Govt. Committed to Enhancing Telecommunication Sector – Paulwell

Minister of Commerce, Science and Technology, Phillip Paulwell has emphasised that the Government was committed to enhancing the country’s telecommunication sector, and had recently awarded two licences for fibre optic cables to be laid in Jamaica.

These hi-tech cables, he explained, would boost the information communication capacity that was presently available to computer users in Jamaica.

The Minister was addressing an awards ceremony of the Faculty of Engineering and Computing at the University of Technology (UTech), yesterday (March 10), at the campus on Old Hope Road in Kingston.

Mr. Paulwell said the government was seeking to make a “tremendous turnaround in the reform” of the telecommunications sector, by widely introducing broadband capacity to all users of computers, with the desire to increase the transfer data of computers.

He commended the graduates for achieving a significant milestone in their academic pursuits.

In his address, Dr. Haniph Latchman, a Jamaican immigrant who is currently the Professor of Electrical and Computer Engineering at the University of Florida, said he was interested in initiating discussions with UTech about the possibility of establishing a collaborative academic relationship with the University of Florida for the Masters programme for Jamaican students pursuing computing and engineering studies.

Dean of the Faculty of Engineering and Computing, Dr. Gossett Oliver, pointed out that for the first time in the faculty’s history, there was a 100 per cent pass rate for the computing course, while there was a 73 per cent pass rate for engineering graduates, which was also a record for the faculty.

The faculty handed out more than 100 medals and special awards to graduates who had completed their studies in the disciplines of engineering and computing.

In addition, the Faculty also presented special awards to a number of past students who have distinguished themselves in their various professions, including former Cable and Wireless Jamaica President, Errald Miller.

The ceremony was held under the theme: ‘Engineering and Computing Research: The Path to Discovering a New World’.