Makerere University Centre for Artificial Intelligence (MAK-AI)

Pioneering AI and Data Science for the Developing World
The Makerere University Centre for Artificial Intelligence (MAK-AI) seeks to harness the transformative power of Artificial Intelligence (AI) to address Africa’s most pressing challenges and contribute to the improvement of Human Development Indices (HDI) and the attainment of the United Nations Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs).

Our work is guided by the principles of Responsible AI, ensuring that AI systems are transparent, accountable, fair, and designed to benefit society. We focus on addressing key gaps in the African AI landscape

Our Research Themes
- AI in Healthcare: Developing AI tools for disease diagnosis, maternal health, and tuberculosis screening.
- AI in Agriculture: AI-driven solutions for crop disease diagnosis, agricultural extension services, food security, Earth observation, and crop phenotyping for smallholder farmers.
- Natural Language Processing (NLP): Building multilingual tools and resources for African languages; Developing speech recognition and machine translation models for informal contexts.
- AI for Environment and Climate Action: AI models for air quality monitoring, greenhouse gas emissions, and climate change adaptation; Tools for measuring and mitigating the impacts of climate change.

Objectives
1. Advance Research and Innovations in priority AI for Development (AI4D) Areas
2. Train MSc and PhDs in thematic AI4D areas
3. Enhance AI4D impact through research translation and collaborations
4. Strengthen partnerships and collaborations with other AI4D labs