Africa Tech Digest — Week of May 24, 2026
This week's top 10 stories from across the African tech ecosystem.
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This week's top 5 stories from across the African tech ecosystem.
1. Customer care numbers for banks and fintechs in Nigeria (2026)
TechCabal · Nigeria
TechCabal has compiled the official customer care numbers, emails, and WhatsApp lines for 26 Nigerian banks and 18 fintechs, each pulled directly from the institutions' own websites or verified social accounts. When something goes wrong with your money, third-party aggregator sites and outdated blog posts can be inaccurate, and some of those numbers have been used to scam people. The guide also notes that if your complaint stays unresolved after two weeks (or 30 days for loan and excess-charges complaints), you can escalate it to the CBN's Consumer Protection Department.
2. Nigeria just put government services on WhatsApp
Techpoint Africa · Nigeria
On May 21, Nigeria launched GovGuideNigeria, an AI assistant that helps citizens access government information across over 35 ministries and 60 agencies, working on WhatsApp and the web in English, Hausa, Igbo, and Yoruba. Built with the National Centre for AI and Robotics, Meta, and Publica, the WhatsApp-first design targets the more than 51 million Nigerians for whom WhatsApp is already the internet — though the real test will be keeping it accurate as government policies constantly change. Techpoint's digest also flagged Paystack's first dashboard rebuild in a decade and a Kenyan court ruling that expanded what counts as harm in data breaches.
3. How Nigerian Manufacturers Are Building AI Systems, Not Just Using Them
TechEconomy.ng · Nigeria
Beta Glass Plc, West and Central Africa's largest glass container maker, ran a two-day AI capacity program in which 13 senior leaders built eight enterprise-grade AI systems deployed live on real workflows, including IFRS-compliant financial intelligence and a logistics control tower. Equivalent tools procured traditionally would cost ₦241–446 million and take 6–12 months. The story argues the future of enterprise AI belongs to companies whose executives understand the architecture well enough to govern it themselves — moving from opaque "Blackbox" AI to auditable "Glassbox" systems.
4. This SA startup is making teachers’ live easier by automating marking
Disrupt Africa (Southern Africa) · South Africa
South Africa's The Marking App has built an AI platform that automates the marking of handwritten test papers in seconds and gives teacher-style feedback directly on learner scripts, without requiring learner devices or ICT infrastructure upgrades. Founded by former teacher Kabelo Mahlobogwane, it claims to cut marking and administrative workload by up to 80 percent, and currently works with more than 50 schools, over 200 teachers, and more than 8,000 learners. Backed by grants from the likes of the Trevor Noah Foundation and Mastercard Foundation, it has expanded into Eswatini and is eyeing wider African markets.
5. Nigeria launches Meta-backed AI chatbot for government information access
TechCabal · Nigeria
Nigeria has launched GovGuide Nigeria, a Meta-backed chatbot in partnership with FMCIDE, NCAIR, and local company Publica AI that uses Meta's open-source Llama models to deliver government service information through a multilingual voice and text interface. Supporting English, Hausa, Igbo, and Yoruba, it aims to reach rural and low-literacy communities, though adoption may be limited by poor broadband penetration in rural areas and low smartphone usage. Notably, the launch comes about a year after Nigeria's Data Protection Commission fined Meta $32.8 million over alleged violations of the country's data protection law.
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