{"id":97559,"date":"2026-04-20T14:48:11","date_gmt":"2026-04-20T14:48:11","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/www.africa-press.net\/south-africa\/all-news\/questions-surround-governments-plan-for-major-threat"},"modified":"2026-04-20T15:00:59","modified_gmt":"2026-04-20T15:00:59","slug":"questions-surround-governments-plan-for-major-threat","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/www.africa-press.net\/south-africa\/all-news\/questions-surround-governments-plan-for-major-threat","title":{"rendered":"Questions Surround Government’s Plan for Major Threat"},"content":{"rendered":"

Africa-Press – South-Africa. <\/strong><\/span>Major South African law firm Werksmans has highlighted various issues with the government\u2019s proposed legislation seeking to regulate artificial intelligence (AI).<\/p>\n

This includes concerns about the draft policy\u2019s stance on privacy rights and a gap between principle and practice on issues such as data protection.<\/p>\n

Werksmans Attorneys director and regulatory head Ahmore-Burger Smidt described South Africa\u2019s Draft National Artificial Intelligence Policy as an \u201cambitious and necessary step\u201d.<\/p>\n

This draft policy, approved by Cabinet on 25 March, is aimed at positioning the country within the global AI economy.<\/p>\n

The Draft National AI Policy sets South Africa\u2019s AI policy agenda, but given the technology\u2019s wide range of applications, it does not aim to address every aspect of AI.<\/p>\n

According to the Government Gazette of 10 April, the primary objective of a national policy is to identify the core principles that guide sectoral approaches.<\/p>\n

Considering the rapid development and mainstream adoption of AI technologies, traditional regulatory or policy development approaches are unlikely to address all aspects of these technologies.<\/p>\n

Therefore, the Draft National AI Policy is considered a \u201cwork-in-progress\u201d, with the government\u2019s final approach to the AI Policy agenda requiring extensive consultations with local and international experts.<\/p>\n

\u201cThe Draft National AI Policy should thus be seen as a point of departure and indication of the government\u2019s current thinking, rather than a strict indication of South Africa\u2019s final approach to the AI policy landscape,\u201d the Government Gazette explained.<\/p>\n

South Africa\u2019s government is one of many around the world looking to regulate AI amid its boom in popularity and common usage over the past few years.<\/p>\n

AI technologies, as they\u2019re known today, remain relatively new and are evolving and expanding at a rapid pace.<\/p>\n

This makes sufficiently regulating the technology extremely difficult, and presents significant risks to countries worldwide.<\/p>\n

In the Allianz Risk Barometer for 2026, the firm included AI as a standalone risk for the first time, having previously been included under the banner of \u201cnew technologies\u201d.<\/p>\n

In its 2026 report, Allianz also identified AI as one of the top concerns for multiple countries, including Australia, Brazil, China, and the United Kingdom.<\/p>\n

For South Africa, the risks presented by AI ranked third among the country\u2019s top concerns, just below cyber risks and business interruption.<\/p>\n

Werksmans concerns<\/b><\/p>\n

Werksmans Attorneys director and regulatory head Ahmore-Burger Smidt<\/p>\n

Burger-Smidt said the Draft National AI Policy, as it currently stands, shows clear alignment with leading international frameworks.<\/p>\n

This is particularly true for the policy\u2019s adoption of a risk-based approach and its emphasis on ethical AI principles.<\/p>\n

However, she said that while the vision is compelling, \u201cthe policy often stops short of providing the level of detail businesses and institutions will need to operate with certainty\u201d.<\/p>\n

She specifically highlighted uncertainties surrounding the policy\u2019s approach to defining risk categories and setting enforceable compliance standards.<\/p>\n

\u201cOf greater concern is the gap between principle and practice on issues like privacy and data protection,\u201d she explained.<\/p>\n

While the draft policy signals alignment with the Protection of Personal Information Act (POPIA), she said it does not adequately address how this will look in practice.<\/p>\n

In its current form, the policy does not show how core concepts such as purpose limitation and data minimisation will function in AI systems that rely on large, repurposed datasets.<\/p>\n

\u201cSimilarly, the rights of individuals in the context of automated decision-making are underdeveloped, potentially placing South Africa behind more mature jurisdictions like the EU and UK,\u201d she said.<\/p>\n

Aside from this, Burger-Smidt said the draft also raises questions about implementation, particularly concerning its proposal to introduce multiple new AI-focused institutions.<\/p>\n

