Can AI be a solution to woes bedevilling the global south?

By Arthur Mutambara | Mar. 21, 2025

This intensive and exclusive focus on AI and the Global South has been missing in the literature.

A GROWING body of research has focused on the current artificial intelligence (AI) revolution, including its opportunities and threats.

The massive impact on various economic sectors, global Gross Domestic Product (GDP), and employment has been articulated, while the need for enabling governance, legislation, and safety regulations has been emphasised.

However, academic scholarship has focused on the global north, particularly the United States and Europe.

What about the Global South? Which countries belong to the Global South? What is AI? How can AI be used to drive the economies of the Global South?

How can this technological revolution be leveraged to address challenges faced by poor and emerging economies? How can AI be used to improve the quality of life of the people living in these countries?

Are these economies ready for AI? How can they prepare and then plunge into AI adoption across all sectors? More significantly, how can the Global South be a key player in the research, development and production of AI technology, systems, and applications?

What about the hardware required for AI systems — the semi-conductor chips that power AI? Why can the Global South not be involved in this massively lucrative industry?

This intensive and exclusive focus on AI and the Global South has been missing in the literature. This book seeks to close that gap. It is primarily focused on the pivotal role of AI in driving governance and socio-economic development in the Global South.

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Put differently, the book explores how AI can be deployed as a catalyst for inclusive development and shared prosperity in emerging economies.

However, the adoption and harnessing of AI cannot occur in a vacuum. Forget AI. Broad interventions must be executed to resolve the perennial challenges bedevilling developing economies.

These include poverty, unemployment, inequality, poor governance, corruption, incompetence, democratic deficit, energy poverty, poor and inadequate infrastructure, conflict and insecurity, demographic pressures, global economic imbalances, geopolitical concerns, cultural and social degradation, and poor access to technology and innovation.

A special type of state is required to address these challenges — a capable, ethical, democratic, and developmental state. Countries in the Global South must transform themselves into such regimes. Only within this context will AI be an efficacious driver of inclusive development and shared prosperity.

The AI-ignited Fourth Industrial Revolution (4IR) — 2011 to the present — builds on the Third Industrial revolution (1965 to 2011), which was driven by electronics and information and communications technology (ICT).

AI is the DNA of the 4IR. Most countries in the Global South did not substantially benefit from the first three industrial revolutions. There was slavery from 1619 to 1865, while colonialism characterised most of the developing economies from 1884 to 1994.

Even in the so-called post-colonial era, neocolonialism and imperialism continue to ravage and plague the Global South. Ostensibly, citizens of developing countries have been objects and victims of the first three technological revolutions.

The AI-ignited 4IR presents a unique opportunity for the Global South to have agency, become critical players and use technology to achieve inclusive development and shared prosperity.

Yes, it might be considered overly ambitious to prescribe the application of AI to such a broad spectrum of countries with varied cultures, development experiences, economic structures, and demographics.

However, the opportunity to share best practices among these countries and the centrality of South-South cooperation, integration, and scale have a clear and unquestionable value proposition.

Indeed, AI can be harnessed as a catalyst for economic growth and industrialisation in emerging and least industrialised countries. The technology has the potential to significantly impact these economies in various domains, bringing both opportunities and challenges.

AI systems can drive economic growth by enhancing productivity, efficiency, and innovation. The Global South can leverage AI in all industries, including agriculture, mining, manufacturing, banking and finance, tourism and hospitality, education, and healthcare, to boost economic development.

A flurry of bold announcements on AI and its infrastructure in January 2025 from global north leaders, such as United Kingdom Prime Minister Keir Starmer, then US President Joe Biden, and current US President Donald (immediately after his inauguration), signal the urgent and transformative potential of the technology, globally.

These highly-industrialised economies view AI as a key driver of competitiveness in every sector and are unleashing massive investments in AI infrastructure.

China’s release, in the same month, of a ground-breaking open-source, low-cost, and less energy-intensive large language model called DeepSeek-R1, whose functionality is comparable to OpenAI’s ChatGPT-4 and Google’s Gemini, dramatises the Global South possibilities.

It must be conceded and acknowledged that there is quite some heterogeneity in the Global South.

Asian states such as China, Hong Kong, Singapore, and Malaysia are far more advanced in terms of policy and governance infrastructure, economic productivity, manufacturing capacity, and, of course, the development and adoption of AI systems compared to countries in Africa and Latin America.

However, the shared history and similar economic circumstances in the 1950s and 1960s for most countries in the Global South make it imperative that these countries be studied together and lessons drawn across the region.

