The Honourable Minister of Communications, Innovation and Digital Economy, Dr Bosun Tijani, has urged African nations to embrace artificial intelligence (AI) as a critical driver of productivity, competitiveness and job creation.
Speaking at the Gulf Information Technology Exhibition (GITEX) Nigeria 2025 in Abuja, Tijani warned that Africa risks being left behind if it fails to fast-track AI adoption across strategic sectors.
He stressed that countries already leveraging AI are recording exponential progress in agriculture, finance, logistics and education, while many African economies still rely on guesswork and outdated methods.
“AI will widen the productivity gap between nations. Countries that are already ahead will move even faster, while those still catching up will find it even more difficult,” Tijani said.
Drawing lessons from Brazil and South Africa, the Minister highlighted how precision agriculture powered by AI using soil sensors, predictive analytics, drones and satellite imaging has cut input costs by up to 95 per cent and boosted yields to 10–12 tonnes of maize per hectare, compared to Nigeria’s 2.5 tonnes.
Tijani explained that Africa’s AI journey must be anchored on balancing sovereignty with collaboration, equipping young people with future-ready skills, creating relevant datasets to reflect local realities, and investing in affordable connectivity alongside clean energy infrastructure. He emphasised that the continent must position itself as a producer of innovation, not merely a consumer.
“We cannot afford to be a continent that imports food, services and innovation. That is not the Africa we want,” he added.
Similarly, the Director-General of the National Information Technology Development Agency (NITDA), Kashifu Inuwa, CCIE, stressed that AI presents Africa with a rare chance to lead in a global industrial revolution.
“Any country left behind in this AI revolution risks catastrophe, while those who lead will shape the world,” Inuwa said.
He outlined the need to harness Africa’s youthful population, expand digital infrastructure, build strong policy frameworks and nurture an enabling ecosystem for start-ups and innovation. Inuwa revealed that 45 Nigerian start-ups are already developing AI-driven solutions.
Executive Vice President of the Dubai World Trade Centre (DWTC), Trixie LohMirmand, in her closing remarks, underscored Nigeria’s demographic advantage, projecting the nation’s population to hit 400 million by 2050.
“Nigeria is not defined by today’s challenges, but by the scale of opportunities of tomorrow. Those who stay the course are the future of Africa,” LohMirmand said.
She reaffirmed DWTC’s commitment to supporting Nigeria’s digital future, adding that GITEX Nigeria will serve as a global platform for innovators, SMEs and start-ups to attract investment and partnerships.
