The Nigeria Social Insurance Trust Fund (NSITF) has called for a deliberate link between digital transformation and social protection as African businesses embrace Artificial Intelligence.
The Managing Director/Chief Executive of NSITF, Mr. Oluwaseun Faleye, made the call on Monday at the official launch of the ESBC–InnoPower LLC (USA) Free MSMEs AI Master Training Program held at the UN House, Abuja.
The program, spearheaded by the ECOWAS Small Business Coalition in partnership with InnoPower LLC (USA) and the United Nations Development Programme, is designed to equip micro, small and medium enterprises across the region with AI skills to compete in a digital economy.
Faleye, who was the special guest at the event, said MSMEs remain the foundation of Nigeria’s economy.
Citing data from SMEDAN and the National Bureau of Statistics, he noted that approximately 96 percent of businesses in Nigeria are MSMEs, employing millions and sustaining countless families.
“When MSMEs grow, communities prosper. When they innovate, economies become more competitive. And when they become more resilient, nations become stronger,” he said.
He described the training as “far more than a training initiative” but “an investment in the future competitiveness of West Africa.”
Faleye, however, stressed that technology alone would not guarantee business resilience and he urged entrepreneurs to match AI adoption with worker welfare and safety.
“Digital transformation and workplace protection are not separate conversations, they are the same conversation,” he told the gathering of government officials, development partners and business leaders, stressing that “technology enables businesses to work smarter. Social protection enables people to work with confidence. An enterprise that embraces Artificial Intelligence but neglects the welfare and safety of its workforce has merely modernized its operations without strengthening its resilience.”
He added that as businesses expand across ECOWAS, they will require “equally responsive systems of occupational safety, workplace protection and social security.” NSITF, he reiterated, remains committed to supporting that journey through stronger partnerships, awareness, and service delivery.
Faleye commended ESBC, InnoPower LLC and UNDP for bringing together government, private sector and development partners to equip entrepreneurs with knowledge and tools for the digital age.
He charged participants to “learn continuously. Innovate boldly” but to remember that “your greatest asset will always be your people. Protect them. Invest in them.”
“On behalf of the Management and staff of NSITF, I congratulate all partners whose vision has made this initiative possible,” he said. “The enterprises that will define Africa’s future will not simply be those that adopt the latest technologies. They will be those that combine innovation with responsibility, ambition with resilience.”
The launch drew high-level dignitaries including the ECOWAS Commissioner for Economic Affairs and Agriculture, the Honourable Minister of Industry, Trade and Investment, representatives of UNDP Nigeria and the UNDP Regional Office for West and Central Africa, and Dr. Abdulrashid Yerima, Regional President of the ECOWAS Small Business Coalition. Representatives of InnoPower LLC (USA) were also present.
The Free MSMEs AI Master Training pProgramme is expected to run across selected ECOWAS states, targeting business owners seeking to leverage AI for production, marketing and regional trade.