For example, African countries might benefit from understanding how China moved 800 million people out of poverty in 40 years and why Ghana and Singapore had comparable GDPs in 1965 (US$0,97 billion and US$1,2 billion, respectively).

Yet, in 2024, the GDP numbers are US$76 billion and US$501,4 billion, respectively. What happened? Indeed, countries in the Global South can learn from each other.

Hence, their AI opportunities, experiences, challenges and successes must be reviewed together.

AI applications in precision agriculture, crop monitoring, and data-driven decision-making can improve agricultural practices, increase yields, and address food security challenges in the Global South. AI-driven healthcare solutions, including telemedicine, diagnostic tools, and predictive analytics, can improve healthcare access in regions with a shortage of medical professionals.

Remote monitoring and AI diagnostics can aid in early disease detection. Furthermore, AI can enhance educational opportunities by providing personalised learning experiences, automating administrative tasks, and expanding access to academic resources.

This is particularly important in areas with limited access to quality education, as with some communities in the Global South.

Many of the Global South’s banking and financial sectors are underdeveloped. AI-driven fintech solutions can promote financial inclusion by providing access to banking services, credit, and insurance.

Mobile banking, digital wallets, and AI-based credit scoring systems can empower individuals, small businesses, and communities. Thus, in the Global South, AI applications can empower local communities by addressing specific challenges, such as energy poverty, food security, water management, environmental conservation, and sustainable development.

Community-driven AI projects can be designed and tailored to address local needs. In addition, AI can improve access to information and services in areas with limited infrastructure.

Chatbots, virtual assistants, and AI-driven interfaces can provide information and support, particularly in remote or underserved regions.

In terms of infrastructure development, AI can contribute to the optimisation of infrastructure planning and development. Smart city initiatives, intelligent transportation systems, and energy-efficient solutions can enhance the overall infrastructure in urban and rural areas.

However, all these potential AI-driven benefits will not just accrue to the Global South. These countries must actively prepare for AI and develop AI adoption strategies.

An AI ecosystem approach involving the collaboration of governments, businesses, researchers, investors, venture capitalists, and international organisations must be deployed. Partnerships can facilitate knowledge exchange, technology transfer, and collaborative projects.

More significantly, associations and linkages with the global north must lead to the Global South becoming producers and owners of AI technology, tools, and systems.

Furthermore, developing countries must also participate in the AI semi-conductor industry — the financially lucrative business of producing chips that power AI.

The book discusses the conceptualisation, governance, and economies of the Global South.

Specifically, problems and challenges that characterise these countries are presented and discussed. The objective is to identify potential redemptive AI interventions in these economies.

The extent to which the Global South participates in knowledge and technology production is explored. More significantly, the uptake and leverage of technological innovation are evaluated.

The book presents an introduction to AI within the context of the 4IR, where key drivers of the 4IR are also discussed, and classification, applications, and examples of AI systems are outlined.

The issues of AI safety and the potential dangers of the technology are also discussed. AI has challenges, risks, and dangers — the dark side of Artificial Intelligence.

The book reviews these matters. In particular, deepfakes, cyberattacks, AI bad actors, autonomous weapons systems (AWS), and autonomous nuclear weapons systems (ANWS) are flagged.

Application and adoption of AI in the Global South are not automatic or guaranteed.

Indeed, participation by emerging and least industrialised economies in producing AI systems and semi-conductor chips is not easily accomplished.

The cart must not be put before the horse. There are foundational matters that must be addressed. These include basic infrastructure, energy and power, funding and investment, digital infrastructure, compute resources, talent and expertise, financial literacy, basic education and mindset.

The book details what should be in place to ensure safe and efficacious adoption of AI in the global south. It answers several questions.

How can developing countries prepare and become ready for the transformative AI revolution? What are the requisite uptake enablers? What about the potential inhibitors and barriers? What constitutes an empowering AI ecosystem for a developing country?

Furthermore, the book argues for identifying AI leapfrogging opportunities while advancing global south-specific AI governance, regulations and ethics.

The importance of regional and continental integration in the AI adoption strategy is also highlighted. At the same time, specific recommendations are made on how private and public institutions should respond to and flourish under the AI revolution.

A case is made for research, development, production, and ownership of AI technology within the global south. Of course, the region must strive to adopt AI in all socio-political and economic sectors.

The book presents detailed discussions of such interventions in 11 sectors: education, agriculture, mining, mobile telephony, legal profession, banking and finance, healthcare, manufacturing, infrastructure and public works, tourism and hospitality and governance.

