How should African policy-makers approach intellectual property issues in the emerging regional and national artificial intelligence strategies in Africa?
 

Author: 

D Oriakhogba
 

Summary: 

Policy-makers at the regional and national levels in Africa are formulating strategies to develop and harness regional and national artificial intelligence (AI) ecosystems in pursuit of the sustainable development objectives set out in their respective development plans. Given the significance of intellectual property (IP) to AI development in Africa, it is important to reflect on how best IP should be addressed in AI strategies in Africa. Through a techno-legal lens, the article examines whether African policy-makers should develop new IP rules for AI, or whether they should revise or simply apply existing IP rules within the AI context. The article contends that the appropriate approach – whether to develop new IP rules for AI, revise existing rules or simply apply them – depends on the specific AI-IP issue at stake. Whatever the case, an approach to IP in AI strategies that is human-centered, development-focused, and strikes an equitable balance between promoting AI innovation through access to quality data and protecting IP rights, while ensuring just reward for creators, innovators and indigenous communities, will position Africa to leverage AI more effectively towards national and regional development. 


Link to Journal Article