Pantami to FG: Prioritize AI Funding for Healthcare Innovation in Nigeria
Nigeria’s immediate–past Minister of Communications, Innovation and Digital Economy, Professor Isa Ali Ibrahim Pantami, has urged the Federal Government to prioritise funding for artificial intelligence (AI) to strengthen innovation in the country’s healthcare sector.
Pantami made the appeal on Thursday while delivering a guest lecture at the 26th National Conference and Annual General Meeting of the Islamic Medical Association of Nigeria (IMAN) held in Kaduna.
The conference focused on, “Artificial Intelligence in Healthcare: Benefits, Ethical Boundaries and Islamic Perspective.”
He said AI has become indispensable in modern healthcare systems across the world, noting that Nigeria must not lag behind at a time when countries are investing heavily in emerging technologies.
“Artificial intelligence is unavoidable, unstoppable, and inevitable. It becomes necessary for us as Muslims to look into the technology critically and see how it will help our profession,” he said.
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Pantami explained that AI offers enormous benefits in disease detection, personalised treatment, accuracy in diagnosis, and surgical precision.
He cited examples of virtual surgeries conducted between Rome and Beijing, and between America and Asia, which he described as evidence of the transformative power of AI in saving lives.
“AI will support our medical practitioners in saving lives, increasing high levels of precision and accuracy in determining and diagnosing diseases. Despite its numerous benefits, we must stress that its adoption has to be ethical and responsible,” he added.
The former minister emphasised the need to invest in modern infrastructure, training, and retraining of medical personnel, as well as developing AI–powered tools that can improve healthcare delivery nationwide.
Pantami warned that failing to invest meaningfully in AI would leave Nigeria far behind global trends.
He referenced Saudi Arabia’s recent announcement of a $40 billion AI fund—an amount larger than Nigeria’s entire national budget—to illustrate the scale of global commitment to technological advancement.
“We need to prioritise investment in AI infrastructure to support our healthcare system,” Pantami said, stressing that meaningful funding is the foundation for any long–term technological transformation in the sector.
