Research

We are particularly interested in proposals that pertain to the following research topics and questions. However, these are just examples of possible research questions. Applicants are encouraged to come up with their own proposals and to leverage, as much as possible, regional context and local examples in their submissions.

Ethics by design

• Policymakers are emphasizing the need for ethics by design. What does ethics and AI mean and look like in an African context? How can academia, government, and industry collaborate to promote and advance ethics by design practices and frameworks?
• How can developers and companies ensure that their AI systems are explainable, what their purpose is, and what they entail?
• How can academia help companies and governments better understand and operationalize ethics within their own sectors and activities? How can academia both inspire and build on industry best practices for responsible and ethical development of AI?
• How can developers and companies ensure that their AI systems and applications are built in a fair and unbiased way? How should social science and humanities questions around fairness and discrimination be embedded into the technical design of AI? What best practices can we advance in this space?
• How can developers and companies ensure that their AI systems are transparent to the affected individuals in a meaningful way? (For example, how will a person know whether they are being unfairly discriminated against because of an automated decision?)
• What level of autonomy should be provided to the affected individuals concerning the use of AI without compromising the legitimate purposes of AI, and how should individuals exercise control over automated decisions?

Governance, ethics, and human rights

• How do hard and binding legal instruments, namely existing and proposed legislation, and ethical AI governance frameworks (soft law, non-binding) interact and mutually influence each other? Does the former stem from or pre-empt the latter? Are they complementary or competing?
• How should international, regional, and national human rights frameworks coexist and interact with each other? What can AI and ethics learn from human rights law and from the obligations it places on public and private actors?
• What is the role of ethical codes in the broader regulatory landscape? How should they relate to laws and regulations (either existing or being developed)?
• What is the role of academia in 1) promoting research on AI governance frameworks; 2) analyzing, anticipating, and identifying gaps in legislation and other governance models related to AI development and use; and 3) articulating best practices to guide ethical and innovative uses of data?

AI ethics and diversity

• What factors should inform human and technical diversity in the design and development of AI systems (e.g. linguistic diversity, diversity of race, gender, religion, and so on) in the African context?
• How should AI developers and companies foster and apply a multicultural approach to the ethical design of AI?
• What are the most prominent narratives on the role and impact of AI in Africa? How does local knowledge on the relationship between humans and machines shape the understanding, the perception, and adoption of AI in Africa?
• How should companies navigate the tension between the benefits of a global approach versus the need to acknowledge important particularities and differences stemming from companies’ regional user base?
• What would be a sound and scalable methodology for researchers and product developers to recognize and solve ethical challenges, while leveraging different regional perspectives that promote diversity?

Proposals should include

Proposals should be 2–3 pages and include the following:

• A research question and a clear statement of work that can be completed within six months of the award
• A summary of the project (1–2 pages) explaining the area of focus, a description of techniques, relevant prior work, and a timeline with milestones and expected outcomes (note that the timeline should not be more than six months)
• A draft budget description (<1 page) including an approximate cost of the award and explanation of how funds would be spent. Proposals are encouraged to focus funding on project personnel, especially PhD students. Proposals from small collaborative teams are also encouraged. The proposed budget should be within $25,000 (overhead is typically limited to 5–8%). Please note that in the submission form, you will be asked to provide the requested amount in U.S. dollars.
• Name(s) of the researcher(s) involved in the proposed work with their CV/resume
• Indication of any previous or current connections/collaborations with Facebook (in which case, please provide context and name the Facebook contacts)

Eligibility

• Applying organizations must be nonprofit or nongovernmental organizations with recognized legal status in their respective country (equal to 501(c)(3) status under the United States Internal Revenue Code) and should comply with the applicable laws to receive foreign funds in their respective country.
• Applicants must be the principal investigator (PI) on any resulting award.
• Researchers are also responsible for obtaining approval from the PI’s university’s ethics/institutional review board, if applicable.
• Each applicant may submit only one proposal per solicitation.

Successful proposals will ideally demonstrate innovative and compelling research with tangible recommendations that have the potential to significantly impact fairness, transparency, and diversity of AI and ethics/human rights, along with innovative governance approaches to AI in Africa.

Successful awardees will be listed on our website and will be encouraged to openly publish any findings or insights from their work. Research findings will also serve as the basis for discussions with successful applicants for a workshop to be held in Accra in late 2020 or early 2021.

Inquiries may be directed to HSRC project coordinator Dr. Rachel Adams at RAdams@hsrc.ac.za.

Facebook’s decisions will be final in all matters relating to Facebook RFP solicitations, including whether or not to grant an award and the interpretation of Facebook RFP Terms and Conditions. By submitting a proposal, applicants affirm that they have read and agree to these Terms and Conditions.

• Facebook is authorized to evaluate proposals submitted under its RFPs, to consult with outside experts, as needed, in evaluating proposals, and to grant or deny awards using criteria determined by Facebook to be appropriate and at Facebook’s sole discretion. Facebook’s decisions will be final in all matters relating to its RFPs, and applicants agree not to challenge any such decisions.
• Facebook will not be required to treat any part of a proposal as confidential or protected by copyright, and may use, edit, modify, copy, reproduce and distribute all or a portion of the proposal in any manner for the sole purposes of administering the Facebook RFP website and evaluating the contents of the proposal.
• Personal data submitted with a proposal, including name, mailing address, phone number, and email address of the applicant and other named researchers in the proposal may be collected, processed, stored and otherwise used by Facebook for the purposes of administering Facebook’s RFP website, evaluating the contents of the proposal, and as otherwise provided under Facebook’s Privacy Policy.
• Neither Facebook nor the applicant is obligated to enter into a business transaction as a result of the proposal submission. Facebook is under no obligation to review or consider the proposal.
• Feedback provided in a proposal regarding Facebook products or services will not be treated as confidential or protected by copyright, and Facebook is free to use such feedback on an unrestricted basis with no compensation to the applicant. The submission of a proposal will not result in the transfer of ownership of any IP rights.
• Applicants represent and warrant that they have authority to submit a proposal in connection with a Facebook RFP and to grant the rights set forth herein on behalf of their organization. All awards provided by Facebook in connection with this RFP shall be used only in accordance with applicable laws and shall not be used in any way, directly or indirectly, to facilitate any act that would constitute bribery or an illegal kickback, an illegal campaign contribution, or would otherwise violate any applicable anti-corruption or political activities law.
• Awards granted in connection with RFP proposals will be subject to terms and conditions contained in the unrestricted gift agreement (or, in some cases, other mechanisms) pursuant to which the award funding will be provided. Applicants understand and acknowledge that they will need to agree to these terms and conditions to receive an award.