Digital Bridge To The Carib

A Report of the
Meeting
held under the auspices of the
United Nations Information and Communication Technologies
Task Force
Held on January 24, 2003

At the United Nations Headquarters, New York,NY
A Publication of the United Nations Information and Communication Technologies Task Force
s
UNFIP
“Information technology is not a magic formula that is going to solve all our problems. But it is
a powerful force that can and must be harnessed to our global mission of peace and development.
This is a matter of both ethics and economics; over the long term, the new economy can only be pro-
ductive and sustainable if it spreads worldwide and responds to the needs and demands of all people.
I urge everyone in a position to make a difference to add his or her energies to this effort.”
Kofi Annan, Secretary-General, United Nations

Kofi Annan’s IT Challenge to Silicon Valley, 5 November 2002
Table of Contents
Preface . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . v
Concept Paper . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 1
Summary . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 1
The Mission . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 1
The Rationale . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 1
The Process . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 1
The Digital Diaspora network for the Caribbean (DDN-C) . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 2

The Diaspora . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 2
Building the Network . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 2
Expected Results . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 2
Caribbean Strategies . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 4
Strategic Objectives . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 4
Application of ICTs . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 4
Project Implementation . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 4
Current Status of ICT in Caribbean . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 5

Overview . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 5
Teledensity and Access . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 5
Legal and Regulatory Framework . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 6
Policy Framework for Action

Setting the Agenda . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 8
Policy Forums . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 8
Policy Summary . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 9
ICT Issues and Challenges

Impact on Existing Activities . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 10
Potential for Development . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 10
Connectivity . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 10
Skills Development . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 11
Content . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 11
Resource Allocation . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 11
Bridging the Digital Divide . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 12
References . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 13
Appendices
Table 1 Teledensity in CARICOM Countries . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 14
Table 2 ICT Access – Internet Users and Number of PCs . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 14
Table 3 Telephone and Internet Accounts in CARICOM Countries . . . . . . . . . 15
iii
The Meeting . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 16
Summary . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 16
Main Recommendations . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .17
Roundtable Reports . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 18
1. ICT Policy Framework for the Caribbean . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 18
2. Infrastructural Framework, Connectivity and Cost . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 19
3. Human Capacity Development - e-Education . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 20
4. Health and Telemedicine . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 21
5. e-Business Environment: Enabling effective e-Commerce . . . . . . . . . . . . . 22
6. Enabling Efficiency and Productivity in the Tourism Sector . . . . . . . . . . . 23
7. Strengthening Civil Society and Governance – Focus on e-Government . . 24
8. Developing Agriculture with Information . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 26
9. Identifying Resources for the Caribbean Digital Diaspora Network . . . . . 27
10. ICT and Outsourcing . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 28
Appendices
Meeting Agenda . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 30
List of Participants . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 32
iv
Preface
Convinced of the positive potential of ICT to accelerate economic growth and social development, the
United Nations Information and Communication Technologies Task Force (United Nations ICT TF), in col-
laboration with the United Nations Development Programme (UNDP) and the United Nations Fund for
International Partnerships (UNFIP), embarked on an initiative to contribute to the development process in
the Caribbean. The initiative aims at the establishment of a Digital Diaspora Network for the Caribbean
(DDN-C) that will seek to bring together qualified members of the Caribbean Diaspora -- high-tech profes-
sionals, entrepreneurs and business leaders -- into a network with their counterparts in the Caribbean.
Through the Network, Caribbean expatriates working in the high-tech sector in North America will seek
to jump-start ICT initiatives in their home region. Thousands of Internet nodes and digital activities are tak-
ing shape in the Caribbean, but usually lack the capital, expertise and networking ability to stabilize and grow.
The Network will mobilize expatriate leaders and entrepreneurs to underwrite and mentor these developments.
The initiative is modeled on the successful Digital Diaspora Network for Africa, launched in July 2002 by
the United Nations ICT Task Force, in collaboration with the United Nations Development Fund for Women
(UNIFEM), United Nations Fund for International Partnerships (UNFIP), the Digital Partners Institute
(Seattle, United States) and Gruppo CERFE (Italy).
The Digital Diaspora Network for the Caribbean was formally launched on 24 January 2003. The meet-
ing on Bridging the Digital Divide for the Caribbean was held in partnership by the United Nations ICT Task
Force, the United Nations Development Programme, the United Nations Fund for International Partnerships
and the United Nations Foundation (UNF), while also supported by the CARICOM Permanent Missions to
the United Nations, the CARICOM Secretariat, the Caribbean American Chamber of Commerce and
Industry.
The following publication contains two informative resources providing a variety of details on the Digital
Diaspora Network for the Caribbean. The first part contains the concept paper detailing the original propos-
al for the network, while the second part provides a summary of the launch meeting of the Digital Diaspora
Network, held on 24 January 2003.
For further information please contact the United Nations ICT Task Force: http://www.unicttaskforce.org/
v
Digital Bridge to the Caribbean
Concept Paper
Summary
The Mission
The mission of the Digital Diaspora Network for the Caribbean is to promote ICT development in the
Caribbean (CARICOM Countries) by providing a rich source of ideas, skills and support and acting as a plat-
form for the exchange of information and other resources to create and sustain digital opportunities in the region.
It is recognized that there are other initiatives focusing on the Caribbean, each with its own particular
objectives and methodology. However, it is also accepted that new synergies and potentials can be created with-
in the proposed network. Furthermore, acting partly as a forum for motivating, facilitating and evaluating ICT
development in the Caribbean, it could also stimulate further rationalization in the application of resources to
the challenges facing the Caribbean and lead to a more integrated and effective ICT development process.
A defining component in the development of the DDN-C is a meeting scheduled for January 24th 2003
at the United Nations Headquarters in New York. This conference is meant to review the current status of ICT
development, the challenges which must be faced, the proposed DDN-C initiative, and the expected benefits.
The meeting is also expected to lead to identification of necessary resources such as skills, finance and
technical assistance that may be mobilized for ICT development purposes in the Caribbean. Further, an orga-
nizational framework needs to be established to promote and manage the resulting network of interest and to
ensure continuity.
The Rationale
It appears that many Caribbean oriented businesses along with entrepreneurs and professionals from the
Caribbean but now residing in North America are willing to commit time and other resources in support of ICT
development activities in the Caribbean. This represents an important resource, which properly empowered
through networking, could assist in addressing the Caribbean challenges and responding to identified needs.
It is also known that Caribbean based ICT entrepreneurs and professionals, would welcome a beneficial
integration into the network of increasingly knowledge - based North American business potential. Building a
platform for cooperation between these two groups with a common interest in the Caribbean would therefore
enable both to benefit from the digital development process taking place there.
The United Nations Information and Communication Technologies Task Force along with the United
Nations Development Fund for Women (UNIFEM), the United Nations Fund for International Partnerships
(UNFIP), Digital Partners Institute and Gruppo Cerfe developed a similar initiative for the African continent.
Launched on 12 July 2002, that initiative has already led to the development of (a) Afrishare - an African
database of ICT skills, (b) a social venture fund for Africa, and (c) the Digital Diaspora Network for Africa
(DDN-A) - a steering committee to manage implementation of the process.
The Process
Caribbean Governments have also taken action at the national, regional (CARICOM) and the hemi-
spheric (Summit of the Americas) levels in specifying strategies for ICT development in and between their
countries. These will therefore help to determine the policy framework within which developments will take
place. In particular it should be noted that the CARICOM Secretariat has been charged with the responsibil-
ity of proposing a comprehensive Caribbean ICT strategy at the 14th Heads of Government Summit, sched-
uled for early in 2003. The DDN-C initiative is therefore expected to feed into the CARICOM process for
determining the regional strategy.
In this respect, the conference organizers have received strong support from the Permanent
Representatives of Caribbean Countries to the United Nations and from the CARICOM Secretariat.
Throughout the planning period, the Permanent Representatives in New York served as an expanded forum in
which the ideas and plans were discussed and developed. In addition they helped to identify appropriate par-
ticipants for the conference and its likely follow up programme.
1
United Nations Information and Communication Technologies Task Force
Digital Diaspora Network for the Caribbean

The Diaspora
It is known that significant numbers of ICT professionals and entrepreneurs now living in North America
originated from developing countries, including the Caribbean. There are two main explanations for this. The
first has to do with the issue of economic opportunity and the second with professional development.
This outcome is a consequence of the fact that:
Partly due to their stage or circumstances of development, most developing countries have not recognized the full
value of their own knowledge capability and rewarded it sufficiently. Therefore skills naturally flowed outwards to those
countries where knowledge is viewed as an asset, and represents a greater value proposition for the professional.
In this context, much has been written about ‘the brain drain’, a paradoxical situation in which skills and
knowledge are motivated to flow from the areas of origin and of greatest need to the areas of greatest abun-
dance.
It has however been recognized that the highly skilled and professional migrants in particular consider
themselves to be a community overseas notwithstanding their loyalties to their adopted countries. This com-
munity expresses itself as an informal and unstructured network, but with a defining characteristic, which is, to
support development in their home countries or region. This is sometimes referred to as a “Diaspora”.
In addition to the economic and professional choices of the individual, there are many corporations that
are involved in ICT activities in the Caribbean and may wish to be part of the initiative. They could assist in
identifying investment opportunities therefore contributing to job creation and foreign exchange earnings
capability for the Caribbean countries. Indeed early investment wins could help countries to “leapfrog” the dig-
ital divide in attempting to harness and manage information and knowledge for development.
Building the Network

