How Southern African countries put KAZA on map
IMAGINE a Zimbabwe where crime is anticipated before it happens and where emergencies are met with swift and precise response. This vision is no longer science fiction, but a potential reality thanks to Artificial Intelligence (AI).
In the dynamic landscape of technological advancement, AI emerges as a transformative force, reshaping various facets of our world, from bolstering productivity and efficiency to revolutionising healthcare and education.
However, one domain stands out for its potential impact public safety and security.
Recently, during his visit to Dubai, President Mnangagwa witnessed first-hand how AI is leveraged by law enforcement agencies to monitor and manage urban security effectively.
Inspired by this, he expressed Zimbabwe’s intent to embrace AI in policing the nation —a visionary move with commendable potential.
Yet, this vision necessitates substantial investments, innovative strategies, and collaborative efforts, alongside a conscientious consideration of the ethical and societal implications of AI integration.
So, how can Zimbabwe harness AI to combat crime and respond to emergencies effectively?
The avenues are diverse and promising. AI applications encompass facial recognition, biometrics, and video analytics for suspect identification and criminal pattern analysis.
Moreover, drones, robots, and smart cameras offer unparalleled surveillance capabilities, aiding in patrolling high-risk areas and facilitating search and rescue missions.
Natural language processing and sentiment analysis empower authorities to detect and prevent online crimes and monitor public sentiments adeptly.
More on online crimes, AI can help to detect and respond to cybercrimes, such as hacking, phishing, fraud, and identity theft, by using natural language processing, sentiment analysis, and anomaly detection to scan and filter online communications, transactions, and activities, and to flag and block suspicious or malicious ones.
For example, IBM’s Watson for Cyber Security is an AI system that can analyse millions of data points from various sources, such as blogs, news articles, research papers, and security reports, to identify and understand emerging cyber threats, and to provide insights and recommendations on how to counter them.
The system can also automate and streamline the incident response process, by prioritising and triaging the alerts, and by suggesting the best course of action.
The true power of AI in crime-fighting lies in predictive analytics, machine learning, and data mining, enabling pre-emptive measures against potential threats and optimising resource allocation.
AI can help to prevent and reduce violent crimes, such as homicides, assaults, and robberies, by analysing data from multiple sources, such as police records, social media, CCTV cameras, and sensors, to identify highrisk areas, individuals, and behaviours, and to alert and deploy police officers accordingly.
For instance, Chicago’s Police Department uses a predictive policing system called HunchLab, which uses machine learning to forecast where and when crimes are likely to occur, based on factors such as weather, time, location, and historical data.
The system also provides recommendations on how to prevent or deter crimes, such as increasing patrols, installing lights, or engaging with the community.
Research has shown the system reduced shootings by 39 percent and violent crimes by 19 percent in the areas where it was implemented.
Crime aside, AI can help to manage and mitigate natural disasters, such as floods, earthquakes, fires, and landslides, by using satellite imagery, remote sensing, and computer vision to monitor and assess the environmental conditions, and to predict and model the potential impacts and risks.
For instance, Google’s Crisis Response team uses AI to create and update crisis maps, which provide real-time information on the location and severity of the disasters, as well as the availability and accessibility of resources and services, such as shelters, hospitals, roads, and power lines.
The maps can help the authorities and the public to plan and co-ordinate their actions, and to reduce the damage and casualties.
These are just some of the examples of how AI can help to achieve public safety and security in different contexts. However, these examples also illustrate the complexity and diversity of the challenges and opportunities that AI presents for the public safety sector.
Therefore, there is need to adopt a holistic and collaborative approach to the design, development, and deployment of AI in this domain, ensuring that it is ethical, responsible, and beneficial for all.
Ensuring the accuracy, reliability, and fairness of AI systems, as well as safeguarding individual privacy and rights, demand meticulous attention. Regulatory frameworks must be established to govern AI usage, fostering accountability and transparency.
Moreover, fostering digital inclusion and innovation hinges on upgrading internet infrastructure. Zimbabwe must prioritise expanding broadband access, particularly in rural areas, where internet penetration is low and connectivity is poor.
Broadband access can enable rural communities to access information, education, health, and economic opportunities, as well as to participate in civic and social affairs.
Zimbabwe must also invest in cloud computing and network security, which are essential for the development and deployment of AI applications and services.
Cloud computing can provide scalable, reliable, and cost-effective computing resources, while network security can protect data and systems from cyber-attacks and breaches.
