Sierra Leone Launches Groundbreaking AI Readiness Assessment with World Bank Support
The initiative aims to ensure that Artificial Intelligence (AI) is harnessed responsibly and purposefully to address Sierra Leone’s most pressing development challenges.
The Ministry of Communication, Technology and Innovation, in collaboration with the World Bank through the Sierra Leone Digital Transformation Project, has embarked on one of the world’s first national AI Readiness Assessments. The initiative aims to ensure that Artificial Intelligence (AI) is harnessed responsibly and purposefully to address Sierra Leone’s most pressing development challenges.
The World Bank team joined government officials, academia, civil society, and private sector representatives in Freetown for the presentation of the initial findings and sector-wide stakeholder engagements.
The assessment evaluates Sierra Leone’s preparedness across three key pillars: Compute (infrastructure), Capacity (skills and talent), and Context (policy and regulation). It also seeks to identify opportunities that will inform the country’s forthcoming National Artificial Intelligence Strategy.
“We are not asking how to fit AI into our systems; we are asking which national challenges AI can help us solve today.”
– Salima Monorma Bah, Minister of Communication, Technology and Innovation, Sierra Leone
By taking this proactive approach, Sierra Leone positions itself as a regional leader in ethical and inclusive AI adoption, with a strategy tailored to local priorities such as education, healthcare, and governance.
