The Honourable Minister of Communications, Works and Labour, Paul Lewis and the Ministry’s Executive Officer, Michelle Cassell, are in the Bahamas for the 16 th Caribbean Ministerial Strategic ICT Seminar.
The November 27 th to 30 th Meeting is being held under the theme, ‘Internet Imperatives for the Caribbean Single ICT Space’. The seminar is hosted by the Caribbean Telecommunications Union (CTU) to explore the opportunities for growth and development available in cyberspace and to discuss the challenges currently experienced by Caribbean
users in seizing these opportunities.
The recent destruction sustained in several Caribbean Territories by hurricanes this year, and the need for the region to reduce vulnerabilities and increase resilience to the impacts of climate change, will also form part of the discussion. The CTU said, “Participants will also be introduced to strategies and actions, which can reduce the adverse effects of natural disasters and to enable faster and more effective recovery.â€
The principal objectives of the Seminar are to:
ï‚· Raise awareness on the infrastructural and other requirements for exploiting the Internet and its potential to support the Single ICT Space;
ï‚· Identify the current opportunities in Cyberspace, the challenges faced in seizing them and the risks that exist;
ï‚· Identify the roles of the various stakeholders in building the Caribbean Internet ecosystem;
ï‚· Foster interest and spur collaborative action by Policy makers and other stakeholders to address the Internet imperatives for the Single ICT Space; and
ï‚· Outline the processes and management of disaster mitigation and post-disaster recovery involving the use of ICT.
The Ministry of Communications, Works and Labour said these discussions are imperative given the ongoing thrust to ensure Montserrat has the necessary policies, plans and systems in place to fully utilise Information and Communications Technology (ICT).
