There is an ongoing conversation between business leaders in Nigeria. They argue that since artificial intelligence is transforming how work gets done, the smart move is to invest in AI tools and reduce the resources spent on developing people. After all, if machines can do more, do we really need to invest as much in humans? This is a logic that feels rational on the surface. It is also one of the most dangerous miscalculations that any organisation or nation can make right now.
Deloitte’s 2026 Global Human Capital Trends report, which surveyed more than 9,000 business and HR leaders across 89 countries, found that seven in ten business leaders identified speed and adaptability as their primary competitive strategy for the next three years. Not technology. Not AI. That is, the ability of their people to learn, adapt and reinvent in real time. In the same breath, many organisations are hesitating to make investments in human capability that this strategy demands. We set the right priority but fund the wrong solution.
Interestingly, Nigeria’s relationship with AI is evolving rapidly. A survey by Ipsos and Google found that 70 percent of Nigeria’s online population has already used generative AI tools, significantly higher than the global average of 48 per cent. We are not a nation standing at the edge of the AI transformation, uncertain whether to step in or not. We are already in the water.
