CARICOM ICT Ministers recently approved an action plan to fast-track digital transformation in the Caribbean region. We discuss the effort, along with some of the challenges, based on the region’s track record to date.

 

Last week, and in recent news from the Caribbean Community (CARICOM) Secretariat announcing the Ministers of ICT for CARICOM Member States unanimously approved the action plans to accelerate the region’s digital transformation. The article noted that there were draft action plans for, among other things: fast-tracking digital transformation; Girls in ICT Partnership Action Plan; and the CARICOM Digital Skills Task Force.

Although approval of these action plans is welcomed, it could be argued that these action plans should have been approved ages ago, and should be well into implementation by now. As recently, in May 2021, and in an earlier CARICOM article, in recognition of World Telecommunications and Information Society Day, which had the theme, Accelerating Digital Transformation in Challenging Times, it was stated that “Fast-tracking Digital transformation in CARICOM is the main objective of an upcoming Special Meeting of the Council for Trade and Economic Development (COTED) on ICT”. At that meeting, which was held in the latter half of the year, a draft short-term action plan would have been presented for approval for fast-tracking digital transformation, which was based on a mandate given in 2020, “to capitalise on the new opportunities and challenges the pandemic provides to advance the development of the Single ICT Space”.

If you could not fully follow the sequence of events outlined above, you are not alone. Essentially, and since at least 2020, the CARICOM Ministers for ICT recognised the need to fast-track digital transformation in the region, but the action plans have only been approved two years later!

 

The slow grind of bureaucracy

One of the biggest challenges that CARICOM seems to face – as it relates to ICT – is the bureaucratic nature of its machinery, and consequently, the grouping not being seen to be responsive to the needs and imperatives of that sector. For example, and in addition to the previously mentioned digital transformation action plan, from at least 2018, the removal of roaming charges across the Caribbean region has been one of the organisation’s priorities. However, that very issue is still among the matters before the Ministers of ICT nearly four years later!

With regard to roaming charges, and should they eventually be removed, it may be argued that it will be a hollow victory. Thanks to the pandemic, the remote working arrangements that had to be instituted and the limitations on regional and international travel that to some degree, still continue today, increasingly, people have been relying on broadband internet services to communicate – be it via WhatsApp calls, Zoom or Microsoft Teams.

As a result, and over the past two years, the revenue from roaming would have decreased considerably, but perhaps more importantly, consumers may be out of the habit of relying on mobile voice calls, and have gotten used to using other applications that require internet connectivity instead. It may thus be possible, by the time the charges are removed, this segment may no longer be as lucrative to the providers.

 

Public sector ‘digital transformation’ may not go far enough

In his remarks as the Meeting for Ministers of ICT, Deputy Premier of Montserrat, Dr. Samuel Joseph, encouraged his fellow ministers to keep digital transformation of their government on the front burner, cognisant that ICTs have become “more integral to personal and professional life”. He also emphasised the need for “whole of government” approaches, a strategy proposed by the Caribbean Telecommunications Union from early 2018.

However, what is becoming increasingly evident across the region – albeit from the citizen’s point of view – is that in what strategy that has been made public available, the ‘digital transformation of government’ appears to mean the ‘digitalising of government’. To be clear, ‘digitalisation’ is the incorporation of digital technologies into business/social processes. Digital transformation should go beyond that. Many agree that instead of focussing on technology,  which is what happens in digitalisation,  with digital transformation, the focus is on adding value to end-users. Further, and unlike digitalisation, which can be executed as a single project, digital transformation tends to be a multi-phase and iterative process that requires cultural and organisational changes, in additional to a much broader adoption of digital technology.

It is in light of the difference between digitalisation and digital transformation it may appear that – at this point – many Caribbean policymakers are still not yet ready to put the effort in to digitally transform their governments. As a result, and into the foreseeable future, it is likely that Caribbean citizens will continue to experience a broad range of inefficiencies when engaging with government in their respective countries.

 

Uneven implementation of regional policies action plans

Finally, and it is a point worth mentioning, that although there might be unanimous agreement by government ministers on matters tabled at the CARICOM, or regional, level, there are no guarantees on whether or not, or the extent to which, implementation of the agreed initiative will occur in-country. In layman’s terms, and as sovereign states, CARICOM Member Countries maintain the right to do as they please – even though they may have agreed to a certain course of action on the regional stage.

Although the digital transformation action plan that was approved last week will be driven by the CARICOM Secretariat, its successful implementation depends heavily on the cooperation of the Member States. It thus remains to be seen how quickly countries will move to support the action plan, and consequently, what success will be realised.

 

 

Image credit: Gerd Altmann (Pixabay)