AI in Africa

The document examines the integration of Artificial Intelligence (AI) in Africa, highlighting a tension between the continent's role as a provider of raw materials and labour and its dependence on foreign AI technologies from the Global North and China. It identifies significant risks associated with AI adoption, including the misuse of biometric digital IDs in Namibia and South Africa, the deployment of facial recognition for surveillance in Uganda and South Africa, and the exploitation of vulnerable populations through 'click work' in Kenyan refugee camps. The author analyses emerging national AI strategies in Egypt, Mauritius, and Rwanda, as well as the SMARTAfrica Blueprint, noting that while these frameworks address infrastructure and talent, they often overlook the labour rights of gig workers and the specific impact of automation on women. The brief evaluates the potential for policy transfer from the EU, specifically the AI Act and GDPR, warning that such frameworks may not account for African socio-economic rights or the technical constraints of local start-ups. It concludes by recommending that African policymakers focus on building inclusive digital infrastructure, fostering regional cooperation for data sharing, and implementing beneficiation frameworks to ensure local communities profit from the data used to train AI systems.

• Africa is integrated into the global AI supply chain primarily as a source of natural resources, labour, and skills, yet the economic benefits are largely captured by Chinese and Global North 'Big Tech' companies.
• The adoption of AI-driven digital ID and biometric systems has led to unethical data practices and human rights concerns, such as the use of beneficiary data by Net1 in South Africa to issue predatory loans and the use of Huawei facial recognition by the Ugandan government to track opposition supporters.
• The global AI economy has created new forms of precarious labour in Africa, specifically 'click work' where refugees in camps like Dadaab, Kenya, are paid fractional amounts to label data, often exposing them to distressing content without labour protections.
• Foreign AI influence is heavily driven by China's Belt and Road and Digital Silk Road Initiatives, with 40 of 54 African countries signing agreements by May 2021 that introduced 5G, cloud computing, and surveillance infrastructure.
• While Egypt, Mauritius, and Rwanda have established national AI strategies, these frameworks frequently fail to address the digital gender divide and the specific risk that automation poses to women, who often hold the low-skilled roles most susceptible to replacement.
• The application of the EU's General Data Protection Regulation (GDPR) in Africa may create a two-tiered system of protection where European data processed in Africa is more securely handled than the data of African citizens, while simultaneously creating barriers for local start-ups.

APA

ADAMS, D. R. (2022). AI in Africa. Africa Policy Research Institute. https://afripoli.org/uploads/publications/AI_in_Africa.pdf

Chicago

ADAMS, DR. RACHEL. AI in Africa. Africa Policy Research Institute, 2022. https://afripoli.org/uploads/publications/AI_in_Africa.pdf.

Wikipedia

{{cite report |last1=ADAMS |first1=DR. RACHEL |title=AI in Africa |publisher=Africa Policy Research Institute |date=2022 |url=https://afripoli.org/uploads/publications/AI_in_Africa.pdf |access-date=17 August 2026 |via=Climate Insights Directory}}

BibTeX

@techreport{adams2022africa, author = {ADAMS, DR. RACHEL}, title = {{AI in Africa}}, institution = {Africa Policy Research Institute}, year = {2022}, url = {https://afripoli.org/uploads/publications/AI_in_Africa.pdf}, urldate = {2026-08-17}, note = {Indexed by Climate Insights Directory} }