GITEX Nigeria 2026: Nigeria Moves to Break Foreign Grip on AI, Digital Infrastructure
By Matthew Eloyi
Nigeria is intensifying efforts to reduce its dependence on foreign-controlled technologies as the Federal Government, the National Assembly and Lagos State Government push for greater national control over artificial intelligence, data, cloud infrastructure and other critical components of the digital economy.
The drive took centre stage at the opening of GITEX Nigeria 2026 in Abuja, where stakeholders argued that Nigeria’s technological future, economic competitiveness and national security would increasingly depend on its ability to develop and control the infrastructure powering the digital economy.
The Director-General of the National Information Technology Development Agency (NITDA), Kashifu Inuwa Abdullahi, said the country must treat artificial intelligence as strategic national infrastructure rather than simply another emerging technology.
He said the ability to control AI would determine how much influence Nigeria could exercise over critical aspects of its economy and society as the technology becomes increasingly embedded in government, finance, healthcare, education and security.
Abdullahi said Nigeria must develop what he described as “digital self-determination”, stressing that AI sovereignty should cover the entire technology ecosystem rather than the AI models alone.
He identified connectivity, computing capacity, data centres, cloud infrastructure, algorithms, data governance, operational control and legal frameworks as essential components of national AI sovereignty.
According to him, Nigeria could not afford to depend indefinitely on AI systems developed and controlled in other jurisdictions.
He said the country must challenge its technology startups to develop indigenous algorithms and AI solutions capable of addressing local challenges.
The NITDA boss also warned that control over data would become increasingly important as AI systems rely on huge volumes of information for training and decision-making.
“We used to say AI is biased, but AI is not biased. It is the data we train the AI that is biased,” he said, arguing that Nigeria must use locally generated data to build AI systems that effectively understand and serve Nigerians.
He further raised concerns about operational control, asking who ultimately controls AI systems being deployed in critical sectors and whether Nigerian laws could effectively regulate such systems.
Abdullahi warned that entities controlling AI systems capable of influencing financial transactions, markets, healthcare or other critical services could potentially exercise enormous influence over the country.
He said Nigeria must therefore establish appropriate legal and regulatory safeguards to ensure that technologies deployed in the country remained subject to national interests.
The NITDA DG said initiatives such as Project Bridge, which seeks to deploy 90,000 kilometres of fibre-optic infrastructure, as well as measures aimed at strengthening cloud and data sovereignty, were part of the broader effort to establish the foundations for Nigeria’s digital independence.
The Senate Committee Chairman on ICT and Cybercrime, Senator Shuaib Afolabi Salisu, supported the call for stronger national control over emerging technologies, warning that technological dependence could pose serious risks to national security.
Salisu said the discussion around sovereign AI went beyond the technology sector, insisting that it was fundamentally about Nigeria’s security, economy and collective wellbeing.
He warned that digitising government and other critical sectors without controlling the underlying technologies could result in sensitive national data being held by foreign entities.
The senator disclosed that the National Assembly was working towards concluding the proposed National Digital Economy and Governance Bill, which he said would provide a framework for digital technology deployment and strengthen collaboration among government agencies.
He said the proposed legislation would also provide regulatory sandboxes for emerging technologies, including AI, allowing authorities to test new systems before wider deployment.
Salisu also disclosed plans for a comprehensive review and replacement of the existing cybercrime legislation to address emerging threats in cyberspace, including online child abuse and other forms of cybercrime.
He described an ungoverned cyberspace as more dangerous than an ungoverned physical space because perpetrators could operate from anywhere in the world.
The senator also urged foreign technology companies operating in Nigeria to comply with local laws and regulations.
Representing the Secretary to the Government of the Federation, Senator George Akume, the Permanent Secretary, Political and Economic Affairs Office, Mrs. Bekearedebo Augusta Warrens, said Nigeria was laying the foundations required to transform itself from a technology consumer into a producer and exporter of digital solutions.
She said the Tinubu administration had prioritised digital identity, connectivity, technical skills, cloud infrastructure and data sovereignty as part of its digital transformation agenda.
He cited the 3 Million Technical Talent programme, saying it had recorded 1.87 million registrations across the 774 local government areas, with more than 125,000 Nigerians trained through three cohorts.
The initiative, he said, was building skills in artificial intelligence, cloud computing, cybersecurity and software engineering.
He also said the Federal Government’s planned 90,000-kilometre fibre-optic network would extend connectivity across states, local government areas and wards.
On cloud infrastructure, he said the National Digital Cloud Policy was targeting $750 million in private investment in cloud and data infrastructure within 24 months.
Lagos State Governor Babajide Sanwo-Olu, represented by the state Commissioner for Innovation, Science and Technology, Mr. Olatunbosun Alake, used the occasion to highlight the state’s growing technology infrastructure and its efforts to create a more predictable environment for investors.
He said Nigeria’s investment narrative had changed considerably since 2023, with investors increasingly looking beyond the country’s challenges to its opportunities.
According to him, reforms in the economy had improved predictability, which he described as more important to investors than the country’s long-standing potential.
“What has changed in the last three years is not our potential; it is our predictability,” he said.
Sanwo-Olu said sovereign AI depended on five major pillars: infrastructure, talent, rules, capital and demand.
He disclosed that Lagos had laid more than 3,000 kilometres of fibre-optic cable between 2019 and 2025 and had attracted foreign investment for another 30,000 kilometres of fibre ducts along major economic corridors.
He also linked the Lagos State Electricity Law to the growing interest of hyperscale data-centre operators in the state.
The governor said the state had recently commissioned a hyperscale data centre, with more facilities expected to come on stream.
The discussions at GITEX Nigeria 2026 therefore centred on a strategic shift in Nigeria’s digital agenda—from simply expanding connectivity to ensuring that the country has the infrastructure, data, talent, capital, laws and technological control required to determine its own digital future.
The message from the conference was clear: for Nigeria to achieve genuine AI sovereignty, it must first build sovereignty over the ecosystem that makes AI possible.