{"id":2201,"date":"2011-11-11T06:50:44","date_gmt":"2011-11-11T11:50:44","guid":{"rendered":"http:\/\/www.ict-pulse.com\/?p=2201"},"modified":"2011-11-11T07:42:11","modified_gmt":"2011-11-11T12:42:11","slug":"from-bus-stop-to-rum-shop-has-barbados%e2%80%99-wi-fi-project-been-a-success","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/ict-pulse.com\/2011\/11\/from-bus-stop-to-rum-shop-has-barbados%e2%80%99-wi-fi-project-been-a-success\/","title":{"rendered":"From bus stop to rum shop: has Barbados\u2019 Wi-Fi project been a success?"},"content":{"rendered":"
This is a follow on from our earlier posts on Barbados\u2019 intention to have free Wi-Fi across the entire island by 11-11-11. We examine the progress to date.<\/em><\/p>\n <\/a>In November 2010, the Barbados Entrepreneurship Foundation (BEF) <\/a>promised to realise 100% island-wide Wi-Fi coverage \u2013 from bus stop to rum shop \u2013 by 11\u00a0November 2011. Implementation relied on the local businesses with Internet connectivity to configure their internal networks to include guest networks allowing free wireless Internet access.<\/p>\n It is now a year since the BEF\u2019s initial announcement. \u201cHow has the project (dubbed 11.11.11 ON) fared?\u201d We have been tracking this project since its announcement in mainstream newspapers earlier this year, so we will be answering that question, and providing some insight into its impact.<\/p>\n The short answer is no. Based on the data supplied by the BEF, around 25% geographic coverage has been realised. However, based on the distribution of the population in Barbados, where over two-thirds of its residents live in the west and southern parts of the island, Wi-Fi covers well over 50% of the population (Figure 1). Additionally, the areas of heavy commercial activity, which again are in west and south, including the capital, Bridgetown, are the ones with a heavy concentration of Wi-Fi hotspots. It therefore means that persons on the go in those areas will likelyto be able to maintain near continuous Internet connectivity<\/p>\nHas 100% Wi-Fi coverage been achieved?<\/h3>\n