“He suffers more than necessary, who suffers before it is necessary”..Roman Stoic Philosopher Seneca.
President Bola Tinubu has shown his ability to engage technology in reshaping the Nigerian economy and governance in general, however the phenomenon of AI is painting a stark reality of technological marginalization for Africa and may be it is divine intervention that he is at the helm of affairs in Nigeria and Africa at this precarious moment in time.
Fact on the ground dictates that he must roll up his sleeves to stem digital colonization that is at hand. This is an urgent make or break issue.
It is no more a moot matter that artificial intelligence revolution is transforming our world at a breathtaking pace, reshaping economies, security architectures, and societal structures globally. Yet, as this technological tsunami advances, Africa risks being left behind in what might become the most consequential technological shift in modern history.
Two decades after mobile technology leapfrogged legacy infrastructure across the continent, AI threatens to create a new digital divide—one that could exacerbate existing inequalities and create new forms of digital colonization through technological dependency, economic exploitation, and even military domination .
Also Read:
External and Fiscal Improvement: Moody’s upgrades Nigeria’s credit rating to B3
Is AI Coming for the Journalist?
Artificial Intelligence and Africa
From Fragility to Foundations: Inside PBAT’s Political Economy
Nigerian who wrote WASCE 17 times bags distinction from London School
The consequences of non-participation in the AI revolution extend far beyond missed economic opportunities. From healthcare to finance, military applications to psychological manipulation, Africa faces multidimensional threats that could undermine its sovereignty, stability, and development trajectory.
This analysis examines the profound implications of Africa’s AI gap across critical domains, with particular attention to how emerging technologies could be weaponized against the continent in increasingly sophisticated forms of digital subjugation.
Africa’s digital infrastructure gaps remain the most fundamental barrier to meaningful AI participation. While undersea cables like Meta’s 2Africa Project (the 45,000 km submarine cable system designed to encircle the African continent and connect it to Europe and Asia) have increased potential connectivity, the last-mile infrastructure necessary to bring high-speed internet inland remains severely underdeveloped. Nigeria’s average cable download speeds, for instance, are approximately one-tenth of Denmark’s, with most users limited to mobile internet that is even slower and less reliable . This connectivity chasm prevents the real-time data transfer necessary for most advanced AI applications.
The data center shortage presents another critical obstacle. Without locally-based high-performance computing facilities, African data must make lengthy round trips to processing centers in European cities like Marseille or Amsterdam, creating significant delays that undermine AI functionality. These logistical challenges are compounded by energy infrastructure deficiencies, as AI servers consume up to 14 times more electricity than regular servers—a formidable requirement in a continent where energy access remains inconsistent .
Let’s look closely at what l call ‘Data Colonialism Threat’.
Beyond physical infrastructure, Africa faces a data scarcity problem in terms of AI-training-worthy datasets. Most AI systems are trained on data collected from Western contexts, creating inherent biases that limit their applicability in African settings. This dynamic creates a form of digital dependency where African nations must import AI systems ill-suited to their local contexts rather than developing homegrown solutions . The MIT Technology Review has described this phenomenon as “AI colonialism,” where powerful tech companies and nations enrich themselves by dispossessing communities that have historically been exploited .
Again, let’s look at sectors that are being impacted by AI presently before the advent of the super intelligent AI.
The healthcare implications of AI exclusion are particularly alarming. AI promises revolutionary advances in medical diagnostics, personalized treatment, and pandemic preparedness—capabilities that could help overcome Africa’s chronic shortages of healthcare professionals. However, without the infrastructure to support these technologies or the training to implement them, African health systems risk falling further behind . This exclusion is compounded by the fact that many AI diagnostic tools are trained on non-African patient data, potentially reducing their effectiveness for African populations. I am also sure that the great potential of African herbs will be lost forever in this AI era as no training are being done presently.
Mental health represents another concerning frontier. As AI chatbots increasingly provide therapeutic support globally, Africa faces both access challenges and safety concerns. Without robust regulatory frameworks like those emerging in Western contexts, African populations might be exposed to unvalidated AI mental health tools that could cause harm rather than provide care . The American Psychological Association’s checklist for evaluating AI mental health tools highlights the importance of clinical evidence, data privacy, and utility—standards that may not be consistently applied in African contexts due to limited regulatory capacity .
In the financial sector, AI-driven predictive analytics are transforming credit scoring, fraud detection, and investment strategies globally . Africa’s limited participation in this transformation threatens to exacerbate its financial marginalization. Without AI-powered risk assessment tools, African entrepreneurs may face even greater challenges accessing global capital markets, while financial institutions on the continent will be less equipped to detect sophisticated fraud patterns emerging from AI-enabled financial crimes.
The emergence of AI-driven dynamic pricing models in e-commerce represents another potential disadvantage for African consumers and businesses. Without comparable technological capabilities, African markets may be subjected to pricing algorithms that optimize for profit extraction rather than mutual benefit, potentially creating new forms of economic dependency.
AI’s capacity to enhance governmental decision-making through predictive analytics represents another area of potential exclusion. From forecasting crop yields to predicting urban service demands, AI could significantly improve public policy effectiveness. However, without access to these tools or the data infrastructure necessary to fuel them, African governments may make less informed decisions than their technologically-equipped counterparts, creating a governance quality gap that compounds development challenges.
Perhaps the most immediate security threat emerges from lethal autonomous weapons systems (LAWS), which are already appearing on African battlefields. The first alleged use of a fully autonomous killer robot occurred in Libya in 2020, when Turkish-made STM Kargu-2 drones attacked logistics units belonging to Khalifa Haftar’s forces without requiring data connectivity between operator and munition . These systems are becoming increasingly accessible due to their relatively low costs and tactical advantages, with Turkey controlling nearly two-thirds of the global market for armed drones.
African countries’ reliance on foreign arms suppliers creates particular vulnerability. China’s growing military presence includes agreements with Nigeria mandating that state-owned defense contractor Norinco establish local facilities to manufacture advanced military equipment. Similar partnerships exist with Algeria, Burkina Faso, Côte d’Ivoire, and Mali—all while China makes “massive gains in automating warfare” . Russia, likewise, has military-technical cooperation agreements with more than 40 African countries and is boosting arms exports to offset economic pressures, with drone technology a likely export focus.
To be continued on Wednesday
Olusegun Olurin is the CEO of Fadaka Technologies Limited.
