In a world racing toward artificial intelligence, Nigeria has stepped onto the global stage with a mix of ambition and grit.
The country has been ranked 72nd out of 188 nations in the 2025 Government AI Readiness Index, a position that places it among the top performers in Sub‑Saharan Africa and signals that Africa’s most populous nation is no longer content to sit on the sidelines of the digital revolution.
The annual index, published by Oxford Insights, assessed 195 governments using 69 indicators across six pillars: policy capacity, governance, AI infrastructure, public sector adoption, development and diffusion, and resilience.
The AI Readiness Index evaluates how prepared governments are to implement artificial intelligence in public service delivery, measuring progress across these six pillars.
How Nigeria Compares Globally And In Africa
Nigeria was ranked fourth within Sub-Saharan Africa, behind only Kenya (65th), South Africa (67th), and Mauritius (71st), making it one of the continent’s strongest performers.
In total, 10 African countries made the global top 100, highlighting gradual but uneven AI progress across the continent.
Top 10 African Countries By Global Ranking
Kenya — 65th
South Africa — 67th
Mauritius — 71st
Nigeria — 72nd
Rwanda — 75th
Ghana — 85th
Morocco — 87th
Algeria — 96th
Senegal — 97th
Tunisia — 99th
What The Report Says About Nigeria
The report described Nigeria as being “amongst the highest ranking countries globally from the continent”, noting that recent policy actions and sectoral investment are beginning to show results.
“Nigeria — amongst the highest ranking countries globally from the continent — just stepped into the top 50 on Development and Diffusion (49th) and performed even better in policy capacity (coming 35th globally) following increased investment in its domestic AI sector, the launch of detailed AI policy documents and a stated intention to enhance efforts for international collaboration.”
While Nigeria’s overall rank is 72nd, it performed significantly better in specific pillars: Policy Capacity (35th globally) and Development and Diffusion (49th globally).
These scores reflect Nigeria’s growing AI ecosystem, expanding talent pool, and increasing government efforts to formalise AI policy. The report also referenced Nigeria’s move from strategy to implementation, citing the launch of the Nigeria AI Scaling Hub, placing the country among governments beginning to operationalise AI within public systems.
Strengths, Gaps
While Nigeria’s policy and innovation indicators are improving, the report highlighted persistent weaknesses common across the region, including AI infrastructure constraints, limited public sector adoption, and gaps in foundational digital and energy systems.
Sub-Saharan Africa as a whole ranks 9th out of nine global regions, with an average score of 28.04. Nigeria’s performance is strong relative to its peers, but still constrained by regional structural challenges.
Nigeria’s Push For Local AI Capacity
Nigeria’s AI ambitions have received renewed political backing.
On January 7, 2026, during the 50th Convocation Ceremony of the University of Jos, the Minister of Communications and Digital Economy, Dr Bosun Tijani, announced the launch of a National AI Centre of Excellence located within the university campus.
According to Tijani, the initiative reflected Nigeria’s determination “not to remain a passive consumer of artificial intelligence technologies or a rule-taker in emerging global AI governance frameworks.”
“AI is built on numbers, and Nigeria has the numbers. We are too big a country not to participate meaningfully in artificial intelligence,” he said.
He added that Nigerian universities must lead research into locally relevant datasets and contextual intelligence, rather than relying solely on imported AI models trained on foreign data.
The Bigger Picture
Overall, the index presented Nigeria as a country with clear AI ambition but uneven execution. While policy design and ecosystem development are advancing, slower public sector adoption remains a critical gap.
As more African countries invest in AI strategies and innovation hubs, the report suggested that Nigeria’s ability to translate policy intent into widespread government use will be key to determining whether it climbs higher in future global AI readiness rankings.
