Nigeria is emerging as one of Africa’s leading centres of Artificial Intelligence (AI) activity, alongside Kenya and South Africa, according to the World Bank.
The Bank said AI activity on the continent is currently concentrated in the three economies, although adoption remains at an early stage across most African countries.
The finding is contained in the World Bank’s latest Africa Economic Update, which places special focus on “Building AI-Readiness” across Sub-Saharan Africa.
The report identifies Artificial Intelligence as a potentially powerful tool for raising productivity, creating jobs and improving the delivery of essential services across the continent.
According to the Bank, Africa does not necessarily need to compete with advanced economies in developing the world’s most sophisticated frontier AI systems.
Instead, it said the continent’s greatest immediate opportunity lies in adopting affordable, locally adapted AI applications capable of solving everyday development problems.
Such applications could be deployed in education, agriculture, healthcare, finance, logistics and public administration.
The Bank said low-bandwidth AI tools could, for instance, support student learning and help farmers identify and manage livestock diseases.
They could also help small businesses automate routine functions such as accounting and improve productivity.
Andrew Dabalen, World Bank Chief Economist for the Africa Region, said African governments should build the foundations required to take advantage of the technology.
He said investment in an AI-ready economy could unlock productivity gains, spur innovation and accelerate structural transformation.
“The next challenge is turning growth into more jobs and better opportunities,” Dabalen said.
“By investing in the foundations of an AI-ready economy, African countries can unlock productivity gains, spur innovation, and accelerate the structural transformation needed to raise living standards and reduce poverty.”
The Bank, however, warned that significant infrastructure and institutional gaps could prevent many African countries from fully benefiting from the emerging technology.
It identified reliable electricity, affordable internet connectivity, digital skills, quality data and computing infrastructure among the critical requirements for successful AI adoption.
Effective governance, strong institutions and technical capacity would also be necessary to ensure that AI contributes to development rather than widening existing inequalities.
The Bank called for greater regional cooperation, including through the African Union’s Continental AI Strategy and the African Continental Free Trade Area.
It said such cooperation could help African countries scale AI-enabled solutions and generate more and better jobs.
Separate World Bank research involving 4,205 firms across seven economies, including Nigeria, also found rapid growth in business adoption of AI.
The research found that AI adoption rates among firms surveyed nearly tripled between 2024 and 2025, although sophisticated uses of the technology remained highly concentrated.
It said managers in developing economies expected AI adoption to have positive effects on productivity and employment over the next three years.
