IUT students with the French ambassador, Mr. Etienne Chapon
The Science and Technology days were held at the university institute of technology (IUT) of the University of Comoros from Wednesday 17th to Thursday 18th December 2025. The institute is located in Moroni, Hamramba neighborhood. The aim of this first edition is to raise awareness in terms of innovation, training and student’s personal initiatives with the partners of the development of the country. Many students, professors, teachers, professionals and educational advisers attended the event.
After the traditional welcome address by Ahmed Bacar, the director of the technical school, three speeches were respectively delivered by the French ambassador in Comoros, the rector of the state university of Comoros, and the minister in charge of the national education. Ibouroi Ali Toibibou, The rector was thankful about this initiative set up by the IUT. “This initiative matches our mission of public service institution which is to train, innovate, and contribute to the development of our nation,” he said. “These days are yours. Take this opportunity to introduce your projects, display your innovations, show off your talents, learn, exchange, and expand your networks,” the rector added.
In his speech, Etienne Chapon, the French ambassador reminded the audience about the big infrastructure project that extends the buildings of the IUT in order welcome more students in the 2026/2027academic year. The project of modernization of the technical school is backed by the AFD (French agency for development). It will create 11 new training programs and welcome approximately a thousand students, he said. The diplomat also underlined the scientific and university cooperation between his country and the Comoros in order to meet the challenges of 21st century.
Bakari Mvoulana is the Comorian minister of national education. He delivered his speech both in French and Comorian languages. According to him, the themes to be discussed in the panels, workshops, and exhibition halls demonstrate that our students have the ability to rise to the challenge set by the modern world.
Approximately twenty booths are staffed by students from the university institute of technology of the University of Comoros. They cover various areas such as agro-food, digital and construction industries, and commerce. To illustrate, some students display a ‘Smart Home’ in which you can use a magnetic card to open the doors of your house and do other many things. Soidiki abdoul-malik is a sophomore student in Management (GEA.2).He has a genius idea. His agro-food project is simple. He wants you to eat delicious bread and cakes made from local breadfruit.
Rahmatullah Said Assoumani is an IUT alumnus in Management. Her project is related to ‘Production and marketing of organic fries ‘in the country. Her goal is to reduce imports of frozen products and introduce consumers to healthy and locally sourced food. Nadjim Ahamada dreams to innovate. He launched DIGICOM. He wants to modernize management practices in the country’s parastatal and private institutions. His project involves setting up a comprehensive digital platform enabling the centralized management of employees, archives, contracts, QR code time tracking, correspondence, and general administration reports.
After the opening ceremony, a panel of experts was set up to discuss some topics related to the development of the country.
Panel №1 was about ‘AI, &Machine learning in Africa.’ It was chaired and led by Mr. Taoufik, a counsellor at the ministry of transport and ITC (information and technology communication). According to the ITC expert, AI (artificial intelligence) needs data to function normally. “No data, no AI. It’s like a car which cannot move without fuel,” he uttered. Dr. Abdoulkarim Mohamed Taki is a Maths professor at the IUT. He thinks that AI does not need data for logical reasoning, essay and dissertation. It can perfectly do the job, he explained.
Taoufik took the opportunity to remind the audience an AI study tool for students called Google Notebook LM which is a great tool for creative projects. It can help you (students)organize research, summarize sources, then brainstorm, draft, and refine your text with AI suggestions such as quiz, summary, PowerPoint, flash card scripts, etc. Last but not least, one of the panelists reminds the students who attend the discussion to be careful as AI cannot replace your natural intelligence.
The second panel dealt with ‘Job, entrepreneurship, and innovation.’ Laila Said Hassane is the former director of Meck Moroni. She was the chairwoman of this panel. According to her, employment is a kind of dynamo for the economic growth of a country. “Job creations mean an increase of purchasing power among young people who are in the employment market. It is also a factor of social stability for parents who may retire. Thus, we should avoid a gap between youth training and what companies really need,” she said.
What’s the Comorian government’s insight in terms of jobs for youths? Djamil is the secretary general in the ministry of economy. He had his say. The slogan ‘a youth, a job’ has finally come true with a bill enacted by the government. “There are now many incubators for start-ups. Focal points are set up in the municipalities of the country. 2 billion KMF public funds are available to support youngsters who have projects in sectors such as blue economy, agriculture, tourism, and craftsmanship,” he proudly said.
Chamsidine is the president of the Comorian chamber of commerce and industry. He thinks that the private sector is the real engine in terms of jobs creation as the public service employment is limited. “We should help the small enterprises which invest in the agriculture sector in order to reduce food imports,” he claimed. The president was thankful for Exim bank initiative that supports 10 women every year in entrepreneurship. “Despite many hurdles to overcome in terms of load shedding, water supply, bureaucracy, technical know-how, the government should roll out the red carpet for every entrepreneur,” he suggested. Mohamed Housseine Madi is the assistant director for ANPE (national agency for employment). According to him, many small and medium businesses including foreign ones have received authorization to open business in the country. “Did they create enough jobs? I am not sure of that because many complex and slow bureaucratic procedures do not facilitate the business environment,” he said.
Panel 3 was about ‘Cybersecurity and digital sovereignty’. Karim Athoumani is a computer engineer from Yas Company. He was the moderator. He thinks there is a security and integrity territory issue for our public services in terms of information and personal data to be discussed. What are the threats for the Comoros? Ben mohamed, an engineer and consultant has his say. “Account hacking, blackmail via email, extortion of files and emails, sharing of false information, manipulation of individuals, suspicious links are major concerns everywhere and for everyone,” he said.
Do we have control over our national digital infrastructure? Elyachourtu Hassan took part in many cybersecurity contests in East Africa region and won. He thinks there is no digital sovereignty without a national strategy. According to him, the national digital development agency (ANADEN) should have a coordinated strategy at the national level. Despite the 2022 cybersecurity law, nothing is done to prevent and respond to hacking attacks of our public institutions such as banks, public companies and ministries. Hassan said that east African countries such as Uganda, Tanzania, Kenya and Rwanda are advanced in terms of cybersecurity. It’s also the case for Mauritius Island after a hacking attack.
Housni is an engineer from Comore telecoms. He knows that the state company does not have skilled people for cybersecurity. Thus, he imagined that scenario. Is the state telecom company able to track hackers and restore its website system in case of a hacking attack? Elyachourtu Hassan has the answer. He thinks it’s better to prevent than to cure. As actions speak louder than words, he suggests training and awareness programs in our schools and institutions.
Panel 4 dealt with ‘Data protection and public data’. Chamsidine Soudjay is a cadre from ASECNA and active member of ACTIC (ICT Comorian association). He talks about the 2014 data protection law. Are there software programs to protect our data in case of hacking? That’s far from certain. He complains about the difficulties in the country in accessing public administration data. As our data is not computerized, paper archives can easily be lost, he said. Soudjay suggests the creation of a national data center to save and protect them.
A roundtable discussion was organized that Thursday to debate ‘the lead role and place of IUT in the future’. Professor Ouleid Ahmed was the moderator. Dr Abdallah Nouroudine, director of Msomo na Hazi project and the rector of the University of Comoros were the main contributors. May Allah bless the IUT.
Chami Mouzawar
Contributing writer
