Kenya has released its first National Artificial Intelligence Strategy (2025–2030), a landmark document on the continent that sets out a government-led vision for ethical, inclusive, and innovation-driven AI adoption. Framed as a foundational step in the country’s digital transformation agenda, the strategy articulates policy ambitions that will be of interest to global companies developing, deploying, or investing in AI technologies across Africa.
While the strategy is explicitly domestic in focus, its framing—and the architecture of its governance, infrastructure, and data pillars—reflects a broader trend, i.e., the localization of global AI governance norms in high-growth, emerging markets.
What the Strategy Means for Global Technology Governance
The strategy touches on several themes that intersect with enterprise risk, product development, and regulatory foresight for multinationals:
- Data governance and sovereignty: Kenya signals a strong intent to develop AI within national parameters, grounded in local data ecosystems. The strategy explicitly references data privacy, cybersecurity, and ethics as core enablers of the AI ecosystem. For global companies with cloud-based models or cross-border data transfer frameworks, these developments may signal localization pressures or evolving consent standards.
- Sector-specific use cases: Healthcare, agriculture, financial services, and public administration are named as strategic AI priorities. Companies operating in the life sciences, health tech, or diagnostics space should watch closely for how regulatory authorities may interpret and apply ethical or risk-based AI guidelines—especially where AI is used in clinical decision-making, diagnostics, or personalized medicine.
- Public-private AI infrastructure development: The strategy envisages expanded digital infrastructure, data centers, and cloud resources, as well as national research hubs. This may create commercial opportunities—but could also trigger localization requirements or procurement-related restrictions, particularly for telecommunications and hyperscale cloud providers.
- Future legal frameworks: The current strategy is not itself a binding legal instrument, but it points to future policy development—especially around governance, regulatory oversight, and risk classification of AI systems. Teams advising on AI risk, litigation exposure, and AI-assisted products (including generative tools) will want to track the next wave of draft legislation and implementation guidance.
A Continental Signal for Future Regulatory Alignment
The Kenya AI Strategy 2025–2030 positions itself as one of the most structured and forward-looking national frameworks in sub-Saharan Africa to date. The strategy places strong emphasis on regional and international collaboration, aligning its ambitions with broader digital policy trends across the continent. It explicitly references the African Union’s continental AI agenda, and signals potential coordination through existing regional mechanisms, such as the East African Community (EAC) and Smart Africa initiatives.
For public policy and legal affairs teams within global companies, the strategy serves as an indicator of how African governments are beginning to approach AI governance, i.e., with a focus on responsible innovation, national data ecosystems, and sectoral oversight grounded in ethical principles and human rights.
As Kenya advances toward implementation, companies will need to consider how their AI deployment models, privacy frameworks, and regional infrastructure strategies align with these evolving regulatory expectations—and where targeted engagement may be necessary.
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If you have questions about the implications of Kenya’s AI Strategy or broader AI regulatory developments across Africa and globally, please contact Dan Cooper at dcooper@cov.com, Ben Haley at bhaley@cov.com, Deon Govender at dgovender@cov.com, Ahmed Mokdad at amokdad@cov.com, and Mosa Mkhize at mmkhize@cov.com. This article is intended to provide general information. It does not constitute legal advice.