USA to forge AI partnership with Nigeria for economic growth

The partnership aims to strengthen economic ties and ensure that AI deployment is safe, secure, transparent, and trustworthy.

The United States of America (U.S.A) and Nigeria are poised to engage in discussions on the digital economy, emerging technology, and the advancement of artificial intelligence (AI) to explore potential partnership opportunities.

During the closing ceremony of a four-day Workshop on National Artificial Intelligence Strategy in Abuja, Mr. Arthur Brown, the Deputy Chief of Mission at the U.S. Embassy, revealed this information. Brown stated that within two weeks, senior officials from the U.S. government would convene in Abuja for a conference organized by the U.S.-Nigeria Bi-National Commission.

Providing further details on the upcoming meeting, the deputy chief of mission said the United States aims to capitalize on the momentum generated by a four-day workshop by organizing an AI conference in Lagos.

The partnership aims to strengthen economic ties and ensure that AI deployment is safe, secure, transparent, and trustworthy. Through its diverse agencies, Brown expressed that the United States is prepared to collaborate with Nigeria as equitable partners to advance initiatives spanning talent development, infrastructure, research, and innovation.

He lauded Nigeria for endorsing a significant United Nations resolution on AI and committed to the ongoing partnership between the U.S. government and Nigeria regarding the economy.

Addressing the workshop’s conclusion, Dr. Bosun Tijani, the Minister of Communications Innovation and Digital Economy, emphasized the importance of African governments and leaders taking decisive action to support their aspirations and strategies.

According to a PricewaterhouseCoopers study, artificial Intelligence could contribute $15.7 trillion to the global economy by 2030, with approximately $3 trillion attributed to enhanced productivity and $9.1 trillion arising from novel goods and services.

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Speaking on anticipated revenue generation and job creation, Tijani emphasized that rather than prioritizing revenue, Nigeria should focus on establishing effective governance for AI, recognizing it as a critical tool to enhance productivity across sectors.

In partnership with the National Information Technology Development Agency (NITDA) and the Nigeria Communications Commission (NCC), the Ministry orchestrated a four-day Artificial Intelligence workshop to craft a collaborative framework for implementing AI in the nation.

The four-day artificial intelligence workshop led to the launching of Nigeria’s first Multilingual large language model (LLM) as the country pushes forward to take a leadership position in artificial intelligence development in Africa.

In August 2023, the Nigerian government invited scientists of Nigerian heritage, as well as globally renowned experts who have worked within the Nigerian market, to collaborate in formulating its National Artificial Intelligence Strategy.