MSMEs Encouraged to Help Shape Country’s Digital Future

Operators of micro, small and medium-sized enterprises (MSMEs) are being encouraged to play their part in shaping Jamaica’s digital future.

The call came from Acting Chief Executive Officer (CEO) of the Jamaica Business Development Corporation (JBDC), Harold Davis, who recently participated in the JIS TV programme, ‘Get the Facts’.

“Digital transformation is no longer a nice thing to have; it’s a need to have,” Mr. Davis said, as he outlined the transformative potential of the Digital Jamaica Project, which is set to enhance the country’s digital landscape.

He also emphasised the urgency of digital literacy, availability, and accessibility, noting that to compete globally, Jamaica must embrace a digital future.

“Digital literacy, availability and accessibility are major issues, and basically, the world has become a digital space, so for Jamaica to participate in the global economy, we have to move to have our country digitally enabled,” the Acting CEO said.

A recent JBDC survey revealed that only 33 per cent of MSMEs are actively utilising digital tools and recognising the benefits of digitalisation.

“We did a survey to assess the existing situation in our economy for all MSMEs and what we found was that there were varying levels of readiness of our MSMEs,” Mr. Davis noted.

While the figure is a start, he described it as “modest”, as the JBDC aims to raise it to at least 80 per cent.

Mr. Davis further explained that while many MSMEs are present on social media, they often lack comprehensive digital solutions that could enhance their operational processes.

“We also found that not a lot of them use digital solutions to really transform the belly of the organisation in terms of their processes, supply chain management and financial transactions, so we have a little way to go,” he said.

Having analysed the data, the JBDC is committed to increasing the number of MSMEs that leverage digital tools to their advantage.

“The JBDC is about general transformation of your business, making sure that your business moves into this space of being globally competitive. So, the first thing that we do is a robust 360 assessment of your business, as no one size fits all,” Mr. Davis explained.

This assessment involves the JBDC conducting thorough evaluations of businesses to determine whether a viable business model exists, and to ensure that companies are delivering on their value propositions.

If a business is not fulfilling that value proposition, further assessments are conducted to identify unique circumstances and opportunities for digitisation, digitalisation, and overall transformation.

MSMEs are also encouraged to view their digital journey in three phases – digitisation, which focuses on converting analog processes to digital formats; digitalisation, which utilises appropriate tools for e-commerce, supply chain, and human resource management; and digital transformation, which involves a comprehensive overhaul of business models to integrate digital solutions.

“I often say that digital transformation is not so much about the digital but about the transformation of your business,” Mr. Davis reiterated.

For more information about the Digital Jamaica Project and JBDC’s services, persons can visit https://www.jbdc.net/.