A roundup of the latest ICT/technology news from across the Caribbean region for the period Monday 18 February to Sunday 24 February 2019.
Monday, 18 February 2019
Bahamas tech firm looks to expand its blockchain solution to Africa
Bahamas – Bahamas tech firm PO8 has now set its sights on Africa as it looks to expand its blockchain solution for salvaging underwater artifacts… more
Union Blasts Govt As BTC ‘Anxiety’ Grows
Bahamas – The Bahamas Telecommunications Company’s (BTC) line staff union is warning that worker “anxiety” is increasing as it blasted the government’s “hands-off approach”… more
Is it time for cyber crimes legislation?
Belize – Following a series of leaked sexually explicit videos over the weekend, Attorney Lisa Shoman has decided to work on draft cybercrimes legislation for Belize… more
OfReg proposes ‘truth in advertising’ rules for licensees
Cayman Islands – The Utility Regulation and Competition Office, known as OfReg, has released a set of rules intended to make sure that the companies it regulates do not market themselves in a manner considered deceptive or unfair… more
USF to Establish More Community Access Points
Jamaica – The Universal Service Fund (USF) will be setting up more Community Access Points (CAP) across the island this year… more
Data collection equipment aids climate change decision making
Saint Kitts and Nevis– The Department of Environment commissioned of two pieces of equipment, hydromet station and a Coral Reef Early Warning System (CREWS) in January to collect data, which will be used to collect data, generate information and make decisions… more
Digital Kidnapping, Privacy & Child Online Protection
Trinidad and Tobago– Digital or virtual kidnapping is a term which enjoyed heightened interest around 2015/16 mainly in the US, in part due to the phenomenon being featured on the popular daytime reality show Dr Phil… more
Trinidad uses drone technology to arrest 20
Trinidad and Tobago– The Special Operations Response Unit (SORT) used drone technology in the arrest of 20 persons and the seizure of firearms and quantities of ammunition and narcotics and a police jacket in the Southern Division… more
Tuesday, 19 February 2019
Layoffs at GIBC Digital
Bahamas – Only months after GIBC Digital officially launched in The Bahamas through the government’s Commercial Enterprises Act, it has had to lay off about half of its Grand Bahama staff, Guardian Business understands…more
BVI: Premier says territory needs to deepen connection with the world
British Virgin Islands– Premier Dr. Orlando Smith says the British Overseas territory needs to deepen its worldwide connections in order to boost national development… more
OfReg making ‘truth’ rules for utilities
Cayman Islands – OfReg, the regulatory body which now has oversight of all utilities in the Cayman Islands, has opened a public consultation on proposed new rules to ensure that these providers tell the truth in their advertisements and promotions… more
BPO Companies Should Look to Caribbean for Work at Home Agents
Regional– The Work At Home Agent (WAHA) phenomenon is well-established in the United States, and the market is now looking to the Caribbean basin for opportunity… more
Mobile Phone addiction 101
Regional– To start off, let us be brutally honest with ourselves when answering the following questions… more
Scotiabank brings smiles to customers with ‘Digital Mania’ promotion
Regional– The Scotiabank ‘Digital Mania’ Customer Appreciation promotion has now ended with over 4,500 customers from the Caribbean North & Central (Bahamas, Cayman and Jamaica) set to benefit from over CA $76,000 in prizes… more
Scotiabank targets fraud with transaction alerts
Regional – Scotiabank recently launched its new alerts feature for debit and credit card transactions, which gives real-time notification once a debit or credit card transaction is conducted… more
Wednesday, 20 February 2019
Now ‘Computer Glitch’ Stalls Oban
Bahamas – ONE year since the controversial deal with “missteps” was inked, officials are still struggling to set a date with Oban Energies to renegotiate the Heads of Agreement for its proposed $5.5 billion oil refinery and storage terminal on Grand Bahama… more
Tech Firm Denies One-Shot Lay-Offs
Bahamas – The company that gave life to the government’s Grand Bahama “technology hub” ambitions yesterday denied making any one-shot lay-offs while admitting business was “slower than expected”… more
Government lose millions in chip-based ID cards – Senator
Barbados – Government has lost approximately $4 million as a result of having to dump about 500,000 chip-based identification cards, Minister of Innovation, Science and Smart Technology Senator Kay McConney has revealed… more
GOVERNMENT TO LAUNCH ESW SOON
Barbados – The Government of Barbados is looking to launch the Barbados Electronic Single Window (eSW) as part of their overall digital transformation strategy… more
TECHNOLOGY IMPORTANT
Barbados – If the regional economy is to be transformed, technology must be incorporated, according to Daniel Best, Director of the Projects Department at the Caribbean Development Bank (CDB), as he delivered brief remarks during the Caribbean Tech Entrepreneurship Programme (CTEP) Stakeholder’s Summit and Launch, which was held at CDB yesterday morning… more
Belizeans, Imagine you just E-voted?
