Report identifies skills shortages, cybersecurity and infrastructure gaps as major business concerns, urges firms to retrain workers for AI-driven economy….
About 84 per cent of chief executive officers across Africa expect their workforce to grow over the next three years, despite the increasing adoption of artificial intelligence in business operations, a new report by KPMG has found.
The report, the 2026 KPMG Africa CEO Outlook, highlights business leaders’ growth expectations, investment priorities and concerns about economic uncertainty, technological advancement, workforce development and sustainability.
It is the third edition of the Africa CEO Outlook and forms part of the 12th edition of the KPMG Global CEO Outlook. The survey covered 1,400 chief executives globally, including 176 from Africa, between August 11 and September 21, 2026.
According to the report, African businesses are increasingly recognising the importance of artificial intelligence but continue to face challenges in adopting the technology at the pace required to remain competitive.
“While 86 per cent of African CEOs are confident or cautiously optimistic about keeping pace with AI, compared with 95 per cent globally, just 14 per cent believe they are moving at the right pace or ahead of the curve, against 66 per cent globally,” the report stated.
It added that the disparity pointed to difficulties in converting interest in AI into practical implementation rather than a lack of ambition among African business leaders.
The report also noted that turning revenue growth into sustained profitability remained a challenge for businesses operating amid economic uncertainty and rising operational costs.
On investment priorities, 72 per cent of African CEOs identified AI as a major area of investment, compared with 79 per cent of their global counterparts.
However, the report found that African businesses were less advanced in implementing AI, with only 14 per cent of respondents saying their organisations were moving at the right pace or ahead of developments in the technology.
The findings also revealed differences in expectations for returns on AI investments. While 48 per cent of African CEOs expect to realise returns within one to three years, 42 per cent anticipate returns after three years. Globally, 71 per cent expect returns within one to three years.
KPMG attributed the longer investment horizon in Africa partly to the time required to strengthen data capabilities, integrate AI into existing systems and develop the skills needed to translate technological adoption into measurable business results.
Despite these challenges, African business leaders appear determined to prepare their employees for the changing demands of the workplace.
The report found that 86 per cent of respondents intend to retain and retrain high-potential employees, while 82 per cent are redesigning roles, career paths and team structures to encourage collaboration between workers and AI systems.
Another 74 per cent said they were recruiting AI and technology specialists to support their organisations’ digital transformation efforts.
However, workforce development remains a major obstacle, with 59 per cent of CEOs identifying skills gaps as a constraint, 58 per cent citing the need for AI training and upskilling, and 52 per cent pointing to difficulties in attracting and retaining talent.
Cybersecurity and data protection, alongside supply-chain resilience, emerged as the leading threats to business growth, each cited by 31 per cent of respondents. The integration of AI into business operations and workflows followed at 27 per cent.
To address these risks, 45 per cent of African CEOs said their organisations were increasing investment in cybersecurity and digital-risk resilience. Another 36 per cent were investing in regulatory compliance and reporting, while 31 per cent were directing funds towards AI integration.
On sustainability, 65 per cent of African CEOs said their organisations were equipped to meet new sustainability reporting requirements, compared with 55 per cent in the previous year.
KPMG Urges Businesses To Prioritise Workforce Reskilling
Commenting on the findings, the CEO of KPMG One Africa, Tola Adeyemi, said the report was intended to help business leaders understand how their counterparts worldwide were responding to common challenges and apply relevant lessons to their own organisations.
Adeyemi described the CEO Outlook as one of the ways KPMG supports business transformation in Nigeria by providing leaders with insights to make informed decisions and take action.
He said the findings could challenge existing assumptions and encourage executives to adopt strategies that had proved effective in other markets.
On the impact of artificial intelligence on employment, Adeyemi said the priority for business leaders should be preparing workers for evolving job requirements rather than reducing staff numbers.
“The real challenge is not about how you cut the workforce. It’s about how you reskill and retool the workforce in order to be able to work alongside artificial intelligence and the new technologies to deliver value for the organisation,” he said.
He added that employees would need to develop new capabilities to make effective use of emerging technologies and remain productive as businesses adjust their operating models.
“CEOs are not thinking of laying you off. They’re thinking of how do we reskill you? Yes, and how do you upskill yourselves as well, in order to be able to optimise the new tools that artificial intelligence and technology will make available,” Adeyemi said.
KPMG Economist Calls For Infrastructure, Policy Reforms
Meanwhile, KPMG South Africa’s Chief Economist, Frank Blackmore, said governments and businesses had complementary responsibilities in creating conditions that would support economic growth across Africa.
Blackmore urged governments to prioritise infrastructure development, particularly in logistics, digital connectivity and energy, to enable businesses to concentrate on their core operations, investments and workforce development.
He argued that reliable infrastructure would reduce the burden on businesses and allow them to focus resources on areas where they could generate the greatest economic value.
“If the government focuses on the provision of those sort of bulk infrastructure, it allows businesses to focus on the things that they are good at,” he said.
The economist also stressed the importance of workforce training, noting that skills development could benefit the wider economy beyond the organisations that initially invested in it.
“You can’t keep people in your department. Once that guy is trained, he’s trained forever, and he can move on throughout the economy,” Blackmore said.
He further called for greater policy harmonisation among African countries, warning that differences in regulations, languages, tax systems and visa requirements continued to complicate cross-border business operations.
According to Blackmore, addressing these structural barriers would help companies take advantage of opportunities across the continent and improve their ability to compete with businesses in larger economies.
The report’s findings suggest that while African CEOs remain optimistic about workforce growth, translating that confidence into stronger business performance will depend on their ability to close skills gaps, strengthen digital infrastructure and integrate AI into their operations effectively.
