ICT Council Established to Spearhead Re-Organisation of Government Operations

An Information and Communication Technology (ICT) Council has been established by the Ministry of Science, Technology, Energy and Mining to spearhead the re-organization of Government operations, to further improve service delivery through greater use of ICT.

Portfolio Minister, Hon. Phillip Paulwell, informed that the Council is chaired by the Ministry’s Chief Information Officer (CIO), Dr. Louis Shallal. Other members include Cabinet Secretary, Ambassador Douglas Saunders; Financial Secretary, Devon Rowe; Permanent Secretaries, and Heads of state agencies and departments.

The Minister was speaking at an Information Security Management Systems (ISMS) workshop, organized by EduCentres Information Services Limited, at the Knustford Court Hotel, in New Kingston, on February 2.

Mr. Paulwell said the Council’s formation follows Cabinet’s approval of the recommendation made during a recent presentation at Jamaica House by a Ministry team, led by Dr. Shallal.

He pointed out that the presentation emphasized the uneven manner in which ICT has been incorporated within the Government structure.

“We have too many areas where there is insufficient or no capacity…and then there are areas that are (up to date) with information infrastructure,” he outlined, adding that “we all operate as if we are in silos.”

Mr. Paulwell said Dr. Shallal underscored the need for this framework to be re-structured, both in terms of equipment and personnel.

The move in this regard, the Minister explained, will require managers of government agencies to work in tandem with technologists and information officers in their organizations, to ensure that “we incorporate technology in a seamless way to make Government far more efficient.”

Mr. Paulwell highlighted several precursory “priorities” which must first be addressed. These, he outlined, include reducing the Government’s ICT costs for voice and data services and “more importantly (collapsing) everything into one platform to enable greater infrastructure and band width, and for it to be utilized in a far more efficient way.”

Additionally, he underscored the need to establish consistent standards to ensure that “all the capabilities that are available are properly utilized.”

For his part, Dr. Shallal said the Council consulted with private sector stakeholders and academic interests, in addition to their public sector counterparts, and are working “hand in hand” with them “to ensure that we can capitalize on the direction that the Government of Jamaica is taking, to ensure that we raise the bar on ICT and how it is adopted.”