The United Nations ICT Task Force, along with UNDP and UNFIP consider that these forces, particu-
larly those professionally and entrepreneurially associated with ICTs can be brought together into a Caribbean
Digital Diaspora Network, to bring focus and solutions to some of the challenges of the Caribbean ICT devel-
opment process. This Caribbean North American Diaspora Network will by definition consist of policy mak-
ers, managers, entrepreneurs, researchers and other ICT professionals representing a resource to be mobilized.
It therefore allows for pooling of experience, leveraging of resources, and coordinated strategies.
This network will also include Caribbean based counterparts, who are keen to draw on the anticipated
benefits in the interest of ICT development in the Caribbean region. This network will therefore be transna-
tional in character and highly skills based.
Furthermore, by considering the appropriate policy context, the initiative can be directed towards the priority areas
identified by the Caribbean countries themselves, generating a synergy with the international agendas now redefining the
global development process.
Expected Results
The initiative will be discussed and elaborated at a meeting on Bridging The Digital Divide 24th January
2003 at the United Nations Headquarters. Modeled partly on a similar successful initiative for Africa, the
Digital Diaspora Network for the Caribbean is expected to begin with four (4) main commitments.
1. Network Structure
Agreement on a structure and platform for empowering the Digital Diaspora Network for the Caribbean
to facilitate the collection and dissemination of information and to undertake mobilization of resources for
ICT development in the Caribbean.
2. Venture Fund & Resource
Identifying a corporate, international and professional resource base capable of providing financial, tech-
nical, skill and other support to ICT development initiatives in the Caribbean.
2
3. Steering Team
The formation of a steering team, coordinated by the CARICOM Secretariat and/or the University of the
West Indies is proposed. It is envisaged that this steering team will oversee, monitor and evaluate follow-
up activities, including any new initiatives implemented from time to time.
4. Areas of Focus
Identification of thematic areas and programme directions on which the network should focus initially.
3
Caribbean Strategies
The proposed Caribbean Digital Diaspora Network is consistent with the strategies being outlined at the
regional CARICOM level. In general ICT should not be considered to be an end in itself, but a catalyst for the
achievement of specified national objectives and development of other sectors. It however requires special
focus because of its cross sectoral and integrative capabilities and especially because national competitive
advantage is now being redefined in the globalizing economy. Very high asset value is now attached to the con-
cept and reality of the knowledge society, which is emerging as the driving force in development.
The ICT strategies for the Caribbean must therefore now necessarily be based on principles that derive partly from
the agreed ICT policy frameworks and from the development agendas specified at the regional and national levels.
Strategic Objectives
The CARICOM Secretariat is developing the ICT strategy for the Caribbean. They have already identi-
fied the following strategic objectives.
• Promotion of e-enabled human capital, to enhance human capacity through on-line communities and
on-line learning (e-communities)
• An enabling e-business environment for the growth of on-line business (e-business) and creation of new
business opportunities.
• Efficient functioning of governmental machinery to build civil society and democratic governance (e-
government)
The Organization of Eastern Caribbean States (OECS) Secretariat is also formulating an ICT policy and
moving ahead with implementation at the country level.
Application of ICTs
To achieve the strategic objectives, implementation of the action plan will target the major sectors of the
region’s economies, along with some cross-sectoral activities where important to achieving a broader national
or regional goal. The application of ICT in the Caribbean will therefore be focused
• ICT policy Framework • Infrastructure, Connectivity & Costs
• Human Capacity development - Education • Health & Telemedicine

• e-Government for Civil Society & Democratic
• e- Business Environment
Governance Economic Opportunities
• Enabling Efficiency & Productivity in the • Resources for ICT development in the
Tourism sector Caribbean
• Developing agriculture with Information • Outsourcing

• Culture & recreation • Economic opportunities
• Environmental Stability • International Business Services
• Disaster Recovery • Manufacturing
Project Implementation
It is intended that project implementation should also be used as a learning process. This will require sys-
tematic documentation, which in turn could lead to more efficient processes in similar projects in the future,
and the development of model sharing and of training materials for use at the national and regional levels.
These may even be made available for sharing with other developing countries.
The normal project life cycle will therefore require that there is definition and analysis of the concept, doc-
umentation of the business case, specification of action plan and provision for on-going and periodic evaluation.
4
Current Status of ICT in the Caribbean

Overview
ICT activities in the Caribbean have been developing along a traditional continuum, focusing progres-
sively on telecommunications infrastructure, computerization, development of informatics as an economic sec-
tor, and most recently on e-business facilitation. This process may be categorized as a sector enhancement
approach. It is illustrated in figure 1.
Figure I
A typology of the ICT Development Continuum
In The CARICOM Countries
Phase 1 Phase 2 Phase 3 Phase 4
- Regulatory Frameworks
- National ICT Strategies
- Liberalization of tele-
communications sector
E-Business
Facilitation
Promoting informatics
Computerization as an economic sector
Development of
telecommunications
infrastructure
TIME
However, the dawning of the new millennium and the emergence of a globalized economic system reflect-
ed in the WTO process, brings a new sense of urgency to define and leverage national competitive advantage
for growth and development. Furthermore according to Drucker1
“Developing countries can no longer expect to base their development on their comparative labour advantage. The
competitive advantage that now counts is the application of knowledge.”2
This objective requires a new approach to setting development goals, as growth will now be conditioned,
if not determined, by global positioning of the economy. ICT therefore becomes a powerful catalyst, for com-
prehensive cross sector strategies to stimulate and facilitate a “wider economic process, and enhance global posi-
tioning.”
The sector enhancement approach outlined in Figure 1 has inevitably led to slow project-based, rather
than process driven growth of ICT in the individual CARICOM countries. Because of this not only is the
region as a whole lagging behind the leader countries e.g. USA, Canada, and Europe in ICT development, but
also there is significant disparity in the levels of “e-readiness” between the CARICOM countries themselves.
Teledensity and Access

Teledensity is a measure of basic network capacity, which in turn is a major requirement for Internet access.
It is defined as the number of telephone lines per 100 persons in the population. Best estimates by the ITU
indicate that Teledensity is still rather low in the CARICOM countries averaging 27.7% compared to 65.51%
in Canada and 66.45% in the USA. See Appendices – Table 1 for ITU estimates.
Network access is also critical. In the ICT context access requires three main components viz. basic tele-
5
phone access, PC penetration and Internet access. All are necessary because the Internet currently relies on
the telecommunications network for transmission and the PC still provides the main interface to the Internet.
(a) Network Access

Network access can be measured through the statistics on ’household penetration.’ The available estimates
relate to the wire-line service only, but it must be remembered that the growth of mobile service will eventu-
ally modify the significance of the term ‘household penetration’ It must nevertheless be noted that if popula-
tions do not have access to basic telephone service, which is an important communication technology, the
scope for moving further up the continuum is severely restricted.
However, as the world moves towards the development of knowledge-societies and as global economic
positioning becomes more directly defined by it, basic telephone access while still important will not be suffi-
cient. Internet access will also become very critical.
(b) Penetration of PC’s

On average there are only 9.14 PC’s per 100 persons in the CARICOM Countries, which while being
above the average for The Americas as a whole, contrasts very unfavorably with estimates for the leading coun-
tries of 40.31 PC’s per 100 persons in the Canada and 62.50 in the USA.
In general therefore, Internet access is still at an incipient stage in the Caribbean countries. (See
Appendices - table 2)
(c) Internet Access

Table 2 also provides the ITU estimates of the number of Internet users in the CARICOM countries. The
contrast with the USA and Canada is similar to that observed for PC penetration. For instance whereas there
are approximately 2,014 users in Canada and 5,015 in the USA for every 1,000 inhabitants, the average for the
Caribbean is only 507.96.
However it can be seen that there is not a linear relationship between PC penetration and the number of
Internet users. There is a perception in the Caribbean that this is very much related to the cost of service pro-
vided by the ISPs, and to the extent to which the internet is used in business processes where there will be mul-
tiple users per service.
Legal and Regulatory Framework

It was observed earlier that ICT development in the CARICOM countries developed on a project-by-proj-
ect sector- enhancement basis. It is therefore not surprising that enabling legislation and regulations are not
comprehensive and therefore generally inadequate. Even in the nineties when all governments were targeting
informatics development to become an important sector of activity in their economies, no specific ICT legis-
lation was put in place. The emerging informatics sector had to piggyback on incentives and regulations that
were already in place for manufacturing, merchandise trade and general-purpose international business corpo-
rations.
Where new regulations were actually put in place they were not outlined within the context of integrat-
ed national ICT plans. However the most recent focus in the ICT sectoral enhancement continuum, e-com-
merce development, has seen the recent drafting and in some cases the proclamation, of e-commerce legisla-
tion. This came as a reaction to demands for a legal framework for e-commerce transactions, and even to facil-
itate some e-government functions. More recently, a few of the countries have also drafted some form of a com-
puter misuse act.
Only Jamaica may be said to have developed and proclaimed a national ICT policy. Antigua, Barbados,
Grenada, Guyana, St. Lucia and Trinidad and Tobago are understood to have drafts under consideration. The
position of the other countries is unclear. However, it is questionable whether countries should try to pursue
this path alone. Therefore it is now accepted that a more efficient and cost effective strategy would be to devel-
op a regional approach. The countries have therefore put in place a CARICOM mechanism for determining a
regional ICT policy.
6
The process has so far included the following:

i. The 13th Heads of Government Meeting in Georgetown Guyana recognized the potential of ICT
for enhancing and integrating Caribbean societies in education, health, poverty reduction, deliv-
ery of public information and governance. All these principles are enunciated in the CARICOM
Charter of Civil Society.
ii. Accepted recommendations of the special meeting of CARICOM Ministers responsible for infor-
mation, communication and or technology from their June 2000 meeting in Antigua & Barbuda.
These recommendations related to a process for outlining policy, agenda and strategy for develop-
ment of ICT in the CARICOM region.
iii. Mandated the CARICOM Secretariat to present the CARICOM ICT strategy for consideration
at its 14th meeting scheduled for early 2003.
7
Policy Framework for the Caribbean

