Africa must build confidence, skills and infrastructure to unlock $1tn AI opportunity, Gyekye says
Africa’s ability to turn artificial intelligence into broad-based economic growth will depend as much on public and institutional trust as on the speed at which businesses and governments adopt the technology, Microsoft has warned.
The technology giant said Africa was entering a critical phase in its AI development, with the conversation increasingly moving away from whether the continent would adopt artificial intelligence to whether it could establish the infrastructure, skills, governance and confidence required to deploy the technology responsibly and at scale.
Head of Government Affairs for Africa at Microsoft, Akua Gyekye, said trust must be treated as a fundamental component of Africa’s AI ecosystem rather than as an afterthought imposed through regulation after technologies have already been developed.
“The question is no longer whether the continent will adopt AI, but whether it can create the conditions to use it responsibly, confidently and at scale,” Gyekye wrote in an article.
Her warning comes as African countries intensify efforts to formulate national AI strategies, expand digital infrastructure and develop the skills required to participate in what is emerging as a major global technology-driven economy.
$1tn economic opportunity
The potential economic prize is substantial. The African Development Bank estimates that inclusive development and deployment of AI could generate as much as $1tn in additional gross domestic product across the continent by 2035.
That figure is equivalent to nearly one-third of Africa’s current economic output, underscoring the scale of the opportunity if countries can overcome the structural barriers limiting access to advanced technologies.
Agriculture, wholesale and retail, manufacturing, financial services and healthcare are expected to account for approximately 58 per cent of the projected gains, representing about $580bn.
However, the size of the potential dividend does not necessarily mean African economies will capture a proportionate share of the value created by AI.
The continent continues to face major gaps in reliable digital infrastructure, computing capacity, financing, technical skills and access to digital technologies. These challenges could limit the ability of businesses, particularly smaller enterprises, to deploy AI effectively.
Microsoft's Global AI Diffusion Report for the first quarter of 2026 highlighted the disparity in adoption between regions. It found that generative AI usage among working-age populations was 27.5 per cent in the global north, compared with 15.4 per cent in the global south.
For Africa, narrowing that gap is not merely a question of increasing the number of AI users. It also presents an opportunity for the continent to influence the way AI systems are developed and deployed, rather than remaining predominantly a consumer of technologies created elsewhere.
Trust at the centre of AI adoption
The African Development Bank has identified trust as one of five key conditions required to unlock Africa’s AI dividend. The other four are data, computing capacity, skills and capital.
Gyekye said trust should be embedded in the design and deployment of AI systems from the outset, particularly as governments and companies increasingly turn to artificial intelligence to handle sensitive information and perform important business and public-sector functions.
“For organisations, it means having the technical and operational controls needed to use AI without losing authority over their information, workflows, and intellectual property,” she explained.
The issue becomes increasingly important as AI systems are integrated into areas involving personal information, financial transactions, healthcare, public services and corporate decision-making.
Without adequate safeguards, concerns over data security, privacy, reliability and accountability could discourage organisations from adopting AI or undermine public confidence in systems that increasingly influence everyday life.
Africa needs choice, not dependence
Beyond trust, Gyekye called for an AI ecosystem that is diverse and interoperable, allowing African organisations to select technologies based on their individual requirements rather than becoming locked into a single provider.
She said openness should be accompanied by safeguards and common standards that allow innovation while ensuring organisations retain control over their information and intellectual property.
“Openness should not mean the absence of safeguards,” Gyekye noted. “It should mean an ecosystem in which innovation can take place across technologies and providers, supported by common standards, appropriate governance, and the ability of customers to retain control of their data and intellectual property.”
The argument reflects a broader debate over technological sovereignty in Africa, where policymakers are seeking to benefit from global technology partnerships while also ensuring that critical data, skills and intellectual property are not permanently controlled outside the continent.
From AI consumers to value creators
For Africa to secure a larger share of the AI economy, Gyekye said the continent must look beyond deploying finished AI products and invest in the wider ecosystem that produces them.
That means developing local expertise, supporting research and innovation, expanding access to relevant datasets and improving computing and digital infrastructure.
Such efforts will require collaboration among governments, technology companies, universities, startups and civil society organisations.
“No single actor can provide all these foundations,” Gyekye added.
Microsoft pointed to the LINGUA Africa initiative as an example of how partnerships can contribute to building AI capacity around African needs.
The $5.5m programme involves the Masakhane African Languages Hub, Microsoft’s AI for Good Lab, the Gates Foundation and Google.org. It supports projects focused on responsibly sourced language data and AI models for African languages.
According to Microsoft, 26 projects have been selected under the initiative, covering more than 50 African languages, dialects and sign languages spoken by more than 500 million people across 47 countries.
The focus on African languages is significant because the availability and quality of training data can influence how effectively AI systems understand and serve communities. Greater representation of African languages in AI models could also help broaden access to digital services and reduce the risk that linguistic gaps leave large sections of the population behind.
Regulation must support innovation
Gyekye also urged African policymakers to develop regulatory systems that are practical, risk-based and interoperable across jurisdictions.
She said regulation should protect citizens and provide confidence without creating compliance costs or restrictions so burdensome that they discourage responsible innovation.
“This is not a choice between rapid innovation and responsible governance,” she stressed. “Nor is it a choice between sovereignty and global partnership, or between openness and security.”
“Properly designed, these objectives reinforce one another.”
Her position places responsible AI at the intersection of economic development and governance. Rather than treating AI regulation simply as a means of controlling technological risks, African countries could use policy frameworks to build confidence, attract investment and encourage businesses to adopt the technology.
Responsible AI as a growth strategy
The challenge facing African policymakers and businesses, therefore, extends beyond securing access to AI tools.
The continent must simultaneously build the infrastructure to run them, develop the talent to create and manage them, establish trustworthy data systems and put in place safeguards that give businesses and citizens confidence in their use.
Gyekye argued that this broader approach could determine whether Africa captures a meaningful share of the enormous economic value expected to be created by artificial intelligence over the coming decade.
“Responsible AI is not simply a governance exercise,” Gyekye concluded. “It is a growth strategy. Trust is what makes that growth possible.”