(CARICOM Secretariat, Turkeyen, Greater Georgetown, Guyana) The working session of the Connect Americas Summit began in the afternoon of Wednesday July 18 with two high-level panels discussing critical issues related to Broadband development.
The first panel discussion session focussed on the topic Towards a future Built on Broadband was chaired by the Secretary General of the International Telecommunications Union (ITU) Dr. Hamadoun Toure, and discussed why Broadband is important for the Americas and initiatives which can be undertaken to encourage Broadband inclusion.
The CARICOM Region was represented by the Honourable Carolyn Seepersad-Bachan, Minister of Public Administration, and Trinidad and Tobago. Some of the submissions from the Minister included the need for new regulatory policies, reliable governance frameworks and a regional harmonised approach. The challenges identified in this session included affordability of access devices, the need for ‘complete Education solutions’, absence of reliable legal& regulatory frameworks, revised Tax policies, the need for more consumer-centric applications to promote/drive demand.
The second panel discussion treated with the topic: Bankrolling Broadband – Is Big Government Back? Chaired by Mr. Bahima Sanou, ITU-BDT Director, the Discussion examined issues including Government’s evolving role as facilitator in Broadband development; existing bottlenecks; keys to successful strategies; new objectives for the Universal service Fund (USF) and how to strengthen the human face of ICT.
Representatives from the CARICOM region were the Honourable Edmond Mansoor, Minister of State, Antigua and Barbuda and Ms. Glenda Medford, representative of CANTO. Both representatives highlighted the need for online services in the areas of Education, Health and E-Government.
During the panel discussion on effective use of the Universal Service Funds, the OECS Universal service fund and its uses were highlighted as a best practice.
The ITU used the opportunity of the debate to announce three new initiatives to be launched this year aimed at spurring Broadband development, adoption and uptake across the world: (1) M-Powering people, (2) Mechanisms for increased access and use of Satellites and (3) Youth, Innovation and Entrepreneurship.
