Across Africa, AI is being harnessed to achieve positive impacts for marginalized communities. However, while AI can be used for good, some fear it could further marginalize and harm those it is intended to empower. Despite emphasis from both public and private sectors on equality and equity, uncertainty around policy-enabling environments, skills, and resources still presents a bottleneck for building inclusive AI. Though there are promising femtech solutions aimed at addressing specific gender concerns, the question of addressing needs and wants from a feminist approach in AI lingers.
Gender is often still an afterthought when it comes to policy implementation and practice, but there are many initiatives, charters, and agreements in Africa that support equality and aim to eliminate violence against women, combat the disproportionate effect of poverty on women, and support women’s participation in the political and economic spheres. For example, Agenda 2063 promotes gender equality and an engaged, empowered youth. The African Union strategy on Gender Equality and Women’s Empowerment (GEWE) 2018-2028 also aims to strengthen women’s agency in Africa and ensure that women’s voices are amplified and their concerns are fully addressed. The African Charter on Human and Peoples’ Rights on the Rights of Women in Africa similarly requires member states to tackle “all forms of discrimination against women through appropriate legislative measures.”
In Africa, there is a strong normative framework on gender equality and women’s and girls’ rights, and correspondingly, there are some civil or governmental initiatives that support women in national digital transformation policies. In Rwanda, for example, women have become increasingly influential in building national plans for artificial intelligence, and in Kenya, women have impacted the national plan for data uses. However, Africa is still facing challenges in integrating AI and policy. The Oxford AI Worldwide Readiness Index exemplifies the gap between the United States, ranked as first, and Mauritius, considered the African flagship country in AI policy, ranked 69th. There are only four African countries – Mauritius, South Africa, Rwanda, and Egypt – whose scores were higher than the global average of 47.59.
Policy efforts across the continent are increasing but still limited. In mid-2021, Egypt launched its national AI strategy, christened “Artificial Intelligence for Development and Prosperity,” making clear the country’s ambitious goals for development and economic growth. Senegal followed suit in 2023 with a strategy of its own, also focused on economic development. On April 20, 2023, Rwanda released its “National AI Policy for Responsible AI Adoption,” which emphasizes AI for sustainable development. In 2024, Kenya published its draft national AI strategy with goals including social inclusion, ethics, and equity in AI.