

Day 3 - Fireside Chat 5 Who Writes the Rules? AI, Data Protection & Governing Innovation at Scale
Digital Trade & Technology
Focus of the Day
Day 3 positions Nigeria as a digital trade and technology anchor for West Africa and the African Continental Free Trade Area. The programme explores how scale, policy, infrastructure and capital must align to transform digital innovation into durable economic power. Discussions span digital infrastructure financing, AI governance, cross-border trade systems and inclusive growth, with emphasis on global competitiveness and long-term investment credibility.
Fireside Chat
Who Writes the Rules? AI, Data Protection & Governing Innovation at Scale
Artificial intelligence is reshaping economic power, security and competitiveness across borders, regardless of national readiness. This fireside explores how global AI governance frameworks around data protection, privacy, cross-border data flows and compute access are increasingly shaping innovation outcomes. The discussion focuses on how Nigeria and other African economies can influence global rule-setting while enabling domestic innovation, balancing sovereignty, trust and scale. It examines how Africa can engage strategically so it is not merely compliant with global norms, but actively shaping them.
Moderator: Aruoture Oddiri
Speaker: Russ Wilcox
Titi Akinsanmi