Islamabad, November 2, 2026: The International Mediation and Arbitration Center (IMAC), Ministry of Law and Justice, inaugurated its five-day multinational training programme on the “Responsible Use of Artificial Intelligence (AI) in the Justice Sector” at COMSTECH, Islamabad. The programme, third in a series of trainings arranged by the Ministry of Law and Justice through IMAC, brought together judges, judicial officers and legal professionals from Azerbaijan, China, Türkiye, Bangladesh, Uzbekistan and Pakistan.

Federal Minister for Information Technology and Telecommunication, Shaza Fatima Khawaja, attended the inaugural ceremony as Chief Guest. Addressing the participants, she highlighted the potential of artificial intelligence to improve efficiency, transparency and access to justice, provided it is adopted with appropriate safeguards for privacy, cybersecurity, data protection and transparency, while preserving human judgment and judicial independence.

The Federal Minister outlined Pakistan's national direction in digital transformation, including the National AI Policy 2025 and the Digital Nation Pakistan Act 2025. She also highlighted the National Guidelines on AI in the Judiciary, issued in April 2026, and emphasised that AI must remain an assistive tool, with judges retaining final decision-making authority. She underscored the importance of implementing these guidelines through capacity building and institutional partnerships and appreciated the efforts of the Ministry of Law and Justice and IMAC in promoting the responsible use of AI.

Raja Naeem Akbar, Federal Secretary, Ministry of Law and Justice, observed that the question before justice systems is no longer whether to engage with AI, but how to do so responsibly. He cautioned that AI must not replace human judgment, accountability or judicial independence. Referring to the Ministry's digital initiatives, including Pakistan Code, the Document Retrieval System and the Case Assignment and Management System, he urged participants to work towards making justice faster, fairer and more accessible while preserving its human dimension.

The participants appreciated IMAC's initiative in bringing together judicial officers and legal professionals from different countries to discuss the responsible use of AI in the justice sector. They acknowledged the importance of international knowledge-sharing and collaboration in addressing emerging technological challenges and expressed interest in learning from the experiences and best practices of participating countries.

The five-day training programme features interactive sessions, expert-led discussions and knowledge-sharing activities focusing on the responsible integration of AI into judicial and legal institutions. It aims to enhance participants' understanding of AI applications, associated ethical and legal considerations, data protection and the importance of maintaining human oversight in judicial processes. The programme also provides a platform for strengthening professional networks and fostering international cooperation among participating countries.