Hon. Joseph Hew, MLA, Minister for Commerce, Planning and Infrastructure attended the Annual Commonwealth Information Communications Technologies (ICTs) Forum in London on 18-20 June 2018.
The biennial meeting, first convened in 2014, is an opportunity for the Commonwealth ICT Ministers to meet and discuss matters of common interest paving the way for building Commonwealth consensus.
It places emphasis on the outcomes of the Commonwealth Heads of Government Meeting (CHOGM) 2018. The theme for this year’s event is Committed leadership: harbouring a roadmap for ICT enabled growth, which focuses on leveraging ICTs for prosperity.
One of the key outcomes of the CHOGM was the adoption of a declaration on cyber security which commits to:
• A cyberspace that supports economic and social development rights online
• Build the foundations of an effective national cyber security response
• Promote stability in cyberspace though international cooperation.
The full event took place in two parts. The first component was a closed-door meeting, for Ministers and their advisors which took place on the 18 June 2018 at Marlborough House, headquarters of the Commonwealth of Nations and the seat of the Commonwealth Secretariat.
This was followed by a two-day open Ministers’ Forum at the Copthorne Tara Hotel, Kensington, London.
The open forum allows Commonwealth regulatory bodies, ICT sector companies, civil society and interested parties an opportunity to meet and engage on the various policy issues with participating Commonwealth ICT ministries.
On the morning of the 19 June, the outcomes of the closed-door meeting were presented, showcasing best practices across the industry and the interactive programme allowed for further policy and technical discussions.
This year the open forum will discuss the following issues:
• Finance and investment opportunities
• Enabling regulatory environments
• Expanding the reach of broadband
• Commonwealth ICT and Industry Awards
• Over-the-top services
• Privacy and cybersecurity
• ICTs for disaster management
The Open Forum provides an opportunity for the outcomes of the Ministers’ meeting to be shared with a wider stakeholder group and to engage in discussions with the international ICT sector on wider issues such as broadband, applications, internet governance and cybersecurity.
On Tuesday 19 June, Minister Hew took part in a panel on the topic of ‘Leadership for ICT-Enabled Growth’ which included: Toulon Zhao, Secretary General International Telecommunications Union; Detlef Eckert, Vice President Government Affairs Huawei; Honourable Dr. Andrew Wheatley, Minister Science Energy & Technology, Jamaica; Honourable Manoj Sinha, Minister of State Telecommunications, Republic of India; and Moderator Gisa Fuatai Purcell, Director ICT Development, Commonwealth Telecoms Organisation (CTO).
Minister Hew commented: “It was a great honour and a real a privilege to be a part of this important Forum and to participate on a panel discussion focused on Digital Leadership. Not only did it enable a widening knowledge of developments in the industry, but also the opportunity to share thought leadership and best practices in this industry from the Cayman Islands perspective”.
“The week also provided opportunities to have bilateral meetings with member countries such as India and others that were focused on issues related to digital IDs, cloud system technologies for small business, mobile payments and other phone-to-phone services. We also engaged in discussions with satellite companies offering data provisions on the role it plays in redundancy and recovery from natural disasters”
“The reception we received from the CTO was encouraging and the event also enabled other bilateral discussions on issues such training methods, infrastructure and development of modern digital policies”.