Online Reporter
Rutendo Nyeve-Victoria Falls Reporter
ZIMBABWE is set to integrate Artificial Intelligence into the national school curriculum by 2027 as part of a national strategy aimed at enhancing development and ensuring the country becomes a producer, not just a consumer, of cutting‑edge technology.
Information, Communication Technology, Postal and Courier Services Minister Tatenda Mavetera revealed this while speaking at the recent Zimbabwe CEOs Policy Roundtable held in Victoria Falls.
She said Government, through close collaboration with the Ministry of Primary and Secondary Education, is moving decisively to embed AI literacy and skills into the country’s learning syllabus.
The initiative forms a core part of the newly launched Artificial Intelligence Strategy, a blueprint officially unveiled by President Mnangagwa two weeks ago.
Described by the Minister as a dynamic and historic blueprint for Zimbabwe, the strategy is designed to serve as a national growth accelerator while enhancing efficiency and competitiveness across key economic sectors.
The AI Strategy is built on six strategic pillars, with skills development and education taking centre stage.
“We have been speaking with the Minister of Primary and Secondary Education and we want to make sure that AI is embedded in our national curriculum starting in 2027,” said Minister Mavetera.
She said the move was part of Government’s commitment to preparing young Zimbabweans for the jobs and innovations of the future.
Minister Mavetera said that beyond curriculum integration, Government would roll out AI literacy programmes, skills directories and mentorship pipelines to create a robust talent pool capable of driving the nation’s digital transformation. “We need to upskill, re‑skill and skill our workforce. One of the greatest pillars we have is skills development, and at the same time making sure that we are ready for the AI revolution,” she said.
The second pillar focuses on infrastructure, specifically digital infrastructure and connectivity.
“Connectivity then becomes the railway line for us to be able to adopt artificial intelligence as a country,” she said.
To this end, Government is exploring the establishment of hyper‑scale data centres and ensuring data sovereignty through local hosting, backed by existing legislation such as the Cyber and Data Protection Act.
Minister Mavetera said the strategic intent behind the AI drive is threefold: to achieve economic sovereignty, ensure inclusive development and preserve Zimbabwean culture while remaining globally competitive.
“We realised that we need to embed Ubuntu, our own cultural context as a country, and see how we can really advance technology,” she said.
The Minister also said it was crucial to avoid simply importing foreign imperatives without grounding innovation in local values. The strategy also targets transformation across key sectors of the economy.
Minister Mavetera highlighted agriculture, mining and tourism as the three pillars of the National Development Strategy 2 (NDS2) earmarked for AI adoption.
“We need to transform agriculture with AI innovation, transform the mining sector and transform even the tourism sector by building artificial intelligence into the processes,” she said.
To steer implementation, Government has put in place a governance structure that includes an inter‑ministerial committee to oversee a whole‑of‑government approach.
A private‑sector‑led AI institute is also in the pipeline, with the Minister expressing gratitude to industry players who have already signalled their willingness to partner.
“We need to move from strategy to reality, building partnerships for sustainable growth,” she said.
Minister Mavetera said that while Government would provide leadership and facilitation, the private sector must invest and co‑create opportunities around artificial intelligence.
She said there are investment prospects in AI hardware and software, noting the meteoric rise of global companies such as Nvidia as evidence of the sector’s potential.
“There is a great opportunity for investment in hardware and software of AI opportunities,” she said.
The strategy will be rolled out in four phases, beginning with the establishment of foundational infrastructure and policies, followed by sector adoption through public‑private partnerships, then maturation of ecosystems with international collaboration, and finally continuous monitoring and adjustment.
Five flagship programmes will anchor the rollout: the AI Grand Challenge to inspire national innovation; Project Pangolin to build a robust data ecosystem; and a citizen‑focused AI education initiative, among others.
Minister Mavetera also addressed challenges that come with the technology, such as AI‑generated disinformation and deepfakes, which pose risks to adoption.
She called for the establishment of a ring‑fenced implementation budget and an AI investment prospectus to guide both public and private efforts.
Do we seriously know what we are talking about when it comes to Artificial Intelligence matters? Being one of the few Zimbabweans involved with top level AI research both at engineering, user construction and application technology for a number of years, I have serious doubts there is enough understanding of what AI means or entails. My fear is that most people have already been misinformed about what this animal AI is and those talking about it at government level seem to have very little knowledge. I have had an opportunity to attend a number of forums that discussed AI and picked that there is total confusion about defining Artificial Intelligence. I suggest a thinktank of professionals well vexed with the “nuts and bolts” of Artificial Intelligence be assembled and fused with experts from countries that already have systems running on the ground and advise government step by step until there is a full understanding of the technology. Zimbabwe is not AI ready and it will not be for at least ten years. There is no express route to knowledge.