The International Monetary Fund (IMF) and the World Bank have warned that artificial intelligence (AI) could worsen the jobs crisis in Nigeria and other developing economies unless governments and businesses take urgent steps to prepare workers and deploy the technology to create employment.
IMF Managing Director, Kristalina Georgieva, gave the warning at the Small AI: More and Better Jobs event during the IMF-World Bank Annual Meetings in Bangkok, Thailand, describing AI as a “slow-moving tsunami”.
According to her, about 40 per cent of jobs globally could be augmented, downgraded or eliminated by AI, with the impact varying across economies and occupations.
Georgieva warned that the technology could disrupt labour markets, stressing the need for countries to understand its implications and equip workers with the skills required to adapt.
World Bank Group President Ajay Banga said the institution’s priority was to ensure that economic development translated into employment opportunities.
“The bank’s entire focus has to be on jobs,” Banga said, arguing that AI should be deployed to improve productivity and support job creation rather than simply replace workers.
He said affordable, practical AI applications could help “a school, an educator, a healthcare system, an agricultural system for small farmers to get to scale”.
Banga illustrated the potential with a farmer using a basic mobile phone to photograph a diseased crop and receive advice on treatment. The technology could also connect the farmer to seeds, fertiliser, credit, insurance and market information.
In healthcare, he said, AI-enabled tools could help frontline health workers assess cases and connect patients requiring specialist attention to appropriate services.
The approach, known as “Small AI”, focuses on applications adapted to local languages, infrastructure, needs and budgets, rather than relying exclusively on expensive, sophisticated AI systems.
The World Bank’s October 2026 Africa Economic Update identifies Nigeria, alongside Kenya and South Africa, as one of the continent’s leading centres of AI activity. However, it stresses that adoption remains at an early stage and that Africa’s immediate opportunity lies in adapting affordable AI solutions to local challenges.
The report identifies agriculture, education, healthcare, finance, logistics and public administration as sectors where AI could improve productivity.
It also warns that unreliable electricity, inadequate internet connectivity, limited digital skills and poor-quality data could constrain adoption.
For Nigeria, the challenge is to build these foundations and ensure AI becomes a tool for creating productive jobs, not deepening existing employment pressures.
