#中美竞争##非洲##人工智能#
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While African countries are racing to develop their own AI policies, the United States and China are in a new race to shape the development, use, and governance of AI in Africa.
In recent weeks, the two countries have stepped up cooperation with African countries in attracting investment and policies in AI.
At the U.S. Chamber of Commerce Business Summit in Nairobi last week, U.S. Commerce Secretary Gina Raimondo and the Kenyan government signed a partnership agreement to enable U.S. companies to invest in artificial intelligence and data centers in Kenya, East Africa's largest economy. Mr Raimondo said the deal would help "facilitate the flow of data and enhance digital skills". Kenya, Microsoft and the UAE's G42 Investment Group have also announced the construction of a 1 billion watt data center powered by renewable energy near Nairobi.
U.S.-Africa Business Forum
In early April, at the China-Africa Internet Summit in the southeastern port city of Xiamen, China announced that it would cooperate with African countries on artificial intelligence. The summit focused on China-Africa cooperation in the field of artificial intelligence, and the Cyberspace Administration of China intends to promote the development of policies on artificial intelligence in China and Africa and to promote the research, development and application of artificial intelligence technologies, including in African educational institutions.
Several African countries, including Egypt, Rwanda and Mauritius, have so far published national AI strategies, while several others, including Nigeria, Kenya and South Africa, are at various stages of developing similar strategies. Despite growing voices, regulation of AI is still not in place on the continent.
Emmanuel Kimmey, secretary of information and communication technology security at Kenya's Ministry of Technology, told Banner News: "The law is catching up with technology. He likened the rise of AI to M-Pesa, a mobile bank that was first launched and operated effectively in Kenya in 2008 without regulation.
Kenya railway built with China's assistance
He said the government is in talks with stakeholders, including the private sector, with the aim of developing new laws to guide AI governance in Kenya. With the support of Germany and the European Union, a project to develop a national AI strategy was launched in April this year.
"We said, let's talk to stakeholders before we have rules and guidelines," Kime said. "
If African countries are to avoid pitfalls such as data breaches, lost revenues, and bias in AI systems, they must quickly channel significant resources into AI research, development, policy development, and application. Without these, outside powers could dominate the use of this technology on the continent.
It's also important to keep up with the rest of the world. The European Union passed its AI bill in March, known as the world's first comprehensive AI bill. China is pushing for a new draft AI law similar to the European Union, and US President Joe Biden issued an executive order on AI security last October.
However, stakeholder engagement is key. Because some experts fear that attempts to regulate the continent's burgeoning AI industry could stifle innovation. For example, early attempts to regulate AI in Kenya were met with strong opposition from Kenyan tech industry leaders, who warned that the proposed regulation would raise the barrier to entry into the industry and scare away entrepreneurs and investors, as reported by Flag News Africa last December.
The right use of AI will enable the continent to effectively exploit its myriad potential opportunities in areas such as health, education, and agriculture. Research shows that AI could add $1.5 trillion to Africa's economy if the continent were to capture 10% of the world's market share by 2030.
African leaders will have the opportunity to adopt the African Union's draft AI policy framework at the AU Heads of State Summit in February next year. The draft includes regulatory recommendations on AI safety testing, the establishment of a national AI commission to oversee responsible and effective technology applications and certification bodies for the evaluation of AI systems. However, they still need to push for legislation in their respective countries.
AI in Africa opens up new battlefront for China, US. By Martin K.N Siele on Semafor, April 30, 2024.
The US and China are in a new race to shape the development, use and governance of artificial intelligence in Africa, even as African countries scramble to devise their own AI policies.
The two countries have in recent weeks stepped up efforts to collaborate with African countries on attracting AI investment and formulating policy.
At the American Chamber of Commerce Business Summit in Nairobi last week, US Commerce Secretary Gina Raimondo and the Kenyan government signed a partnership agreement meant to enable American companies to invest in artificial intelligence and data centers in Kenya, East Africa’s largest economy. Raimondo said the deal would help “facilitate data flows, and empower digital upskilling.” Kenya, Microsoft and UAE’s G42 investment group also announced the construction of a 1 gigawatt (GW) data center powered by renewable energy near Nairobi.
China declared its intention to collaborate with African countries on AI at the China-Africa internet summit in the southeastern port city of Xiamen earlier in April, where discussions focused on China-Africa cooperation in the area. China’s Cyberspace Administration pushed for the establishment of a China-Africa AI policy as well as the promotion of AI technology research, development and application including in African learning institutions.
A handful of African countries, including Egypt, Rwanda and Mauritius, have so far published national AI strategies, while several others including Nigeria, Kenya and South Africa are in different stages of developing similar strategies. But regulation of AI is yet to be adopted on the continent, despite growing calls to do so.
“The law is playing catch up to the technology,” Emmanuel Kimeu, secretary, ICT Security in Kenya’s technology ministry, told Semafor Africa, likening the rise of AI to that of the mobile money product M-Pesa which was pioneered in Kenya in 2008 effectively without regulation.
He said the government was in talks with stakeholders including the private sector as it aims to develop new laws to guide AI governance in Kenya. A project to formulate a national AI strategy, backed by Germany and the European Union, was launched in April.
“We said before creating rules and guidelines, let’s first speak to the stakeholders.”
African countries must quickly channel significant resources towards AI research, development, policy formulation and applications in their countries if they are to avoid pitfalls including data breaches, lost revenue and bias in AI systems. Without this, foreign powers could take charge of the technology’s use on the continent.
This is also important to keep pace with the rest of the world. The EU in March passed its AI Act, described as the world’s first comprehensive AI law. China is pushing a new AI draft law similar to the EU’s, and US President Joe Biden in October last year issued an executive order on safe AI.
Stakeholder engagement is, however, key as some experts fear attempts to regulate a nascent AI sector on the continent could stifle innovation. Early attempts to regulate AI in Kenya, for instance, fell flat in the face of strong opposition from Kenya’s tech sector leaders, as Semafor Africa reported in December. They warned that the proposed regulation would raise the barrier of entry into the industry and push away founders and investors.
Getting AI right would allow the continent to effectively tap into its countless potential applications in areas including health, education and agriculture. Research suggests AI could add $1.5 trillion to Africa’s economy by 2030 if the continent can capture 10% of the market.
African leaders will have a chance to adopt the African Union’s AI policy draft framework at next year’s AU Heads of State summit in February. The draft includes recommendations on regulatory sandboxes for safe testing of AI, the establishment of national AI councils to oversee responsible deployment of the technology, and certification bodies to assess AI systems. They would, however, still need to push the laws through in their individual countries.