Parliaments can play a key role in the legislative framework that should govern or guide technological progress in the public interest, said the President of the House of Representatives, Annita Demetriou, in her opening address at the Digital Agenda Cyprus Summit 2025, which is taking place on Thursday in Nicosia.
According to Demetriou, we are in a period of intense international instability and major challenges.
“In this environment, artificial intelligence and digital transformation are radically redefining our lives and work. This progress is valuable, but it also requires responsibility to understand it and shape it with a focus on people and their rights,” she noted.
She added that technology should not distance people from the core of society. “Imagination, intelligence, and ethical judgment cannot and should not be replaced. Artificial intelligence enhances talent, but the human dimension and guidance remain irreplaceable,” he noted.
In this context, investment in technology is a strategic lever for growth, with innovation boosting productivity, opening up new markets, and offering opportunities for the future, she noted, adding that at the state level, digital governance must be a tool for a modern, faster, and more efficient state.
Regarding the role of parliaments in particular, she said that they can play a key role in the legislative framework that should govern or guide technological progress in the public interest.
She added that the House of Representatives has set up a working group on artificial intelligence, the organisation of interparliamentary conferences and participation in European developments.
“Last year, the European Union adopted the first legislative package on AI, and others will certainly follow. However, it is important that we have the first legislative framework in place and, of course, it has set priorities for digital skills, cybersecurity, and artificial intelligence,” she continued.
The House President added that, in view of Cyprus’s Presidency of the Council of the EU starting in January, the House of Representatives has already included artificial intelligence, its challenges and prospects among its priorities.
“Technological progress is our future, it is the next chapter in history. But we cannot write this chapter without values, without vision, without putting people at the center. Artificial intelligence can calculate, analyze, and predict. But it cannot dream, and dreaming is our privilege. With this privilege, we must build a future worthy of our people and our values. Initiatives such as the Digital Agenda Cyprus Summit are essential platforms for dialogue and fruitful exchange of knowledge and experience and must be supported and strengthened,” she concluded.