Africa Cannot Afford to Miss the Fourth Revolution - Bawumia

Mahamudu Bawumia warned African leaders and policymakers on Saturday that missing the artificial intelligence revolution "would be a historic failure the continent simply cannot afford." He spoke at the London School of Economics and Political Science during the LSE Africa Summit 2026, delivering an address on 'Artificial Intelligence and Uniting Borders,' calling on African governments to act with urgency. He said, "Digitalization is no longer at the periphery...It is a necessity for survival and prosperity in the 21st century."

Dr. Bawumia noted Africa was largely absent from the first, second, and third industrial revolutions. He argued that artificial intelligence and the Internet of Things have opened up "amazing possibilities with no end in sight." He said, "Africa does not lack talent...What we lack is deliberateness, leadership, and investment to create the ecosystems where innovations and innovators thrive." He urged African policymakers to recognize when something qualitatively new is going on, and to act boldly, decisively, yet cooperatively.

Closing his address, Dr. Bawumia said, "We cannot afford to be left behind this time...We should embrace the technology and not be intimidated by it." The LSE Africa Summit is a platform for debating the continent's economic and political future.