AMMAN — The
Ministry of Digital Economy and Entrepreneurship is analyzing the
2021 Government Artificial Intelligence (AI) Readiness Index, on which Jordan ranked 80th globally and 11th regionally, with
a view to developing plans and programs to improve its ranking, according to ministry
spokesperson Shorouq Hilal.
اضافة اعلان
The index assesses governments’ “readiness to implement
AI in
the delivery of public services” in 160 countries, the report said, also
mentioning that it draws on 42 indicators, covering 10 dimensions: vision,
governance and ethics, digital capacity, adaptability, size, innovation
capacity, human capital, infrastructure, data availability and data representativeness.
In the MENA region, the average score in 2021
was 49.68. Jordan had an overall score of 44.38, up from the 41.76 it had scored in 2020.
Hilal told Jordan News that
the index revolves around three main hubs: governance, related to the strategic
vision for developing artificial intelligence; technology and entrepreneurship;
and data and digital infrastructure.
Among the most prominent points that
the
government is currently working on, and which will contribute to improving
Jordan’s rank on this index, “are preparing a strategy for artificial
intelligence, preparing a national charter for the ethics of artificial
intelligence, approving the personal data protection law, developing the
cyber security environment and digital infrastructure, introducing fifth-generation
services and developing services, improving the entrepreneurship ecosystem and
environment, and developing the digital education system such as the Darsak
platform,” the spokesperson said.
The ministry seeks to bolster the
use of artificial intelligence through cooperation with the
Japanese International Cooperation Agency (JICA), said Hilal.
The two parties signed a technical
cooperation project whose two main axes are building and developing the
artificial intelligence infrastructure in Jordan, and promoting the use of
emerging, modern technologies to improve public services, particularly to use artificial
intelligence in vital economic sectors, she said.
Hilal added that the ministry
implements many programs and initiatives that target young people to help them build
their digital skills and network with the labor market. Among these programs: the
National Training Program in technical skills, life skills, English language,
the Youth, Technology and Jobs project, providing graduates with the skills required
in the labor market, such as programming languages, cyber security, Cloud
computing, smart phone applications, artificial intelligence.
The index is issued by
British Oxford Insights. Jordan scored its highest, 56.56, in areas of data and
infrastructure, in terms of data availability and infrastructure security for
the operation of artificial intelligence tools, and a relatively lower score of
38.31 in the technology sector and supporting innovation in a business
environment. It also scored lower in regard to the strategic vision to develop
artificial intelligence and adaptability.
The index pointed out the backlash
of the pandemic, both regionally and worldwide, during last year, particularly
the changes that took place in education, where several countries in the region
developed e-learning platforms, and said that such initiatives reflect the
broader commitment of government to digitize their services.
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