A/78/310 I. Introduction 1. The High-Level Expert Group on Artificial Intelligence 1 of the European Commission has noted that the principles of transparency and explainability are important components for the promotion of reliable artificial intelligence. To that end, artificial intelligence must be lawful, ethical and robust, “both from a technical and social perspective since, even with good intentions, artificial intelligence systems can cause unintentional harm”. 2 2. In the same vein, the United Nations Educational, Scientific and Cultural Organization (UNESCO) has noted that “transparency and explainability relate closely to adequate responsibility and accountability measures, as well as to the trustworthiness of artificial intelligence systems,” 3 and that “the transparency and explainability of artificial intelligence systems are often essential preconditions to ensure the respect, protection and promotion of human rights, fundamental freedoms and ethical principles.” 4 3. Artificial intelligence is very present on the global age nda. Towards the end of December 2022, for example, the Organisation for Economic Co -operation and Development (OECD) issued a statement on a trusted, sustainable and inclusive digital future, 5 in which it committed to work towards, among other things, ad vancing a human-centric and rights-oriented digital transformation that includes promoting the enjoyment of human rights, both offline and online, strong protections for personal data, laws and regulations fit for the digital age, and trustworthy, secure, responsible and sustainable use of emerging digital technologies and artificial intelligence. 6 With regard to artificial intelligence, OECD member States have called on the organization to support the development of forward -looking, coherent and implementable policy and legal frameworks for governing artificial intelligence and managing its risks effectively, and to provide evidence, foresight, tools and incident monitoring for effective policy planning and execution to implement trustworthy artificial intelligence. 7 4. On 23 January 2023, the European Parliament, the Council of Europe and the European Commission adopted the European Declaration on Digital Rights and Principles, in which they committed to: (a) Promoting human-centric, trustworthy and ethical artificial intelligence systems throughout their development, deployment and use, in line with European Union values; (b) Ensuring an adequate level of transparency about the use of algorithms and artificial intelligence, and that people are empowered to use them and are informed when interacting with them; __________________ 1 2 3 4 5 6 7 23-15851 A group of independent experts formed by the European Commission in June 2018. High-Level Expert Group on Artificial Intelligence, Ethical guidelines for trustworthy artificial intelligence, (2019), p. 2. Available at: https://digital-strategy.ec.europa.eu/en/library/ethicsguidelines-trustworthy-ai. UNESCO, Recommendation on the Ethics of Artificial Intelligence, 2021, p. 22. Available at https://unesdoc.unesco.org/ark:/48223/pf0000381137. Ibid. OECD, Declaration on a Trusted, Sustainable and Inclusive Digital Future, 2022. The declaration was the outcome of the meeting held on the island of Gran Canaria, Spain, on 14 and 15 December 2022. Available at https://legalinstruments.oecd.org/en/instruments/OECD-LEGAL-0488. Ibid. Ibid. 3/20