African AI Policymaking

PAN is a partner on initiatives supporting AI policy formulation and implementation including the African Observatory on Responsible AI and the Africa-Asia AI Policymakers Network.

Africa-Asia AI Policymaker Network

PAN is part of the ongoing Network task force which convenes the Africa-Asia AI Policymaker Network. Most recently, we facilitated in-person workshops at the India AI Impact Summit. Other events included the Network launch in Cape Town during 2022, sessions held at the Rwanda AfricAI conference in 2023 and a further in-person meeting in Kenya during October 2024. Network members have contributed to the design of the African Observatory on Responsible AI Policy Tool as a shared resource for the community, as well as a review of South-South Cooperation on AI Policy and a working document on public sector governance of AI.

The team also initiated an AI Policymaker Network Journal Club as an ongoing, virtual activity to discuss emerging technology developments and governance responses to AI such as the regulation of large language models (LLMs), AI and regulatory sandboxes, comparative analysis of AI strategies, the role of competition authorities in AI.

African Observatory on Responsible AI

Established in 2022, the African Observatory on Responsible Artificial Intelligence has recognised the need to promote African voices, experiences and value systems in global debate around responsible AI. Scholars in the social sciences and humanities are emphasising that an ‘African’ view on AI and AI ethics is critical for ensuring that the development and adoption of these new technologies  supports, and is not harmful to, African societies and ways of living. The Observatory takes a special focus on the foundational elements of inclusive and responsible AI governance, particularly as it relates to Africa’s (pre/post) colonial memory and in the context of our diverse democratic, constitutional and legal mechanisms of accountability.

A key part of the Observatory project is the updated Africa AI Policy Tool which aggregates AI-relevant policy activity across all African countries and by regional bodies. We have also completed a review of South-South Cooperation on AI Policy and a a working document on public sector governance of AI.

Photo by Shalom Mwenesi on Unsplash