Call for Papers

On 13 June 2024, the African Union (AU) adopted an Artificial Intelligence (AI) strategy. [1] The strategy seeks to put forward an Africa-centric, development-oriented, and inclusive approach focusing on five areas: harnessing AI's benefits, building AI capabilities, minimising risks, stimulating investment, and fostering cooperation. The AU notes that in Africa, "AI represents a strategic asset pivotal to achieving the aspirations of Agenda 2063 and the Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs)".[2]Several African countries, including Kenya, Mauritius, South Africa, Morocco and Nigeria, have tentative strategies to regulate AI and other new technological disruptors of the fourth industrial revolution (4IR). The Digital Transformation Strategy for Africa precedes the AI strategy, [3] which calls for a digitally transformed continent for prosperity and inclusivity through the following cross-cutting themes: Emerging technologies, cybersecurity, privacy and personal data protection digital content and application. The African Continental Free Trade (AfCFTA) Treaty, including several protocols, was adopted on 21 March 2018 and entered into force on 30 May 2019. The AfCFTA aims to achieve a comprehensive and mutually beneficial trade agreement among member states of the African Union (AU). In February 2024, the first draft of the digital trade protocol was published. The AU Convention on Cyber Security and Personal Data Protection (2014), known as the Malabo Convention, was adopted in 2023, nine years after the fifteen member states ratified it. Other initiatives that seek to address digital /technological advances and challenges include the African Declaration on Internet Rights and Freedoms, which is a Pan-African initiative that promotes human rights standards and principles of openness in Internet policy formulation and implementation on the continent launched in 2014.

Africa has eight sub-regional economic communities (RECs). The following RECs have adopted regulatory frameworks (including Model laws or harmonisation projects) that address data protection, consumer protection, cybercrimes and electronic commerce issues. Some of the RECs that have initiatives in place include the Southern African Development Community (SADC), Common Market for Eastern and Southern Africa (COMESA), and East Africa Community (EAC). These frameworks will assist member states that still need legislation to draw inspiration when passing laws where none existed or to amend existing ones. Before these continental and sub-regional initiatives, several member states had measures to regulate the categories above. The United Nations and Development (UNCTAD) provides a Global Cyber Law Tracker: a global mapping of Cyber laws which tracks the state of e-commerce legislation in the field of e-transactions, consumer protection law, data protection/ privacy and cybercrime adoption in the 194 UNCTAD member states. [4] It notes the following regarding African countries:

• 61% have adopted privacy and data protection laws;

• 36 countries adopted Electronic Transactions laws;

• 72% have adopted cybercrime laws with elements related to international cooperation in tackling cybercrime and

• 58% have consumer protection laws. Countries such as South Africa, Zambia, Zimbabwe, Nigeria, Ethiopia, Kenya, Botswana, Burkina Faso, Cameroon, and Egypt have adopted laws in the three or four categories above.

The statistics show that Africa is taking note of the technological landscape and the challenges it presents. Hence, the measures employed to regulate the landscape are based on model laws, conventions, and national laws addressing challenges. These initiatives span over two decades. The legislative imperatives vary in content and what is to be regulated. Not only does Africa have 55 member states, but these are also different in their demographics, language barriers, socio-economic dynamics, currency and access to information technology infrastructure (ICT), a significant hindrance to realising a unified continent that contributes to the global economy. These challenges also speak to the issue of digital trade, which needs to be harnessed and developed to achieve the milestones noted in the frameworks above. Not only has the COVID-19 pandemic diminished the gains made in the issues above, but it has also aggravated the digital divide and criminality meted out online against women and children. Cyber-attacks increased during that period and exposed the lack of digital literacy among users in general.

