Minister Marks to Co-Host UN Open Source Week: Jamaica

Event Overview

Ambassador the Honourable Audrey Marks, OJ, MP, has been invited to co-host United Nations Open Source Week 2026 at the UN Headquarters in New York from 22–26 June 2026. In this prominent role, Jamaica will help shape international discourse on Digital Public Infrastructure (DPI), Artificial Intelligence (AI), and global digital cooperation. Minister Marks will lead official sessions and engage in high-level bilateral meetings to foster strategic partnerships.
Key High-Level Discussions

Minister Marks’ agenda features a Keynote Presentation on Jamaica’s digital transformation and investment opportunities. She will spearhead Jamaica’s contribution to three critical High-Level discussions:
Open Source AI for Digital Development: This session explores how governments leverage open source and AI to strengthen infrastructure, improve interoperability, and foster innovation.

From Commitment to Capital–Financing DPI: A focused panel on mobilizing investment, identifying priorities, and implementing the Global Digital Compact (GDC) to support developing nations.

Turning Global Commitments into Action: A session focused on mobilizing support and matching country-level digital transformation needs with resources from the global
ecosystem.

About UN Open Source Week

UN Open Source Week serves as a premier global platform to foster collaboration, open source, DPI and Digital Public Goods. Following the 2024 adoption of the Global Digital Compact (GDC), Digital Public Infrastructure (DPI) has emerged as the essential foundation for inclusive digital transformation and the achievement of the Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs). While momentum is growing, it remains critical to ensure that global financing matches this trajectory.

The conference will bring together senior leaders from governments, multilateral development banks (MDBs), and philanthropies to:
● Showcase current investments to make existing commitments visible and concrete.
● Mobilize new resources by identifying entry points for prospective and existing funders.
● Signal priorities for the 2027 GDC Review by surfacing specific country needs and identifying the conditions required to unlock capital.

Jamaica’s active participation reflects its reputation as a regional leader in digital transformation. The nation’s modernization is driven by robust initiatives including the National Identification Card System, Jamaica Data Exchange Platform, and Digital Signatures. Furthermore, Jamaica utilizes proven open-source foundations such as the DKAN-based Open Data Portal, PIOJ’s Data for Development platform, OpenEMIS for education, and DHIS2 for health surveillance.

Beyond her formal speaking engagements, Minister Marks will conduct bilateral meetings to discuss digital government twins, AI ethics, and technical cooperation, ensuring Jamaica remains at the forefront of the global digital future.

Organized by the United Nations Office of Information and Communications Technology (OICT), this conference is an orchestrated global effort open to all open-source stakeholders, tech companies, UN agencies, civil society organizations, and partners contributing to a shared digital future. It stands as the only global platform that unites the open source, DPI, and AI communities, groups that rarely intersect in other forums. It also bridges the gap between these technical groups and policy makers.

The 2025 edition brought together 1,000 participants from 75 countries across all sectors. Building on this momentum, this year’s edition will further strengthen UN Member State Ownership, expand the scope to focus on Open Source and AI, and align closely with GDC implementation.

The Week again brings together Member State agencies developing shared solutions with governments seeking to exchange knowledge, contribute to existing initiatives, or launch their own.

The event presents a comprehensive overview of emerging trends on AI, from open Agentic to the role of open source in foundational models, positioning open source as central to an accessible and inclusive AI future. On DPI, the Week will help operationalize commitments under the GDC at both country and system levels. On institutional adoption, it will accelerate the uptake of Open Source Programme Offices (OSPOs) across governments, the UN, and the private sector, enabling stakeholders to shape their digital futures independently. Showcasing successful use cases will inspire replication and drive capacity building across ecosystems.