Justice in Healthcare Artificial Intelligence in Africa
It tackles the problem of ensuring fair and just AI in healthcare for resource-constrained populations in Africa, offering a perspective that is incremental by adapting existing ethical debates to local contexts.
This paper addresses the ethical challenges of implementing AI in healthcare in Africa, focusing on justice issues like bias and fairness to prevent social inequities, and argues for context-specific principles to ensure equitable benefits.
There is an ongoing debate on balancing the benefits and risks of artificial intelligence (AI) as AI is becoming critical to improving healthcare delivery and patient outcomes. Such improvements are essential in resource-constrained settings where millions lack access to adequate healthcare services, such as in Africa. AI in such a context can potentially improve the effectiveness, efficiency, and accessibility of healthcare services. Nevertheless, the development and use of AI-driven healthcare systems raise numerous ethical, legal, and socio-economic issues. Justice is a major concern in AI that has implications for amplifying social inequities. This paper discusses these implications and related justice concepts such as solidarity, Common Good, sustainability, AI bias, and fairness. For Africa to effectively benefit from AI, these principles should align with the local context while balancing the risks. Compared to mainstream ethical debates on justice, this perspective offers context-specific considerations for equitable healthcare AI development in Africa.