cross-posted from: mander.xyz/post/49257638
Surveillance technology in Africa is increasingly being shaped by China.
Eleven African countries have collectively spent over $2 billion on artificial intelligence-powered surveillance systems, according to a new study by the U.K.-based Institute of Development Studies and the African Digital Rights Network. Several components of these surveillance tools have been purchased from China, and private Chinese banks have provided the funds needed to build and maintain this infrastructure, the study said.
“These huge loans are conditional on the purchase of Chinese technology and services needed to build and transfer the ‘safe city’ systems,” wrote Wairagala Wakabi and Tony Roberts, the authors of the study.
The investments have been made even as most African countries lack adequate legal regulation or oversight. In the absence of terrorist threats or crimes, such mass surveillance compromises citizens’ right to privacy, experts say.
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The surveillance bond between Africa and China runs deeper than the former purchasing tools for facial recognition or automated license plate tracking from the latter. Chinese companies like Huawei and ZTE have built around 70% of Africa’s 4G infrastructure, which is essential for the effective use of surveillance devices.
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There have been several examples of the misuse of surveillance tech reported in the past. For instance, Tibetans are being tracked in Nepal, while in Ecuador and Argentina, there are concerns about the tech empowering authoritarian governments. Facial recognition has reportedly been used to monitor activists in Uganda as well as the Gen Z-led protests in Kenya.
All 11 countries in the Africa study “currently fail to provide adequate mechanisms for citizens to obtain remedy or redress in case of smart surveillance errors or abuse,” Wakabi and Roberts wrote.
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