A roundup of the latest ICT/technology news from across the Caribbean region for the period Monday 1 July to Sunday 7 July 2019.
Monday, 1 July 2019
BTC Apologises For ‘Critical Fault’
Bahamas – The Bahamas Telecommunications Company (BTC) yesterday apologised after “a critical fault” on its network disrupted fixed-line and mobile voice communications throughout the weekend… more
BTC apologizes for disruption in services over the weekend
Bahamas – As many persons experienced issues with their landline phones over the weekend, including the control room of the Royal Bahamas Police Force, the Bahamas Telecommunications Company (BTC) announced on Sunday that its New Providence node was back in service and all landline services have been restored… more
Cyber Thieves Run Rampant – Jamaica Suffering Billions In Losses From Online Crime
Jamaica – Jamaica lost in excess of J$12 billion to cybercrime in 2016 alone, and, given evidence that Eastern European hackers are among those cashing in on this lucrative industry, Director of the Major Organised Crime and Anti-Corruption Agency Colonel Desmond Edwards is describing cybercrime as the “most nefarious of the challenges” that law enforcement officials will face going forward… more
Gov’t Moving to Complete Data Protection Bill
Jamaica – Science, Energy and Technology Minister, Hon. Fayval Williams, says that the Government is “moving rapidly” to complete the Data Protection Bill, which would provide citizens with the requisite safeguards to control their personal information online… more
Jamaica-based PWL selects ERI’s OLYMPIC Banking System
Jamaica – Jamaican wealth management company, PROVEN Wealth Limited (PWL) has selected ERI Bancaire’s OLYMPIC Banking System to assist in its wealth management operations. The collaboration is expected to introduce ERI’s solution and functionalities in Jamaica… more
Mariko Kagoshima | Online Danger And Children In A Digital World
Regional – Globally, more than 175,000 children go online for the first time every day. That is a new child every half second… more
No to cyberbullying
Trinidad and Tobago – Communications solutions provider bmobile has taken a firm stance against bullying by partnering with Caribbean Colour Splash and Citibank to host the first-ever Primary Schools Anti-Bullying Conference… more
Tuesday, 2 July 2019
2019 Future Of Anguilla Telecommunications Market- Trends, Outlook and Growth Opportunities of Mobile, Fixed Landline and Broadband Markets
Anguilla – The future value proposition for telecommunications market in Anguilla to 2025 is detailed in the report… more
Airbnb promotes its Experiences platform in The Bahamas
Bahamas – Bahamian entrepreneurs have a unique opportunity to engage tourists from Airbnb’s Experiences platform, which connects tourists with unique, curated, one-of-a-kind experiences when they visit The Bahamas… more
Minister Of State For Grand Bahama Remarks: BTVI ICT Summer Programme Launch
Bahamas – It is with great pride and excitement that I stand here today on behalf of the government, and alongside BTVI, to celebrate the launch of the 2nd year of the ICT Skills Development Summer Program… more
Hoteliers Body Wants Tax On Airbnb Operators
Jamaica – Owners and operators of Airbnb properties should be asked to pay hotel accommodation tax, according to Omar Robinson, president of the Jamaica Hotel and Tourist Association (JHTA), who is arguing that that’s the case in other tourism destinations across the region… more
St Catherine Vandals Wreak Havoc On FLOW
Jamaica – THE EDITOR, Sir: We write in response to a letter published in The Gleaner on May 16, 2019, titled ‘FLOW disruption’… more
Wednesday, 3 July 2019
GST Dept. Says BTL Up to Date with Taxes
Belize – Two days after the news broke, C.E.O. Rochus Schreiber handed in his resignation letter and according to B.T.L., Schreiber decided to pursue other personal interests and reunite with his family in the U.K. at the end of September… more
Letter: BTL and GST
Belize – Dear Sir: The Belize Peace Movement joins all right-thinking Belizeans in expressing outrage over the leaked news that Belize Telecommunications Co. Ltd (BTL) has not paid almost thirty million dollars in General Sales Tax since 2014… more
Opposition Party Comes Down Hard on BTL for Reported Multimillion Dollars GST Debt
Belize – The People’s United Party today mounted pressure on Belize Telemedia Limited, the Department of General Sales Tax and the Prime Minister as it relates to a throve of damning documents leaked to the media a week ago on Wednesday… more
