Adesina Urges Africa to Build, Not Just Adopt, Future Technologies

Former President of the African Development Bank (AfDB) Group, Dr Akinwumi Adesina, has called on African countries to move beyond adopting foreign technologies and invest in developing homegrown innovations that can compete in the global market.

Adesina made the call at the BPI Iconic Awards in Johannesburg, South Africa, where he delivered a speech titled Africa’s Next Leap: Visionary and Ethical Leadership for an Integrated and Prosperous Africa in the Global Economy.

He identified artificial intelligence (AI), semiconductors, robotics, data science and cybersecurity as critical areas requiring greater investment to position the continent for future technological advances.

The former AfDB chief said Africa needed stronger universities, research laboratories, computing infrastructure and industrial ecosystems to enable scientists and entrepreneurs to develop indigenous technologies and intellectual property.

He stressed that the continent’s ambition should extend beyond training people to use artificial intelligence to preparing them to design, develop and build the technology themselves.

Adesina noted that Africa’s youthful population, natural resources and expanding markets offered significant opportunities for technological advancement. However, he said these advantages needed to be translated into productive capacity through investment, innovation and strategic planning.

He also called for a shift from exporting raw materials to processing them locally, manufacturing finished products and expanding research activities to retain more economic value within the continent.

Citing Nigeria’s $20 billion Dangote Refinery as an example of African industrial ambition, Adesina urged the emergence of more homegrown industrial champions in sectors including electric vehicles, battery production, pharmaceuticals and advanced manufacturing.

He said the African Continental Free Trade Area (AfCFTA) could help countries establish integrated production networks, attract investment and enable African businesses to compete more effectively in international markets.

Adesina further emphasised the importance of visionary and ethical leadership, saying accountability, transparency and strong institutions were essential to achieving sustainable economic transformation.

He maintained that national interests should take precedence over competing interests and urged African leaders to prioritise long-term development over short-term gains.

The former AfDB president also called on governments to equip young people with skills suited to emerging technologies and create an enabling environment for entrepreneurs, researchers and technology developers.

He said Africa needed to play an active role in shaping the global technological revolution rather than remaining a consumer of innovations developed elsewhere.