What Data Science Africa(DSA) does

Data Science Africa (DSA) is a pan-African non-profit organization founded in 2015 and registered in Kenya since 2019, headquartered in Nyeri through its secretariat partnership with Dedan Kimathi University of Technology (DeKUT). The organization's stated purpose is to empower a community of practitioners and enthusiasts in data-centric technologies for African solutions, and its vision is to be a continentally recognized badge of excellence in data-centric training among employers, policymakers, and community stakeholders. Over its first decade, DSA has convened 13 annual events across 8 African countries (Kenya, Uganda, Tanzania, Nigeria, Ethiopia, Ghana, South Africa, Rwanda) with 1,757 cumulative attendees from 34 countries, anchored by rotating host universities including DeKUT, Makerere University, University of Ibadan, and University of Rwanda.

DSA's core product is a portfolio of capacity-building programs rather than a commercial software offering. Flagship programs are annual Summer Schools (intensive multi-day training in Python, ML fundamentals, deep learning, NLP, computer vision, generative AI, LLMs, agentic AI, and responsible AI) and Workshops (research paper presentations via OpenReview), supplemented by Hackathons, a Visiting Fellowship program, a Women's Health Fellowship (DSAWH), research grants (including African AI Research Awards and Llama Impact Africa grants), a Capacity Strengthening Program, and local chapters beginning with the DSA Uganda Chapter launched in 2022. The technology stack is delivered through university-based in-person programs with supplementary online components, and DSA's differentiating IP is its decade-developed curriculum covering modern AI topics including African Language Technologies, Agentic AI, and AI on the Edge.

The business model is non-profit grant-funded. DSA does not charge participants; instead it is funded by foundation grants (Gates Foundation, Lacuna Fund, AI4D Africa, TWAS-UNESCO), institutional partnerships (Swiss FDFA, ETH Zurich, EPFL via ICAIN launched at WEF 2024), and corporate sponsors (Google DeepMind, ARM, Edge Impulse). Revenue is not publicly disclosed. Programs are distributed through direct, event-based delivery at partner universities, a visiting fellowship channel at affiliated research centers (DSAIL, MCA2I, Sunbird AI, BUAIIR), and an emerging Local Chapters model. Customer segments are horizontal: graduate students and early-career researchers (primary), African universities and research institutions, practitioners and professionals, and women researchers in health.

Name

Data Science Africa(DSA)

Legal name

Data Science Africa (DSA)

Website

https://datascienceafrica.org

Company type

Private

Founded year

2015

Operating status

Operating

Headcount range

1–10 employees

Short description

Data Science Africa (DSA) is a Kenya-registered pan-African non-profit founded in 2015 that builds data science and AI capacity across 34 African countries through annual summer schools, workshops, fellowships, and research grants serving graduate students, researchers, and practitioners.

Ownership category

akta.pro rank

Product category

Data Science & AI Education and Training

NAICS

Educational Support Services (611710), Computer Training (611420)

SIC

Services-Educational Services (8200)

akta.pro primary industry

Data Science & Analytics (Data Literacy, SQL, Visualization) (EDAMACAF)

Keywords

• Data science training
• Machine learning education
• AI capacity building
• Research fellowships
• Community workshops

Headquarters

HQ city

Nyeri

HQ country

Kenya

HQ region

Africa

Offices1 record

Markets served

GTM type

B2C

Offering type

Services

Cost components

Operations, Personnel, Marketing or Sales, Technology or R&D, Others

Revenue model

1. Non-profit/Grant Funding: DSA operates as a registered non-profit organization (since 2019, based in Kenya) funded primarily through grants, research funding, and strategic partnerships. Revenue comes from foundation grants, institutional partnerships, and corporate sponsorships for events.

Go-to-market motion1 record

Distribution channels4 records

Marketing channels6 records

Core offering

Data Science Africa (DSA) is a registered non-profit organization that runs annual Summer Schools, Workshops, Hackathons, and Fellowship Programs to build data science, machine learning, and AI capacity among African graduate students, early-career researchers, and practitioners. It convenes a pan-African community through rotating host universities, visiting fellowships at partner labs, regional chapters, and capacity-strengthening workshops supported by foundation grants and corporate sponsors.

