Nigeria stands at a pivotal moment, facing a choice between leading Africa’s AI revolution or becoming a consumer of AI technologies developed elsewhere. Johnson Agogbua, Founder/CEO of Kasi Cloud, has urged the Nigerian government to take decisive action to build domestic AI capacity and digital infrastructure, preventing the nation from falling behind.
Agogbua’s appeal was made during an interactive session at the Minister–Regulator and Telecom Executives Forum, alongside Dr. Vincent Olatunji, National Commissioner/CEO of the Nigeria Data Protection Commission (NDPC). The discussions centered on strengthening data governance, cybersecurity, compliance, and user protection – essential elements for a trustworthy digital economy prepared for the integration of AI.
Agogbua emphasized the urgency of the situation, stating, “It’s time for us to be bold. We are way behind when it comes to digital infrastructure and transitioning into the digital economy… If we do not create our own AI factory, our own AI capacity, we will be buying it and become mere consumers of others’.”
He pointed out Nigeria’s significant advantage: a large, accessible market of over 500 million people. This scale warrants substantial investment in hyperscale cloud regions, such as those being developed by KASI. However, Agogbua believes that even 100 megawatts of capacity is insufficient to meet the growing demand.
The Nigerian government, led by Minister of Communications, Innovation and Digital Economy, Dr. Bosun Tijani, has already committed $2 billion to expand the nation’s fiber-optic network by 90,000 kilometers. The plans also include free online classes and the digitization of government services. Agogbua commended these initiatives as a significant step, but he encouraged the government to consider a parallel vision: establishing Nigeria as the undisputed AI hub for Africa.
Agogbua also raised the question of self-reliance in critical technologies, particularly chipsets. “Getting these chipsets have become really a battle and there’s a whole bunch of us in the chip business. Can that moonshot include being somewhat reliant on ourselves on this amazing tech?” he inquired.
Dr. Tijani directly addressed Agogbua’s concerns, confirming that AI is a top priority for the government. He admitted that Nigeria was initially “slow to the game” compared to other African nations, partly due to the perception that AI development requires extensive resources.
However, he cited Oxford University’s AI readiness rating, which now gives Nigeria a score of 100% on vision. He attributed this improvement to the design of Nigeria’s AI strategy. He further emphasized that the government cannot achieve its AI ambitions alone and collaboration is required.
The AI Collective and AI Trust: A Collaborative Approach
To foster collaboration, the government has created the ‘AI Collective,’ a committee of experts providing strategic guidance. Additionally, the Federal Executive Council has approved the ‘AI Trust,’ a board of trustees composed of “well connected rich individuals who understand technology.” The purpose of the AI Trust is to ensure the sustained prioritization of AI development, even beyond the current administration.
Dr. Tijani explained, “On things like AI, when I came it was obvious that Nigeria was slow to the game with a lot of African countries actually and the narrative out there is that it’s a resource-heavy opportunity. So, most countries stay away from it because they think they don’t have the resources. But when you look at Oxford University rating for AI readiness, Nigeria is now rated 100 per cent on vision and I think it was because of the way we design our AI strategy.”
Further contributing to the positive momentum, Agogbua received the Digital Luminary Award (Gold Category) at the Telecoms Excellence Awards Night 2025 in Abuja. This award recognizes Kasi Cloud’s significant contributions to Nigeria’s digital transformation agenda.
ATCON President, Tony Emoekpere, praised Kasi Cloud’s strategic investments in world-class data infrastructure and its growing impact on the nation’s digital economy. Upon receiving the award, Agogbua expressed his excitement, considering it an early validation of Kasi Cloud’s mission to accelerate digital transformation and cloud adoption in Africa.
“It’s a wonderful thing for us at Kasi. We are building hyperscale data centers for Artificial Intelligence (AI) and cloud… At a time when data sovereignty, infrastructure localisation, and inclusive digital growth are imperative. We see our role not just as builders of facilities but as enablers of Africa’s long-term digital resilience and competitiveness.”
The combination of government initiatives, private sector innovation, and collaborative efforts presents a promising outlook for Nigeria’s AI future. The key challenge now is to translate the vision into tangible action by building the necessary infrastructure, skills, and ecosystem to truly lead Africa into the age of artificial intelligence. A failure to act decisively risks relinquishing control of Nigeria’s digital destiny to other nations.
