A roundup of the latest ICT/technology news from across the Caribbean region for the period Monday 21 October to Sunday 27 October 2019.

 

Monday, 21 October 2019

Tech entrepreneur secures funding through SBDC

Bahamas – Accessing capital was next to impossible in the past for entrepreneur James Woodside, who recently received $112,500 in investment loans from the Royal Bank of Canada (RBC) thanks to the assistance of the Access Accelerator / Small Business Development Centre (SBDC)… more

Using ROV technology

Barbados – Barbados is being encouraged to employ the use of Remotely Operated Vehicles (ROVs) underwater to make it easier to inspect boats and marine life… more

Digicel awards scholarships to tech-savvy university students

Jamaica – Ten members of Jamaica’s next generation of innovators are now pursuing another year of tertiary-level studies, having received scholarships valued at $145,000 each from Digicel… more

‘Low skills, low wages don’t generate prosperity’

Jamaica – At Jampro’s ‘Future of Work’ conference at AC Marriott last Wednesday, Utah-based venture capitalist Paul Ahlstrom (the founder of venture capital firm Altaventures) renewed his ambitious promise to train 1000 “full-stack” Jamaican software engineers per year made at the June Development Bank of Jamaica conference on ‘Private equity, Infrastructure, Entrepreneurship and Innovation’… more

Commonwealth finance ministers urge progress on taxing digital commerce

Regional – Caribbean Community (CARICOM) finance ministers have joined their Commonwealth colleagues in urging progress on taxing digital commerce to tackle debt… more

Samsung Galaxy S7 now receiving October 2019 security patch

Trinidad and Tobago – Despite being over three years old at this point, the Samsung Galaxy S7 is now receiving the October 2019 security patch… more

Trinidad: Lawsuit filed against Facebook user who named man a “bandit”

Trinidad and Tobago – The Ministry of Health employee whose image was plastered over social media earlier this month and labelled as a “bandit”, has instructed his attorneys to issue a pre-action protocol letter to the woman who made the original post seeking a public apology and “significant” monetary compensation for defamation of character… more

 

Tuesday, 22 October 2019

Fisherfolk Sharpen ICT Skills to Ensure Safety at Sea

Saint Lucia – A group of over fifteen fishers, staff of the Fisheries Division and fisheries organization representatives participated in the two day Information and Communication Technology (ICT) training workshop… more

Finalists named for NTRC icode784 competition

Saint Vincent and the Grenadines – The names of the schools and groups that have made it to the finals of the National Telecommunications Regulatory Commission’s (NTRC)… more

Julien: eTeck case was a nuisance

Trinidad and Tobago – It was a nusaince. That’s how Emeritus Professor Kenneth Julien described the legal battle he’s been engaged in with the State for the past eight years… more

Telecommunications Services of Trinidad and Tobago’s $400 Million Bond Offering

Trinidad and Tobago – Morgan Lewis represented Telecommunications Services of Trinidad and Tobago (TSTT) in the transaction… more

 

Wednesday, 23 October 2019

Bahamas Tech Institute Launches CDB Funded Project

Bahamas – The Bahamas Technical and Vocational Institute (BTVI) yesterday launched its enhancement project funded by the Caribbean Development Bank (CDB) and the government to upgrade its facilities… more

Inefficiency at best, incompetence at worst

Jamaica – Dear Editor,  I write in my capacity as director of Health Plus Associates. We are a multidisciplinary medical centre located in the Boulevard Supercentre… more

itelbpo nears completion of specialised AI platform

Jamaica – Jamaican homegrown Business Process Outsourcing (BPO), itelbpo, is nearing completion of its implementation of specialised artificial intelligence (AI) platform, Observe AI, to transform learning and development across the global organisation… more

Jamaican technology firm enters US market

Jamaica – Jamaican-founded digital transformation firm Ingenuity Technologies Limited says it has entered the US market and secured its first US customers… more