Product overview

Data Science Africa (DSA) is a pan-African grassroots organization that provides a portfolio of capacity-building programs rather than a commercial product. The core offerings include annual Summer Schools (intensive data science and AI training) and Workshops (research paper presentations and panel discussions), supplemented by Fellowship Programs (DSA Visiting Fellowship, DSAWH Women's Health Fellowship), Research Grants, Hackathons, and Local Chapters. DSA's programs collectively aim to strengthen data science, machine learning, and AI capacity across Africa, with events held annually in different African countries since 2015.

Differentiator

Problem solved

Functional benefit

Products and services

• DSA Summer Schools Intensive multi-day training programs providing practical and theoretical foundations in modern data science, machine learning, and AI. Topics include Python, machine learning fundamentals, deep learning, NLP, computer vision, generative AI, and responsible AI practices.
• DSA Workshops Annual research workshops featuring paper presentations, keynote speeches, and panel discussions on data science applications for African challenges. Includes submission of research papers, industry experience papers, and work-in-progress through OpenReview platform.
• DSA Hackathons Competitive programming events focused on data science challenges relevant to African problems, fostering innovation and practical problem-solving skills among participants.
• DSA Visiting Fellowship Research fellowship enabling DSA community members to conduct research visits at partner academic institutions, build professional links, and develop interests in data science and AI research and policy.
• DSA Women's Health (DSAWH) Fellowship Program Fellowship program strengthening women-led research in women's health using data science approaches. Includes participation in summer school and workshop, online scientific writing retreat, mentorship programs, and community-building activities.
• DSA Research Grants Grant support for early-career and junior researchers to conduct data science and AI research addressing African challenges, including African AI Research Awards and Llama Impact Africa grants.
• DSA Local Chapters Regional chapters (e.g., DSA Uganda Chapter launched 2022) that enhance peer support and knowledge exchange among data science practitioners within specific countries or regions.
• Capacity Strengthening Program Capacity-building workshops and training sessions for grantees and community members, covering topics such as data integrity, governance, annotation, machine learning readiness, and AI ethics.
• International Computation and AI Network (ICAIN) Pilot DSA-led pilot use case within the ICAIN network focused on using AI to make agriculture more resilient to climate change effects, in partnership with Swiss Federal Department of Foreign Affairs, ETH Zurich, EPFL, and others.

Quantifiable outcome

• 1,757 attendees across 13 events in 34 African countries over 10 years
• +2 more outcomes

Named customers7 records

Segments4 records

Ideal customer profiles4 records

Technology focussed No

API detail

Has API

No

API docs

API detail

Core technology

AI maturity

App detail

AI capability10 records

Feature3 records

Partnerships

16 partnerships are on record, tiered core and flagship.

