Research ICT Africa’s (RIA) Africa Just AI project advances an African-centred approach to AI governance grounded in human rights, economic justice, social inclusion and environmental sustainability. The project is supported by the International Development Research Centre (IDRC) through the Artificial Intelligence for Development (AI4D) programme, and Global Research and Technology Development. AI4D supports locally led research, innovation and policy development to foster safe, inclusive, rights-based and sustainable AI ecosystems, while strengthening the capacity of countries in the Global South to shape their own technological futures.
While global AI governance debates have largely focused on ethics, safety and risk mitigation, these approaches often overlook the structural inequalities embedded in the political economy of AI. Africa contributes resources, data and labour to global AI value chains, yet has limited influence over how technologies are developed or how their economic benefits are distributed.
Central to the project is RIA’s Just AI Framework of Inquiry, which moves beyond conventional approaches to ethical or responsible AI to examine justice across the entire AI value chain. Structured around nine interconnected inquiries, the Framework provides a practical, context-sensitive approach to assessing AI governance, policy and development through the lenses of human rights, structural inequality, democratic accountability, economic and data justice, inclusion and sustainability.
The project applies this approach through research on AI’s implications for democracy, labour, economic inequality, environmental sustainability and emerging governance challenges, alongside assessments of national AI strategies. Through policy engagement and capacity building, RIA works to translate research into practical governance approaches, strengthen African participation in national and global AI policy processes, and advance AI development grounded in justice, sustainability and African agency.
The Africa Just AI project has also convened two international Just AI conferences, bringing together researchers, policymakers, civil society, technology practitioners and other stakeholders from across Africa and beyond. The outcomes are documented in the respective proceedings of the 2024 Just AI Conference and 2026 Just AI Conference.
