Insights from more than 40 nonprofit, funders, and other experts highlight practical lessons for deciding whether and how to use AI responsibly and equitably.
JOHANNESBURG, South Africa, 08 October 2026 -/African Media Agency(AMA)/ – Artificial intelligence (AI) is creating new possibilities for nonprofits across Africa to expand access to services, strengthen programme delivery, and address challenges in areas ranging from health and education to livelihoods and agriculture. A new report from The Bridgespan Group examines how African nonprofits are beginning to use artificial intelligence to advance their missions—and offers a practical roadmap for organisations considering whether, where, and how AI could help.
“The question for nonprofits isn’t ‘how do we use more AI?’ but ‘what problem are we solving, and is AI the right way to solve it?’ This involves looking beyond the technology to the organisation’s data, people, governance, as well as the communities at the centre,” said Madhuri Mukherjee, Bridgespan partner and co-author of the research. “That’s how adoption becomes responsible, helping nonprofits reach more people and deepen impact.”
Pursuing the Promise: A Guide for African Nonprofits to Advance Their Missions with AI draws on interviews and discussions with more than 40 nonprofits and social enterprises, funders, experts, and intermediaries across Africa working on issues such as education, health, and livelihoods. The research examines how organisations have approached AI—from identifying a problem and testing a use case to embedding it in programmes and, in some cases, beginning to consider scale. It also explores the strategic and organisational choices nonprofits encounter along the way.
Although nearly all interviewees recognised AI’s potential, relatively few nonprofits reported using it directly in programmes or services. Many were already using AI for day-to-day productivity, an important starting point. The report focuses instead on “mission-driven AI”: applications that directly strengthen, scale, or create programmes and services.
While adoption paths vary, the research identifies four stages in the journey towards mission-driven AI:
- Stage 1: Explore & prepare
Organisations move from general interest in AI to considering whether and how to use it to advance their missions. Key questions surround the problem being solved, whether AI is the right tool to address it, and assessing if the necessary data, language layer, and organisational readiness are in place
- Stage 2: Prove & learn
Organisations pilot a specific use case to understand whether it works in real-world conditions and merits further investment. This also includes decisions to build, buy, adapt, or partner—and defining what success looks like
- Stage 3: Embed & operate
If a pilot shows promise, organisations begin integrating it into regular programme delivery. At this stage, organisations consider shifts in internal structure—governance, talent, operating models, and long-term costs—to ensure it can be effectively sustained
- Stage 4: Sustain or scale
Organisations consider whether and how the use case should continue or expand—to more users or geographies, through public systems, or through other ecosystem actors—and what it will take to sustain it over time. The report also emphasises maintaining the status quo or reassessing a use case as appropriate outcomes
Across the interviews, nonprofits also emphasised that mission-driven AI does not happen in a vacuum. Access to digital infrastructure, local and context-specific data, policy and regulation, and existing channels for reaching communities can all shape whether AI is effective and sustainable. The report highlights a role for funders and other ecosystem actors in addressing these gaps through flexible, stage-appropriate funding; shared infrastructure; technical and strategic support; and broader capacity building.
“The aim of our research is not to advocate for mission-driven AI adoption as an end goal for African nonprofits,” said Bridgespan principal and report co-author Aditi Sharma. “It is to help organisations make informed choices about where AI can genuinely advance their missions. The next few years present an important opportunity to shape how AI is used across the continent—and to ensure it is grounded in real needs, local contexts, and meaningful impact.”
Read the full report: https://www.bridgespan.org/insights/choosing-your-ai-path-a-framework-for-nonprofit-leaders-to-make-strategic-choices
Distributed by African Media Agency (AMA) on behalf of The Bridgestan Group
About Bridgespan
The Bridgespan Group (www.bridgespan.org) is a global nonprofit that collaborates with social change organizations, philanthropists, and mission-aligned private capital investors to achieve breakthrough results in addressing society’s most important challenges and opportunities. Bridgespan’s services include strategy consulting and advising, sourcing and diligence, and leadership team support. We take what we learn from this work and build on it with original research, identifying best practices and innovative ideas to share with the social sector. We work from locations in Boston, Johannesburg, Mumbai, New Delhi, New York, San Francisco, Singapore, and Washington, D.C.
