Chadian Activist Calls for Indigenous Consent in AI Governance

Chadian environmental activist Hindou Oumarou Ibrahim has called on world leaders to embed Indigenous rights directly into artificial intelligence governance frameworks. Speaking after the UN’s first Global Dialogue on AI Governance in Geneva last July, Ibrahim argued that current policies ignore the ecological and social costs of rapid AI expansion.

Ibrahim, president of the Association for Indigenous Women and Peoples of Chad, says African governments must lead by requiring environmental and social impact assessments for all AI infrastructure. Data centres consume vast amounts of energy, water, and land, while hardware production drives mineral extraction that often destroys ecosystems and displaces communities.

"Leaders must ensure that no AI system, policy or infrastructure project affecting Indigenous peoples... proceeds without their free, prior and informed consent," Ibrahim said. She insists this principle must apply across the entire value chain, from mining to data collection.

Current data protection laws focus on individual privacy, leaving collective Indigenous knowledge vulnerable. Ibrahim warns that AI systems can scrape cultural, linguistic, and environmental data without recognizing it belongs to communities, not individuals. She calls for new frameworks that treat Indigenous peoples as decision-makers and rights holders, not just subjects of consultation.

However, Ibrahim notes AI can support conservation when designed with community participation. In Chad, predictive tools combined with pastoral knowledge help anticipate droughts and protect migration routes. Similar projects in the Amazon use satellite monitoring to detect illegal deforestation.

The key, she argues, is that technology must strengthen existing local expertise rather than replace it. Without strict guardrails, AI risks accelerating extraction and consumption, placing further pressure on biodiversity-rich Indigenous territories.