In April 2026, the South African government released its Draft National Artificial Intelligence Policy (“Draft AI Policy”) for public consultation, marking an important milestone in the country’s efforts to develop a coordinated framework for artificial intelligence (“AI”) governance. Following the publication of the Draft AI Policy, concerns were raised regarding the authenticity of a number of academic sources cited in the document. Investigations confirmed that several cited articles had not been published in the journals referenced and that the works attributed to specific authors did not exist.
In response, the Minister of Communications and Digital Technologies announced the withdrawal of the Draft AI Policy on 26 April 2026. The Minister characterised the matter as a serious failure that went beyond a technical or editorial error, noting that the presence of fictitious sources undermined the credibility and integrity of the policy. The Department subsequently confirmed that