Setting the Agenda
Caribbean countries are party to a number of processes, protocols and agreements that will impact on the
shaping of their regional and national ICT policies. Some of these forums set the social, political and economic
agenda; others relate directly to regional, hemispheric and even global ICT processes. The following processes
among others will therefore influence the policy framework:
• The WTO negotiations
• The United Nations Millennium Development Goals (MDG’s)
• The Summit of the Americas process
• The Proposed CARICOM ICT Strategy (to be presented at the 14th Inter-sessional Meeting in early
2003).
• National ICT policies
Each of these processes will be driven by its own specific goals, and its own ‘raison d’etre’. There is how-
ever a point of convergence. That point is the resolve that ICT should be pursued not simply as an end in itself,
but more importantly as a catalyst for human social and economic development, notwithstanding the fact that
it is also an area of dynamic business activity.
This position emerges partly from the realization that the difference between developing and developed
countries is not only reflected in, but is also being exacerbated by the dramatic shift from a global income divide
to a global knowledge divide. The modern development process is therefore being driven more by the har-
nessing of knowledge, rather than by simply managing production. ICT, the enabling process, will therefore be
required to play an increasingly more crucial role in the development of developing countries.
Policy Forums
As indicated earlier, the eventual ICT policy of the CARICOM countries will be greatly influenced by the
agendas of the several forums to which the region is a party. Significantly, all of these recognize that ICT will
play a defining role in the development process. ICT has therefore been a subject of special focus in the inter-
national, hemispheric, regional and national development policies and agendas which impact on the
Caribbean.
(a) The Summit of the America’s process
At its Montreal meeting the development agenda was prefaced with the following statement regarding
connectivity.
“We, the democratically elected Heads of State and Government of the Americas, meeting in Quebec City3, rec-
ognize that a technological revolution is unfolding and that our region is entering a new economy, one defined by a vast-
ly enhanced capacity to access knowledge and to improve flows of information. We are convinced that the promotion of
a Connectivity Agenda for the Americas will facilitate the beneficial integration of the hemisphere into an increasingly
knowledge-based society. We share the goal of providing all citizens of the Americas with the opportunity to develop the
tools to access and share knowledge that will allow them to fully seize opportunities to strengthen democracy, create pros-
perity and realize their human potential. Connectivity will open new opportunities to our society in all areas, for which
equal access and appropriate training are necessary.”
A connectivity agenda was also outlined as follows:
1) Individually and collectively move towards expanding access to global knowledge and full integration
with the knowledge society
2) Promote the modernization of the telecommunications sector
3) Establish conditions taking into account national legal frameworks that promote and strengthen free
and fair competition in telecommunications services
8
4) Seek out innovative ways of facilitating access to and usage of computers and software in our learning
environments
(b) The CARICOM Strategy
In a communiqué following the most recent meeting4 it was reaffirmed that the CARICOM Heads of
Government:
“… Recognized the potential of information and communications technologies (ICTs) for enhancing and integrat-
ing our societies in areas such as education, health, poverty- reduction, delivery of public information and governance –
objectives articulated in the CARICOM charter of civil Society. They also noted the potential (of ICTs) for transform-
ing our economic landscape, growing the CSME and advancing the regional trade agenda, by increasing competitiveness
in services and seizing opportunities offered by e-commerce. The heads are however not unmindful of increasing chal-
lenges the digital revolution has posed for smaller economies such as ours, underscoring the need for a regional approach.
The CARICOM Secretariat was mandated to present a CARICOM ICT strategy for ratification at the
next meeting scheduled for early in the year 2003 and a commitment was made to
“… further pursue meaningful participation in hemispheric and other policy-making fora on the global information
society.” Special mention was made of:
a. Full participation in the hemispheric ICT process under the OAS through the Inter-American
Telecommunications Commission (CITEL); as outlined at the Quebec meeting, detailed later in this
report
b. Participate fully in the global process working with the European Latin America& Caribbean alliance
for information Society. (IEU-LAC)
c. Cooperate with the United Nations task force for information society set up by Secretary-General Kofi
Annan.
Policy Summary
It is therefore clear that development of a Caribbean ICT policy framework is in process. The outstanding
features and overall principles may be summarized as:
• Participation in regional, hemispheric and global strategies for development of the information society.
• Implementation Process requiring:
° The support and participation of civil society i.e. The private sector, the public sector, NGOs and
the general population.
° A forum where the players can participate in formulating policies, defining priorities, strategies, and
plans of action.
° A high-level government entity empowered to coordinate the short, medium, and long-term.
• A high level national executing agency to manage the planning, executing, and financing processes.
The process should involve the entities responsible for defining economic policy and budgetary alloca-
tion at the applicable central, regional and sub-regional levels.
• A long-term commitment extending at least ten years
9
ICT Issues and Challenges

Within the policy framework identified above, an ICT enabled development process in the Caribbean
would need to address a variety of issues or major challenges ranging from its impact on existing activities to
its potential for future development.
Impact on Existing Activities

• ICT is employed as a tool for providing new and faster means of communication, including real-time
communication and efficient storing, accessing and retrieving information.
• Both CARICOM governments and the private sector have identified the cost of telecommunications
as a major concern. They consider that it has a negative impact on the rate of ICT deployment in the
region. Cost has also been highlighted as an important consideration in the recent drive to liberalize
and introduce more competition into the sector.
• Nevertheless, ICT is already creating a gateway for new business processes, e.g. e-commerce and cus-
tomer relationship management (CRM) and for identifying new business opportunity areas e.g. in call
centre business and informatics.
• ICT is also being introduced for the purpose of bringing greater efficiency and productivity to public
and private sector activities.
Potential for Development

In addition to faster and more systematic deployment into existing activities, ICT also has the potential
for facilitating the achievement of stated objectives in the new paradigm for social, economic and human
development i.e. the drive to the knowledge based society. It can facilitate:
• Restructuring of governmental and societal interaction patterns so that shared information becomes
the foundation for action. This can be achieved when information is no longer circumscribed by, or con-
fined to, privileged niches.
• Stimulating social, economic and political empowerment, because each individual would potentially
have access to the same information base, and become both a recipient and a generator of information,
thus contributing to knowledge development. This in turn stimulates a demand and supply equation for
information and ICT management.
• Operating as a “force multiplier” through rapid and reliable dissemination of relevant information,
products, and best practices. In this way additional new ideas will be propagated and new societal capa-
bilities stimulated.
• Bridging the divide between developing and developed countries and stimulating the competitive
advantage of countries as they are drawn progressively into a globalized economy.
However, in striving to benefit from this potential offered by ICT, a number of critical issues must be
addressed. The issues include:
i. Connectivity
ii. Skills Development
iii. Content
iv. Resource allocation
v. Bridging the digital divide
Connectivity
At the national level connectivity infrastructure must be treated as a critical factor in the development of
access to ICT capability. This implies the need for investment in a national telecommunications infrastructure.
The basic capability would be based on a high-speed broadband Digital Diaspora Network, providing adequate
bandwidth, with access to the international information superhighway at affordable cost. Even with the cur-
rent levels of connectivity, cost is considered a major problem and deterrent to speedier development of the
ICT sector.
10
Apart from putting the connectivity infrastructure in place at the national level, individuals need to have
access capability either on a personal or community basis. This may be facilitated through the governments and
the private sector acting as propagators by bringing ICT into their standard and on-going business processes.
This would naturally have both a demonstration and a motivational effect, in encouraging personal use. Access
would then more rapidly be brought into individual homes, or at least into local centres for community use.
Skills Development
Next to providing connectivity and access, skills development must be made a critical component of the
ICT strategy. This issue is most important in areas where basic literacy is low. Even in countries with high lit-
eracy, e-literacy will be a necessary objective of skills development. However, basic literacy and e-literacy need
not be treated as separate processes.
For Example, pupils using laptops in the classroom, or a classroom with an interactive whiteboard connected to a
computer and to the Internet, can simultaneously facilitate teacher and student input, intellectual stimulation, creativi-
ty, downloading of content from the internet, and distance learning. All of the major learning processes, especially the
cognitive and affective, are therefore integrated and need only to be managed through good lesson plans. Smart
Technologies website (www.smarttech.com) among others provides guidance for teachers on how to use this
type of technology in the classroom.
If ICT can be incorporated into the education processes and classroom methodologies, especially at an
early point in the educational cycle, a smooth and effective solution would have been achieved. The Edutech
programme being implemented by the Ministry of Education in Barbados is an example of this approach.
A comprehensive ICT skills development strategy will not be confined to the classroom and will require
development of both end-user and technical skills. The end-user skills would include basic keyboarding skills,
net literacy, handling ICT, hosting information, retrieving information etc. The technical skills would revolve
around the development, management and maintenance of hardware and software systems and of course net-
working and connectivity.
Content
The next important issue and challenge in developing a comprehensive ICT policy relates to content.
Content must be understandable not only to highly trained professionals but also to the average citizen in the
community. For example, a farmer in a rural community could also benefit directly from information about market
prices for his products, best agricultural practices for the crops he produces, or the latest government assistance pro-
grammes for farmers without awaiting the uncertain visit of an extension officer. Therefore the way information is
presented through ICTs will also be an important factor.
This will have implications for the development of content in a contextual framework, including where
possible, in the local language or idiom. In addition, content need not be restricted to written-text format, as
in many communities voice data or graphics may be the most effective communication tools. Moreover, the
use of culturally relevant icons in the software and hybrid voice/text technologies would be a distinct advan-
tage. These factors will in turn have a linkage effect to the skills training programmes and also present business
and or career development opportunities for programmers and developers.
Resource Allocation
The deep linkages and interrelationships between ICT and all sectors of the economy have been estab-
lished; consequently an effective ICT programme should be developed within a strategic planning framework.
Governments therefore will need not only to spell out the vision, but also to break that vision down into man-
ageable components with specific targets and time frames for each. This in turn would lead to rational resource
allocation in a logical developmental framework.
Each country’s sustainable development needs should determine the national strategy in each case.
Furthermore at the national level, Governments need to demonstrate the political will to incorporate more
ICT into the operational and other aspects of governance (e-government), and to allocate appropriate
resources for achieving this objective.
In addition to governments’ resource allocation strategy and deployment of ICT, the business sector,
NGO’s and international organizations will be required to contribute resources. This in turn is likely to lead to
new business opportunities to be explored by the private sector participants.
11
Bridging the Digital Divide

Another major issue, the digital divide, exists at two levels. Firstly it can be observed within countries i.e.
at the national level and secondly between countries, i.e. at the international level. The most dramatic mani-
festation of the digital divide, however, is at the international level between developed and developing coun-
tries. It is precisely because of this that international intermediary organizations, e.g. The United Nations agen-
cies, World Bank, Inter American Development Bank, will be required to play a major role in helping to bridge
that digital divide.
Fortunately, the issue of the digital divide is at the top of the international political and economic agen-
da. This is reflected in:
• The adoption of the Information Society Charter by the G-8 countries at the Okinawa Summit in July
2000
• The United Nations Economic and Social Council establishing a Task Force on ICT and Development.
• The Proposed World Summits on “information society” scheduled for 20035 and 2005.
• The establishment of the Infodev programme by The World Bank for identifying, developing and sup-
porting fundable ICT projects in eligible member countries.
• The FTAA process has outlined a connectivity agenda for the hemisphere of the Americas, with imple-
mentation to be managed by The Inter-American Telecommunications Agency (CITEL)6 .
In addition to the policy positions, practical initiatives have also been created to address this issue. Some
of these specifically target the Caribbean basin and/or the hemisphere. The Caribbean countries should active-
ly seek to benefit directly from these.
• UNDP’ Sustainable Development Networking Programme (www.sdnp.undp.org)
• World Bank’s Global Development Network (www.gdnet.org)
• The Global Knowledge Partnership (www.globalknowledge.org). This is an informal partnership between
public sector, business, NGO’s and international organizations including UNDP and the World Bank.
• World Bank’s Global Information and Communication Technologies Department of the IFC. (GITC)
(http://info.worldbank.org/ict/policy).
• Institute for Connectivity, a department within IDRC – Canada. This capability was established by
Canada as a contribution to the Summit of the Americas process. It assists with developing and financ-
ing qualifying ICT projects in the developing countries of the hemisphere.
12
References
1. ICT for Development, Poverty Reduction, Disaster Recovery, and Initiatives to Enhance Human Development by
Denis Gilhooly Senior Adviser to the Administrator, Director ICT for Development, UNDP.
2. Digital Bridge to Africa:Tthe launch of the Digital Diaspora Network – Africa (DDN-A) a final report on the
meeting held under the auspices of the Un ICT Task Force - Prepared by Digital Partners with consultant
Jennifer Sly (UNICTTF 111/2002/14)
3. Bridging The Digital Divide – A New Challenge for the African Diaspora in Europe presented at first meeting of
the Digital Diaspora Network for Africa – Europe, Brussels, September 27th 2002 – CERFE
4. Summit of the Americas, 2001, http://www.americascanada.org/eventsummit
5. The Institute for Connectivity in the Americas (ICA) http://www.icamericas.net
6. UNDP - Sustainable Development Networking Programme (www.sdnp.undp.org)
7. World Bank’s Global Development Network (www.gdnet.org)
8. The Global Knowledge Partnership (www.globalknowledge.org).
9. World Bank’s Global Information and Communication Technologies Department of the IFC. (GITC)
(http://info.worldbank.org/ict/policy.)
13
Appendices
Table 1
Teledensity in CARICOM Countries
(Wire-line Service)
Country Population Main lines per Fixed Lines