PUP accuses BTL chairman of asking Financial Secretary to waive $29 million debt
Belize – For the past week, the issue of whether or not BTL owes about $30 million in General Sales Tax has been on the discussion table… more
Bank customers still resisting electronic banking
Jamaica – There were decreases in the volume and value of Jamaican dollar transactions processed by the commercial banks’ automated banking machines (ABMs) in 2018 compared to 2017… more
Cryptocurrency/digital trading on the road to becoming a reality in Jamaica
Jamaica – IT is incontrovertible that the Jamaica Stock Exchange (JSE) has been booming within the last decade…more
Fayval Williams to address Global Adventist Internet Conference
Jamaica – Minister of Science, Energy and Technology Fayval Williams will be the keynote speaker at the opening ceremony of the Global Adventist Internet Network (GAiN) Conference this Thursday, July 4… more
Over 4,000 Jamaicans find jobs using Labour Market Information System (LMIS)
Jamaica – Since the recent upgrading of Jamaica’s Labour Market Information System (LMIS), more than 4,000 Jamaicans have found jobs, while the system has attracted 1,300 employers and 23,000 jobseekers… more
Sagicor Bank trains merchants in Swype use, fraud mitigation
Jamaica – A number of Sagicor Bank merchants are now better equipped to mitigate incidences of fraud and maximise the value of their transactions, following a series of training sessions held last week by the bank, aimed at helping merchants to improve the use of the mobile point of sale SWYPE device… more
Digicel Expects Debt Levels To Rise
Regional – Telecoms provider Digicel Group posted a nine per cent drop in its earnings for its fourth quarter ending March 2019, and is expecting its debt levels to rise… more
TT Internet speeds second in Caribbean, in top third globally
Trinidad and Tobago – Results from a worldwide internet speed test conducted in May of 2019 reveal that Trinidad and Tobago finished 51st out of the 178 countries that participated… more
Thursday, 4 July 2019
Digital B$ ‘No Panacea’ With Unreliable BPL
Bahamas – A digital Bahamian dollar is “no panacea” for this nation’s financial inclusion issues, the IMF has warned, especially if unreliable power supply continues to plague the Family Islands… more
Hacking and planting
Barbados – Springer Memorial School students, participants in the Caribbean.Girls.Hack – 2019 Barbados Summer Hackathon, planted trees at the Government Hill institution this morning to reduce their carbon footprint on the environment for the hackathon and beyond… more
Crunching the B.T.L. Figures
Belize – Opposition Leader John Briceño has written to Prime Minister Dean Barrow, requesting the results of the ongoing audit by the Department of General Sales Tax of B.T.L.’s financials… more
New Uber-Like Service For Saint Lucia
Saint Lucia – PayCab, a mobile application that merges growing transportation demands with evolving technology, is now available in Saint Lucia… more
Digicel hosts Girls Power Tech challenge
Trinidad and Tobago – Exploring jobs as web developers, information and communications technology (ICT) consultants, animators and other opportunities in the field of Information Technology was the focus for over 100 teenage girls at the first ‘Girls Power Tech’ held in Trinidad and Tobago… more
Friday, 5 July 2019
Digi Learn is Coming to a School Near You
Belize – A new educational initiative spearheaded by the Ministry of Education and B.T.L., known as Digi Learn, will be rolled out across the country in the weeks ahead… more
Ministry of National Security hosts Cyber Security Workshop
Belize – A Cyber Security Workshop organized by the Ministry of National Security in collaboration with the Public Utilities Commission, the United Kingdom-based Global Partners Digital, and the Organization of American States is being held in Belize from July 4 – 5, 2019… more
Rochus Schreiber Breaks Silence on B.T.L.’s G.S.T. Woes
Belize – B.T.L.’s tax dilemma is very much a topic of interest, despite the company’s position that it is up to speed with its monthly G.S.T. payments… more
Schreiber to Step Down as B.T.L. C.E.O. after 2 Years in Office
Belize – As for his unforeseen notice of departure, Schreiber was also careful in his response, thanking B.T.L.’s board of directors for the chance to turn the company around and steer it in a new direction… more
Tangled Web at BTL – Who is Lying?
