Introduction & Background
According to the Australian Government definition, critical technologies are current and emerging technologies with the capacity to significantly enhance or pose risk, to our (Australia) national interest such as economic prosperity, social cohesion and/or national security. The aforementioned definition may also apply for other countries who are now witnessing the emergence of these technologies such as Artificial Intelligence, Facial Recognition, Blockchain, Internet of Things (IoT) among others. The rapid development of these critical technologies in Southeast Asia may have various implications in terms of ensuring that no one is left behind. Strengthening the fundamental frameworks, standards, policies, initiatives and enabling environment through collaborative partnership and cooperation across all sectors is crucial in this endeavour. The need to create a platform for various stakeholders such as regulators, civil society organizations, academe, technology providers/developer, policy and law makers is needed to facilitate learnings and sharing of best practices in managing these technologies.
This project aims to facilitate and enhance multi-stakeholder consultative and capacity development approach to build awareness and contribute to the development of standards, frameworks, policies, and initiatives at the national and regional level, as well as to mitigate potential risks, build trust and create inclusive economies in Southeast Asia. This project will initially focus on four Southeast Asian countries to facilitate the development and implementation of regional frameworks, which countries can apply to their own national contexts while fostering harmony and cooperation through the region.
This project is supported by the Department of Foreign Affairs and Trade (DFAT) under Australia’s Cyber and Critical Tech Cooperation Program. The project envisions in focusing initially on Artificial Intelligence and Facial Recognition as the critical technologies that should be highlighted. This focus is subject to change depending on the project’s research and discussions with DFAT. The project will initially run from June 2021 – June 2022, but discussions are ongoing around a possible extension.
Objective
The aims of this webinar are to introduce the new DFAT project to relevant stakeholders in Southeast Asia, including Member States, Industry, Academia, and other critical technology and standardization stakeholders. Beyond socializing people about the project, it aims to create awareness and to energize discussions so that when the project begins implementation in 2022, the creation of the Multi-stakeholder Network of Female Policy Makers can be facilitated.