100 persons Year - 2001
Antigua & Barbuda 64,362 47.35 37,300
Bahamas 40.03 123,300
Barbados 264,600 46.29* 123,800
Belize 222,820 14.44 35,200
Dominica 70,000 29.06 23,300
Grenada 98,600 32.75 32,800
Guyana 770,139 9.19 79,900
Haiti 0.97
Jamaica 2,515,500 19.73 562,827
Montserrat 4,000
St Vincent & Grenadines 111,214 21.96 24,900
St. Kitts / Nevis 43,530 56.88 21,900
St. Lucia 145,213
Suriname 408,401 17.58
Trinidad & Tobago 1,269,100 23.91 311,800
Caribbean Average 27.70
* This Figure is for the year 2000
Table 2
ICT Access – Internet Users & Number of PC’s
(As estimated by the ITU - see http://itu.int/itu-d/ict/statistics)
Year 2001
Internet Number of PC’s
Country Users Per per 100
10,000 Inhabitants
inhabitants
Antigua & Barbuda 652.03 NA
Bahamas 549.45 NA
Barbados 553.99 9.23
Belize 737.70 13.52
Dominica 777.37 7.50
Grenada 520.00 13.00
Guyana 1,091.95 2.64
Haiti 36.38 NA
Jamaica 384.91 5.0
Montserrat NA
St. Kitts / Nevis 516 17.45
St Vincent & Grenadines 308 11.61
St. Lucia NA
Suriname 330 4.55
Trinidad & Tobago 923.08 6.92
Caribbean Average 507.96 9.14
Canada 2,014.15 40.31

USA 5,014.91 62.50
14
Table 3
Telephone & Internet Accounts
In CARICOM Countries - Household Penetration
Fixed Number of
Country Lines Number Internet
2001 Of ISP’s Subscribers
Antigua & Barbuda 37,300 2
Bahamas 123,300
Barbados 123,800 6 27,600
Belize 35,200 1 6,000
Dominica 23,300 2 3,500
Grenada 32,800 1 3,200
Guyana 79,900 5 3,000
Jamaica 562,827 40 70,000
Montserrat 1 N.A
St Vincent & Grenadines 24,900 1 2,700
St. Kitts / Nevis 21,900 2 3,200
St. Lucia 1 4.500
Suriname 3 5,800
Trinidad & Tobago 311,800 6 60,000
15
The Meeting
“Meeting on Bridging the Digital Divide for the Caribbean”
Summary
The meeting on Bridging the Digital Divide for the Caribbean was initiated by the United Nations
Information and Communication Technologies Task Force (United Nations ICT TF) in partnership with the
United Nations Development Programme (UNDP), the United Nations Fund for International Partnerships
(UNFIP) and the United Nations Foundation (UNF), while also supported by the CARICOM Permanent
Missions to the United Nations, the CARICOM Secretariat, the Caribbean American Chamber of Commerce
and Industry. The key achievement of the meeting was the establishment of a Digital Diaspora Network for
the Caribbean.
This meeting built on three previous Caribbean ICT Conferences on bringing ICT systems to the
Caribbean.7 In the spirit of new partnerships to achieve the Millennium Development Goals, this initiative
tapped the extensive talent and financial potential of the Caribbean Diaspora living in North America. In
addition to representatives from United Nations organizations and the Inter-American Development Bank
(IDB), over 140 participants attended the meeting, including the CARICOM Permanent Representatives to
the United Nations, senior officials of Government and CARICOM Secretariat and the University of the West
Indies. Close to seventy percent of the participants were Caribbean nationals living in North America who
offered their technical, entrepreneurial and other skills to assist in closing the digital divide.
The daylong meeting included a morning session, moderated by Dr. Jerrold Thompson, Minister of
Telecommunications, Science, Technology and Industry, St. Vincent and the Grenadines, with a keynote
address given by Senator Philip Goddard, the Special Envoy for Information Technology and International
Trade to the Prime Minister of Barbados. Other speakers included Mr. Sarbuland Khan, Dr. Christopher
Hackett, Mr. Amir Dossal, Amb. June Clarke, Ms. Jennifer Britton, and Dr. Roy Hastick.
This session was followed by a panel discussion moderated by Courtney Betty, CEO of Caribtel. Panelists
made presentations on the status of ICT development in the Caribbean and the challenges to be faced, and
included Mr. George Goodwin, Ms. Jennifer Britton, Mr. Roderick Sanatan, and Mr. Patrick Hayford.
Moderated by Amb. Bartholomew Lawson, the luncheon session’s discussion revolved around the issues of
Applied ICT in Education, presented by Ms. Lolita Applewaite, and Youth in ICT Development, which was
presented by Makonnen Blake.
In the afternoon, participants broke into ten roundtables, providing an opportunity for lively interactive
discussions on a variety of issues. The discussions where summarized later by the Roundtable moderators and
are included in the following sections. The meeting was concluded with closing remarks given by the repre-
sentatives of the sponsoring agencies and partners, acknowledging the this determined historical path of United
Nations involvement in vital activities for human development.
16
Main Recommendations
The outcome of the meeting can be summarized into the following list of main recommendations:
1. Establishment of the Digital Diaspora Network for the Caribbean (DDN-C)
It was agreed that the Network would initially consist of the meeting participants as well as non-attendees
who had expressed support for implementing the concept. A web site will be established as the initial con-
tact mechanism and used in formulating an action plan.
2. DDN-C steering committee
A Steering Committee will be formed with the task of establishing an organizational framework to pro-
mote and manage the resulting network of interest, to ensure continuity and to oversee and monitor fol-
low-up activities.
The Steering Committee will include individual members of the DDN-C, corporate institutions in North
America with a proven track record of investing and undertaking work in the Caribbean, donor agencies,
relevant regional institutions, representatives of the Caribbean-based ICT community and the sponsoring
United Nations agencies.
The Steering Committee will convene in mid-2003 to determine the work plan and priorities.
3. Facilitating role of the United Nations
The participants requested the sponsoring United Nations agencies to continue to support and nurture the
initiative to ensure its effective implementation.
4. Institutional grounding
The meeting recognized the need for Caribbean institutional grounding and considered that the CARI-
COM Secretariat and/or The University of the West Indies would be appropriate institutions. Their role
should quickly be defined.
5. Action Plan
An action plan will be developed based on the findings of the Roundtables after discussion between the
steering committee and the network. These findings relate to the following themes:
(i) ICT Policy Framework for the Caribbean
(ii) Infrastructural Framework, Connectivity and Costs
(iii) Human Capacity Development- E-education
(iv) Health and Telemedicine
(v) E-business Environment – Enabling Effective E-commerce
(vi) Enabling Efficiency and Productivity in the Tourism sector
(vii) Strengthening civil society and Governance – Focus on E-government
(viii) Developing Agriculture with Information
(ix) Identifying resources for the Caribbean Digital Diaspora Network
(x) ICT and Outsourcing.
In addition, the network will support and build synergies with a number of already established ICT based
activities in the Caribbean.
6. Funding
The need for a financial resource base for the network is important. It is therefore necessary to develop
appropriate funding sources as an essential element in the development of the DDN-C’s programme. New
York Healthcare Plus made an immediate initial pledge of $20,000 for the network.
17
Roundtable Reports
Roundtable 1 - ICT Policy Framework for the Caribbean
Moderator: Mr. Peter King, Advisor to the Minister of Commerce, Science & Technology, Jamaica, and
Chairman of the Trade Board
Rapporteur: Mr. Selwin Hart, Permanent Mission of Barbados to the United Nations
Background Issues & Challenges

1. A clear understanding of the issues and urgency can be assisted by benchmarking and comparison.
There is a need to base understanding on accurate data e.g. United Nations studies, World Bank
Surveys, IADB, National and Regional Indices, etc.
2. Support is needed at the highest level in public, and private sectors.
3. A vision should be defined.
4. Leadership is needed at the national level to drive the process.
5. There has to be a balanced policy framework notwithstanding conflicting social, economic, business
and political objectives.
Strategies for moving forward:

1. Partnerships should be developed in order to craft a vision with international, regional & local players
(government, private sector; NGOs) which fits with global directions but retains national objectives
and is technology neutral.
2. The concerns of special groups including women, the disabled and youth, should be taken into consid-
eration in the interest of the vision.
3. Framework policies (best practices), which are already in place, should be used as a basis for crafting a
regional ICT policy.
Legislation
• Liberalization
• E-Government
• Institution building
• Utility Regulator
• Spectrum Management
• Telecom Advisory Council
4. Time lines for the collaboration should be set and an action plan should be developed accordingly.
5. A team should be appointed to track implementation and apply pressure where timeframes are lagging.
6. A strong institution/leader should be appointed to drive the process.
7. The process should be supported visibly at the highest political event.
8. The process should be spoken and communicated publicly.
Time frames suggested:

1. Establish an agreed vision, specific objectives: 3 months
2. Identify a base framework policy: 4 months
3. Use this to craft a Regional ICT Policy: 4 months
4. “3” to have subsets:
a. Identify working team: 1 month
b. Communicate the process: ongoing
c. Developing first draft: 2 months
d. Communicate through the CARICOM machinery and get sign off at the highest level: 6 months
5. Provide continuing support for member states to shape regional policy to local objectives and for local
value: ongoing.
18
Roundtable 2 -Infrastructural Framework, Connectivity and Costs

