The IPAR Think Tank is organising a webinar on the theme “A gender-sensitive approach to research in the development and deployment of responsible AI in Africa” on Monday 24 April at 1pm GMT.
IPAR prioritises reflection and research on technology, particularly artificial intelligence, for women’s empowerment within its thematic framework. Promoting gender equality and inclusion in sub-Saharan Africa through artificial intelligence is a key focus for the organisation, and it has launched several initiatives, including the GRAIN (Gender and Responsible Artificial Intelligence Network) project.
The upcoming webinar ties in perfectly with the project’s aims of promoting inclusion, equality and the empowerment of women in Sub-Saharan Africa through the responsible and locally tailored development and deployment of AI innovations. The main objective of the webinar is to reflect on the challenges posed by structural and systemic barriers to advancing gender equality and inclusion in the AI sector in Sub-Saharan Africa.
The virtual meeting will bring together experts in AI and gender, and will focus on innovative practices and technologies that bridge the gap between AI and gender. It will highlight the importance of harnessing the potential of AI to advance gender equality and reduce gender disparities in the digital sector.
The discussion will take place on the Kudo platform and will be held in English with French interpretation.
Moderated by Ernest Mwebaze, Executive Director of Sunbird AI, Uganda, the panel will feature the following speakers: Nokuthula Olorunju, lawyer and researcher at Research ICT Africa, South Africa; Dr Adekemi Omutubora, Senior Lecturer at the University of Lagos, Nigeria; Adedeji Adeniran, Director of Research at CSEA Nigeria; Caitlin Kraft-Bruchmann – CEO and Founder of Women at the Table.
Biographies of the speakers
– Moderator: Ernest Mwebaze, Ernest Mwebaze, Executive Director of Sunbird AI, is the co-founder of the Makerere University Artificial Intelligence Research Lab. Previously, he worked at the Google AI Research Lab in Ghana and the UN Pulse Lab in Kampala. He is passionate about using artificial intelligence to improve society, particularly in developing regions of the world.
– Adekemi Omotubora is a senior lecturer in the Department of Commercial and Industrial Law at the University of Lagos. She is passionate about data protection, digital inclusion and the gender aspects of digital technologies, and organises events on these topics.
– Nokuthula Olorunju is a lawyer and researcher who holds an LLB and an LLM, specialising in cyberlaw and information and communication technology (ICT) law. She has written on issues relating to gender equality, human rights and artificial intelligence (AI), and the judiciary, and is currently pursuing a PhD in the field of human rights and artificial intelligence.
– Adedeji Peter Adeniran is a research director at the Centre for the Study of African Economies (CSEA), a development think tank based in Nigeria. His recent work focuses on the intersection of governance, digitalisation and development in Africa. He is also part of the Gender and Responsible Artificial Intelligence Network (GRAIN) project, which is building a network of institutions dedicated to advocacy and research on AI and gender.
– Caitlin Kraft-Buchman She is CEO and founder of Women at the Table, a civil society organisation (CSO) focused on gender equality and systems change based in Switzerland, and co-founder and leader of the <A+ Alliance for Inclusive Algorithms. Caitlin was a co-chair of the Expert Group for CSW67, whose theme in 2023 is Technology & Innovation. Caitlin is also a co-founder of International Gender Champions, which brings together female and male heads of organisations to break down gender barriers.
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