This includes a National AI Commission, an AI Ethics Board, an AI Regulatory Authority, an AI Ombudsperson Office, a National AI Safety Institute, and an AI Insurance Superfund modelled on the Road Accident Fund.<\/p>\n

\u201cThis could create fragmentation in an already complex regulatory landscape, without clear guidance on roles, coordination, or resourcing,\u201d she warned.<\/p>\n

\u201cAs the public comment process unfolds, there is a critical opportunity for stakeholders to push for greater clarity, stronger protections, and a more streamlined approach to governance.\u201d<\/p>\n

This, she said, will ensure that South Africa\u2019s AI ambitions translate into practical, effective regulation.<\/p>\n

For More News And Analysis About South-Africa<\/span> Follow Africa-Press<\/span><\/strong><\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"

Africa-Press – South-Africa. Major South African law firm Werksmans has highlighted various issues with the government\u2019s proposed legislation seeking to regulate artificial intelligence (AI). This includes concerns about the draft policy\u2019s stance on privacy rights and a gap between principle and practice on issues such as data protection. Werksmans Attorneys director and regulatory head Ahmore-Burger […]<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":84,"featured_media":97558,"comment_status":"open","ping_status":"open","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"footnotes":""},"categories":[2,5],"tags":[275],"class_list":["post-97559","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","has-post-thumbnail","hentry","category-all-news","category-economy","tag-south-africa-2"],"yoast_head":"\nQuestions Surround Government's Plan for Major Threat - South Africa<\/title>\n<meta name=\"description\" content=\"Major South African law firm Werksmans has highlighted various issues with the government\u2019s proposed legislation seeking ...\" \/>\n<meta name=\"robots\" content=\"index, follow, max-snippet:-1, max-image-preview:large, max-video-preview:-1\" \/>\n<link rel=\"canonical\" href=\"https:\/\/www.africa-press.net\/south-africa\/all-news\/questions-surround-governments-plan-for-major-threat\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:locale\" content=\"en_US\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:type\" content=\"article\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:title\" content=\"Questions Surround Government's Plan for Major Threat\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:description\" content=\"Major South African law firm Werksmans has highlighted various issues with the government\u2019s proposed legislation seeking ...\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:url\" content=\"https:\/\/www.africa-press.net\/south-africa\/all-news\/questions-surround-governments-plan-for-major-threat\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:site_name\" content=\"South Africa\" \/>\n<meta property=\"article:publisher\" content=\"https:\/\/www.facebook.com\/AfricaPressTunisiaa\" \/>\n<meta property=\"article:published_time\" content=\"2026-04-20T14:48:11+00:00\" \/>\n<meta property=\"article:modified_time\" content=\"2026-04-20T15:00:59+00:00\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:image\" content=\"https:\/\/static.africa-press.net\/south-africa\/sites\/31\/2026\/04\/sm_1776684427.130139.jpg\" \/>\n\t<meta property=\"og:image:width\" content=\"1024\" \/>\n\t<meta property=\"og:image:height\" content=\"576\" \/>\n\t<meta property=\"og:image:type\" content=\"image\/jpeg\" \/>\n<meta name=\"author\" content=\"cfeditoren\" \/>\n<meta name=\"twitter:card\" content=\"summary_large_image\" \/>\n<meta name=\"twitter:label1\" content=\"Written by\" \/>\n\t<meta name=\"twitter:data1\" content=\"cfeditoren\" \/>\n\t<meta name=\"twitter:label2\" content=\"Est. reading time\" \/>\n\t<meta name=\"twitter:data2\" content=\"4 minutes\" \/>\n<script