Faith Ndou
MIDRAND SOUTH AFRICA-The Pan-African Parliament this week turned its focus to the transformative role of artificial intelligence (AI) in public policy and the urgent need for robust data governance frameworks to safeguard citizens’ rights.
Speaking during AI governance training session in Midrand South Africa, Henry Owoko a Monitoring, Evaluation and Research Officer and Daniel Mwanga, Senior Data Scientist at the African Population and Health Research Center (APHRC) stressed that while AI offers unprecedented opportunities for evidence based policymaking, Africa must urgently address risks of bias, privacy breach and misuse of personal data.
Owoko outlined how AI is reshaping citizen engagement, policy design and public service delivery.
He cited AI’s ability to analyze demographic data, map community needs and enhance voter outreach during campaigns.
“Unlike traditional methods that may take months, AI can produce results in seconds,” he said.
He noted that the COVID-19 pandemic exposed the dangers of delayed data collection in Africa where responses were slowed by gaps in monitoring systems.
“With AI, it is now possible to conduct real time monitoring and evaluation, reducing the gap between crisis, regulation and action,” Owoko explained.
He also demonstrated PolicyLens AI, a new tool developed by APHRC which analyzes existing policies against new evidence and suggests improvements to legislators. However, he warned that algorithmic bias, surveillance concerns and potential misuse of AI by authoritarian regimes remain pressing challenges.
Mwanga’s address focused on the foundations of data governance which he described as central to harnessing AI responsibly.
“Data governance is about privacy, data quality, ownership and compliance with legal frameworks,” he said, adding that Africa cannot advance its digital transformation agenda without clear and enforceable standards.
He emphasized that data governance rests on three pillars, people, processes and technology.
“We need capacity building for people handling data, policies and guidelines to govern use and strong technological infrastructure such as cybersecurity systems,” Mwanga noted.
The APHRC scientist highlighted continental milestones such as the Malabo Convention (2014) and the influence of the EU’s General Data Protection Regulation (GDPR) which has spurred many African nations to adopt their own data protection laws.
Currently, 37 countries on the continent have established regulatory frameworks at varying levels of implementation.
Both speakers urged parliamentarians to take a proactive role in shaping AI and data governance policies, warning that the stakes are high.
“The same technology that empowers citizens can also be used to monitor and control them,” Owoko cautioned.
As Africa moves toward Agenda 2063, PAP underscored the growing consensus that artificial intelligence and strong data governance will be at the heart of inclusive and sustainable development.