Now, with the advent of AI, new challenges emerge. Ethical questions arise regarding using AI where teaching and researching are concerned. Other challenges include whether AI can be a creator or innovator. All these expose the challenges and the need to address those. While there are legal frameworks, policies, and strategies in place to address these challenges, it is noted that the same tend to overlap and are inconsistent in adequately addressing the issues. Hence, there is a need to properly align and harmonise the frameworks to strengthen mutual assistance and international cooperation in addressing cyberattacks affecting citizens, companies, government departments, and all who engage in cyberspace. Secure ICT infrastructure remains vital to creating a safe cyberspace. Most importantly for Africa, specialists in ICT and cybersecurity need to be at the forefront of developing and designing AI that is ethical, responsible and responsive to human rights.  

The African Cyber Law Conference (ACLC) aims to evaluate the African cyber law landscape amidst new disruptive technologies. It will outline the strides made in the past two decades in regulating cyberspace and highlight the challenges and benefits of such frameworks. It seeks to foster robust discussion on different cyber law topics from specialists across the continent. It also aims to create a collaborative research network to generate innovation and facilitate knowledge interchange among African scholars and practitioners in Cyber Law.

The ACLC seeks to invite academics, thought leaders, government representatives, the legal fraternity, researchers, and Cyber Law students to dissect and discuss the future of this catalytic area on the continent in light of the traditional challenges and disruptive technologies presented in cyberspace. The contributions made at the conference are envisaged to culminate in research outputs in peer-reviewed publications.

MINI-TRACKS:

• Technology Enhanced Legal Pedagogy

• Curriculum transformation through artificial intelligence and educational technologies

• Ethical research and the use of Large Language Models

• Fourth Industrial Revolution; Robotics; Blockchain; Big data; Internet of Things; Internet of Things; Cloud Computing

• Artificial Intelligence and the Law

• Online Dispute Resolution

• Personality Rights Online

• Digital Property and Digital Assets

• E-commerce; Smart Contracts, Online Consumer Protection, Taxation and Electronic Payment Methods

• Data Protection and Online Privacy

• Digital Financial Services and Regulation

• Cyber-Harassment, Online Gender-Based Violence

• Cybersecurity Regulation

• Cybercrimes, Electronic Evidence

• African Cyber Feminism

• Children and Online Safety

• Digital Trade and the AfCFTA

• E-government Services and Access to Justice

• International Law and Cyberspace Policy, Governance and Regulation

• Law and Justice in the 4IR; E-Judiciary

• Crypto Currency and Bitcoin Regulation

• Technology, Innovation and Intellectual Property

• Regional integration and harmonisation of cyber laws

• Splinternet and Cyber Balkanisation

• Cyber Hygiene and Information Security

• Internet Service Provider Liability and Social Media Content Regulation

• Misinformation and Disinformation

SUBMISSION:

Delegates should note the following regarding submissions of abstracts and any other administrative matters.

Abstract submission deadline: 25 November 2024 (still accepting abstracts until 23:59 pm on 30 November 2024)

Conference queries: aclc.law@wits.ac.za

Conference fees:

• Early bird registration: R4 000 (10 January 2025)

• Late registration: R5 000 (27 January 2025)

• Students: R1 500

PUBLICATION OPPORTUNITIES:

Papers aligned with the conference theme will be published in peer-reviewed journals. A book project will also be initiated for other contributions.

SOURCES:

[1] African Union "Artificial Intelligence document to Continental Artificial Intelligence strategy: Harnessing AI for Africa's Development and Prosperity" https://au.int/sites/default/files/documents/44004-doc-EN-_Continental_AI_Strategy_July_2024.pdf1-66. 

[2] The African Union committed to developing AI capabilities in Africa (28 August 2024). https://au.int/en/pressreleases/20240828/african-union-committed-developing-ai-capabilities-africa#:~:text=With%20profound%20impacts%20across%20economics,Sustainable%20Development%20Goals%20(SDGs). 

[3] Digital Transformation Strategy for Africa 2020-2030 at 5 https://au.int/sites/default/files/documents/38507-doc-dts-english.pdf 1-53.

[4] The UNCTAD indicates whether or not a given country has adopted legislation or has a draft law pending adoption. https://unctad.org/topic/ecommerce-and-digital-economy/ecommerce-law-reform/summary-adoption-e-commerce-legislation-worldwide (accessed 4 September 2024).

Submit your abstract here.