯
Mali’s APDP and its Beninese counterpart are strengthening their cooperation on data governance and the protection of personal data. Discussions focus on compliance, standards, raising awareness and providing support to data controllers, alongside the sharing of experiences. Click here for full story
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That’s it for this week. We wish you a good weekend and look forward to hearing from you in the comments.
TechGriot ✌🏾😁
