(CARICOM Secretariat, Georgetown, Guyana) CARICOM Member States are gearing for the technological challenges of globalisation through active participation and cooperation in the sphere of information technology.

As part of preparations for phase two of the World Summit on the Information Society (WSIS), which takes place in Tunisia November 2005, several Regional organisations and institutions are meeting at the CARICOM Secretariat, Georgetown, Wednesday, 12 January for a CARICOM Regional Stakeholders Meeting.

The one-day forum is expected to give much attention to the Region's Information and Communication Technology (ICT) Strategy, as well as develop an Action Plan aimed at advancing relevant themes from the WSIS Plan of Action and to exchange views and experiences in an effort to fully prepare Member States for involvement in the Global Information Society.

Chairperson of the WSIS Stakeholders Meeting, Ambassador Lolita Applewhaite, Deputy Secretary General of the Caribbean Community said the meeting represents a major step in the development of the Caribbean as it seeks to reduce the digital divide and ultimately create a Caribbean Information Society.

Recognizing that ICT is a powerful tool for development, Ambassador Applewhaite explained that the goal of CARICOM is to embrace ICT in the human and socio-economic enhancement of the Region, applying it in the conduct of daily living, in human resource development and in efforts of poverty alleviation. Ambassador Applewhaite charged that the Region must work together, adding that plans must be made for creating solutions to the ICT setbacks facing Member States.

Meanwhile, Paul Hughes, ICT representative of Grenada, the lead country in the CARICOM Quasi Cabinet with responsibility for Science and Technology development posited that a well executed ICT Plan will pave the way for societies to become more knowledge-based. Hughes called for ongoing support for the Caribbean Knowledge and Learning Network (CKLN) and the Regional ICT Strategy, noting that they form crucial components of information sharing in the Caribbean.

The WSIS Stakeholders Meeting brought together participants from a broad spectrum of Regional institutions working for the expansion of ICTs in the Caribbean. These include the Caribbean Telecommunications Union (CTU), which will lead the WSIS November Meeting, the Caribbean Knowledge and Learning Network (CKLN) the Caribbean Broadcasting Union (CBU), the University of the West Indies (UWI), the Association of Caribbean Media Workers (ACM) and Government representatives from some Member States. The Meeting is sponsored by the United Nations Development Programme (UNDP).

CONTACT :

Rose Blenman : rblenman@caricom.org
Tecla Fontenard: teclaf@caricom.org
Carolyn Walcott : cwalcott@caricom.org