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Under the supervision and in the presence of the representative of the Minister of Higher Education and Scientific Research, and with the attendance of Prof. Dr. Ari Adel, President of Duhok Polytechnic University; Asst. Prof. Dr. Diyar Saib, Director of the Scientific Research Centre; and Prof. Dr. Sadiq Yousif Amin, and hosted by The University of Raparin, with the participation of eight other local and international universities, the Second International Conference entitled

“Artificial Intelligence for Sustainability in a Developing World (AISDW26)”

successfully concluded its proceedings. The conference was held on 3–4 November 2026 in a hybrid format, combining in-person and online participation, at the Activities Hall of the College of Basic Education, University of Raparin, in the city of Ranya.

The conference witnessed the participation of a large number of researchers, scientists, and specialists in the field of technology from universities and academic centres across the Kurdistan Region, Iraq, and around the world, alongside government and political officials.

This scientific event was the outcome of strong academic collaboration among nine universities: The University of Raparin, Duhok Polytechnic University, Akre University for Applied Sciences, Universiti Tun Hussein Onn Malaysia (UTHM), International University of Erbil, Garmian Polytechnic University, University of Zakho, Soran University, and the Lebanese French University. The participating university presidents provided overall supervision of the conference. Furthermore, Prof. Dr. Jamal Ali Omar served as Executive Chair, Prof. Dr. Farsat Hito Abdulrahman as Co-Chair, Prof. Dr. Sadiq Yousif Amin of Duhok Polytechnic University as Chair of the Scientific Committee, and Prof. Dr. Adel Ali Hassan as Chair of the Preparatory Committee. The conference secretaries, Dr. Saman Mohammed Omar and Prof. Dr. Ayad Nouri Faqe, also played a key role in ensuring the conference’s success.

On the first day of the conference, Tuesday, 3 November 2026, the opening ceremony commenced with the national anthem, followed by the recitation of several verses from the Holy Quran. Subsequently, the President of the University of Raparin, Prof. Dr. Payman Ramadan Ahmed, delivered a speech in which she emphasized the importance of integrating artificial intelligence into sustainable development across the social, economic, and environmental sectors in order to address emerging challenges.

The speech of the representative of the Ministry of Higher Education and Scientific Research, Prof. Dr. Khattab Ahmed Mustafa Shekhani, was also delivered, alongside the address by the Executive Chair, Prof. Dr. Jamal Ali Omar. The same day featured five keynote speeches delivered by distinguished international and local scholars, as outlined below:

Prof. Dr. Sabih Lafta Farhan (Iraq): Artificial Intelligence for Sustainable Cities and Digital Heritage.

Prof. Dr. Kiran Sood (India): Explainable Artificial Intelligence in Financial Fraud Detection (FinTech).

Prof. Dr. Ashish Sharma: Building Low-Cost and Trustworthy Artificial Intelligence.

Prof. Dr. Mohammed Asrul Nasid Masrom (Malaysia): Immersive Technologies in Green Infrastructure.

Prof. Dr. Ahmed Atef Mohammed Fawzi (Malaysia): AI-Powered Field Robotics.

The conference covered ten main themes, encompassing healthcare, business, education, climate, security, autonomous vehicles, and agriculture.

Throughout the two-day conference, ten scientific sessions were held in halls B8, B9, B10, B11, and B12. More than 50 original scientific research papers were presented by researchers from the Kurdistan Region, Iraq, Malaysia, the United Kingdom, India, Indonesia, Italy, Iran, and China. The research addressed significant topics, including the development of the Kurdish language and dialect recognition, early detection of cancer and diabetes, e-governance, and weather forecasting in the Kurdistan Region.

It is worth noting that all accepted research papers, following the Double-Blind Peer Review process, will be published by the international publishing houses Springer Nature Link and Emerald Publishing.

On the second day, Wednesday, 4 November 2026, the conference recommendations were presented during the closing ceremony. They emphasized the importance of investing in digital infrastructure and establishing a legal and ethical framework for the use of artificial intelligence.

At the conclusion of the ceremony, following the presentation of certificates of appreciation, it was officially announced that the Lebanese French University(LFU) in Erbil would host and organize the Third International Conference on AISDW in 2027. The conference proceedings concluded with a scientific and tourist excursion for the guests to the administrative boundaries of the Raparin Independent Administration.