type=\"application\/ld+json\" class=\"yoast-schema-graph\">{\"@context\":\"https:\/\/schema.org\",\"@graph\":[{\"@type\":\"Article\",\"@id\":\"https:\/\/www.africa-press.net\/south-africa\/all-news\/questions-surround-governments-plan-for-major-threat#article\",\"isPartOf\":{\"@id\":\"https:\/\/www.africa-press.net\/south-africa\/all-news\/questions-surround-governments-plan-for-major-threat\"},\"author\":{\"name\":\"cfeditoren\",\"@id\":\"https:\/\/www.africa-press.net\/south-africa\/#\/schema\/person\/068c7ab4e9634ae78ec5d54ec46598bb\"},\"headline\":\"Questions Surround Government’s Plan for Major Threat\",\"datePublished\":\"2026-04-20T14:48:11+00:00\",\"dateModified\":\"2026-04-20T15:00:59+00:00\",\"mainEntityOfPage\":{\"@id\":\"https:\/\/www.africa-press.net\/south-africa\/all-news\/questions-surround-governments-plan-for-major-threat\"},\"wordCount\":715,\"commentCount\":0,\"image\":{\"@id\":\"https:\/\/www.africa-press.net\/south-africa\/all-news\/questions-surround-governments-plan-for-major-threat#primaryimage\"},\"thumbnailUrl\":\"https:\/\/static.africa-press.net\/south-africa\/sites\/31\/2026\/04\/sm_1776684427.130139.jpg\",\"keywords\":[\"South-Africa\"],\"articleSection\":[\"all news\",\"economy\"],\"inLanguage\":\"en-US\",\"potentialAction\":[{\"@type\":\"CommentAction\",\"name\":\"Comment\",\"target\":[\"https:\/\/www.africa-press.net\/south-africa\/all-news\/questions-surround-governments-plan-for-major-threat#respond\"]}]},{\"@type\":\"WebPage\",\"@id\":\"https:\/\/www.africa-press.net\/south-africa\/all-news\/questions-surround-governments-plan-for-major-threat\",\"url\":\"https:\/\/www.africa-press.net\/south-africa\/all-news\/questions-surround-governments-plan-for-major-threat\",\"name\":\"Questions Surround Government's Plan for Major Threat - South Africa\",\"isPartOf\":{\"@id\":\"https:\/\/www.africa-press.net\/south-africa\/#website\"},\"primaryImageOfPage\":{\"@id\":\"https:\/\/www.africa-press.net\/south-africa\/all-news\/questions-surround-governments-plan-for-major-threat#primaryimage\"},\"image\":{\"@id\":\"https:\/\/www.africa-press.net\/south-africa\/all-news\/questions-surround-governments-plan-for-major-threat#primaryimage\"},\"thumbnailUrl\":\"https:\/\/static.africa-press.net\/south-africa\/sites\/31\/2026\/04\/sm_1776684427.130139.jpg\",\"datePublished\":\"2026-04-20T14:48:11+00:00\",\"dateModified\":\"2026-04-20T15:00:59+00:00\",\"author\":{\"@id\":\"https:\/\/www.africa-press.net\/south-africa\/#\/schema\/person\/068c7ab4e9634ae78ec5d54ec46598bb\"},\"description\":\"Major South African law firm Werksmans has highlighted various issues with the government\u2019s proposed legislation seeking ...\",\"breadcrumb\":{\"@id\":\"https:\/\/www.africa-press.net\/south-africa\/all-news\/questions-surround-governments-plan-for-major-threat#breadcrumb\"},\"inLanguage\":\"en-US\",\"potentialAction\":[{\"@type\":\"ReadAction\",\"target\":[\"https:\/\/www.africa-press.net\/south-africa\/all-news\/questions-surround-governments-plan-for-major-threat\"]}]},{\"@type\":\"ImageObject\",\"inLanguage\":\"en-US\",\"@id\":\"https:\/\/www.africa-press.net\/south-africa\/all-news\/questions-surround-governments-plan-for-major-threat#primaryimage\",\"url\":\"https:\/\/static.africa-press.net\/south-africa\/sites\/31\/2026\/04\/sm_1776684427.130139.jpg\",\"contentUrl\":\"https:\/\/static.africa-press.net\/south-africa\/sites\/31\/2026\/04\/sm_1776684427.130139.jpg\",\"width\":1024,\"height\":576,\"caption\":\"Questions Surround Government's Plan for Major Threat\"},{\"@type\":\"BreadcrumbList\",\"@id\":\"https:\/\/www.africa-press.net\/south-africa\/all-news\/questions-surround-governments-plan-for-major-threat#breadcrumb\",\"itemListElement\":[{\"@type\":\"ListItem\",\"position\":1,\"name\":\"Home\",\"item\":\"https:\/\/www.africa-press.net\/south-africa\/\"},{\"@type\":\"ListItem\",\"position\":2,\"name\":\"Questions Surround Government’s Plan for Major Threat\"}]},{\"@type\":\"WebSite\",\"@id\":\"https:\/\/www.africa-press.net\/south-africa\/#website\",\"url\":\"https:\/\/www.africa-press.net\/south-africa\/\",\"name\":\"South Africa\",\"description\":\"Just another Africa News Agency Sites