The Strategy for the Development of the Digital Economy prepared in Azerbaijan envisages 61 initiatives to be implemented by 2030, including 9 leading projects. In addition, a Generative Artificial Intelligence system based on the Azerbaijani language is being established in the country. Fariz Jafarov, executive director of the Fourth Industrial Revolution Analysis and Coordination Center (4SIM) under the Ministry of Economy, answered the questions of "Report" regarding all these and other issues.
- First, you would inform about the activities of the institution you lead.
- As the name suggests, 4SIM was established on January 6, 2021 in order to strengthen Azerbaijan's position in the IV industrial revolution and ensure its place among the leading countries in this field. analyzes and coordinates strategies and projects.
In other words, our center analyzes the challenges and initiatives of IV industrial revolution technologies, including artificial intelligence, examines the possibilities of their application in the national economy and coordinates this activity, the partnership between public, private and scientific enterprises related to the establishment of "science-industry cluster 4.0". carries out a number of other activities such as promotion.
4SIM also hosts one of the 16 centers around the world that are part of the IV Industrial Revolution network of the World Economic Forum, commonly known as the Davos forum. Thus, Azerbaijan was the first country in the CIS to create such a center. The World Economic Forum has a number of sectoral centers that bring together the world's best-known experts covering various areas of the economy, as well as leaders of public and private organizations. As 4SIM, we also work closely with the aforementioned centers in 3 different areas, including artificial intelligence and machine learning, Internet of Things and urban transformation, and digital commerce. The purpose of this cooperation is to study the best practices available in the world and to achieve their application in the framework of pilot projects in different areas of our national economy.
Our center is also a member of the expert council of 2 important communities of the World Economic Forum. One of them is the AI Governance Alliance, and the other is the GovTech Network.
- What issues will be reflected in the Digital Economy Development Strategy? What will be the contribution of the document to the economy?
- The rapid diversification and growth of the national economy, as well as its integration into the global value chain and the transition to the stage of innovation-based development necessitate the formation of a digital economy that supports sustainable, innovative and social development in Azerbaijan. For this purpose, the "Strategy for the development of the digital economy" covering the years 2024-2030 has been prepared. The Strategy, developed taking into account the advanced technological progress scenarios in the world and the global challenges created by this progress, as well as the increasing development dynamics of our country, aims at the digital transformation of all areas of the economy, based on the aspects of business, society and the state as a whole.
Within the framework of the implementation of the strategy, research and analysis will be conducted for the purpose of assessing the state of the digital economy ecosystem and its continuous development, and a favorable environment for the digitization of businesses and the formation of new businesses will be created. At the same time, the digital transformation process of existing businesses will be supported and a data-based decision-making environment will be formed in the field of the digital economy.
At the same time, the necessary opportunities will be created for training and improving the human capital needed for the digital economy, promoting innovation and expanding the application possibilities of IV industrial revolution technologies, including artificial intelligence solutions, in the national economy, further increasing operational efficiency in management, and facilitating access to digital products.
The strategy envisages 9 leading projects, including 61 initiatives, to accelerate the transition to the digital economy in Azerbaijan by 2030. Examples of these leading projects include the creation of the "New Generation Technologies Center", the formation of local generative artificial intelligence in the Azerbaijani language, and the creation of a digital twin system. Currently, the mentioned strategy is in the stage of coordination with other state institutions.
- At what stage is the construction of the Generative Artificial Intelligence system based on the Azerbaijani language?
- Generative AI for text, images, etc. is a system that allows the creation of new unstructured content. Currently, our citizens use generative artificial intelligence systems in other languages, mainly in English. This century
Although intelligent systems work on the basis of translation, the percentage of accuracy of content in Azerbaijani language is low.
The creation of a generative artificial intelligence system in the Azerbaijani language is one of the main projects implemented by 4SIM. The "Local Generative Artificial Intelligence" initiative aims to develop generative artificial intelligence algorithms and tools to be applied in field sectors in the Azerbaijani language. As a result, the mentioned initiative will have a positive effect on increasing the possibilities of applying artificial intelligence in the country, promoting economic growth, and creating new technology-based industries and jobs by ensuring Azerbaijan's cultural wealth and information security.
- How is the implementation of the "4SI Academy" project implemented with "Coursera" going?
- "Coursera" was developed in 2012 by Andrew Lang and Daphne Koller, professors of computer science at Stanford University in the United States, and is currently the most popular online learning platform. In this online education platform where more than 140 million people study, Stanford, Yale, Duke, Cambridge, Oxford and about 300 other leading universities and advanced technology companies offer artificial intelligence, big data (Big Data), data analytics, blockchain, cloud technologies, leadership , about 10,000 courses are taught in communication, English and other areas.
In September 2023, together with 4SIM, the Education Development Fund under the Ministry of Science and Education and Coursera company, we launched the "4Sİ Academy" project, which aims to increase the digital knowledge of our citizens with the aim of accelerating the transition to the digital economy. At the same time, the goal of the project is to support the increase of knowledge and skills in advanced technologies and digital field in the country, training of qualified personnel in the labor market.