Belize – Following reports last week that Belize Telemedia Ltd. owed upward of $29 Million in unpaid taxes to the General Sales Tax (GST) Department, BTL Chairman Nestor Vasquez told the Reporter this week that the company does not owe a “single penny” to GST and that an audit had been completed, proving so… more
Where are the cell towers in Cayman located?
Cayman Islands– In the US, everyone can easily find the location of every cell tower and antenna that is in proximity to one’s residence, work, etc (see here). This is mandated by the FCC (Federal Communications Commission)… more
Towards an encrypted virtual currency at the BRH?
Haiti – Rawdon Adams CEO of Bitt, a Barbados-based fintech company, accompanied by Maclyne Warner from Haiti, Bitt’s public relations manager, Marla Dukharan, and Caribbean Development Bank (CDB) Officer, Simon Chantry, has at the end of June a meeting with the Bank of the Republic of Haiti (BRH) and representatives of international financial organizations, and representatives of banks and telecommunications officials… more
AIRBNB Debate heats up
Jamaica – Earlier this week it was reported that Omar Robinson, president of the Jamaica Hotel and Tourist Association (JHTA), expressed that Airbnb operators should be asked to pay hotel accommodation tax… more
Data Protection Bill to be Reviewed This Month
Jamaica – Minister of Science, Energy and Technology, Hon. Fayval Williams, has informed that the Data Protection Bill, which seeks to safeguard the nation’s digital footprint, will be reviewed this month… more
FLOW says it’s prepared for hurricane season
Jamaica – FLOW Jamaica says it is prepared for the 2019 Atlantic Hurricane Season, which commenced on June 1 and runs until November 30… more
More Women Encouraged to Pursue STEM Careers
Jamaica – More of the nation’s women and girls are being encouraged to pursue academic studies and careers in the areas of science, technology, engineering and mathematics (STEM)… more
New mobile app to help coffee growers boost yields
Jamaica – Jamaica is the third island in the Caribbean to embrace WiPay, a technology solutions company that simplifies e-commerce for micro, small, medium, and large enterprises… more
WILLS PRIMARY PUSH TECH IN CLASSROOMS
Saint Vincent and the Grenadines – Plans are in the works at Wills Primary School to introduce additional technology into the classroom to enhance the learning experience for students… more
FIUTT: Over $2.5m stolen by cybercriminals in recent past
Trinidad and Tobago – Over $2.5 million in foreign currency has recently been stolen by cyber criminals who send deceptive e-mails followed by wire transfer instructions… more
Saturday, 6 July 2019
PUP DEMANDS ACCOUNTABILITY FROM GOVERNMENT FOR BTL FINANCES
Belize – “Something is very wrong in our nation, and that something is the UDP government under the leadership of Dean Barrow,” Leader of the Opposition, Hon. John Briceño declared this morning at his Belize City office, after he welcomed and thanked the media for attending a press conference… more
Telecommunications Ministry donates tablets to disabilities group
Guyana – In an effort to ensure that persons with disabilities have the same opportunities as every Guyanese, the Ministry of Public Telecommunications yesterday donated a number of tablets and a robotic kit to the Guyana Council of Organisations for Persons with Disabilities (GCOPD)… more
JHTA: Airbnb Not Just A Small Man’s Hustle
Jamaica – With rates ranging from US$10 to US$4,140 per night, the Jamaica Hotel and Tourist Association (JHTA) is contending that local Airbnb-type operators cannot be considered as “just a small man’s hustle”… more
RGD to digitize birth records
Jamaica – Work is to begin on the digitisation of all birth records at the Registrar General’s Department (RGD)… more
Sunday, 7 July 2019
When the robots come
Regional – The die has been cast: With the galloping robotisation of the world economy, small-island states like Jamaica will witness in the ensuing years further massive global job displacement as a result… more
Image credits: Gerd Altmann (Pixabay); Wikimedia Commons; Belize Web; Wikipedia; Wikipedia; Wikipedia
