Rudolf Gaiseb
The Namibia Artificial Intelligence (AI) Readiness Assessment report was launched on Monday.
The aim is to bring together stakeholders to foster an ethical approach to adopting AI in support of its national developmental agenda.
The project is a collaboration between the Ministry of Education, Innovation, Youth, Sports, Arts and Culture, the United Nations Educational, Scientific and Cultural Organisation (Unesco) and the National Commission on Research, Science and Technology (NCRST).
A formulation of a national AI strategy will follow the launch, alongside the establishment of a multi-stakeholder advisory council.
The digital divide remains stark in the demographics of gender, geography, income and disability.
Broadband coverage, digital literacy and access to devices are still limited in rural areas and among low-income communities.
Namibia has a strong innovation potential, AI research and promising private sector involvement.
However, deputy education minister Dino Ballotti said government investment is lacking.
“It is not just about machines and algorithms. It is about people and ensuring that children in rural Namibia benefit from adaptive learning platforms, that farmers can access climate-smart data, that healthcare workers are supported with diagnostic tools and that our youth can create, innovate and thrive in the Fourth Industrial Revolution,” he said.
Ballotti highlighted that AI presents new ways to address longstanding development challenges while transforming economies and reshaping education and health systems.
He added that integrating ethics into curricula, raising public awareness, encouraging regional cooperation and embedding AI into national development planning are essential actions that must be pursued together.
He highlighted that media and civil society have the responsibility to enhance public awareness of AI to promote inclusive policy dialogue and democratic oversight.
Ballotti pinpointed the need to support AI startups, invest in local innovation ecosystems and establish public-private partnerships.
He said working with all stakeholders in the public sector, private sector, academia and civil society to develop a policy framework will ensure equity, inclusion and sustainable development.
Unesco representative to Namibia Eunice Smith said this assessment has resulted in important legal, socio-cultural, scientific, educational, economic, technical and infrastructural recommendations.
It will help Namibia build the ethical framework necessary to leverage and maximise the benefits of AI for development while minimising the risks and challenges posed by the technology.
“Unesco insists on the ethical aspects of AI, emphasising that AI development, governance and application must be underpinned by values such as respect, protection and promotion of human rights and fundamental freedoms as well as human dignity, protection and flourishing of the environment and ecosystem, ensuring diversity and inclusiveness and enabling peaceful, just and interconnected societies,” she stated.
Nevertheless, Namibia joins Botswana, Malawi, Mozambique, South Africa and Zimbabwe in assessing AI readiness.
NCRST researcher and strategic projects coordinator Simeon Hamukoshi said Namibia is almost ready for AI.
Namibia has made progress in its AI, although efforts are still needed in policy development, capacity building and infrastructure improvement.
“By implementing these strategic recommendations, Namibia can truly leverage AI’s transformative potential for sustainable national development, economic growth and the well-being of all its citizens,” Hamukoshi said during a presentation.
-rgaiseb@nepc.com.na