e-GOVERNMENT IN THE REGION The Caribbean Experience 1

The Regional Perspective

CARICOM priorities in the area of ICT  Assisting with the improvement of critical regional services such as e-health (e.g. remote diagnostics and treatment), disaster preparedness, and regional security;  Connecting local communities and promoting Caribbean culture, both within the region and internationally;  Training and developing the peoples of the Caribbean, including e-literacy and skills training;  Using ICT to assist with the development of the CSME; and  The development of an enabling environment for the promotion of e-Commerce

Some specific ICT-related initiatives within the region  The establishment of e-conferencing facilities linking the CARICOM Secretariat and Governments of member states  Interconnecting information networks for disaster prevention and mitigation  The establishment of the Caribbean Knowledge and Learning Network (CKLN) to develop Tertiary Education systems within the Caribbean Region, including distance learning systems  Establishing a Caribbean Task Force on spectrum management (e.g. radio station frequency allocations, etc.)  Using ICT to promote the ICC Cricket World Cup 2007

Regional summary  The CARICOM region places a high priority on the development of Information and Communication Technology within the region, and a number of meetings of Ministers responsible for ICT have been held.  In practice, the Caribbean has suffered from financial and human resource constraints that have severely limited attempts to coordinate ICT development within the region. Despite this, many countries including Barbados, Jamaica, Trinidad and Tobago, St. Lucia, Antigua & Barbuda etc have made significant progress in their national ICT development agendas.

UN E-Government Readiness Report  The Caribbean region index:  Fifth highest region in World (/9) 2004  Surpassed by central and south America in 2005, with an aggregate index of approximately 0.46  Jamaica, Barbados and Trinidad & Tobago leading rankings

The Country Perspective  Dominica eGovernment steering committee ICT unit eBusiness strategy development, Business skills development, eBusiness incubators, eLearning development. Legislation – Electronic Transactions act, Electronic evidence act Customs and Excise application Gov web through Caribbean Open Trade Support  Antigua & Barbuda e-Legislation have been passed in 2006 Customs Renewal process Adding redundancy to the existing infrastructure. Community Access Center program Online presence has increased  All laws online  Working on placing all ministries online

The Country Perspective  Bahamas Appointment of the Data Protection Commissioner - Mr. George Rodgers - Jan Privatization of the incumbent local telephone company is eminent. Launch of The Bahamas Government On-line Initiative (BGOL)  Government Forms On-line  Bahamas Laws On-line - Public Access Terminals - set-up at libraries in the capital for access to government information and service Labor/Jobs Skills Bank On-line - (Labor Department)  Jamaica ICT strategy – E-Powering Jamaica 2012  E-learning, Community Access Points, National Broadband Strategy  Jamaica Tradepoint (single window e-trade facilitation platform) ICT legislation & New telecommunications policy PKI advancements

The Country Perspective  St. Kits & Nevis National ICT policy  Infrastructure  Human Resource Development  Leal & regulatory environment E-Government center ICT skills development  Government, schools, communities Public sector communications  Surinam Roadmap for the development of ICT National ICT institute Public Sector Reform through ICT  HRM information system  Procurement information system  Civil registry

The Country Perspective  St. Lucia ICT and E-government Policy unit  Develop the National ICT Policy and Electronic Government Strategy:  E-Government and E-Commerce Legislation  Implementation of Priority areas for E-Government Solutions, for: (G2B); (G2C); (G2G); (G2E). Central National Identification Database. Capacity Building in Electronic Government and Digital Information and Communication  Barbados New ICT Strategy being developed Government Portal being developed Electronic public expenditure system Customs Edutech Community Access Centers

The Country Perspective  Trinidad and Tobago Fastforward eGovernment Communications Backbone / GIF ttConnect – portal, common counter, telephone Community Access Centers eBusiness round table Online MSME B2B Marketplace Productivity applications  St. Vincent and the Grenadines Government website / portal and intranet Online income tax returns filing Company and business registration online Customs and Excise application E-banking

Country summary  I (Informative) stage The majority of countries have completed or are in the process of completing elements of this stage  II (Interactive) A substantial number of countries have made significant progress in addressing interactive eGovernent ICT initiatives at various levels  III (Transactional) A relatively small number of countries have implemented transactional initiatives at various levels, but countries have begun putting in place the necessary legal and regulatory framework to move to this stage.

Opportunities for the growth of eGovernment  Strengthening the local resource base Knowledge & Expertise Financing  Strengthening the regional initiatives and building on current successes  Integrating regional initiatives with wider Latin American initiatives

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