The Nigerian government is preparing to launch a $1.5 million (₦2.5 billion) fund aimed at accelerating the development of Artificial Intelligence (AI) within the country. The new fund, set to be unveiled in Abuja on October 7, 2024, was announced by Bosun Tijani, Nigeria’s Minister of Communications, Innovation, and Digital Economy, during an interview following his attendance at the United Nations General Assembly. The initiative is backed by Luminate, a global foundation focused on supporting innovations that promote informed, just, and fair societies.

This new fund comes on the heels of a ₦100 million (~$61,000) AI fund launched by the Nigerian government in collaboration with Google. The earlier fund, which was designed to support 10 AI startups in Nigeria, faced significant criticism from the tech community for being too small to address the needs of the rapidly growing AI industry. Many critics highlighted that the ₦100 million would barely cover essential resources such as Nvidia chips, which are crucial for AI development, and pointed out that some individual startups outside Nigeria receive significantly larger amounts in funding.

Response to Criticism

Tijani responded to the criticism by explaining that the ₦100 million fund was not intended to be the sole source of AI support. Instead, it was part of a larger strategy that included pooling resources from various organizations, both local and international, to build a more robust foundation for Nigeria's AI ecosystem. He emphasized that the government is focused on securing more extensive financial and structural support to complement these initial investments. "Our strategy with AI isn’t to limit it to local resources—we are pooling resources together," Tijani explained. He noted that the $1.5 million fund from Luminate would be a substantial step forward in this broader effort.

A Step Towards Ethical and Inclusive AI

In addition to the new fund, the Nigerian government is collaborating with the AI Collaborative on a separate initiative known as the National Artificial Intelligence Trust. This Trust will be tasked with ensuring that AI development in Nigeria is ethical, safe, and sustainable. The Trust will also focus on incorporating local languages into AI technologies, an effort that Tijani believes will ensure that the benefits of AI are accessible to all Nigerians, regardless of linguistic or cultural barriers.

The minister emphasized that this approach is part of a broader vision for AI in Nigeria, one that goes beyond just technology development. He stated, "As we build our large language models and digitize our data, we’ll be able to monetize these efforts, with proceeds going back into the Trust to support further AI development."

Expanding Nigeria's AI Ecosystem

The announcement of the new AI fund follows the government's launch of the AI Collective earlier in 2024. The AI Collective is a community of practice that seeks to foster collaboration between civil society, academia, the tech industry, and other sectors to drive innovation and governance in AI. Luminate has also pledged $1.5 million over three years to support three organizations—Data Science Nigeria, Lagos Business School, and the Center for Journalism, Innovation, and Development—that will manage the AI Collective's activities.

These organizations are expected to lead efforts in research, innovation, and governance, ensuring that AI development in Nigeria aligns with both national priorities and global best practices. The National Centre for Artificial Intelligence and Robotics (NCAIR) will serve as the hub for these activities, further solidifying Nigeria’s role as a leader in AI innovation within the African continent.

Addressing the Challenges of Tech Funding

While the Nigerian government’s efforts to promote AI development have been lauded, there are ongoing concerns about the adequacy of funding and the balance between high-level initiatives and grassroots challenges. Tijani acknowledged that large-scale projects, such as AI infrastructure development, may not yield immediate results or be fully understood by all. However, he stressed that these initiatives are crucial for long-term progress.

For example, the government is currently working on a project to lay 90,000 kilometers of fiber optic cables across the country, which Tijani described as essential for Nigeria’s technological future. Although the project will take years to complete and is expected to cost $2 billion, the minister remains confident in its potential to transform the country's tech ecosystem.

He also pointed to other ongoing government initiatives, such as the 3 Million Technical Talent (3MT) project and the 774 Project, which aims to connect local government secretariats to improve service delivery at the grassroots level. Both programs, he noted, are already delivering tangible benefits by creating job opportunities and enhancing public sector efficiency.

Nigeria’s latest move to launch a $1.5 million AI fund underscores the government’s commitment to nurturing a thriving AI ecosystem in the country. Despite initial backlash over the ₦100 million Google-backed fund, the new initiative, supported by Luminate, aims to provide a more substantial boost to AI startups and innovations in Nigeria. As the government works to secure additional resources and build out its AI infrastructure, these efforts are set to play a pivotal role in the country’s long-term technological development.

Tijani’s vision for ethical, inclusive, and sustainable AI development in Nigeria could have far-reaching implications for the broader African continent, positioning the country as a leader in AI innovation and governance.