Africa urged to build local AI infrastructure to ensure technological sovereignty

African business leaders and regulators are being urged to take ownership of Artificial Intelligence (AI) development and deployment to avoid becoming mere passive consumers of foreign technology. At the Society for Corporate Governance Nigeria’s 2026 Annual Corporate Governance Conference in Lagos, Dr. Evans Woherem of Digital Africa Global Consult Limited warned that the continent must invest in its own AI infrastructure to remain globally relevant and to ensure proper control over the technology.

To achieve technological sovereignty, experts suggest Africa should move beyond seeking representation in international AI governance and instead focus on building a regional ecosystem. This involves specialized technological hubs across the continent: North Africa for advanced manufacturing, the Horn for space and connectivity, East Africa for software and agricultural AI, Central Africa for mineral processing, Southern Africa for heavy engineering, and West Africa for cybersecurity and language models.

While acknowledging that building infrastructure is costly, proponents argue that linking these regional hubs—such as using satellites for agricultural data and local minerals for battery technology—is essential for securing digital, food, and energy independence.