Nigeria has been identified as one of Africa’s emerging leaders in responsible artificial intelligence (AI) governance, earning recognition as the best-performing country on the continent and 38th globally in the second edition of the Global Index on Responsible AI (GIRAI), for its initiatives aimed at improving AI literacy and protecting children’s rights in the digital age.
According to the Global Center on AI Governance (GCAIG) in its newly released GIRAI 2026, covering 135 countries, Nigeria’s National Artificial Intelligence Strategy 2025 commits the country to expanding AI literacy among all stakeholders, while establishing a comprehensive programme for AI skills development, including teacher training.
GCAIG said the report, prepared by an international consortium of researchers and organisations, goes beyond asking whether responsible AI policies exist in a country to measuring whether they work, while also providing evidence-based insights into how countries are shaping AI governance, protecting human rights, and advancing responsible innovation.
The report assesses the readiness of countries around the world to develop, deploy, and govern AI in ways that are ethical, inclusive, and respectful of human rights and evaluates national performance across a range of indicators, including government capacity, human rights protections, labour and skills, civil society engagement, trust and safety, environmental sustainability, and the use of AI in public services.
Although Nigeria ranked 38th globally in the 2026 Index, placing it among the better-performing countries in Africa, the report said much more remains to be done to establish a comprehensive and accountable AI governance ecosystem capable of addressing the social, economic, and human rights implications of rapidly advancing AI technologies.
One of the report’s most positive assessments of Nigeria concerns its efforts to strengthen AI literacy and safeguard children in the digital environment.
The report described Nigeria as a “bright spot” on the continent, noting that it is among the few African countries seeking to bridge the gap between AI skills development and protections against AI-related harms affecting children.
It also commended the Federal Government’s 3 Million Technical Talent (3MTT) initiative, intended to provide structured training in AI and machine learning through a hybrid learning model designed to reach young people across the country.
In addition, the report highlighted Nigeria’s legal framework for protecting personal data, particularly the Nigeria Data Protection Act, 2023, describing it as one of the country’s major strengths in responsible AI governance.
It noted that the law requires parental or guardian consent before children’s personal data can be processed and prohibits decisions affecting individuals based solely on automated processing.
The report pointed to the General Application and Implementation Directive (GAID) 2025, which introduces enhanced safeguards for the processing of children’s data and the personal information of other vulnerable groups.
According to the report, these measures demonstrate Nigeria’s efforts not only to prepare young people for an AI-driven future but also to protect them from the potential harms associated with emerging technologies.
Despite these positive developments, the report cautioned that responsible AI governance extends well beyond digital skills training and data protection, observing that many countries, including those making progress in AI policy, still face significant challenges in ensuring transparency, accountability, public participation, independent oversight and effective regulation of AI systems.
The report also identified environmental sustainability as one of the weakest aspects of global AI governance, warning that the growing energy demands of AI infrastructure and data centres remain largely overlooked in national policy frameworks.
Globally, it found that many governments continue to invest heavily in AI innovation without establishing sufficiently robust governance mechanisms to protect fundamental rights, prevent discrimination, and ensure the responsible deployment of AI systems.
The authors argued that effective AI governance requires coordinated action across government, industry, academia, and civil society, supported by clear legal frameworks, independent oversight institutions, and meaningful public engagement.
For Nigeria, the report’s findings are expected to reinforce ongoing discussions about the need for comprehensive AI legislation, stronger institutional capacity and greater transparency in the deployment of AI systems by public authorities and private companies.
Organizations like Media Rights Agenda (MRA) and other digital rights advocates and policy experts have consistently argued that Nigeria should adopt a rights-based AI governance framework grounded in constitutional guarantees of freedom of expression, privacy, access to information, and non-discrimination.
They have also called for greater transparency in automated decision-making, stronger accountability mechanisms, independent oversight of AI systems, and broader public participation in AI policymaking.
The Global Index on Responsible AI is regarded as one of the world’s leading comparative assessments of national AI governance, and the second edition evaluates countries across multiple dimensions of responsible AI, providing governments, policymakers, researchers, and civil society organisations with a benchmark for measuring progress and identifying policy gaps.
Its findings are expected to inform AI governance debates as countries increasingly seek to balance technological innovation with the protection of human rights, democratic values, and sustainable development.