Moderator: Mr. Philip Cross, Director, ITU Caribbean Office
Rapporteur: Mr. Richardson Franklin, Senior Associate, Booz Allen Hamilton
Background Issues & Challenges

1. Liberalization: Governments must embark on the liberalization of the telecommunications sector
which will foster competition, reduce costs and introduce new service offerings. Governments must
establish clear policy, legislation and regulations, in a transparent manner.
2. Regulatory Bodies: It is recommended that regulatory bodies be established and strengthened so that
they are technically and legally competent, financially secure and possess the authority to fully enforce
the Telecommunications act of each respective country.
3. Licenses: Licenses should be transparent and contain provisions for quality of service, build out require-
ments and reporting requirements with specific timeframes for providing information requested by the
regulator. Additionally, special considerations should be given for qualified local entities that wish to
partner with foreign or other Caribbean investors/operators.
4. Interconnection Regulation: All countries should have a model Reference Interconnection Offer.
Interconnection should be mandatory, with multiple points of Interconnect. Interconnection regula-
tion should provide for penalties, such as liquidated and consequential damages and specific timeframes
for the completing interconnection agreements. Interconnection must have provisions for the regula-
tor to intervene where negotiations have stalled within a predetermined period of time.
Strategies for moving forward:

1. Infrastructure: Governments must ensure that dominant carriers have the ability to provide the
required access, capacity and connectivity required by new entrants. Where there is a need for scarce
resources (spectrum, numbers and rights of way as noted in the WTO’s Basic Agreement), countries
must ensure that such resources are allocated in a fair, non-discriminatory and transparent manner.
Affordable, efficient and reliable high-speed data communications is vital to the development of ICT
in the region. Redundancy should be built into the networks. Because the Caribbean is in a hurricane
zone operators should be required to utilize underground ducting and increased wind ratings for towers
to ensure continuity of services during natural emergencies.
A database of infrastructure development should be maintained, which would guide investment.
Governments should also consider offering certain incentives to new operators who will make invest-
ments into the rural and less developed areas of their respective economies.
2. Costs: Proper cost models, should be utilized to develop cost-based tariffs and interconnection expens-
es. Pricing in the region should mirror acceptable international trends.
3. E-room: It is recommended that an e-room be established to serve as a follow up to the conference.
It is also recommended that the members of the Caribbean Diaspora contribute and follow critical events
such as the World Summit on the Information Society.
19
Round Table 3 - Human Capacity Development: e- Education

Moderator: Prof. Fay Durrant, Head of Information and Communication Technologies, University of the
West Indies
Rapporteurs: Ms. Melissa Dow-Richardson, UNFIP & Winnie Robinson, Caribbean Life
Background Issues
1. The Caribbean must acquire knowledge of the relatively new technology of E-education.
2. It is necessary to outline strategy and initiatives that will apply to the “Digital Divide” as it impacts the
academic and economic development of the peoples of the Caribbean and the role of the DDN-C.
3. The development of the human capacity of communities is directly impacted by Internet access in each
country.
Strategies for moving forward

1. People in the Caribbean should be trained on how to benefit from ICT by learning IT related skills, such
as using software, developing programmes and building hardware.
2. Newspapers and websites should be used as tools of communication and networking and the public
should be made more aware of the need to become IT conscious. A publicity model should be estab-
lished to promote the project to the local user and sponsor organizations.
3. People within the region should be trained to restore and upgrade used corporate computers for use in
communities, which cannot bear the full costs of computers along with local production, maintenance
and upgrading of hardware.
4. ICT education Committees should be formed in each country to provide varying perspectives.
5. Chat rooms and web pages should be developed for people to join discussions and share ideas.
6. Linkages between the University of the West Indies and Caribbean student populated universities in
the United States such as Medgar Evers College, MIT and Howard University should be set up
7. Training capacity should be expanded with financial and technical support from the Diaspora network.
8. E-education models evidenced by online ventures such as Tech School (Jamaica) and the venture
involving school children sponsored by UWI/Barbados should be adopted.
9. Basic education and literacy needs among the growing number of undereducated and unemployed
youth should be addressed.
10. The senior population should be exposed and educated to IT issues, hardware and software in order to
engage the participation in the wealth of knowledge and process possessed by the Elders of our Diaspora.
11. Basic and advanced IT training should be offered in order to multi-task target populations to optimize
IT proficiencies within the community; highlighting the experiences and concerns of the indigenous
citizen.
Action Points
1. Establish working groups to organize strategies and develop e-fever. As we create “E-Fever” we must
remember that the medium is not the message; it is the relevance of the application that is paramount.
2. Establishment of computer competition among CARICOM constituencies.
3. Development of an ICT web page and chat rooms to create linkages between policy and input from the
community.
4. Maintain a broad area of focus to address the needs of basic classical academics, the academic and pro-
prietary needs of the unemployed youth and the engagement of seniors in IT e-education.
5. Model a program to address the illiteracy that inhibits economic stability and success in the islands.
6. Plan and execute on-site ICT task force training conferences, to promote E-education to the citizens,
and government.
20
Round Table 4 - Health and Telemedicine

Moderators: Mr. Jerrol Thompson, Minister of Telecommunications, Science, Technology and Industry, St.
Vincent & the Grenadines and Christine Melton, Aravind Eye Care Hospital
Rapporteur: Ms. Melissa Kushner, UNFIP
Background Issues
1. There is a shortage of medical expertise in Caribbean, therefore enormous possibilities are for Virtual
hospitals, old age homes and Tele-radiology; linking patients and under qualified doctors to high tech
interventions.
2. Assessment and formal systems with a critical focus are needed; identifying the areas where telemedi-
cine can be both a cost and time effective remedy to shortcomings in the medical system. For example
HIV, diabetes, cardiology, physical therapy and speech therapy.
3. Technological and Medical Infrastructure are necessary for the maintenance of a good health system.
E.g. Laboratories, economical and methodological drug distribution (group purchasing of medicine)
and pharmacy benefit management.
4. Compensation for Doctors is needed to create a two-way system, where it is give and take and not just
volunteer based.
5. Unifying the different international medical standards is important for enabling and facilitating actions,
for example, an American doctor can legally offer medical advice to patients being treated abroad.
5. Liability issues should be taken into consideration, for example do doctors simply gather data on the
best course of action regarding the care of their patients or are the diagnoses and treatments specified
via computer.
6. Support from governments is essential. Useful examples and information sources include: Eye care in
India (Christine Melton’s project Aravan); Cornell’s ocular oncology telemedicine system; the expert-
ise and experience of the group members in experimenting with the building and managing of telemed-
icine systems; Community Development Corporations; NASA (who has spearheaded much research
in telemedicine); United States Department of Defense.

1. Multi-stakeholder forum to develop the specifics of a telemedicine programme
2. Network with individuals in Diaspora to get:
a. A strong base for funding,
b. Infrastructure building tactics,
c. A web of qualified and specialized doctors to volunteer their time to the Cause.
3. Enlist medical school graduates from the various medical schools in the Caribbean to volunteer their
time and expertise.
4. Use the HIV and AIDS Platform.
5. Begin establishing technological infrastructure now starting with temporary yet immediate solutions to
the lack of specialized medical care for the most desperate cases.
21
Roundtable 5 - e-Business Environment –

Enabling Effective e-Commerce
Moderator: Mr. James Quashie-Idun, Legal Consultant
Rapporteur: Ms. Lotta Tahtinen, UNDESA
Background Issues and Considerations

1. Digital networks offer a wide variety of opportunities in various areas including information dissemina-
tion, distance-learning, financial services, remittances, statistical support and the achievement of the
Millennium Development Goals.
2. E-commerce policy and the legislative and regulatory frameworks are crucial parts of an enabling envi-
ronment for e-commerce. Some countries in the Caribbean have adopted e-commerce legislation, how-
ever more work is needed in that domain, especially in the creation of a regional e-commerce policy
(which is in process).
3. The architecture of ICT infrastructure and its suitability for business applications must be carefully
monitored. Upgrading and expansion should be programmed on a process rather than on a periodic
basis.
4. The Internet can be a powerful marketing tool including the arts and culture of Caribbean countries.
However with this tool protection of intellectual property rights should be safeguarded.
5. Education, capacity-building and awareness-raising about ICT is needed especially on the grass-roots
level and focused on business and commercial education e.g. how to set up a company, have access to
finance, and managing taxation.

1. The diverse factors that prevent individuals from using ICT should be examined to develop a program
to counteract this. This includes issues such as trust, security, and privacy, which are all inhibitors to e-
commerce.
2. An e-commerce bibliography or resource guide should be compiled and made available.
3. Caribbean countries should actively participate in relevant discussions on international trade such as
tariffs, open access to markets and e-commerce in the WTO, UNCTAD, WIPO and ACP.
4. An inventory and sharing of best practices and lessons learned is needed in order to avoid previous mis-
takes in e-commerce such as inappropriate methods of attracting customers, inability to meet demands
and mismanagement of supply chains.
5. The creation of databases or directories of commercial and economic information that would facilitate
marketing products online and targeting marketing efforts.
6. The development and adoption of a common code of classification, similar to the North American
Industrial Classification System (NAICS).
7. A research team should be included within the Steering Committee.
8. The CARICOM website should be inter-linked with national web sites as a tool to ensure broad dis-
tribution of information.
9. The United Nations Foundation, the Ford Foundation and the Gates Foundation among others should
be approached for funding.
22
Roundtable 6 –
Enabling Efficiency and Productivity in the Tourism Sector
Moderator: Mr. Allen Chastanet, Vice-President, Marketing & Sales, Air Jamiaca
Rapporteur: Mr. Evan Reiss, UNFIP
Background Issues and Challenges

“The most critical industry in the Caribbean is the most poorly managed.”
Philip Goddard
1. From a marketing perspective ICT offers the opportunity to be involved in the distribution of tourism
(e.g. http://Go Caribbean.com) offering full services to hotels and other tourism related businesses.
However, this site has been under-utilized because entrepreneurs are not well educated in technology.
ICT education is therefore needed in the tourism sector.
2. Technology can be used to improve the processes in official tourism related functions such as immigra-
tion, customs, and obtaining licenses (e.g. driver’s licenses and marriage licenses).
3. ICT can facilitate the planning of multi-destination travel in the Caribbean. This could be accom-
plished by allowing immigration and customs documents to be applied for online, in addition to allow-
ing a visitor to visit several islands on a single trip to the Caribbean.
4. Improving technology services for hotel guests e.g. in-room email and Internet access. This includes
offering lower cost services than currently exists.

