SDAIA, ICESCO to Activate Riyadh Charter on AI across 53 Member States

The Saudi Data and Artificial Intelligence Authority (SDAIA) has signed a cooperation agreement with the Islamic World Educational, Scientific and Cultural Organization (ICESCO) to promote collaboration in adopting and implementing the Riyadh Charter on Artificial Intelligence for the Islamic World.

The agreement’s goal is to create a unified, ethical AI governance framework for ICESCO’s 53 member states, fostering responsible practices, encouraging innovation, and tackling shared challenges. The signing took place at SDAIA headquarters in Riyadh, with SDAIA President Dr. Abdullah Al-Ghamdi and ICESCO Director-General Dr. Salim Al-Malik attending.

The agreement emphasizes enhanced cooperation in key areas, especially the execution of joint initiatives based on the principles of the Riyadh Charter, which include integrity, fairness, privacy, security, reliability, transparency, accountability, humanitarian values, and social and environmental benefits.

This partnership aims to develop AI knowledge and skills within ICESCO member states, strengthen national capacities in AI and related domains, promote ethical use, and ensure AI technologies are used safely and reliably. ICESCO Head of the Strategic Foresight and Artificial Intelligence Center, Dr. Kais Hammami, highlighted that the Riyadh Charter provides a unified AI governance framework for Islamic countries. He noted that the charter is rooted in humanitarian and forward-thinking values aligned with Islamic civilizational principles and that it supports member states’ efforts to leverage AI to achieve the Sustainable Development Goals.