Belize – A person opens the election management body’s website, registers to vote, and then votes by inserting his/her ID in the computer’s card reader… more
Minister of Education Denounces Cyber Bullying
Belize – While the Attorney General is looking at ways to combat cyber bullying through the passage of legislation, Minister of Education Patrick Faber says it is equally important to discourage the production and sharing of pornographic images… more
Digital Revolution and its impact on the future of mankind.
Sint Maarten – On March 7 and 8, 2019, the International Association of Economic and Social Councils and Similar Institutions (AICESIS) will hold its annual board meeting in Willemstad, Curaçao (Dutch Caribbean), which will be followed by an open workshop for all members. This international event will take place in the Renaissance Curaçao Resort & Casino… more
Facebook bandits strike again
Trinidad and Tobago – Citizens are being asked to be careful when selling personal items on social media accounts… more
TSTT CEO paid $180,000 a month
Trinidad and Tobago – Public Utilities Minister Robert Le Hunte has reported that TSTT CEO Ronald Walcott receives a salary of $180,000 a month… more
Thursday, 21 February 2019
Telecommunications Market | Size | Analysis | Share | Outlook to 2025
Anguilla – MarketResearchNest.com adds “2019 Future of Anguilla Telecommunications Market- Trends, Outlook and Growth Opportunities of Mobile, Fixed Landline and Broadband Markets”new report to its research database. The report spread across in a 65 pages with table and figures in it… more
Blockchain internship to prepare local market for billion-dollar industry demand
Bahamas – A Bahamas-based blockchain group recently took the first steps to further train and connect skilled local software developers in preparation for the billion-dollar industry’s projected 70 per cent growth in the next five years… more
BTC ‘Bottoming Out’ As Mobile Losses Cut 2/3
Bahamas – The Bahamas Telecommunications Company (BTC) last night showed signs of “bottoming out” in its battle with Aliv after its mobile subscriber loss rate was cut by two-thirds in late 2018… more
BTC introduces new mobile app
Bahamas – The Bahamas Telecommunications Company Limited (BTC) is officially announcing the introduction of the upgraded “My BTC” mobile app. The new mobile app is now available for download in the IOS App Store and the Google Play store… more
IT CEO: Bahamas must address Internet bandwidth, energy costs
Bahamas – In order to attract technology firms, become more competitive in the information technology (IT) sector, and become the “Silicon Valley” of the region, The Bahamas has to get a handle on energy costs as well as the cost of internet bandwidth, founder and Chief Executive Officer of Global Sun James Clarke told Guardian Business recently… more
Government crafting cyber bullying legislation
Belize – In addition to the student, a teacher in Orange Walk was also asked by her administration to leave the school after intimate images of her were also publicized on social media that is also in addition to several other cases in the past few months… more
Jamaica: Seniors included in Safer Internet awareness
Jamaica – A group of elderly persons from the National Council for Senior Citizens has welcomed the move to include them in activities to promote Safer Internet practices… more
CaribNOG’s Stephen Lee announces 2019 calendar at NANOG 75
Regional – A community of volunteers, drawn from the stakeholders who design, maintain and safeguard the computer networks of the Caribbean, is actively partnering with like-minded professionals from other parts of the world to speed up the development of the Internet in the region… more
SXM has to sell its UTS shares same time as Curaçao or risk its shares being diluted
Saint Maarten – St. Maarten has to make its decision on the sale of United Telecommunications Services (UTS) soon and sell its minority shares at the same time as Curaçao, or risk having its shares diluted… more
Digicel launches My PAL customer portal
Trinidad and Tobago – Digicel Trinidad and Tobago has launched a new online ‘My PAL’ portal, which it says will enable its customers to do more with less effort… more
Microsoft offers US$75m to do-gooders
Trinidad and Tobago – DEVELOPERS, non-government organisations (NGOs) and people who want to do good in the world can access Microsoft’s Artificial Intelligence (AI) for Good grant programmes called AI for Earth and AI for Accessibility… more
Friday, 22 February 2019
BCPOU head alleges BTC offering top jobs to foreigners
Bahamas – President of the Bahamas Communications and Public Officers Union (BCPOU), Dino Rolle, on Thursday alleged that the government has been offering top jobs at the Bahamas Telecommunications Company (BTC) to foreigners, and the move is gravely impacting the morale of employees… more
BTC ‘A Gift That Will Keep On Giving’ – Unions Not So Sure
