IfG.CC - The Institute for eGovernment

“Their appropriate utilization can improve the lives of all Jamaicans and the vision is for Jamaica to utilize ICTs to attain developed country status by 2030. This will involve growth of the ICT sector and the application of ICT in all sectors and at all levels to achieve rapid and sustained development,” Mr. Robinson said.

Science, Technology, Energy and Mining Minister, Hon. Phillip Paulwell, has disclosed that the Ministry has received a formal submission and accompanying budget from the Clerk of the Houses of Parliament for the project’s consideration.

The Minister was addressing the inaugural annual LIME Government Forum, at the Wyndham Kingston Hotel on October 30.

“This administration's goal is to make the entire government online; to transform the level of service that government delivers to our people. E-Government is what will enable the Government of Jamaica to be a more efficient end user of ICT and to be more efficient, transparent, and effective,” Minister Paulwell said.

Jamaica’s runaway crime rate has served as impetus for the full transformation of Kingston into a smart city, fuelling high expectations that heavy investments in information and communication technologies (ICTs) will deliver positive results.

“Smart cities will help with crime. It will help with the identification of criminals, will prevent the movement of criminals, [and] will track vehicles inside of areas and spaces where crime is heavy,” Director of Grid Modernization at the Jamaica Public Service Company (JPS), Hugh Hamilton, touted in a Gleaner interview recently.

The project, dubbed: 'Spanish Town Software Techies Programme', was officially launched on Thursday (July 11) by Science, Technology, Energy and Mining Minister, Hon. Phillip Paulwell.

Speaking at the function held at the newly-renovated computer room at the offices of the Spanish Town Citizens Against Gun Violence Coalition (STCAGV) in the Old Capital, Minister Paulwell gave his full endorsement to the initiative.

"The Ministry of Education recognises the role that technology plays in education and training and has taken steps to ensure its integration in the teacher-learner interaction. Our literacy and numeracy programmes and activities make use of technology and tools to enrich aspects of the learning environment,” she stated.

Mrs. McLean was addressing the opening of the 5th international conference on technology in education and training, EduVision 2011, which got underway on December 1st at the Jamaica Conference Centre in Kingston.

Estonia will be helping the country to establish the first fully-digitised government system in the region.

Jamaica wants to establish the first fully-digitised government system in the region with help from digitally-advanced Estonia, it was announced.

In a statement, the Jamaican government described the proposed National Identification System (NIDS) as being “poised to secure the future growth of Jamaica”. NIDS will provide citizens with a single source of trusted identification, and kickstart Jamaica’s e-Governance push.

As part of a public sector efficiency programme, for which US$31.6 million in loans has been secured jointly from the Inter-American Development Bank (IDB), the Chinese Government and the European Commission, 1,200 government employees are also to be trained in new procurement curricula.

The five-year project aims to implement a new E-tendering software, establish a new technical office to enhance the oversight role of parliament and train 240 more internal auditors.

The Cabinet Office has directed all ministries, departments, agencies, and public bodies to submit their ICT programmes to FSL for strategic review, according to Fiscal Services' managing director, Leroy Cooke.

Cooke says his agency will, from that review, coordinate the acquisition and deployment of ICT assets across the government service.

The Government has started implementing the National Health Information and E-Health Strategy, ahead of the pilot phase of the Electronic Patient Administration System (e-PAS), geared at linking patients’ records to all medical facilities. Since October 2014, implementation of the system at the Santa Cruz and Darliston Centres of Excellence has resulted in 13,000 records being created. This was noted by Minister of Health, Dr Fenton Ferguson, while making his contribution to the 2015/2016 Sectoral Debate in the House of Representative, today.

A shared corporate service represents the combining of service activities across different organisations, to improve efficiency and service delivery.

Speaking on the Jamaica Information Service television programe, Issues and Answers, Director General of the Public Sector Transformation and Modernisation Programme (PSTMP) Veniece Pottinger-Scott said the shared services strategy will allow Ministries, Departments and Agencies (MDAs) to concentrate on their core functions and responsibilities.

The Ministry of Industry, Investment and Commerce, through JAMPRO, and the Development Bank of Jamaica (DBJ), have facilitated a US$8.5 million investment project between the owners of Barnett Tech Park in Montego Bay, St. James, and Kier Construction for the building of a 50,000 square feet facility on Lot Three of the park.

Speaking at the announcement and signing ceremony for the project, at JAMPRO’s New Kingston offices on Wednesday, November 27, Industry Minister, Hon. Anthony Hilton welcomed the development.

The Government is to implement an electronic tendering and purchase system this fiscal year as it continues its work to streamline operations within the public sector.

The system will ensure a more transparent and efficient process in Government procurement.

This and other activities are to be carried out under the Public Sector Transformation and Modernisation Programme (PSTMP), for which a sum of $652 million has been set aside in the 2017/18 Estimates of Expenditure.

The project, which gets underway this month, will be implemented by the Ministry of Science, Technology, Energy and Mining, with funding support from the Inter-American Development Bank (IADB). It is scheduled to end in October 2014.

Among its key objectives are: the establishment of a modern island-wide telecommunications network with universal service for all Jamaicans and the wide deployment of broadband service; and creating an understanding of sector dynamics, which will enable the Government to facilitate future broadband deployment and adoption, while tailoring its market interventions to complement private sector investments.

The Government has recruited the services of a top information technology executive to oversee the administration of its e-Government (e-Gov) agency.

Minister of Science, Technology, Energy and Mining Phillip Paulwell, who made the announcement, said Canadian executive, Dr Louis Shallal will serve as chief information officer (CIO) for the agency.

As part of the effort, the Ministry is partnering with the Education Ministry to grant access to thousands of students across the island.

“We are trying to create a far more inquisitive and enquiring mind; somebody who can use the information that is so ubiquitous to enable growth and development for him or herself but more importantly, for our country," he stated.

As countries in the developed world push the ICT envelope to gain strategic advantage, what is emerging is what the Networked Readiness Index 2012 makes reference to: a 'hyperconnected' world. In a hyperconnected world, the Internet and its associated services are accessible and immediate, where people and businesses can communicate with each other instantly and where machines are equally interconnected with each other.