Cybersecurity and AI as enablers of economic resilience: A framework for sustainable growth in developing countries
DOI:
https://doi.org/10.58524/app.sci.def.v3i2.857Keywords:
Artificial Intelligence, Cybersecurity, Economic Resilience, SDG 8, Sustainable GrowthAbstract
Digital transformation offers unprecedented opportunities for sustainable economic growth in developing countries. However, these benefits are accompanied by increased cybersecurity risks and challenges in integrating emerging technologies like artificial intelligence (AI). This paper proposes a conceptual framework that positions cybersecurity and AI as dual enablers of economic resilience aligned with Sustainable Development Goal 8 (SDG 8). The framework comprises three interconnected pillars: cybersecurity infrastructure, AI-driven economic transformation, and AI-enhanced cybersecurity mechanisms. A case study of Sudan illustrates how tailored interventions can foster secure, inclusive, and resilient digital economies in low- and middle-income contexts. The study highlights the importance of ethical governance, multi-stakeholder collaboration, and capacity building to maximize the benefits of AI while mitigating risks. Future research directions include empirical validation and policy experimentation to refine the framework and accelerate digital-led economic resilience in the Global South.References
Brundage, M., Avin, S., Clark, J., et al. (2018). Toward trustworthy AI development: Mechanisms for supporting verifiable claims. arXiv preprint, 2004.07213. https://doi.org/10.48550/arXiv.2004.07213
Brynjolfsson, E., & McAfee, A. (2014). The second machine age: Work, progress, and prosperity in a time of brilliant technologies. W. W. Norton & Company.
Carlson, J., & Chaturvedi, A. (2019). Cybersecurity and sustainable development: Challenges and opportunities. Journal of Cyber Policy, 4(2), 173–189. https://doi.org/10.1080/23738871.2019.1636602
Chu, A. B. (2018). Mobile Technology and Financial Inclusion. Handbook of Blockchain, Digital Finance, and Inclusion, Volume 1, Cryptocurrency, FinTech, InsurTech, and Regulation (pp. 131–144). Academic Press. https://doi.org/10.1016/B978-0-12-810441-5.00006-3
Cummings, M. (2020). AI ethics and policy in developing countries: Challenges and opportunities. AI & Society, 35(3), 589–601. https://doi.org/10.1007/s00146-020-00962-3
DATAREPORTAL, (2025). Digital Sudan-2025, Retrieved from https://datareportal.com/reports/digital-2025-sudan
Gupta, S., Arora, P., & Nkosi, M. (2023). Resilience through digital innovation: A framework for integrating AI and cybersecurity in emerging economies. Sustainable Development, 31(4), 2105–2120. https://doi.org/10.1002/sd.2456
ITU, (2020). Marrying artificial intelligence and the sustainable development goals: the global economic impact of AI. Retrieved from https://www.itu.int/hub/2020/04/marrying-artificial-intelligence-and-the-sustainable-development-goals-the-global-economic-impact-of-ai/
ITU. (2020). Guide to developing a national cybersecurity strategy (2nd ed.). International Telecommunication Union. Retrieved from https://www.itu.int/en/ITU-D/Cybersecurity/Pages/Guide-to-National-Cybersecurity-Strategy.aspx
ITU, (2023). Cybersecurity readiness index: measuring capacity in the global south. Retrieved from https://www.itu.int
ISPAR, (2024). Global Cybersecurity Index, Retrieved from https://sudan.unescwa.org/ISPAR/
Kshetri, N. (2017). Blockchain’s roles in strengthening cybersecurity and protecting privacy. Telecommunications Policy, 41(10), 1027–1038. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.telpol.2017.08.002
Kshetri, N. (2021). AI and cybersecurity in developing countries: Challenges and prospects. Information & Management, 58(4), 103464. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.im.2021.103464
Kumar, S., Sinha, A., & Singh, A. (2021). Cybersecurity challenges in developing countries: A review. International Journal of Information Management, 57, 102319. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.ijinfomgt.2020.102319
