Lawyers Hub Report Tracks Africa’s Growing Influence in AI Policy
The Nairobi launch brought African and European policy voices into the same room as governments race to define how AI should be regulated
A new policy report launched in Nairobi is placing Africa’s role in artificial intelligence regulation at the centre of a growing debate over how global AI systems should be governed, funded and supervised.
The report, Africa–Europe Cooperation on the Governance of Artificial Intelligence, was unveiled by Lawyers Hub during the Africa Forward Summit 2026 held on May 12 in Nairobi. Developed in partnership with Agence Française de Développement, the study examines how African and European institutions can cooperate on AI oversight while addressing disparities in technical capacity, infrastructure and regulatory readiness.
The launch brought together policymakers, legal researchers and technology stakeholders as African governments continue building national AI strategies and data governance frameworks.
Among the keynote speakers was Clara Chappaz, a French government official involved in digital policy and international AI governance discussions across Europe. She was joined by Bitange Ndemo, the Kenyan academic and former ICT ministry official widely associated with the country’s early internet and digital infrastructure reforms.
Their participation underscored the report’s wider focus on how African and European governments are positioning themselves in emerging AI policy negotiations.
“This study comes at a critical moment when Africa is not just engaging with AI governance, but actively shaping its future,” the organisers said during the launch event.
According to the report, several African countries are accelerating work on AI policy, data protection laws and digital regulation, even as institutions across the continent continue to face funding limitations, skills shortages and uneven enforcement capacity.
The study argues that future cooperation between Africa and Europe will depend on more than policy alignment. It points to the need for shared governance mechanisms, investment in local research capacity and stronger participation by African institutions in international rule-making processes.
The report also examines the growing influence of AI systems across sectors including public administration, finance, education and communications, areas where governments are increasingly under pressure to establish legal and ethical standards for deployment.
The Nairobi launch reflects a broader expansion of AI policy activity across Africa as governments, universities and regional bodies move to define regulatory approaches before international standards become entrenched.
For European policymakers, the report frames Africa as an active participant in AI governance discussions rather than a market expected to adopt rules developed elsewhere.
The full report is available here.
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