Minister of Communications Solly Malatsi has appointed an independent panel of AI researchers, lawyers and governance experts to reconstruct South Africa's draft national AI policy, a document it was forced to withdraw last month because the academic citations in its bibliography were generated by a generative AI tool.
“We cannot discuss the policy issue without discussing the matter of the draft National Artificial Intelligence Policy, and the revelation that generative AI was used irresponsibly during the drafting of this policy,” Malatsi told MPs on Tuesday as he presented the Department of Communications and Digital Technologies' R2.55 billion budget for the financial year 2026/2027.
“We will implement an internal responsible AI use policy and review our policy development process to ensure this type of incident does not happen again. South Africa deserves better,” he said.
The panel will be chaired by Benjamin Roseman, an AI researcher at Wits University. Roseman was named as one of Time's 100 The most influential thinkers in AI In 2025.
Other members include Professor Vukosi Mariwet of the University of Pretoria, Alison Gilwald of Research ICT Africa, lawyers Heather Irwin, Tshepo Phyla, CSIR's Jabu Mtsweni and Lufuno Tshiklange. The group spans AI research, law and digital governance.
Malatsi said the panel is tasked with ensuring that the revised policy is based on the best available evidence and in line with South Africa's priorities before it is re-introduced for public comment. No deadline was given for the new draft.
The original draft AI policy was approved by the Cabinet on March 25 and gazetted on April 10 for public comment. It was withdrawn within two weeks of its release.
fake quote
at least six out of 67 entries The document's reference list was taken from journals that did not exist or from journals that had never published the cited work. The editors of the South African Journal of Philosophy, AI & Society and the Journal of Ethics & Social Philosophy independently confirmed to News24 – which first broke the story – that the articles credited to their publications had never appeared.
During his address to Parliament on Tuesday, Malatsi described the use of generative AI in the drafting process as irresponsible and acknowledged that the episode had damaged the credibility of the document. Return was the only viable option, he said.
Reading: The AI policy that AI broke
The result has been huge. ANC MP Khusela Diko, who chairs parliament's communications portfolio committee, called for the policy to be repealed and accused Malatsi of seeking a “rape-bot”. Public Works Minister Dean McPherson, a fellow DA cabinet minister, jumped to his defence.
Technology investor Stafford Massey previously published an open letter via TechCentral warning that the policy risked “deregulating” South Africa's participation in the global AI economy by prioritizing governance over infrastructure investment.
The withdrawn draft proposed the creation of seven new institutions, including a National AI Commission, an AI Ethics Board, an AI Insurance Superfund, and a National AI Safety Institute.
Malatsi told MPs separately that the department has begun finalizing the audio-visual services and media policy, and will advance the Electronic Communications Amendment Bill to modernize the licensing regime and address convergence in the sector.
But until a revised AI policy is gazetted, South Africa remains without a formal national framework to regulate the technology – at a time when AI is increasingly being woven into both public administration and private sector workflows.
Reading: Two more officers suspended over failure of AI policy
The minister insisted on Tuesday that the re-draft under Roseman and other members of the panel would put the country back on track after the embarrassing setback with the first draft. – (c) 2026 NewsCentral Media
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