Lord Fakafanua is representing the Legislative Assembly of Tonga at the Second World Summit of the Committees of the Future 2023, which is currently underway in Uruguay. The World Summit of Committees of the Future is being hosted by the Uruguayan Parliament in cooperation with the Inter-Parliamentary Union (IPU). It is an essential parliamentary event that emphasizes the critical role of parliaments and anticipatory parliamentary practice in governance. It fosters collaboration, knowledge-sharing, and the development of new skills and competencies related to the “use of the future” in the present for more accurate decision-making when dealing with complexities, uncertainties, ambiguities, and novelties.
Multiple global forces of interrelated changes are currently disrupting our world, presenting complex challenges that require appropriate paradigms, conceptual frameworks and methodologies to address them. Considering these complexities, it is imperative for parliaments to hold in-depth and nuanced discussions on Artificial Intelligence and other technologies; their impact on society and link to democracy. Navigating such contexts effectively necessitates anticipatory capacities and competencies.
The summit provides an opportunity for cooperation and a collective exchange of knowledge among participating parliaments, including Tonga, and enabling legislatures to better address complexities and uncertainties.