The removal of taxes on laptop, notebook and tablet computers will come as a relief to the many people for whom staying home to stay safe means being disconnected from services, livelihoods, social circles and the sheer joy of work and recreation.
In removing the tax, the Government has undone its error of re-imposing taxes on computers previously removed by the Panday administration over 20 years ago. That error was further compounded by the imposition of the seven-per cent online tax which put computers beyond the reach of many citizens. Until now, the Government’s fiscal approach suggested a view of computers as luxuries. That position has been eviscerated by Covid-19, which has forcefully proven personal computers are as intrinsic to modern living as pen, paper and the telephone were to older generations.
Transformation is about people, and in his role as the new Minister in the Ministry of Public Administration and Digital Transformation, Hassel Bacchus said one of his focuses will be the impact of technology on citizens.
“This (digital) transformation is not entirely new. There have been (previous) announcements on thrusts and implementation both from government to government, government to business and government to citizens.
Weiterlesen: TT: Bacchus: Digital transformation is about people
In an address to the Roadmap Recovery Team, the Prime Minister admitted that the country has been underperforming and failing to utilise technology as a means to accelerate development. It was at this meeting that he accepted a recommendation for the adoption of a unique e-identity card for every citizen.
The idea came from Michael Annisette, general secretary of NATUC and president of the SWWTU. I must admit that during my many years of encounters with this union leader I have found Mr Annisette one of the best-read and strategically astute activists in his field. He possesses an intuitive and probing mind with the ability to fashion creative solutions, while others remain stuck in outdated dogma and rhetoric. So I was not surprised that such a recommendation would come from this gentleman.
In their 2020 election manifesto, the government of Trinidad & Tobago excited many with the thought of national innovation, by anchoring its 5-year strategic plan on the creation of a digital society. The movement towards national digitalisation has been inevitable since the explosion of the Internet in the latter half of the 90s. Early adopters, such as Estonia, have shown the world the realisable benefits of the approach.
However, for Trinidad & Tobago, the movement is nothing short of a necessity. Within the last decade, national progress has stalled, and the last administration was forced to shift focus over to restoring economic stability after the ripple effects of the global recession of 2008/2009 eventually took their toll.
TSTT and Huawei lead the charge
Communication solutions provider TSTT is currently working hand-in-hand with the government towards achieving the vision of a digitally transformed government by 2022.
Partnered with information and communications technology (ICT) multi-national Huawei, TSTT is on-course to attain the many laudable and essential goals outlined in the third phase of the National ICT Plan (2018–2022). This comprehensive five-year plan is geared towards enabling digital technologies for national development as an e-government as well as a sector for economic diversification