AI Talent Readiness Index for Africa 2025

The AI Talent Readiness Index is a comprehensive assessment of AI preparedness across all 54 African countries. It evaluates three key pillars: Digital Skills (40%), Data & Infrastructure (35%), and Government Readiness (25%).

Key findings reveal South Africa leading overall with 52.15 points, followed by Tunisia and Egypt (both 51.8). Rwanda excels in Government Readiness, while Tunisia leads in Data & Infrastructure. Significant regional disparities exist, with North African nations generally performing better due to EU partnerships and stable governance.

Methodology Overview​

The toolkit provides practical guidance, resources and tools to help policymakers, regulators and other stakeholders establish robust governance frameworks for the responsible development and deployment of AI technologies in Africa.

Digital Skills (40%)​

Evaluates foundational and specialized capabilities necessary for engaging with AI technologies. Includes educational attainment, technical capacity, workforce diversity, and labor market dynamics.

Data & Infrastructure (35%)​

Measures technological foundations that enable AI development and deployment, including physical infrastructure, digital access, data environments, and technical investments.

Government Readiness (25%)​

Examines policy and regulatory environments that shape AI talent development, including strategic planning, implementation capacity, innovation support, and data protection frameworks.

Strategic Recommendations​

1. Continent-wide AI Education

Establish an initiative inclusive of curriculum development targeting youth at all levels of education, to meet the needs of learners and increase AI education opportunities across the continent.

2. Collaborative Training Targets

Each Signatory State commits to train over 15% of its population on AI awareness by 2028, building towards over 200 million people trained across the African continent.

3. Higher Education Transformation

Ensure over 30 higher learning institutions adapt curricula to provide state-of-the-art AI skills, establishing the capacity to train 5,000 PhD researchers across Africa.

4. Specialized Training Pathways

Develop programs on AI literacy, advanced machine learning, technical training, entrepreneurship, specialized research, and governance to produce 1 million AI practitioners.

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