Cairo, Smart Village

The Arab Task Force on Artificial Intelligence, affiliated with the Council of Arab Ministers of Communications and Information Technology, held its eleventh meeting today, Monday, June 2, 2025, hosted by the Arab Academy for Science, Technology and Maritime Transport at its Smart Village branch. The meeting was chaired by Her Excellency Dr. Hoda Baraka, Advisor to the Egyptian Minister of Communications and Information Technology and Chair of the Arab Task Force on Artificial Intelligence.

The meeting witnessed high-level participation from representatives of the ministries of communications and artificial intelligence in Arab countries, and a delegation from the General Secretariat of the League of Arab States headed by His Excellency Minister Plenipotentiary Dr. Khaled Wali, Director of the Department of Communications and Information Technology Development. Experts from Arab organizations and institutions concerned with joint action in artificial intelligence were also present, including the Arab Information and Communication Technologies Organization (AICTO), the Arab Federation for Digital Economy (AFDE), and the Digital Cooperation Organization (DCO). Representatives of prominent regional and international organizations such as the International Telecommunication Union (ITU), UNESCO, and ESCWA also attended.

The meeting’s agenda included key topics, including a presentation of the final draft of the Arab Code of Ethics for Artificial Intelligence, a discussion of an action plan for implementing the Arab AI Strategy, and a review of efforts to develop an Arab digital platform for the team. The meeting also featured a presentation of achievements and success stories in the field of artificial intelligence from member states and international and regional organizations.

For his part, Dr. Ayman Ghoneim, Assistant Secretary-General of the Arab Federation for Digital Economy, delivered a speech in which he emphasized that any strategy, no matter how good, will fail to achieve a real impact unless it is supported by stable and institutionalized implementation tools. He emphasized the importance of the proposal to establish an “Arab Artificial Intelligence Alliance,” which was proposed as a recommendation by the Arab AI Dialogue last February, considering it the optimal practical framework for coordinating and unifying Arab efforts.

Dr. Ghoneim proposed that this alliance emerge as an organized and stable executive entity, similar to a “permanent general secretariat,” not limited to temporary committees, but rather a flexible and effective Arab institution, capable of planning, implementation, and continuous development. To achieve this, he emphasized the need for smart, clear, and stable financing mechanisms, proposing pragmatic, repayable financing built on clear economic foundations and extending over a long period of time. He also indicated the possibility of this financing taking the form of a contribution in exchange for ownership of shares or stocks, a free loan, or the contribution of assets such as Arab-developed artificial intelligence models.

At the end of his speech, the Arab Federation for Digital Economy announced its full support for the proposal submitted by the Arab Information and Communication Technologies Organization, calling for the adoption of this alliance, including its executive and regulatory entities, as the approved executive arms of the Arab Artificial Intelligence Team.