Warwick Law School News

Professor Sharifah Sekalala launched the prestigious 2026/27 Cutting-Edge Issues in Development Thinking & Practice Guest Lecture series at the LSE earlier this month. Her lecture on 'The Role of the Law in African Health Data Futures' was the first lecture of the series hosted by the International Development Department at LSE.

Relying on findings from the Wellcome funded project, ‘There is no App for this,’ Professor Sekalala examined the role of law in creating health data futures in Africa covering the intersections of AI, public health data, and sovereign regulation in Sub-Saharan Africa.

The discussion highlighted the risks of digital colonialism and the urgent need for proactive legal frameworks to protect health data sovereignty against multinational tech extraction.

• Watch the full lecture on YouTubeLink opens in a new window.
• Read the accompanying blog: Who owns the future your health data is building?Link opens in a new window

Photo Credit: Emy Eapen