The rapid expansion of AI-powered mass-surveillance systems across Africa is violating citizens’ right to privacy and having a chilling effect on society, according to experts on human rights and emerging technologies. An average of $240m was spent by the 11 countries with the investment often funded by loans from Chinese banks. Jili said focusing on the introduction of laws could simply allow governments to claim the systems had been legitimised. He said there had already been concerns about facial recognition being used to monitor activists in Uganda and that surveillance systems were used to crack down on gen Z-led protests in Kenya. She highlighted how street protests in 2019 and 2021 played a key role in political change but the expansion of surveillance systems could make people hesitant about protesting in the future.

Source: The Guardian March 13, 2026 00:00 UTC