Nigeria Launches First Big Language Model To Encourage AI Development In Africa

Nigerian Minister of Communication, Dr. Bosun Tijani (x @bosuntijani)

JAKARTA - Through the country's first Ministry of Communication, Innovation and Digital Economy, the Nigerian government has launched a large multilingual language (LLM) model. This was done when the country wanted to take a leadership position in the development of artificial intelligence (AI) in Africa.

Nigerian Minister of Communications, Dr. Bosun Tijani, announced on Friday, April 19, that the launch of the AI equipment came from an AI workshop for four days held in the nation's capital, Abuja.

According to Tijani, the launch of the AI tool was facilitated by a collaboration involving Nigerian AI company Awarritech, global technology company DataDotOrg, the National Information Technology Development Agency (NITDA), and the National Center for AI and Robotics (NCAIR).

"LLM will be trained in five low-source languages and high-end English to ensure a stronger language representation in existing datasets for the development of artificial intelligence solutions. The project will also be supported by more than 7,000 members of Nigeria's 3MTT program," said Tijani.

He added that after four days of collaborative work involving more than 120 artificial intelligence experts, Nigeria produced an initial draft of its National AI Strategy and expressed significant progress and collaboration aimed at encouraging the development of the country's AI.

During the workshop, Tijani re-announced the launch of NCAIR, an entity dedicated to promoting research and development in AI, robotics, UAVs, and the Internet of Things (IoT) and their practical applications in Nigeria's key sectors.

He stated that the capacity increased at NCAIR would allow him to be more effective in carrying out his role as a center for digital innovation and research.

Tijani revealed that the National AI Strategy has received initial funding of US$3.5 million (Rp56.7 billion) from interested partners. Foreign and local partners support the funding, including UNDP, UNESCO, Meta, Google, Microsoft, Lumite, Lagos Business School, Nigerian Science Data, NITDA, and other institutions under the Federal Ministry of Communication, Innovation, and Digital Economy.

This includes 1.5 million US dollars (Rp24.3 billion) of direct funding and an additional 2 million US dollars (Rp32.4 billion) invested by 21st Century Technologies into the trial program.