The declaration is being hailed as a milestone in African tech sovereignty — a bold commitment to an “Africa-first” AI procurement policy and the establishment of a $60 billion Africa AI Fund. On paper, it is a thunderclap: a vision of Africa refusing to be a passive consumer in the global AI marketplace, choosing instead to be an architect of its own technological destiny.
But behind the applause lies a darker, more complicated reality. A fund of this scale is not just about money — it’s about power, control, and the ability to navigate a legal and political minefield that has swallowed countless pan-African projects before. The legal scaffolding must withstand the pull of competing national interests, the drag of bureaucratic inertia, and the corrosive influence of corruption. Without airtight governance and ironclad cross-border enforcement, $60 billion could just as easily fuel patronage networks as fuel innovation.
Sylla, who has advised multiple African governments on AI and data protection, predicts that “within five years, most countries will have something in place.” It is an optimistic timeline — perhaps dangerously so. She has heard the same refrain from leaders across the continent when presented with previous data governance blueprints: “Yes, that is beautiful — but we don’t have the means to implement it.” This is not a minor inconvenience; it is a systemic choke point.
And there are other fault lines. The declaration must contend with Africa’s skeletal AI infrastructure, limited research capacity, and the quiet but relentless pressure from global tech powers who would rather see Africa remain a lucrative consumer market than an independent producer. Every delay, every policy misstep, will be exploited — and the $60 billion fund could become a magnet for geopolitical leverage rather than a catalyst for African innovation.
The choice is stark: either Africa builds the legal muscle, technical infrastructure, and political discipline to seize this moment, or the “Africa AI Fund” will join the long list of grand continental visions that collapsed under the weight of their own rhetoric. In the high-stakes game of AI geopolitics, there are no consolation prizes — only winners and the forgotten.