Social media and your staff

Jamaica – A few weeks ago a staff member of a well-known company posted quite a deplorable tweet, with regards to some actions he planned to take… more

Tablets in Schools project hits another big snag

Jamaica – It appears that the Tablets in Schools (TIS) initiative has hit another hurdle, as reports are now emerging that e-Learning Jamaica has terminated its contract with GeoTechVision, a contractor that was selected to provide the equipment in educational institutions across the country… more

We are not cutting out BPO jobs – Gloria Henry

Jamaica – President of the Business Process Industry Association of Jamaica (BPIAJ) Gloria Henry has said that despite all the talk of the 4th Industrial Revolution and the changing nature of work, the Business Process Outsourcing (BPO) sector for many years to come will continue to be a viable entity. This will be ensured by retooling and preparing segments of the sector to upscale… more

 

Thursday, 24 October 2019

UB Agrees Deal For Digital Survey

Bahamas – A CONTRACT was signed yesterday by a government official and the University of the Bahamas to allow UB to conduct a survey to gather information that the government will use to measure the progress and success of digitisation in the public service… more

#BTEditorial – High internet prices limit access and retard growth

Barbados – We again find ourselves compelled to address yet another aspect of the high cost of doing business in Barbados that is retarding needed efforts to revitalise a long-ailing domestic economy through home-grown investment… more

Digital cash on the horizon

Barbados – Local officials believe digital currencies will replace hard cash in the future, insisting that it will create an opportunity for more people to have access to financial systems and services… more

Innovation is key

Barbados – Policymakers in Barbados are being called on to urgently attend to outstanding issues impacting on the ease of doing business here in order to attract more investment and to grow the international business sector… more

Thieves burning cable for copper

Barbados – Cable thieves are back on the prowl, and Barbadians are being urged to report any suspicious activity to the Royal Barbados Police Force (RBPF)… more

Digital markets, funding and payment services in British Virgin Islands

British Virgin Islands – i Crowdfunding The recent amendments to the FMSA appear designed to cover crowdfunding, and a Class F licence under FMSA would be required to the extent that the activity constitutes P2P, P2B or B2B lending or finance… more

Can GTT explain?

Guyana – Dear Editor, About three weeks ago I received a phone call from a relative in the US… more

How Mobile Money Is Increasing Financial Stability

Haiti – According to a 2014 survey of Latin American countries, 80 percent of Haitians don’t have a bank account… more

GeoTech Vision, E-Learning Jamaica In Dispute Over Tablets In Schools Project

Jamaica –  Officials at of information technology company GeoTech Vision are livid as it stands to lose some $30 million dollars as a result of the state-owned e-Learning Jamaica Company Limited terminating its contract to supply devices under the Tablets in Schools Project… more

Not true

Jamaica – GeoTech Vision Enterprises has rejected a claim that the devices it has produced, under a US$16-million deal for the Tablets in Schools project, do not meet the contract requirement, and that this is the basis on which the company’s services are being terminated… more

Flow Head Office Temporarily Closed — Employees Health and Safety is Company’s First Priority

Saint Lucia – FLOW Saint Lucia confirms that its Head Office located at Corinth was closed on Friday, October 18th due to air quality concerns… more

 

Friday, 25 October 2019

Businesses may shift to digital following Dorian

Bahamas – Catastrophic events like Hurricane Dorian may cause some small business owners to reformat their business models to be more digital-based, Bahamas Chamber of Commerce and Employers Confederation (BCCEC) CEO Jeffrey Beckles asserted… more

Telecom Tax Matters Still Piled High

Belize – We also asked the Financial Secretary about the pending matter with a sales tax department audit which alleges that BTL failed to pay 25 million dollars in sales tax… more

Innovative Business Lab to be established in BVI by 2020

British Virgin Islands – Government will be establishing an Innovative Business Lab in the British Virgin Islands next year… more