Lee, J., & Singh, R. (2021). Smart development: Integrating AI and IoT for economic transformation in emerging markets. Technological Forecasting and Social Change, 168, 120789. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.techfore.2021.120789
Mendes, C., & Rios, T. N. (2023). Explainable artificial intelligence and cybersecurity: a systematic literature review. arXiv. Retrieved from https://arxiv.org/abs/2303.01259
Modern Diplomacy. (2024). Strengthening cyber defences in developing countries: offensive and adversarial ai threats. Retrieved from https://moderndiplomacy.eu/2024/07/15/strengthening-cyber-defences-in-developing-countries-offensive-and-adversarial-ai-threats/
Nakamura, T., & Harada, T. (2020). Cyber resilience in the digital age: Strategies for developing countries. Information Security Journal: A Global Perspective, 29(4), 153–165. https://doi.org/10.1080/19393555.2020.1747370
NCSI, (2023), National Cyber Security Index, Retrieved from https://ncsi.ega.ee/ncsi-index/
Nguyen, T., & Nguyen, T. (2022). AI-based cybersecurity solutions for emerging economies. Cybersecurity, 5(1), 12. https://doi.org/10.1186/s42400-022-00099-4
OECD. (2021). Enhancing cybersecurity for digital transformation in developing countries. OECD Digital Economy Outlook. Retrieved from https://doi.org/10.1787/ed3e4b1e-en
Oxford Insights, (2024). AI Readiness Rank. Retrieved from https://oxfordinsights.com/ai-readiness/ai-readiness-index/
PwC (2020). AI predictions: The global economic impact of AI by 2030. Retrieved from https://www.pwc.com/gx/en/issues/analytics/assets/pwc-ai-analysis-sizing-the-prize-report.pdf
Raghavan, S., & Mulder, K. (2021). Building global cyber resilience: Policy frameworks and stakeholder engagement. Journal of Cybersecurity Policy & Practice, 3(2), 233–249. https://doi.org/10.1177/25166026211008474
Szegedy, C., Ioffe, S., & Vanhoucke, V. (2019). Analyzing adversarial examples in cybersecurity. Proceedings of the IEEE Conference on Computer Vision and Pattern Recognition (CVPR), pp. 4472–4481. Long Beach, LA, USA.
UNCTAD. (2019). Digital economy report 2019: Value creation and capture—Implications for developing countries. United Nations. Retrieved from https://unctad.org/webflyer/digital-economy-report-2019
UNCTAD. (2021). Digital transformation for sustainable development: A guide for policymakers in developing countries. United Nations Conference on Trade and Development. Retrieved from https://unctad.org/publication/digital-transformation-sustainable-development
UNESCO. (2022). AI and the futures of education: Ethical and inclusive pathways for sustainable development. United Nations Educational, Scientific and Cultural Organization. Retrieved from https://unesdoc.unesco.org/ark:/48223/pf0000382395
UNDP. (2022). Digital transformation for sustainable development: A framework for action. United Nations Development Programme.
United Nation, (2020). Sustainable Development Goals, Retrieved from https://www.un.org/sustainabledevelopment/economic-growth/
World Bank. (2020). World development report 2020: Trading for development in the age of global value chains. World Bank Publications.
World Bank. (2023). Cybersecurity economics for emerging markets. Retrieved from https://www.worldbank.org
World Bank. (2025). Cybersecurity economics. Retrieved from https://www.worldbank.org/en/topic/digital/publication/Cybersecurity-Economics-for-Emerging-Markets
World Economic Forum. (2020). The global risks report 2020. Retrieved from https://www.weforum.org/reports/the-global-risks-report-2020
Zhou, Y., Li, X., & Wang, L. (2022). AI-driven policy frameworks for cybersecurity resilience. AI & Society, 37(1), 123–137. Retrieved from https://doi.org/10.1007/s00146-022-01455-8
Downloads
Published
Issue
Section
License
Copyright (c) 2025 Ali Siraj Ahmed, Rahmat Budiarto
This work is licensed under a Creative Commons Attribution-NonCommercial-ShareAlike 4.0 International License.
