Under the theme of ‘Governance in the Age of Artificial Intelligence’, MBRSG to Host the 20th Annual International Conference on Digital Government Research

The Mohammed bin Rashid School of Government (MBRSG) – the first research and teaching institution focusing on governance and public policy in the Arab world – is hosting the 20thAnnual International Conference on Digital Government Research (dg.o 2019) in Dubai on June 18-20, 2019.

Bearing the theme “Governance in the Age of Artificial Intelligence”, this year’s edition marks the first time the global academic conference is held in the Middle East region. The Conference is one of a series of annual forums organised by the Digital Government Society (DGS), bringing together renowned scholars to present, discuss, and demonstrate interdisciplinary research on digital government, smart cities, public participation, civic engagement, technological innovation, applications, and practice.

The 2019 edition, held at MBRSG’s Dubai headquarters, comes as the UAE Government continues to make strides into the AI field, embedding the advanced technology into government operations, as well as economic and societal development plans. The UAE launched the UAE Artificial Intelligence Strategy in October 2017 and appointed a Minister of State of Artificial Intelligence in a global first.

“Hosting the Annual International Conference on Digital Government Research for the first time in the Middle East region reflects Dubai and the UAE’s increasingly growing role as a hub for the governments of the future and a global laboratory to experiment with and develop innovative and advanced government policies that seek to improve people’s lives,” said MBRSG’s Executive President His Excellency Dr Ali Sebaa Al Marri, noting that hosting the forum helps drive MBRSG’s regional and international leadership role as an think tank and academic institution in the critical fields of digital government development, and cements its role as a partner to the UAE Government, sourcing the most advanced and effective policies and tools to empower the country’s future leaders.

“Guided by the vision and directives of its wise leadership, the UAE has set a global standard in government administration that succeeded, in record time, in revolutionising government services and developing vital sectors in the country. We, at MBRSG, consider it our responsibility and national duty to play a part in the UAE’s ambitions for government excellence,” Dr Al Marri concluded.

Papers at the 2019 edition of the Conference focus on Governance in the Age of Artificial Intelligence, covering a wide range of cutting-edge research that revolves around the growing applications of AI, which are triggering numerous opportunities, challenges, and dilemmas for governments around the world, as traditional forms of service provisioning, policy-making, and enforcement are transformed by AI algorithms and techniques. Also a topic of debate will be the growing digitisation of government operations, the datafication of societal activities and behaviours, and the maturity and feasibility of Big Data, Blockchain, IoT, and smart cities applications.

“The rise of Artificial Intelligence uses by governments worldwide and the advent of the 4thIndustrial Revolution bring about opportunities for better governments of the future. However, it also triggers sweeping transformations that compel these governments to adjust to numerous complex social, political, economic, and ethical challenges,” said Fadi Salem, the Conference Co-Chair and MBRSG’s Director of Research and Advisory. 

“The dg.o 2019 conference builds on MBRSG’s growing research and activities on the policy implications of Artificial Intelligence in government and society. As a public policy think tank, MBRSG holds a regional leadership role as a source of knowledge in digital government policy domains. For more than a decade, our regional research output and policy activities have been recognised globally in the fields of digital governance, technology policy, smart cities transformation, societal big data, social media impact, and the implications of the 4thIndustrial Revolution,” Salem added. “Hosting the dg.o 2019 further establishes MBRSG’s research leadership role and expands its scholarly and policy impact in areas related to future of government. We look forward to further expanding the UAE’s scholarly output on these critical areas of governance.”

Over the course of the past two decades, the Annual International Conference on Digital Government Research (dg.o 2019) has been at the helm of digital governance transformations, bringing together experts, decision makers, and academics to explore prospects and global developments in the digital government sector. In Dubai, the 20thedition of the conference brought together scholars and experts from six continents, joining the conference from 62 cities located in in 45 countries around the world, and representing the global network of universities and academic institutions active the field of digital government. 

A conference Programme Committee of around 200 global scholars in digital government fields have rigorously reviewed nearly 150 paper submissions through a double-blind peer-reviewed process. The accepted papers in the areas of AI, digital governance, and public policy will be presented through 6 workshops, 3 panels, a PhD colloquium, and 14 paper tracks with 21 parallel paper sessions over 3 days.