About GAIME & CERFODES
20 Years of Innovation Excellence
Transforming Africa's Digital Future Since 2005
Our Mission
Catalyzing a New Era of AI Innovation
To catalyse a new era of Artificial Intelligence innovation through the productive collision of diverse perspectives, fostering solutions that address global challenges whilst championing African excellence in technology leadership.
"Innovation knows no borders when vision embraces all perspectives."— CERFODES Philosophy
CERFODES: 20 Years of Innovation
Two decades ago, in the heart of Ouagadougou, a quiet revolution began.
In an era when 'digital transformation' barely existed in African vocabulary, CERFODES began building bridges between research and reality. We understood early that sustainable development required more than imported solutions. It demanded homegrown innovation.
Our expertise attracted attention across the continent. Mali, Guinea, Côte d'Ivoire sought our guidance in modernising their systems. Each partnership taught us that excellence emerges when local wisdom meets technological possibility.
CERFODES evolved into a premier training institution, developing over 10,000 professionals across diverse sectors. From government administrators mastering digital systems to entrepreneurs launching tech ventures, we cultivated a generation ready for Africa's digital future.
The global pandemic revealed both vulnerabilities and opportunities. CERFODES responded by deepening our commitment to building resilient, adaptable solutions that serve communities in crisis and calm alike.
Witnessing Artificial Intelligence conversations dominated by familiar voices from familiar places, CERFODES conceived something extraordinary. GAIME would become our boldest initiative yet: a global platform where AI's future includes every voice, especially those traditionally unheard.
As GAIME Conference prepares to launch, CERFODES stands ready to facilitate a fundamental shift in how the world approaches Artificial Intelligence innovation. Africa arrives not as student but as teacher, not as beneficiary but as partner.
Our Philosophy in Action
GAIME operates on two revolutionary principles that transform how innovation happens:
Productive Collision
Traditional conferences separate speakers from audiences, experts from novices, regions from regions. GAIME orchestrates deliberate intersections. A Ugandan health worker developing community diagnostic tools encounters a venture capitalist seeking meaningful impact. A traditional craftsperson using digital platforms meets a platform developer seeking authentic applications. These calculated collisions birth solutions neither party imagined alone.
Intellectual Jazz
Scripted presentations deliver predictable outcomes. GAIME sessions breathe with improvisation's vitality. Structure provides rhythm, spontaneity supplies magic. Speakers arrive with themes, not scripts. Audiences participate as performers, not spectators. Ideas flow, merge, diverge, reconverge in patterns that surprise even their creators.
Real transformation demands real engagement. GAIME creates spaces where that engagement happens naturally, productively, memorably.
The GAIME Ripple Effect
Great gatherings create waves that travel far beyond their original splash. GAIME's impact will unfold in expanding circles:
Immediate Resonance
Before departing Kampala, participants will have forged connections that reshape trajectories. The startup founder finds her technical co-founder. The policymaker discovers models that work. The researcher identifies the community partner essential for ethical Artificial Intelligence deployment.
Quarterly Momentum
Within three months, GAIME-initiated collaborations begin bearing fruit. Pilot programmes launch. Funding flows to previously overlooked innovations. Policy frameworks incorporate insights from unexpected sources.
Annual Amplification
Each GAIME Conference builds upon previous foundations whilst exploring new territory. Knowledge accumulates. Networks strengthen. Innovations inspire iterations.
Generational Transformation
The young professional attending GAIME Kampala will, within a decade, lead institutions shaping global Artificial Intelligence policy. The startup launched in GAIME's corridors will employ thousands across continents. The partnership formed over coffee will have channelled millions toward equitable Artificial Intelligence development.
GAIME participants don't just attend history. They create it.
Meet the Visionaries
Yacouba Yaro
CERFODES Chairman & President
From the dusty streets of Ouagadougou to the global stage, Yacouba has spent two decades proving that innovation knows no borders. His leadership transformed CERFODES from a small research centre into a continental force. For GAIME, he brings the same patient determination and bold vision that has defined his career. 'Excellence,' he often says, 'speaks every language fluently.'
LaMine N'tambi-Sanogo
Managing Partner, CERFODES & GAIME Strategic Architect
A bridge between worlds, LaMine combines deep technical expertise with an intuitive understanding of human potential. Under his guidance, CERFODES has evolved from executing projects to shaping possibilities. His vision for GAIME reflects this evolution: a platform where technological advancement serves human flourishing. 'The future of AI,' he insists, 'must be written by all of us, or it serves none of us.'
Vision 2030: GAIME's Global Expansion
GAIME's journey begins in Kampala but extends far beyond. Our unique approach ensures each location emerges organically from our growing community.
The Democratic Selection Process
On the final day of each GAIME Conference, delegates participate in a momentous tradition. Through a transparent, inclusive process, the next host city is selected. Not by committee decree but by collective choice. This ensures each GAIME reflects genuine enthusiasm rather than political calculation.
Expanding Horizons
While specific locations remain wonderfully uncertain, the trajectory is clear. GAIME will touch every continent, embrace every perspective, include every voice. From bustling megalopolises to emerging tech hubs, from traditional centres of power to tomorrow's innovation capitals, GAIME goes where the energy leads.
Building the Network
Each conference strengthens an expanding web of innovation. Alumni become ambassadors. Host cities become permanent nodes in the GAIME network. Partnerships persist and deepen. By 2030, GAIME won't describe an annual event but a continuous reality of global collaboration.
The Multiplier Effect
Early GAIME Conferences plant seeds. Later gatherings harvest and replant. Each iteration multiplies impact exponentially. Solutions developed in one city scale across continents. Relationships formed in conference halls evolve into institutions. The boy inspired in Kampala becomes the innovator transforming healthcare in his homeland and beyond.