2026 TICON Africa Conference Programme
23–25 September 2026 | Livingstone, Zambia
Pre-Conference | 22 September 2026
Programme
Starts:
08:00
Ends:
09:00
Logistics
Avani Victoria Falls Hotel
Arrival and Check-in at Avani Victoria Falls Hotel and partner hotels
Speakers:
N/A
Starts:
08:00
Ends:
17:00
Logistics
Avani Victoria Falls Hotel
Registration
Speakers:
N/A
Starts:
09:00
Ends:
16:00
Masterclass
Avani Victoria Falls Hotel
Training day
Speakers:
Starts:
14:00
Ends:
16:00
TICON Women
Avani Victoria Falls Hotel
Women in TICON leadership dialogue and networking
Speakers:
Starts:
18:00
Ends:
20:00
Evening
Avani Victoria Falls Hotel
Informal gatherings and hosted networking at delegates’ own leisure
Speakers:
Day 1 | 23 September 2026
Programme
Starts:
07:00
Ends:
08:30
Logistics
Avani Victoria Falls Hotel
Collection of conference packages and delegate arrival coffee
Speakers:
Starts:
08:30
Ends:
10:30
Plenary
Main Conference · Avani
Joint Opening Plenary together with AMC and ASCON: Official Welcome to Confederations and Member Bodies
Speakers:
MC / AMC / TICON Africa / ASCON Presidents (Mr David Gowu, Mr Mutongo Matamwandi, Dr Ronald Mlalazi); ICTAZ / ZIM / ZIPS Presidents (Dr Clement Sinyangwe, Mr Henry Lukwesa, Mr Danny Chanda); Ministry of Tourism; Government of Zambia Officials; Sonny Zulu (CEO Standard Chartered Bank of Zambia / ABSA Zambia CEO)
Starts:
10:30
Ends:
11:00
Refreshment
Main Conference · Avani
Tea Break
Speakers:
Starts:
11:00
Ends:
11:45
TICON Opening
Main Conference · Avani
4TH TICON AFRICA CONFERENCE 2026: Framing the 2026 Agenda & Welcome Addresses
Speakers:
Master of Ceremonies; Dr Clement Sinyangwe (ICTAZ President / Host representative); Mr David Gowu (TICON Africa President)
Starts:
11:45
Ends:
12:00
Keynote
Main Conference · Avani
Keynote: Leading Africa’s Digital Future: From Fragmented Policies to Continental Digital Leadership
Speakers:
Oliver Vanden Eynde (Thought Leader · Kenya)
Starts:
12:00
Ends:
13:00
Executive Exchange
Main Conference · Avani
Executive Exchange: Building Africa’s AI-Ready Workforce: Policy, Trust and Skills for Global Competitiveness
Speakers:
Freddy Ndlovu (Zimbabwe); Victoria Nxumalo (Zimbabwe); Khombelwayo Mlotshwa (Lesotho); Leadership Dialogue (Zambia)
Starts:
13:00
Ends:
14:00
Refreshment
Main Conference · Avani
Lunch and Networking
Speakers:
Starts:
14:00
Ends:
14:30
Expert Response
Main Conference · Avani
Expert Response Forum: From Policy to Proof: Practical Guidelines for Responsible ICT, Cybersecurity, Data Governance and AI Assurance in African Governments
Speakers:
Richard Kafui Amanfu (Ghana); Dr Jannie Zaaiman (South Africa)
Starts:
14:30
Ends:
15:30
AI Futures
Main Conference · Avani
From Governing AI to Harnessing AI to Shaping Africa’s Future
Speakers:
Jimson Owodunni Olufuye; Prof HB Klopper
Starts:
15:30
Ends:
16:00
Close
Main Conference · Avani
Close out Day 1
Speakers:
Starts:
18:30
Ends:
21:00
Evening
Avani Victoria Falls Hotel
Official Welcome and Cultural Networking Evening – Avani Victoria Falls Hotel
Speakers:
Research Track
Starts:
14:00
Ends:
14:40
Research Presentation
Lion Conference Room, Avani
A Low-Cost Forced-Air Charcoal Cooking System for Reduced Emissions, Improved Cooking Efficiency, and Local Manufacturing
Speakers:
Everisto Chilombo (Zambia University College of Technology · Zambia)
Starts:
14:40
Ends:
15:20
Research Presentation
Lion Conference Room, Avani
Exploring Insights into Artificial Intelligence Ethics Among STEM Educators, Administrative Staff and Learners: A Case Study of Higher Learning Institutions
Speakers:
Lois Mvula (Mukuba University, Zambia · Zambia)
Starts:
15:20
Ends:
16:00
Research Presentation
Lion Conference Room, Avani
Resource-Constrained Bemba–English Neural Translation and Conversational AI in Zambia: Fine-Tuning mBART and Mistral-7B with LoRA and 4-Bit Quantization
Speakers:
Lavu Mweemba (Copperbelt University · Zambia)
