What it is. The Southern Africa AI Safety and Governance Initiative is a planned non-profit, to be registered in Malawi, that will build the talent and institutional capacity the region needs to reduce catastrophic and existential risks from advanced AI. AI is being deployed rapidly across Southern Africa, yet the UN High-level Advisory Body on AI found that 118 countries, mostly in the Global South, are party to none of the sampled international AI governance initiatives. The region also has very few trained AI safety professionals, which leaves governments without the expertise to assess risks from systems built elsewhere.
What it does. The initiative has three components. First, a global fellowship and volunteer programme will recruit experienced AI safety and catastrophic-risk experts to help build the organisation and train local talent identified through a fellowship. Second, trained fellows will be placed in strategic government and private-sector institutions, each mentored by a global expert, to build risk-assessment procedures, oversight mechanisms, policies for the safe adoption of AI, and preparedness for severe AI failures. Because these safeguards sit inside institutions, they outlast any single placement. Third, we will conduct original research on AI safety in Southern Africa. After the Malawi pilot, the model will be cascaded to other countries in the region.
Who is doing it. I am the founder, a monitoring, evaluation and research professional with 16 years of experience across eight international NGOs, including as Head of M&E on three USAID-funded projects and as a consortium-level technical lead under the Start Network. I am currently the only team member. An expression of interest for a co-founder with technical AI safety expertise, able to work remotely, has been drafted, and advisors and expert volunteers will be recruited globally.
Where it is up to. The initiative is at the pre-registration stage. I am finalising the documents for the Registrar of Companies and related regulators, and no funding has been raised yet. A pre-seed application to BlueDot Impact has been submitted and a decision is pending. We are requesting $10,000 to cover registration and legal fees, office rental and equipment, and a website, so that the organisation can be formally established and begin recruiting.
