Caribbean countries have been stating their intention to become the next Silicon Valley. We outline four key steps that countries should implement, in order to be a technology and innovation hub.

 

On 17 March, and as part of his contribution to Jamaica’s 2022/23 Budget Debate, Prime Minister, the Most Honourable Andrew Holness, stated that Jamaica is to be positioned to be the technology and innovation hub of the Caribbean:

“We are known for our athletes, music and culture; now we must become known for being innovators and creators in science and technology,” he said.

Source:  Jamaica Information Service

This posture by the Prime Minister is not new, as it was one of the topics discussed in our February 2022 Community Chat on the ICT Pulse Podcast. In summary, and based on what is in the public domain, it appears that the primary focus that will facilitate Jamaica’s transformation to a technology and innovation hub is education, which is reflected in assertions he has made.

“…one of the “systemic transformations of the education system” involves addressing the need for quality education and alignment with future job market…

“Against this backdrop, he said investing in the fields of science, technology, engineering, arts and mathematics (STEAM), is vital, to producing new ideas and technologies that will “expand and increase the efficiency of our traditional industries…

“We must also create and invest in the industries of the future to diversify our industrial and productive base…

“Additionally, he said the Coding in Schools Programme, which seeks to educate students from grade One to 13 on basic numeracy, language, and problem-solving skills, is another strategic implementation that will position Jamaica as the “Silicon Valley of the region”…

Source:  Jamaica Information Service

Consistent with our Community Chat conversation, education, though important, should be one of many elements that are addressed to create the enabling environment to foster advanced technology use and innovation. Moreover, it is highlighted that in recent years, other Caribbean countries are indicated that they have been positioning themselves to be technology and innovation hubs, with a view to becoming the “Silicon Valley of the Caribbean”.

However, most countries do not appear to have a cogent plan or roadmap through which to achieved that goal. Below, we outline four crucial steps countries need to implement.

 

1.  Address infrastructure availability, affordability, quality

Across the Caribbean region, and in many countries, not a day passes when there is not a glitch or hiccup in the internet service that consumers experience. For example, at certain times of the day, the network becomes considerably more congested, and there is notable drop in transmission speeds, and it is quite common for loss of service to be experienced – albeit for a few minutes – but on an almost daily basis.

Ideally, and within the construct of fostering a technology/innovation hub, the availability and quality of the internet service should be a given. Many tech companies and ventures maintain teams across the globe, with which they need to maintain continual contact. Also, and in an age of cloud-based services, teams are constantly using such resources, and so benefit from having uninterrupted internet access. Hence, there should be no hesitation about the business and ventures being able to have access to quality, high-speed internet consistently, and at affordable prices.

 

2. Focus on and prioritise tertiary education

Without a doubt, having a strong pipeline of quality talent is crucial to not only establish, but also to maintain a technology/innovation hub. Further, and as much as the focus in Jamaica appears to be on developing coding skills in primary and secondary schools, it is actually at the tertiary level that true credibility resides. For example, it is recommended that there be specialised and reputable universities known for producing highly skilled graduates in key areas, such as computing and engineering.

 

3.  Create an enabling environment for investment

In the world of remote work, many organisations and teams are accessing talent from across the world, which may appear to obviate the need for a hub. However, there are benefits in having a hub, such as to encourage collaboration, coordination and cross-pollination of ideas, and for knowledge and ideas to be shared, which in turn can spur innovation, which is an underlying objective of the hub.

Hence, and addition to having highly skilled talent, a key ingredient in building a technology/innovation hub is money, that is companies that are prepared to fostering the hub, by among other things:

  • Bringing interesting work/projects
  • Employing locals as needed and appropriate
  • Encouraging knowledge transfer and capacity building

To that end, Caribbean countries ought to consider creating incentive packages to encourage companies to establish a presence and to stay. In addition to fiscal incentives, matters related to country attractiveness, such as safety, availability of residential housing, availability of commercial office space, the ease and cost of doing business, along with other associated support systems would be crucial considerations.

 

4.  Fund projects to seed the technology/innovation hub

Finally, and It is strongly recommended that Caribbean countries identify and fund some projects that require innovative solutions to address important issues or challenges that are being experienced.  This aspect is frequently overlooked in the evolution of Silicon Valley, but it is perhaps the most crucial. Starting in the 1950s, Stanford University was receiving considerable investment from the United States Department of Defence for a variety of cutting edge projects. This sustained line of investment would have created an environment to build the needed talent, through the programmes offered at the University, and thereafter, to provide jobs by working on projects that the Government was financing.

Government-financed projects created the nexus that accelerated the creation of Silicon Valley, as the outputs were essentially a demonstration of the innovation, and correspondingly, the quality of the talent that was available, which in turn attracted other companies and ventures to the location. In Caribbean governments financing projects, either directly or indirectly, from concept to a marketable product, these initiatives will become ‘proofs of concept’, and would be a demonstration of our countries fostering technology and innovation.

 

In summary, with countries around the world all vying to become ‘the next Silicon Valley’, Caribbean countries are competing to secure the interest and attention of investors. To a considerable degree, the practice has been to sit back hoping that investors will ‘choose us’ and figure out what they can do with what we have. However, with the competition being as it is, we need to be proactive and strategic in our efforts, and to try to develop a track record that fosters confidence that although we are small countries with relatively small populations, we punch above our weight in the technology/innovation space.

 

 

Image credit: Riccardo Annandale (Unsplash)