By Darryl Vaz, Minister for ICT, Jamaica
Jamaica is making great progress in developing our institutional, physical and technological infrastructure to achieve a technology-enabled society based on the country’s National Development Plan: Vision 2030. There are four main planks of our country’s approach to the creation of a digitally empowered society, the safety of which is underpinned by the strengthening of our cyber security ecosystem through strategic partnerships.
A Global Technological Shift
Jamaica’s digital transformation takes place in the context of a global revolution in technological capabilities. The Internet of Things (IoT), Artificial Intelligence (AI) and 5th generation wireless technology (5G) are defining a new and more profound international technological architecture. The impacts are being felt across most sectors of the global economy, most notably: health, education, manufacturing, finance and security. The figures are staggering:
● IoT market size is expected to reach USD 1,463.19 billion by 2027 up from USD
250.72 billion in 2019- a compound annual growth rate (CAGR) of 24.9%.
● A compound annual growth rate of USD 76.44 billion or 21% is projected for the AI market from 2020 to 2025.
● 5G technology market size is estimated to exceed USD 700 billion at a 70.83% CAGR for 2020-2025.
The Struggle of Developing Nations
Despite the revolutionary impact of technology on a global scale, developing nations may not be early adopters of these massive technological advances. This is for a number of reasons including, but not limited to:
● Weak policy, legislative and regulatory frameworks;
● Lack of capacity at the government level and in the private sector;
● Poor technological infrastructure that prevents or limits access to the internet;
● Digital illiteracy, especially among poorer and rural populations;
● Limited budgets and fiscal pressures which have been exacerbated by the COVID-19 pandemic.
These concerns contribute not only to the ability of a country to optimise technological uptake, but also to ensuring the fundamental security and safety of these technological developments. Jamaica is responding to the challenge.
Local Response to Global Developments
The Government of Jamaica is preparing for the acceleration of the country’s digital transformation including the security of the ICT infrastructure in four significant ways:
1. Strengthening the enabling environment and ICT ecosystem
The national agenda for ICT is embedded in the National Development Plan, Vision 2030 and specifically Goal #3, ensuring that Jamaica’s Economy is Prosperous. Under this goal, the creation of a technology-enabled society and internationally competitive industry structures, particularly in Information and Communications Technology (ICT), are crucial national outcomes. Jamaica is advancing the framework necessary to support technological advancement and the creation of a digital society with a comprehensive regulatory and
legislative environment. In support, Jamaica has passed specific pieces of legislation to protect Jamaican ICT interaction.
Firstly, The Data Protection Act, 2020 which seeks to establish a uniformed, robust and clear mandate to protect people’s personal data. This is the government’s attempt to build a modern legal framework to meet the needs and earn the trust of all stakeholders as it relates to the security of their data.
Secondly, The Cybercrimes Act, 2015, (with revisions in 2015 and which is now subject to review). This legislation provides for criminal sanctions for the misuse of computer systems or data and the abuse of electronic means of completing transactions and facilitates the investigation and prosecution of cybercrimes. The Jamaican Parliament has commenced the review of this piece of legislation through the establishment of a Joint Select Committee.
Finally, The Electronic Transactions Act, 2006 which, sets out the legal framework by which e-commerce is governed, facilitates electronic transactions by means of reliable electronic communication and supports the legal recognition of electronic signatures.
The passage of these pieces of legislation notwithstanding, there is need for additional legislative measures to support the development of digital society infrastructure, for example
the review and strengthening of the Evidence Act to support the investigation and prosecution of certain crimes.
2. Institutional Reforms
The government of Jamaica is also introducing several important institutional frameworks and infrastructure developments. Foremost, the establishment of an ICT Authority which is expected to be completed this year. This entity is fundamental to the operation of digital government, the establishment of a government-wide ICT framework and will allow for the development of ICT capacities and infrastructures across the public service. The Office of Information Commissioner will also be established this year pursuant to The Data Protection Act, 2020. The entity will be responsible for overseeing the manner in which personal data in the possession of businesses and government is handled.
3. Improving the digital security architecture
A cybersecurity strategy to support long term cybersecurity risk management and enhanced cooperation within and without the jurisdiction among law enforcement and other institutions is the first step in this architecture. These will be supported by robust policies and strategies in the areas of data sharing, open data and open budgeting form part of this architecture and continue to support the fundamental principles of openness and transparency that define this digital space.
4. Investments in ICT Infrastructure
Jamaica has embarked on an ambitious programme of strengthening the national broadband infrastructure in what is called the Last Mile Initiative. The goal is to achieve universal access to the internet. Under the first phase of this programme, 461 public entities will be connected to the national communication backbone including 196 schools during the term of the new school year which starts in September 2021.
The second phase is the commercial model which is being designed to leverage a public-private partnership model with the intention of increasing competition and attracting foreign direct investments and new players to the market. This phase is expected to be completed by 2025. This investment in building out the national broadband is expected to generate economic activity of approximately USD 5 million annually.
Building Strong Partnerships
Jamaica is pursuing strategic partnerships with development partners and countries that have proven expertise in adopting technologies. The Inter-American Development Bank (IDB) and the Organization of American States are among the entities that are working with Jamaica to strengthen the country’s cybersecurity ecosystem. The Cabinet of Jamaica recently approved the establishment of a Cybersecurity eGovernance Academy in Jamaica, supported by the Inter-American Development (IDB) and the Republic of Estonia. The Academy will assist Jamaica in improving its technology and harness technology similar to that of Estonia.
The Organization of American States (OAS) through its Inter-American Committee Against Terrorism (CICTE) in collaboration with the Jamaica Cyber Incident Response Team (JaCIRT) has implemented an Early Warning System which will assist in protecting Jamaica’s cyber infrastructure through the use of Security Information and Event Management (SIEM) technologies to facilitate timely intrusion detection. This will enable JaCIRT to provide alerts as soon as there is exploitation of known vulnerabilities or zero-day events.
Important partnerships with local firms in the ICT space are providing the government with no cost access to fibre optic cable infrastructure in rural cable networks. This is allowing transmission of educational content to cable subscribers living in rural Jamaica. Through this partnership, thousands of students have been able to continue their education during the pandemic.
Looking to the future
There is evidence to show that the population is steadily accelerating in its use of technology and that firms are increasingly pivoting to online and digital services. The pandemic has
forced the country to increase the speed at which technological adoption is taking place as can be seen in the growth in online transactions in financial services. It is likely that these changes are here to stay.
The government has moved steadily to put a strong ICT foundation in place to allow for the acceleration of technological adoption through robust policy, legislative and regulatory mechanisms, institutional reforms, strategic investments in ICT infrastructure and building strong partnerships, especially in the area of cybersecurity. This will support the adoption of new technologies and safeguard businesses and individuals conducting their activities in cyberspace.
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