The race in technological innovation is going fast and solving many things that weren’t thought of. Machines have eased human workloads and increased producitivty. Now, technology has reached to the level it can take up most of human activities as Artificial intelligence performing tasks by “perceiving, synthesizing, and inferring information.”
A Blog called TechTarget mentions the vitality of AI in our lives. It went on to say that it has “potential to change how we live, work and play.” TechTarget wrote AI can perform tasks even better than humans. “It has been effectively used in business to automate tasks done by humans, including customer service work, lead generation, fraud detection and quality control. In a number of areas, AI can perform tasks much better than humans. Particularly when it comes to repetitive, detail-oriented tasks, such as analyzing large numbers of legal documents to ensure relevant fields are filled in properly. ”
Despite fears and criticisms over security and replacing of human beings and make many people jobless, AI could be instrumental in realzing development by solving increasing productivity and saving time and energy. The technology has paramount importance to developing countries who still have a long way to development and faces a long list of problems like poor infrastructure and lack of skilled human power.
Understanding the growing role of AI, Ethiopia established a separate institution with a name Ethiopian Artificial Intelligence Institute (EAII) in January 2020. It is manadated to support local adaptation of the technology, encourage startups and regulate the industry. The institute is also contributing part in providing quality services, developing new AI products and solutions for developers working on AI. It also gives due focus for the development of researches and robotics activities in the sector.
During the past three years of its existence, the institute develops different applications and helps startups in the AI sector, in addition to creating suitable environment for the development of AI in Ethiopia. Recently, the Ethiopian Artificial Intelligence Institute (EAII) launched a new application that aims to provide local languages learning and local language audio transcription services in four different Ethiopian languages. The locally developed AI application is an application developed with the goal of teaching Ethiopian languages and to convert audio of Amharic language into written texts.
This local languages learning and audio transcription application developed by EAII provides learning services both in audio and written languages in Amharic, Afan Oromo, Af Somal and Tigrigna languages according to the institute. The other service of the application, according to the institute, is an audio transcription service provider by recording the audio using recorded archived audios to the application; it transcribes the audio into written text easily.
The application gives the services, audio transcription and learning both in audio and written formats of all the four Ethiopian languages. The application is easily available at Play Store and the institute announced everyone can download and use the application from the play store. The institute advice users to inactive Psiphone or VPN while downloading the application. As to the institute, the Teaching Ethiopian local languages section helps to teach all Amharic speakers to learn Afan Oromo, Somali and Tigrigna languages using the application easily.
Users can learn the languages both in text and through audio and anyone who can speak Amharic can learn the three languages, Afan Oromo, Af Somal and Tigrigna languages without the help of a person by using the application. While the speech-to-text application is used to covert Amharic voice to text, the institute announced. The speech-to-text converter can convert a recorded audio or archived audio in to Amharic text easily.
The new application is helpful to those who are interested in learning additional local languages of their country’ in addition to their mother tongue languages. As a country with over 80 different languages, Ethiopia is home to diversified society and is working to promote the languages and to create strong bonds among its different nations to strengthen its nation-building process.
Promoting multilingualism can be helpful in creating strong bonds between societies. The apps are easily accessible and user-friendly to local language learning. So, it motivates people to learn additional local languages in addition to their mother tongue language. This can promote people-to-people relations and to easily understand each-other through process it creates social cohesion and helps nation-building process.
Meanwhile, in addition to developing new applications and programs in the sector, the institute is also working to develop suitable environment for AI in Ethiopia. In this regard, EAII is working to formulate a formal guiding policy for the AI in Ethiopia. On June 29, Ethiopian Artificial Intelligence Institute (EAII) organizes a discussion forum on policy formulation to discuss on draft AI policy. The aim of the discussion was to gather policy inputs and opinions of stakeholders as the institute is formulating new policy in the AI sector to guide the sector.
During the opening session of the discussion, Deputy Director with the institute, Taye Girma (PhD) said that as the AI sector is growing and becoming one of the crucial sectors plus to exploit the potential advantages of the sector, enacting new policy becomes a necessary timely action. According to the Deputy Director, AI must be supported by established formal policy so as to expand and develop infrastructure, to create suitable environment and to develop research and excellence centers in AI in Ethiopia.
For her part, Huria Ali, State Minister of Ministry of Innovation and Technology stated that AI sector is increasing productivity and easing service delivery in the industries and services of the developed world. Developing and expanding the AI sector in Ethiopia would help to develop economic gain and to minimize security threats to a country, she added.
According to Huriya, by understanding and experiencing the knowledge, skills, language of human beings, it helps human beings to save energy, time and to increase quality to boost productivity. By exploiting the sector’s benefits wisely, developing countries like Ethiopia should accelerate their journey of development and to use the sector properly and manageably, it needs established national policy.
The policy is on its final draft and it analyzes Ethiopia’s current AI status and future prospects in the sector. The draft policy constitutes data administration, human resource development in the sector, expanding and developing AI researches infrastructural development, supporting AI startups and governing and ethical conducts with regard to AI in Ethiopia.
According to Taye, the policy aims to make Ethiopia center of AI excellence in Ethiopia and the institute is accelerating researches and infrastructural developments in this regard. As to him, the policy is on its final draft. The policy will help in developing the AI sector and its roles in development, to expand AI infrastructure and researches, to create job opportunities and to develop national gains from the sector. AI can have postive impact on various sectors in Ethiopia. If used properly and strategically, it can advance nation’s agriculture, education, healthcare, finance and other sectors.
BY DARGIE KAHSAY
THE ETHIOPIAN HERALD FRIDAY 30 JUNE 2023
