The Director-General of the Ghana-India Kofi Annan Centre of Excellence in ICT (GI-KACE), Dr. Ing. Collins Yeboah-Afari, has urged African nations to assert immediate control over their data and artificial intelligence (AI) systems.
He made this statement during the two-day Rethink Africa Intelligence Conference (RAIC) 2026, held at the University of Professional Studies, Accra (UPSA), under the theme ‘Building Africa’s Intelligence Ecosystem for Sovereignty and Prosperity,’ which brought together key stakeholders to deliberate on the continent’s position in the rapidly evolving digital landscape.
Speaking at the onference, Ing. Dr. Collins Yeboah-Afari cautioned that continued reliance on external data processing poses significant risks to the continent’s digital sovereignty and economic future.
According to him, the continent must take deliberate steps to develop its own infrastructure, nurture local talent, and establish strong ethical frameworks to safeguard its digital future.
He emphasised that Africa’s greatest strength is rooted in its youthful population, describing it as a powerful driver for innovation if properly harnessed.
“This generation does not need permission to innovate; they only need platforms, infrastructure, and belief,” he stated, drawing attention to the need for enabling environments that empower young people to lead technological advancement.
Ing. Dr. Yeboah-Afari further stressed that without local control over data and AI systems, Africa risks losing out on the economic value embedded in its own resources.