Unlocking Silicon Savannah: Assessing Africa's AI Readiness

AI is here, there, and everywhere. The celebrity award for the most popular Emerging Technology goes to... Artificial Intelligence!

Metaversations: AI, can you tell us why everyone is talking about you? Why are you so famous?

AI: I'm not really famous, but I'll take it as a compliment. Anyway, I believe I am famous because, literally, humans are finding it difficult to live without me; I am such a problem solver for humanity that everyone wants to talk about and use me. I guess that's why.

Metaversations: And how would you define yourself?

AI: Humans do not have a standard definition for me, but in a simplified term, I am a machine that mimics human behaviors and capabilities.

Metaversations: OK, AI, it was nice hearing from you. Congratulations on your award.

From my previous interaction with AI, it's clear I needed to write something about it, and as usual, my focus is always Africa. The AI race has begun; is Africa ready?

My greatest fear is that Africa is not prepared for what lies ahead. Am I being paranoid, or are my fears justified? Let's fact-check.

The index, which
assesses a government’s                  is based on three
key pillars: government, technology sector, and data
and infrastructure. (Paradgim Initiative AI Report)        

With over 54 countries, Africa is a sizable continent with a variety of cultural, economic, and political environments. Therefore, the readiness for AI may differ from one country to another.

For the longest time, Africa has been lagging behind and playing catch up on industrial revolutions; however, industry 4.0 has offered her yet another level ground with the world to shape it, and if we miss this, we never know when the next opportunity will arise. Recently, I had the pleasure of attending John Kamara 's AICE Africa Artificial Intelligence Summit in Nairobi, and one of the speakers, Dr. Olufunso Somorin , highlighted something that jumped out to me: scale and speed. Africa must do big things in a short period of time. Africa needs to build and fly at the same time, and AI enables us to do so. which I wholeheartedly agreed with.

The current state of AI adoption in Africa

AI adoption in Africa has been growing, and there are also notable initiatives aimed at promoting AI education and training across the continent, including the African Institute for Mathematical Sciences (AIMS), the African Machine Intelligence (AMI) program, and the Deep Learning Indaba. Google has also launched an AI lab in Ghana, and Microsoft has launched AI for Earth, a program that provides grants to African startups that are using AI to solve environmental challenges.It's important to note that there are significant disparities between countries and regions within Africa; countries with more developed economies and stronger technology infrastructure are likely to have higher adoption rates than those with weaker infrastructure.

North Africa: The North African region is one of the leaders in AI adoption.Countries such as Egypt, Morocco, and Tunisia have established national strategies for AI and are investing in AI research and development. Egypt's government has launched a "National Strategy for Artificial Intelligence" that aims to create an AI industry worth $4.4 billion by 2030.

East Africa: The East African region is also showing promise in AI adoption, with Kenya and Rwanda taking the lead. Rwanda has established a "National Artificial Intelligence Center" that focuses on research and development, capacity building, and commercialization of AI solutions. According to Microsoft’s AI in the Middle East and Africa report, Kenya has invested $130 million in AI in the last 10 years. Globally, Kenya was ranked 90th with a total score of 40.36 percent in terms of AI readiness.

West Africa: The West African region has some emerging players in AI adoption, with Nigeria and Ghana leading the way. Nigeria's government has launched a "National Centre for Artificial Intelligence and Robotics" that aims to promote AI innovation and adoption.According to a report by McKinsey, Nigeria's AI market is expected to reach $450 million by 2030. Ghana, on the other hand, has established an "Artificial Intelligence Centre of Excellence" that focuses on developing AI talent and promoting AI adoption.

Central Africa: The Central African region lags behind in AI adoption, with limited investment in AI research and development. However, countries such as Cameroon and Congo are making efforts to promote AI adoption. Cameroon's government has established an "Artificial Intelligence and Emerging Technologies Commission" that aims to promote AI innovation and adoption. Congo has also established an AI research Center.

Southern Africa: South Africa leads the Southern African area in AI adoption, followed by Botswana and Namibia. South Africa's government has launched a "National Artificial Intelligence Strategy" that aims to promote AI innovation and adoption across different sectors. Botswana and Namibia have also made strides in AI adoption, with initiatives such as "AI for Development" and "Artificial Intelligence for Sustainable Development Goals" respectively.

Challenges and opportunities for adoption

After reading this must-read tweet by Yoseph Ayele , there is a need to shift our perspectives on how we look at Africa; only that way will we tap the sea of opportunities that Africa has to offer more than any other continent.

Opportunities

Economic development: Artificial intelligence has the potential to revolutionize various African sectors such as agriculture, education, healthcare, finance, mining, and logistics. With agriculture accounting for 32% of Africa's GDP, demand for food is rising, as is the continent's vast arable land. AI analytics can assist farmers in detecting pests and diseases in crops, as well as weather patterns and favorable fertilizers. Africa's health and education systems remain deficient, and AI will play a significant role in improving them.

Leapfrogging: Africa has a unique opportunity to leapfrog traditional technologies and adopt AI directly, thus accelerating its development quickly.

Innovation: Africa has a young and innovative population that is increasingly embracing technology.By 2050, about 40% of the world’s population under 18 will have been born and raised in Africa. By nurturing a culture of innovation and harnessing its workforce, Africa can develop AI solutions that address its unique challenges and contribute to global AI advancements.

Challenges

Infrastructure: Insufficient infrastructure remains one of the biggest challenges to AI adoption in Africa, such as high-speed internet connectivity, power supply, and data storage capacity. Without adequate infrastructure, it is challenging to collect, process, and analyze the vast amounts of data needed for AI applications. It is estimated that only 45% of Africans have access to electricity.In 2020, Africa had only 0.5% of the world's data center capacity, according to the Africa Data Centers Association.

Skills Gap: The skill gap is not only an African problem but a global one. There is a significant skills gap in AI talent in Africa, with a shortage of trained professionals with the necessary technical skills and expertise.As of 2022, African countries score between 1.8 and 5 on the Digital Skills Gap Index, far below the global average of 6. Of the world’s 20 countries with the weakest digital skills, 12 are in Africa, and only 11% of Africa’s tertiary education graduates have formal digital training. To meet the demand for digital services on the continent, 650 million workers would need to be trained or retrained in digital skills by 2030. The lack of skilled talent hinders the development of AI startups and makes it difficult for organizations to integrate AI solutions into their operations.

Data Quality and Access: AI and Machine Learning are heavily dependent on data.They rely on data for the training of algorithms and the production of desired outputs. Without sufficient data, AI systems cannot be effective and can be rendered useless. Africa frequently has a scarcity of data in many sectors, and the data that is available may be of poor quality. In a survey by the World Economic Forum, only 19% of African respondents believed that data quality was good enough to use for AI.

Regulatory Framework: Africa provides a once-in-a-generation opportunity to pioneer an agile, ethical, and principle-based approach to AI law that will guide its nations for generations to come; however, there is still hesitancy with developing a regulatory framework. According to a report by the United Nations Conference on Trade and Development, only less than 20 out of 55 African countries have national AI strategies in place.

What If...

My conclusion: What if AI is Africa's pathway to rising into a global economic giant? What if AI ends up in the wrong African hands? What if Africa's education system doesn't adopt global standards? What will happen to these young children who are learning from textbooks with curriculum that was developed centuries ago while the rest of the world is learning from machines? What if African startups had solutions to today's and tomorrow's challenges? What if........

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