A roundup of the latest ICT/technology news from across the Caribbean region for the period Monday 3 May to Sunday 9 May 2021.
Monday, 3 May 2021
Bahamas Can ‘Set Global Digital Currency Standard’
Bahamas – THE Bahamas can “set the global standard” for digital currencies if it can get more businesses and consumers “on board” with its use, a Royal Bank of Canada (RBC) executive is arguing… more
Cable, BTC Lose 14,000 TV Clients In Four Years
Bahamas – Pay-TV subscribers in The Bahamas declined by almost 14,000 over the four years to end-2020 as Netflix and other video streaming services continue to lure customers away… more
Decline in pay TV subscribers
Bahamas – Subscriptions for pay TV, the majority of which are with Cable Bahamas (CBL), dropped from 65,900 in 2019 to 62,400 in 2020, showing a continued decline in customers over the past four years… more
Kelly Needs Electronic Wake-Up Call
Bahamas – The letter writer Catherine Kelly is usually a “glass half full” sociologist but occasionally she draws back her bow and the arrow lands way off the mark… more
URCA: Mobile data subscribers grow 43 percent
Bahamas – While mobile voice subscribers saw a five percent decline across the electronic communications sector (ECS) in 2020, mobile data subscribers grew a strong 43 percent, according to the Utilities Regulation and Competition Authority’s (URCA) just-published 2020 Annual Report and 2021 Annual Plan… more
Flow forges ahead with plans to deploy island-wide fiber connectivity
Cayman Islands – Flow has been the leader in telecommunications in the Cayman Islands for the past 54 years and is proud of its track record of continuous investment in its network… more
Flow plans to complete island-wide fibre coverage within a year
Cayman Islands – Flow has announced that it will roll out fibre internet availability across all of Grand Cayman and most of the Sister Islands… more
App ready to benefit CSEC, CAPE students
Jamaica – AS many students across Jamaica sink deeper into the COVID-19-influenced education gap, a free application has been developed, catering to the needs of Caribbean Secondary Education Certificate (CSEC) and Caribbean Advanced Proficiency Examination (CAPE) students who will be sitting examinations soon… more
MC Systems acquires core banking platform
Jamaica – In a deal set to power a new financial landscape, MC Systems, the technology member company of the Jamaica National Group, has acquired core banking platform Phoenix International… more
OECS Think Tank Inspires Region’s Innovators
Regional – Innovators, entrepreneurs and investors from across the Caribbean region and the world met virtually on Thursday, April 29, as part of the OECS Think Tank’s inspirational and immersive one-day networking experience… more
The Caribbean has a new currency DCash
Regional – The Eastern Caribbean Central Bank (ECCB) has launched DCash, created in partnership with Barbados-based fintech company Bitt… more
bmobile introduces voice response system for payments
Trinidad and Tobago – bmobile customers now have a new, secure, fast, and hassle-free way to pay their bills… more
Tuesday, 4 May 2021
Beacon School Receives Donation Of Laptops
Bahamas – THE Beacon School received a generous donation of laptops and projectors on Monday through an ongoing initiative by a charitable organisation based in Miami, Florida… more
Flow Awards Top Performers in Tech4Girls Workshop
Jamaica – Communications and entertainment provider, Flow Jamaica recently awarded the top performers in the 2020 EQUALS/GSMA Tech4Girls Workshop. The handover coincided with the 2021 observance of Girls in ICT Day… more
C&W Communications Appoints Tony Matthews Vice President, Dutch Caribbean
Regional – C&W Communications (C&W) today announced the appointment of Tony Matthews to the position of Vice President, Dutch Caribbean… more
ECTEL Amps up Public Engagement while Observing its 21st Anniversary
Regional – The importance of electronic communications has become more apparent since the onslaught of the COVID-19 pandemic… more
Wednesday, 5 May 2021
Bahamas Central Bank Advances Release of Digital Currency
Bahamas – The national rollout of the Sand Dollar from the Central Bank of the Bahamas (CBOB) now has nine authorized financial institutions (FIs) that have completed the interoperability process, allowing them to communicate and exchange funds among the various platforms, the Nassau Guardian reported on Wednesday (May 5)… more
Logic expands fixed wireless broadband service to Grand Cayman
Cayman Islands – Cayman Islands ISP Logic Communications has launched a new fixed-wireless home broadband service in eastern districts of Grand Cayman not currently covered by its fibre-optic network… more
Flow ‘Working for You’
Curaçao – Flow/UTS has launched a national effort that will see technicians going from neighbourhood to neighbourhood to provide households with enhanced connections and greater overall reliability… more
Dominican broadcasters urged to focus on quality and find new ways to attract listeners
Dominica – Minister of State in the Office of the Prime Minister with responsibility for Telecommunications and Broadcasting, Senator Oscar George, has urged broadcasters in Dominica to be innovative and implement strategies to capture the listening base… more
Opinion: Haiti’s telecom laws must be modernized
Haiti – The framework of law governing the telecommunications sector dates back to 1977. During this period in Haiti’s history, the country was under the direct influence of a dictatorship… more
IT professionals are essential workers
Jamaica – It’s time to consider IT professionals as essential workers under the Disaster Risk Management Act as technology has become more critical to all aspects of our national life since the onset of the pandemic and our first confirmed case of COVID-19 in Jamaica last March… more