• Makerere UniversitycoreStrategic or Co-development Partner · 20 July 2026Host of DSA 2026 summer school and workshop at Makerere University, Kampala, Uganda (July 20-24, 2026). One of DSA's longest-standing institutional partners, hosting multiple DSA events.
• University of IbadancoreStrategic or Co-development Partner · 5 June 2025Host of DSA 2025 event in Nigeria, expanding DSA's presence in West Africa.
• Dedan Kimathi University of TechnologycoreStrategic or Co-development Partner · 6 June 2024DSA's original host institution in Kenya; home of DSAIL (Centre for Data Science and AI); top feeder of students to DSA programs.
• Sunbird AIcoreStrategic or Co-development PartnerLeading organization creating production-ready language technologies for African languages. Joint fellowship program with DSAIL for hardware engineers. Partner in African Next Voices project producing 3,000+ hours of speech data.
• Maseno UniversitycoreStrategic or Co-development PartnerHome of Maseno Centre for Applied Artificial Intelligence (MCA2I). Partner in AI-powered avatar system for Kenyan Sign Language translation and African Next Voices data collection.
• Busitema UniversitycoreStrategic or Co-development PartnerDSA supports the Busitema Artificial Intelligence & Interdisciplinary Research Group (BUAIIR) with USD 10,000 for research assistants. Focus on AI for agriculture, climate change, health, and surveillance.
• ETH ZurichflagshipStrategic or Co-development PartnerCo-founder of ICAIN. Provides access to supercomputing infrastructure and AI expertise for African researchers.
• EPFLflagshipStrategic or Co-development PartnerCo-founder of ICAIN. Contributes to international network for AI research collaboration and infrastructure sharing.
• European Laboratory for Learning and Intelligent Systems (ELLIS)flagshipStrategic or Co-development PartnerCo-founder of ICAIN. European AI research network collaborating on sustainable and accessible AI development.
• Swiss National Computing Centre (CSCS)flagshipTechnology or IntegrationCo-founder of ICAIN. Provides access to supercomputing resources for AI research.
• LUMI ConsortiumflagshipTechnology or IntegrationCo-founder of ICAIN. European supercomputing consortium providing computational infrastructure access.
• Google DeepMindcoreStrategic or Co-development PartnerStrategic partnership to deliver Google DeepMind AI Research Foundations curriculum as part of DSA's commitment to strengthening AI capacity across Africa.
• ARMcoreStrategic or Co-development PartnerLong-standing partner supporting DSA events and activities; contributes expertise in IoT and edge computing.
• University of RwandacoreStrategic or Co-development PartnerHost of DSA 2023 event in Kigali, Rwanda.
• Institute of Accountancy ArushacoreStrategic or Co-development PartnerHost of DSA 2022 event in Arusha, Tanzania.
• Sol Plaatje UniversitycoreStrategic or Co-development PartnerHost of virtual DSA 2021 event during COVID-19 pandemic.

Scale indicators5 records

Recent moves8 records

Expansion highlights7 records

Broad incumbents

• Mozilla Foundation: Global non-profit funding AI and internet health research with African initiatives including Common Voice speech data collection. Comparable through Mozilla's African language data work and AI funding programs.
• AI4D Africa: Multi-donor initiative funding responsible AI research and capacity building across Africa. DSA is both a partner and a participant in AI4D-funded programs, with a broader funding-and-policy remit than DSA's training focus.

Direct peers

• Data Science Nigeria: Nigeria-based non-profit driving data science and AI capacity building in West Africa through training programs, bootcamps, and industry partnerships. Closely comparable to DSA's regional capacity-building mission.
• Deep Learning Indaba: Pan-African grassroots organization running annual Indaba conferences and Baobab chapters to strengthen African machine learning capacity. Operates with a similar community-led, non-profit model and overlapping university partner network across the continent.
• Sunbird AI: African non-profit building production-ready AI applications with focus on African language technologies, health, and conservation. Direct DSA partner via fellowships and African Next Voices, with overlapping leadership (Prof. John Quinn).
• Masakhane: Open-source, community-driven pan-African NLP research community focused on African language machine translation. Comparable to DSA's African language AI work and shares the community-led, volunteer-driven model.
• African Institute for Mathematical Sciences (AIMS): Pan-African network of centers of excellence providing postgraduate training in mathematical sciences with growing AI and data science programs. Comparable structured training and research fellowship model across multiple African countries.

Regional players

• African Institute for Remittances (AIR): African capacity-building organization focused on remittances and digital financial inclusion. Less directly comparable on AI but operates a similar African non-profit training and research model at continental scale.

Emerging players

• Black in AI: Global community of Black researchers in AI running annual workshops at NeurIPS and mentorship programs. Adjacent mission to DSA's African capacity focus with broader geographic scope but narrower regional deep-training.

Others

• Lacuna Fund: Philanthropic fund supporting the creation of datasets for under-resourced languages and populations, including Africa. DSA is a Lacuna Fund capacity-strengthening partner, and Lacuna Fund is a relevant funder peer shaping the same ecosystem.

Market position

Strengths5 records

Weaknesses5 records

Competitive moat5 records

Key risks6 records

Key highlights6 records

Customer concentration

• LinkedInlinkedin.com/company/data-science-africa-dsa

Revenue estimate

Valuation estimate

Number of profiles

Profiles7 records

Subsidiaries5 records

Funding overview

Funding rounds

Investors

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M&A

Investments

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Frequently asked questions about Data Science Africa(DSA)