Generative AI in African Higher Education: A Systematic Review of Opportunities, Ethical Concerns, and Preparedness

Despite Generative artificial intelligence (GenAI) opportunities, African Higher Education Institutions (AHEIs) still face distinctive GenAI adoption challenges. This systematic literature review examines the opportunities, ethical concerns, and preparedness of AHEIs for GenAI’s adoption. The search was conducted on May 27, 2025 from 2022 to 2025. Only the 39 peer-reviewed journal articles and conference proceedings that met the inclusion criteria were included. Findings showed that studies are mostly distributed across South Africa, Egypt, and Nigeria. Furthermore, transformational teaching and learning, research enhancement, and Promotion of equity were the major GenAI’s opportunities. However, several challenges, including academic misconduct, bias, and the digital divide, remain. In addition, AHEIs' preparedness for GenAI integration remains inconsistent; hence, addressing these challenges to maximize GenAI’s is crucial.