Microsoft
Africa faces the risk of becoming a passive consumer of Artificial Intelligence unless it takes decisive steps to close its widening adoption gap, according to Akua Gyekye, Microsoft’s Head of Government Affairs for Africa.
Speaking in Lagos, Gyekye highlighted data from Microsoft’s Q1 2026 Global AI Diffusion Report showing generative AI usage among working-age populations at 27.5% in the Global North compared to 15.4% in the Global South.
While this growing disparity poses an economic challenge, it also offers a massive opportunity: inclusive AI adoption could add up to $1 trillion to Africa’s GDP by 2035, according to African Development Bank estimates.
To capture this value, Microsoft emphasises the need for trusted local AI ecosystems built on the following core pillars:
Strategic Choice and Openness: African institutions must be able to choose between frontier, open, and specialized AI models without vendor lock-in. Open standards and safeguards lower barriers for local developers to build on regional intellectual property.
Cross-Sector Partnerships: Closing the gap requires deep collaboration between technology providers, governments, startups, and universities. Multi-organizational efforts like the $5.5M LINGUA Africa initiative, supported by Microsoft, Google.org, the Gates Foundation, and Masakhane are already scaling AI models across 50 African languages for 500 million people.
Cybersecurity and True Sovereignty: Digital sovereignty must mean more than local data storage; it requires legal authority, operational continuity, and robust cyber-resilience. Public-private collaborations, such as Kenya’s Advancing Regional Cybersecurity Initiative, illustrate how nations can prepare for evolving threats.
Foundational Infrastructure: Bridging the strategy-to-execution gap demands direct investment in reliable electricity, connectivity, compute capacity, local datasets, and digital skills training.
Gyekye stressed that risk-based, interoperable regulations and modernized public procurement policies will be vital to encouraging responsible innovation.
“Responsible AI is not simply a governance exercise,” Gyekye stated. “It is a growth strategy. Trust is what makes that growth possible.”
