Concept Paper on AI prepared for first time in Nepal

 The government has for the first time prepared a Concept Paper on the use and practice of Artificial Intelligence (AI). The government developed the concept paper to determine the basis for formulating the related policy and laws on the use and operation of AI in the context of the country lacking these and in view of the growing use and development of AI the world over.

The technical committee constituted by the Ministry of Communications and Information Technology prepared the concept paper after nearly five months' study.

The Ministry had formed a five-member technical committee with Joint Secretary Anil Kumar Dutta as its coordinator as directed by Minister for Communications and Information Technology Rekha Sharma.

Ministry Under-Secretary Narayan Timilsina, Information Technology Director at the Ministry's Information Technology Department, Pabitra Dangol and Lecturer at the Institute of Engineering Dr Baburam Dawadi are the members of the committee while the Ministry's computer engineer Surya Prakash Upadhyay is the member-secretary.

The technical committee was formed on January 19. The committee has prepared a report on the concept paper and presented the same to the Ministry.

The report has made recommendations to the government to enact the necessary policy, laws and procedures for the development, use and regulation of AI.

Pointing out the need of addressing the issues of cyber security, data protection and privacy in policy-level, the report suggested to formulate national policy related to AI, to make national strategy, framework of data protection along with legal bases for the use of AI and the privacy of users, to determine standard compatible with international standard of policies and laws incorporated in data safety and protection.

Similarly, Under-Secretary of the Ministry and member of Concept Paper Preparation Technical Committee, Timilsina shared that the report suggested to build integrated structure to exchange AI related information by developing integrated national portal, forward the research, development and use on the issue with priority, to run programmes to accelerate use of AI.

"A strategy should be taken to promote privacy protection, transparency and accountability, research on development and promotion of use of AI as well as increasing investment and collaboration", reads the report.

The concerned sectors should keep the development and promotion of use of AI in their policies, strategies and programme in priority for the same, the report reads.