Governance
AI Governance
Responsible AI frameworks, policy research, and governance models.
Nafiul Ahmad Rafi is an AI governance and public policy researcher based in Dhaka, Bangladesh. He is the Founding Director of Atlas AI Institute and National AI Policy Endorser at the AI Policy Lab, Umeå University, Sweden. His research focuses on AI regulatory frameworks, institutional readiness for AI governance, and equitable representation of developing economies in multilateral AI governance processes. He has analyzed AI governance infrastructure across more than 40 countries and produced over 12 policy research outputs and 8 publications. Contact and more information at nafiulahmadrafi.com and atlasaii.org.
AI Governance & Public Policy · Dhaka, Bangladesh
Nafiul AhmadRafi
AI governance researcher and policy architect based in Bangladesh — examining regulatory capacity, governance infrastructure, and policy frameworks for responsible AI adoption in developing and emerging economies.
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Founding Director — Atlas AI Institute Global South AI Governance & Policy Research · atlasaii.org
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National AI Policy Endorser — AI Policy Lab Umeå University, Sweden
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Policy Network Member — CIVICUS World Alliance for Citizen Participation · Global AI Policy Initiatives
My research examines the governance infrastructure and regulatory capacity required for responsible AI adoption in developing economies — with emphasis on institutional readiness and equitable participation in international norm-setting forums. Through Atlas AI Institute, I advance Global South perspectives in multilateral AI governance processes.
Research & Social Profiles
40+
Countries Analyzed
12+
Policy Outputs
35
Gov. Assessments
8+
Publications
About Me
Building AI Governance for the Realities of Developing Economies
I am an AI governance researcher and the Founding Director of Atlas AI Institute, where I focus on one central question:
How can developing countries build AI governance systems that reflect their own institutional realities instead of simply importing models designed elsewhere?
My work sits at the intersection of artificial intelligence, public policy, digital public infrastructure, and governance. I research how governments can develop practical regulatory frameworks, strengthen institutional capacity, and create responsible pathways for AI adoption that are both locally relevant and globally aligned.
Rather than treating research as an academic endpoint, I believe it should evolve into practical tools, policy frameworks, and public-interest technologies that improve how governments serve people.
This philosophy shapes everything I build — from comparative AI policy research covering more than 75 countries, to governance frameworks for the Global South, and civic technology initiatives such as NagorikBD, where research is translated into real-world digital public infrastructure.
I am particularly interested in advancing Global South perspectives within international AI governance discussions, ensuring that emerging and developing economies play an active role in shaping the future of AI policy rather than simply adapting to it.
Research Interests
Current Roles
- Founding Director Atlas AI Institute
- Research Affiliate AI Policy Lab, Umeå University
- Technical Research Team MemberFormer ICT Division, Government of Bangladesh
My Approach
I believe research creates its greatest value when it moves beyond publications and becomes policies, platforms, and public infrastructure that people can actually use. Every project I work on follows the same progression:
Research
Policy
Implementation
Public Impact
Whether developing national AI governance frameworks, analyzing global AI policy ecosystems, or building citizen-focused digital platforms, my goal is to contribute practical solutions that strengthen institutions, expand responsible AI adoption, and support inclusive digital development.
Learn More About My WorkGlobal Research Initiative
Global AI Policy Observatory
Atlas AI Institute's flagship comparative research program analyzing AI governance across 75 countries. The Observatory provides independent assessments of national AI strategies, regulatory frameworks, institutional capacity, responsible AI, public sector adoption, and policy implementation using a standardized framework spanning more than 30 governance dimensions.
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75
Countries
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75
Research Reports
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30+
Governance Dimensions
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Global
Comparative Research
Civic Technology · Global South
Building AI for Public Good
Transforming AI governance research into practical solutions for citizens, climate resilience, and digital public infrastructure.
Citizen Services
Nagorik AI Assistant
An AI assistant that helps citizens navigate public services, government processes, and civic information — in plain language.
Try the assistant on NagorikBD →Resilience
Climate Intelligence
Real-time climate, disaster, and environmental information for communities.
