From Marrakech to Lagos: 20 of Africa’s biggest tech events in 2025

Across Africa, 2025 added new scale and texture to an already active tech ecosystem. Long-running conferences returned with bigger ambitions, while newer festivals carved out space for focused conversations around artificial intelligence (AI), data, policy, and startup growth.

From government-backed summits outlining national digital strategies to developer-led gatherings exploring frontier tools, tech conversations moved fluidly between policy rooms, pitch stages, and community workshops. Cities like Marrakech, Lagos, Algiers, Kigali, and Cape Town played host to events that reflected the state of Africa’s tech ecosystem and its future.

Here are some of the major tech events across the continent in 2025.

1. Africa Tech Summit Nairobi (Nairobi, Kenya, February 12–13)

The 7th Africa Tech Summit, held in Nairobi, brought together over 2,000 tech leaders at the Sarit Expo Centre and was organised around four distinct pillars: the Africa Money & DeFi Summit, the Africa Climate Tech & Investment Summit, the Africa Startup Summit, and the Africa Mobile & App Summit. 

Around 80 exhibitors showcased their solutions while 65 speakers took to the stage, creating a dynamic environment where mobile operators rubbed shoulders with crypto founders, investors scouted for the next big opportunity, and regulators engaged directly with innovators. The summit’s Investment Showcase became a hub for deal-making, with fireside chats and masterclasses running throughout the event. 

2. Lagos Tech Fest (Lagos, Nigeria, February 19–20)

For its fifth year, Lagos Tech Fest convened more than 2,000 participants at multiple venues across Lagos, including Four Points by Sheraton, Club House, and the Landmark Event Centre. The two‑day festival, headlined by Mastercard, combined a welcome party, Nigeria’s Tech Leadership Roundtable, and the main conference program to spotlight opportunities across fintech, venture capital, crypto and DeFi, payments and banking, e‑commerce, and digital infrastructure.

3. GITEX Africa (Marrakech, Morocco, April 14–16)

The third edition of GITEX Africa returned to Marrakech under the theme “Accelerating Africa’s Digital Transformation,” drawing over 45,000 visitors from more than 130 countries and featuring around 1,400 exhibitors showcasing innovations in AI, cloud computing, fintech, cybersecurity, smart cities, healthtech, agritech, and connectivity.

4. Africa AI Festival (Lagos, Nigeria, May 31)

The Africa AI Festival convened one of the continent’s largest gatherings focused on AI and its role in African markets and society. Held under the theme “AI for Africa: Scaling Innovation and Inclusion,” the event drew over 5,000 attendees from more than 20 countries, including founders, investors and industry leaders. 

The festival featured over 50 speakers and startup exhibitors, covering practical AI applications in healthcare, finance, education, and enterprise services, while sessions on ethical AI, data infrastructure, and investment models highlighted the continent’s unique challenges and opportunities.

Side discussions, workshops, and networking sessions facilitated direct engagement between startups and investors, with the Founder Showcase and Investor Lounge providing platforms to translate AI concepts into scalable African solutions.

5. Kids Tech Fest 2025 (Lagos, Nigeria, June 14)

Africa’s first large-scale AI summit for children and parents took place at the Landmark Event Centre in Lagos, drawing over 5,000 attendees. Organised by Digital Equity Africa, the summit aimed to introduce young learners to AI through interactive sessions, hands-on workshops, and family-focused learning experiences.

The event covered practical and socially relevant AI topics, including how AI works, ethical considerations, digital safety, and responsible technology use. Separate tracks for parents and educators explored how to support children in developing AI literacy and navigating the digital world safely.

The summit also served as a launch platform for two educational initiatives. Bud AI, a child-safe AI learning companion with parental oversight, and the Future Minds Online AI Learning Community, designed for children aged 6 to 16, were introduced to provide ongoing learning opportunities beyond the event.

6. AI Summit for Africa (Victoria Falls, Zimbabwe, August 17–20)

The AI Summit for Africa convened technology leaders, policymakers, academics, and industry experts in Victoria Falls under the theme “AI‑Powered Transformation: Unlocking New Frontiers for Sustainable Socio‑Economic Growth.” 

The multi‑day event focused on how AI can drive inclusive development across Africa’s key sectors, including healthcare, education, agriculture, and financial services.

The summit also served as a platform for Zimbabwe’s government to outline progress on its National AI Strategy, highlighting initiatives to strengthen digital skills, expand connectivity, and promote responsible AI adoption. 

7. GITEX Nigeria (Abuja & Lagos, September 1–4)

GITEX debuted in Nigeria with the theme “Forging the Rise of Digital Nigeria,” bringing together policymakers, enterprise executives, founders and investors across two of the country’s most strategic cities. 

