Apostolic Nuncio in Kenya Advocates for Technology That “preserves identity, safeguards dignity” in Africa

 “When technology is grounded in African epistemology, it becomes an instrument of liberation instead of alienation,” the Apostolic Nuncio in Kenya said, and reemphasized, “Technology must, therefore, be embraced in Africa without forgetting African identity.”

The Sensitive Data Sovereignty Conference at TU seeks to unite policymakers, researchers, humanitarian actors, and technology experts to examine how African-led data spaces can strengthen data and AI sovereignty, promote ethical use of technology, and support health and humanitarian action.

It responds to the growing dominance of global tech companies over African data, which has led to data loss, weakened local capacity, and limited use of health and humanitarian information.

In his January 27 input, the Apostolic Nuncio in Kenya encouraged the people of God to allow the Catholic Social Teaching to guide them in engaging technology for the systems to play their role effectively on the continent and especially in local communities.

“When guided by Catholic social teaching, innovation gains direction, not limitation. You see, the Church does not offer technical blueprints. She offers moral orientation, and she insists that consent, dignity, and trust must never become casualties of progress,” the Vatican diplomat in Kenya following his appointment in February 2019 said.

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He further echoed the late Pope Francis’ warning against “technological colonization,” where, innovation imposed from outside erases cultural traditions and social bonds.

Pope Francis, Archbishop van Megen said, “calls for an integral ecology that respects cultural traditions and social bonds.”

“Technology, therefore, must enhance, not erase, the soul of a people, the people of Africa,” he said, referring to Pope Francis’ May 2015 Encyclical Letter on care for our common home, Laudato Si’.

Archbishop Van Megen called upon the people of God in Africa to “shape digital innovation through its own epistemologies and values,” saying “Authentic development requires intellectual self-determination and contextual meaning making.”

He underscored the importance of technology for all, especially the vulnerable, saying that it “serves its highest purpose only when it contributes to that fullness of life, especially for those whose lives are most fragile.”

The Apostolic Nuncio acknowledged the digital transformation in health and humanitarian action sectors, describing it as “inevitable.”

He went on to urge African leaders, institutions, and innovators to invest in technology without losing their souls, ensuring that innovation grows together with responsibility and that the vulnerable remain at the center rather than at the periphery.

“If Africa invests in technology without losing its soul, if innovation grows together with responsibility, and if the vulnerable remain at the center rather than at the periphery, then data can become not a source of fear, but a means of care, justice, and solidarity,” Archbishop van Megen said.

Sabrine Amboka is a Kenyan journalist with a passion for Catholic church communication. She holds a bachelor’s degree in mass communication from St. Paul's University in Kenya.