The Bank of Namibia (BoN) and the Communications Regulatory Authority of Namibia (CRAN) have launched a post-sponsorship programme aimed at strengthening the country's shared AI infrastructure and expanding practical use of AI.

Through the programme, stakeholders will identify areas where AI can improve public services, including advisory services, procurement, licensing processes and scam reporting.

According to Proto CEO Curtis Matlock, the initiative is also looking at greater public awareness around AI-powered platforms such as ConsumerConnect while exploring opportunities for joint hardware procurement and local-language AI training.

"The main aim is to bring these government agencies together to procure the AI technology. So the actual hardware devices that are needed as well as the actual AI agents, the software components. And then do it in a very cost-effective and collaborative way where no one agency is replicating or building in silos."

 Matlock said the technical roadmap will further focus on connecting AI agents and developing AI capabilities in indigenous languages.

The initiative is expected to strengthen collaboration between institutions and support the development of locally relevant AI solutions.