MARTIN MAWAYA
MIDRAND, SOUTH AFRICA – African parliaments have been urged to take the lead in shaping a human-centric artificial intelligence (AI) ecosystem that protects citizens’ rights while promoting innovation and development.
Speaking at the Pan-African Parliament (PAP) in Midrand, European Parliament member Brando Benifei warned that Africa risks becoming a mere consumer of foreign technologies if it does not invest in its own capacity to govern AI.
Benifei, who was part of a panel discussion on the implications of artificial intelligence, highlighted the European Union’s recent passage of the AI Act, the world’s first comprehensive legislation regulating the use of AI.
“If we leave only a few parts of the world, maybe the US and China, to have the computational power and technological advancement, and Europe and Africa do not invest in strengthening our own capabilities, we will not be able to regulate AI autonomously,” Benifei warned. “Our sovereignty will be hindered if we do not have control over the technology.”
The AI Act, which is currently being implemented in Europe, aims to mitigate the risks of high-risk AI applications through measures like mandated testing and transparency requirements.
It also bans certain uses of AI deemed unacceptable, such as social scoring and real-time biometric identification in public spaces.
Benifei emphasized the importance of African parliaments working closely with their European counterparts to learn from the EU’s experience and develop similar human-centric frameworks.
“Europe and Africa need to work together on this topic, not only on regulating, but also on investing in our own technological capabilities,” he said.
A leading researcher and the head of Data Science Programs at the African Population and Health Research Center (APHRC), Dr Agness Najjuko Kasirye Kiragga said the continent must not be left behind in the development of AI.
She proposed the need for clear guidelines and evaluation frameworks to assess the risks of AI tools before deployment.
“We think it would be important to roll out the different apps, but it’s also to embed frameworks that allow for effective evaluation of AI before a tool is actually graded as high risk or low risk or medium risk, depending on what its intention is,” Dr. Kasirye Kiragga said.
In his opening remarks, PAP President Chief Fortune Charumbira urged African legislators to take the lead in the AI revolution and cautioned against complacency, emphasizing that artificial intelligence is the future of economic development.
It has been reported that more than 50 parliaments worldwide have already begun legislating or holding inquiries on AI.
In Africa, however, only a handful of countries, including Nigeria, Morocco, and Senegal have taken similar steps.
The discussion therefore underscored the growing recognition among African policymakers of the need to proactively shape the continent’s AI future, rather than merely reacting to developments driven by global tech hubs.