Infrastructure
Digital Public Infrastructure
Building open, scalable digital systems for public good.
Flagship Research Framework
Atlas Global South AI Policy Framework (AG-SAIPF)
Version 1.0A development-first AI governance framework designed to support digital sovereignty, responsible AI, and institutional capacity in developing and emerging economies.
The Atlas Global South AI Policy Framework (AG-SAIPF) provides a structured reference architecture for governments, policymakers, and researchers seeking to build context-aware AI governance systems that reflect local priorities while aligning with international best practices.
Framework Highlights
- Global South Focus
- Development-First Governance
- Digital Sovereignty
- Policy Implementation Framework
- Open Reference Architecture
Governance Intelligence
Strategic platforms and intelligence systems advancing AI governance, policy analysis, and institutional capacity across the Global South.
Featured: Atlas AII
View All Projects →
Featured Project · Policy Intelligence
Atlas AI Institute Global AI Policy Hub
A comprehensive global AI policy intelligence platform aggregating institutional-grade AI policy data, governance frameworks, and legislative landscapes across 35+ countries. Atlas AII serves as centralized research infrastructure for policymakers, researchers, think tanks, and international organizations — aligned with UNESCO, OECD, NIST, and G20 standards.
Explore Atlas AII →
35+
Nations
200+
Policies
12
Frameworks
9
Dimensions
Publications
Research Publications, Policy Papers & Working Papers
My research focuses on AI governance, regulatory capacity, digital public infrastructure, and public policy for developing and emerging economies. Through Atlas AI Institute, I publish policy frameworks, comparative country analyses, working papers, and governance research designed to support policymakers, researchers, development organizations, and civil society.
Featured Publications
Global AI Policy Observatory Series
Comparative AI Governance Research Across 75 Countries
A growing collection of standardized country reports analyzing national AI strategies, governance institutions, regulatory approaches, implementation capacity, responsible AI, public sector adoption, and comparative SWOT assessments.
Coverage
- 75 Countries
- 75 Research Reports
- 30+ Governance Dimensions
- Comparative Policy Analysis
Bangladesh National AI Policy Framework (2026–2035)
A comprehensive national AI governance framework proposing institutional architecture, regulatory mechanisms, responsible AI principles, digital sovereignty, and implementation pathways for Bangladesh.
Topics
- Responsible AI
- National AI Governance
- Digital Sovereignty
- Institutional Capacity
- Regulatory Framework
Atlas Global South AI Policy Framework (AG-SAIPF)
A development-first reference architecture designed for governments in developing and emerging economies seeking practical AI governance models that align with international standards while reflecting local institutional realities.
Framework Highlights
- Global South Focus
- Development-First Governance
- Policy Implementation Model
- Open Reference Architecture
Working Papers & Policy Briefs
Independent research examining emerging challenges in AI governance, institutional readiness, digital public infrastructure, and regulatory policy.
Topics Include
- AI Readiness Assessment
- Digital Public Infrastructure
- AI Governance Capacity
- Regulatory Innovation
- Public Sector AI
- Global South AI Policy
Books
Published and forthcoming books examining AI governance, digital public infrastructure, and public policy for developing and emerging economies.
Topics Include
- AI Governance
- Digital Public Infrastructure
- Public Policy
- Global South Development
Research Repository
All major publications are archived with permanent identifiers to support transparency, reproducibility, and long-term public access.
- Zenodo Repository
- Working Papers
- Research Datasets
- Open Downloads
75+
Country Reports
10+
Policy Frameworks & Working Papers
30+
Governance Dimensions
Open
Open Tools & Datasets
Research Tools & Open Data
Seven research tools — a live national AI policy analysis platform plus six MIT-licensed, open-source tools for financial crime detection, disaster anticipation, civic fact-checking, and humanitarian data protection — built by Nafiul Ahmad Rafi.
