African governments are increasingly setting out how they want artificial intelligence to support development, and how to manage its risks. The African Union endorsed a Continental Artificial Intelligence Strategy in 2024, and a growing number of countries have published national AI strategies or policies. This article explains what they contain.
AI policy is developing quickly. Check government sources for the latest documents.
The AU Continental AI Strategy
Endorsed by the AU Executive Council in July 2024, the Continental AI Strategy promotes an Africa-centric, development-focused approach to AI. Its broad aims include:
- Harnessing AI for priorities such as agriculture, health, education and climate
- Building AI skills, research capacity and infrastructure, including compute and data
- Minimising risks such as bias, privacy harms, misinformation and job disruption
- Encouraging investment and public-private partnerships
- Promoting regional and international cooperation, and giving Africa a stronger voice in global AI governance
National strategies: examples
- Mauritius was among the first African countries to publish an AI strategy, in 2018.
- Egypt launched a national AI strategy in 2021 and has since updated its plans, with a focus on skills, government use and industry.
- Rwanda adopted a National AI Policy in 2023, aiming to use AI for socio-economic development with ethical guidelines.
- Kenya launched a national AI strategy in 2025 covering infrastructure, data, research and talent.
- Nigeria has developed a national AI strategy through a consultative process involving researchers and industry.
Other countries, including Ghana, Senegal, Morocco, Tunisia, Ethiopia, South Africa and Zambia, have published or are developing AI strategies, frameworks or policy documents.
Common priorities
- Skills and education: AI curricula, scholarships and research centres; see our digital skills roadmap
- Infrastructure: data centres, cloud and computing power, and connectivity; see Internet Connectivity in Africa
- Data: making public data available while protecting privacy
- Priority sectors: agriculture, health, finance, education and public services
- Ethics and trust: principles for fairness, transparency and accountability
- Local innovation: support for AI startups and local-language AI; see AI in African Languages
Regulation: strategies first, laws later
Most African countries have not yet passed comprehensive AI-specific laws. Instead, existing laws, especially data protection laws, already govern many AI uses, such as automated decision-making and processing personal data. See Data Protection Laws in Africa. Regulators in sectors such as finance and health are also issuing guidance on AI use.
Gaps and challenges
- Funding: many strategies lack dedicated budgets for implementation
- Computing infrastructure: limited local data centres and AI hardware
- Talent retention: skilled researchers often move abroad
- Data availability for local contexts and languages
- Coordination between ministries, regulators and the private sector
Why it matters
National AI strategies shape where governments invest, which skills are taught and how companies may use AI. For businesses and developers, they signal opportunities for public-sector partnerships and the direction of future regulation.
Learn more in our AI in Africa guide and our tech policy guide.
