Event: DataFest Africa 25
Format: Panel Discussion
Moderator: Morine Amutorine, Africa Sandboxes Forum Lead, Datasphere Initiative
Panelists:
TBC
Background
Civil society plays a vital role in ensuring that AI governance is inclusive, transparent, and accountable to the public interest. Regulatory sandboxes provide a unique opportunity for civil society organizations (CSOs) to contribute by scrutinizing risks, advocating for human rights protections, and ensuring that emerging technologies reflect public values and the voices of underserved and underrepresented communities. By fostering collaboration between regulators, companies, and CSOs, sandboxes can become spaces that surface public concerns and integrate them into AI governance frameworks. Civil society’s involvement also brings much-needed transparency to AI development processes, helping identify potential biases, ethical challenges, and unintended social impacts before technologies are deployed at scale.
The Challenge
Despite this potential, CSOs remain largely absent from most existing sandbox initiatives. Many frameworks have been designed primarily as spaces for policymakers and industry collaboration, with few mechanisms for meaningful civil society participation. This gap in engagement means that critical perspectives and oversight capacities are often missing in the design and implementation of AI sandboxes.
Session Objectives
This panel will address the civil society participation gap and explore pathways for building more inclusive sandbox models. Speakers will discuss how CSOs can be equipped with the necessary skills and tools to engage effectively in sandbox processes, and how their perspectives can be systematically integrated into AI governance frameworks. The session will invite participants to reflect on ways to strengthen accountability, amplify diverse voices, and ensure that sandboxes contribute to responsible and equitable AI adoption in Africa and beyond.