AI Governance Active

REST-AI RoundTable Dialogue

Africa's reference framework for responsible, ethical, scalable AI regulation.

A multi-year initiative producing the continental governance architecture for AI adoption across African nations. REST-AI is now under consideration by the African Union Commission as a continental reference standard, with endorsements from six national digital ministries.

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Timeline

1 Apr 2024 – Ongoing

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Funding

Internal

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Geographic reach

7 countries

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Partners

2 organisations

Impact at a Glance

17
Nations consultation (ongoing)
10
AI Practitioners review the draft
229-page
Working draft
300+
Stakeholders engaged

REST-AI is HTC Africa's flagship governance project — a comprehensive, multi-stakeholder framework designed to give African nations the regulatory tools, ethical principles, and institutional capacity to lead rather than follow on artificial intelligence.

Project Pillars

  • Regulatory clarity — Model statutory language tailored to African legal traditions
  • Ethical grounding — Principles rooted in African cultural and philosophical context
  • Scalability by design — Frameworks that work for both technology-leading and resource-constrained nations
  • Technology sovereignty — Mechanisms that protect national data, infrastructure, and decision-making
  • Inclusive deployment — Provisions to ensure equity in AI benefits and protections

Current Phase

The Framework is now in its Phase II implementation pilot, working with three lead-adopter nations to convert principles into national legislation and regulatory practice. The pilot concludes Q4 2026.

Countries Engaged

Nigeria Ghana Kenya Rwanda South Africa Senegal Egypt

Partners

  • Nigerian Communication Commission
  • Nigeria Data Protection Commission
Get Involved

Want to Partner on REST-AI RoundTable Dialogue?

Reach out to discuss collaboration, co-funding, or country-level participation.