Regional ICT Conference to Provide Opportunity for Industry Players

Minister of State in the Ministry of Science, Technology, Energy and Mining (STEM), Hon. Julian Robinson, is encouraging players in the local Information Communication Technology (ICT) to attend the upcoming regional conference, noting that it will benefit from expertise and advice to push their operations forward.

The five-day event is scheduled for the Montego Bay Convention Centre in Rose Hall from December 2 to 6.

Minister Robinson, who was addressing a JIS Think Tank on November 27, said business interests, who attend the conference, will find their participation beneficial in several ways.

“This is especially in understanding where the policy directives are being driven in terms of the types of policies that are going to be implemented to facilitate business,” he stated.

“Let’s say you’re a telecoms provider, you’d want to know where governments in the region are going within the telecoms industry,” he noted further.

Mr. Robinson said that in Jamaica’s case the Government is focussed on the use of broadband technologies to facilitate business, “not just to talk and send emails but how do you enable business innovation.”

Minister Robinson stressed that the event will not be a “talk shop” as several critical industry movers and shakers and key policy developers will be in attendance and be making presentations.

This, he said, will provide a sound learning platform for all participants as governments push to make more services available online.

“We’re bringing speakers, who have international experience, who can speak about where the new opportunities will be. But we want to go further and appeal to Jamaicans about how they can use (technology) to build applications that might solve a local problem, for earning foreign exchange, or engaging in profitable legitimate endeavours on-line,” Mr. Robinson stated.

The five-day seminar will be addressed by Prime Minister, the Most Hon. Portia Simpson-Miller; President of the Caribbean Telecommunications Union (CTU) and Minister of Science, Technology, Energy and Mining, Hon. Phillip Paulwell; Secretary General of the International Telecommunications Union (ITU), Dr. Hamadoun Touré; other regional government ministers; and ICT specialist, experts and technocrats from a wide range of local and international organisations.

The conference will also see the launch of a Harmonized Caribbean Spectrum Planning and Management Project.

Persons interested in attending may contact the Ministry of Science, Technology, Energy and Mining at 929-8990 or email rgraham@mstem.gov.jm . They may also visit the Ministry’s website at www.mstem.gov.jm to download the registration form.