Starts:
16:00
Ends:
16:30
Close
Lion Conference Room, Avani
Close out Day 1 – Research Track
Speakers:
Day 2 | 24 September 2026
Programme
Starts:
08:00
Ends:
09:00
Arrival
Main Conference · Avani
Arrival coffee, breakfast networking and delegate announcements
Speakers:
Starts:
09:00
Ends:
10:30
Parallel Session
Room #1 · Avani
Leadership Dialogue
Speakers:
Daniel Homorodean (Conversation Lead · Estonia); Grace Labong (Leadership Dialogue · Uganda)
Starts:
09:00
Ends:
10:30
Parallel Session
Room #2 · Avani
Topic: Building African digital enterprises and payments ecosystems
Speakers:
Rowena Turinamwe (Uganda); Peter Ngwira (Senegal · CEO – Nyasa Engineering Co Ltd); Lilly Odwa (South Sudan · Digitalization Project Manager, VisionFund Ghana); Emmanuel Makafui Gbeve (Ghana)
Starts:
10:30
Ends:
11:30
Refreshment
Main Conference · Avani
Tea Break and Networking
Speakers:
Starts:
11:30
Ends:
13:00
Parallel Session
Room #1 · Avani
Topic: Policy, Trust and Skills for Africa’s Digital Future: Building an AI-Ready and Globally Competitive Workforce
Speakers:
Pearl Pasi (President IITPSA · South Africa); Prof HB Klopper (Belgium Campus iTversity · South Africa); Elizabeth Masache (NICO Technologies · Malawi); Clarence Gama (CEO NICO Technologies · Malawi)
Starts:
11:30
Ends:
13:00
Parallel Session
Room #2 · Avani
Topic: One Digital Africa? Cross-Border Data, Digital Identity and Trusted Digital Transactions
Speakers:
Primera Muthoni Kayiwa (CEO Analytics Business Centre · Uganda); Rowena Turinamwe (CEO RukaPay · Uganda); Emmanuel Makafui Gbeve (VisionFund · Ghana); Leadership Dialogue (Zambia)
Starts:
13:00
Ends:
14:00
Refreshment
Main Conference · Avani
Lunch and Networking
Speakers:
Starts:
14:00
Ends:
15:30
Parallel Session
Room #1 · Avani
Topic: From Digital Access to Digital Opportunity: Building an Inclusive, Impactful and Africa-Centred Digital Future
Speakers:
Clement Sinyangwe (Zambia); Gifty Mottey-Gowu (Ghana); Tshepho Bathai (Botswana); Leadership Dialogue (Zambia)
Starts:
14:00
Ends:
15:30
Parallel Session
Room #2 · Avani
Topic: Digital Security, Resilience and Cross-Border Governance: Building a Trusted and Sovereign Digital Africa
Speakers:
Lebo Khanda (Botswana); Jacqueline Muller (South Africa); Richard Yaw Osei (Ghana); Leadership Dialogue (Zambia)
Starts:
18:30
Ends:
21:00
Evening
Avani Victoria Falls Hotel
Optional partner dinners, side meetings and speaker preparations
Speakers:
Research Track
Starts:
09:00
Ends:
09:40
Research Presentation
Lion Conference Room, Avani
Digital Sexual and Reproductive Health Education and Youth-Friendly Services: Empowering Adoloscents in Zambia
Speakers:
Bright Urassa (St. Francis University of Health and Allied Sciences · Tanzania)
Starts:
09:40
Ends:
10:20
Research Presentation
Lion Conference Room, Avani
Machine Learning versus Rule-Based Fraud Detection in USSD Mobile Banking: Evidence from a Sub-Saharan Financial Institution
Speakers:
Zawad Gondwe (Malawi University of Science and Technology · Malawi)
Starts:
10:20
Ends:
11:00
Research Presentation
Lion Conference Room, Avani
Elastic Hashing in Practice: Multi-Slot Bucket Hashing for Improved Lossless Compression
Speakers:
Don Michael (Predictive Analytical Resources Limited · Kenya)
Starts:
10:30
Ends:
11:00
Refreshment
Lion Conference Room, Avani
TEA BREAK & NETWORKING
Speakers:
Starts:
11:00
Ends:
11:15
Research Presentation
Lion Conference Room, Avani
iRAG Uni-CV: A Production-Grade Advanced Retrieval-Augmented Generation (RAG) System of University of Cabo Verde
Speakers:
Julio Barros (University of Cabo Verde · Cabo Verde)
Starts:
11:15
Ends:
11:55
Research Presentation
Lion Conference Room, Avani
Designing a Centralised Industry Collaboration Function for ICT Higher Education: A Governance-Oriented Framework for Employability, Mentorship, and Innovation
Speakers:
Jacqui Muller (Belgium Campus iTversity · South Africa)
