A Philippine-led online dialogue on women, countryside communities, and responsible artificial intelligence has been selected as a side event at the First Session of the Global Dialogue on AI Governance in Geneva on July 6 to 7.
The session, titled “Driving Digital Inclusion in the Age of AI: How Women and Countryside Communities Can Advance Responsible and Transformative AI,” will be held online on July 7 from 7 a.m. to 8:30 a.m. Central European Summer Time.
It is being organized by the Philippine ICT Innovation Network (PIIN) and Digital Innovation for Women Advancement (DIWA).
Organizers said the session will focus on how AI can be made more accessible to women and communities outside major urban centers, while also examining the governance and safeguards needed to prevent exclusion, bias, and harm.
The concept note for the event said AI is already reshaping work, education, enterprise, public services, and community development, but warned that its benefits will not automatically reach women, youth, micro, small and medium enterprises, and communities outside metropolitan areas unless inclusion is built into policy, infrastructure, skills training, financing, and innovation programs.
The 90-minute dialogue will draw from Philippine and Global South experiences, with discussions expected to cover local ICT councils, digital jobs programs, startup and MSME support, women-in-technology initiatives, and community-based innovation ecosystems.
At the center of the session are three questions: how women and countryside communities can use AI for productivity and participation in the digital economy; what safeguards and governance principles are needed to build trust and reduce harm; and how government, industry, academe, civil society, and local innovation networks can work together to ensure AI supports inclusion rather than deepens existing gaps.
The event will be convened and moderated by Atty. Jocelle Batapa-Sigue, convenor of PIIN and founder of DIWA. Batapa-Sigue is a former undersecretary of the Department of Information and Communications Technology and previously served as the Philippine councilor to the International Telecommunication Union Council.
Panelists include Joie Cruz, founder and CEO of Limitless Lab; Frei Sangil, CEO and lead data scientist of Layertech Software Labs; and Lorna Bondoc, founder and CEO of Yoveo Digital.
Batapa-Sigue said the session’s selection reflects a growing recognition that AI governance discussions should include perspectives beyond governments, large technology firms, and technical experts.
“The selection of my submission affirms the growing importance of ensuring that AI governance is not shaped only by governments, large corporations, and technology experts, but also by communities whose lived experiences are essential to building fair, safe, and meaningful AI systems,” Batapa-Sigue said.
The dialogue will be conducted via Zoom and will be open to registered participants.
DIWA, a Filipino word that can refer to spirit, essence, or consciousness, was chosen as the short title of the dialogue to reflect its focus on inclusive AI and the role of women, local innovators, and communities outside major cities in shaping how the technology is governed and used.
