Ouagadougou: The agricultural AI integrating national languages, named "Terra AI," designed by Burkinabe innovators Innocent Kabor and Ezekiel Bahoum, claimed first prize at the inaugural Sahal Tech Innovation Challenge (STIC'26) in Ouagadougou. Their project was chosen from among 600 applications spanning 23 African countries.
According to Burkina Information Agency, the competition, organized by Sahal Tech Innovation Challenge-a group focused on designing and selling applications and platforms-aims to showcase young talents, enhance their visibility, and provide them with support opportunities. 'We received 600 projects which we analyzed in order to select 60, then 10 projects, and finally the 3 projects presented today,' stated Nelly Minoungou/Zagr, the Director General of STIC.
Innocent Kabor and Ezekiel Bahoum introduced "Terra AI," an AI tool designed to assist farmers by detecting plant diseases and insect pests, facilitating the sale of agricultural products, and providing weather updates. The application's unique feature is its integration of national languages, enhancing accessibility for producers. 'We are going to go into the field, gather feedback and improve it. We want to enable them to use it in their local language and to address the problems they actually encounter. Our ambition is to make 'Terra' not just a project, but a solution that will have a real impact on agriculture and that can be used by the people of Burkina Faso,' expressed Innocent Kabor.
The competition also recognized two other prize winners: Ibrahim Dia from Senegal and Mamouna Dicko from Mali. Director General Nelly Minoungou emphasized the broader vision of the event, noting the participation of over 600 projects from 23 African countries as a testament to Africa's proactive role in shaping its future. 'More than 600 projects from 23 African countries, an entire generation of talent that tells us one thing: Africa is not waiting for its future, it is already building it,' she highlighted.
Delivering the Prime Minister's message, Clestin Simpor, Minister of State and Minister of War and Patriotic Defence, emphasized the importance of technological sovereignty for Africa. 'Our ambition must no longer be simply to use technologies produced by others. We must reach the stage where we produce our own technologies, master our data, develop our artificial intelligence solutions, build our platforms, train our skills, and export our innovations to Africa and the world.'
Nelly Minoungou further added, 'the time when Africa was solely a market for technologies developed elsewhere must gradually give way to a new reality. Africa must also become a place where the technologies of the future are conceived, developed, financed, and exported.'
The STIC competition commenced on May 23, 2026, with plans already underway for a second edition in 2027.