AfriCHI is a biennial conference that unites African researchers, practitioners, and students in HCI, UX, and Interaction Design to foster technology design and innovation for and from Africa.
AfriCHI is the premiere conference for Africans’ international participation in the practice, research, and study of human-computer interaction (HCI), user experience design (UX), interaction design, human-centred artificial intelligence, and allied fields. The conference runs every two years and is hosted in a different African country each time.
Empowering African Voices in HCI
AfriCHI aims to broaden African participation in Human-Computer Interaction (HCI) and related fields including Interaction Design, User experience design (UX), Human-centred Artificial Intelligence (HCIA),Participatory Design (PD), Artificial Intelligence (AI) Ethics and Governance, Responsible and Trustworthy AI, and emerging technologies—while globally promoting African technological innovation through an interdisciplinary forum.
AfriCHI seeks to
Boost African involvement in HCI research and practice.
Promote and showcase African-generated knowledge in design, technology, and pedagogy to a global audience.
Build an African diverse, interdisciplinary community focused on HCI and allied areas like UX, AI ethics, and emerging technologies.
Attract participants from a wide range of backgrounds, including tech professionals, researchers, social scientists, and activists.
If you want to go fast, go alone. If you want to go far, go together.
AfriCHI's journey began in 2010 when Prof. Anicia Peters expressed the first statement and championed the first Africa Human Computer International conference (AfriCHI) at the ACM CHI '2010 conference in Atlanta, Georgia during a panel discussion on Human-Computer Interaction for Development. This vision was solidified at INTERACT'13, emphasizing collaborative community building. Efforts to establish a pan-African HCI community involved inviting 236 African universities and diaspora members, culminating in AfriCHI's registration under SIGCHI.
The initiative, rooted in Ubuntu's collaborative spirit, saw numerous contributors, including co-chairs Prof. Chris Chepken and Prof. Anicia Peters, and founding Technical Chairs Prof. Nic Bidwell and Dr. Kagonya Awori. Further momentum was fostered in subsequent years by a large list of dedicated professionals including Prof Heike Winschiers-Theophilus, Dr Melissa Densmore, Dr Rita Orji, Dr Obinna Anya, Dr Abiodun Ogunyemi, Prof David Lamas, Dr Luis Neves, Prof Med Salim Bouhlel, Dr Shaimaa Lazem, Dr Nobert Jere and Dr Aderonke Sakpere to mention a few. The inaugural AfriCHI conference in 2016, supported by SIGCHI, marked a significant milestone, with Dr. Susan Dray and Prof. Aaron Quigley playing crucial roles in its recognition.
Innovating Technology for Africa's Future
By integrating local and global expertise, AfriCHI empowers participants to shape the future of technology design and adoption across Africa.
Pan-African Forum
Build a pan-African forum for advancing HCI and allied fields.
Global Innovations
Highlight African innovations and research addressing global challenges.
Inclusive Diversity
Ensure inclusivity by embracing diverse perspectives, disciplines, and languages.
Expanding Access and Language Diversity
AfriCHI actively pursues inclusivity by diversifying its conference formats and extending accessibility beyond the ACM digital library, fostering a vibrant research and practice community. Recognizing Africa's linguistic diversity, AfriCHI has implemented various language support initiatives. These include an English language editing committee, acceptance of diverse English dialects, and a bilingual English/French call for papers at its inaugural conference.
Despite the ACM digital library's English-only policy, AfriCHI offered translation and editing services for French papers. Due to the high cost of simultaneous translation, paired translators were utilized. Building interdisciplinary bridges, AfriCHI hosted a French workshop at Senghor University in Alexandria, Egypt between 20-21 November 2024. Looking ahead, AfriCHI2025 aims to further enhance language inclusion, reflecting its commitment to a truly accessible and representative community.
Our Legacy
Since its inception in 2016, AfriCHI has grown into a key event for the African HCI community. The conference has been hosted in different countries across the continent, reflecting its commitment to diversity and inclusivity:
2016
Building Bridges, Breaking Barriers
2018
Thriving Communities
2021
Inclusiveness and Empowerment
2023
Beyond Limits
Join Us at AfriCHI 2025
Join us in Cairo, Egypt, this November for the 5th Biennial African Conference on Human-Computer Interaction (HCI). Hosted in collaboration with ACM SIGCHI, AfriCHI is the premier platform for showcasing Africa’s contributions to HCI, User Experience (UX), Interaction Design, and Human-Centered AI.