Veritas University, Abuja, has emerged as the first university in Africa to formally commit to ethical artificial intelligence governance through the signing of the Humanitas AI Compact, a cross-sector framework designed to ensure that AI development and deployment prioritises human dignity and the common good.
- +Veritas varsity to adopt ethical AI governance framework
The development was disclosed in a statement issued on Tuesday by the Head of Corporate Affairs and Communications of the university, Ben Agande.
The development was disclosed in a statement issued on Tuesday by the Head of Corporate Affairs and Communications of the university, Ben Agande.
The university said the signing represents its institutional response to the Magnifica Humanitas, a papal declaration by Pope Leo XIV calling on universities and centres of learning worldwide to assume responsibility for the ethical governance of artificial intelligence and ensure that emerging technologies remain firmly centred on humanity.
According to the statement, the physical signing ceremony took place during the 154th Senate meeting of the university, where proceedings were briefly suspended to accommodate the historic event.
The Vice-Chancellor of Veritas University, Prof. Hyacinth Ichoku, signed the compact on behalf of the institution, describing the move as a direct response to the Pope’s call for academic institutions to take leadership in shaping the ethical direction of AI.
Other signatories at the event included Prof. Emeka Aniagolu of the Institute for African American Studies, Abuja; Elder Solomon Appiah-Wilson of the Commonwealth Forum, London; Dr Sam Amadi of the Centre for AI, Digital Justice and Economic Rights; and Dr Mehad Nasreldin of the African Institute of Public Health, Addis Ababa.
Speaking at the ceremony, Ichoku said the compact was born out of the papal message, stressing that universities must not only engage with technology but also guide its moral and social implications.
“The Humanitas AI Compact exists because of Magnifica Humanitas. In Magnifica Humanitas, the Holy Father, Pope Leo XIV, called on universities and institutions of learning by name to take up their responsibility in the age of artificial intelligence. This Compact is our institutional response to that call, beginning from Africa and extending to all institutions entrusted with the formation, protection, education, healing, governance, and advancement of the human person,” he said.
He explained that the message of the papal declaration is rooted in the protection of vulnerable populations and the promotion of inclusive development in the digital age.
“AI must serve humanity: the poor, the sick, the migrant, the displaced by war, women and girls, and all those vulnerable to exclusion, poverty, conflict, sickness, displacement, manipulation, and invisibility,” Ichoku added.
The Vice-Chancellor further noted that educational institutions must move beyond academic acknowledgement of ethical frameworks to active institutional implementation.
“An encyclical is never only a document to be admired. It is a call to be received, embodied, organised, and carried into the world,” he said, adding that African universities must begin to give institutional form to the principles outlined in Magnifica Humanitas.
Under the Humanitas AI Compact, signatory institutions commit to seven core principles, including human dignity, subsidiarity, the common good, the universal destination of goods, truth, and the integral development of the person.
They also pledged seven key commitments, including reviewing academic programmes to ensure holistic human formation in the AI era, strengthening digital literacy, prioritising vulnerable populations in AI deployment, promoting justice and peace in technology use, building global educational partnerships, contributing to AI governance discourse, and ensuring equitable access to the benefits of the digital age.
The compact also emphasises that AI systems must not replace human moral judgement and cautions against over-reliance on algorithmic decision-making in matters affecting human life and dignity.
According to the statement, the next phase of the initiative will open participation to a wider network of educational institutions, healthcare providers, civil society organisations and public sector actors across Africa and globally.
The expansion is expected to coincide with the second month of the Magnifica Humanitas declaration.
AI governance has become a growing global concern, with institutions worldwide increasingly seeking frameworks to balance innovation with ethics, accountability and human rights, particularly in areas such as education, healthcare, and public administration.
