THE NEED TO RE-IMAGINE DATA GOVERNANCE FOR AI: Artificial intelligence and data-driven technologies are reshaping global development, offering opportunities to improve disaster response, public services, and government efficiency. However, the current data governance frameworks often limit the agency of communities, particularly in developing nations, over how their data is used. 

To address this asymmetry, it is crucial to find new ways to empower communities, ensuring their active participation and control over data re-use. Centering the concept of a social license, through sustained public engagement and alignment with community expectations, can help create more equitable and inclusive approaches that enable AI to truly serve global development goals.

COMING SOON: To advance and operationalize the concept of the social license, we are planning on launching: “Reimagining Data Governance for AI: A Toolkit for Social Licensing for Data Re-Use in Developing Countries” soon. 

Developed with the support of the French Development Agency, the report and toolkit is an attempt to examine current consent-based frameworks and data licensing regimes and discuss how social licensing can be designed to supplement and reinforce them. 

NEED YOUR INPUT: To ensure the report is solid and includes latest scholarship and practice, we are calling upon all interested parties to provide feedback on the current (semi-finalized) version of the report. 

JOIN US NOW: If you are interested in being a recognized peer reviewer of this report, please use this form to share a bit about your interest and expertise. Submission of this form is possible until January 22nd. Following review, we’ll share the report and a brief questionnaire to solicit your input.

We appreciate your support! Direct any questions about this work to [email protected].

Image by Carl Wang | Unsplash is licensed under CC0.

Back to the Blog