In a country grappling with debt, dysfunction and political disarray, the idea of investing time and attention in artificial intelligence (AI) education for parliamentarians might seem out of place. But that would be a profound misreading of where the world is headed – and how far behind we already are.

Globally, AI is not merely a buzzword for tech conferences or startups. It is a core force shaping policy, politics, defence, trade, education, agriculture, and public health. It is influencing how laws are written, how benefits are distributed, and how citizens are surveilled. And it is doing so in ways that lawmakers, especially in developing democracies like ours, scarcely understand. This knowledge gap is no longer tolerable.

The need for AI literacy in legislatures is now being recognised across the developed world. The UK has launched a parliamentary AI scheme to educate MPs on the basic principles, risks, and applications of artificial intelligence. The Inter-Parliamentary Union (IPU), a global body representing parliaments, has issued guidelines for integrating AI and data literacy into the work of legislators. In the United States, at least one........

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