AI & Research Integrity Policy

Effective date: October 2026. Last reviewed: September 2026.

AfroStrategy recognizes that artificial-intelligence tools increasingly support research, writing, translation, coding, data analysis and publishing. We permit responsible AI-assisted workflows but do not permit AI to replace human accountability.

Human responsibility

Every named author remains responsible for the accuracy, originality, citations, data integrity, analysis, legal compliance and final manuscript submitted under their name.

Editors and reviewers remain responsible for their own editorial decisions.

AI authorship

AI systems cannot be listed as authors because they cannot assume responsibility, consent to publication, disclose conflicts of interest or respond to research-integrity concerns.

Permitted assistance

Responsible uses may include:

language and grammar improvement;
translation support;
transcription;
code assistance;
document organization;
search-term generation;
formatting;
brainstorming; and
other support functions that do not transfer author responsibility to the tool.

Disclosure

Authors should disclose substantial AI use when it materially contributes to drafting, analysis, coding, data interpretation or visual generation.

Routine spelling and grammar assistance generally does not require a formal disclosure.

Verification

AI-generated text, references, quotations, calculations, translations, code and summaries must be independently checked.

The presence of an AI-generated citation or factual claim is not evidence that the source exists or that the claim is correct.

Prohibited practices

AI must not be used to:

invent sources or references;
fabricate quotations;
generate fictional empirical data and present it as observed;
falsify or manipulate evidence;
conceal plagiarism;
impersonate participants, interviewees or reviewers;
fabricate peer review; or
bypass required ethical review.

Confidentiality

Unpublished manuscripts, reviewer reports, embargoed documents, protected personal data, confidential datasets or sensitive institutional information should not be uploaded to third-party AI services unless appropriate authorization, contractual safeguards and security controls exist.

AI-generated images and media

AI-generated or substantially AI-altered images should be identified where their synthetic nature could affect interpretation.

Documentary, evidentiary or research images must not be manipulated in a misleading manner.

Peer review and editorial use

Reviewers and editors should not place confidential submissions into public AI tools without authorization.

If AI assistance is used in an editorial workflow, human editors remain responsible for the decision and for protecting confidential information.

Research misconduct

Use of AI does not reduce or transfer responsibility for plagiarism, fabrication, falsification, copyright infringement, privacy violations or other research misconduct.

Serious violations may result in rejection, correction, retraction, account restriction or other proportionate editorial action.