TLDR: A recent treatise by Professor Mike Ozekhome highlights the critical need to embed human dignity and rights into AI governance and digital lawmaking, particularly in Nigeria. The article, published in New Telegraph, examines global challenges like China’s Social Credit System and Amazon’s biased hiring algorithm, advocating for mandatory impact assessments, algorithmic explainability, and robust data ethics training. It emphasizes that digital governance must be a democratic endeavor, ensuring transparency, inclusivity, and accountability in AI deployment.
In a compelling treatise, ‘Reclaiming human dignity, rights in AI governance, digital lawmaking (5),’ published in the New Telegraph on August 24, 2025, Professor Mike Ozekhome underscores the urgent imperative to prioritize human dignity and fundamental rights amidst the rapid advancement of artificial intelligence and digital technologies. The article, the concluding part of a series, delves into the profound ethical, legal, and societal implications of AI and data-driven governance, with a particular focus on the Nigerian context.
Professor Ozekhome highlights several global examples illustrating the potential pitfalls of unregulated AI. He points to China’s Social Credit System, which leverages data analytics and AI to monitor and rate citizens’ trustworthiness based on a wide array of behaviors, from financial standing to social habits. Another stark example cited is Amazon’s recruitment algorithm, which notoriously exhibited bias against women, demonstrating how AI can entrench existing inequalities if not carefully designed and monitored.
To counter these risks, the treatise advocates for a multi-faceted approach to AI governance. It calls for mandatory inclusion of impact assessments, fairness audits, and mechanisms for user consent and oversight at the design stage of all AI-driven systems. Crucially, dignity, fairness, and accountability must be enshrined as foundational system parameters. The author stresses the need to strengthen existing legal frameworks, such as Nigeria’s National Data Protection Act (NDPA) 2023, to mandate algorithmic explainability for AI models that influence critical areas like access to credit, healthcare, education, or policing.
Beyond legislation, Professor Ozekhome emphasizes the necessity of national capacity building in data ethics and digital rights. This includes providing regular, mandatory training for institutions such as the Nigeria Data Protection Commission (NDPC), the judiciary, Ministries, Departments, and Agencies (MDAs), and law enforcement agencies. The goal is to ensure that policy enforcement is not undermined by a lack of technical understanding or procedural gaps. Furthermore, digital consent must evolve beyond mere ‘checkbox formalism’ to become genuinely comprehensible, accessible, and verifiable for users.
The article positions Nigeria at a critical juncture in its digital transformation, facing both immense promise and systemic risks. It argues that digital governance must be a ‘democratic endeavour,’ providing citizens with clear avenues to influence data collection, AI usage, and rights protection. Building public trust, the author asserts, is impossible without transparency, inclusiveness, and robust redress mechanisms. The NDPC, in particular, must be empowered with not only legal mandates but also political independence and the technical capacity to oversee complex digital ecosystems.
This perspective aligns with broader international discussions on AI governance. The Council of Europe is actively drafting a binding international convention on AI, human rights, democracy, and the rule of law, aiming to be the first legally binding treaty with a human rights focus and judicial redress mechanisms . The African Union is also developing an AI continental strategy, prioritizing data sovereignty, inclusivity, and capacity building .
Global leaders, including Pope Leo XIV, have echoed calls for ethical AI. In a message to the UN’s AI for Good Summit in Geneva on July 11, 2025, Pope Leo XIV urged the international community to establish coordinated frameworks centered on human dignity and fundamental freedoms, emphasizing that AI must serve humanity and peace, not just utility or efficiency . The UNDP’s 2025 Human Development Report, ‘A Matter of Choice: People and Possibilities in the Age of AI,’ also highlights that AI’s benefits are contingent on the deliberate expansion of human agency and inclusive governance frameworks .
Discussions at the Internet Governance Forum 2025 further reinforced these sentiments, with the Freedom Online Coalition (FOC) launching an updated Joint Statement on Artificial Intelligence and Human Rights, supported by 21 countries. This statement advocates for human-centric AI governance rooted in international human rights law, with the EU AI Act and the Council of Europe’s Framework Convention cited as crucial binding global frameworks . Even the private sector, as demonstrated by Microsoft’s multi-layered approach, is engaging with ethical design, impact assessments, and rejecting high-risk AI applications in authoritarian contexts .
Also Read:
- African Perspectives: Community Values, Integrity, and Shared Responsibility Crucial for AI Trust
- African Catholic Media Congress Advocates for Ethical AI to Uphold Human Values
Ultimately, Professor Ozekhome’s treatise serves as a powerful call to action, urging Nigeria and the global community to proactively shape a digital future where technological advancement is inextricably linked to the preservation of human dignity, rights, and democratic values.
