By 
Federal Government Commits to Indigenous AI Development
The Federal Government of Nigeria has reaffirmed its commitment to building a responsible, inclusive and sovereign artificial intelligence (AI) ecosystem, aimed at repositioning the country from a passive consumer of AI technologies to an architect and builder of indigenous AI systems.
RELATED: NITDA, HORSA equip lawmakers’ spouses with digital skills to drive inclusive digital economy
This commitment was articulated by Kashifu Inuwa Abdullahi, Director General of the National Information Technology Development Agency (NITDA), during a virtual address at the InnovateAI Conference held in Lagos.
The conference convened policymakers, technology leaders, innovators and ecosystem stakeholders to examine the future of artificial intelligence and its role in advancing Nigeria’s digital economy and national development priorities.
National AI Strategy Targets Growth, Inclusion and Global Leadership
Abdullahi highlighted Nigeria’s National Artificial Intelligence Strategy (NAIS), driven by NITDA, which seeks to leverage AI to accelerate economic growth—targeting a potential $15 billion contribution to GDP—while improving social inclusion in key sectors such as education and healthcare.
He noted that the strategy also aims to position Nigeria as a continental leader in AI research, ethical governance and innovation, with ambitious targets including training 70 per cent of the workforce in AI-related skills by 2030 and building sustainable, locally hosted AI infrastructure.
From AI Consumption to AI Ownership
According to the NITDA Director General, Nigeria’s long-term ambition is to move beyond the adoption of foreign AI tools to the development and ownership of AI systems that reflect national values, cultural realities and development priorities.
“Our goal is not just to use AI, but to architect and build our own AI systems in Nigeria,” he said, stressing the importance of national ownership of the AI value chain.
He explained that Nigeria’s AI agenda goes beyond innovation to encompass governance, infrastructure, data sovereignty and adaptive policy frameworks.
Responsible AI Requires Adaptive Policies
Abdullahi emphasised that responsible AI development is a continuous process rather than a one-time regulatory exercise.
“Responsible AI is never a finished job; it is an iterative journey. Our policies must evolve as the technology evolves,” he said.
He cited the implementation of the Digital Economy and E-Governance Bill as a critical tool for generating real-world insights that will inform the continuous refinement of AI governance and regulatory frameworks.
Addressing Bias Through Local Data and Infrastructure
A major concern raised by the NITDA boss was the underrepresentation of African data in global AI models, which often leads to bias against local languages, dialects and demographics.
“If a model shows bias against a local dialect or demographic, we cannot just patch it. We must reinvest in infrastructure to retrain it with inclusive and representative local datasets,” he stated.
He added that building national AI infrastructure is essential to achieving data sovereignty and ensuring Nigeria is not merely an end user of externally developed AI systems.
Global Partnerships Aligned With National Priorities
Abdullahi called for strategic partnerships with global technology companies and hyperscalers to support AI infrastructure development in Nigeria, while ensuring alignment with local values and national interests.
“We need to work with global players, but they must understand our local nuances and help us build the infrastructure to develop AI models that reflect our context,” he said.
Designing AI Systems End-to-End
The NITDA Director General underscored the importance of adopting a full AI lifecycle approach—covering responsible data collection, governance, deployment and continuous feedback—to enable Nigeria to proactively design trustworthy AI systems.
“Without understanding how AI models are trained, how decisions are made, and how models are retrained, it will be difficult to build a responsible and trustworthy AI system,” he warned.
He reaffirmed that the Federal Government is working closely with the technology ecosystem to co-design national AI guardrails, describing platforms such as the InnovateAI Conference and broader national AI dialogues as critical to shaping Nigeria’s AI future.
