Bridging the AI Divide: Why Africa and the Global South must be at the Table

INTRODUCTION

It is not new that a quiet but dangerous gap is emerging as the world races to define the future of Artificial Intelligence. From the OECD AI Recommendation (2019) and G20 AI Principles (2019) to the Global Partnership on AI (GPAI), G7 Hiroshima Process (2023), Bletchley Declaration (2023), and AI Seoul Summit (2024), the dominant voices shaping the rules of AI have all come largely from the G7 and allied economies. Yet, about 118 countries majority of which are from the Global South and particularly remain outside these conversations.

Implication?

It means the very frameworks defining AI's safety, ethics, and economics are being designed without considering the local context, data, and challenges of billions of people in Africa and the Global South.

The Consequences of Exclusion

1. Regulatory isolation

Since these rules are made in isolation, they rarely will fit diverse contexts. African and Global South innovators may face conflicting or unworkable AI standards.

2. Economic Inequality

Africa and the Global South nations excluded from governance will often remain consumers of imported technologies thereby reducing their ability to create localized solutions and increasing dependency on Western products.

3. Bias

Systems trained on non-context specific datasets can promote more global inequities and increase digital marginalization.

4. Loss of Sovereignty

Without a voice in global AI frameworks, Africa's values, rights, and aspirations risk being written subject to foreign approval.

The Opportunity

The time is now for Africa and the Global South to stand out and be a major stakeholder in international dialogues on AI. With a growing pace of transformative and innovative technology ecosystem and with a young, dynamic population, rich cultural data, the Africa and the Global South can redefine inclusion not as a privilege, but as a new architecture for equitable AI governance.

This is why at Africa Tech for Development Initiative (Africa4dev) we are championing:

I. Continental cooperation to shape Africa's unified AI governance stance.

II. Localized innovation ecosystems connecting academia, industry, and policymakers.

III. Ethical and inclusive frameworks rooted in African values of community, fairness, and shared prosperity.

IV. Strategic partnerships that ensure African nations are not just at the receiving end of AI policy but co-authors of its future.

The Path Forward

The next phase of AI must be globally relevant must be all inclusive by design, not by mere representation. The Global south and Africa's voice is essential and should not be optional. if humanity is to build AI that serves everyone, everywhere then everyone must be at the table as of right not invitation.

Finally we call on

- Global AI forums to expand participation beyond traditional power blocs;

- African and Global South governments to invest in AI capacity, data infrastructure, and research;

- Local innovators to tell our own stories through technology that reflects our peculiar realities.

Conclusion

If AI is to uplift humanity, it must be shaped by all of humanity. Africa cannot afford to be a spectator in the greatest technological transformation of our time. It is time for an inclusive, equitable, and truly global AI governance framework with Africa at the table, not on the menu.