In the first phase of the project, 10,000 Azerbaijani citizens were given the opportunity to use 800 courses and trainings on artificial intelligence, big data, data analytics, blockchain, cloud technologies, leadership, communication, English and other areas free of charge. This includes courses of up to 40 prestigious universities such as Yale, Duke, London, Michigan, Illinois, Virginia, as well as advanced technology companies such as "Google", "IBM", "Microsoft", and "Meta". So far, 6,000 people have benefited from this opportunity. 4,000 registered people will take advantage of the courses on a rotating basis until September. Thus, the first stage of "4SI Academy" will be completed in September of this year. I should also mention that 51% of the users within the "4SI Academy" are women, and 49% are men. The youngest user is 9 years old and the oldest user is 73 years old.
"4SI Academy" was evaluated by "Coursera" company as the most successful project among similar projects implemented around the world. Users gradually get access to the Coursera platform for 6 weeks. They can log in at any time and master the offered programs, and thanks to the international certificates they get by taking online exams, they can make changes in their careers.
One of the main pillars of the digital economy strategy is the formation of a digital society. The principle of lifelong learning is extremely important for the development of citizens' digital knowledge and skills and for adapting to the changes occurring during the IV industrial revolution. Taking into account the above, we plan to continue the project this year and introduce a number of innovations. Our goal is to enable more citizens (200,000 people) to take advantage of this opportunity and to increase the number of free courses to 8,000, to take advantage of all the courses available on the "Coursera" educational platform. We also cooperate with Coursera to provide courses in Azerbaijani language. I would like to mention that we have already managed to present more than 2600 courses in Azerbaijani with subtitles.
One of the main innovations of the II phase of the project will be access to the "Talent Pipeline" platform of "Coursera", which connects students with employers. This will provide additional support to those who have successfully completed the training in finding a job.
- What projects do you have in the field of artificial intelligence?
- 4SIM launched a number of projects and initiatives related to the application of artificial intelligence in various fields of the national economy. I can mention some of them as examples. I can give an example of artificial intelligence projects that answer questions about public services and work on the basis of voice and text recognition to optimize the operation of call services.
In addition, work is being done on the 4SIM chatbot based on artificial intelligence. In the framework of this pilot project, which we started about three months ago, an artificial intelligence algorithm was trained on more than 250 million lines of data. The goal is to connect citizens with public services, including legislation
questions are answered quickly and continuously through an artificial intelligence-based chatbot. With the help of language processing algorithms, artificial intelligence understands the questions entered in the Azerbaijani language and can answer them accurately.
Currently, we are working on improving the project, that is, we are trying to maximize the percentage of accuracy of the answers. It is planned to launch this chatbot project next year.
- What other projects can you tell us about?
- Completion of procedures related to the procurement of artificial intelligence-based solutions will also be in focus this year. The World Economic Forum has developed a guidebook on "Procurement of Artificial Intelligence solutions". The purchase instructions have already been translated into our language. At present, consultations are being held with relevant institutions in the direction of the possible application of the instruction in our country.
Recently, our project "IT Hub Azerbaijan" jointly with the European Bank for Reconstruction and Development and the "StrategEast" organization was successfully implemented and completed. The goal of the project was to train professional ICT specialists in the capital and regions. In the end, those persons will be provided with jobs in reputable local and international companies operating in our country.
On April 2, the first specialized job fair for students and graduates studying ICT was held in the country under the organization of 4SIM. More than 1,000 students and graduates attended the career event, which was attended by up to 60 companies and institutions. More than 500 vacancies and hundreds of internship programs were offered at the fair.
As 4SIM, we also carry out educational activities related to the fields of the IV industrial revolution. The "4SIM Talks" series of events that we started last year have been included in our action plan this year as well. The goal of the project is to inform people working in various fields about 4SI technologies and successful solutions related to their application. In this context, we hold presentations and organize discussions with the participation of international and local experts for universities, state institutions and business representatives.
We are also working on a podcast project dedicated to IV industrial revolution technologies and innovation. Podcasts will be broadcast once a week on social media and YouTube. The goal is to educate citizens about digital transformations and innovations. In addition, it is planned to organize meetings and discussions with various communities.
- What works have been done or are planned to be done in the direction of foreign investment in Azerbaijan's digital economy?
- In September 2023, 4SIM launched the project of attracting foreign investments in the Digital economy together with the Investment Policy and Practice Platform of the World Economic Forum. In December last year, 4SIM together with the World Economic Forum and the Export and Investment Promotion Agency (AZPROMO) held the first workshop with the participation of state institutions and the private sector on attracting foreign investments to the country's digital economy. At that event, proposals from state and private sector representatives were heard.
The purpose of the project is to obtain information about the country's investment environment within the framework of surveys and interviews conducted in local and foreign companies investing in the digital economy of Azerbaijan, and form a package of proposals for further improving the investment environment based on this information.
The approach in this matter should be multifaceted. The main goal is to increase the attractiveness of the country's economy, especially the digital economy, for investors and promote investments in this area. This includes legislation, the tax system, digital infrastructure and workforce training. In this field, we continue our cooperation with state institutions, the private sector, and DIF.
