– three-day programme commences Friday, $5M and bragging rights up for grabs

UNDER the theme, “Transitioning Through Innovation,” the Office of the Prime Minister (OPM), on Tuesday, through their Industry and Innovation Unit, partnered with SBM Offshore to launch the Innovation challenge.

Fifteen teams will be competing in the Industry and Innovation Unit’s 2023 Innovation Challenge.
The three-day activity invites coders, software innovators and programmers to create functioning software applications to address social and economic issues that affect Guyana.

Labelling the challenge as a means of bridging the digital gap, the Minister within the OPM, Kwame McCoy, said that the governing People’s Progressive Party (PPP) is sparing no efforts in ensuring that Guyanese, especially the younger generation, are not left behind in the digital transformation.

Underscoring the PPP 2020-2025 manifesto promise, “ICT: connecting every Guyanese to the future,” the Minister related that not only will the government continue to work on making Information and Communication Technology (ICT) literacy a must in every school, but also provide job opportunities within the sector along with increasing access to cheaper data and bandwidth.

During his feature address he stated: “Your government is working and continues to work on our ICT development and there are many things which we have begun,” highlighting the fact that they have already commenced numerous works on transforming some of the old and outdated forms of transactions.

The Senior Government official also related the fact that he is thrilled that many young Guyanese are on track with the government in taking ICT to the next level in Guyana, as it plays a key role in national development.

“This approach [Innovation Challenge] is really about how to bridge the digital divide and bring our citizenry on par with what is taking place in other parts of the world on,” adding that although Guyana is not where it should be in terms of modernisation, the government is making tremendous injections of investments coupled with their determination and will in order to get Guyana on par.

Minister McCoy further stated that emphasis is not only being placed on the ICT sector but on the other local industries too, reiterating President Dr. Mohamed Irfaan Ali’s statement that a country’s best resources are its people.

“And that’s why you see we placed so much emphasis on the scholarships and the order training program… so we’ll be able to bring people along and to take people along a pathway of success and a pathway that helps them to advance academically so that we are prepared for any challenge,” he remarked.

Minister McCoy also reflected on the transformative agenda that Guyana is undergoing, especially given the vast employment and education opportunities.

He also expressed delight that no longer are women being confined to traditional roles but they are following their passions even if it is in a male-dominated field, especially with the programmes provided by the Board of Industrial Training (BIT).

Moreover, Director of OPM’s Industry and Innovation Unit, Shahrukh Hussain, was elated that many young Guyanese are continuously raking up the opportunity presented and are expressing a keen interest in ICT.

According to him: “As you know [ICT] has the potential to transform our society and economy because it offers several benefits such as drastically reducing information and transactions costs.”

Noting that the unit’s main mission is innovation and encouraging youths to be creative, Hussain said: “We want the young, talented [and] innovative Guyanese to be identified not only by the public sector but also the private sector.”

Meanwhile, Local Content Officer of SBM Offshore, Garri Fraser, lauded the partnership and remarked that the Innovation Challenge 2023 is linked to the United Nations Sustainable Development Goal 9, innovation and construction.

He said that challenge presents the opportunity for the younger generation to gain technical skills.

Moreover, he revealed that SBM is opening the door for three lucky participants to grab a paid internship at the lucrative company for three months.

Adding to this, a representative from one of the participating groups, Shemar Moore, shared a few brief remarks on how he was excited to take part in the challenge again.

In an invited comment with the Guyana Chronicle, Patrice Harry, another representative said that he is privileged to be a part of such a program. He also said that his passion for ICT stems from high school, where he was fascinated with computers.

The three-day programme which runs from July 7-9 will also have prizes totaling at $5 million and bragging rights up for grabs.