Roundup: for the week ending 23 March 2025
A roundup of the latest ICT/technology news from across the Caribbean region for the period Monday 17 March to Sunday 23 March 2025.
Read More
Tag: entrepreneurship
ICTP 340: Microfluidics to increase crop yield and wealth creation for farmers, with Dr Yvane Agard-Abbot
Without a doubt, Caribbean farming is fraught with a broad range of challenges. Chief among them is that most of the farms are smallholdings, often in difficult locations and with relatively poor soil, which can affect yield, quality, sustainability and profitability. In our conversation with Dr Yvane Agard-Abbot, the Founder of HydroFluidics, a Deep Tech/Agritech startup, she discusses, among other things: how Microfluidic Technology can address some of the problems in the Caribbean region’s agriculture sector; the problem HydroFluidics is trying to solve; and the next steps in bringing her solution to farmers.
Read More
ICTP 338: Boosting data-driven insights for Caribbean financial markets, with Raquel Seville of Dataffluent
The Caribbean region ranks lowest in statistical performance compared to other regions, and studies have estimated the value of Open Data alone could contribute between 1% and 2% to the national GDP of Caribbean countries. The ‘Data Queen’ herself, Raquel Seville, is back to discuss her new start-up, Dataffluent, which is offering financial and investment insights on underserved markets, including those in the Caribbean region. During our conversation, she discusses, among other things, the problem Dataffluent is trying to solve; what it is like to be a woman in tech AND a woman in finance; the challenges of training AI models for us in developing countries; and the advice she would give to other young tech start-ups.
Read More
ICTP 337: Turbocharging Trinidad and Tobago’s ICT exports sector via D’Hub, with Devindra Ramnarine
In response to the goal of doubling the ICT sector’s contribution to Trinidad and Tobago’s GDP, the Developers Hub, more commonly known as D’Hub, offers training, access to tools, as well as income and networking opportunities to local developers and citizens interested in ICT. With Devindra Ramnarine, a Digital Transformation Adviser at the Ministry of Digital Transformation, Trinidad and Tobago, and one of the main architects of D’Hub, we discuss this innovative platform, including, the problem D’Hub is trying to solve; the specific government or societal challenges that are being addressed via D’Hub; how D’Hub can be made sustainable; and whether the model can be replicated in other Caribbean or developing countries.
Read More
How much longer will Caribbean countries pay lip service to leveraging fintech?
Globally, fintech is one of the fastest-growing areas sectors and is projected to be valued at over USD 1 trillion by 2032. However, Caribbean countries still seem to be on the fringes of that market, though they would be able to considerably strengthen their position if a regional approach was employed.
Read More