Africa should develop its own artificial intelligence models instead of remaining a supplier of raw data to foreign technology companies, according to Dr. Benedict Oramah, former president of Afreximbank. Speaking at the IMF and World Bank Annual Meetings in Bangkok, Thailand, Oramah argued that Nigeria can leverage its competitive gas prices to power data centres, establish technology parks and attract investment. He called for massive infrastructure financing, industrialisation and deeper continental trade to drive growth and create jobs across the region.
Oramah recently left Afreximbank after two terms and established Marob Strategies and Consulting, a strategy firm focused on developing interventions for African development. He said the firm works with African institutions to articulate their strategies and mobilise resources to execute them efficiently. Rather than seeing his departure as retirement, Oramah described it as an opportunity to operate with greater freedom to challenge conventional thinking and test ideas that can then be taken back to Afreximbank, other African multilateral financial institutions, commercial banks and organisations working across the continent.
The former Afreximbank leader emphasised that institutional continuity is crucial for African organisations. He noted that Afreximbank maintains smooth transitions between presidents, unlike many African institutions where former leaders are pushed out. Oramah explained that preserving institutional knowledge and bringing in experienced former colleagues for specific tasks strengthens ongoing work. He cited an example of consulting a former bank president on export trading companies, work that eventually led to the establishment of the African Trade and Distribution Company.
Oramah's vision for Marob is to build a leading continental strategy and advisory firm so that African countries, companies and banks no longer need to seek expertise elsewhere. He suggested the firm may eventually become the nucleus of a federated advisory platform bringing together credible advisory firms from different African countries under one umbrella. This reflects his broader conviction that economic independence remains the ultimate goal for Africa, a mission he compares to a new form of struggle fought on factory floors and in technology incubation centres rather than through political means.
For Nigerian businesses and investors, developing local artificial intelligence capacity and technology infrastructure could create new opportunities for growth and reduce dependence on foreign technology providers, though success would require substantial capital investment and technical expertise.