Nigeria targets 95% digital literacy and AI dominance by 2030 — NITDA chief reveals

Nigeria has set its sights on becoming a global leader in digital innovation, with an ambitious plan to achieve 95% digital literacy and dominate artificial intelligence (AI) by 2030.

• Nigeria has set an ambitious target to achieve 95% digital literacy and AI dominance by 2030, led by NITDA’s strategic roadmap.
• The country aims to integrate digital skills into education and the public sector, preparing millions of Nigerians for the digital economy.
• NITDA’s National AI Strategy focuses on talent development, infrastructure, and responsible AI applications across sectors such as healthcare and agriculture.
• Infrastructure initiatives like Project Bridge and local data sovereignty policies are central to supporting Nigeria’s digital transformation.

The country’s digital revolution, led by the National Information Technology Development Agency (NITDA), is poised to reshape Nigeria’s technological landscape, positioning it as a major player in Africa’s digital economy.

Speaking in an exclusive interview with Business Insider Africa, Kashifu Inuwa Abdullahi, the Director-General and CEO of NITDA, outlined Nigeria’s strategic roadmap to achieve its goals.

Abdullahi emphasised the country’s commitment to building a digital-first economy, driven by a robust talent pipeline, infrastructure, and progressive policy frameworks.

“We have a National Digital Literacy Framework with an ambitious target of achieving 95% digital literacy by 2030,” Abdullahi stated.

The initiative, he explained, focuses on integrating digital skills into Nigeria’s education system, from kindergarten to tertiary institutions, with a midterm goal of achieving 70% digital literacy by 2027.

The plan also includes partnerships with global tech giants, such as Cisco, to offer accredited online courses.

“We’ve developed curriculum for digital skills, and the president has directed the Ministry of Education to implement it. This ensures that every student, just like English or mathematics, will have to take digital skills as part of their education,” Abdullahi added.

In a bid to equip the workforce, NITDA has also partnered with government agencies to mandate digital literacy across all public service sectors.

Abdullahi noted that over 23,000 civil servants have already enrolled in courses to enhance their digital skills. The long-term objective is to prepare 30 million Nigerians in the informal sector and 15 million in education for the digital economy by 2027.

Nigeria’s AI revolution

At the heart of Nigeria’s digital transformation is AI. Abdullahi emphasised that AI is viewed as a key driver of the country’s future economic growth.

“AI is a transformative tool that will change lives, possibly even more than electricity,” he said.

Nigeria has developed a National AI Strategy with five key pillars, including talent development, infrastructure, and the ethical application of AI in sectors such as agriculture, healthcare, and finance.

“Nigeria’s strategy is clear: we don’t just want to be a passive participant in AI development, we want to be an active participant,” Abdullahi explained.

The strategy aims to establish AI as a critical tool for boosting productivity across various sectors while ensuring responsible use through a robust governance framework.

Infrastructure remains a crucial component of Nigeria’s digital vision. Abdullahi discussed the government’s plans to roll out 90,000 kilometers of fiber-optic cable under Project Bridge, which will connect underserved regions across the country.

He also highlighted efforts to build data centers and establish a sovereign cloud infrastructure that ensures Nigeria’s control over its digital data.

Abdullahi’s vision for Nigeria extends beyond infrastructure and talent development.

“My legacy is to see Nigeria achieve digital sovereignty,” he remarked.

He aims to ensure that Nigeria has the talent, infrastructure, and control over its data to become self-sufficient in the digital world.

With these ambitious goals in place, Nigeria is setting the stage to become Africa’s leader in digital technology, positioning itself as a key player in the global tech ecosystem by 2030.