• The Department of Communications and Digital Technology (DCDT) has drafted a policy framework for the future implementation of national AI laws.
• This includes nine pillars that cover how AI policies in South Africa should be moulded, with careful consideration of ethics.
• The department is now calling for feedback on the draft framework.

The South African Department of Communications and Digital Technology (DCDT)has this month published a National Artificial Intelligence Policy Framework from which it plans to influence all incoming AI policies in the future.

Importantly, the framework is just that, and does not call for any specific policies to be rolled out when it comes to AI in South Africa. Rather, it gives surface levels objectives for any national AI policies in the future to maximise how much good South Africans can get out of the technology, while minimizing the bad.

“For South Africa to exploit the full potential of AI, the country needs to carefully take into consideration
ethical, social, and economic implications, ensuring that AI benefits are broadly shared, and risks are
managed effectively,” the framework reads.

It says that a cornerstone to this objective, is that the AI use remains ethical.

“The policy framework emphasizes the importance of human-centred AI, ensuring that AI applications
augment human decision-making rather than replace it. By safeguarding professional responsibility and promoting human values, the framework ensures that AI development aligns with societal and ethical considerations,” it adds.

It also makes a note that South Africa requires more capacity and skills to be built around AI in order for more South Africans to benefit from the technology, and goes into some detail how this capacity can be managed.

“By providing a clear policy framework, the National AI Policy will guide the development of robust regulatory mechanisms that ensure AI applications are safe, ethical, and aligned with public interest,” it explains.

“This will not only protect citizens from potential harms but also build trust in AI technologies, encouraging their adoption and fostering a thriving AI ecosystem in South Africa.”

The AI policy framework has nine strategic pillars, which it calls the “fundamental components or key areas of focus” that will support future goals and objectives of the policy.

These pillars are:

• AI talent development and capacity building through integrating AI in basic education and launching AI training programmes,
• Creating an environment that supports AI technologies through improved digital infrastructure including developing “supercomputing infrastructure” and allowing more access to faster internet speeds,
• Establish research centres focused on AI, and promote collaboration between private and public sectors, as well as academia around the technology,
• The implementation of AI to optimise how the government manages the state and service delivery,
• Create ethical guidelines for the use and implementation of AI, including the strengthening of data protection laws,
• Implement “robust cybersecurity protocols” to safeguard AI systems launched by the government,
• Use and promote AI systems that are easy to understand, which will increase trust in these systems with the addition of added transparency on how government uses and chooses its AI technologies,
• And develop methods to identify and mitigate bias, use datasets that are inclusive of different ethnicities and demographics, and ensure humans are always the decision-makers.

Overall, this framework covers a significant portion of bases, hitting all necessary points in its broadness. Time will tell whether or not the pillars will be taken into consideration, and how well, when actual policy is drafted.

The framework is now open to comment, with the department taking “formal consultations” with stakeholders in the local tech industry and wider. It wants to finish these final consultations by September.

If you are interested in providing feedback, you can do so via email on: dcdt[at]gov[dot]za. You can find the full framework embedded below: