Bullet points for Director General Gianluca ESPOSITO

Exchange with the CAI

September 2024

Congratulate the Committee, its Members, Participants, and Observers, on the excellent work done on the negotiation of the Framework Convention on Artificial Intelligence and Human Rights, Democracy and the Rule of Law.

Particular thanks to the Chair, the Vice-Chair, and all the Members of the Bureau whose dedicated efforts to manage the complex negotiations ensured the result.

Thank the nine States and the EU for demonstrating their strong support and political leadership by being the first to sign this groundbreaking treaty.

Call on all the other States that participated in the negotiations to also sign and ratify it as quickly as possible. Confirm the Secretariat’s availability to provide any support and information needed in this connection.  

Encourage states also to promote the Convention to fellow potential parties. From the Secretariat’s side a series of actions are planned to promote signature and ratification, including by States from outside Europe. We also work through global and regional Organisations, such as the UN, the OECD, the AU, and others. The media, civil society, industry, and academia are other important channels.  

The CAI is now in the process of elaborating a risk assessment and management model and methodology for AI systems, focusing on human rights, democracy and the rule of law (HUDERIA). This new tool is to be submitted to the Committee of Ministers by end 2024. The expectations surrounding it are already high and it will be important to deliver on that.

The CAI was set up in 2022 and its mandate runs until end 2025. It will be important for the Committee to devote some of its time in 2024 to reflecting on possible future priorities and related tasks that the CAI or a successor committee might pursue. That reflection will feed into the preparations of the future Programme and Budget to be prepared by the Secretary General.