Bangladesh to Lead Global AI Policy

• The Ministry of Foreign Affairs (MoFA) hosted its final national consultation townhall before assuming the presidency of the 81st United Nations General Assembly (UNGA 81) in September 2026.
• ​An 18-month diplomatic roadmap has been adopted to secure 'Compute Sovereignty' and 'Sovereign AI' for Bangladesh and the wider Global South.
• ​Bangladesh will strategically engage with both rival global tech ecosystems: the US-led 'Pax Silica' and the China-led 'WAICO'.
• ​Expansion of the Bangladesh AI Observatory approved, incorporating a 'Global Compute and Dependency Monitor' to track computational metrics and audit algorithms.
• ​Gender and social inclusion have been elevated to cross-cutting foundational principles across all technical AI verticals.

DHAKA, August 12, 2026: Bangladesh is poised to take a definitive leadership role on the global stage regarding Artificial Intelligence (AI) governance and safeguarding the technological independence of developing nations. On Wednesday (August 12), the International Trade, Investment and Technology (ITIT) Wing of the Ministry of Foreign Affairs hosted the third virtual National Townhall titled “AI Governance and Global Technology Architecture” from 3:00 PM to 5:30 PM (Dhaka Time). This served as the final, critical national preparatory consultation before the country assumes the historic presidency of the 81st Session of the UN General Assembly (UNGA 81) this September.

​Chaired by Dr. Syed Muntasir Mamun, Director General of the ITIT & ICT Wings and Chief Innovation Officer of the Ministry, the session operated under Chatham House Rules. The event brought together 19 speakers and contributors across 6 countries, including multilateral diplomats, senior officials, UN agency representatives, and internet governance leaders from Bangladesh, Armenia, Ethiopia, Norway, the UK, and the African continent. In his opening remarks, Dr. Syed Muntasir Mamun stated, "Global AI governance is no longer just about non-binding ethical declarations; it has shifted toward tangible physical assets like semiconductors, power grids, and computing power. You cannot buy artificial intelligence. You might buy compute, but you cannot buy AI. You have to train it; you have to build your own AI."

​The townhall scrutinized the global tech architecture across four physical verticals: AI models and compute; semiconductors; power grids; and space/satellite infrastructure, alongside secondary themes of capacity development, water usage, and e-waste. It evaluated two competing international platforms: the US-led Pax Silica initiative (24 signatories) and the China-led World Artificial Intelligence Cooperation Organization (WAICO) (29 founding members). Participants agreed that Bangladesh should avoid block dependency and engage with both—leveraging Pax Silica for hardware/energy supply chains and WAICO for open-source models, capacity building, and infrastructure financing. Furthermore, the definition of sovereignty was expanded beyond compute into a tiered framework spanning infrastructure, data, knowledge, judgment, and cognitive capabilities.

​This final session officially approved three institutional expansions for the domestic landscape: the deployment of a ‘Global Compute and Dependency Monitor’ under the Bangladesh AI Observatory, the creation of a 'Sovereign AI Investment Platform' to bridge funding gaps for the Draft National AI Policy 2026–2030, and tasking the five thematic working groups to align technical standards with the UN Global Digital Compact. Concurrently, gender perspectives were formally integrated as a core structural component of technical policy design.

​Centering around the upcoming UNGA 81 presidency, the session adopted a comprehensive 18-month diplomatic roadmap alongside three formal outcome documents: the UNGA 81 Diplomatic Position Paper, the expanded charter of the Bangladesh AI Observatory, and a multilateral compute and energy investment framework. According to the roadmap, Bangladesh will present the Global South's perspective on compute sovereignty at the UNGA 81 opening in September 2026, propose a UN working group on international compute equity in November 2026, host a high-level ministerial panel on energy-AI convergence in February 2027, and present the Global South Charter on Sovereign Compute and Digital Autonomy at UNGA 82 in September 2027. Partnering with coalitions like the G-77 and the African Group, these frameworks will serve as collective assets for the world's silent majority. The technical outcomes of the three townhalls will now be synthesized into a final document for the National AI Consultation at the end of August 2026.

​//DBTech/IH/SME//