By upgrading its internet infrastructure, Zimbabwe can create an enabling environment for AI adoption and innovation.
Public safety and security depend not only on the actions of law enforcement agencies, but also on the contributions of civil society and the private sector.
One of the ways to enhance public safety and security is to promote local content creation and entrepreneurship in the digital realm, as it can foster innovation, diversity, and economic growth.
By using digital platforms and tools, local content creators and entrepreneurs can offer original and relevant content and services that address the needs and preferences of their communities and markets, such as education, health, entertainment, and social justice.
They can also tap into the global digital economy, reaching new audiences, customers, and partners, as well as competing with established players.
However, to succeed in the digital realm, local content creators and entrepreneurs need a supportive and enabling environment, which relies on the quality and governance of the internet infrastructure and services.
It is therefore, vital to foster regional and global co-operation in internet governance, as it can ensure the openness, interoperability, and security of the internet, as well as the protection of the rights and interests of the internet users and providers.
Regional and global co-operation in internet governance can also facilitate the exchange of best practices, standards, and policies, as well as the resolution of disputes and conflicts, among the various stakeholders involved in the digital realm.
By promoting local content creation and entrepreneurship in the digital realm, and by co-operating in internet governance, Zimbabwe can enhance its public safety and security, as well as its social and economic development.
By embarking on this holistic journey, Zimbabwe can harness AI’s transformative potential to enhance public safety, foster social progress, and drive economic development.
It is a vision worth pursuing - one that demands collective effort and unwavering commitment to realise.
Jacqueline Ntaka is the CEO of Mviyo Technologies. Feedback jackie.ntaka@mviyo.com.
TWO of Southern Africa’s great rivers, the Okavango and Zambezi, have lent their names to the Kavango-Zambezi Transfrontier Conservation Area (KAZA).
At 200 000 square miles, KAZA is the largest wildlife conservation area in the world. It is enormous, larger than Germany and Austria combined, roughly the size of Sweden, and nearly twice as large as the United Kingdom.
In 2011, Angola, Botswana, Namibia, Zambia, and Zimbabwe banded together in a unique collaboration to establish KAZA, aiming to unite the five countries in a shared effort to conserve some of Africa’s wildest expanses, protect its wildlife, promote tourism, and improve the socioeconomic well-being of local communities.
At first glance, the project may look and sound pretty straightforward, but it is highly complex, not just because of its size.
The KAZA area encompasses 36 protected areas, game reserves, forest reserves, game management areas, communal lands, and conservation and tourism concessions, all scattered like islands across the five countries.
One of KAZA’s key goals is to connect these islands via a series of wildlife corridors, creating a network of protected areas that are safer for wildlife and humans.
Some of the best-known spots within the KAZA region include Botswana’s Chobe National Park, Zimbabwe’s Hwange National Park, Zambia’s Kafue National Park, and, of course, the jewels in the KAZA crown, the Okavango Delta and the awe-inspiring Victoria Falls, a World Heritage Site and one of the seven natural wonders of the world.
KAZA is also home to some of the continent’s most incredible wildlife: cheetahs, wild dogs, leopards, lions, rhinos and giraffes, plus the greatest concentration of free-roaming elephants anywhere.
As with most big ideas, KAZA is moving incrementally toward the realisation of its vision, aided by funding from the German development bank KfW, World Wildlife Fund, Peace Parks Foundation, non-profit organisations such as Integrated Rural Development and Nature Conservation (IRDNC) and of course the five partner nations themselves.
Despite this solid financial and political support, bringing together five different countries with distinct laws, interests, and ways of doing business takes work.
An undertaking like the Kavango Zambezi Transfrontier Conservation Area is ambitious and complex, and each country, whether working independently or in partnership with others, is slowly working to meet the initiative’s goals.
Development plans have been created, existing and future wildlife corridors have been delineated, some infrastructure has been built, and new tourism offerings have been identified.
Tourism is, in fact, the key to the success of KAZA.
Joint Ventures and partnerships between communities and private investors to establish and operate tourism lodges and camps means providing jobs and income to communities and defining rules for managing land, wildlife, and other assets.
If local people are actively engaged in decision-making about their land and resources, they have a strong incentive to value and protect wildlife.
This is the most powerful motivation for conservation.
Travellers to the fabulous wildlife destinations within KAZA are promoting conservation and putting money directly into local communities, with the bonus of having some truly unique experiences on their travels. The Conversation