— Guyana on threshold of transformation in public services

JUST shy of being a year old, the Ministry of Public Telecommunications (MPT) has had a progressive year in 2016. Guyana has been put on the threshold of transformation in public services, and the way these services were provided to citizens is drastically being transformed.Conceived and Gazetted in January 2016, the fundamental purpose of the Ministry of Public Telecommunications has been to develop an enabling environment at the policy and infrastructure level to ensure that Information and Communication Technology (ICT) is fully utilised for national development and economic advancement.

The overall vision of the MPT is the creation of a knowledge-based society that is globally competitive and productive; one that will give rise to the strategic placement of Guyana as a premier ICT hub in the region. The vision also includes an enabling environment for the creation of a viable private sector that will create wealth, employment, and contribute significantly to the Gross Domestic Product (GDP).

The MPT has had quite a number of achievements throughout the year.

TELECOMMUNICATIONS BILL

On July 18, 2016, the Telecommunications Bill was passed in the National Assembly without any amendments. The Bill sets out the administration’s policy paper to effectively bring to an end a monopoly enjoyed by one agent in the telecommunication sector.

The position taken by the present Administration confirms to its regional commitment, as established in the Revised Treaty of Chaguaramas, which speaks specifically to establishing an enabling environment to promote competition and fair trade.

Foreign Affairs Minister Carl Greenidge has said the legislation would allow other companies to ensure the local market offers a variety of services and benefits, including more mobile rates, land lines, and a host of other Internet-related services.

ONE LAPTOP PER TEACHER

This initiative forms part of the larger Improving Digital Equity Access and Learning (IDEAL) programme, which also includes schools’ connectivity to the Internet. The programme was launched in September by President David Granger as the beginning of a process of ICT transformation throughout the education system – a system which embraces over a quarter of a million Guyanese.

Since the launch of the programme in September, the Ministry of Public Telecommunications, through the E-Government Agency, has distributed 7,444 laptops to teachers in regions One, Two, Five, Six, Seven and Eight, which benefited all Guyanese, including students, their teachers and parents, young professionals and entrepreneurs.

Public Telecommunications Minister Catherine Hughes explained that the goal of the MPT goes further than the distribution of laptops in the region. She said the MPT is working to create a series of ICT hubs across the region, where members of the communities, including teachers and students, can go and have Internet access and connectivity.

The teachers have also been assured that, in the first quarter of 2017, the MPT will be rolling out satellite-based Internet access for the provision of better Internet connectivity to the larger communities, particularly those with a large student population.

HACKATHON

The MPT hosted its first Hackathon during the period November 4 to 6, 2016, at the Arthur Chung Conference Centre (ACCC). It was a 48–hour event wherein programmers/coders were able to compete in teams to develop applications for possible use in the public and private sectors.

Minister Hughes said the MPT saw the Hackathon as an opportunity for young ICT entrepreneurs to be creative.
“Our people — the young and not so young — can learn and earn; establish new businesses; create linkages in and out of Guyana, and ultimately contribute to the drive to digitise our nation,” Hughes stated.

Team V75 won the Hackathon. The MPT will be hosting five such events during 2017. Hackathons are events typically lasting several days, during which large numbers of people meet to engage in collaborative computer programming.

ICT TRAINING

Minister Hughes described the visit to China as an exceptionally successful “fact-finding mission.”  She said the visit afforded the team several opportunities, which included meeting with key officials of Huawei, a reputable global company, to discuss all aspects of the ongoing maintenance and expansion of Guyana’s US$32M E-Government network; and to explore opportunities for training – creating new skills and upgrading existing technological talent.

In addition, the team participated in “Huawei Connect 2016”, a three-day global integrated technology conference in Shanghai, which attracted about 20,000 ICT leaders and experts from more than 120 countries. The conference provided a platform for leaders in the ICT industry around the world to view the latest technological developments in action, and to attend information workshops on cutting-edge solutions, such as Cloud Computing.

FIBER-OPTIC CABLE

This has seen several ministries and agencies being added to the E- Governance Project in the year 2016, according to Minister Hughes. She said the objective is to improve the quality of social services, to fight crime, to boost the standard of education, to promote digital literacy, and provide an ICT path.

Among the ministries that have been linked to the network for this year are: Natural Resources, Agriculture, Communities, Public Infrastructure, Business, Legal Affairs, Finance, Public Health, Public Security, Education, Foreign Affairs, Presidency, Public Telecommunications, Indigenous Peoples’ Affairs, and Social Protection. The Department of Public Service, the Central Housing and Planning Authority, the Guyana Revenue Authority, the Citizen Security Programme, Parliament Office, the Arthur Chung Convention Centre, and the headquarters of the Guyana Police Force have also been connected. (GINA)