Initiative overview
The Guide on AI Governance and Ethics for Brunei Darussalam is a working guide developed by AITI in collaboration with the AI Governance and Ethics Working Group, whose 24 members represent a broad cross-section of Brunei's public and private sectors, including government ministries (Transport and Infocommunications, Health, Finance and Economy, Education), statutory bodies (Cyber Security Brunei, E-Government National Centre, Brunei Darussalam Central Bank), universities (Universiti Brunei Darussalam, Universiti Teknologi Brunei, Universiti Islam Sultan Sharif Ali), banks, and technology companies including Microsoft and Huawei. The guide is described as technology-agnostic and sector-agnostic, serving as a baseline that any organisation may build upon with additional sector-specific safeguards.
The guide is structured around seven guiding principles: transparency and explainability, data protection and data governance, security and safety, robustness and reliability, fairness and equity, human centricity, and accountability and integrity, which are noted to cite elements of the ASEAN Guide on AI Governance and Ethics. Data protection guidance specifically references Brunei Darussalam's upcoming Personal Data Protection law, whilst the security principle references international best practices such as the UK National Cyber Security Centre's guidance.
A dedicated AI Governance Framework section addresses governance at the organisational level, organised around three dimensions: people, process, and technology. On people, organisations are encouraged to establish multi-level accountability structures and promote a culture of integrity in AI use, including employee reskilling and upskilling in AI literacy, governance, and ethics. On process, the guide covers internal governance frameworks, risk management, human involvement in AI-augmented decision-making (categorised as human-in-the-loop, human-out-of-the-loop, and human-over-the-loop), and the establishment of ethical usage policies. On technology, it recommends testing, validation, and verification practices, and references internationally recognised standards such as ISO/IEC 42001:2023 and regional testing frameworks. The guide is subject to periodic revision to remain relevant to emerging AI developments.
