UN report urges African nations to fund AI infrastructure

African nations are being urged to mobilize a wide range of financial resources, including sovereign wealth funds and increased domestic revenue, to build the infrastructure required for the artificial intelligence era. The United Nations Economic Commission for Africa, which is headquartered in Ethiopia, released a report on Thursday detailing the urgent need for these investments to prevent the continent from falling behind in global technological advancement.

The report highlights that more than 50 countries across the continent are at risk of missing out on AI-driven economic modernization due to a lack of foundational infrastructure. Currently, Africa accounts for less than 1% of the world's data centers, a statistic the commission describes as a significant challenge to both economic potential and digital sovereignty. To bridge this gap, the UN suggests that public budgets alone will not be sufficient, and governments must strengthen tax collection while tapping into pension funds and blended finance.