Dear Gentle Reader,
As we marvel at the power of Artificial Intelligence, it becomes equally important to reflect on the policies and regulations that must guide its use. AI is often met with skepticism, sometimes even fear, yet we cannot deny the remarkable possibilities it brings across industries. If used responsibly, it has the potential to transform our development trajectory as a nation.
Consider one of the most critical sectors: health. AI is already playing an essential role in Diagnostic Radiology, supporting the detection of conditions such as tuberculosis and cancer with greater speed and accuracy. These are not abstract innovations — they are tools that save lives. But they also raise an uncomfortable truth: if Basotho choose to remain passive observers, we will continue to rely on external solutions, often at a high financial cost. We risk becoming permanent followers in a world advancing through modern, data-driven technologies.
The question of regulation is urgent. If AI in the health sector is supervised under the Ministry of Health, or placed within the Ministry of Information, Communications, Science, Technology & Innovation, we encounter a policy dilemma. A ministry cannot create the rules and simultaneously police its own compliance. There must be a clear, independent regulator — an institution empowered to oversee innovation, governance, ethics, and accountability.
Our own national instruments have already envisioned this. From the National Strategic Development Plan II to the Research and Innovation Policy, and the National Digital Transformation Strategy and Digital Policy — all point to a future where Basotho-led innovation is not an aspiration but an expectation. These documents commit the country to prioritising local solutions. Yet the health sector reminds us that its first duty is to save lives. This means foreign technologies will always be approved when they can deliver what we cannot. And when those foreign companies pack up, they take with them the data, the code, and the very solutions we relied upon.
This is why Basotho must become creators — not just consumers — of technology. Our economic future depends on it. Our data sovereignty depends on it. Our ability to respond to national challenges depends on it. And importantly, our cultural preservation depends on it. As AI models continue to be built and refined, they learn from the data they are fed. If we are absent from the process, so too will our languages, our values, our stories, and our indigenous knowledge be absent from the future digital archives. Local creation ensures that our identity is not only protected, but actively embedded in the technologies of tomorrow.
In recent months, advocacy, seminars, and public discussions have continued to emphasise the need for AI literacy. At the recent Cybersecurity and AI workshop hosted by the Internet Society Lesotho Chapter, one of the country’s experts, Neo Selematsela, highlighted an important distinction: generative AI — which creates new content such as text, images, audio, or code — and traditional AI, which analyses existing data to make decisions or predictions. Both forms matter, but Selematsela urged Basotho to focus strongly on creativity: using generative AI to spark ideas, automate complex tasks, and prototype solutions quickly. This is how new innovations are born.
Dear reader, our future will not wait for us. The world is moving, whether we participate or not. Let us choose to be active architects of our digital destiny — shaping policies, regulating wisely, and building solutions that serve our people first while protecting our culture and values.
Yours in sustainable development,
Ntšoekhe
Advocate for Sustainability and Development
