The future is here; driven of course, by the prompt and positive deployment of Artificial Intelligence (AI) which has become a monumental gamechanger in the way we interact online, how we manage our finances, how we work and the improvement it has brought to bear on investment in stocks.

In fact, according to the Director Google in Nigeria, Mr. Olumide Balogun, investing in AI could position the country as a leader in Africa’s digital economy, improve public services, and make Nigeria a hub for technological innovation.

For instance, AI alone is predicted to contribute over $15.7 trillion to the global economy by 2030.

Out of this Nigeria, if well positioned within the AI’s global spectrum can benefit to the tune of $15 billion by the same year 2030.

That is according to a recent study conducted by Public First Digital Opportunity of Nigeria as revealed by Balogun at Google’s Economic Impact Report Press Round Table in Lagos in October 2024.

It would be recalled that in 2023 Google’s products and services, which included Search, Ads, YouTube and Cloud, contributed an estimated $1.8 billion in economic activities across the country.

This was a significant landmark as it boosted the productivity of businesses, creators and workers in the country.

And notably, Google’s digital skills programme Digital Skills for Africa, Career Certificates Programme, during which over 1.5 million young adults in the country learnt new digital skills.

That was in 2023 alone. Furthermore, according to the study every $1 invested in digital technology in the country generates over $8 in economic value. That is certainly a lucrative investment.

“This emphasises the critical role of digital technology, including connectivity, cloud computing and artificial intelligence (AI) in shaping Nigeria’s economic future,” Balogun explained.

What this entails therefore, is both the importance and imperative of Nigeria embracing the values of digital technology to fast track the country’s economy. But firstly, there are significant questions to answer.

So, what is AI all about? What are the advantages we stand to gain from its application and how do we go about it? The answers are not farfetched.

What all this means to us as a nation is to have another look at the curriculum for science students, right from the secondary to the tertiary level

According to the ‘Britannica Money’ online portal, AI is a field of science concerned with building computers and machines that can reason, learn and act in such a way that would normally require human intelligence.

Sometimes that involves the use of the necessary data whose scale exceeds what humans can analyse.

Similarly, it is the ability of a digital computer or computer-controlled robot to perform tasks that are commonly associated with intelligent human beings.

Such encapsulates the capacity to reason, discover meanings of actions, generalise or even from past experiences like human beings.

On an interesting note, since the development of digital computers back in the 1940s they have been programmed to carry out very complicated tasks, including discovering proofs for mathematical theorems, and even playing chess with great proficiency.

Indeed, some programmes have attained the performance levels of human experts and professionals. That is in executing certain specific tasks.

Over the decades they have been useful in diverse applications such as medical diagnosis, compute search engines as well as the recognition of people’s voices and handwriting.

With all these immense benefits on ground and going by Google’s report that AI is needed to unlock the full potentials of Nigeria’s vibrant digital economy the time to act is right now.

The opportunity is right before us. For instance, in 2021 Google committed $1billion to accelerate Africa’s digital economy, with focus on improving internet access, supporting local entrepreneurs and fostering innovation for the skilled hands

Nigeria should key into these through the application of the suggestions provided by Google on strategic recommendations for policy makers, advocating for increased cloud first policies and also on the need for increased digital infrastructure.

What all this means to us as a nation is to have another look at the curriculum for science students, right from the secondary to the tertiary level.

This is a clarion call on our policy makers to put on their thinking cap for an expansion of both the scope and nature of human capacity development on improving digital technology.

With the projection that the greatest economic gains from AI will be experienced by China (26% boost to GDP), and North America (14.5% boost to GDP), amounting to a staggering $10.7 trillion, accounting for almost 70% of the global economic impact by 2030 Nigeria cannot afford to sit on the fence as an onlooker.

It should, as a matter of urgency, join the 34 countries in the world that have produced and published a national AI strategy, like Australia, Austria, Belgium and Canada have done. That would be the best step forward to boosting our economy.

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