UzimaNexus Consulted by GSMA for Landmark Report on Strengthening Kenya's Data Ecosystem for AI
UzimaNexus is proud to announce that we were among 43 organisations and experts consulted by the GSMA for their landmark report, 'Strengthening Kenya's Data Ecosystem for AI: MSME and Public Service Delivery Use Cases.' Published in June 2026 by the GSMA Mobile for Development (M4D) Central Insights Unit, the 72-page report maps Kenya's data ecosystem and identifies the barriers and opportunities for developing impactful AI solutions for citizens, government, and businesses.
The report, authored by Zarah Udwadia and funded by UK International Development, draws on extensive research involving county-level public sector stakeholders, national-level ministries, private sector innovators, domain experts, and global AI practitioners. UzimaNexus was recognised as a private sector stakeholder contributing domain-relevant data expertise and insights to the research.
Kenya's National AI Strategy (2025-2030) positions the country as a regional AI leader, with data as a key pillar. The GSMA report examines how Kenya can strengthen its data foundations to realise this ambition, focusing on two priority sectors: micro, small and medium enterprises (MSMEs) and public service delivery. The research highlights that while Kenya has a vibrant digital landscape with over 90% mobile device ownership and a thriving tech ecosystem, significant gaps remain in data quality, governance, interoperability, and infrastructure.
Key findings reveal that AI readiness requires a stronger, more inclusive data ecosystem. Public sector data needs extensive cleaning, labelling, and standardisation before it can power AI applications. Digital systems across government remain fragmented and non-interoperable, making it difficult to link datasets or establish automated data-sharing mechanisms. For MSMEs, high levels of informality and low digitisation limit the availability and representativeness of data, while resource-strapped MSME owners generate the lowest amounts of digital data, leading to risks of bias in AI models.
The report identifies critical cross-cutting barriers including fundamental gaps in skills for data collection and analysis, infrastructure challenges around connectivity, and the need for trust between data owners and subjects. Strong governance, new African-centric licensing models, and community-centred benefit sharing are highlighted as essential for building a sustainable data ecosystem.
For UzimaNexus, this recognition validates our approach to healthcare data management in Kenya. Our platform addresses many of the challenges identified in the report: we unify fragmented patient records across clinics, labs, and pharmacies using interoperable data standards; our blockchain-based consent management system ensures patients control their health data; and our UziCoin reward system creates ethical incentives for data sharing. These are precisely the kinds of innovations the GSMA identifies as necessary for strengthening Kenya's data ecosystem.
The report's recommendations span government, the private sector, mobile network operators, and development partners. Key recommendations include investing in digital public infrastructure, creating structured data access and sharing frameworks, building capacity in data skills, ensuring fair compensation for data subjects, and supporting community-centred benefit sharing and licensing models.
Being consulted alongside organisations such as AI Kenya, Ushahidi, Dalberg Data Insights, JHUB Africa, and the Kenya National Chamber of Commerce and Industry underscores UzimaNexus's growing recognition as a credible voice in Kenya's AI and data ecosystem. We remain committed to building the data infrastructure that will power the next generation of AI-driven healthcare solutions across Africa.