The Africa Just AI Research Fellowship was established to strengthen the intellectual and empirical foundations of our flagship Africa Just AI Project agenda. This fellowship supports emerging scholars in Southern Africa by appointing four researchers who have completed or are enrolled in a PhD program at a Southern African University to work closely with our team to advance original AI governance research.
Over the course of three months, these fellows will contribute substantively to the development and operationalisation of RIA’s Just AI Framework of Inquiry, produce high-quality scholarly and policy outputs, and participate in collaborative knowledge exchange before, during, and following the 2026 Just AI Conference. The Fellows include:
Emmanuel Kpako Brown
Emmanuel Kpakpo Brown is a PhD candidate in Information Technology at Ghana Communication Technology University (GCTU). He holds an MSc in Information Technology & Law from the Ghana Institute of Management and Public Administration (GIMPA), and his research examines the intersection of AI, Digital Public Infrastructure, digital forensics, and FinTech-AML governance, with a focus on AI-enabled autonomous contract enforcement in emerging economies. He is a Certified Identity Management Professional (CIMP®) and vetted UNDP consultant, and serves as Principal Technology & Biometrics Officer at the National Identification Authority (NIA), Ghana, and as Vice President of the ID4Africa Identity Council.
Dr Elisabeth Achancho
Dr Elisabeth Achancho is a postdoctoral research fellow at the Free State Centre for Human Rights, Faculty of Law, University of the Free State, South Africa. She holds a PhD in Law from the University of KwaZulu-Natal and an LLM from the University of Yaoundé II Soa, Cameroon, and her research specialises in public international law, international trade law, African regional integration, AI governance, and human rights. She is a recipient of the UKZN Research Grant Award (2022) and the NIHSS–CODESRIA Doctoral Scholarship Award (2017).
Simbarashe Knox Kaneunyenye
Simbarashe Knox Kaneunyenye is a PhD candidate at the Centre of Criminology at the University of Cape Town. He holds a forensic science degree from the University of Zimbabwe, and his research examines role conflict within police forensic laboratories and how institutional pressures affect scientific integrity and justice outcomes. He is an Umholi We Africa Fellow currently working in the Office of the Chairperson at the Zimbabwe Human Rights Commission.
Dr Shirley Genga
Dr Shirley Genga is a postdoctoral fellow at the Free State Centre for Human Rights. She holds an LLB and LLM from the University of Nairobi and a PhD from the University of the Witwatersrand. Her research examines the intersection of human rights, disability rights, and artificial intelligence, with a particular focus on vulnerable and marginalised communities who face discrimination or exclusion due to unequal power dynamics in economic, political, social, and cultural spheres.
