In this our final Community Chat and final episode for 2020, and with members of the Caribbean tech community, Telojo (Telly) Valerie Onu and Carlton Samuels, the panel discussed the ICT/technology trends and developments that were evident across the Caribbean region in 2020, and what might be in store for 2021.

 

This episode is also available in Apple iTunes, Google Play Music and on Stitcher!

Without a doubt, 2020 was a challenging year. Depending on whether you are a glass-half-full or a glass-half-empty type of person, you perhaps cannot wait for this year to be over. However, regardless of which side of the debate you fall, I think we can all agree that 2020 challenged us both personally and professionally, and to a considerable degree, a ‘new normal’ is emerging.

In keeping with our practice over the last few years, we are taking the opportunity to reflect on the year that is fast coming to an end, with our annual Caribbean ICT/tech trends briefing. For that episode, which is also our last Community Chat for the year, our guests share their thoughts on, among other things:

  • What were the big ICT/tech issues of the year in the Caribbean?
  • Were there issues they thought would have gained traction, but either surpassed or fell short of our expectation?
  • What ICT/tech issues will be big in the Caribbean region in 2021?

This instalment was no different, but we had to acknowledge the elephant in the room: COVID-19, and the impact it has had on us, individually, and on the region, as a whole. Moreover, it forced us, to begin to confront the extent to which we have not been leveraging technology, as well as the fact that have been holding on to business models that seemed to focus on quick-wins, although they leave us highly vulnerable to a broad range of threats.

Our guest for our final episode of 2020 are no stranger to the Podcast. They both have a wealth of private and public sector experience in the Caribbean ICT/tech space, and tend to have their ears to the ground with respect to what is going on in the region. They were thus able to offer tremendous insights on the tech trends and developments that have emerged – and are emerging – in the region.

 

Introducing our guests

Telojo (Telly) Valerie Onu is a Digital Economist, Global Strategist and Management & Development Specialist, who is also the CEO of Quintessence Consulting Inc., the Co-Founder/Co-Managing Partner of Beyond Capital Markets, a global community that supports financial and impact innovation and ecosystems, and Head of Governance & Execution of the Bantu Blockchain Foundation.

Telly is also an International Speaker, Blockchain advocate, Impact and Fintech Innovator, venture ecosystem builder, and a member of the working group on the Eastern Caribbean Currency Union (ECCU) Payment System and Financial Innovation. Telly is originally from Saint Vincent and the Grenadines, but has been based in Saint Kitts and Nevis for the past several years.

Carlton Samuels heads Carlton Samuels and Associates, and is an international consultant who specializes in areas such as technology in business strategy, ICT policy development, business process re-engineering and ICTs in education. He also does a considerable amount for work in the ICT4D, Internet Governance and Technology in Education spaces. He also teaches Information Science as an adjunct in the Department of Library and Information Studies, the Faculty of Humanities and Education at the UWI, Mona.

Carlton holds a Master’s degree in Management of Information Systems from George Mason University, an Honours BSc in Natural Sciences from the University of the West Indies, and a Diploma in Corporate Strategy from the Sloan School of Management at the Massachusetts Institute of Technology. He is based in Jamaica.

 

We would love to hear your thoughts!

Do leave us a comment either here beneath this article, or on our Facebook or LinkedIn pages, or via Twitter, @ICTPulse

 

SELECT LINKS

Below are links to some of the organisations and resources that either were mentioned during the episode, or otherwise, might be useful:

 

 

Image credits: Mike Cohen (flickr); T Onu;  ICANN (flickr)

Music credit: Ray Holman