The integration of Artificial Intelligence (AI) into Higher Education Institutions (HEIs) in Ecuador is not a technological option but a strategic imperative to prevent institutional obsolescence and academic irrelevance in Latin America. This paper presents the IA593 Framework, a governance, ethics, and operational model designed for the Universidad Nacional de Loja (UNL) and scalable as a reference for the Ecuadorian higher education system. The current context reveals a critical urgency: the Latin American Artificial Intelligence Index 2025 classifies Ecuador as a late awakening adopter, exposing severe structural gaps, including R and D investment of only 0.44 percent of GDP and a marginal contribution to global AI scientific output. Although a National Strategy for the Promotion of AI exists and calls for multisectoral governance, universities still lack internal regulations governing the use of Generative AI, placing academic integrity and data privacy at risk. The IA593 Framework addresses this challenge through five interconnected pillars aligned with the FATE principles of Fairness, Accountability, Transparency, and Ethics and UNESCO recommendations on AI ethics: Transversal Governance, Teaching and Training, Research, Outreach, and Management. This framework enables HEIs to move from passive technology consumption toward a sovereign and critical adoption of AI, ensuring compliance with national academic regulations and positioning UNL as a key actor in reducing the digital divide and brain drain in Ecuador.

翻译：将人工智能整合至厄瓜多尔高等教育机构并非技术选项，而是防止拉丁美洲机构过时与学术边缘化的战略要务。本文提出IA593框架——一套专为洛哈国立大学设计，并可作为厄瓜多尔高等教育体系参考范本的可扩展治理、伦理与操作模型。当前背景揭示出紧迫态势：2025年拉丁美洲人工智能指数将厄瓜多尔列为"迟醒型应用者"，暴露出研发投入仅占GDP的0.44%、对全球AI科研产出贡献微弱等结构性缺陷。尽管厄瓜多尔已出台国家人工智能促进战略并呼吁多部门治理，高校仍缺乏规范生成式AI使用的内部条例，使学术诚信与数据隐私面临风险。IA593框架通过五个相互关联的支柱应对此挑战，这些支柱遵循公平性、问责制、透明性与伦理的FATE原则及联合国教科文组织AI伦理建议：横向治理、教学培训、科学研究、社会服务与管理运营。该框架推动高等教育机构从被动技术消费转向自主批判性的人工智能应用，确保符合国家学术规范，并使洛哈国立大学成为缩小厄瓜多尔数字鸿沟、抑制人才外流的关键力量。