1. An ICT education programme targeted at the needs of the tourism sector. This could be achieved
through seminars for hoteliers, security, finance, investment, customs and immigration officials.
2. Identify sources of funding for the needs of the sector and for the general work of the DDN-C.
3. Process re-engineering in tourism support activities especially those provided via the public sector.
Current best practices from selected countries may be used as a guide.
23
Round table 7 - Strengthening Civil Society and Governance with

Focus on e-Government
Moderator: Mr. Michael Lackey, CEO, AIT Global
Rapporteur: Ms. Yukie Hori, UNDESA
Background issue and challenges
1. Providing access so that all members of society are able to enjoy the benefit of ICT. ICT should there-
fore be mainstreamed into all development processes, particularly those for achieving economic growth,
poverty eradication and millennium development goals.
2. The dilemma in allocating limited resources to ICT investment while basic needs are still to be fulfilled.
Governments must therefore be open for partnerships with civil society, private sector and funding
agencies.
3. Limited ICT infrastructure is also a critical concern. However, the momentum of introducing ICT
should be captured even if infrastructure is not fully there. New ICT does not necessarily require the
traditional means of communication such as telecommunication cable. Therefore, developing coun-
tries could leapfrog with the advanced ICT.
4. Finding the best ways to utilize available human resources especially those with appropriate skills in the
Diaspora.
5. The digital divide exists not only between developed and developing countries but also between rural
and urban areas within one country. Equitable and sustainable development is therefore vital for ensur-
ing equal access to ICT.
6. E-government as a process cannot be achieved only by project implementations but must be accompa-
nied by awareness and education. Some countries do already have experienced successful initiatives of
their country’s e-governance process

1. Strengthening the relationships between government and civil society at the national level (private
sector and NGOs) to bring together a consolidated voice in the policy making process as exemplified
in the United Nations Global Compact.
2. Strengthening of partnership between islands at the regional level may secure one solid front and the
necessary economies of scale for attracting significant international private sector investment. In this
regard CARICOM could play a crucial role.
3. Establishing partnership with the Diaspora could bring tremendous benefits to the CARICOM coun-
tries in obtaining necessary skills and resources.
4. Securing financial and technical support at the international level. Civil society can contribute to the
international level policy making if they are enabled them to participate in national policy making
meetings.
Action points
1. The steering committee should function as an ICT forum to address common problems and institu-
tional challenges of Caribbean island nations.
2. Involvement of the Digital Diaspora Network in the CARICOM agenda is extremely important. The
network could provide critical knowledge, experience and resources.
3. A regional data bank of experts could be established specifying expertise and contacts. A web site could
promote the use of such data bank.
4. Education is a key to promote the ICT use for development. Skills and knowledge are needed at all
levels but the education of younger generations is particularly important.
24
5. Strong, united and concrete participation by the Caribbean in WSIS is needed to bring the voice of
the Caribbean community.
6. The outcome of this meeting should be brought to the preparatory meeting of the follow-up conference
of the Global Conference on the Sustainable Development of Small Island Developing States, which will be
held next month.
7. E-government should be results oriented and citizen centered, with interactive processes promoting
innovation and development.
25
Roundtable 8 - Developing Agriculture with Information

Moderator: Ms. Florence Chenoweth, Director, Food and Agriculture Organization, Liaison Office to the
United Nations
Rapporteur: Mr. Ivan Boban, United Nations ICT Task Force Secretariat

1. The United Nations Millennium Declaration reaffirmed the target established at the World Food
Summit, a target that aims to halve, by 2015, the number of people who suffer from hunger. FAO
United Nations estimates that there are 60 million households in developing countries that fall under
this category.
2. Infrastructure, legal and regulatory framework, skills development and human capacity are challenges
along the road to development
3. Even the most skilled farmers do not use ICT to exchange information. Technology might be there but
will the farmers access it? Therefore how can important information about crop growing, fertilizers, and
weather be filtered to farmers and how can farmers be educated to use information and technology for
their own benefit? Even when farmers have access to communication it is not used for agricultural busi-
ness purposes.
4. With the current infrastructure, farmers in developing countries simply cannot compete with the cost-
effective agricultural industry model of the west because of economies of scale, quantity and quality, and
timely marketing. Many hotels in Caribbean are importing agricultural products rather than buying
them from local farmers.
5. In summary the main background challenges to ICT development in the agricultural sector are pover-
ty, health, the Information gap, education, globalization and modern political economy.

1. Mobilize the political will and the human, technical and financial resources to achieve the twin objec-
tives of fighting and defeating hunger and poverty.).
2. Ensure that the Digital Diaspora Network is people centered.
3. Further on, it was suggested that was that one of the best ways to fight poverty was by improving and
developing the agricultural sector of the economy. Developing agriculture with information technolo-
gy is not a magic formula that is going to solve all problems, but it is definitely a great leap forward.
4. Develop programs to educate and filter crucial information to farmers through creation of media and
communication strategies. For this, a website should be developed.
5. At a later stage, a portal should also be created where farmers could trade on e-markets and access infor-
mation that they might need.
6. Benchmarking based best practices is of a great importance.
Action Points
1. Media and Communication Strategy should be shaped to create awareness. To make this effective, an
ongoing relationship with the farmers needs to be developed and maintained.
2. Establish a Website and a Portal where farmers can look at various recommendations, policies, pro-
grams, opportunities for trade etc. Agriculture-trade-related links should be available on the site. This
initiative should preferably connect the farmers across the region and not simply nationally.
3. A portal with a database of small businesses should be created to build a network for business opportu-
nities.
4. Promote development of an e-market to permit conduct of businesses by farmers and fishermen.
Government should be a facilitator in these processes.
26
Roundtable 9 -
Identifying Resources for the Caribbean Digital Diaspora Network
Moderators: Mr. Danilo Piaggesi, Chief, Information and Communication Technology for Development
Division, Inter-American Development Bank, IDB and Ms. Gillian Marcelle, Member, United
Nations ICT Task Force
Rapporteur: Ms. Ursula Germann, United Nations ICT Task Force Secretariat

1. Efforts should be taken to mobilize as wide a resource base as possible. The range of resources for the
Digital Diaspora Network for the Caribbean should include human talent and energy, financial
resources and material (in-kind) resources. The importance of using the Network to identify and recruit
a pool of human resources was stressed. The group took note of the proposal presented by CARINFO
to assist with the development of an electronic database of ICT professionals, entrepreneurs, commu-
nity leaders, etc.
2. The Network should consist of ICT entrepreneurs, professionals, financiers, non-profit organizations,
students, the youth, religious groups, business associations, community centers, trade unions, and media
who have links with Caribbean development.
3. The participants noted that a number of inputs were needed to establish a successful Network: i.e.,
equipment, entrepreneurship skills as well as technical, educational and networking opportunities.
4. An inventory of projects could be established for the region. This would create opportunities for
Caribbean experts – in the region as well as in the Diaspora – and permit a matching of projects and
transfer of knowledge. Development partners should be aware that it was important to have Caribbean
nationals participate in technical assistance programmes and projects. The funding source for projects
should be as broad as possible, including national governments, regional organizations, venture capital
firms, and philanthropic networks.
This group developed a specific proposal. Which was to set guidelines for tender processes and techni-
cal assistance programmes in the Caribbean ICT sector to encourage and facilitate the use of Caribbean
expertise, both Diaspora professionals and local professionals. Further it was proposed to include capac-
ity development and mentoring guidelines in any ICT programmes to ensure that Caribbean nationals
acquire increasing levels of skills and competence in the field.
5. The roundtable supported the establishment of a steering committee and recommended expansion of
its composition. The steering committee should include representatives of national governments, cor-
porate entities, as well as individual members of the DDN-C. It was stressed that the DDN-C should
seek participation from members of the artistic and business community as well as youth representatives
on the steering committee. Project management capability must also be available.
6. E-rooms could be set up as a multi-media messaging tool as a means of facilitating on-going communica-
tion among members of the DDN-C. Also, the DDN-C, with the help of the steering committee, should
ensure media coverage in advancing ICT-for-development activities. The entertainment community
could assist in developing and promoting an outreach programme/information campaign for the DDN-C.

1. Implement a media awareness campaign on ICT-for-development, which could be linked to the forth-
coming World Summit on the Information Society (WSIS) in Geneva in December 2003.
2. Delivery of basic and high-level training and mentoring programmes.
3. Identify high-level champions to work with DDN-C to attract attention to ICT-for-development activ-
ities in the Caribbean region, and to establish public access to ICT facilities including telecentres, mul-
timedia community centers, etc.
4. Launch a creative financial resources mobilization programme.
5. Establish a creative partnership programme among development partners.
27
Roundtable 10 - ICT and Outsourcing

Moderators: Mr. Khalid Iqbal, Principal SKI Group and Mr. Carl Pilgrim, St. Lucia National Development
Corporation
Rapporteur: Mr. Yacoub El Hillo, UNFIP

In the last 20 years, the Caribbean Governments placed a great degree of emphasis on the information
services industry as part of a strategy to diversify their economies from agricultural to more service based
economies. The early components of this strategy were the attraction of back office operations from major US
corporations by offering incentives to encourage companies to establish data processing operations. The cre-
ation of hundreds of jobs resulted from such activity.
The segments of the back- office operations for which Caribbean countries felt they had comparative
advantages were as follows:
• Information processing which included data entry, capture and repair, electronic publishing, medical
and insurance claims processing and credit card transaction processing.
• Calls centres for international corporations especially in-bound activity comprising customer service,
order taking, reservations, and technical support centres (i.e. help desk for ICT companies) along with
outbound activities such as sales, debt account management, market research etc.
• Business process outsourcing such as account receivable and accounts payable
• Web development and design.
• Applications development.
The industry has created over 11,000 agent jobs in over 50 call centres in the region. IT outsourcing will
continue to dominate the offshore outsourcing space with IT maintenance and back office operations account-
ing for 70 percent of the market. Vertical expertise is expected to become a competitive differentiator in the
offshore outsourcing segment.
As more companies in the United States and Europe continue to recognize the need to reduce costs and
diversify operations globally, the Caribbean is expected to become a location of choice for offshore back office
operations and IT-Enabled services because its proximity to the United States and basic skills. A recent study
by TMC Research on Customer Interest for Contact Centre Offshore Outsourcing, ranked the Caribbean as
the third most desirable location. To capitalize on this potential the Caribbean must offer among other things
a sound ICT capability featuring cost savings in telecoms, labour and real estate or office space. In addition it
must offer a skilled and motivated workforce comprising of skilled workers, training centres, positive “can do”
attitudes, and low turnover rates. Another important aspect is quality assurance - which includes ISO certifi-
cation standards and international benchmarks.
Competitive infrastructure includes the following:
a. Rapid and reliable telecommunications facilities
b. Redundancy and rapid maintenance response time
c. High bandwidth capacity