- 7 open research tools
- ~788K multilingual claims
- 97 nations covered
- 9 analysis dimensions
- AI Policy Intelligence AI Policy Intelligence Index Live platform benchmarking national AI strategies against OECD, UNESCO, EU AI Act, and NIST RMF frameworks — with capability-fit scoring, gap analysis, and reform roadmaps across 12+ reference countries.
- Policy Intelligence PolicyLens AI 9-dimension AI-powered policy audit covering cultural alignment, human rights, corruption risk, SDG mapping, and economic feasibility — powered by World Bank, TI CPI 2023, and Hofstede 6D.
- Financial Crime Ghost Cluster AML Enterprise AML detection via NetworkX graph analysis and Claude AI forensic narratives. Detects mule clusters, shell company layering, PEP exposure, and crypto offramp patterns with SAR/STR generation.
- Disaster Governance PAG System Bangladesh Predictive Anticipatory Governance for floods, cyclones, and droughts via real-time Kafka streaming from BMD, BWDB, IoT sensors, and satellite imagery with Bangla LLM alerts.
- AI Governance Atlas Aii Policy Hub 97-nation open AI policy repository for the Global South — Africa, South Asia, SE Asia, MENA, and Latin America. Aligned with EU AI Act, UNESCO, OECD AI Principles, G20, and ITU frameworks.
- Fact-Checking AI FactCheckBD Multi-agent misinformation detection pipeline for Bangladesh via CrewAI orchestration, fault-tolerant verification, web crawling, RSS ingestion, and archival scraping. Live on Hugging Face Spaces.
- Humanitarian Tech NGO Secure Field Tool Offline-first, AES-256 encrypted beneficiary data collection for field operations. USB key-gated, GDPR Article 9 compliant, with audit logs, auto-backups, and ICRC Data Protection Framework alignment.
7 open research tools — a live AI policy intelligence platform plus 6 MIT-licensed open-source tools — spanning AI governance, financial crime detection, disaster anticipation, civic fact-checking, and humanitarian data security.
Research & Insights
Policy Insights & Analysis
All Insights →
Featured Analysis
AI Governance Deficits in the Global South: A Structural Assessment
A comparative institutional analysis of governance capacity gaps across 97 nations — examining regulatory architecture, digital public infrastructure readiness, and AI sovereignty frameworks. Proposes a tiered compliance model calibrated for low- and middle-income country contexts, diverging from the EU AI Act's one-size-fits-all paradigm.
Read Analysis-
Policy Brief
Bangladesh AI Readiness Index 2026: Governance Gaps & Strategic Priorities
Benchmarking Bangladesh against ASEAN and South Asian digital governance peers across six institutional dimensions.
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Framework
Digital Sovereignty Without Isolationism: A Governance Architecture for Emerging Economies
Proposes a multi-layered sovereignty model balancing data localization mandates with global interoperability requirements.
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Commentary
US Federal AI Policy Shifts & Global South Implications
How US Executive Order rollbacks restructure the multilateral AI governance landscape for developing nations.
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◈ Working Paper
AI-Driven AML Compliance: Regulatory Convergence & Emerging Gaps
Graph-theoretic approaches to financial crime detection and their regulatory alignment with FATF Recommendation 16 and Bangladesh FIU reporting standards.
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◈ Policy Analysis
Anticipatory Governance & Climate Resilience: Bangladesh as a Laboratory
Real-time predictive governance systems for climate-vulnerable states — from early-warning data architectures to institutionalizing anticipatory decision loops.
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◈ Research Note
Information Integrity Governance in South Asia: Institutional Frameworks & Failures
Examining IFCN-aligned fact-check ecosystems against state-level content moderation policies across Bangladesh, India, and Sri Lanka.
Original policy research, frameworks & analysis on AI governance, digital sovereignty, and Global South development — published under Insights Bangladesh and Political Insights BD.
Get in Touch
Let's Connect
Interested in collaborations on AI governance, digital sovereignty, or cybersecurity research? Reach out directly or connect on professional networks.
Running Atlas AI Institute and leading research on policy frameworks for the Global South. Always open to discussions on emerging technologies and governance challenges.
Ready to discuss research & collaborations?