LUSAKA, June 18 -- The application of artificial intelligence (AI) technology has helped Zambia boost its revenue collection by 60 percent, a senior government official said on Tuesday.

Minister of Technology and Science Felix Mutati said the use of AI has helped the Zambia Revenue Authority (ZRA), the country's revenue collection agency, to increase its capacity to collect revenue by 60 percent over the past two years.

In remarks delivered during a lecture on AI held in Lusaka, the country's capital, Mutati said the technology has given the revenue agency more tools to increase revenue collection and improve tax compliance.

"Artificial intelligence has come here to stay, and we must embrace it as it has many benefits in many areas such as justice, business, security and agriculture," he said.

He also said the technology has the capacity to help the country predict adverse weather conditions, a situation that would go a long way in planning for challenges such as flooding or drought.

Dingani Banda, the ZRA commissioner-general, said AI has helped the agency improve its fraud detection. "The ZRA is able to analyze importers and exporters online and detect fraud faster than a human could."

  - Xinhua