As the world rapidly adopts artificial intelligence (AI) to transform education, Africa cannot afford to be left behind. Nigeria, with its large population, growing tech ecosystem, and youthful demographic, is uniquely positioned to lead this charge.
By integrating AI into its education system, Nigeria has the potential not only to revolutionise learning outcomes at home but also to set the pace for the rest of the continent, and the time to lead is now!
Nigeria’s young, hungry, and digitally-native creators is a huge advantage in this. Obviously, the country’s music, films, fashion, and “soft power” is already a global force.
Nigeria’s entertainment industry has rapidly evolved over the years, becoming a major player not only in Africa but also on the global stage. From Nollywood to music, fashion, and more, this article will delve into the exciting world of Nigeria’s top entertainment industry sectors.
Nollywood, often referred to as the third-largest film industry in the world, is the heartbeat of Nigeria’s entertainment scene. Renowned for producing thousands of movies annually, it boasts an enormous global fan base. From thrilling blockbusters to thought-provoking dramas, Nollywood continues to capture hearts with its storytelling prowess.
According to Ibrahim Adeyanju, the CEO at Galaxy Backbone Limited, Nigeria must channel its creative energy into building digital public goods and global tech giants.
“Nigeria, as a country in Africa, understands complexity. We are resilient, and we are entrepreneurial by necessity.
“These are the very skills needed to thrive in the AI age. We can build AI that is contextual, empathetic, and solves real-world problems,” he said.
Adeyanju, however, emphasised for the country to lead the charge, it must prepare its workforce for this new reality by shifting from a knowledge-based education model to a skills-based one, fostering lifelong learning and continuous adaptation.
“The evolving work landscape is characterised by a progression from traditional work, to AI augmentation, to skills-based education, and ultimately to a future where human attributes and the symbiotic relationship with AI take centre stage,” he noted.
Sarumi Oyewole, a faculty head at ICLED Business School, speaking on tech in education, said, “AI is an opportunity we can benefit from. The question is not whether AI will impact education, but how we’re going to optimise the innovation.
“We need to shift our perspective of seeing AI as a threat to seeing it as a tool.”
The future of education in the AI age is a fundamental shift from a model of knowledge transmission to one of skill and character cultivation.
Adeyanju describes the AI age as a move from “what to learn” to “how to think and who to become. Education, he said, will no longer be about accumulating information, but a shift from knowing to understanding, applying, and creating.
Changing classroom: From lecture hall to collaborative studio
With AI integration into education, the traditional classroom is evolving, and Nigeria must be deliberate in equipping schools for the tech-world in education.
There is a great need to train and retrain teachers and equip them for digital education. Adeyanju emphasised that with AI, the physical and virtual classroom will be transformed.
“The teacher’s role evolves from a dispenser of knowledge to a “Coach on the Side,” a facilitator, and a mentor.
“They will guide students in critical thinking, projects, and ethical reasoning,” he said.
To address this AI challenge, the CEO of Galaxy Backbone reiterated that the curriculum of the future will be built around skills that AI complements but cannot replicate.
We can think of this as the human skills curriculum, critical thinking and problem formulation; that is the ability to ask the right questions is more valuable than knowing the right answers.
Education will teach students to challenge assumptions, identify biases in AI outputs, and define problems in a messy, real-world context.
The most important skill will be the ability to learn, unlearn, and relearn throughout one’s entire life.
Peter Ejiofor, the chief executive officer at Ethnos IT Solutions Limited calls on African leaders to embrace the digital economy which according to him is the way forward in this contemporary era.
“AI improves delivery of services through tech, and it is something that everybody should look into; it is a good thing that African countries should look into it,” he said.
A look at the African AI Index shows Egypt is the country that is making the most rapid progress in AI development, with its position of 52nd worldwide. Morocco holds the 57th position globally and ranked the 4th in Africa; following Egypt, South Africa and Tunisia.
For Nigeria to be able to compete with its contemporaries in Africa, Bala Hassan, the managing director at Learn Africa Plc, said the government must be deliberate in improving infrastructure for online learning.
“The government need to improve on infrastructure because the key challenges in accessing e-contents is power and bandwidths, these are the areas the government needs to come in,” he said.
