The Arab League has urged member states to double down on their artificial intelligence (AI) investments to achieve sustainable development goals in the region with an eye on digitization.
The Arab League reaffirmed its commitment during a roundtable discussion on Artificial Intelligence and Sustainability, attended by representatives from member states. Titled ‘From Innovation to Impact,’ the event featured AI experts and leaders from various Arab organizations who came together to exchange ideas and insights.
Nada Al-Ajezi, Director of Sustainable Development and International Cooperation Department at the Arab League, disclosed that the region has to view AI as a transformative force of change rather than a futuristic concept. In her keynote speech, Al-Ajezi noted that there is a shared responsibility among members of the Arab League to leverage AI and other emerging technologies for sustainable development.
To use AI as the cornerstone for regional development, Al-Ajezi told attendees that regional and international cooperation is key for the Arab League. The Director urged members to collaborate in the development of watertight AI rules to guide the operations of service providers, aligning them with global standards.
Furthermore, Al-Ajezi added that Arab countries that have surged ahead with AI development should carry out knowledge and talent exchanges with regional neighbors for even adoption.
The Arab Economic and Social Council has adopted a resolution for the Sustainable Digital Transformation Roadmap 2025-2030, emphasizing that AI will play a significant role in this initiative. Al-Ajezi noted that the roadmap bears striking similarity to the United Nations’ Global Digital Compact, a resolution by member states to pursue AI cooperation and governance.
Arab AI models rub shoulders with Western offerings
With these overarching resolutions in play, attendees to the Arab League’s roundtable leaned on the event to share experiences and explore new partnerships. The three-session roundtable event, co-organized by the Arab Organization for Information and Communication Technologies, is part of a series of events put together by the Arab League for constructive dialogue for regional AI integration.
Despite their second-mover position, AI models developed by the United Arab Emirates have recorded significant levels of success in recent years. A report indicated that UAE-made AI models, such as Falcon and Jais, perform impressively in tests compared to those from Google (NASDAQ: GOOGL) and OpenAI.
Apart from their localized large language models (LLMs), the UAE has rolled out a charter to ensure safe AI usage, setting the pace for the rest of the region. In terms of adoption, Arab countries are not slowing down with one study revealing that 93% of Saudi companies have advanced plans for AI innovation.
It pointed to AI’s growing utility in digital banking, offering personalization and real-time fraud detection perks to users. Furthermore, the technology has enabled process automation and AI-powered virtual assistants while offering new insights for credit scoring for customers.
With IoT, the report highlighted the possibility of embedded finance and context-aware banking for customers. In the coming years, Forrester Research analysts predicted that insurance and financial institutions will be able to access real-time data for loans and premiums, pushing the frontiers of digital banking.
Meanwhile, edge computing is poised to spearhead low-latency and offline payments for customers in areas with weak connectivity. Furthermore, analysts are mulling over the prospects of edge computing-backed instantaneous analytics.
While several banks have begun limited integration with these technologies, the push toward agentic experiences is expected to inflame the risks faced by consumers. Zhi-Ying Barry, principal analyst at Forrester Research, revealed that despite the arms race for emerging technologies in digital banking, institutions must maintain a “delicate balance” between risk and reward.
“Banks in Singapore and Australia that are looking to leverage AI and experiment with agentic AI are treading very carefully. There could be higher-risk scenarios where errors could have significant negative consequences, such as financial losses and reputational damage,” said Barry, adding that there are several pioneering institutions rolling out AI task forces and steering committees to guide their foray into next-gen technologies.
Amid the frantic race to integrate emerging technologies, financial sector regulators have declared an intent to ensure that their adoption places a focus on consumer safety. The Monetary Authority of Singapore (MAS) has pledged to roll out new regulations for digital assets while improving governance for financial institutions experimenting with AI.
The United States has introduced a bill urging federal financial regulators to study the risks associated with AI in finance. Meanwhile, the Reserve Bank of India (RBI), in a paper, warned that AI poses dire financial stability risks to the local economy.
On the global front, the Bank for International Settlements (BIS) and the Organization for Economic Co-operation and Development (OECD) have published papers for local regulators to police AI utility in finance.
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