Africa’s AI moment: From consumption to digital sovereignty
Africa stands at a crossroads in the global artificial intelligence economy. The continent is navigating a complex interplay between local development priorities, global geopolitics, and powerful corporate interests shaping the digital landscape. Nowhere is this tension more visible than in the emerging domains of AI and data governance – policy areas that will determine who captures value, who holds power, and whose interests technology ultimately serves. AI is being heralded as the next frontier of productivity and innovation. Yet behind the excitement lies a familiar pattern: Africa once again risks being positioned as a consumer and raw-data supplier rather than a producer and rule-maker.
As global corporations consolidate control over data, algorithms, and infrastructure, the continent’s dependence on foreign technologies deepens – echoing earlier extractive economic relationships.This discussion took place at the International Conference on Theory and Practice of Electronic Governance – a global forum convened by the United Nations University and hosted this year by Nigeria’s National Information Technology Development Agency in Abuja.Our contribution, a workshop titled “Beyond AI Consumption: Digital Governance Politics and Management in the Global South”, was convened by a team of Global South scholars sponsored by the Artificial Intelligence for Development programme in Africa.
The session explored a pressing question:Will the Global South simply consume – and be consumed – in this new AI order, or can it chart an alternative path toward agency and digital sovereignty?The conversation was organised around three provocations – data, economy, and politics.Data: Africa remains data-poor in the sense that much of the information generated on the continent is captured, processed, and stored elsewhere and fails to return in the form of data value back to the continent. Without control over our own data ecosystems, policymaking and innovation remain constrained.Economy: Despite its vast population and growing tech talent base, Africa occupies a low-value position in the AI economy.
The continent contributes only about 1–1.5 per cent of global AI investment, even though it provides much of the raw data that trains global models, and natural resources and commodities that fuel AI ecosystems.Politics: The global governance of AI – from standards to safety frameworks – is dominated by Northern powers and corporate platforms. Without representation in these processes, Africa risks being a rule-taker in an economy projected to add US $15.7tn to global GDP by 2030.These themes provoked vigorous debate among academics, policymakers, and practitioners. Many participants echoed concern that Africa’s digital trajectory mirrors its historic resource-extraction model.
The metaphor that resonated most came from Nigeria itself: Aliko Dangote’s refinery – a story of what it took, after decades of dependency, for one African enterprise to beneficiate its own resources. Others cautioned that challenging entrenched global structures could be economically risky, arguing that engagement within existing frameworks might yield quicker returns.By the session’s close, seven broad imperatives had emerged – lessons for Africa and, indeed, for the wider Global South:Reframe this as a power question: The control of data, digital infrastructure, and AI narratives determines value capture.
Africa must move from extraction to agency.Invest in the fundamentals: Digital sovereignty requires infrastructure, robust data ecosystems, foundational models, institutional capacity, and digital-skills pipelines. Public access and benefit must remain central.Leverage what we have: Africa’s strengths – indigenous knowledge systems, cultural diversity, frugal innovation, and collaborative social fabrics – are valuable assets for shaping context-appropriate AI. AI frugality is a realm to be further explored, acknowledging the specificity and limitations of AI systems.Engage strategically: As new AI value chains form, African policymakers and investors can make selective, context-aware bets that build domestic capability rather than dependence.Choose partners wisely: Collaboration should advance equity and sovereignty, not replicate extractive patterns. Partnerships must be structured around technology transfer, open standards, and shared intellectual property. Shape governance: Global rules for AI are being written now – mostly elsewhere.
Africa’s representation in these forums is essential if our regulatory values are to be reflected in global standards.Lead with vision and courage: Sovereignty in any domain is not granted; it is built through consistent investment, imagination, and persistence.The workshop concluded with an agreement to draft an ICEGOV 2025 Resolution articulating the Global South’s position on digital governance and to feed these perspectives into UN and multilateral policy discussions.It is a modest but strategic move – signalling that Africa must engage globally not as a passive beneficiary, but as an active and equal rule-maker.For business leaders and policymakers, the implications are clear. Africa cannot afford to treat AI as a purely technical or academic concern.
It is an economic governance issue that will shape competitiveness, employment, industrial development, commodity strategy, and fiscal resilience for decades to come.Public and private investment in AI infrastructure – from data centres to research ecosystems – should be understood as strategic industrial policy, comparable to energy or transport in its nation-building importance. Furthermore, such a strategic outlook must be accountable, transparent, and safeguard African agency and development.
The story of Dangote’s refinery reminds us that building digital capacity and independence takes time, capital (both material and immaterial), and conviction. The same will be true for digital sovereignty. If African governments and investors commit to this path with similar determination, the continent could transition from being the world’s digital quarry to becoming a meaningful participant – even a rule-setter – in the global AI economy.
AI will redefine how economies create value and how societies are governed. The question for Africa is no longer whether to participate, but how – and on whose terms?To move beyond consumption toward sovereignty is not only a moral imperative; it is an economic necessity for a sustainable digital future. Karuri-Sebina, Mlambo, Bonami, Malindini, and Ndaka are scholars from the Universities of Witwatersrand and Edinburgh studying digital governance, innovation, and technology policy across the Global South
