Nigeria poised to become global AI leader – Microsoft

The General Manager, Microsoft Nigeria and Ghana, Mr Abideen Yusuf, on Tuesday said that Nigeria was poised to move beyond its current “pockets of innovation” to building a thriving Artificial Intelligence (AI) economy.

Yusuf, who said this in an interview with our correspondent in Lagos, noted that AI could contribute more than $15 trillion to the global economy by 2030.

He added that Nigeria also had a unique opportunity to become a global leader.

The Microsoft boss said that the country could transition from being just a consumer of AI to a producer of the technology for the rest of the world, driving economic growth and innovation.

According to him, Lagos as a leading tech hub with rapid growth in venture capital and startups, demonstrates Nigeria’s existing capacity for AI innovation.

“True economic growth will come from making this technology widely accessible across the country.

“To build a robust AI economy, there is a two-pronged approach centred on cultivating a strong AI ecosystem and developing an AI-ready workforce,’’ he said.

Yusuf said that a strong AI ecosystem required a solid foundation, starting with infrastructure like power and datacentres.

He said that companies like Microsoft were investing in critical components, such as Africa’s first datacentres and Edge Nodes in Nigeria, to provide faster networks and improved access to cloud services.

The general manager also emphasised the need for ongoing investment and partnerships between the public and private sectors to expand advanced infrastructure and develop digital ecosystems.

According to him, these collaborations are crucial for transforming data into sophisticated models and enabling widespread innovation.

Yusuf highlighted the importance of a skilled workforce for adopting new technologies.

He said that Nigeria’s unique advantage was that it was projected to become a significant contributor to the global youth population by 2030, with 42 percent of the world’s youth, being African.

He lauded initiatives like the Federal Ministry of Communications, Innovation and Digital Economy’s 3MTT programme, which aimed to create two million digital jobs.

Yusuf underscored the vitality of public-private partnerships to bridging the skills gap and equipping Nigerians with the necessary AI skills.

He cited collaborations with organisations like the Wootlab Foundation, a non-profit organisation, as key to launching targeted AI training programmes.