Kenya aims to protect its citizens’ data and information collected within its borders from exploitation by foreign developers.
To achieve this, it seeks to join many jurisdictions worldwide that are implementing such restrictions. The first phase of this plan involves the government classifying, categorizing, and regulating access to data collected within Kenya and from Kenyans.
The aim is to limit foreign developers’ use of this data for training AI models. Additionally, the government plans to enhance data residency requirements and ensure compliance with national data laws and regulations regarding the processing and storage of data collected from Kenyans.
The Ministry of ICT, in its AI Strategy, addressed the following issues:
“Kenya is heavily dependent on external data centers to process and store data produced within the country and about Kenyans, raising concerns about data sovereignty and the potential for external entities to control or influence key AI data.”
The Ministry further explained that this reliance on external entities for data storage and management raises the risk of losing control over critical AI data, which could expose the country to data exploitation, external manipulation, privacy breaches, dependency on external AI solutions, and national security threats.
Additionally, the country’s diplomatic missions will be tasked with advocating for digital and data sovereignty in the international arena, aiming to support Kenya’s data protection goals. The Ministry of Foreign Affairs stated:
“Kenya advocates for digital sovereignty within international law, ensuring control over our AI systems and data, while promoting global collaboration for shared prosperity.”
AI usage in Kenya is quite advanced, and the public has a positive outlook on this technology. According to research by the University of Toronto, 25% of Kenyans understand artificial intelligence, a figure that is above the global average. The usage of AI tools like large language models (LLMs) is also notably high. 80% of Kenyans are aware of ChatGPT, compared to 61% globally.
With this policy, Kenya could become the first country in Africa to impose restrictions on the use of citizens’ data for AI training. Kenya’s enthusiasm for this technology may have led it to collect information on its potential uses, prompting the government to take preventive measures against its dangerous applications.
However, many tech companies in Kenya, sometimes collecting data without the consent or knowledge of the data subjects, have not yet registered with the country. The new rules could prevent these companies from collecting such data.