Librarians As Champions of Epistemic Justice: Ethical Dataset Vetting In Ai-Mediated Data Systems Through The Library–ai Handshake Model *cancelled

As artificial intelligence (AI) becomes increasingly embedded in library and data infrastructures, African higher education institutions face pressing ethical challenges related to knowledge representation, data governance, and epistemic justice. While AI-driven systems offer opportunities for enhanced data management, discovery, and access, they also risk perpetuating colonial epistemic hierarchies through biased datasets, Western-centric metadata standards, and the marginalisation of Indigenous Knowledge Systems (IKS). Within this context, librarians occupy a critical yet under-theorised role as ethical mediators between AI technologies and culturally situated knowledge systems. It is based on this premise that the study will apply the Library–AI Handshake Model as an analytical and conceptual framework comprising eight progressive stages: Baseline Knowledge, Acceptance, Use, Fortify, De-marginalise, Perspective, Foresight, and Sustainability. Through this model, the review will illuminate how librarians can move beyond technical implementation towards ethical dataset vetting, culturally responsive metadata practices, and advocacy for epistemic plurality in AI systems. This study will adopt an interpretivist paradigm and a systematic literature review to critically examine how librarians across the African continent engage with AI in relation to IKS representation, data ethics, and decolonial practices. The review will synthesise existing empirical evidence to identify dominant themes, gaps, and emerging practices at the intersection of librarianship, AI, and IKS. Thematic analysis will be guided by Decolonial Theory and Cultural Interface Theory, enabling a critical interrogation of power, knowledge, and representation within AI-mediated library environments. Findings are expected to contribute to scholarship on ethical librarianship and decolonial AI by foregrounding librarians as champions of epistemic justice within data-driven environments. The study will offer a continentally relevant framework to support inclusive, culturally grounded, and sustainable AI integration in African higher education libraries, expected to position librarians as key actors in shaping equitable digital knowledge futures.