1. Develop a Mission Statement that will position the Caribbean as the Near-Shore location for out-
sourcing services offering clients financial benefits, customer satisfaction and process improvement
2. Develop successful “go to” market strategies
3. Pursue high growth areas of offshore outsourcing
4. Develop strategies that mitigate the risks associated with Offshore outsourcing.
5. Leverage the Caribbean region’s competitive advantages (including its proximity to the United States
and Canada)
28
Action points
1. Build a database with information on the Caribbean Digital Diaspora in North America as phase one;
Europe (as phase two) and other regions of the world (as phase three). Action by the Steering
Committee is expected by April 2003 for phase one.
2. When outsourcing is inevitable, Governments should have training and knowledge transfer compo-
nents “built-in” contracts with foreign companies and experts. Action by Steering Committee in col-
laboration with CARICOM and Governments in the Region is expected by June 2003.
3. ICT Companies and vendors in the region should be encouraged to have international quality man-
agement standard certification such as ISO 9000 and SMM in order to satisfy international best prac-
tices and benchmarks.
4. The formation of an organizing committee to help develop a Caribbean Center for ICT Outsourcing
(based in NY) as part of the Digital Network whose responsibility will be to identify Corporations and
other interests seeking to use the Caribbean as location for Outsourcing activities. Action by ICT
Outsourcing Steering Committee to be completed (by March 2003).
29
Appendices
Meeting Agenda
8:30 – 9:00 Registration
9:00 - 9:30 Welcome Remarks

Dr. Jerrol Thompson, Moderator, Minister of Telecommunications, Science, Technology and
Industry, St. Vincent & the Grenadines
Opening Remarks
Mr. Sarbuland Khan, Director, Division for ECOSOC Support and Coordination, United
Nations ICT Task Force
Mr. Christopher Hackett, Chief of Caribbean Division, United Nations Development Programme
(UNDP)
Mr. Amir Dossal, Executive Director, United Nations Fund for International Partnerships
(UNFIP)
Ambassador June Clarke – Permanent Representative of Barbados to the United Nations
Ms. Jennifer Britton, Senior Project Officer, Integrated Information Systems, CARICOM
Secretariat
Dr. Roy Hastick, Chairman, Caribbean American Chamber of Commerce & Industry (CACCI)
9:30 - 9:45 Plenary Keynote Address

“Bridging the Digital Divide in the Caribbean”
Senator Philip Goddard – Prime Minister’s Special Envoy on ICT, Barbados
9:45- 10:00 Q&A Session
10:00 - 11:30 Panel Discussion

Moderator: Mr. Courtney Betty, CEO, Caribtel
The Caricom ICT Strategy
Secretariat
OECS Agenda “New Initiatives”
Mr. George Goodwin, Director-General, Organization of Eastern Caribbean States, OECS
Critical Analysis of the ICT situation in the CARICOM countries
Mr. Roderick Sanatan, Centre for International Services – University of the West Indies, Cave Hill
The African Digital Diaspora Network & The Caribbean ICT Challenges
Mr. Patrick Hayford, Director - African Affairs, Office of the Secretary-General of the United Nations
11:30 – 12:00 Q&A Session
12:00 – 1:30 Lunch

Welcome: Ambassador Bartholomew Lawson, Ambassador-at-Large for Grenada
Applied ICT in Education – The Edutech Programme in Barbados
Ms. Lolita Applewaite, Centre for International Services, University of the West Indies
Remarks: Mr. MaKonnen David Blake, Youth Technology Consultant to the Minister of
Commerce and Technology, Jamaica
30
1:30 – 3:30 Roundtable Discussions:

Roundtable 1 – ICT Policy Framework for the Caribbean
Moderator: Ambassador Peter King, Advisor to the Minister of Commerce, Science &
Technology, Jamaica, and Chairman of the Trade Board
Roundtable 2 – Infrastructural Framework, Connectivity & Costs
Moderator: Mr. Philip Cross, Director, ITU Caribbean Office
Roundtable 3 – Human Capacity Development – E-education
Moderator: Prof. Fay Durrant, Head of Information and Communication Technologies,
University of the West Indies-Mona
Roundtable 4 – Health & Telemedicine
Co-Moderators: Dr. Jerrol Thompson, Minister of Telecommunications, Science, Technology
and Industry, St. Vincent & the Grenadines
Dr. R. Christine Melton, Aravind Eye Care Hospital
Roundtable 5 – E-business environment – Enabling Effective E-commerce
Moderator: Mr. James Quashie Idun, Legal Consultant
Roundtable 6 – Enabling Efficiency and Productivity in the Tourism sector
Moderator: Mr. Allen Chastenet, Vice-President, Marketing & Sales, Air Jamiaca
Roundtable 7 – Strengthening Civil Society and Governance – Focus on E-government
Moderator: Mr. Michael Lackey, CEO, AIT Global
Roundtable 8 – Developing Agriculture with Information
Moderator: Ms. Florence Chenoweth, Director, Food and Agriculture Organization, Liaison
Office to the United Nations
Roundtable 9 – Identifying Resources for the Caribbean Digital Diaspora Network
Moderator: Mr. Danilo Piaggesi, Chief, ICT for Development Division, Inter-American
Development Bank, IDB
Roundtable 10 – ICT & Outsourcing
Co-Moderators: Mr. Khalid Iqbal, Principal SKI Group
Mr. Carl Pilgrim, St. Lucia National Development Corporation
3:30 – 5:00 Closing Session

Moderator: Dr. Gillian Marcelle, Member, United Nations ICT Task Force
Presentation of Roundtable Reports – Recommendations and Decisions:
Closing Plenary
Mr. Sarbuland Khan, Director, Division for ECOSOC Support and Coordination,
United Nations ICT Task Force
Mr. Christopher Hackett, Chief of Caribbean Division, United Nations Development Programme
(UNDP)
Mr. Amir Dossal, Executive Director, United Nations Fund for International Partnerships
(UNFIP)
Ambassador June Clarke – Permanent Representative of Barbados to the United Nations
Secretariat
Dr. Roy Hastick, Chairman, Caribbean American Chamber of Commerce & Industry (CACCI)
31
List of Participants
# Sal Last Name First Name Organization Name Title

1 Mr Abdul-Akbar Amir Abdullah Caribbean-American Program Director
Muhammed for Empowerment (USA) Inc
2 Amb Alexander Jean C. Permanent Mission of Haiti Permanent
Representative to the
United Nations
3 Ms Applewaithe Lolita Centre for International Services,
University of the West Indies Director
4 Mr Bailey Christopher Business Council for the United Nations Co-ordinator: Strategic
Partnerships and
Outreach
5 Mr Batson Blake SkillCore Inc. President
6 Mr Bekoe Martin IT Consultancy Managing Director of IT
Consultancy
7 Mr Belt Juan Inter-American Development Bank Senior Economist
8 Mr Belton Ralph Friends of Grenada Inc. Treasurer
9 Mr Betty Courtney Caribtel CEO
10 Mr Binger Herbert Spectrum Cable
11 Mr Blake Makonnen David Ministry of Commerce and Information Special Advisor
12 Mr Boban Ivan United Nations ICT Task Force Intern
13 Ms Borno Roseline RMBorno Management LLC Consultant
14 Mr Bowman Dane Pace University PhD Candidate
15 Mr Braithwaite Ryan Techwave Inc Representative
16 Ms Brennen-Haylock Sharon FAO Senior Liaison Officer
17 Ms Britton Jennifer CARICOM Secretariat Senior Project Officer:
Integrated Information
Systems
18 Dr Buckmire Francis Friends of Grenada Inc. President
19 Mr Butler Winston Cable and Wireless Executive Vice
President - Strategy and
Information
20 Mr Carbonne Anthony Bingham Dana LLP Partner
21 Mr Chastenet Allen Air Jamaica VP, Marketing and Sales
22 Ms Chenoweth Florence FAO Director - Liaison Office
23 Mr Clarke Dwaine Massechusettes Institute of Technology Student
24 Amb Clarke June Yvonne Permanent Mission of Barbados to
the United Nations Permanent
Representative
25 Min Corbin Carlysle Government of the Virgin Islands Minister of State for
External Affairs
26 Mr Cornish Lascelles
32

27 Ms Cousins Katherine Dalberg Development LLC - UNDP Consultant
28 Mr Cross Phillip International Telecommunications Union:
Regional Office for the Caribbean Director
29 Mr Daniel Lennox Permanent Mission of St. Vincent & Deputy Permanent
the Granadines to the United Nations Representative
30 Mr Davis Mark West-Oak High School District

of Oconee Co., SC, USA Teacher
31 Mr Dawkins Wilbert Booz Allen Hamilton Senior Associate
32 Mr Delpesche Hugh ICT Expert Senior Mechanical
Engineer
33 Mr Dossal Amir UNFIP Executive Director
34 Ms Dow-Richardson Melissa UNFIP Business Associate Intern
35 Dr Duggan Evan University of Alabama Assistant Professor
36 Ms Duncan-Milner Mary Jamaica Trade Commission Director of Trade
37 Dr Dunn Hopeton Jamaica Telecommunications
Advisory Council Chairman
38 Mr Durandisse Jean C. Greg Haitian Enlightenment & Literacy Project Executive Director
39 Prof Durrant Fay University of the West Indies Head: Department of
Library and Information
Studies
40 Mr Eason David H. The Lewis Group CEO
41 Mr Edghill Anthony David Permanent Mission of Trinidad and Tobago Counsellor
to the United Nations
42 Mr El Hillo Yacoub UNFIP Partnership Officer
43 Mr Elliston Isaac J Empire State Development Corporation Economic Development
Program Specialist
44 Ms Elsayed Nema United Nations ICT Task Force Intern
45 Ms Exeter Faith Caribtel Representative
46 Ms Fenton Laurine A. Verizon Communications Manager
47 Mr Ferguson Kenneth Permanent Mission of the Bahamas Systems
to the United Nations Developer
48 Amb Ferrari Margaret Hughes Permanent Mission of St. Vincent Permanent
and Grenadines to the United Nations Representative
49 Mr Forman Anthony Representative of Congressman Ed Towns
50 Ms Foubister-Chung Marcia Empire State Development Corporation Asst. Director/Office
Manager
51 Mr Fough Brian The Kerry Company Representative
52 Mr Franklin Richardson Booz Allen Hamilton Senior Associate
53 Ms Germann Ursula United Nations ICT Task Force Programme Officer
54 Ms Giacomelli Daniela United Nations ICT Task Force Programme Officer
55 Sen Goddard Philip Barbados: The Prime Minister's Office Special Envoy to the
Prime Minister
56 Ms Gogia Nisha United Nations ICT Task Force Intern
33

