IIDS hosts panel on cybersecurity, AI, Nepal’s digital economy

KATHMANDU: The Institute for Integrated Development Studies (IIDS) hosted a panel discussion on Wednesday, featuring James Bikram Dhoj Joshi, Professor of School of Computing and Information at the University of Pittsburgh, and Topraj Gurung, founder of Blaze Labs. The discussion focused on cybersecurity, privacy, and Nepal’s current position in the global information technology sector.

The session was moderated by Maneet Dhungel, Senior Fellow at IIDS and policy lead for Digital Transformation. Dhungel stated that Nepal’s digital economy is built on the pillars of investment and innovation, a strong civil society advocating digital rights, regulation and compliance, and structural agility. He emphasised that these pillars are founded on good governance, which values transparency, accountability, inclusion, and sustainability.

Professor Joshi, who recently served as a Program Director of the US National Science Foundation’s (NSF) cybersecurity and privacy-focused programmes, and co-led or participated in the development of several US National Strategy documents, has authored numerous research papers and studies on advancements in the information sector, funded by the NSF of the United States. He stressed that developers should prioritise creating products that are secure and privacy-preserving by design. However, he cautioned that machine learning advancements are moving faster than the regulations designed to protect user privacy, with unauthorised or unconsented data often being used to generate responses. He warned that as AI models become increasingly personalised, the risks associated with compromised sensitive data grow. He pointed out that cybersecurity is often regarded as an additional burden rather than a necessity, and the rapid developments in information and communication technology require users to remain informed and vigilant about the data they share.

Gurung, formerly a developer at Google and Facebook and now founder of Blaze Labs in Nepal, provided insights on AI. He stated that developers and students who do not integrate AI functionality into their workflow risk falling behind. "AI’s functionality has existed for a long time," said Gurung. "Algorithms, clustering, and classification have been passively used for decades. Generative AI is a large language model that turns this functionality into a conversational tool." He highlighted that the growing accessibility of AI has significantly boosted productivity for industry professionals.

Dhungel, who advises the private sector and the government on technology policies, called on policymakers to draft protocols that effectively communicate relevant information to target audiences. He stressed that digitisation is a vital step towards economic transformation, adding that enhanced connectivity would help Nepal attract international funding for infrastructure development. As Nepal progresses in integrating digital payments, ID systems, and data exchange, Dhungel stated that government policies must support the swift development of frameworks in these sectors.