Arium Health announces agenda of the 1st Latin American Digital Health Congress

Dominican Republic – This event will have experts and health and technology authorities that will analyze the challenges of the sector to promote a digital transformation in health… more

SEBI students touted to be practical leaders–GTT CEO

Guyana – Chief Executive Officer at GTT, Justin Nedd, has encouraged students of the School of Entrepreneurship and Business Innovation (SEBI) to exercise practical leadership styles as they prepare for the world of business… more

BPO Job Boom – $3.5b Portmore Investment To Generate Work For 4,500

Jamaica – A J$3.5-billion business process outsourcing (BPO) development funded by local investor Gordon Tewani is expected to grow the fastest-emerging sector by more than 12 per cent and provide 4,500 new jobs… more

GeoTechVision requests PM’s intervention in Tablet in Schools contract dispute

Jamaica – Local ICT company, GeoTechVision, has written to Prime Minister Andrew Holness requesting his intervention following the decision by e-Learning Jamaica to terminate the contract to provide tablet computers under the tablets in schools programme… more

Telecoms players encouraged to expand Internet reach

Jamaica – MINISTER of Science, Energy and Technology Fayval Williams has called on players in the telecommunications industry to expand their Internet reach so that services can be readily accessed by more Jamaicans in the rural area… more

Southern Caribbean Fiber Wins Multi-Million Dollar Contract to Connect Montserrat By Summer 2020

Montserrat – The Government of Montserrat through the Capital Investment Programme for Resilient Economic Growth (CIPREG) today signed a landmark multi-million-dollar deal with Southern Caribbean Fiber (SCF), a wholly-owned subsidiary of Digicel Group, for the installation of a new subsea fibre optic cable system… more

UWI And FLOW Launch Partnership

Regional – Vice-Chancellor of The University of the West Indies (The UWI), Professor Sir Hilary Beckles and Country Manager (Barbados), Flow, Jenson Sylvester have signed an agreement, formally launching the partnership which has led to UWItv being accessible on Flow channels across the Caribbean… more

 

Saturday, 26 October 2019

Bahamas’ central bank to experiment with CBDCs on Abaco islands

Bahamas – At Counsellors Limited’s Exuma Business Outlook event on October 25, Governor of the Central Bank of The Bahamas, John Rolle, announced that it would be considering early experimentation with Project Sand Dollar, the Bahamas’ CBDC project, in the Abaco islands… more

Bahamas to Release Fiat Digital Currency to Counter Cash

Bahamas – The Central Bank of the Bahamas (CBOB) is planning to release its own fiat digital currency in order to ensure economies’ resilience in the event of a natural disaster… more

Flow introduces new digital facility

Barbados – Flow, Barbados leading telecommunications provider, in keeping with its commitment to providing improved customer experience has introduced a new way for customers to schedule installations for its new fixed service bundles… more

GPL submarine cable back in operation

Guyana – The Guyana Power and Light Incorporated (GPL) on Saturday announced that its 69,000 volt (69kV) submarine cable is back in operation following the successful completion of remedial works… more

 

Sunday, 27 October 2019

YOUTH WARNED TO BE CYBER SMART

Barbados – Students of the Combermere School recently were brought up to scratch on how they could be cyber smart, by engaging in strategic practices to ensure that they remain safe, while using the Internet… more

E-commerce gurus take stage at CONNECTECOMM 2019

Jamaica – CoolMarket, Jamaica’s largest and most trusted digital marketplace, hosted CONNECTECOMM 2019, the premier ecommerce conference in Jamaica, last Wednesday… more

FLOW SMARTPHONE PROBLEM

Jamaica – Dear Claudienne, On September 3, 2018, I purchased a smartphone from a FLOW dealer in Red Hills Mall on Red Hills Road… more

The social media challenge

Trinidad and Tobago – As in much of the rest of the world, the experience and opportunities of social media have captivated the widening population of users here… more

 

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