Monday 29 January 2024
Minister for Higher Education, Research, Science and Technology, Hob. Don Polye will be participating at a two-day 2024 International Digitalisation Conference in Shanghai, People’s Republic of China, beginning today.
The conference is hosted by China’s Vice Minister for Education, Dr Huai Jin Peng, of which Minister Polye is their guest speaker.
Minister Polye will be participating in discussions on Artificial Intelligence and Digital Ethics, aside from being the keynote speaker.
He is confident, his participation will ensure Papua New Guinea’s involvement can focus on ways to navigate the ethical landscape in the age of intelligent machines.
“PNG should not and will not shy away from the usage of AI.”
” I will lead PNG in its education space in the newly experienced unprecedented frontier of AI for our young generations to acquaint themselves and apply for its successful use and benefit from its positive impacts.”
Minister Polye added that to maximise the good impacts of AI, a responsible use for educational and quality assurance purposes only must be encouraged through legislation and policy.
“AI has been used in industry as well, but clearly, policies and plans must be out in place in PNG to apply usage of AI to where the law encourages.”
Minister Polye is determined to driving the improvement of digital literacy and competency of teachers by the usage of AI in PNG.
Minister Polye also called on leaders on how best they can salvage the nation of PNG by grasping digitalization and AI as the new norm of life that will become a permanent global culture.
“I encourage students, parents, guardians, teachers, lecturers, and researchers that PNG must be led and guided by scientists and scholars, technically skilled people, and not by politicians.
“We have seen the lack of depth in PNG in many aspects of life, and the mediocre only CAN be changed by our children, only if our children, students and adults can be raised and moulded to become scientists and researchers, or those who love knowledge and act on knowledge using competent skills to cause change.”
Mr Polye said PNG needed more scientists and researchers, and technologists.
He returns on February 1 2024.