By Fauziya Ali

For one co-working space wey sun dey shine for Nairobi, I see as 23-year-old Claudine dey type Python code for her laptop. Her focus no shake as mentors dey waka between di rows of students.

Wetin catch my eye no be just di code, na di quiet confidence wey full di room, di energy of women wey dey serious to build something wey big pass demself.

Dis na one of di many strong impression wey I carry from di tech hubs wey I don visit across di continent. African women no just dey adapt to di digital age—dem dey shape am.

Claudine dey part of new group of women wey dey join programs wey dey train African women for artificial intelligence and cybersecurity. For her, no be just skill she dey learn. E be like lifeline for her.

Across Africa, I don meet women wey don find economic opportunity for digital outsourcing like customer service, data labelling, and transcription. Dis kind work wey flexible and remote don give dem better income for communities wey no get plenty formal job.

But small small, change dey happen. Report wey dem present for Global AI Summit for Kigali talk say automation fit scatter dis kind roles. Di impact no go dey equal. Women, especially di ones wey dey digital economy, dey face bigger risk.

Claudine story dey make me ask one big question: as Africa dey embrace di fourth industrial revolution, AI go widen di gap for women or e go help close am?

Hope dey sha. Microsoft don promise say dem go train one million South Africans for AI and cybersecurity by 2026. African scholars too dey lead di talk about ethical AI governance—di kind talk wey suppose put women for center.

Outside Africa, we fit see example wey dey inspire. Di development of DeepSeek R1, one advanced AI model wey dem build with just $5.6 million, don show say powerful systems fit dey come from outside Silicon Valley.

Africa problem no be talent or ambition—na access. But even dat one dey change. Starlink satellite internet don dey reach rural areas, bring thousands online for di first time. Dis connection, plus AI tools, dey help diagnose crop disease for Kenyan farms and dey deliver personalized learning for Ethiopian classrooms.

Di future don dey come. E just need to reach everybody.

But technology no go fit do everything. Inclusion need intentional effort. Researchers don dey warn about algorithmic bias and how systems fit repeat di same exclusion wey we don dey try stop for decades.

For African women, wey their realities no dey inside training datasets, di risk dey real. Na why I believe say we no suppose just invest for infrastructure. We need to invest for people.

Governments, companies, and civil society suppose join hand to fund education, strengthen regulatory frameworks, and put gender equity for every phase of AI deployment.

But dis no be only about jobs and economy. E still dey about security. When women lose digital work because of automation, di wahala no dey end for money matter. Economic instability fit make dem vulnerable, open door for conflict actors and extremist groups.

For fragile regions, women wey no fit sustain income fit dey more open to recruitment, radicalization, and unrest. To empower dem with future-ready skills no be just good policy. E be like peacebuilding.

As women dey enter di digital economy well well, their safety suppose dey priority. I don talk with women wey don face cyber harassment, surveillance, and data breaches, and dem no get way to fight back.

Gender-sensitive digital security frameworks dey important to make sure say online participation no go cost women their safety or dignity.

AI too dey enter national security systems like border control, surveillance, and predictive policing. But di data wey dem dey use no dey reflect African realities, especially di ones of women.

Facial recognition technologies, for example, dey misidentify women of color plenty times. Inaccurate AI systems no just dey make mistake. Dem dey cause real wahala: wrongful surveillance, exclusion, even rights violations.

Na why ethical guardrails no be negotiable. We need inclusive data, transparent algorithms, and gender-aware testing protocols for every national AI strategy.

If we no do am, di same systems wey suppose protect us fit turn to di ones wey go harm us.

AI fit still play role for peacebuilding. Studies don show say women dey important for preventing conflict and sustaining peace. If we train women for AI and digital storytelling, we dey give dem tools to counter extremist narratives, join policymaking, and build social cohesion.

I don see di power of women wey dey shape narratives, use digital platforms to amplify community voices and challenge di roots of division.

Back for Nairobi, Claudine dey smile as her script compile. She fit no see herself as part of revolution, but she dey. Same with di millions of women across Africa wey dey learn, build, and lead.

Di future of AI for dis continent no be far dream. E don already dey happen, line by line, for co-working spaces, classrooms, and living rooms.

If Africa AI future go be about empowerment, inclusion, and peace, women no suppose dey as afterthoughts. Dem suppose dey as di architects of wetin go come.

Di author, Fauziya Ali, na di President of Women in International Security Horn of Africa (WIIS-HoA). She be expert for Human Security, Gender and AI. X account: @FauziyaAAli

Disclaimer: Di views wey di author express no necessarily reflect di opinions, viewpoints, and editorial policies of TRT Afrika.