INTRO 

The week under review was eventful as the Honourable Minister successfully launched the Nigeria AI Collective and received significant support from organisations such as Luminate Group to facilitate our drive towards growing our Artificial Intelligence (AI) ecosystem.

Another key engagement during the week was the Moonshot by TechCabal where, among other sessions, Dr. Tijani joined other stakeholders in a ministerial roundtable session to explore opportunities for harmonising digital trade policies and regulations across African countries.

KEY FOCUS

Capacity Building: To demonstrate its support for our drive to position Nigeria as a leading player in the development and deployment of Artificial Intelligence (AI), the Luminate Group announced a $1.5million commitment for the newly launched Nigeria AI Collective towards supporting our Ministry’s effort in developing Nigeria’s AI ecosystem.

Digital Trade Facilitation: As a key component of our Ministry’s Strategic Blueprint, Trade Facilitation between Africa and the rest of the world was the topic of discussion at the Moonshot by TechCabal Ministerial Roundtable. There the Honourable Minister engaged with private and public sector stakeholders to identify the key barriers to digital trade in Africa, including infrastructure gaps, regulatory challenges, and digital skills shortages, and discuss strategies to overcome them.

TIMELINE

Monday:

• Dr. Tijani’s first official engagement for the week was to formally launch the Nigeria Al Collective, a community of practice bringing together expertise from civil society, academic, tech, and other sectors working together to advance Artificial Intelligence (Al) in Nigeria and ensure its safe and ethical use, for the good of all in society. The Collective, which will be managed by a consortium of organisations such as Lagos Business School (Pan-Atlantic University), Data Science Nigeria, and The Centre for Journalism, Innovation and Development (CJID), is supported by the Luminate Group. An important highlight of the event was the announcement of a $1.5million commitment to the Al Collective by Stephen King, CEO, Luminate Group to support Nigeria’s effort towards developing our Al ecosystem.

Tuesday:

• Dr. Tijani hosted Hannatu Musawa, the Honourable Minister of Art, Culture and the Creative Economy, in his office to discuss areas of collaboration between both Ministries towards delivering on President Bola Ahmed Tinubu‘s Renewed Hope Agenda.
• He also received briefings from a number of agency heads including Jane Egerton-Idehen, MD/CEO of Nigerian Communications Satellite Limited (NIGCOMSAT); Daser David, President/CEO, Digital Bridge Institute (DBI); and Kashifu Inuwa Abdullahi, Director General, National Information Technology Development Agency (NITDA).

Wednesday:

• On Wednesday, he was in Lagos to attend the second edition of Moonshot by TechCabal where his first engagement was a fireside chat with Tomiwa Aladekomo, CEO, Big Cabal Media, on the main stage of the event. Their discussion focused on proffering solutions to challenges facing the technology and innovation ecosystem through capacity building, connectivity, infrastructure development, trade and investments, and much more.
• Next was a trade ministerial roundtable themed, ‘Facilitating Digital Trade Between Africa & the World‘, where key stakeholders from across Africa and the global community came together to explore opportunities for harmonising digital trade policies and regulations across African countries with global standards, facilitating easier cross-border trade and investment. The insightful roundtable session had notable personalities in attendance including Will Stevens, Consul General, U.S. Consulate General, Lagos; Jonny Baxter, Deputy High Commissioner, British Deputy High Commission, Lagos; Michel Deelen, Consul General, Kingdom of the Netherlands; Florent Mangin, Head of Regional Economic Development, France; amongst others.
• The Honourable Minister then met with members of the Tech Committee of the Nigerian Bar Association Section on Business Law (NBA-SBL) with a view to identifying areas of collaboration and providing support for the Ministry’s agenda through policy formulation.
• He later headed to another roundtable engagement at Moonshot by TechCabal where he met with stakeholders in the Nigerian tech industry to highlight my plans for the sector and progress made so far. The interactive session was moderated by Basil Udotai, Founding Partner & Tech Policy Lead, Johnson & Wilner LLP.
• Later in the evening, Dr. Tijani met with Jonny Baxter, Deputy High Commissioner, British Deputy High Commission, to discuss areas of support and opportunities for collaboration as Nigeria positions as a leading voice in the global discourse on innovation and technology development.