Amman: Rep. Ilham Essaki Takes Part in Arab Parliamentary Conference on Technology and Economy

Rep. Ilham Essaki (Group of Authenticity and Modernity) took part, as a member of the Steering Bureau of the High-Level Parliamentary Working Group on Technology, Innovation, and Digital Transition of the Arab Parliament, in the proceedings of the Arab Parliamentary Conference on Technology and Economy under the theme: "Impact of technology and innovation on reinforcing the growth of Arab economy." The Conference took place on June 29-30, 2024, in Amman, the Hashemite Kingdom of Jordan.

During her participation, Rep. Ilham Essaki underscored the importance granted by the Kingdom of Morocco to technological advancement, digital transition, and artificial intelligence. She also shed light on several measures taken by the various departments of the Moroccan Government to follow up on the rapid development the world is witnessing in these areas, as well as to advance the economy by using modern tools, reinforce the legal arsenal, and modernize the public administration by utilizing the capacities of artificial intelligence to ameliorate the services provided for users and enterprises, encourage investment, and strengthen the digital economy.

The Moroccan Representative called for enacting special laws for artificial intelligence in Arab countries to regulate its application areas. She also called for setting binding rules and regulations for its use to ban its non-ethical uses, and to respect the fundamental rights of citizens. In the same regard, she made mention of the advantages of using artificial intelligence in several areas, such as industry, economy, trade, and other fields.

Besides, the member of the Steering Bureau of the High-Level Parliamentary Working Group on Technology, Innovation, and Digital Transition of the Arab Parliament added that society and economy cannot be advanced without advancing human resources, developing brains, and building human capacities. Thus, "we need to grant further attention to scientific research in technology, digitalization, and artificial intelligence," she said.

Rep. Ilhami Essaki also noted that the Kingdom of Morocco established an International Center for Artificial Intelligence within the Mohammed VI Polytechnic University in March 2021. The Center works on research and development. Besides, Morocco also created academic colleges for artificial intelligence in several cities. The Moroccan Representative added that Morocco has a solid infrastructure in research and training to enhance skills and research on artificial intelligence.

It should be noted that the High-Level Parliamentary Working Group on Technology, Innovation, and Digital Transition of the Arab Parliament is the first Arab parliamentary network concerned with science and technology and works on stimulating interest in this field in the Arab world and lay the ground for effective complementarity between science, technology, and parliamentary action in the Arab world.