The 8th International Conference of the EAI on interdisciplinary innovations and solutions for disadvantaged areas, co-organized within the framework of the EAI conference series, took place on July 3 and 4, 2025, in Ouagadougou, Burkina Faso.

The objective is to provide insight into emerging technologies, showing how they can contribute to sustainable economic development in underserved areas and how ICT can act as a lever for economic growth and social development. Furthermore, the main objectives of this conference are to enable young African researchers to present their recent and current work at an international conference that offers them a broad audience. The originality of the editorial line lies in selecting articles that demonstrate how environmental concerns and the African context guide their research orientation. Thus, innovative approaches have been presented to improve sustainable energy solutions and carry out impactful environmental interventions in areas where they are most needed.

USF was an active partner with Alain Mille as co-chair of the conference and Robert Laurini as a keynote speaker with two keynote addresses. The main section (regular papers) received 50 submitted papers and 12 accepted papers. The workshop track received 54 submitted papers and 10 accepted papers. The workshop papers were not presented at the conference on July 3 and 4, 2025. They were presented in parallel to the CNRIA 2025 conference in Senegal.

In terms of participation, the first day had over 500 in-person participants (the 500-seat room was packed) and around 400 online. Many participants showed a great interest in the training session on ‘How to write articles and dissertations ethically with the help of AI.’ The second day was much less crowded, with approximately 60 online participants and 100 in-person participants.