‘It is not about enticing students to AI; it’s about catching up’

There has been increased interest in the computer sciences, particularly artificial intelligence (AI), both locally and internationally; and Caribbean and African states have much to do to catch up with AI’s cultural, economic and social revolution of the world, academics say.

At this stage, it is not about enticing students to the computer sciences and AI, but rather to facilitate and prepare the next generations for a world that will be dominated by technology. That is the fundamental basis on which the Africa-Caribbean Hub for Generative Artificial Intelligence, and its accompanying two-year pilot study, was launched yesterday.

The hub is a partnership between The University of the West Indies (UWI), and the PJ Patterson Institute for Africa-Caribbean Advocacy, and is aimed at building and strengthening generative AI research and development in both Africa and the Caribbean. Fundamentally, it is aimed at economic integration, technological development, resource sustainability and governance, social inclusion, and policy and advocacy.

Its proposed roll-out will follow the two-year pilot study, and will be funded by the African Export-Import Bank (Afreximbank), explained former Prime Minister P.J. Patterson.

“The institute exists to support activities in the countries of Africa and the Caribbean. So, too, does Afreximbank. Afreximbank has decided to support this project in order to develop a pilot study that can be made available through the countries of Africa and the Caribbean,” explained Patterson. “When the project is completed, they will be able to assess it based on their level of interest, and they will then have to use the pilot study to put up the requisite infrastructure within their countries that would make it possible for them to benefit from the project. We will of course advise all the governments, certainly of the Caribbean, that we are undertaking this project and indicate that they will be available to access it.”

The hub, according to the organisers, will unite Africa and the Caribbean, catalysing economic partnerships, and foster innovation across states. It is also aimed at ensuring that the economic interests of African and Caribbean states are protected, and that the regions have a say in the advancement of AI technologies, particularly around issues of governance, resources, and the socio-economic impact of automation.

“Seventy-one years ago, AI was never around. I don’t think you have to sell AI to students ... . My experience has been that the younger you are, the more interested and the more proficient you are likely to be,” said Patterson. “People are no longer confining themselves to what you may call the traditional disciplines. They are looking into new fields. New horizons and technology and artificial intelligence, as the summit of that, is where so many young people are going.”

MOVING AWAY FROM THE TRADITIONAL

Gone are the days where parents, and their children, are looking solely at the traditional professions for well-off salaries and respect, explained Sandrea Maynard, pro-vice-chancellor, Office of Global Affairs, UWI.

“Anything that is new, parents are worried about because we all came from an era where, unless you did law, accounting, engineering or medicine – that is the traditionalist approach that people really took from a parent’s perspective – how do you earn money and respect?” asked Maynard rhetorically. “We have evolved! Because in every single one of those professions, digitalisation and AI have taken hold. When you consider what we are doing here, and what our education institutions are doing, we are having to acknowledge what is taking place in the world.”

She said the onus is now on protecting and preparing children for an AI-dominated world and that, legislatively, countries are protected from AI and other technologically related threats that could jeopardise the data protection of citizens.

“That is going to be their world, and their world is going to be dominated by this kind of evolution within this digital space. It is for us, here and now, to make sure that we educate them in that space so that they are prepared from a regional perspective. The rest of the world is doing that. They are advancing, and what we don’t want to be is behind the curve. If we are not moving forward we are, in effect, moving backwards.

Meanwhile, Dr Daniel Fokum, head of the Department of Computing in the Faculty of Science and Technology, explained that student interest in computing is growing.

“AI is really part of the bigger discipline in computing, and computing is actually quite popular as a major. Not just here in Jamaica ... . So students are interested. They see AI and what it can do, and [they] get excited,” said Fokum, adding that recently, students built an AI model and trained it on the UWI’s regulations. This model can thus interact with students with questions about the institution.

corey.robinson@gleanerjm.com