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The United Arab Emirates (UAE) plans to invest $1 billion to expand artificial intelligence infrastructure and services across Africa, bolstering its influence on a continent that’s lagged behind the rest of the world in adopting the technology.
The investment will help develop digital infrastructure, improve government services and enhance productivity, Saeed bin Mubarak Al Hajeri, UAE minister of state at the Ministry of Foreign Affairs, said at the Group of 20 summit in Johannesburg on Saturday.
“It will provide access to AI computing power, technical expertise, and global partnerships,” he said. “It aims to support developing countries to overcome key developmental challenges by integrating AI technologies into these sectors.”
The UAE, which is spending billions of dollars on AI at home and in the US, is now the fourth-largest investor in Africa, according to Al Hajeri. Its investments span renewable energy and logistics to critical minerals.
The AI plan will support African nations in delivering projects in education, agriculture, health care, digital identity and climate adaptation, according to the minister.
“Our goal now is to ensure these capabilities benefit partners across the global South, and that no country is left behind in the AI age,” he said.
Nigeria is drawing millions of dollars into new data centers, propelled by the voracious online habits of its young, tech-savvy population and a push to harness artificial intelligence to power the next wave of its digital boom, reinforcing its position as one of Africa’s top technology hubs.
Global and regional operators — including Equinix Inc., Microsoft Corp., MTN Nigeria Communications Plc, Rack Centre, Airtel Nigeria and Open Access Data Centres — are investing nearly $1 billion in next-generation facilities designed to handle advanced computing workloads and serve the continent’s rapidly expanding online population.
AI’s appetite for computing power is colliding with Nigeria’s demographic surge. The country’s nearly 240 million people, with a median age of 18, are driving a data explosion through mobile-first internet habits, gaming, video streaming, and remote work.
That’s fueling demand for faster, more resilient digital infrastructure as companies ditch on-premises systems for cloud and hybrid models, spurring a wave of data centers built closer to users — designed to handle AI workloads and link local computing power to global networks.
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