As African governments rush to draft AI strategies, data protection frameworks and digital economy blueprints, key questions are emerging: Can innovation be achieved without smothering it through regulation?
•For Linda Saunders, Salesforce Africa lead and country manager, the answer lies not in deregulation but in collaborative policymaking.
•At a time when AI policy across the continent remains fragmented, Saunders argues that Africa’s readiness for enterprise AI will depend less on hype and more on three fundamentals: regulation, infrastructure, and culture.
•In this interview with Wall Street Kenya, Sanders talks about Salesforce, regulation, and what policymakers and innovators need to do to get this moment right.
“Governments need to sit down with business partners, the public and big tech companies to develop a roadmap that protects the public but does not constrain competitiveness,” she said in an interview with Kenya Wall Street.
Across the developed world, slowing population growth is reshaping labor markets. In contrast, Africa’s demographic dividend positions it as both a talent engine and a high-growth digital market.
Saunders says this duality makes Africa strategically important to Salesforce’s global roadmap. “Africa is not just a sales market. It’s a skills market. It’s an innovation market,” she points out, pointing to the continent’s young workforce and rapidly digitizing economy.
But she warns that policies need to be carefully balanced.
She says the government is right to be cautious. AI governance must not be reckless. However, overly restrictive regulations risk isolating African businesses from global competition.
She argues that countries need to define their own sovereign goals and tailor regulations to enable innovation within that context.
Financial services that exceed expectations
Contrary to popular belief, Africa’s most highly regulated industries are currently the most active in adopting agent AI.
“Financial services is really embracing agent-based solutions,” says Saunders.
This is notable as the banking industry has traditionally been risk-averse and compliance-focused. However, banks are leaning towards AI for productivity, customer engagement, and risk modeling.
Beyond financial services, Salesforce also has significant penetration in telecommunications, retail, and service-driven industries. Surprisingly, despite potentially transformative citizen service use cases, public sector and healthcare adoption remains slow.
The real barrier: Misinformation, not technology
If infrastructure gaps are one constraint, Sanders believes misinformation is an even bigger constraint.
Business leaders are bombarded with conflicting AI claims. It is becoming increasingly difficult to distinguish between marketing and measurable capabilities.
“How do we know the AI is real? Are the tokens actually being spent? Leaders need the intelligence to ask the right questions.”
Cultural hesitations also play a role. Stories of people being forced out of their jobs are fueling anxiety. In emerging markets, where business margins are low, making the wrong bet on technology can be costly.
However, Saunders believes that AI skills are more accessible than people realize.
Saunders said Salesforce, which started as a pioneer in cloud-based CRM, has evolved into a “complete value chain supporting agency businesses.” Salesforce’s position focuses on trust, especially ownership of corporate data. Unlike open commercial AI models that are trained based on user input, Salesforce maintains that customer data remains owned and controlled by the company.
Through Salesforce’s Trailhead platform, individuals can build AI capabilities through gamified learning, challenging the idea that AI expertise requires an advanced degree.
“Skills are no longer static; the ability to learn and relearn defines the workforce.”
Debate on trust, data and sovereignty
The ethics and security implications of AI remain a policy flashpoint.
Saunders distinguishes between the use of consumer AI, where individuals upload data into an open model, and enterprise-grade deployments.
“If you’re putting sensitive data into a commercial model, can you guarantee that that data isn’t being used to train that model?”
She emphasizes that while enterprise platforms need to provide robust governance, authorization, and architectural controls, customers also need to strengthen the security of their credentials as cyber-attacks increase.
This tiered responsibility model reflects the broader policy dialogue of data sovereignty and global interoperability that is unfolding across African capitals.
digital native economy
Sanders singles out Kenya as a particularly promising growth node. “Kenyans have a digital native mindset. Kenya is a vibrant economy with exciting use cases waiting to be realized,” she said.
As Nairobi establishes itself as East Africa’s technology hub, the interaction between private sector platforms and public policy could become decisive.
Salesforce’s expansion into Africa, including offices in Johannesburg and Casablanca, demonstrates confidence in the continent’s trajectory. But Sanders emphasizes that success depends on coordinating the ecosystem.
Looking ahead, she expects enterprise technology to move from software-as-a-service to what she calls “service as software,” autonomous agents contracted to deliver outcomes.
She argues that organizations will increasingly blend human expertise with AI agents that go beyond automating simple tasks.
