Overview

The advent of Artificial Intelligence has drawn the attention of African States as a tool for development towards the Sustainable Development Goals. AI is seen as a magic wand that will usher in development through greater efficiency across sectors such as Agriculture, Health, Finance, and Education. In stark contrast to this growing interest in AI adoption, the digital divide in Africa remains a major challenge to be addressed, alongside efforts to build digital literacy and users’ capacity to use AI responsibly with respect to human rights. The rise of synthetic media, including deepfakes, is fast becoming a hazard that States must resolve, promoting a thriving information ecosystem while also balancing the safeguarding of human rights.  While AI is perceived as a digital advancement, it is also seen as a quick fix for national security agendas, such as surveillance, as evidenced by various procurements of facial recognition technology deployed in public spaces, including through smart initiatives. This begs the question – are humans safe in the era of AI? 

Decoding AI Responsibility 

The notion of AI being responsible implies that it has the agility and intelligence to assess and apply rationality to its actions, yet AI lacks these capacities by virtue of not being human. Technology is created or conceptualised by humans who ought to know better or reflect deeply on the impacts of their imagination, as it is translated into technological tools and innovations.  The role of governments is to ensure that their actions and those of other stakeholders, such as technologists, companies, and individuals in their societies are responsible for the design and deployment of AI. This naturally leads governments to assess their capacities to understand AI and make it more responsible in operation, as well as to avoid its  adverse impacts and biases.

Tracking National Strategies

In 2025, countries such as Malawi launched a mission to procure AI-powered tools to monitor online misinformation and disinformation, with the ability to segment specific online users for analysis. The invasive nature of such interventions poses a threat to privacy rights and is deemed targeted communications surveillance, which is condemned by the African Commission on Human and Peoples’ Rights in Resolution 573 on the deployment of mass and unlawful targeted communication surveillance and its impact on human rights in Africa. The development agenda steers countries like Rwanda whose AI national strategies are silent to the terms human rights, emphasising developmental goals and benefits. Countries like Kenya, Zimbabwe and Zambia developed national AI strategies looking at how to harness AI for development. Guided by the African Union Continental AI Strategy, AI strategies developed beyond the AU strategy reflect human rights as  a co-feature. In particular, it looks at how to minimise risk for a responsible, safe and secure AI in Africa ensuring that AI respects human rights and dignity, inclusion, culture and values, safety, security, and environmental and ecosystem sustainability. It also calls for multistakeholder approaches to AI governance and the development of robust governance regimes for AI that are founded in ethical principles, democratic values, human rights and the rule of law. AI governance should be deliberate to ensure the aspects of responsibility, safety and security are tackled through the lens of human rights.

Paradigm Initiative’s (PIN’s) role in monitoring and documenting developments in AI governance in Africa is more critical now, noting the need to track progress with implementation of the African Union Continental AI Strategy. Noting the inadequacy or absence of national AI strategies relevant to building an AI deployment ecosystem that promotes human rights, PIN advocates for rights-respecting AI governance aligned with international human rights law. 

Actions Taken by PIN

Research

Without adequate research on AI gaps, governments are constrained in adopting adequate measures to safeguard human rights. There is a need to leverage existing research produced by a wider range of stakeholders, in addition to building internal research capacities within the relevant countries and sectors deploying AI. Partnering with organisations like PIN can be strategic for building capacity and addressing AI threats before and during deployment. Various research has been conducted by PIN over the past years to inform developments on AI in Africa. Research indicates the need to safeguard rights when deploying AI in Africa.  Some of our insights on AI in Africa are captured in the identified research outputs below:

