The Uganda Communications Commission (UCC) has initiated a significant push towards integrating artificial intelligence (AI) into the country’s technological framework. This initiative, spearheaded by a newly formed AI task force composed of experts from within the commission and academia, aims to harness the transformative potential of AI to address national development goals.
On July 26, 2024, UCC launched a specialized task force dedicated to artificial intelligence. The task force, chaired by Michael Bamwesigye, Head of IT at UCC has been assigned the responsibility of drafting a comprehensive concept note on different aspects of AI technology, which shall guide all relevant interventions across the sectors.
The UCC has also started the formulation process of a national AI strategy to address the skills gap in the labor force and provide a common framework for AI development. Such a strategy would nationalize Ugandan initiatives in AI with best practices from the global community while promoting local innovation in the very same breath.
The commission’s Executive Director, Nyombi Thembo, while speaking at the launch of the AI Initiative stressed that AI should rather be understood than feared for its revolutionized latter-day impacts in sectors. “We shouldn’t fear AI, but rather seek to understand its benefits,” said Nyombi. “AI has the potential to revolutionize key sectors such as healthcare, agriculture, and education, driving sustainable growth and improving public services.”
Consultative workshops have also been organized by the body for stakeholders from the government, academia, and industry to compile discussions on the future of AI in Uganda. The workshops would therefore cover such critical areas as skills development, as they would relate to infrastructure enhancement and the regulatory frameworks necessary for the advancement of AI technologies.
What is UCC missing?
While UCC is making gradual strides in embracing AI, there remain critical areas that it appears to overlook in its quest for excellence. These gaps not only hinder the effectiveness of its initiatives but also raise questions about the inclusivity and sustainability of its approach. Addressing these overlooked aspects is essential for UCC to build a robust AI strategy that fosters innovation, bridges existing disparities, and ensures that the benefits of AI are accessible to all.
- Youth representation and engagement
One of the key issues raised at the UCC AI task force is youth representation. Most of the members are aged over 45. This begs the question as to how relevant their perceptions of a rather fast-evolving technology will be perceived. Innovation has always been at the cutting edge of youth, and this is bound to stifle creativity and adaptability to the changes.
With youth representation missing on the task force, the commission received so much criticism for the age demographics of the task force. There was clearly a disconnection between regulators and this rising generation of tech-savvy youths who would be a resource in AI development.
UCC came out to address the issue —in an X (formerly Twitter) post wrote, “The task force is actually dominated by young people. Not everyone you see in the photo is a member.”
As of now, no official photograph of the task force has been released to substantiate UCC’s claims that its members are predominantly youth.
- Ethical frameworks and governance
While UCC recognizes that ethics must be tied to AI applications, a comprehensive governance framework is greatly lacking. Urging titled call for immediate legislation for AI in light of Deputy Speaker Thomas Tayebwa, who stressed that AI laws shall be necessary to avert threats and dilemmas arising from utilization. Thus, without such a framework societal differences are most likely to be aggravated by machine learning-induced hardship such as algorithmic bias, violation of data privacy, and accountability of AI-inferred actions.
- Human-centric approach over technical focus
UCC appears to have become too technically obsessed with infrastructure requirements and cybersecurity with respect to AI and not dealing with the human side of the equation or the implications that AI technologies have for people’s lives. The prerequisite involvement of social scientists and ethicists in this area would support a more responsible relationship between human welfare and technological advancement. For instance, discussions around how AI can impact employment and community dynamics are crucial for ensuring that technological growth does not come at the expense of societal well-being.
See also: OP-ED: Scared of AI? It won’t replace humans
- Educational and skills development initiatives
With Uganda positioning itself as the frontier in AI within Africa, investment in education and skills development is key. Although discussions have been raised by UCC on training programs for professionals in such a field, there must be curricular programs done at the level with comprehensive educational initiatives for the broader acquisition of skills. Apart from technical education, they have also to learn about the ethical issues centered on the responsible usage of AI technologies.
- Collaboration with the private sector and academia
The collaboration with private sector players and academic institutions would go a long way in further strengthening the efforts of UCC. Cooperation between such parties would definitely enhance innovation by pooling expertise and resources. Partnerships with technology companies, for example, could lead to knowledge transfer and practical insights into the real-world applications of AI. Gradually, this could also effectively influence research into policy-making.
- Addressing data governance issues
Data governance comes to the forefront as Uganda pushes the whole AI agenda. UCC is supposed to pick up the mandate of instituting well-structured frameworks under data governance, which would address the ethical concerns related to the collection, usage, and sharing of data. Transparency and accountability while sourcing and using data in fashion while ensuring respect for citizen privacy will help garner public confidence in AI technologies.
- Increasing diversity in technological advancement
As per the current approach of the UCC, there is no well-established focus on inclusivity with regard to technological development. Access to AI technologies for underprivileged communities is a prerequisite for equal growth. Initiatives aimed at creating awareness on how to bridge the digital divide by providing resources and training to the unserved population so that they can take full advantage of Uganda’s digital economy would have to be part of efforts to access AI technologies by the marginal groups.
- Environmental sustainability considerations
As the majority of the life cycle expenses of the ICT infrastructure of Uganda are going to be incurred in the future, it becomes necessary to settle environmental issues along with the ICT-AI strategy for Uganda. UCC must make provisions, with standards for practices on sustainability in the ICT sector, for issues such as e-waste disposal and energy-efficient technologies. That is how the Ugandan people will ensure that their development in technology does not come at the expense of environmental survival.
- Continuous stakeholder engagement
Establishing mechanisms for continuous engagement with various stakeholders, such as civil society organizations, tech entrepreneurs, and community leaders, is going to be very important for collating different views on AI implementation. Continuous consultations will be a means of bringing to the fore emerging challenges and opportunities in addition to creating a sense of belonging among Ugandans concerning their technological future.
UCC’s strides into integrating artificial intelligence into the communications landscape of Uganda have indeed been commendable. Of course, there needs to be a big anchoring of gaps for an effective, sustainable future. Addressing youth inclusion, ethical governance, educational collaboration with stakeholders, regulation of governance data, inclusiveness, environmental sustainability, and continuous engagement activities with the community will give UCC a well-organized framework for excellence in AI.
Through such inclusivity can Uganda begin to scratch the surface of what is truly possible in transforming the society’s economy through the harnessing of artificial intelligence. Benefits will also accrue to UCC itself among enablers that will watch Uganda take a leading role in responsible artificial intelligence adoption across Africa.
