The federal authorities of Nigeria has disclosed that it’s in discussions with the Commonwealth of Nations to onboard Nigerians into its AI Academy to drive innovation in a number of sectors of the economic system.
This announcement was made by Nigeria’s Minister of Innovation, Science and Know-how, Chief Uche Nnaji, by way of his X web page on Monday, September 30, 2024.
The deliberations have been a results of high-level conferences with the Secretary-Normal of the Commonwealth of Nations, Patricia Scotland, on the sidelines of the lately concluded United Nations Normal Meeting (UNGA) 79th session.
AI as a Device to Drive the Nigerian Financial system
Nnaji revealed that they mentioned launching and onboarding Nigerians into the bold AI coaching initiative by way of the Commonwealth AI Academy, powered by Intel.
Based on him, “this program will equip hundreds of thousands of Nigerians, notably our youth and girls, with industry-ready AI abilities.”
He said that this initiative, following Nigeria’s involvement, will place Nigeria on the forefront of AI adoption, with the potential to rework key sectors like governance, healthcare, and agriculture by way of capability constructing.
“The AI Academy, which is a part of the Commonwealth Synthetic Intelligence Consortium, will provide specialised programs akin to AI for the general public sector and AI for youth, serving to us construct a talented workforce able to driving innovation and addressing world challenges,” he said.
Nnaji reaffirmed Nigeria’s dedication to integrating know-how into local weather motion, notably in sustainable agriculture.
He added that collaboration with the Commonwealth will additional strengthen Nigeria’s management in utilizing know-how for sustainable growth and local weather resilience.
“With methods like Enhanced Rock Weathering (ERW) and biochar, we’re enhancing soil well being and aligning with world local weather objectives below the Paris Bargain.
“I’m looking forward to Nigeria to current modern, tech-driven options to local weather challenges as we glance in direction of COP29,” he added.
Extra Insights
The Commonwealth Synthetic Intelligence Consortium (CAIC) is a part of a broader motion plan that seeks to leverage the facility of synthetic intelligence (AI) instruments to help member states, in addition to empower the 1.5 billion younger individuals below the age of 30 within the Commonwealth, of which Nigeria is a component.
As disclosed on the Commonwealth web site, the CAIC, which incorporates world tech companies, world-leading analysis establishments, non-profit organizations, and at the least six Commonwealth member nations which have stepped ahead to champion AI innovation, convened its first-ever Steering Committee Assembly in 2023, within the margins of the United Nations Normal Meeting (UNGA) in New York.
“The Steering Committee agreed on a sturdy motion plan aimed toward constructing the capability to make use of AI inside member nations to learn from world improvements akin to cloud computing and generative AI.
“It’s envisioned that better use of know-how will end in {economic} development, sustainability, improved well being outcomes, and job creation.
“This features a framework mapping out how completely different organizations and {groups} will contribute to supply, in addition to the launch of 4 working {groups} to drive motion within the following core areas: coverage, capability constructing, information and infrastructure, in addition to analysis and innovation,” the Commonwealth assertion partly reads.
