August 9, 2024
Heads of Government of the Caribbean Community (CARICOM) have endorsed a strategy that will guide how the Region navigates the digital landscape.
The Hon. Dickon Mitchell, CARICOM Chair and Prime Minister of Grenada, said that CARICOM Heads of Government supported the Regional Digital Resilience Strategy at the 47th Regular Meeting of the Conference of Heads of Government in St. George’s, Grenada. As Lead Head of Government with responsibility for Science and Technology in the CARICOM Quasi Cabinet, Prime Minister Mitchell presented the strategy at the Meeting.
At a media conference on the final day of the Meeting, Prime Minister Mitchell said the strategy will address issues such as digital integration, infrastructure and connectivity, digital skills, workforce development and capacity-building, and the policy and regulatory environments.
He announced that Heads of Government also endorsed the creation of a digital skills fund which will be used to train 10,000 CARICOM youths in specific digital skills “so they can move in the Caribbean and not leave the Caribbean and be able to provide their services to citizens globally.” Youth unemployment and under-employment will also be addressed through the establishment of the fund. CARICOM will provide partial financing and intends to seek support for the fund from its international development partners, the CARICOM Chair said.
As part of the Digital Resilience Strategy, the Heads of Government agreed to establish a CARICOM Digital Skills Training and Learning Network (CDSTLD), and to launch the Digi-Smart CARICOM Digital Skills Initiative in 2024, the Meeting Communiqué stated.
The Heads of Government also agreed to undertake a regional project to train CARICOM citizens in key areas such as Artificial Intelligence and Data Analytics.
According to the Communiqué, additional activities under the Strategy will include establishment of the Cybersecurity and Resilience Information Sharing Framework at IMPACS; launch of a telemedicine pilot in three CARICOM Member States; commissioning of a CARICOM Digital Health Strategy; and establishment of an Artificial Intelligence Centre of Excellence in Grenada.
At the Opening of the 47th Regular Meeting on 28 July, Prime Minister Mitchell committed to championing an “ambitious, digital transformation agenda”, pointing out that the Region has an opportunity to ensure that it is not left behind in the technological revolution.
“We owe it to the next generation of Caribbean citizens to give them the tools and the education to ensure that they can stay in the Caribbean and ply their skills anywhere in the world, because there is no better place to live than in the Caribbean,” he said.