The Tribune

The head of the Bahamas Telecommunications Company’s (BTC) immediate parent says the Caribbean has reached a critical moment in its digital progress and must now translate advances in connectivity into greater innovation, productivity and global competitiveness.

Inge Smidts, chief executive of Liberty Caribbean, in delivering the keynote address on the opening day of CANTO’s regional communications conference and trade exhibition, said: “Connectivity has transformed the Caribbean, but our ambition cannot stop there.

“We now have an opportunity to build on the digital foundations we have created and use them to drive innovation, strengthen our economies and position the Caribbean to compete more effectively on the global stage.”

Ms Smidts delivered the address as Liberty Caribbean returned for the fifth consecutive year as headline sponsor of the 41st conference, which ends today at the Hard Rock Hotel & Casino, Punta Cana. It was held under the theme, ‘Elevate the Caribbean: From connectivity to global competitiveness’.

“We cannot build a globally competitive digital Caribbean in isolation. It will take governments, regulators, technology companies, businesses and communities working together, along with the courage to invest, the willingness to innovate and the urgency to turn ambition into action,” Ms Smidts said.

“The Caribbean has the talent, creativity, entrepreneurial spirit and resilience to compete. Our responsibility is to give that potential the infrastructure, technology and opportunity it needs to thrive.”

Ms Smidts also joined the ‘CEO dialogue: Powering Caribbean competitiveness’, which featured John Gomez, Aliv’s chief executive. The conference also featured a presentation by Caribbean economist Marla Dukharan, “Economic outlook: The Caribbean in the AI decade’, exploring the potential economic impact of artificial intelligence (AI) and the opportunities it presents for the region. 

CANTO’s 41st annual conference and trade exhibition brought together more than 800 delegates from across the Caribbean and beyond for four days of dialogue, knowledge-sharing, networking and collaboration focused on advancing the region’s information and communications technology (ICT) sector.

CANTO is a non-profit association made up of operators, organisations, companies and individuals primarily focused on advancing the information and communications technology (ICT) sector across the Caribbean region and the Americas..