The Director General of the National Information Technology Development Agency (NITDA), Kashifu Inuwa has said the Federal Government is deliberately positioning Nigeria to become a producer of artificial intelligence (AI) solutions through responsible governance, local infrastructure development and inclusive data systems.
He made this known on Friday while speaking virtually at the InnovateAI Conference in Lagos.
Inuwa said Nigeria’s vision is to transition from a passive consumer of foreign AI tools to an architect and builder of indigenous systems that reflect national values and development priorities.
He told participants at the conference which brought together policymakers, innovators and technology industry leaders that the country’s National AI Strategy is anchored on ownership, sovereignty and long term sustainability.
According to him, building AI capacity goes beyond deploying smart applications, noting that governance frameworks, infrastructure, data representation and regulatory flexibility are equally critical.
“Our ambition is not limited to adopting AI tools developed elsewhere. We must understand how they are built, how they are trained, and how they can be retrained within our own context,” he said.
The NITDA chief stressed that AI regulation must remain dynamic to keep pace with rapid technological advancement.
He cautioned against rigid laws that could stifle innovation, advocating instead for adaptive policy frameworks capable of evolving alongside emerging technologies.
Inuwa described the Digital Economy and E-Governance Bill as a strategic instrument for strengthening AI governance and ensuring regulatory clarity as the ecosystem matures.
He also highlighted the risks associated with global AI models trained largely on non African datasets, warning that such systems often fail to accurately represent local languages, cultures and socio-economic realities.
To address this gap, he said Nigeria must invest in building robust national computing infrastructure and curated local datasets that enable the development and retraining of AI models tailored to Nigerian needs.
“Data sovereignty is fundamental. If we do not build the infrastructure to train and retrain models locally, we will remain dependent on external systems,” he noted.
While emphasising local capacity, Inuwa acknowledged the importance of collaboration with international technology firms and hyperscalers, provided such partnerships support Nigeria’s strategic objectives and respect its digital sovereignty.
He added that adopting a full AI lifecycle approach from responsible data collection to deployment, monitoring and feedback would help the country design trustworthy systems rather than merely reacting to global AI trends.
Reaffirming government commitment, the Inuwa said the agency is working closely with stakeholders across academia, industry and the public sector to co-create guardrails that will ensure AI development in Nigeria remains ethical, inclusive and aligned with national aspirations.