site\",\"potentialAction\":[{\"@type\":\"SearchAction\",\"target\":{\"@type\":\"EntryPoint\",\"urlTemplate\":\"https:\/\/www.africa-press.net\/south-africa\/?s={search_term_string}\"},\"query-input\":{\"@type\":\"PropertyValueSpecification\",\"valueRequired\":true,\"valueName\":\"search_term_string\"}}],\"inLanguage\":\"en-US\"},{\"@type\":\"Person\",\"@id\":\"https:\/\/www.africa-press.net\/south-africa\/#\/schema\/person\/068c7ab4e9634ae78ec5d54ec46598bb\",\"name\":\"cfeditoren\",\"image\":{\"@type\":\"ImageObject\",\"inLanguage\":\"en-US\",\"@id\":\"https:\/\/www.africa-press.net\/south-africa\/#\/schema\/person\/image\/\",\"url\":\"https:\/\/secure.gravatar.com\/avatar\/7417380fa9e23b5c57fdbfdaf3fdf92ee478f759a084addda5faa3732853e74a?s=96&d=mm&r=g\",\"contentUrl\":\"https:\/\/secure.gravatar.com\/avatar\/7417380fa9e23b5c57fdbfdaf3fdf92ee478f759a084addda5faa3732853e74a?s=96&d=mm&r=g\",\"caption\":\"cfeditoren\"}}]}<\/script>\n<!-- \/ Yoast SEO Premium plugin. -->","yoast_head_json":{"title":"Questions Surround Government's Plan for Major Threat - South Africa","description":"Major South African law firm Werksmans has highlighted various issues with the government\u2019s proposed legislation seeking ...","robots":{"index":"index","follow":"follow","max-snippet":"max-snippet:-1","max-image-preview":"max-image-preview:large","max-video-preview":"max-video-preview:-1"},"canonical":"https:\/\/www.africa-press.net\/south-africa\/all-news\/questions-surround-governments-plan-for-major-threat","og_locale":"en_US","og_type":"article","og_title":"Questions Surround Government's Plan for Major Threat","og_description":"Major South African law firm Werksmans has highlighted various issues with the government\u2019s proposed legislation seeking ...","og_url":"https:\/\/www.africa-press.net\/south-africa\/all-news\/questions-surround-governments-plan-for-major-threat","og_site_name":"South Africa","article_publisher":"https:\/\/www.facebook.com\/AfricaPressTunisiaa","article_published_time":"2026-04-20T14:48:11+00:00","article_modified_time":"2026-04-20T15:00:59+00:00","og_image":[{"width":1024,"height":576,"url":"https:\/\/static.africa-press.net\/south-africa\/sites\/31\/2026\/04\/sm_1776684427.130139.jpg","type":"image\/jpeg"}],"author":"cfeditoren","twitter_card":"summary_large_image","twitter_misc":{"Written by":"cfeditoren","Est. reading time":"4 minutes"},"schema":{"@context":"https:\/\/schema.org","@graph":[{"@type":"Article","@id":"https:\/\/www.africa-press.net\/south-africa\/all-news\/questions-surround-governments-plan-for-major-threat#article","isPartOf":{"@id":"https:\/\/www.africa-press.net\/south-africa\/all-news\/questions-surround-governments-plan-for-major-threat"},"author":{"name":"cfeditoren","@id":"https:\/\/www.africa-press.net\/south-africa\/#\/schema\/person\/068c7ab4e9634ae78ec5d54ec46598bb"},"headline":"Questions Surround Government’s Plan for Major Threat","datePublished":"2026-04-20T14:48:11+00:00","dateModified":"2026-04-20T15:00:59+00:00","mainEntityOfPage":{"@id":"https:\/\/www.africa-press.net\/south-africa\/all-news\/questions-surround-governments-plan-for-major-threat"},"wordCount":715,"commentCount":0,"image":{"@id":"https:\/\/www.africa-press.net\/south-africa\/all-news\/questions-surround-governments-plan-for-major-threat#primaryimage"},"thumbnailUrl":"https:\/\/static.africa-press.net\/south-africa\/sites\/31\/2026\/04\/sm_1776684427.130139.jpg","keywords":["South-Africa"],"articleSection":["all news","economy"],"inLanguage":"en-US","potentialAction":[{"@type":"CommentAction","name":"Comment","target":["https:\/\/www.africa-press.net\/south-africa\/all-news\/questions-surround-governments-plan-for-major-threat#respond"]}]},{"@type":"WebPage","@id":"https:\/\/www.africa-press.net\/south-africa\/all-news\/questions-surround-governments-plan-for-major-threat","url":"https:\/\/www.africa-press.net\/south-africa\/all-news\/questions-surround-governments-plan-for-major-threat","name":"Questions Surround Government's Plan for Major Threat - South Africa","isPartOf":{"@id":"https:\/\/www.africa-press.net\/south-africa\/#website"},"primaryImageOfPage":{"@id":"https:\/\/www.africa-press.net\/south-africa\/all-news\/questions-surround-governments-plan-for-major-threat#primaryimage"},"image":{"@id":"https:\/\/www.africa-press.net\/south-africa\/all-news\/questions-surround-governments-plan-for-major-threat#primaryimage"},"thumbnailUrl":"https:\/\/static.africa-press.net\/south-africa\/sites\/31\/2026\/04\/sm_1776684427.130139.jpg","datePublished":"2026-04-20T14:48:11+00:00","dateModified":"2026-04-20T15:00:59+00:00","author":{"@id":"https:\/\/www.africa-press.net\/south-africa\/#\/schema\/person\/068c7ab4e9634ae78ec5d54ec46598bb"},"description":"Major