Nigeria has been placed 72nd out of 188 countries in the 2025 Government AI Readiness Index, positioning the country among the leading performers in Sub-Saharan Africa.
The annual index, released by Oxford Insights, evaluated 195 governments using 69 indicators spread across six pillars: policy capacity, governance, AI infrastructure, public sector adoption, development and diffusion, and resilience.
The Government AI Readiness Index measures how prepared national governments are to deploy artificial intelligence in public service delivery, assessing policy frameworks, digital infrastructure, governance structures, innovation ecosystems, diffusion capacity, and institutional resilience.
How Nigeria Compares Globally and in Africa
Within Sub-Saharan Africa, Nigeria ranked fourth, trailing Kenya in 65th position, South Africa in 67th, and Mauritius in 71st, placing it among the strongest AI-performing countries on the continent.
Altogether, 10 African nations featured in the global top 100, reflecting steady but uneven progress in AI readiness across the region.
Top 10 African Countries by Global Ranking
Kenya ranked 65th, followed by South Africa at 67th, Mauritius at 71st, Nigeria at 72nd, Rwanda at 75th, Ghana at 85th, Morocco at 87th, Algeria at 96th, Senegal at 97th, and Tunisia at 99th.
What the Report Says About Nigeria
The report identified Nigeria as being “amongst the highest ranking countries globally from the continent,” noting that recent policy initiatives and sector-wide investments are beginning to yield tangible outcomes.
“Nigeria—amongst the highest ranking countries globally from the continent—just stepped into the top 50 on Development and Diffusion (49th) and performed even better in policy capacity (coming 35th globally) following increased investment in its domestic AI sector, the launch of detailed AI policy documents and a stated intention to enhance efforts for international collaboration.”
Although Nigeria’s overall ranking stands at 72nd, its stronger showing in specific pillars, particularly Policy Capacity and Development and Diffusion, reflects growing momentum within its AI ecosystem, expanding talent base, and intensified government efforts to formalise AI policy frameworks.
The report also highlighted Nigeria’s shift from planning to execution, referencing the establishment of the Nigeria AI Scaling Hub as evidence that the country is beginning to operationalise AI within public sector systems.
Strengths and Gaps
Despite improvements in policy formulation and innovation indicators, the report underscored persistent regional challenges affecting Nigeria, including constraints in AI infrastructure, limited adoption across public institutions, and gaps in core digital and energy systems.
Sub-Saharan Africa overall ranked ninth out of nine global regions, with an average score of 28.04, showing that while Nigeria performs well relative to its peers, broader structural limitations continue to restrict progress.
Nigeria’s Push for Local AI Capacity
Nigeria’s AI drive has gained fresh political momentum. On January 7, 2026, during the 50th Convocation Ceremony of the University of Jos, the Minister of Communications and Digital Economy, Dr Bosun Tijani, announced the establishment of a National AI Centre of Excellence within the university.
According to Tijani, the initiative demonstrates Nigeria’s resolve “not to remain a passive consumer of artificial intelligence technologies or a rule-taker in emerging global AI governance frameworks.”
“AI is built on numbers, and Nigeria has the numbers. We are too big a country not to participate meaningfully in artificial intelligence,” he stated.
He further stressed that Nigerian universities must spearhead research into locally relevant datasets and contextual intelligence, rather than relying solely on foreign-trained AI models.
The Bigger Picture
Overall, the index portrays Nigeria as a country with clear ambition in artificial intelligence but uneven implementation. While policy development and ecosystem growth are advancing, slow public sector adoption remains a key weakness.
As more African countries invest in AI strategies and innovation infrastructure, Nigeria’s capacity to translate policy intent into broad government deployment will be critical in determining whether it improves its position in future global AI readiness rankings.
What you should know
Nigeria’s 72nd position in the 2025 Government AI Readiness Index reflects meaningful progress in AI policy development and innovation, particularly in policy capacity and ecosystem growth.
While the country outperforms many regional peers, gaps in infrastructure, public sector adoption, and foundational digital systems continue to limit wider impact.
Ongoing initiatives such as the National AI Centre of Excellence and the Nigeria AI Scaling Hub signal a shift from planning to implementation.
How effectively these efforts translate into everyday government use of AI will largely determine Nigeria’s future standing globally.
