AI must expand human potential, not replace it — NITDA DG

"Through NITDA, Nigeria remains committed to building an AI ecosystem where representation creates relevance, access creates opportunity and agency empowers Nigerians to become creators rather than merely consumers of the emerging AI economy." Abdullahi.

The Director-General of the National Information Technology Development Agency (NITDA), Kashifu Inuwa Abdullahi, has called for an inclusive artificial intelligence (AI) ecosystem that empowers people to create value and expands human potential rather than turning citizens into mere consumers of technology.

Abdullahi made the call while joining global leaders and development champions at a high-level dialogue on technology, innovation and social business as tools for advancing sustainable and inclusive development.

He said the global conversation on AI should move beyond expanding access to the technology to ensuring that people have the representation and agency required to shape and benefit from it.

According to him, truly inclusive AI must reflect the data, languages, cultures, contexts and values of the people it is designed to serve.

“Inclusive AI requires representation and access—and access must mean agency, not just consumption,” he said.

The NITDA boss illustrated the potential of AI with the example of a Nigerian farmer who may have limited access to agricultural experts but could have an AI-enabled agronomist in his pocket to help interpret weather conditions, understand soil characteristics, identify crop challenges and connect with markets.

He said the real value of AI should ultimately be measured by its impact on human lives through better decisions, increased productivity, higher incomes and stronger families and communities.

“The promise of AI is not that every Nigerian becomes an AI expert. It is that AI can put expertise within the reach of every Nigerian,” Abdullahi said.

He identified four pillars underpinning Nigeria’s approach to an inclusive AI future as CONNECT, SKILL, COMPUTE and CREATE, noting that the country was pursuing initiatives aimed at expanding connectivity, building digital and technical capabilities, strengthening sovereign cloud and AI infrastructure, and creating an enabling environment for innovation.

He cited Project BRIDGE, DL4ALL, the 3 Million Technical Talent (3MTT) programme and Technical and Vocational Education and Training (TVET) initiatives as part of efforts to build the human and digital capacity required to participate meaningfully in the AI economy.

On digital sovereignty, Abdullahi said Nigeria’s objective was not technological isolation but the ability to ensure that AI systems understand Nigerian data, contexts and nuances, operate within Nigerian laws and reflect the country’s culture and values.

He, however, stressed that such sovereignty should coexist with global investment, partnerships and access to international AI models.

The NITDA DG also called for a shared responsibility among governments, technology companies and citizens in shaping the AI future.

He said governments must provide enabling infrastructure, policy clarity and regulatory certainty while protecting citizens, while global technology companies should move beyond merely selling technology to Africa and instead “build with Africa.”

According to him, this should involve investment in computing infrastructure, knowledge transfer, talent development, African datasets and languages, as well as partnerships with African innovators and researchers.

Abdullahi urged young Nigerians to see AI as a tool for augmenting their capabilities and productivity rather than as a replacement for human ingenuity.

He also stressed the need to preserve human accountability as AI becomes increasingly embedded in decisions affecting health, livelihoods, rights and public services.

“We can delegate tasks to machines. We cannot delegate accountability,” he said.

The NITDA chief challenged policymakers, technology companies and innovators to consider two fundamental questions whenever they develop an AI system: “Who is represented in the intelligence we are creating? And who has the agency to shape and create value from that intelligence?”

He said the defining achievement of the AI era should not merely be the creation of machines with extraordinary intelligence, but the use of such intelligence to unlock human potential.

“The defining achievement of the AI age should not be that we created machines capable of extraordinary intelligence. It should be that we used that intelligence to unlock extraordinary human possibility; for everyone,” he said.

The high-level opening session featured President of the 81st Session of the United Nations General Assembly, Dr Khalilur Rahman; President of Timor-Leste and 1996 Nobel Peace Laureate, José Ramos-Horta; Prime Minister of Bhutan, Dasho Tshering Tobgay; Brazil’s State Minister of Development and Social Assistance, Family and Fight Against Hunger, Wellington Dias; and Pakistan’s Minister of State and Chairman of the Virtual Assets Regulatory Authority, Bilal Bin Saqib.

Also featured was Professor Muhammad Yunus, 2006 Nobel Peace Laureate, founder of Grameen Bank and Chair of the Global Committee on Social Business for Sustainable Development Goals.

The session was welcomed by the Executive Director of the Yunus Centre, Lamiya Morshed, and co-moderated by Dominique V. Dauster, Managing Director of Yunus+You – YY Foundation, and James Chau, President of the China-United States Exchange Foundation and WHO Goodwill Ambassador.

Through NITDA, Abdullahi said Nigeria remained committed to building an AI ecosystem where representation creates relevance, access creates opportunity and agency empowers Nigerians to become creators rather than merely consumers of the emerging AI economy.