Uganda MPs in Rome for AI regulation talks

A Ugandan parliamentary delegation led by Deputy Speaker Thomas Tayebwa attended the 17th annual meeting of the International Catholic Legislators Network in Rome, where Pope Leo XIV challenged lawmakers to place human dignity at the centre of artificial intelligence policy.

The meeting brought together Catholic legislators and political leaders from different countries under the theme, “Human Dignity and Artificial Intelligence: Challenges, Chances and Control.”

The Ugandan delegation attended discussions on how governments can regulate emerging technologies without blocking innovation.

Pope Leo XIV received participants at the Vatican's Clementine Hall on August 21, 2026. He told legislators that advances in artificial intelligence presented governments with both opportunities and difficult moral choices.

The Pope said lawmakers had a responsibility to guide technology towards the common good rather than allow innovation to develop without safeguards.

“Your task is not to hinder innovation but to guide it wisely,” he told the legislators.

He called for laws that protect fundamental rights, privacy and users from exploitation. He also urged governments to demand greater transparency from companies deploying emerging technologies and ensure digital systems strengthen democratic institutions.

Pope Leo warned that the rapid growth of AI could deepen technological dependence between rich and poor countries.

He said poorer nations risk becoming increasingly reliant on wealthier countries for technology, infrastructure and artificial intelligence systems.

The Pope also warned that such dependence could turn innovation into a new form of “ideological or economic colonialism.”

He also raised concerns about the power of algorithms to determine which people and ideas receive attention online.

He called for strong legal frameworks, independent oversight and informed technology users. He said regulation could operate at national, regional and international levels to ensure that no single ideology or commercial interest controls the values embedded in AI systems.

Family life also featured prominently in his address.

Pope Leo described the family as the “first school of humanity” and warned legislators against allowing technology to replace genuine human relationships.

He said AI could harm families when technology reduces people to data, exposes young people to damaging content or supports economic models that make family life more difficult.

He urged lawmakers to support policies that strengthen marriage, assist parents in educating their children and give young people confidence about their future.

The International Catholic Legislators Network was established in 2010 to connect Christian lawmakers and promote dialogue on policy questions concerning human dignity and the common good.

The Rome meeting placed AI regulation among those concerns as governments worldwide grapple with the growing influence of generative AI, automated decision-making and social media algorithms.

Pope Leo told the legislators that technology should remain a tool for humanity rather than become its competitor.

“The world does not need an artificial intelligence that diminishes humanity,” he said, calling instead for human intelligence guided by wisdom and political authority guided by conscience.