57 Mr Goodwin George Organsation of Eastern Caribbean States Director-General
58 Ms Greg–McTaggart Margaret K
59 Amb Gregoire Crispin Permanent Mission of Dominica Permanent
to the United Nations Representative
60 Mr Griffith Rean Columbia University Student
61 Mr Hackett Christopher UNDP Chief of Caribbean
Division
62 Ms Hahn Natalie UNFIP Senior Private Sector
Advisor
63 Mr Hairston Gary Citicorp Investment Services/Citibank Financial Executive
64 Mr Harrington Neil
65 Ms Harrisingh Ruby Caribbean-American Program for Member
Empowerment (USA) Inc
66 Mr Hart Selwin Permanent Mission of Barbados
67 Dr Hastick Roy Caribbean American Chamber
of Commerce President
68 Mr Hayford Patrick Executive of the Secretary-General Director
of the United Nations for African Affairs
69 Ms Hersutanto Begi United Nations ICT Task Force Intern

70 Mr Hewitt Nigel ICT Expert Entrepreneur
71 Dr Hickson Robert Principal
72 Ms Hori Yukie DESA Economic Affairs Officer
73 Mr Hylton Christian NY Council
74 Mr Iqbal Khalid Consultant
75 Amb Jackson Rhoda Permanent Mission of the Bahamas Deputy Permanent
76 Mr Jackson Trevor The Hartford Technology IT Consultant/
Services Company Application Developer
77 Ms Jacob Veronica CACCI
78 Mr Jaggernath Rabindra Ernst and Young Caribbean Partner - Management
Advisory Services
79 Ms Jules Michelle Rockefeller Philantropy Advisors Program Associate
80 Ms Kaneko Kazuyo Japan International Cooperation Agency JICA Consultant
81 Mr Khan Reza Sandaleo Senior Vice President
82 Mr Khan Sarbuland United Nations ICT TF/ DESA Director
83 Amb King Peter Government of Jamaica Chairman of the Board of
Trade
84 Mr Kottulinsky Franz UNFIP Business Associate/Intern
85 Mr Labonte Rony Caribbean Tourism Organisation Information Management
Specialist
86 Mr Lackey Micheal AIT Global Inc. President
34

87 Amb Lawson Bartholomew Care Plus Health Plan Ambassador at Large for
Grenada/President for
Care Plus Health Plan
88 Mr Leach Claude St. Vincent and the Grenadines Advisor/Consultant
Development Corporation
89 Amb Limon Ewald Permanent Mission of Suriname
to the United Nations Ambassador
90 Mr Locke Hugh Locke Associates Inc. President
91 Mr. Lugisse Arthur Triple Tech International Managing Director
92 Mr Majeed Halim CACCI Consultant
93 Ms Makonnen Barbara Tech School Jamaica Principal
94 Dr Marcelle Gillian United Nations ICT Task Force Member
95 Ms Matsuura Rika United Nations Foundation Business Associate Intern
96 Ms McCarthy Georgia Attorney
97 Ms McCue Sarah UNDP Manager
98 Mr McMillan Augustus New York City Housing Authority Associate Analyst
99 Dr Melton Christine Friends of Arivand Optamologist
100 Amb Mohammed Hamid Office of the Permanent Observer Permanent
for the Caribbean Community to Representative
the United Nations
101 Mr Nixon Richard Nortel Networks Director of Sales

102 Dr Nurse Lawson Consultant
103 Mr Perreira Kynaston Kynaston & Associates Chairman/CEO
104 Mr Piaggesi Danilo Inter-American Development Bank Chief ICT for
Development Division
105 Mr Picinich Kenneth Merit Systems Inc. President
106 Mr Pilgrim Carl St. Lucia National Development
Corporation International
Marketing Officer
107 Mr Pinto Luis Center for Strategic and
International Studies Program Co-ordinator -
Americas Program
108 Ms Prevost Janelle Oracle Corporation Senior Applications
Engineer
109 Mr Quashie-Idun James Legal Consultant
110 Mr Rambissoon Babooram Care Entrée Representative
111 Mr Reiss Evan United Nations Foundation Business Associate Intern
112 Ms Rhone Camella Ministry of Commerce, Director-General
Science and Technology Jamaica
113 Mr Richards Mulraine St. Vincent and the Grenadines Committee Member
Humanitarian Organisation
114 Mr Richardson Carlisle Permanent Mission of St. Kitts Counsellor
35

115 Ms Roberts Arlene Organisation of the Sons and Attorney
Daughters of Jamaica
116 Ms Robinson Winnifred Caribbean Life Contributing Writer
117 Mr Rosborough Brian Digital Nations Trust President
118 Mr Rosenbaum Marcos
119 Ms Samuels Ayanna MIT Space System Lab
in the Aerospace Department MS Student
120 Mr Sanatan Roderick Centre for International Services
121 Mr Sankar Zamal Caribbean Daylight Newspaper CEO
122 Amb Sealy Philip Permanent Mission of Trinidad and Ambassador
Tobago to the United Nations
123 Mr Southwell Cardinal Epoch Solutions Vice President
124 Amb Stanislaus Lamuel A. Permanent Mission of Grenada Ambassador
125 Mr Stephenson Oronde Qadar Royal Enterprises LLC Founder
126 Mr Stewart Kevin F.G. TIDCO Team Leader-Wallerfield
Business Park
127 Mr Symes Fred Global Sun Telecom President
128 Ms Tahtinen Lotta DESA Programme Officer
129 Mr Talbot George Permanent Mission of Guyana Charge
to the United Nations D' Affaires
130 Ms Taylor-Roberts Norma Permanent Mission of Jamaica Deputy Permanent
131 Ms Theodore Zilpha Permanent Mission of Dominica Consul-General
to the United Nations (Ag.)/Attache
132 Mr Thomas Cyril
133 Mr Thomas Percival Theodore Wallerson International Consultants Inc. Caribbean Projects
Coordinator
134 Dr Thompson Jerrol Ministry of Telecommunications, Minister
Science, Technology and Industry
for St. Vincent and the Grenadines
135 Mr Thorpe David Conquest Systems Inc. Design Engineer/Sr.
Developer
136 Amb Tobing-Klein Imma E. Loemban Permanent Mission of Suriname Former Permanent
137 Mr Vieira Paul IDL Communications Chief Operating Officer
138 Ms Virtue Grace Howard University Senior Writer, Executive
Communications
Manager
139 Mr Walker Keith WIISCOM Technologies, Inc. Chairman/Founder
140 Dr Warde Cardinal Massechusettes Institute of Technology Professor of Electrical
Engineering
141 Mr White-Davis Gerald International Consortium of
Caribbean Professionals President
142 Mr Williams Valence Maxim Group Vice President
36
Footnotes
1
Drucker (1994)
2
See ICT for Development, Poverty Reduction, Disaster Recovery and Initiatives to enhance Human Development
by Denis Gilhooly Senior Adviser to the Administrator, Director, ICT for Development UNDP – present-
ed at the Jamaica Conference 29 May 2002.
3
The 2001 Summit of the Americas held in Quebec, Canada 2001
4
The 23rd meeting of CARICOM Heads of Government held in Georgetown, Guyana July 2002. At this
meeting a document was presented by the Secretariat outlining strategy for development of a CARICOM
ICT policy.
5
The 2003 conference is presently proposed for December 2003, in Geneva, and expected to be at the level
of Heads of State and Government. The process leading up to the summit will include four regional
preparatory conferences. The regional preparatory conference for the Caribbean is scheduled for the end of
January 2003 in the Dominican Republic.
6
CITEL has already started working with the CARICOM Secretariat on devising a regional connectivity
strategy.
7
Towards CARICOM Connectivity, Guyana, July 2002: International Forum: Latin America and the
Caribbean in the Information Society, Rio de Janeiro, September 2002; and the Caribbean ICT
Roundtable, Barbados, October 2002.
37

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A Report of the

Held on January 24, 2003

Kofi Annan, Secretary-General, United Nations

The Digital Diaspora network for the Caribbean (DDN-C) . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 2

Current Status of ICT in Caribbean . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 5

Policy Framework for Action

ICT Issues and Challenges

Digital Diaspora Network for the Caribbean

Building the Network

2. Venture Fund & Resource

• ICT policy Framework • Infrastructure, Connectivity & Costs

• Human Capacity development - Education • Health & Telemedicine

• Developing agriculture with Information • Outsourcing

• Environmental Stability • International Business Services

• Disaster Recovery • Manufacturing

Current Status of ICT in the Caribbean

Phase 1 Phase 2 Phase 3 Phase 4

Teledensity and Access

(a) Network Access

(b) Penetration of PC’s

(c) Internet Access

Legal and Regulatory Framework

The process has so far included the following:

Policy Framework for the Caribbean

2) Promote the modernization of the telecommunications sector

ICT Issues and Challenges

Impact on Existing Activities

Potential for Development

Bridging the Digital Divide

Country Population Main lines per Fixed Lines

Caribbean Average 27.70

* This Figure is for the year 2000

Caribbean Average 507.96 9.14

Canada 2,014.15 40.31

Background Issues & Challenges

Strategies for moving forward:

Time frames suggested:

Roundtable 2 -Infrastructural Framework, Connectivity and Costs

Background Issues & Challenges

Strategies for moving forward:

Round Table 3 - Human Capacity Development: e- Education

Strategies for moving forward

Round Table 4 - Health and Telemedicine

Strategies for moving forward

Roundtable 5 - e-Business Environment –

Background Issues and Considerations

Strategies for moving forward

Background Issues and Challenges

Strategies for moving forward

Round table 7 - Strengthening Civil Society and Governance with

Background issue and challenges

Strategies for moving forward

Roundtable 8 - Developing Agriculture with Information

Background Issues and Challenges

Strategies for moving forward

Background Issues and Challenges

Strategies for moving forward

Roundtable 10 - ICT and Outsourcing

Background Issues and Challenges

Strategies for moving forward

8:30 – 9:00 Registration

9:00 - 9:30 Welcome Remarks