On June 3-4, IFAB will participate at the Bilateral Meeting “Civilian and Defence Applications of Artificial Intelligence, Big Data and High Performance Computing” with the goal to create state of the art, world class national modern hubs under a coordinated strategic perspective between Italy and South Africa.
The event will be hosted at the International Convention Centre Council for Scientific and Industrial Research in Pretoria and online.
UPDATE:All the videos of the 2-day conference have been uploaded on the YouTube Channel of the Embassy of Italy. You can access them directly by clicking here
During the meeting, the International Foundation Big Data and AI for Human Development (IFAB) and the Council for Scientific and Industrial Research (CSIR) – established through its National Integrated Cyberinfrastructure System (NICIS) – will sign a Memorandum of Understanding (MoU), that identifies six areas of collaboration between South Africa and IFAB itself, embracing the following thematic fields of application:
- management of climate change and environmental issues: collaboration with Italian Civil Protection within European initiatives about weather forecasting, food and water security;
- health and Covid-19: sharing experiences concerning pandemic data management, eHealth and bioinformatic studies;
- economic recovery: improvement of technological skills and knowledge and public sector digitalization.
More specifically, the six areas of collaboration can be summarized as follows:
- improvement of skills and knowledge on AI, HPC, Quantum Computing and, more in general, management of Big Data;
- industrial applications: availability of appropriate tools helping users such as SMEs to match their needs with existing technologies;
- support to public sector digitization processes;
- development of ethical guidelines in order to create trustworthy AI systems;
- access to HPC facilities and Infrastructural support for large scale AI and Machine Learning;
- participation in EU innovation initiatives arising, for example, from Horizon Europe as well as the Neighborhood, Development and International Cooperation Instrument.
Council for Scientific and Industrial Research (CSIR)
The Council for Scientific and Industrial Research (CSIR) is a leading scientific and technology research organisation that researches, develops, localises and diffuses technologies to accelerate socioeconomic prosperity in South Africa. The organisation’s work contributes to industrial development and supports a capable state.
The CSIR was established through an Act of Parliament in 1945 and the organisation’s executive authority is the Minister of Higher Education, Science and Technology.
The organisation plays a key role in supporting public and private sectors through directed research that is aligned with the country’s priorities, the organisation’s mandate and its science, engineering and technology competences.