The opening day in Abuja focused on the Government Leadership & AI Summit, where discussions centred on building and future-proofing digital infrastructure, scaling AI responsibly in public services, and upskilling talent for research and innovation.

In Lagos, the Tech Expo & Future Economy Conference served as West Africa’s largest tech “super‑connector” event, convening more than 3,000 professionals and over 100 exhibitors to explore how technologies such as artificial intelligence, fintech, cybersecurity, and Internet of Things solutions are shaping national and regional markets. The conference’s executive track examined enterprise digital transformation, frontier cybersecurity strategies, and future networks, while investment‑oriented sessions discussed new funding paradigms for entrepreneurial innovation and growth, diaspora engagement in local scaling, and strategies for building homegrown unicorns.

Running alongside the Tech Expo, the GITEX Nigeria Startup Festival showcased over 1,000 curated startups and more than 300 investors, featuring pitch opportunities, matchmaking programmes, and the Supernova Challenge, which offered founders visibility and potential funding connections. 

8. Seamless Africa (Johannesburg, South Africa, September 8–9)

The conference aimed to explore the world of digital commerce. The premier event, which was held at the Sandton Convention Centre in Johannesburg, focused on financial services, banking, retail and e-commerce across all sectors on the African continent, with almost 6000 participants in attendance.

9. Africa FinTech Summit (Accra, Ghana, October 8–10)

The fintech event gathered Africa’s finest investors, innovators, entrepreneurs, and regulators to shape the future of financial services across the continent. It was held in Kempinski Hotel Gold Coast City, Accra, Ghana and featured conversations spanning topics such as the future of cross-border payments in Africa, Web3 and Blockchain, the rise of mobile money and investment trends in African fintech.

10. AgentCon Accra (Accra, Ghana, October 9)

AgentCon Accra 2025, themed “Agents of Change: Building Ghana’s Intelligent Future,” offered a developer‑focused forum on autonomous AI agents, positioning Ghana as a hub for practical AI innovation. Part of the AgentCon 2025 World Tour, the one-day event brought together engineers, researchers, and creators to explore the design, deployment, and scaling of autonomous software systems capable of performing tasks with minimal human intervention.

Sessions and workshops focused on agentic workflows, integration of AI agents into real-world systems, open-source frameworks, and tools for building intelligent assistants and autonomous services.

11.  Moonshot by TechCabal (Lagos, Nigeria, October 15–16)

Lagos came alive in October when Moonshot by TechCabal hosted its third edition at the Eko Convention Centre, under the theme “Building Momentum.” The two-day event brought together over 4,000 founders, investors, creatives, and policymakers from more than 15 countries, creating a vibrant hub for dialogue, collaboration, and deal-making.

With more than 140 speakers and nine content tracks spanning AI, climate tech, the creative economy, and emerging sectors, Moonshot blended the structure of a summit with the energy of a festival. Participants engaged in workshops, hands-on sessions, and fireside chats that focused on practical strategies for scaling startups, attracting investment, and leveraging technology for measurable impact.

Deal rooms were abuzz as investors connected with promising founders, while curated sessions highlighted emerging trends and showcased innovative solutions across African markets.

12. DataFest Africa (Lagos, Nigeria, October 18)

DataFest Africa 2025, themed “AI in Africa: Solving Today’s Problems, Building Tomorrow’s Systems,” brought together over 4,000 attendees, 50 speakers, and more than 30 sponsors and exhibitors in Lagos for a one-day festival focused on practical applications of AI and data science. The event highlighted how data-driven technologies can address challenges in finance, healthcare, agriculture, and public governance across Africa.

Sessions and workshops explored agent-based systems, AI for social good, data governance, and ethical AI, providing participants with hands-on opportunities to experiment with real-world solutions.

The event also showcased ecosystem initiatives, including efforts by the Nigeria AI Collective to develop national AI repositories, curated datasets, and platforms for research and innovation. Attendees engaged in hackathons, product demonstrations, and practical workshops, turning AI potential into actionable, scalable solutions.

13. Mobile World Congress Kigali (Kigali, Rwanda, October 21–23)

The third edition of Mobile World Congress Kigali, held at the Kigali Convention Centre, brought together over 3,000 delegates from 109 countries, including government officials, telecom executives, regulators, and technology leaders. The event ran under the theme “Converge, Connect, Create,, positioning connectivity, policy, and emerging technologies as central to Africa’s digital growth agenda.

The event’s programming was focused on four core areas. Connected Continent sessions examined broadband rollout, spectrum policy, and infrastructure financing. The AI Future explored responsible AI adoption, data readiness, and the development of African language models. Fintech discussions centred on mobile money, digital payments, and regulatory alignment, while Africa’s Digital Frontier highlighted technology applications across public services, health, education, and entertainment. 