Thus, the book addresses AI’s value proposition to the developmental agenda of the Global South by focusing on its critical industries.

For each sector, the nature and manifestation of the challenges are discussed, and broad non-AI solutions are proffered first. After that, potential AI-anchored interventions are advanced.

Countries in the global south must learn from each other in general and specifically with respect to the adoption and development of AI. The book presents and reviews 10 case studies of countries from the developing world: China, India, Singapore, Rwanda, Malaysia, Mauritius, South Africa, Kenya, the United Arab Emirates (UAE) and Zimbabwe.

The objective is to harvest best practices from these countries’ AI experiences and share the key learnings across the Global South. With each case study, the general strengths and successes of the country’s economy are reviewed, and lessons are drawn.

Thereafter, AI-based interventions are discussed, and key learnings are extracted. Regional and continental AI efforts are also reviewed, particularly the African Union (AU)’s blueprint released in July 2024, titled Continental Artificial Intelligence Strategy: Harnessing AI for Africa’s Development and Prosperity.

As a way forward, the book proposes that each Global South country must develop and adopt a National AI Strategic Framework comprising six distinct, but related components: vision, strategy, policy, governance, legislation/regulation and implementation matrix. These national frameworks must be linked to similar and corresponding regional, continental and beyond-continental ones. Economies of scale and regulatory harmonisation must be at the centre of AI adoption.

For example, beyond their national AI efforts, Zambia and South Africa must leverage the Southern African Development Community (Sadc), the African continent, Global Africa and the Global South.

However, all these efforts will only succeed if anchored and driven by bold, visionary, strategic and tech-savvy leadership at organisational, national, regional, continental and global levels. Emerging and least industrialised countries need leaders who can create and articulate a clear, compelling and technology-driven vision that inspires and motivates their citizens and institutions to achieve inclusive development and shared prosperity.

These transformational and innovative igniters and doers must possess a unique blend of foresight, passion and innovation, enabling them to see beyond the current challenges of the Global South and anticipate AI opportunities, trends and challenges.

They must be adept at strategic thinking and have a solid grasp of both history and geopolitics, in particular, the uneven and exploitative relationship between the global south and the global north.

In this context, global south leaders must take calculated risks and boldly pioneer economic transformation by embracing technology.

While humanity must anticipate, mitigate, and manage the threats of AI, it must concentrate on using AI to solve global challenges. However, the benefits of AI are not universally guaranteed across the world.

The global south must get ready for AI adoption and, indeed, plunge into implementation and execution. Can AI create more problems than solutions in emerging and least industrialised countries with many easily automated jobs and a large informal sector?

For example, can the technology lead to job losses and higher unemployment, increasing inequality, poverty and marginalisation in the Global South?

This book proposes an approach to AI that will mitigate this potential risk. The Global South context and challenges must be addressed while key AI enablers, governance, regulations, legislation, ethics and safety measures are implemented to achieve this.

There must be reskilling of victims of job displacement and the development of new capabilities and competencies to take up AI-modified and completely new AI jobs.

The number of modified and new jobs must be more than the destroyed ones. The people and industries of the Global South must not just be consumers of knowledge, technology and innovations. They must own and produce AI technology while pursuing the broad objective of applying AI across all their socio-political and economic sectors.

Although it is imperative and non-negotiable to embrace a broad range of enabling technologies, with a special focus on AI, it must be acknowledged that there are risks of technology-driven challenges such as digital imperialism and data colonialism, particularly in emerging and least industrialised economies.

Global south leaders must thoroughly understand and engage decoloniality — a theoretical and practical framework aimed at dismantling the structures, knowledge systems and power dynamics established during and after colonial rule and likely to influence the essence and content of AI systems.

Furthermore, it is essential to democratise AI — making the technology, tools, knowledge, and opportunities accessible to a broader range of people, communities, organisations, countries and beyond a privileged few individuals, institutions and economies.

Globally, democratising AI is the only way its benefits will be equitably spread worldwide, including in the Global South. These emerging and least industrialised economies must have agency and proactively seek to deploy AI to achieve inclusive development and shared prosperity.

Yes, AI can be the solution to challenges bedevilling the Global South.

This is an excerpt from the book, Artificial Intelligence: A Driver of Inclusive Development and Shared Prosperity for The Global South, by Professor Arthur Mutambara. Prof Mutambara is the director and full professor of the Institute for the Future of Knowledge (IFK) at the University of Johannesburg in South Africa.