Minister Roban: Trinidad Conference Update
Minister of Environment, Planning and Infrastructure Strategy Walter Roban yesterday [Nov 15] addressed a Plenary Session of the ICT Business and Innovation Symposium 2010 in Port of Spain, Trinidad and Tobago.
Minister Roban participated in a panel that addressed “Challenges to and initiatives for developing the Caribbean Information Society”. Also included on the panel were the Hon. Charles Kirnon, the Minister with responsibility for Telecommunications, Government of Montserrat; Dr. Hamadoun Toure, Secretary General International Telecommunications Union (ITU), and Ms. Arlene McComie, Permanent Secretary of the host Ministry of Public Administration, Trinidad and Tobago. The session was moderated by the Secretary General of the Caribbean Telecommunications Union (CTU), Ms. Bernadette Lewis.
Minister Roban’s presentation focused on the relationships between Youth and Information and Communications Technologies (ICT), and described initiatives undertaken by the Bermuda Government and private sector partners to encourage Bermuda’s young people to explore and prosper through ICT, and protect them from those who wish to use information channels for harm.
In particular, Minister Roban described the passage of legislation that promoted online safety; plans for Privacy Legislation; the BTECH initiative that introduced ICT skills to school children; the Cybertips campaign, an initiative of the Department of E-commerce, in partnership with Bermuda’s telecommunications carriers and the Bermuda Police Service; and the work of the Technology Leadership Forum. Minister Roban was also able to inform the participants of the Symposium about yesterday’s launch of Global Entrepreneurship Week.
Minister Roban said: “The Symposium has been an informative and useful tool in terms of reestablishing our relationship with the CTU, including confirming our access to the CTU Roadshow.
“The ICT Roadshow takes the form of a series of country visits across the region, designed to foster a spirit of innovation in the development of ICT-based practical solutions, to raise awareness and to encourage harmonization of efforts in the adoption of ICT solutions for inclusive economic and social development.
“The Symposium has also shown us the plentiful benefits that can be reaped in terms of establishing an ICT Strategy that can enable innovation, productivity and economic development.”
Mr. Roban added that Symposium delegates were greatly impressed by Bermuda’s leadership in online privacy, electronic transactions, and preparing youth for success in the digital age.
While at the Symposium, Minister Roban took steps to re-establish Bermuda’s association with the CTU and will work with them to bring to Bermuda the CTU’s Caribbean ICT Roadshow. This CTU initiative is designed to educate, raise public awareness and establish strategic programmes to foster innovative and beneficial use of ICT for national development. The programme integrates ICT capacity building with meaningful activities which will deliver tangible benefits to citizens. It is also designed to lay a foundation on which knowledge-based societies and economies can be built.
The aim of the two-day Conference is, in part, to provide recommendations for how Caribbean countries can utilize innovation in ICT’s to positively impact Government service delivery models, business development, education and other industries to effect transformation throughout the Caribbean.
The Symposium concludes today.
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