CANTO Advancing the Caribbean through Information and Communication Connecting the Caribbean Harnessing Broadband for Regional Development T.I.C. Guadeloupe, November 27-29, 2008 CHAMBRE DE COMMERCE ET D'INDUSTRIE DE POINTE-A-PITRE D.A.E.T.
CONTENTS CANTO & its Mission Overview of Connecting the Caribbean (CTC) CTC Milestones Lessons Learnt Region Broadband Statistics CTC Supporting Broadband Development 2
CANTO & its Mission CANTO was founded in 1985 as a nonprofit association of nine national telephone operating companies in the Caribbean. The focus then was to address a wide array of issues that were of mutual concern to the companies. From that beginning CANTO has grown into a major trade association in the telecommunication sector, not only in the region but internationally. Membership stands at 128 and includes: 46 active members - Regional Operating Companies 82 affiliate members - Equipment suppliers & others Members are from 30 countries & 4 continents (North America, South America, Europe & Asia) 3
CANTO & its Mission To facilitate the provision of innovative information and communication for the region s economic and cultural development, as well as for the benefit of our members through the sharing of knowledge and expertise and through coordination of strategic standpoints and policymaking. To achieve this mission our key products are: 1. Our Annual Conference & Trade Exhibition (25 th Jubilee July 2009) 2. Various technical & non-technical training programmes 3. ( e.g. Mini MBA in Telecoms, Human Resource & Best Practises 4. (TELECOM, DATACOM, NETWORKING & VOIP) 5. Publications (Annual CANTO Directory, Quarterly Cancion, Monthly and Weekly Briefs) 6. Caribbean ICT Information Centre 7. Working Committees: New and Emerging Technology, Disaster Preparedness, Communication and Marketing, Human Resources and Financial Advisory 8. Special projects - E.g. Connect the Caribbean 4
Overview of CTC Connecting the Caribbean is a CANTO sponsored initiative. Our goal is to work with other public and private sector stakeholders (inc. CTU, ITU, UWI, CARICOM Secretariat, CARICAD & CKLN) to mobilize the human, financial and technical resources to connect the unconnected in the region by 2015. Connecting the Caribbean Connect the people of the region by 2015 World Summit on the Information Society WSIS Connect the unconnected worldwide by 2015 United Nations Millennium Development Goals Goal 8 Develop a global partnership for development Target 8f deals with making ICT available to all 5
Overview of CTC Like Connect the World, Connect the Caribbean is built around the three pillars; Affordable services & relevant applications Infrastructure development Enabling & harmonised Legal & regulatory framework 6
CTC Milestones To date we have done the following: Developed a framework document which outlines the principles of CTC, key enablers for ICT development, and working approach. Built awareness of and support for the project through stakeholder meetings and various other discussion fora, including a panel of regional government ministers with responsibility for ICT. Developed partnerships with other regional agencies. Facilitated a computer for schools programme under the One Laptop per Child (OLPC) project. Pilot projects have been launched in Suriname and Bahamas through partnerships between the main telecommunications providers in the respective countries and NORTEL. 7
CTC Milestones Identified five project areas on which we will focus our activities in 2009 and 2010: Research, document and disseminate information on ecommerce best practise guidelines Research, document and disseminate information on egovernment best practise guidelines Develop and execute a regional cyber security awareness programme A regional ICT indicators project A regional ICT training facilitation programme We are currently developing action plans for these programmes 8
Lessons Learnt What have we learnt on our journey thus far? There are literally hundreds of ICT related projects being undertaken throughout the Region These projects are being undertaken by various entities - governments, regional organisations, private sector, NGOs and civil society Synergies exists across many projects regionally and even in a particular country but not being sufficiently exploited - for example, -individual countries developing national ICT plans -national regulatory agencies (NRAs) developing sector policies independently 9
Lessons Learnt (contd.) Collaboration at varying levels (country to country, across agencies etc) is often quite challenging Difficult to source reliable data such as ICT statistics on the region from the Region ICT capacity building is a critical need Dependence on extra regional resources for critical skills Lack of information on skilled resources from within the region (regional skills bank) Broad-based consensus that ICT development in particular the availability of affordable broadband infrastructure is necessary for regional development 10
Broadband Penetration Across the Caribbean 40 35 30 25 20 15 10 5 Per 100 in h ab itants - Antigua/ Barbuda Bahamas Barbados Belize Bermuda Cuba Dominica Grenada Guyana Jamaica St Vincent & The Grenadines Suriname Trinidad & Tobago Source ITU 2007 11
Comparative Broadband Statistics Broadband penetration across the region is lagging behind the developed markets Avg. Caribbean Per 100 Inhabitants 5 USA 20 UK 22 Growth in mobile services offers a way forward to increased broadband penetration 12
Jamaica Suriname Trinidad & Tobago Mobile Penetration 160 140 120 100 80 60 40 20-13 St Vincent & The Grenadines Guyana Grenada Dominica Cuba Antigua/ Barbuda Bahamas Barbados Belize Bermuda Per 100 inhabitants
Scope for Broadband Development via Mobile Factors encouraging growth in mobile broadband: Growth in mobile services regionally & globally Developments in mobile technology & market Advancements in technology - 3G, 4G, WIMAX etc Increased availability of 3G enabled mobile devices at reduced prices Growth in data traffic Reductions in mobile data rates Increased availability of mobile content Given that spectrum is a limited resource, both fixed and mobile broadband will be a part of the future landscape 14
Create Demand for Broadband The mobile explosion in the region offers some interesting lessons If citizens see the value in the use of broadband as they did in the case on mobile telephony, they will want the services made available by the technology CANTO will focus on the demand as well as the supply side of the market as part of its CTC initiative 15
CTC Supporting Broadband Development As an association of telecommunications operating companies, service providers & equipment suppliers CANTO is well placed to support in these areas. Through CTC we intend to focus on the following: -Partner with governments and other agencies to exploit the synergies that exists in the various projects planned or underway. -Provide reliable market indicators to improve investment climate -Stimulate demand through initiatives designed to push the development of ecommerce and e-government 16
CTC Supporting Broadband Development Support ICT capacity building initiatives of our members & the wider community Build awareness on issues such as cyber security Facilitate infrastructure development through encouraging partnerships 17
Silver Anniversary 2009 In 2009 we celebrate our silver anniversary under the theme Advancing the Caribbean Through Information & Communications Our 25 th Annual Conference & Trade Exhibition is scheduled for July 13 15 2009 at the Hyatt Regency Hotel Trinidad & Tobago Be sure to join us then 18
Thank You Regenie Fräser Secretary General CANTO rfraser@canto.org #67 PICTON STREET NEWTOWN, PORT OF SPAIN TRINIDAD, W.I. Tel: (868) 622-3770/4781 Fax: (868) 622-3751 Web site: www.canto.org 19