Abuja, Nigeria
Joshua Olufemi, founder of Goloka Analytics, says the company has secured a partnership with the social media giant, Meta, to include Nigerian languages in artificial intelligence (AI) models.
Goloka is a Nigerian data startup by Dataphyte, a company founded by Olufemi five years ago.
The company, in a statement signed by Olufemi on Wednesday, said the new project is to be implemented under Meta’s local language partnership programme and will involve the collection of linguistic data in five Nigerian languages, including Yoruba, Hausa, Igbo, Fulfulde, and Urhobo.
Olufemi said the partnership is a major step towards the cultural preservation and digital representation of Nigerian languages in the tech ecosystem.
He also said the datasets gathered will feed into broader AI systems that reflect local knowledge and promote equitable technology access across the Global South.
“By applying our hyperlocal data collection model, we intend to provide high-quality linguistic datasets that help build more accurate and inclusive technologies,” he said.
“We are focused on collecting data that reflects local realities and promotes fair representation for communities that have long been underrepresented in digital technologies.”
The company’s insight lead, Oluseyi Olufemi, added that the company’s partnership with Meta was in tandem with Goloka’s broader framework on language, learning, and localisation.
“The language datasets generated through this project will be integrated into broader AI systems, supporting equitable and relevant use across sectors,” he added.
The company appealed to Nigerian stakeholders across the public, private and civic sectors to participate in the project to ensure that AI development remains inclusive and decentralised.