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Bujumbura, Burundi | THE INDEPENDENT | The East African Kiswahili Commission (EAKC) has called for urgent investment in artificial intelligence tools and digital language systems to ensure Kiswahili keeps pace with global technological change and remains central to regional integration.
The appeal came ahead of the 5th World Kiswahili Language Day celebrations and the 3rd EAKC International Conference, which opened in Bujumbura, Burundi on Sunday and runs until July 7.
The conference brings together delegates from East African Community (EAC) member states, alongside academics, technology experts, policymakers and development partners under the theme “Kiswahili, Multilingualism, and Artificial Intelligence (AI).”
EAKC Executive Secretary Dr. Caroline Asiimwe said Kiswahili, which is spoken by more than 250 million people globally, is increasingly being recognised as both a cultural and economic asset for Africa.
“Kiswahili continues to be one of the fastest-growing global languages,” Asiimwe said during a pre- conference briefing on July 4. “It is not only a tool for communication, but a strategic resource for peacebuilding, social integration and diplomatic engagement.”
She said multilingualism in Africa should be viewed as an enabler of economic activity rather than a barrier, pointing to its role in trade, tourism, investment and cross-border cooperation within the East African region.
The Commission said the rise of artificial intelligence presents both opportunity and risk, noting that African languages remain underrepresented in global digital systems, including machine learning models and large language datasets.
“As we position Kiswahili within the evolving artificial intelligence ecosystem, we recognise both opportunity and urgency,” Asiimwe said. “We must ensure Kiswahili does not merely adapt to the digital revolution but actively shapes it.”
She called for greater collaboration between governments, researchers and private sector technology developers to build open-source Kiswahili datasets and AI tools rooted in local linguistic and cultural contexts.
The EAKC also urged investment in youth-led digital innovation, saying young people should be at the centre of developing Kiswahili-based digital content, platforms and applications.
Policy frameworks that formally recognise Kiswahili as a key component of regional integration and citizen engagement were also highlighted as a priority.
The conference is expected to produce recommendations on language policy, digital transformation and innovation, which EAC officials say will feed into broader regional integration strategies.
The event also marks a decade since the EAKC was established to coordinate the development and use of Kiswahili across East Africa.
Asiimwe said the next phase of the Commission’s work will focus on embedding Kiswahili into emerging technologies, including artificial intelligence systems and digital communication platforms.
“AI presents a strategic opportunity for Kiswahili to become a language of innovation, knowledge production and continental influence,” she said.
The East African Community has in recent years promoted Kiswahili as a unifying language across its member states, where it coexists with English, French and multiple indigenous languages.
The Bujumbura gathering comes as governments across Africa increasingly explore how to integrate local languages into digital infrastructure, amid concerns that technological development risks deepening linguistic exclusion if African languages are left behind.
