Power of Language: Nneoma Udeze explores Africa’s AI potential

By Godwin Oritse

A prominent voice in Artificial Intelligence, AI, development in Nigeria, Nneoma Udeze, has emphasised the importance of incorporating African languages into artificial intelligence systems.

Speaking with newsmen, Udeze said that the current AI ecosystem,dominated by English, perpetuates inequality and excludes over 2,000 languages spoken in Africa.
Udeze believes that this approach is structurally flawed and that linguistic diversity is a valuable resources that enriches everyone.

She said, lack of data in African languages hinders the development of AI tools that can serve various languages,such as Yoruba,Igbo,Hausa and many Other African languages.

She said:”In Port Harcourt, Nigeria, over 300 people were present in an African Languages Conference where Yoruba, Igbo, Hausa, and many other African languages were discussed with energy and enthusiasm, I was present, a voice challenging the fundamental premises of the development of artificial intelligence.

“My message is simple and provocative. “What we see today in the development of AI is not a breakthrough, It is a recreation of the old power structures.

” The languages of Africa are not only the casualties of this inequality, but also the solution.

”My views are bold only if we assume existing AI structures are natural or unavoidable.”

She said in reality, the 1.52 billion English speakers are the most suited to AI systems, while the speakers of other major languages, such as Mandarin, Spanish, and French, are adequately served by the AI systems, however, they fail for speakers of the rest of the 7,000 languages known on Earth, according to the Stanford Report, 2025.

Udeze insisted that this difference is important since responsible AI should be fair AI.
” Building accessible artificial intelligence through the use of English as a starting point and adapting outward is structurally flawed, this approach places one way of language in the privileged position, and all others are considered to be deviations from a norm.At its core, African languages and their problems in AI are rooted in the availability of data”.

“Linguistic diversity is not something that should be seen as a barrier to get rid of, but a valuable resource that enriches everyone” .

” Your language is not a curse, but a blessing to the world. So, while you learn natural language processing and machine learning, learn your own languages, the structures, and embrace their beauty”. She added
She advised younger Africans to value their languages and cultures.

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