African Journal of GIS and Spatial Analysis (Environmental/Earth Science | 10 June 2008
Indigenous Knowledge Integration into AI Development in West Africa: A Botswagana Perspective
S, e, l, l, o, S, e, l, e, k, a, ,, M, o, k, g, o, p, h, e, l, o, M, p, h, a, h, l, e, l, e
Abstract
Indigenous knowledge systems in West Africa, including those from Botswana, offer unique insights into environmental management and resource utilization. The study employed a mixed-methods approach, combining qualitative interviews with semi-structured questionnaires and quantitative data analysis using statistical software. A preliminary analysis of interview data revealed that 75% of respondents highlighted the importance of IKS for enhancing AI models in ecological forecasting. The integration of IKS into AI development is expected to improve model accuracy by up to 20%, particularly in predicting environmental changes and biodiversity patterns. Future research should focus on developing a standardised framework for integrating IKS with AI, incorporating iterative testing phases to refine models based on feedback from local communities. Model estimation used $\hat{\theta}=argmin<em>{\theta}\sum</em>i\ell(y<em>i,f</em>\theta(x<em>i))+\lambda\lVert\theta\rVert</em>2^2$, with performance evaluated using out-of-sample error.