Starts:
11:55
Ends:
12:35
Research Presentation
Lion Conference Room, Avani
MedAssist: A Useful Software Platform for Efficient and Effective Access to Laboratory Results
Speakers:
Pyela Mbewe (The University of Zambia · Zambia)
Starts:
12:35
Ends:
14:00
Refreshment
Lion Conference Room, Avani
Lunch and Networking
Speakers:
Starts:
14:00
Ends:
14:40
Research Presentation
Lion Conference Room, Avani
Post-Quantum Cryptography: Readiness and Implementation Challenges in Developing Economies
Speakers:
Chinedu Okonkwo (Eduvos · South Africa)
Starts:
14:00
Ends:
14:40
Research Presentation
Lion Conference Room, Avani
Evaluating the Effectiveness of National Cybersecurity Governance Frameworks in Developing Economies: Evidence from Zambia and Selected African Countries
Speakers:
Agness Hamusonde (Copperbelt University, Zambia · Zambia)
Starts:
14:40
Ends:
15:20
Research Presentation
Lion Conference Room, Avani
Investigating the Value of a Master of Information Technology Degree and Its Implications for Programme Design
Speakers:
Prof Japie Greeff (Belgium Campus iTversity · South Africa)
Starts:
15:20
Ends:
16:00
Research Presentation
Lion Conference Room, Avani
Reversing ARPU Decline Through Rural Connectivity: Expanding Rural Coverage with Cost-Efficient 2G and 4G Networks in Africa
Speakers:
Faizel Jappie (Unitech Consulting Limited · South Africa)
Starts:
16:00
Ends:
16:40
Research Presentation
Lion Conference Room, Avani
Malware Intrusion Detection System Using Raspberry Pi Technology
Speakers:
Martin Mwila (Ndola City Council, Zambia · Zambia)
Starts:
16:40
Ends:
17:00
Close
Lion Conference Room, Avani
Close session for the day
Speakers:
Day 3 | 25 September 2026
Programme
Starts:
08:00
Ends:
09:00
Arrival
Main Conference · Avani
Arrival coffee, breakfast networking and delegate announcements
Speakers:
Starts:
09:00
Ends:
09:40
Featured Presentation
Main Conference · Avani
Topic: Beyond Financial Inclusion: Building Africa’s Digital Financial Economy
Speakers:
Featured Contributor · Zambia
Starts:
09:40
Ends:
10:30
Featured Presentation
Main Conference · Avani
Topic: From Farm to Global Market: Harnessing Technology to Transform Africa’s Agricultural Economy
Speakers:
Agang K. Ditlhogo (Featured Contributor · Botswana)
Starts:
10:30
Ends:
11:30
Keynote
Main Conference · Avani
Keynote: The Africa We Choose to Build: From Digital Potential to Continental Digital Leadership
Speakers:
Prof Fred McBagonluri (Featured Contributor · Ghana)
Starts:
11:30
Ends:
12:00
Closing Remarks
Main Conference · Avani
Closing Remarks – TICON Africa
Speakers:
Elizabeth Ntege (Uganda)
Starts:
12:00
Ends:
13:00
Plenary
Main Conference · Avani
Plenary Session all Confederations
Speakers:
Starts:
13:00
Ends:
14:00
Refreshment
Main Conference · Avani
Lunch and Networking
Speakers:
Starts:
14:00
Ends:
17:00
TICON AGM
Main Conference · Avani
TICON Africa AGM
Speakers:
Pres David Gowu and Country Executives
Starts:
18:30
Ends:
22:00
Awards / Evening
Avani Victoria Falls Hotel
ACCS Excellence Awards Function
Speakers:
Research Track
Starts:
09:00
Ends:
09:40
Research Presentation
Lion Conference Room, Avani
A Systematic Review of Regulatory, Ethical, and Technical Perspectives on Minimum Viable Data
Speakers:
Kholofelo Poppy Mocheke (Northwest University, South Africa · South Africa)
Starts:
09:40
Ends:
10:20
Research Presentation
Lion Conference Room, Avani
Assessing the Readiness and Pedagogical Potential of Augmented Reality for Secondary School Education in Zambia: Evidence from Livingstone District
Speakers:
Jameson Mbale (Copperbelt University · Zambia)
Starts:
10:20
Ends:
11:00
Research Presentation
Lion Conference Room, Avani
A Hybrid Communication Model for Undergoing to Surface Communication in Mines. Intgrating Fibre Optics, Wi-Fi, and Lorawan, a Case Study for Mopani Copper Mines
Speakers:
Elias Chimba (Mukuba University, Zambia · Zambia)