Urge for entrepreneurial figures to implement artificial intelligence for heightened efficiency in operations
In the heart of Nairobi, the RIKA Africa Summit recently took place, bringing together 200 senior business leaders and chief human resource officers to discuss the nexus of AI, talent, productivity, leadership, and evolving markets.
The summit, under the theme "Exploring the nexus of AI, talent, productivity, leadership, and evolving markets," saw key discussions on the significance of AI in leadership development and talent management in Africa.
George Owuor, Vice President of East, West, and North Africa for Government Affairs and Policy at Mastercard, praised the RIKA Africa Leadership Summit for building a workforce adaptive to what industries need. He stated that the world of stability is gone, and agility is the new stability for 2025 and beyond.
Bryan Kariuki, speaking on redefining leadership in the age of AI, challenged HR professionals to become leaders and designers of the organizations of the future. He emphasized that workplace dynamics have changed, and leaders need to adapt or become obsolete.
Natalie Manga, Program Director at Rika Africa, stated that Africa has promising human capital capabilities. She highlighted Rika Africa's role in offering leadership development for the advancement of skills and tool sets for human capital leaders.
The summit culminated in the graduation of the 32nd cohort of the RIKA Leadership Programme. Participants emphasized the need for top leadership to acquaint themselves with Artificial Intelligence (AI) to enhance productivity. They also suggested incorporating youth due to their fresh perspectives, knowledge of AI, willingness to learn, and potential to add value.
AI was viewed as a transformative tool to accelerate socio-economic development, improve education, and enhance leadership capabilities across African countries. AI facilitates new approaches to leadership training and decision-making by supporting data-driven strategies, enhancing creativity, emotional intelligence, and critical thinking.
However, the scarcity of high-quality AI-ready datasets, infrastructure limitations, and ethical and governance challenges pose constraints on fully realizing AI’s talent development potential. The RIKA Africa Summit and other platforms like the Global AI Summit on Africa 2025 emphasize the necessity of inclusive, participatory, and rights-based AI approaches that incorporate diverse African voices.
The Africa Declaration on Artificial Intelligence, endorsed by many African Union member states, sets goals to guide AI’s development with respect for African cultural contexts and values. This framework is critical to harmonize leadership approaches and talent strategies continent-wide, though geopolitical tensions and regional fragmentation remain challenges to unified AI progress.
In summary, at the RIKA Africa Summit and related gatherings, AI is recognized as a strategic driver for leadership and talent development in Africa. However, ethical governance, inclusivity, and comprehensive capacity-building frameworks are essential to overcome infrastructural and geopolitical challenges.
In light of the RIKA Africa Summit's discussions on the role of AI in leadership and talent development, it was suggested that top leadership should familiarize themselves with AI to enhance productivity, showcasing its potential to be a strategic driver for business growth. Furthermore, the need for inclusive, participatory AI approaches, such as those outlined in the Africa Declaration on Artificial Intelligence, is emphasized to harmonize leadership strategies and talent development across the continent, and overcome infrastructural and geopolitical challenges, leveraging the benefits of AI, technology, and artificial-intelligence-based epaper solutions.
