Governments, Tech Companies Can Do More For People With Disabilities Using Artificial Intelligence – Professor Tsetimi

By Daniel Dafe

Vice-President, South-South, National Association of Artificial Intelligence Practitioners, Professor Jonathan Tsetimi, has laid out a roadmap by which federal and state governments and as well tech companies can explore Artificial Intelligence, AI, to better the lives of people living positively with disabilities.

The don spoke on Friday as the Theme Speaker in Asaba during the Biennial Delegates’ Meeting of the National Association of Government General Medical and Dental Practitioners (NAGGMDP) hosted by Delta Branch with the theme: ‘Empowering Inclusion: Harnessing AI to Enhance Lives of People with Disabilities.’

The professor of Industrial Mathematics, in a captivating PowerPoint presentation highlighted the significant potential of Artificial Intelligence (AI) to enhance the lives of people with disabilities.

The discourse which was well received, elicited a standing ovation and set the pace for a scientific discussion session also led by Professor Tsetimi with some four discussants, audience participation and moderated by Dr. Ejiro Usumah, NMA Secretary, Delta State.

Professor Tsetimi who is also the Director, Centre for Research and International Programmes, DELSU, Abraka, said AI refers to the ability of a computer or robot to perform tasks commonly associated with intelligent beings, adding that the tasks include reasoning, discovering meaning, generalization and learning from past experiences.

Speaking further, he said that recent positive developments in AI are breaking boundaries in human development and there was the need for policy development on the part of governments and various stakeholders to ensure responsible use of AI in enhancing the quality of life lived by persons living positively with disabilities.

Continuing, he defined empowering inclusion as the process of creating environments where everyone feels valued, respected, and has the opportunity to participate fully in the society.

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Prof. Tsetimi said people with disabilities are individuals who have a physical or mental impairment that substantially limits one or more major life activities.

To achieve inclusion in the workplace, he suggested AI-powered job matching and recruitment, saying that AI can match job seekers with disabilities to suitable job opportunities.

He continued: “AI-powered tools can help to make workplaces more accessible, such as providing real-time captioning and translation,” just as he said that AI-powered productivity tools can help people with disabilities to perform tasks more efficiently.

Prof. Tsetimi also called for governments to come up with policies and Incentives to promote inclusion for people with disabilities.

He stressed the need for a national policy on AI with inclusivity as one of its core principles.

He also informed the audience at this year’s Biennial Delegates’ Meeting of the National Association of Government General Medical and Dental Practitioners (NAGGMDP) that Delta State University already has an AI policy in place, with inclusivity as one of its core principles.

He informed further that DELSU arising from a workshop on its AI policy in October this year submitted a list of actionable recommendations on the urgent need for a national policy on AI in higher education in Nigeria to the National Universities Commission (NUC).

He hinted that people with disabilities can benefit from government funding and incentives to support the development and deployment of AI-powered assistive technologies, while stating that clear standards and guidelines can help to ensure the quality and accessibility of AI-powered solutions and that with international cooperation to facilitate the sharing of knowledge and resources to advance the development of AI for people with disabilities, inclusion for them would have been achieved.

He noted that challenges faced by people with disabilities in relation to the use of AI include lack of inclusive design, incompatibility with assistive technologies, data accessibility, algorithmic bias, stereotyping, lack of representation, data privacy concerns and dependence on technology.

According to him, “AI-powered surveillance systems may disproportionately target people with disabilities.”

He also stated that economic Inequality is another challenge faced by people with disabilities.

In his call to action for inclusivity for people with disabilities, he urged tech companies and AI practitioners to ensure AI systems are designed with accessibility principles in mind, incorporating features like screen reader compatibility, voice command control, and customizable interfaces.

He added: “Train AI models on diverse datasets that represent people with disabilities to improve accuracy and relevance. Prioritize accessibility in AI Research. Create AI-powered tools like smart glasses, voice assistants, and robotic exoskeletons to enhance independence and quality of life. Facilitate partnerships to develop innovative solutions tailored to the specific needs of people with disabilities. Encourage open-source initiatives to democratize access to AI-powered assistive technologies.”

Furthermore, in his call for action for inclusivity, he urged governments and their agencies to incorporate disability awareness and inclusive design principles into AI curricula, provide digital literacy training for people with disabilities, fund research to explore the potential benefits and challenges of AI for people with disabilities, develop robust data protection measures to safeguard the personal information of people with disabilities, establish guidelines to prevent bias and discrimination in AI algorithms, make regulations that promote the ethical and equitable use of AI and promote workplace inclusivity by hiring and retention of people with disabilities.