1. Stakeholder Mapping of AI Actors in Nigeria Report (2021)
2. Over the past four editions of Londa which captures the state of digital rights and inclusion in Africa, we have been monitoring the digital policy landscape in Africa. Our recent findings, based on country assessments, show a low progression with regard to the development of national AI strategies in Africa. Currently, about 17 countries in Africa have a form of AI national strategy presenting an opportunity for PIN to work with governments in Africa to influence national AI Strategies. 
3. Through policy briefs, we address AI related challenges, transmitting our expertise to governments such as in Kenya (2022).
4. Our report on the State of Surveillance in Africa report (2024) highlights that artificial intelligence-enabled surveillance tools, such as facial recognition tools, are used in Côte d’Ivoire, Ghana, and Nigeria and we have engaged various stakeholders including telecommunications companies on the findings discussing ways to improve safeguards and due diligence processes.
5. We conduct comparative research on AI, such as the Research on AI laws, policies and strategies in East Africa, Zambia and Mauritius (2025).  
6. We assess laws to provide guidance, for instance, through Legal analysis of Laws, Policies and Government Strategies relating to AI in Kenya, Mauritius, Rwanda, South Sudan, Tanzania, Uganda & Zambia
7. We promote human rights in AI strategies as presentred in Advancing Rights-Based AI Strategy in Côte d’Ivoire (2025).
8. PIN is currently assessing the effect of Generative AI on information integrity in Africa and platform responses. 

National Level Stakeholder Coordination/Submissions

PIN convenes and makes key submissions to governments on AI. We have made inputs on Zimbabwe citing the need for public participation in AI governance in our Digital Policy Digest. Multistakeholder approaches to AI governance are important in shaping better outcomes and responsive strategies. PIN has seen the importance of this approach in many contexts, like Nigeria. Through PIN’s project tackling platform governance, supported by Global Partners Digital, PIN has provided a platform for diverse stakeholders in Nigeria to present input on the Online Harms Protection (OHP) Framework. PIN’s thought leadership on AI is evident and referenced in the White Paper adopted by the National Information Technology Development Agency (NITDA).  PIN has also been responsive to several other calls for input in the development of national AI strategies, including in Zambia and Kenya.

Capacity Building

Through our Digital Rights Academies, PIN builds the capacity of various stakeholders in Africa on AI, including journalists (AI integration in newsrooms), lawyers (AI in legal practice) and Teachers (AI in the Classroom), with a rights-based approach. We also convene the annual East Africa AI Forum to build the capacity of lawyers and other stakeholders in AI governance, leveraging collaboration with partners such as ALP East Africa Advocates, East Africa Law Society, and Thomson Reuters Foundation.  PIN’s capacity-building efforts are aimed at raising awareness of AI and promoting its ethical use across sectors such as media, law, and civil society. 

Global Processes/International Advocacy

PIN’s thought leadership in AI global processes is steady and relevant to the advancement of tangible progress in Africa. Our efforts in the global process cascade to our inputs at the national level.  This is in addition to engaging in AI global governance through various global processes addressing AI governance challenges and also making submissions to various accountability mechanisms. PIN has, for instance, responded to OHCHR calls for inputs and made inputs such as Paradigm Initiative’s Response to the Call for Inputs: The Use of Artificial Intelligence and the UN Guiding Principles on Business and Human Rights. In 2024, PIN was part of the regional experts who made inputs and reviewed the African Commission on Human and Peoples’ Rights DRAFT Study on human and peoples’ rights and artificial intelligence, robotics, and other new and emerging technologies in Africa. 

Tackling AI at a global level, PIN participated in the Global Digital Compact (GDC)processes, making oral and written submissions to deep dive sessions and through written submissions. PIN participated in the World Summit on Information Society (WSIS+20) review processes, making oral and written submissions to Co-Facilitators addressing AI and other related thematic areas such as data justice and privacy. PIN served on the team of experts that made a contribution to UNICEF’s Data Governance for EdTech Landscape review and policy recommendations assessing the use of AI in education and the attendant impact on data governance for children. Through the Digital Rights and Inclusion Forum, we feature AI as a sub-theme where various AI tools and developments are disseminated to the Global South delegates and specific calls are made to diverse stakeholders. We curate the DRIF agenda, gathering areas of development. AI was featured in the DRIF25 report, where the community requested that PIN prioritise AI programming in its community recommendation to the DRIF Convenors.

Looking forward

PIN promotes a thriving environment where technology exists harmoniously with humans. AI must be seen and experienced as a tool that enhances processes and enables rights when deployed rightly and justly. Its potential to cause harm cannot be ignored in pursuance of development but can be addressed prior to harms occurring. Guardrails can be established through rights-respecting AI strategies and practises. To that end, PIN remains committed to partnerships that foster a thriving digital ecosystem.