Responsible AI in higher education: Balancing innovation and accountability

What are the implications of artificial intelligence (AI) in higher education, and what does applying such a technology look like for the African continent?

These are some of the questions that were explored during the recent UP – Meta AI Policy Dialogue that was held at the University of Pretoria’s Javett Art Centre at the Hatfield Campus. The policy dialogue brought together leaders and practitioners from higher education, government and private sectors who explored the use of AI under the theme: “Responsible AI: Current Realities and Future Possibilities for Africa.”

“One of the things we foster at the University of Pretoria is what we call trans-disciplinary work because the world’s problems are not engineering, computer science, or law problems. They encompass different facets, and we try to bring all facets to work on challenges and opportunities,” said Professor Sunil Maharaj, Vice-Principal of research at UP.

“I hope that through this dialogue we’ll have today, we’ll develop actionable and context-specific recommendations and contribute to the development and governance of AI in South Africa and, more broadly, in Africa,” he said.

Prof Maharaj added that the dialogue can also “offer guidance to inform the actions and decisions of AI developers, researchers, funders, and policymakers and, of course, how we teach and learn going into be future.”

Deputy Minister of Higher Education, Science and Innovation, Buti Manamela, who delivered the keynote address at the dialogue, said: “As a continent, we have immense diversity of potential and are standing on the cusp of a technological renaissance. The possibilities for artificial intelligence in Africa today are vast and diverse.”

He said that for the continent to fully tap into the potential offered by AI, challenges such as access to technology, infrastructure, data privacy, security concerns, and skills development need to be addressed.

“We have to, probably under the African Union, consolidate our discussions as governments so that we have a clearer African agenda regarding the use and deployment of artificial intelligence,” Deputy Minister Manamela said.

“AI is not just a buzzword,” he added.

“It’s a tool that can leverage some of our most pressing challenges from predictive analysis in healthcare, improving patient outcomes and managing diseases, to AI-driven agricultural technologies that promise higher yields for farmers. We’re also seeing artificial intelligence transform the educational sector by personalising the learning experience and making education accessible to all, regardless of geographical location.”

Dr Chijioke Okorie, the founder and leader of UP’s Data Science Law Lab, emphasised the importance of context-specific solutions when developing AI solutions for the African continent.

“Within the AI policy space for Africa, we know what to do, and we need to focus on our context our realities, and use them to inform how to do AI policy research and devise policy implementation strategies,” she said

Dr Okorie pointed out that even within the continent, “there are comparable and similar experiences – but the engagement and impact of those similar experiences differ across the board, and so we must be nuanced and contextual in our approach in dealing with this”.

Sir Nick Clegg, the President of Global Affairs at Meta said events such as the policy dialogue are essential because being clear about what generative AI does and doesn’t do allows society to marry innovation and responsibility with the right blend.

“Transparency and openness are two foundational principles for us when innovating responsibly,” he said.

“I think it’s important to remember that this technology, far from disempowering people, will play a vital role in empowering people. It isn’t realistic to imagine that very soon, every person in this room will have an online AI assistant equal to the best executive assistants in corporate life. The degree of personalised help that can be given to people, I think, should lead to an immense democratisation of power.”

Clegg said the value exchange of AI is immensely beneficial for people.

“It’s not just a one-way street where your data is being sucked into some impenetrable machine, and you get nothing out of it. We will all get a lot out of this, and we can already see the beneficial applications of technology in education, health, agriculture, and productivity across the economy.”