Call for Policy Papers- AI Made in Africa: Removing Policy Barriers for SME-Driven Innovation

The Global Center on AI Governance, in collaboration with GIZ African Union, is pleased to announce the launch of a new call for policy papers under the AI Made in Africa initiative. This joint effort aims to strengthen Africa’s AI innovation landscape by addressing the policy and regulatory barriers that hinder Small and Medium-sized Enterprises (SMEs), the backbone of the continent’s economies from fully harnessing the potential of Artificial Intelligence. We invite experts to contribute short, policy-focused papers analysing the barriers facing African SMEs and private-sector innovators in the AI landscape. Each paper should present clear, relevant analysis and offer practical policy recommendations tailored to African contexts.

Why This Matters

AI is transforming key sectors across Africa in agriculture, finance, health and logistics. Yet many African SMEs continue to face structural obstacles that limit their ability to use, adapt, or build AI solutions. Some of the major challenges include unclear intellectual property rules, restrictive data policies, fragmentation of standards, weak digital trade frameworks, and limited access to cloud infrastructure all constrain innovation.

The AI Made in Africa policy paper series seeks to fill this gap by generating practical, evidence-based insights to support more enabling environments for responsible and locally grounded AI development.

Goals of the Policy Paper Series

The series aims to:

Identify legal, regulatory, and market barriers affecting AI innovation by African SMEs.
Provide actionable recommendations tailored to diverse African contexts.
Elevate African expertise and perspectives in the global AI policy discourse.
Support governments, regional bodies, industry, and development partners in fostering sustainable and inclusive AI ecosystems.

Priority Themes

While proposals on any relevant topic are welcome, priority will be given to papers addressing the following high-impact themes:

A. Regulatory & Legal Barriers

AI and Intellectual Property: copyright, patents, ownership of machine-generated works.
Data Governance and Access: data sharing, public data infrastructure, cross-border data flows.
Procurement Rules: challenges for SMEs entering public-sector AI markets

B. Market & Trade Barriers

AI and Digital Trade: cross-border services, trade facilitation, market access.
Standards and Certification: interoperability, safety standards, barriers to export.
Competition and Market Power: how concentration affects African innovators.

C. Innovation & Investment Ecosystems

Access to Compute and Cloud Infrastructure.
Skills and Talent: bottlenecks and policy levers.
Investment and Capital: regulatory barriers to early-stage or impact investment in AI.
AI and Sectoral Opportunities: agriculture, health, logistics, manufacturing, finance.

Authors may also propose cross-cutting or emerging themes.

Target Audience

The series is designed for:

Policymakers, regulators, and regional bodies (AU, AfCFTA Secretariat, RECs)
Business councils and chambers of commerce
SME founders, AI start-ups, and technology associations
Development finance institutions and investors
Researchers and civil society organisations working on digital economy policy

Outputs will be short, accessible, and focused on practical insights that support decision-making.

Submission Requirements.

We welcome submissions from African experts and researchers working on AI, or digital and economic policy. Experts can be independent or based at a research institution. Policy papers authored by two or more experts will also be accepted.

A modest honoraria will be provided for selected author(s).

Length: 2,500–3,000 words

Style: Evidenced-based, accessible, concise, and policy-relevant.

Suggested Structure:

Executive Summary (100–150 words)
Problem Statement & Context
Analysis of Policy/Regulatory Barriers
Implications for SMEs and Innovation
Policy Recommendations (3–5 actionable points)

Key Dates:

Abstract deadline: 31 January 2026
Notification of selected authors: 28 February 2026
First drafts due: 1 May 2026
Publication: 31 July 2026

How to Apply

Submit a 300–400 word abstract and a 150-word biography to: 📩 melanie@globalcenter.ai Subject: AI Made in Africa: Policy Paper Proposal

For enquiries, contact: Dr. Rachel Adams – rachel@globalcenter.ai