How AI Tech & Partneship will LEAPFROG Nigeria to World's 5th largest Economy - Imafidon

KENSINGTON, U.K. - March 19, 2026 - PRLog -- Multi award winning AI pioneer & Tech Governance veteran - Professor Chris Imafidon has unveiled a new paper, AI and the New Macroeconomic Reality, at the International (Nigeria-UK) Business Forum held at the Commonwealth Secretariat headquarters on Pall Mall, London. The paper sets out a macroeconomic thesis that, under realistic scenarios of technology adoption and demographic utilisation, Nigeria could leapfrog established economies to become the world's fifth‑largest economy in the coming years instead of decades.

Addressing an audience of Executive Governors, policymakers, investors and business leaders from across the Commonwealth, Professor Imafidon, who served at co-chair of HM Queen Elizabeth's Platinum Jubilee's stem programme,  argued that traditional growth models underestimate the impact of artificial intelligence when combined with large, young and digitally literate populations. He described Nigeria as "the giant of Africa" with an emerging cohort of digital natives who, he contends, are better positioned to understand and deploy AI and related technologies for productivity gains, services innovation and new business formation.

"AI in this context should not be viewed merely as 'artificial intelligence', but as a platform for achieving impossibilities in economic development," award winning Imafidon said. "There is nothing artificial or fake about this technology when it is deployed for wealth creation, income growth and sustainable revenue generation. The macroeconomic models must be updated to reflect that reality."

The paper draws on available demographic data, technology adoption trends and cross‑country productivity comparisons to outline potential growth trajectories for African economies, with a focus on Nigeria. It suggests that, given its population structure, rapid expansion of digital infrastructure and the emergence of a technology‑savvy youth population, Nigeria could close the gap with larger economies more quickly than conventional forecasts anticipate, provided that governance, education and infrastructure constraints are addressed.

The Business Forum (co-organised by NACCIMA) and Commonwealth Secretariat , etc brought together senior figures from government, finance and industry to examine structural shifts in the global economy. Imafidon's intervention invited macroeconomists, investors and regulators to reconsider the role of AI or tech as a core driver of national competitiveness rather than a peripheral technology issue.

Professor Chris Imafidon serves as chair of record breaking https://excellenceineducation.org.uk/.  Chris Imafidon is a multi Guinness world record certificate holder, and renowned advisor  to monarchs, presidents and governments known for his work at the intersection of innovation, education and emerging technologies. He has advised governments, international organisations and leading corporations on how to harness technology for inclusive growth and skills development, and is chair of the ExcellenceinEducation.org.uk.