At the India AI Summit (16–20 February 2026, Bharat Mandapam, New Delhi), KICTANet made a strategic intervention through the Shared Learning Forum on AI. Dr. George Musumba delivered a featured presentation titled “Beyond Risk: Operationalising Rights-Centered AI Governance in Multistakeholder Ecosystems.”
His message was clear: global AI governance must move beyond compliance-driven risk models and embrace rights-centered frameworks that embed accountability, shared decision-making, and contextual responsiveness.
Moving Beyond Risk
Risk-based approaches dominate regulatory discourse, but KICTANet argued they are not enough to guarantee rights-respecting outcomes—especially in diverse and emerging digital ecosystems. Governance must transform, not just classify.
By drawing on its experience convening multistakeholder ICT reforms, KICTANet positioned collaborative governance as the cornerstone of durable AI regulation. The presentation emphasized co-designed frameworks that empower Global South actors as co-authors of AI norms, rather than passive recipients of knowledge transfer.
Rights-Centered Governance in Practice
The discussion expanded the definition of AI risk to include societal dimensions: equity, inclusion, data justice, and sectoral impacts in healthcare, climate resilience, and food systems. By situating risk within real-world institutional and development contexts, KICTANet reinforced the need for governance models that are both technically sound and socially grounded.
Breakout session insights later appeared in the Summit’s plenary highlights, underscoring the resonance of KICTANet’s framing and signaling growing recognition of Global South leadership in shaping next-generation AI governance.
India used the Summit to position itself as a bridge between advanced economies and the Global South. Officials highlighted India’s digital ID and online payments systems as models for low-cost AI deployment.
The Summit also spotlighted sovereign AI, inclusive growth, and safeguards against job displacement. Reliance Industries pledged ₹10 lakh crore to strengthen India’s AI ecosystem, while leaders emphasized homegrown infrastructure to reduce reliance on foreign technology.
Trilateral Partnership
One of the Summit’s most significant outcomes was the launch of a trilateral partnership between India, Kenya, and Italy to co-design scalable, sovereign AI pathways across Africa.
This collaboration—co-led by EkStep Foundation, Kenya’s Ministry of ICT and Digital Economy, and Italy’s Ministry of Enterprises and Made in Italy, with UNDP support—marks a decisive shift from fragmented pilots to scalable diffusion pathways. Anchored in the G7-endorsed AI Hub for Sustainable Development and aligned with Italy’s Mattei Plan, the partnership combines:
- India’s innovation expertise and digital public goods
- Kenya’s ecosystem leadership in Africa
- Italy’s industrial partnerships
The initiative prioritizes voice-enabled AI solutions tailored to local contexts, low-connectivity environments, local languages, and data ownership frameworks. Together, these efforts aim to build green, sovereign AI infrastructure that empowers communities and strengthens Africa’s digital future.
Kenya–India DigiLocker Agreement
A major milestone was achieved when Kenya signed the DigiLocker Implementation Framework Agreement (IFA) with the Republic of India under the Kenya–India bilateral digital cooperation MoU.
This agreement advances secure, paperless government services by enabling trusted digital document issuance and verification, alongside citizen-controlled digital credentials. The pilot will prioritize key sectors including: education credentials, professional certificates, national IDs and business registry services.
Strong cybersecurity and data protection safeguards will anchor the rollout, ensuring trust and resilience in Kenya’s digital transformation journey.
KICTANet’s Role in Kenya
In Kenya, KICTANet is at the center of national AI policy development. As the primary civil society and think tank partner to the Ministry of ICT and Digital Economy, KICTANet is helping craft Kenya’s first National AI & Emerging Technologies Policy.
This work, supported by the British High Commission in Nairobi, links Kenya’s AI policy efforts to broader UK–Kenya cooperation on responsible AI and digital transformation.
As artificial intelligence reshapes societies, KICTANet remains committed to advancing inclusive, rights-centered digital governance. By bridging policy innovation, institutional strengthening, and practical implementation, KICTANet is helping design governance architectures that ensure AI systems are accountable, equitable, and aligned with the public interest.