IGF summit closes with call for a just, inclusive and sustainable digital future

The summit, held in Riyadh, Saudi Arabia, brought together multiple stakeholders from governments, the private sector, and civil society, advocating for the use of digital technology while upholding human dignity.

First to be held in the Gulf region, the 19th session of the IGF involved over 300 sessions geared towards building a development-oriented, people-centred, inclusive, and inclusive information society.

Here, participants also championed the adoption of Artificial Intelligence technologies while minimising the risks involved.

In his closing remarks United Nations Under-Secretary-General for Economic and Social Affairs, Li Junhua, reaffirmed the enduring relevance of IGF in confronting challenges of Artificial Intelligence, safeguarding human dignity and increasingly interconnecting the world.

Junhua also emphasised the principles of the World Summit on the Information Society (WSIS), which are applicable in taking decisive actions against harmful uses of technology including discrimination, violence and exploitation.

“The IGF will continue to thrive as a global space where diverse voices converge to address emerging challenges and shape a just, inclusive and sustainable digital future,” said Junhua in his closing remarks.

A policy on AI   

During the summit, the Policy Network on Artificial Intelligence (PNAI) also unveiled a report focusing on AI governance and gave recommendations on topical issues within the AI ecosystem.

In ensuring liability within the ecosystem, PNAI emphasises the importance of holding AI developers and deployers accountable for the harms caused across the AI lifecycle.

The network argued that liability frameworks can “help mitigate AI risks over time as they provide flexibility, adapting to novel harms without requiring constant regulatory updates.” It therefore recommends the establishment of a global AI liability task force and an international framework for AI liability.

Environmental sustainability in the AI era was also a concern for the network, which noted the environmental degradation in every stage of the Generative AI value chain.

The Generative AI value chain largely contributes to carbon footprints from resources including computer hardware, cloud platforms, machine learning operations, and applications.

“Establishing accurate and comprehensive metrics is crucial for assessing the full environmental impact of Gen-AI. Clear metrics provide AI developers and policymakers a framework for understanding, managing and assessing energy consumption, resource utilisation, and emissions associated with AI development, deployment, and usage,” the PNAI report states.

The group recommends measures including the development of comprehensive sustainability metrics for Gen-AI and the implementation of environmentally focused data governance.

In the report, stakeholders also recognise the impact of AI on the workforce where it holds the power to boost worker productivity, create new roles and address existing inequalities in the workplace. It notes the existing wage polarization between workers and the inequitable geographical distribution of AI capacities.

Among its recommendations, the multistakeholder body proposes the establishment of ethical frameworks and the incorporation of worker feedback in designing AI systems.