The African Union (AU) has appointed Professor Isa Ali Ibrahim Pantami as a Co-Chairman for the formulation and development of the 4th Industrial Revolution (4IR) Policy and Strategy for the 54 countries in the African continent.
Professor Pantami, a former Nigeria’s Minister of Communications and Digital Economy, is a leading researcher and promoter of the 4th Industrial Revolution.
He is the first African Fellow of the Chartered Institute of Information Security in the United Kingdom.
He previously served as the Director General of the National Information Technology Development Agency (NITDA), where he initiated the establishment of the National Centre of Artificial Intelligence and Robotics (NCAIR), which he commissioned during his tenure as minister.
Pantami was also instrumental in the development of Nigeria’s first digital economy policy, which includes a pillar focused on digital society and emerging technologies.
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The other Co-chair of the 4IR, which is through the AU’s African Scientific Research and Innovation Council (AU-ASRIC), is Professor Anicia Nicola Peter from the National Commission on Research, Science, and Technology of Namibia, who also serves as an adjunct research professor at the University of Namibia.
She was the Chairperson of the 4IR Presidential Task Force in Namibia, and her research interests include human-computer interaction, social media, gamification, e-participation, gender, e-government, e-health, and human-centred AI.
The council also includes other distinguished academics and policy makers, such as Professor Khaleed Ghedira from Tunisia, Professor Maha Grima from Morocco, Professor Mongi Nouira, and Professor Munir Frija.
Once the African policy is adopted by the African Union, all member countries are expected to implement it rigorously.
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As Africa was left behind in the previous industrial revolutions, the 4th Industrial Revolution presents an opportunity for the continent to make significant strides in areas such as artificial intelligence, robotics, blockchain, and cybersecurity. Policymakers, industry players, and academics are all expected to participate in the implementation process.
The efforts of the African Union and the Executive Director of the African Scientific Research and Innovation Council, Dr. Muhammad Kyari, have been widely commended by experts in Africa for their proactive approach to promoting the industrialisation of the continent in the 21st century.
