Artificial intelligence is moving faster than ever.
Young people are learning how to prompt it, generate content with it and use its growing capabilities. But according to youth development organisation Afrika Tikkun, there is a critical question that must come before the technology itself:
Do young people have the judgement to use AI responsibly?
In September 2026, Afrika Tikkun is warning that a generation equipped with powerful AI tools without a strong moral framework could face serious challenges.
“Our children and youth are learning to prompt AI before they have learned to question it,” says Marc Lubner, Executive Chairperson and Group CEO of Afrika Tikkun. “This is not a skills gap, it’s a judgement gap that needs to be closed.”
The Power of AI Comes With Responsibility
The debate around artificial intelligence is no longer limited to what the technology can achieve.
It is increasingly about what people choose to do with it.
President Cyril Ramaphosa raised similar concerns while speaking at the recent BRICS Summit, highlighting AI’s potential to usher in a new era of productivity and human progress.
He said that, when used responsibly, AI could help reduce inequality, poverty and underdevelopment.
At the same time, Ramaphosa highlighted concerns within the AI industry about systems that could potentially assist with the development of biological weapons, autonomous action, manipulation and employment disruption.
He stressed that society should never reach a point where technological capability has moved beyond humanity’s ability to understand, supervise and control it.
For Afrika Tikkun, that concern extends directly to how young people are prepared to interact with AI.
Skills Alone Are Not Enough
Afrika Tikkun embraces the advancement of AI and the opportunities it can create.
But the organisation argues that teaching young people how to use AI is only one part of the equation.
The other is teaching them when, why and whether they should use it.
“We have to help them develop a strong moral skill set, so they know how to use AI responsibly,” says Lubner.
The organisation believes that principled judgement, ethical practice, morals and values need to be developed from a young age.
They cannot simply be added through a short-term course or crash module for young adults.
Instead, Afrika Tikkun says these qualities develop over time, much like character itself.
Building Character Alongside Digital Skills
Afrika Tikkun’s approach is reflected in its Cradle to Career model.
The organisation’s foundational philosophy is that sustained, long-term intervention can help equip people to deal with the challenges that work, family and life can bring.
While a school may have a child for only a few hours a day and for a limited number of years, Afrika Tikkun says it works with children from early childhood through to the point where they find employment.
That long-term approach, according to Lubner, creates an opportunity to develop judgement, ethics and values alongside practical skills.
“We know that judgement, ethics and values can’t be meaningfully taught in a module. They are formed as part of one’s character, over years of development,” he says.
For Afrika Tikkun, combining moral education and ethical practice with skills training is therefore central to preparing young people for responsible AI use.
What Happens When Judgement Is Missing?
Lubner warns that enormous technological capability without an appropriate framework for using it can create serious challenges.
He points to the risk of young people struggling to distinguish truth from fabrication, outsourcing their thinking before they have learned to think, and becoming easier to manipulate.
His argument is that AI ethics is not an entirely new lesson.
Instead, it applies familiar questions about morality, ethics and citizenship to a new form of technological power.
Afrika Tikkun therefore approaches AI ethics as a question of moral, ethical and digital citizenship, rather than treating it solely as a digital skills course.
The organisation believes that good judgement is developed through experiences such as dilemmas, debate, scenarios and role play, rather than simply reading a policy.
The Values Afrika Tikkun Wants Young People to Carry Into AI
Afrika Tikkun says it teaches AI use within a core values framework.
Honesty
Young people are taught not to present AI-generated work as their own thinking or use AI as a tool for deception.
Good Judgement
They are encouraged to understand when an AI output can be trusted, when it needs to be checked and when uncertainty should be acknowledged.
Responsibility
Young people are expected to take ownership of what they produce when collaborating with an AI tool.
As Lubner puts it, the tool will never take responsibility for the result — the person using it must.
Respect for Others
Afrika Tikkun also stresses that AI must be used with respect for other people.
That means it should never be used to harm, mock, exclude or manipulate another person.
A Call to Everyone Working With Young People
Lubner is calling on organisations and individuals working with children and young people to make moral integrity part of their approach to AI education.
For Afrika Tikkun, the challenge is not simply preparing young people to understand a powerful technology.
It is preparing them to make responsible decisions when using it.
That distinction becomes particularly important in a country where inequality remains a central issue in society.
Lubner argues that government, educators, industry leaders and the private sector should do everything possible to ensure that AI does not become another source of inequality or injustice through harmful use.
Instead, he believes those with the ability to guide young people should help them harness AI for outcomes that benefit humanity.
The message from Afrika Tikkun is ultimately about what happens when technological power meets human judgement.
AI can be taught as a skill.
But according to the organisation, responsible AI use must also be built on character, ethics, values and the ability to make the right decision when technology makes almost anything possible.
