South Africa Urges Global South to Co-Own AI and Quantum Tech

South Africa is calling on nations across the Global South to transition from mere consumers of emerging technologies to becoming their producers and owners. Speaking at the 19th Pujiang Innovation Forum in Shanghai, Science, Technology and Innovation Minister Professor Blade Nzimande warned that without co-ownership, developing nations risk marginalization in the next industrial revolution.

During the forum, where South Africa served as the first African "Country of Honour," Nzimande emphasized the necessity of co-creation in critical fields including artificial intelligence, quantum computing, and biotechnology. "We must be co-creators of knowledge, co-designers of technology and co-owners of the industries that will define the future," Nzimande stated. To this end, South Africa is deepening scientific cooperation with China, expanding a partnership that includes AI, cybersecurity, space science, and astronomy.

A Legacy of Cooperation

This strategic push builds upon a long-standing foundation; South Africa and China have maintained a formal science and technology agreement since 1999. The current expansion of this partnership is guided by the African Union’s Science, Technology and Innovation Strategy for Africa 2034 (STISA-2034).

South Africa is positioning itself as a capable partner in high-level research, citing the operation of the MeerKAT telescope and the Square Kilometre Array. According to the Minister, these projects serve as concrete proof of Africa's ability to manage and operate mega-science infrastructure on a global scale.

The Drive for Sovereignty

The call for technological sovereignty is driven by lessons learned during the COVID-19 pandemic. Nzimande pointed to the struggles surrounding vaccine manufacturing and the critical need for mRNA technology transfer as a catalyst for this shift. He asserted that "Africa must never again stand at the back of the queue for life-saving technologies."

This movement comes amid a geopolitical climate where Nzimande claims science and technology are being "weaponised" by certain nation-states. By pursuing co-ownership, the Global South aims to break its dependency on Western or single-nation tech hegemonies, ensuring that the economic and social benefits of new tech are distributed more equitably.

Overcoming Market Barriers

Despite the ambition for ownership, significant internal hurdles remain. Nzimande noted that South African inventions frequently struggle to move from the prototype stage to scaled enterprises. He attributed this gap to insufficient connections between industrial demand, markets, and finance, remarking that "for too many innovators, the hardest journey is not from ignorance to discovery, but from discovery to market."

Moving forward, the focus remains on whether these diplomatic calls for co-ownership translate into tangible industrial capacity. The success of the South Africa-China collaboration in AI and quantum computing will likely serve as a bellwether for other Global South nations seeking to secure their own technological futures.