EMERGING Valley, the meeting place for African tech

The ninth edition of this tech summit was held on 26 November 2025 at Thecamp in Aix-en-Provence, focusing on four main themes: innovative financing for cross-border start-ups, ethical and sustainability issues in artificial intelligence, scaling up African and European start-ups, and the ‘Positive Mediterranean’ partnership between the AFD Group and EMERGING Valley to promote trans-Mediterranean cooperation.

Expertise France organised five sessions, including one on the main stage:

• What kind of digital sovereignty in the age of artificial intelligence: can Europe and Africa write their own code?

At a time when AI is redefining the technological balance of power, how can Europe and Africa build a common digital sovereignty? Data, infrastructure, open models, cybersecurity: a session to understand the challenges, dependencies and levers for writing their own code. The Deputy Director of our Sustainable and Inclusive Economy Department, Ahcène Gheroufella, spoke alongside Adil Tourabi, VP Sales Director at OVH Cloud, Rémi Prunier, MEA Partner at Orange Ventures, and Stezen Bisselou Nzengue, Co-founder & Managing Director of PaySika.

• Strategic Perspectives on Innovation Ecosystems in the Eastern Partnership Region

This round table highlighted three countries (Armenia, Moldova and Ukraine) involved in the EU4Innovation East project, a regional initiative dedicated to strengthening the competitiveness of start-up ecosystems throughout the Eastern Partnership. The session explored the unique strengths of the innovation ecosystems in each country and brought together the key players who are driving concrete change, nurturing talent and opening up new avenues for regional collaboration. Moderated by Séverine Peters-Desteract, Director of the Sustainable and Inclusive Economy Department at Expertise France, this session welcomed Viorica Cerbusca, CEO of Artcor Creative Industries Centre and founder of Yep! Moldova, Olena Voroshylova, Director of the Partnerships and International Cooperation Unit at the Ukrainian Startup Fund, and Edita Ghazaryan, Deputy Director of the Union of Advanced Technology Enterprises (UATE) in Armenia.

• African diasporas: catalysts for investment and innovation in Africa and Europe

The African diaspora is a key player in the development of the continent's economies. With around 200 million people worldwide, it is a strategic lever both in terms of its financial potential and its human capital. Moderated by Syma MATI, MEET Africa project manager at Expertise France, this round table aims to highlight the role of diasporas as catalysts for economic development, as transnational business angels and impact investors, identify concrete levers to facilitate the scaling up of startups supported by the diaspora, and create a space for dialogue between investors, support structures, institutions and entrepreneurs from the diasporas. Nadjati SOIDIKI, Director General of the National Investment Promotion Agency of the Union of the Comoros, Philippine DE BREUVAND, Head of Group Development at Ciwara Capital, and Youstina SIDI, CEO & co-founder of DataConsultingKM & KartaBusiness discussed these issues.

• Common ground: When sport and digital technology change the rules of the game

Two worlds that are increasingly intersecting: sport, a powerful social, cultural and economic force; and digital technology, an accelerator of innovation, inclusion and access. What happens when you bring them together? What are the uses, models and dynamics at work in Africa and the Mediterranean? And above all: how can we support project leaders and build solid ecosystems at the intersection of the two? This session, recorded in podcast format and moderated by Juliette HIRSH, Innovation Unit Coordinator, and Amance BUSTREAU, Sports Project Manager at Expertise France, welcomed Yves CABANAC, Director of Plug & Play France, Canelle DANIEL, Technological Innovations Project Manager at the Pôle Ressources National Sport-Innovations (PRNS), and Vincent MEESEMAN, CEO of the start-up CoachR.

• Women in AI - Perspectives from African women

Artificial intelligence is a historic shift that we cannot afford to miss in Africa. Women must be full participants in this revolution. What are the business and/or entrepreneurial opportunities? What are the challenges of inclusivity? What are the challenges and issues of sovereignty? How can we build AI that reflects who we are and is open to the world? What role do women have to play? Moderated by Seynabou THIAM, Founder of Smart Ecosystem for Women and implementation partner of the podcast ‘Parcours-IYBA-SEED Sénégal’, this round table discussion, recorded in podcast format, welcomed Diyé DIA, Founder of Aristarc, and Fanny MUAMBA, President of Women in Tech, to discuss innovation ecosystems in the Democratic Republic of Congo and Senegal and the place of women entrepreneurs.

In 2023, the fourth edition of this unmissable event in Provence placed digital technology at the heart of global development issues. As a French public agency for international technical cooperation, Expertise France had the opportunity to fully engage with this theme, reaffirming its commitment alongside the European Union to support partner countries in their digital transition, notably through the D4D Hub but also through regional and national initiatives in countries such as Niger, Tunisia and Libya. The agency addressed three themes: artificial intelligence as a transformer of the African economy on the main stage, e-sports as a vector for development at the Co-Innovation Lab, and the challenges of ‘green tech’, sustainable and environmentally friendly innovation on the Impact stage. This was an opportunity to showcase several of the agency's flagship projects, including the GREENOV'I project, which gave a voice to three ‘green’ start-ups whose projects are innovative and valuable for the climate.

Since 2022, Expertise France has been fully integrated into the EMERGING Valley programme and is involved in three main areas: the Main Stage (high-level plenary conference format), the Impact Stage (workshop format), and the Co-Innovation Lab Stage (immersive format with podcast recording). In 2022, the MEET Africa and GREENOV'I projects were in the spotlight, while Séverine Peters-Desteract, Director of the Sustainable and Inclusive Economy Department, spoke on the Main Stage about Expertise France's support for Senegal's artificial intelligence and digital strategy.