Connect to rest of world and improve operations
PRIME Minister Samuel Hinds has appealed to Guyanese to connect with the rest of the world and improve performance in the respective operations. He made the appeal because he is of the view that there is a need for all the services in Guyana to be linked if the country is to compete internationally and be identified as one of the leaders in what is done here, especially in the area of information technology (IT).
Mr. Hinds was delivering the keynote address at the Thursday’s commissioning of the Digital Technology (DT) Headquarters located on Diamond Public Road, East Bank Demerara.
He lamented that, in Guyana there are many opportunities for employment and said the establishment of the facility, which offers more space and services, is testimony to the fact.
He added that, at the level of government, there has been improvement in all sectors, including roads expansion, housing, even information technology with distribution of thousands of laptop computers to families across the country.
OLPF scheme
The Prime Minister remarked that Guyanese need not turn a blind eye to the pace at which the rest of the world is going in relation to technology as, in the case of Guyana, a start had to be made somewhere and the One Laptop Per Family (OLPF) scheme could see that process kickstarting.
He also alluded to investments and transformation within the telecommunications sector by Guyana Telephone and Telegraph Company (GT&T) and its rival, Digicel.
He told the gathering, at the ceremony, that, while Guyana needs to join the developmental race, it is the responsibility of the younger generation to take the country and, by extension, the world to the next level in all sectors.
Founder and Chief Executive Officer (CEO) of DT, Mr.  Krishendat Sukhu disclosed that the company was founded in 2003 and incorporated in 2009, as a result of his strong desire and passion to advance information communication and technology sector in Guyana, with an aim of promoting jobs and partnership between business and young people alike, particularly in the Grove/Diamond area.
He said, in keeping with that goal, at present, 90 percent of the staff working at the location are from the surrounding areas of Grove/Diamond.
Sukhu said, today, the company has successfully completed projects for several Government agencies, health care facilities and programmes funded by international organisations.
Corporate responsibility
In fulfilling its corporate responsibility to the community, DT continues to make contributions in the areas of sports, art, entertainment and other special events. More specifically, DT supports a cricket team in the area which is made up of young people from the community and staff members, the CEO added.
Additionally, the Company Secretary and Director, Mr. Deodat Sukhu emphasised the importance of their business, at this critical time when the debate on information and communication technology (ICT) in Guyana and the wider world is becoming more and more intense.
He said, while the policy makers have important roles to play in the final decisions, the discourse must include the academic institutions, civil society and the general public.
He pointed to the need to address and come up with solutions to various challenges that surface from time to time with the expansion of the technology sector, related to the arising popular issues of biotechnology and intellectual property including the Internet.
He assured that DT’s operations will be geared to ensure that it fulfils the need of the technology age as the sector becomes more sophisticated and complex.
He pointed to the necessity for companies like his to organise and build their operations to meet the various requirements and to accommodate the many different interests of individuals, organisations and governments alike.
DT has listed some of its core services as advance storage and optimised server solutions for small, medium and large enterprise networks; affordable and energy efficient computer solutions for home and business users; economical and robust power solutions for home/business users and data networks; professional networking and computer repair services; after sales services; contracts for businesses and information communication and technology consultancy.
After the speeches, the Prime Minister cut the ribbon to officially open the DT Head Office.