African Legislators Call for Intergovernmental Cooperation in Regulating AI

The need for comprehensive regulatory frameworks to oversee the advancement of Artificial Intelligence across Africa took center stage at the 13th Internet Governance Forum in Addis Ababa. Representatives from several African countries convened for a three-day session at the United Nation’s Economic Commission for Africa (UNECA) to share challenges and experiences in navigating economic and political landscapes amid emerging technologies.

Mactar Seck, head of UNECA’s innovation & technology section, underscored the importance of catching up to an artificial industry forecasted to be worth 15 trillion dollars by 2030. He referred to the Global Digital Compact (GDC) adopted by the UN general assembly in September which contains AI governance as one of its five pillars.

“We cannot create a future fit for our grandchildren with a system built by our grandparents,” the Secretary general noted during the meeting.

ECA is working to establish the African Center for Cyber Security in Togo as part of a plan to ensure the integrity of the emerging AI infrastructure while expanding its growth across the continent. 

The Continental Africa Intelligence Strategy unveiled in July by the African Union entails minimizing risk emanating from wide adoption of the technology despite its benefits in stimulating development and growth.

Ethiopia’s State Minister for Innovation & Technology Yeshrun Alemayehu (PhD) stated the need to subsidize technology to facilitate access to emerging innovations. A draft AI strategy was approved in July by the Council of Ministers that looks to set a roadmap for a competitive industry that upholds national security priorities.

Yeshru stressed the importance of cross-cutting collaboration to adequately effectively implement the advancement of AI across the country.

“We can reduce some of the problems, but we can't avoid them altogether,” the state minister noted.

Ethiopia's Prime Minister Abiy Ahmed (PhD) had indicated the need to place AI, genetic modification and robotics within the policy purview during his parliament speech in early July. He correlated future economic success on the ability to stay ahead of the curve regarding emerging technologies.

"We dont want to be playing catch after its too late," Abiy had said

Experiences from African countries reflected a recognition of the multidimensional impacts of AI on the socioeconomic fabric of each country.

After a spirited critique of Ethiopia’s visa policy that resulted in a few of his colleagues being stranded at the airport, Nigerian Senator Shuaibu Salisi the importance of continental collaborations on several fronts.

He pinned successful intergovernmental regulation of emerging technologies on the ability to begin integrated service provision on elementary services.

While Artificial Intelligence weighed in heavily on the set of technologies set to profoundly impact Africa in the coming years, some representatives opined on internet governance in general.

Daniel Molokale, a representative from Zimbabwe, recalled a serious problem in the country with the proliferation of revenge porn across the web. 

“We have criminalized it now,” he said.

Zimbabwe has recently benefited from being on the first countries in which internet access was enabled via the Starlink satellite service.

With nearly 800 million Africans remaining offline across the continent a calibrated balance between advancing technology reach and regulatory frameworks was advocated by several participants.

Natalie Cambell, Senior Director of North American Government and Regulatory Affairs for the Internet Society, pointed to internet fragmentation as an impediment to advancement of global trade and a trustworthy network. She explained how legislations could disrupt or even rupture the very foundations for the existence of the internet unless they are carefully crafted.

“Decentralized data flow is core to the internet’s foundation,” Natalie said.

High quality data access, cross border data flow, personal data protection, freedom of expression and prospective influences on the democratic process were among the issues discussed across the Forum.