Kadeon Grant – Your girl in ICT
Jamaica – WHEN Kadeon Grant first interviewed to become a data specialist at Digicel in 2012, she did not get the job… more
MERVYN EYRE, TECHNOLOGY PIONEER
Jamaica – Mervyn Eyre has had a pioneering role in technology development in Jamaica. He encouraged greater use of transactional and Internet technology, platforms very valuable to this country’s development, and continues to push regional growth… more
Silicon Caribe salutes more Women in Tech
Jamaica – THIS week we feature three more Women in Tech, chosen by a select panel of peers under the auspices of Silicon Caribe… more
Students attendance registration app being developed
Jamaica – A student attendance registration application is to be developed to collect information in real time about school attendance… more
C&W appoints new Vice President for the South Caribbean
Regional – C&W Communications on May 4, announced the appointment of Kurleigh Prescod to the position of Vice President, South Caribbean. In his new role, Prescod will have overall responsibility for Flow’s operations in Barbados, Dominica, Grenada, St. Lucia, and St. Vincent and the Grenadines… more
Liberty Latin America Reports First Quarter 2021 Results
Regional – Liberty Latin America Ltd. (“Liberty Latin America” or “LLA”) (NASDAQ: LILA and LILAK, OTC Link: LILAB) today announced its financial and operating results for the three months (“Q1”) ended March 31, 2021… more
Thursday, 6 May 2021
More retired APUA workers join class action suit for unpaid pensions
Antigua and Barbuda – More former workers of the Antigua Public Utilities Authority (APUA) have come to support a legal action that has been brought against the state-owned utility company over the non-payment of pensions which date back more than 20 years… more
Gov’t allocates $329M to purchase digital devices for needy students
Jamaica – The Government has announced that it is making $329 million available to purchase digital devices for needy students under the recently launched $60 billion SERVE Jamaica Programme… more
C&W’s Susanna O’Sullivan new vice-president for northern C’bean
Regional – C&W Communications’ Susanna O’Sullivan has been appointed vice-president for the Northern Caribbean… more
Cable & Wireless Calls for More Girls in ICT
Regional – Cable & Wireless Communications (C&W), parent company of Flow and BTC, in the Caribbean, is calling for more girls to pursue studies in Science, Technology, Engineering and Mathematics (STEM) as the company observes International Girls in ICT Day today… more
TelEm Group maintenance on fiber cable into St. John’s Estate Saturday
Sint Maarten – TelEm Group technicians and contractors will be carrying out maintenance works on a cell site and the fiber cable leading into the St. John’s Estate area Saturday, May 8, 2021, resulting in some interruptions in telecommunication service to residential and commercial properties… more
C&W appoints Simone Martin-Sulgan as Flow TT’s vice president
Trinidad and Tobago – Simone Martin-Sulgan is Flow TT’s vice president, telecommunications giant C&W Communications (C&W) announced on Tuesday… more
Friday, 7 May 2021
Internet Banking Users Jump 31%
Bahamas – The number of Bahamian internet banking users increased by almost 31 percent to breach the 100,000 mark in 2020 as COVID-19 increasingly drove persons to digital transactions… more
Digitisation increasing global reach
Barbados – Some small businesses which received government assistance over the past year have invested in basic technology in an effort to become more sustainable… more
Flow, BTC sign on as platinum co-sponsors for Carib’n Girls Technocreativity Hackathon
Regional – Flow and BTC, consumer brands of C&W Communications – the region’s leading communications and entertainment provider, have signed on as platinum co-sponsors of the upcoming Caribbean Girls Hack Technocreativity Hackathon which takes place on Saturday, May 8, 2021… more
Cable & Wireless Business Solutions Provides Free Internet for Regional Security Forces
Saint Vincent & the Grenadines – Leading telecommunications provider Flow, continues to stand with the people and government of St. Vincent & the Grenadines… more
Saturday, 8 May 2021
EDITORIAL: REDUCING CUSTOMER WAIT TIMES KEY
Barbados – Both public and private sector companies that usually experience high volumes of human traffic on a daily basis, really need to work harder to reduce customer waiting periods, ensuring less frustration on the part of customers and a better customer experience, when transacting business… more
Sunday, 9 May 2021
Digital gift card platform to transform local industry
Jamaica – SET to offically launch in the country later this month, BlinkSky Jamaica, a new digital platform, beleieves that through the use of technology it will revolutionise the local e-gift card industry… more
ibex experiences 397% growth in BPO sector
Jamaica – The business process outsouring (BPO) entity ibex is increasing the diversity of jobs within Jamaica’s global digital services industry through an expansion of its current workforce of two thousand employees… more
JMMB Group digitisation yielding results across region
Jamaica – DESPITE being one of the youngest financial entities in corporate Jamaica, JMMB Group Limited (JMMBGL) has remained committed to the digital transformation of its business as it seeks to broaden horizons across Jamaica and the Caribbean… more
Pilot Coping in Schools programme launched, 20 institutions to benefit
Jamaica – The Ministry of Education has officially launched the pilot Coding in Schools programme… more
David Jessop | Cybersecurity an unavoidable priority
Regional – If the pandemic has demonstrated anything it is that much-improved Internet connectivity, reliability, and security have become unavoidable priorities for the Caribbean… more
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