The High Court in Kerugoya directed the Kenyan executive and Parliament to finalise a comprehensive legal and policy framework governing Artificial Intelligence within six months, in a ruling delivered on Thursday, November 12.
Justice Edward Muriithi issued the directive, setting the deadline for May 13, 2027, for both arms of government to conclude the necessary legislative and policy work.
The court suspended the full determination of a petition that had challenged the government’s current pace of AI regulation. The matter is scheduled to return to the court for further directions on that date.
The judge determined that a six-month period is a reasonable and sufficient timeframe for the state to complete the ongoing policy formulation and legislative processes.
The legal challenge was initiated by John Wangai, Peter Agoro, and Dr Antony Manyara, who were represented by advocate Mwenda Nyaga.
The petitioners argued that the absence of a binding AI law exposes Kenyan citizens to potential breaches of their constitutional rights. They expressed concern over the deployment of AI-powered tools across various public sectors.
Specific systems cited in the petition included automated household assessments conducted by the Social Health Authority (SHA), facial recognition technology, predictive policing tools, automated exam marking, and AI-assisted public service recruitment processes.
The petitioners contended that these technologies risk entrenching discrimination, eroding personal privacy and dignity, and…