14.  Blockchain Africa Conference (Johannesburg, South Africa, October 22)

The 11th annual Blockchain Africa Conference convened practitioners, innovators, and industry leaders in Johannesburg under the theme “Ready for Business.” The one-day event drew around 270 attendees from 10 countries and featured 27 speakers, focusing on practical applications of blockchain and digital assets across African markets.

Sessions explored finance, digital banking, enterprise adoption, tokenisation, and regulatory frameworks. Panel discussions addressed topics such as stablecoin adoption, institutional digital asset infrastructure, and operational challenges in blockchain implementation, offering actionable insights for businesses, regulators, and developers.

15. Africa Tech Festival (Cape Town, South Africa, November 11–13)

The 28th edition of Africa Tech Festival transformed Cape Town into a continental tech hub, drawing 15,000 attendees, 450 speakers, and over 300 exhibitors to the Cape Town International Convention Centre. The festival combined four major events into one integrated programme: AfricaCom, focused on telecoms and connectivity; AfricaTech, highlighting enterprise innovation; AfricaIgnite, championing startups; and The AI Summit Cape Town, exploring commercial AI applications.

16.  Cairo ICT (Cairo, Egypt, November 16–19)

The 29th edition of Cairo ICT brought together governments, multinational tech companies, startups, and investors under the theme “AI Everywhere.” The four-day event was held at the Egypt International Exhibition Centre in New Cairo, featuring over 500 exhibitors and attracting over 160,000 participants from across Africa, the Middle East, and beyond.

The summit included multiple specialised tracks, including PAFIX for digital payments and financial inclusion, AIDC for AI, data centres, and cloud computing, Connecta for youth and entertainment technologies, Innovation Arena for creative solutions, and Cyber Zone for cybersecurity engagement. 

Over the four days, the event featured 96 panel discussions with 491 speakers, covering AI applications, cybersecurity, 5G and connectivity, digital identity, cloud computing, and smart infrastructure. Connecta hosted 84 sessions focused on youth innovation and entertainment tech, while other areas showcased digital education initiatives and startup exhibitions.

17. African Startup Conference (Algiers, Algeria, December 6–8)

The fourth African Startup Conference brought together more than 25,000 participants from across Africa and beyond. The three‑day event ran under the theme “Raising African Champions,” convening entrepreneurs, investors, policymakers, and ecosystem builders to explore how African startups can scale, compete globally, and contribute to economic growth.

Organised by the Algerian Ministry of Knowledge Economy, Startups, and Micro‑Enterprises, with support from Algeria Venture, the conference featured over 200 exhibitors, 150 investors, and more than 300 international experts showcasing solutions in fintech, AI, climate tech, creative industries, and enterprise applications.

The conference concluded with the Algiers Declaration, a commitment by ministers and ecosystem stakeholders to promote fair, secure, and responsible digital platforms across Africa.

18. Google Devfest (Lagos, Nigeria, November 18-22, 2025)

Google’s DevFest is an annual developer conference organised by Google Developers Groups (GDGs) across the world. The 2025 edition in Lagos featured over 100 speakers and tech professionals from across all stages of their careers. The first day featured a ‘student day’ for students and aspiring tech professionals; other tech categories, such as AI & cloud, Web 3 and design, were allocated to other days. 

On all five days, the event concluded with networking, an opportunity for tech enthusiasts to build community.

19. Tech in Ghana (Kumasi, Ghana, December 4-5)

Tech in Ghana, a UK-Ghana platform, held one edition of its annual conference on the African continent. Organised twice annually, in London and Accra, the conference seeks to empower the country’s tech talent to create impact on a global stage. The 2025 conference, held at the Jubilee Hall, Manhyia Palace in Kumasi, spanned over two days. 

The ‘Royal’ edition, which was one of its kind, took place at His Royal Majesty Otumfuo Osei Tutu II’s Jubilee Hall to explore how traditional industries, including manufacturing, education, and agriculture, are evolving with cutting-edge technologies.

20. AfricArena Grand Summit (Cape Town, South Africa, December 2–3)

Acting as the grand finale of a year-long world tour, the AfricArena Grand Summit took place at the Cape Town International Convention Centre (CTICC). Beginning with five hybrid events across four regions, acting as semi-finals to scout the continent’s top talent, it culminated in the Grand Summit in Cape Town on December 2–3, 2025. 

At the Grand summit, over 50 startups pitched over two days, from seed to growth-stage founders, paired with insights from the top minds shaping Africa’s tech and investment landscape.