South African law firm Werksmans has highlighted various issues with the government\u2019s proposed legislation seeking ...","breadcrumb":{"@id":"https:\/\/www.africa-press.net\/south-africa\/all-news\/questions-surround-governments-plan-for-major-threat#breadcrumb"},"inLanguage":"en-US","potentialAction":[{"@type":"ReadAction","target":["https:\/\/www.africa-press.net\/south-africa\/all-news\/questions-surround-governments-plan-for-major-threat"]}]},{"@type":"ImageObject","inLanguage":"en-US","@id":"https:\/\/www.africa-press.net\/south-africa\/all-news\/questions-surround-governments-plan-for-major-threat#primaryimage","url":"https:\/\/static.africa-press.net\/south-africa\/sites\/31\/2026\/04\/sm_1776684427.130139.jpg","contentUrl":"https:\/\/static.africa-press.net\/south-africa\/sites\/31\/2026\/04\/sm_1776684427.130139.jpg","width":1024,"height":576,"caption":"Questions Surround Government's Plan for Major Threat"},{"@type":"BreadcrumbList","@id":"https:\/\/www.africa-press.net\/south-africa\/all-news\/questions-surround-governments-plan-for-major-threat#breadcrumb","itemListElement":[{"@type":"ListItem","position":1,"name":"Home","item":"https:\/\/www.africa-press.net\/south-africa\/"},{"@type":"ListItem","position":2,"name":"Questions Surround Government’s Plan for Major Threat"}]},{"@type":"WebSite","@id":"https:\/\/www.africa-press.net\/south-africa\/#website","url":"https:\/\/www.africa-press.net\/south-africa\/","name":"South Africa","description":"Just another Africa News Agency Sites site","potentialAction":[{"@type":"SearchAction","target":{"@type":"EntryPoint","urlTemplate":"https:\/\/www.africa-press.net\/south-africa\/?s={search_term_string}"},"query-input":{"@type":"PropertyValueSpecification","valueRequired":true,"valueName":"search_term_string"}}],"inLanguage":"en-US"},{"@type":"Person","@id":"https:\/\/www.africa-press.net\/south-africa\/#\/schema\/person\/068c7ab4e9634ae78ec5d54ec46598bb","name":"cfeditoren","image":{"@type":"ImageObject","inLanguage":"en-US","@id":"https:\/\/www.africa-press.net\/south-africa\/#\/schema\/person\/image\/","url":"https:\/\/secure.gravatar.com\/avatar\/7417380fa9e23b5c57fdbfdaf3fdf92ee478f759a084addda5faa3732853e74a?s=96&d=mm&r=g","contentUrl":"https:\/\/secure.gravatar.com\/avatar\/7417380fa9e23b5c57fdbfdaf3fdf92ee478f759a084addda5faa3732853e74a?s=96&d=mm&r=g","caption":"cfeditoren"}}]}},"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.africa-press.net\/south-africa\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/97559","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.africa-press.net\/south-africa\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.africa-press.net\/south-africa\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.africa-press.net\/south-africa\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/84"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.africa-press.net\/south-africa\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=97559"}],"version-history":[{"count":1,"href":"https:\/\/www.africa-press.net\/south-africa\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/97559\/revisions"}],"predecessor-version":[{"id":97570,"href":"https:\/\/www.africa-press.net\/south-africa\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/97559\/revisions\/97570"}],"wp:featuredmedia":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.africa-press.net\/south-africa\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media\/97558"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.africa-press.net\/south-africa\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=97559"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.africa-press.net\/south-africa\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=97559"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.africa-press.net\/south-africa\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=97559"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}