Bahamas – The Bahamas Telecommunications Company’s (BTC) owner yesterday hailed the carrier as “a gift that is going to keep on giving” through increased profitability despite its mobile struggles… more
BTC workers express ‘disgust’ over ongoing issues
Bahamas – One week after Bahamas Telecommunications Company (BTC) employees staged a sickout across The Bahamas, union leaders are calling on the government to intervene as tensions heighten between management and staff over reported stalled contract negotiations… more
Tech Hub ‘Visa’ Being Finalised
Bahamas – LEGISLATION for the creation of a “BH-1B visa” is being finalised to boost Grand Bahama’s attraction for relocating technology companies, a Cabinet Minister revealed yesterday… more
Barbados Telecommunications Market Research Report – Forecast to 2025
Barbados – MarketResearchNest.com adds “2019 Future of Barbados Telecommunications Market- Trends, Outlook and Growth Opportunities of Mobile, Fixed Landline and Broadband Markets”new report to its research database… more
Belize Telecommunications Industry Revenue, Sales and Growth Rate 2019-2025
Belize – MarketResearchNest.com adds “2019 Future of Belize Telecommunications Market- Trends, Outlook and Growth Opportunities of Mobile, Fixed Landline and Broadband Markets”new report to its research database… more
Commentary — Cyberattacks feared in VI
British Virgin Islands – I am following up my letter of last week, “Cyberattack victim recounts his ordeal,” to alert voters to possible external interference in our election, without compromising police investigations into the incidents. Foreign interests may have been influencing the Virgin Islands for years, and perhaps are to blame for the deplorable state into which the House of Assembly has fallen… more
Cellphone internet access bringing changes fast to Cuba
Cuba – After a tornado slammed Havana in late January, Mijail Ramirez complained on Twitter that authorities were threatening to evict him from his damaged home… more
Jamaica Telecommunications Market Size, Status and Forecast to 2025- Marketresearchnest.com
Jamaica – MarketResearchNest.com adds “2019 Future of Jamaica Telecommunications Market- Trends, Outlook and Growth Opportunities of Mobile, Fixed Landline and Broadband Markets”new report to its research database… more
ICANN LAC-i Roadshow yields high interest in Caribbean ccTLDs
Regional – The Caribbean can create a unique flavour on the Internet by using effectively managed and financially stable Country Code Top Level Domains… more
Trinidad and Tobago Telecommunications market by Type, Stage, End-User
Trinidad and Tobago – MarketResearchNest.com adds “2019 Future of Trinidad and Tobago Telecommunications Market- Trends, Outlook and Growth Opportunities of Mobile, Fixed Landline and Broadband Markets”new report to its research database… more
Saturday, 23 February 2019
Cayman Islands Telecommunications Market by Type, Stage, End-User
Cayman Islands – MarketResearchNest.com adds “2019 Future of Cayman Islands Telecommunications Market- Trends, Outlook and Growth Opportunities of Mobile, Fixed Landline and Broadband Markets”new report to its research database… more
Nursing student accused of cyber threats
Guyana – Nanshalee Bowen of Lot 93 Middle Walk, Buxton, yesterday appeared before Senior Magistrate Leron Daly in the Georgetown Magistrates’ Courts, and was granted bail for a charge of improperly using a telecommunication system, in which she allegedly sent threatening messages via social media to Onika Frank… more
Sunday, 24 February 2019
Digicel shows steady improvements in customer sentiments
Jamaica – In less than 15 months as its chief executive officer (CEO) of Digicel, Justin Morin has already made a strong case for Jamaican management of globally competitive businesses, lkike Digicel, which are owned by foreign investors… more
Serial entrepreneur Tyrone Wilson seeks to build the creative economy
Jamaica – According to a study by the Kauffman Foundation, the average age of entrepreneurs is 45, and at 33, Tyrone Wilson is well ahead of the game. He has founded three companies to date; eZines Ltd (2008), the iCreate Institute (2012) and Vertical Creative (2018). All of these businesses operate within the creative and cultural industries (CCI), which is understood globally to be a key driver of overall economic development… more
CANTO appoints GTT to serve as Board Member
Regional – The leading non-profit Telecommunications Association in the Caribbean, CANTO, recently appointed GTT’s Chief Executive Officer, Justin Nedd, to serve as one of its Directors for the period 2019-2020… more
The future of work
Regional – TEN years ago if as student you were asked what you wanted to become, the answer would have been one of the “big three” – lawyer, doctor, engineer… more
Image credits: Bernard Goldbach (flickr); Wikipedia; Wikipedia; Wikipedia; Wikipedia; Brands of the World
