African countries may miss out on the transformative benefits of the global artificial intelligence (AI) revolution unless urgent investments are made in critical infrastructure, the United Nations Economic Commission for Africa (ECA) has warned.
In a report presented at a meeting of African ministers of finance in Morocco, the ECA said the continent’s more than 50 countries face the risk of being left behind in AI-driven economic modernisation due to weak data and energy infrastructure, noting that Africa currently hosts less than one per cent of the world’s data centres.
The commission described the shortfall as both an economic and sovereignty challenge, stressing that the storage of African data outside the continent increases costs, delays transmission, and raises concerns over sensitive information such as medical, financial, and security data.
To address this gap, the ECA urged governments to look beyond public budgets, calling for increased borrowing, improved domestic revenue mobilisation, and the strategic use of pension funds, sovereign wealth funds, and blended finance to fund infrastructure development.
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The report noted that public budgets alone will not suffice, adding that “strategic investments in data infrastructure and energy generation can reinforce each other by enabling digital industries while supporting electricity demand and reliability.”
Speaking at the opening of the Committee of Experts segment of the Conference of African Ministers of Finance, Planning and Economic Development in Tangier, ECA Deputy Executive Secretary for Programme Support, Mama Keita, emphasised the urgency of leveraging frontier technologies to drive growth and competitiveness.
According to her, “frontier technologies and innovation are not only useful to unlock Africa’s growth potential and enhance the competitiveness of African economies through productivity growth and diversification,” but are also critical to accelerating structural transformation across the continent.
Keita noted that technologies such as AI, the Internet of Things, and biotechnology can help reallocate resources from low-productivity sectors to higher-value activities, improve living standards, and drive sustainable economic growth if supported by appropriate policies, financing, and data systems.
She, however, warned that Africa’s slow pace in adopting these technologies could widen the gap with more advanced economies, as AI is projected to contribute about 5.6 per cent to GDP across Africa, Oceania, and parts of developing Asia by 2030, lagging behind global peers.
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The ECA further highlighted Africa’s comparative advantage in critical minerals, which account for nearly 30 per cent of global reserves essential for clean energy and digital technologies. It said harnessing these resources through local processing and manufacturing could enable the continent to produce batteries, processors, and other high-value goods rather than exporting raw materials.
The report also underscored the role of digital platforms and mobile money in transforming African economies by lowering transaction costs, improving efficiency, and expanding access to finance, while noting that scaling such gains would require deeper investments in infrastructure and skills.
Keita pointed out that while frontier technologies offer vast opportunities, they also come with risks, including job displacement. Globally, AI and automation are expected to create 170 million jobs and displace 92 million by 2030, resulting in a net gain of 78 million jobs.
Africa, she said, can benefit from this shift only if it aligns its youthful population with the demands of a digital economy through targeted skills development. “The disruptive effects of new technologies on the African labour market cannot be ignored,” she cautioned, adding that job losses often occur faster than job creation.