NAIROBI, Kenya, Sep 23 — Former Facebook Content Moderator, whistle blower, and union mobilizer Daniel Motaung has called for unity among African digital workers across the region and the globe to address concerns associated with emerging technologies like Artificial Intelligence (AI).
Motaung made the appeal Friday during the inaugural Mozilla Festival House event Kenya which brought together policy makers, technologists, researchers, and human rights activists drawn from Eastern and Southern Africa,
During the two-day event, participants delved into the issues impacting the region, such as the role of technology in propagating social injustices in Africa and developing practical solutions to issues like digital extractivism.
Motaung emphasized that people hold the key to driving solutions regarding labor rights in the region
“If all digital workers unite, we have the power to twist the hand of Big Tech companies to change. We cannot rely on cat and mouse court cases and Big Tech CEOs in closed-door ‘tea-party meetings’ to effect change — real change happens in regulation, and for this, we need a strong, united voice globally advocating for a common cause,” he said.
The participants also engaged in discussions about the possibility of establishing global content moderation unions, advocating for fair and equitable wages, and fostering solidarity within digital labor movements.
They argued that emerging technologies like AI have exacerbated the marginalization of vulnerable groups across the continent and emphasized that extractive data practices continue to exacerbate these disparities.
“Right now, East Africa — and the continent more broadly — is pushing for tech sovereignty. The policymakers, technologists, and activists at MozFest Kenya are on this campaign’s frontlines, actively pursuing an internet where African perspectives and needs are the status quo,” Mozilla’s Senior Vice President, Global Programs, J. Bob Alotta,
Senior Program Officer, Africa Innovation Mradi, Chenai Chair stated that digital extractivism is core to how many emerging technologies are being built, “but it doesn’t have to be.”
“The community at MozFest House is challenging exploitative patterns, like Big tech companies irresponsibly outsourcing the cheaper, ‘lower-value’ aspects in the tech value chain — data annotation, content moderation — to Africans” she said.
MozFest House Kenya features over 30 deep, interactive sessions on various topics such as the path towards inclusive digital identity, the digital ID movement, and the risks of digitizing discrimination through AI.
Mozilla’s broader Africa Innovation Mradi supports movements across East and Southern Africa to explore the intersection of technology and society, uplift locally developed innovations, and products,.
It also pushes for technology inclusivity of African voices, and fund research that seeks to enhance tech accountability across the region.
