Two New CAP Sites in January

Two new Community Access Points (CAPs) will open in St. James and St. Catherine in January, as the Government continues to provide Internet access across the length and breadth of Jamaica.

They will be located at Flanker, Montego Bay, and West Prospect on the outskirts of Bog Walk.

The CAP sites, being established through funding from the Universal Service Fund (USF), enable citizens to use the Internet at minimal or no cost for research, bill payments, education, communication, business, marketing, and social networking.

There are about 235 CAPs across the island, with the latest facility opened at the Mandeville Craft Institute (MCI) vocational training centre in Manchester in November.

Marketing/PR Manager at the USF, Stacy-Ann Delevante, told JIS News that a number of the centres have formed strategic partnerships with institutions such as the HEART Trust/NTA, to accommodate training programmes.

She noted that other facilities have expanded their services to offer basic computer training, among them is the Bethel Baptist Church CAP site in Kingston.

“They have a class for senior citizens where they show them the basic things like how to send an email, among other things,” she informed.

“These are people, who were very timid about using computers and not sure what to do with a computer,” she pointed out in praising the move.

The Bethel Baptist Church CAP site, which was previously a cyber centre, was refurbished and outfitted by the USF at a cost of $3.8 million. A total of 18 computers were added, in addition to desks, projector screens and air conditioning units.

Administration and Project Officer at the Bethel Baptist CAP site, Judith Anderson, told JIS News that the centre also accommodates the Jamaican Foundation for Lifelong Learning (JFLL) classes. The students are taught basic computer skills such as mouse control.

Residents can access services such as document processing, printing, binding, photocopying and scanning at the Bethel Baptist CAP.

Mrs. Anderson told JIS News that the site’s facilities are also being utilised by an international company to conduct online recruitment tests.

She said that come early 2016, the centre will begin offering additional courses in graphics, Microsoft Office suite, web design and (Accounting) QuickBooks.

Mrs. Delevante, in the meantime, is encouraging other communities to apply for CAP sites to be established in their areas.

The application form is available at www.usf.com. Once the application is approved, the USF will provide computers, Internet service and also pay the Internet bill for up to three years.

The USF is an agency of the Ministry of Science, Technology, Energy and Mining, with a mission of deploying broadband services and information and communications technology (ICT) in institutions across the island.