South Africa has withdrawn its draft National Artificial Intelligence (AI) Policy after investigations confirmed the document contained fictitious academic sources, prompting Communications and Digital Technologies Minister Solly Malatsi to scrap the policy.
Malatsi announced that the draft policy published for public comment contained fabricated academic references, a discovery that has triggered a full withdrawal of the document.
Internal checks confirmed that several citations listed in the draft were fictitious, with investigations suggesting that AI‑generated citations were included without verification, undermining the credibility of a policy intended to guide the country’s AI governance.
“As such, I am withdrawing the Draft National Artificial Intelligence Policy,” the minister said.
The draft policy had been approved by cabinet on 25 March 2026 and gazetted on 10 April, opening a 60‑day public consultation period.
It was meant to expand South Africa’s initial AI framework by embedding principles such as intergenerational equity and setting national priorities across sectors including manufacturing, energy, infrastructure, transport and trade.
Deputy President Paul Mashatile had recently described the policy as central to the country’s broader Fourth Industrial Revolution strategy.
However, the policy’s credibility collapsed after media reports revealed that several academic journals cited in the document did not exist, prompting the department to launch an internal review.
JN/APA