Ahmadu Bello University (ABU), Zaria, has obtained a 5 million euros grant from the European EDCTP3 EDCTP3 program to develop a microscope propelled by AI which could transform the diagnosis of parasitic diseases in rural Africa.
The subsidy, announced by the University on Monday, will finance the Multiplexai project – an initiative which aims to fill the diagnostic gap in poorly served and distant communities using artificial and smartphone tools.
This step placed Abu among a growing number of Nigerian institutions adopting AI -centered solutions to meet endemic development challenges. The Multiplexai project, one of the only four selected from a pool of 240 submissions under the Call of Horizon Europe entitled “Innovative digital health solutions for sub -Saharan Africa”, marks the first time that the institution will organize a digital health initiative funded within the framework of Horizon Europe.
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The microscope, fueled by AI and associated with a smartphone and a mobile application, should simplify the early detection of parasitic infections such as malaria, African trypanosomiasis (sleep disease), leishmaniasis and filariase – networks that affect the disappearance of the conventional diagnosis with limited access.
Dr. Gloria Dada Chechet, a molecular parasitologist and reader of the biochemistry biochemistry department, is the project management, the project, the biochemistry department. She will supervise work under the Center for Excellence in Africa for neglected tropical diseases and legal biotechnology (ACENTDFB), based at university. Known for his research on diagnostics on tropical diseases, Dr. Chechet has received numerous international scholarships and the recognition of the progress of women in science.
In his declaration, Abu praised the subsidy as “a new reference for innovation of digital health on the continent”, noting that it improves the world visibility of the university and the place at the forefront of the medical research focused on AI in Africa.
Momentum of wider AI in Nigeria
ABU’s development is part of a broader trend, because Nigerian, academic and public institutions are increasingly adopting AI to stimulate innovation and meet systemic challenges.
At the beginning of the month, the Nigeria Corporate Affairs Committee (CAC) launched the integration of the assistant fueled by the AI in its service. The Commission has deployed the AI to help users navigate in business recording processes, recover the documentation and obtain real -time assistance. This decision is part of the wider digital transformation strategy of the CAC and has been launched to reduce the period of execution in the provision of services and the brake on human interference.
In the academic world, the University of Lagos has also started to integrate AI into its research and teaching modules, with several workshops organized to extend the adoption of school AI.
Nigerian startups have also shown growing interest in AI. Companies in health technology explore AI for genetic research and hospital automation, while EDTECH companies integrate AI to improve personalized student learning.
Developments are in accordance with the national Nigeria digital economy policy and the presidential environmental roadmap (PEBEC), which aims to position Nigeria among the most efficient economies of the World Bank Doing Business index. Since the 2017 reform, Nigeria has introduced several initiatives to rationalize commercial procedures, but the integration of AI into regulatory operations marks a leap forward.
A strategic jump for health diagnostics
The importance of the Multiplexai project of ABU lies in its ability to democratize access to health care by replacing laboratory infrastructure centralized by mobile intelligent tools usable in the field. According to the University Declaration, “community health workers in difficult to access are soon equipped to detect several parasitic infections using only a smartphone and a microscope – dramatically improving the diagnosis and the results of early treatment.”
Development is also aligned with the Nigeria digital economy strategy, which emphasizes AI and emerging technologies as key pillars for the provision and innovation of public services. The National Agency for Information Technologies (NitDA) recently revised its IA policy project, proposing the creation of a research fund on AI to support ACA academic and commercial innovation across the country.
